Because I need something trivial to think about........

galegetsthin
galegetsthin Posts: 1,340 Member
edited December 2024 in Chit-Chat
I was sitting at my desk, straightening it up, dusting, all that good stuff. I looked down. I have 2 small plastic toy meerkats on my desk.

When I was a child, I had these books that told all about different animals. The meerkats always made me giggle. I thought they looked like they were waiting for a bus, so meerkats became kind of a running joke in my family. They were waiting for a bus to Cincinatti is what we all finally decided on.

For the past 20 years, with every single gift my mother has sent me or given me, there have been two small plastic meerkats. I have a box with over a hundred of them now. They make me think of mom (who lives across the country and I never get to see anymore). So I put a pair on my desk.


Do you have anything on your desk that if someone were working in your area, would sit down and think "What the hell is THAT here for"? And if you do, I would love the story behind it.

Replies

  • the_journeyman
    the_journeyman Posts: 1,877 Member
    I have a 1:18 scale Ducati Monster. It's almost and exact replica of my real Ducati Monster.

    WHY it is there? Well, the one Monster toy on my desk on our wedding cake. It was snuck on at the last second before the reception started by my sister. My wife and I left our wedding on my real Monster, yes, in a wedding dress and tux, we headed down the road on a motorcycle.

    I tossed a few pics in my profile if anyone wants to see the real Monster.

    JM
  • EmCarroll1990
    EmCarroll1990 Posts: 2,832 Member
    I did. I had some McDonald's kids meal toys that I thought were cute on my desk. But not anymore.
  • Lil_MiSsSunshiNe
    Lil_MiSsSunshiNe Posts: 167
    I don't have anything like that but I did have a co worker that specially ordered a coaster for me. It reads "There are consequences to not doing your timesheets" with a guy having to swab the deck on a boat. I always forget to turn in my time and my boss is always threatining to not pay me. I thought that was really nice.
  • foxy2311
    foxy2311 Posts: 179
    I have two mini blue dice. My coworker went to Vegas and brought me back a shot glass that had the dice in it. I have a marble sitting between the two dice, because for a little gag gift, the boss all gave us marbles for when we all "lost our marbles" and I have a set of four legos stacked on top of each other. These represent how we work with others and our personalities. Red is my top color because I'm very take charge and stubborn, blue, yellow and then green....green is the most calm in working with others. Only three people in my department are red and the rest are green. Very interesting.
  • nevertoolate2
    nevertoolate2 Posts: 309 Member
    Two things: The first is a New Yorker desktop calendar my wife bought me here in the UK! Why? Because in a few weeks my wife and I will be touching down in the big apple to celebrate her 40th birthday! Midtown and downtown restaurant recommendations gratefully received and for a week MFP will take a back seat!

    The second thing is a small peice of oak, about two inches long, turned on a lathe to the shape of a bar bell! Why? Because I have a bad habit of biting my nails and fingers and my Dad made me this so that I had something to fidget with!
  • foxy2311
    foxy2311 Posts: 179
    I did. I had some McDonald's kids meal toys that I thought were cute on my desk. But not anymore.

    I have a purple My LIttle Pony from a kids meal I got about a year ago :)
  • Sarahbara76
    Sarahbara76 Posts: 601 Member
    A stuffed pink poodle. When I 1st started working here I bought staplers and scissors and even a pop up post dispenser in pink because I figured the guys wouldn't steal something pink. I like pink but it's not my favorite color my favorite color is red.
    But one of the techs who just happened to be gay thought I was so very feminine and girly that when he saw the poodle it reminded him of me. It had a little note too "To Sarah , a true rose amongst thorns"
    That tech moved on but the poodle stays ..kids love it and adults question it. :flowerforyou:
  • scapez
    scapez Posts: 2,018 Member
    I have lots of toys on my desk including:

    14 wind up animals
    Plastic Pink Flamingo
    Small Red Beacon Light (like the old school police car lights)
    A wind up airplane
    Set of 7 small rubber duckies.

    I'm 45, BTW. :laugh:
  • frixtine
    frixtine Posts: 965 Member
    My company used little cow stress squeezy things with our logo on them as giveaways for tradeshows and such. After a particularly stressful week, me and my coworkers mutilated one and sent the picture to our supervisor (who knew that we were being way overworked, so he understood). Over a period of the next three years, we mutilated two more and left the three of them on my bookshelf in my office to remind the executives that we could only be pushed so far before we'd crack!!! :laugh:
  • SARgirl
    SARgirl Posts: 572 Member
    I have a pen that is a pink dinosaur and is similar to a rock-em sock-em robot where you can push buttons on his back and his arms punch out. One of my co-workers bought him for me a couple years ago when we worked together and shared an office. She had one and I had one and if we were having a stressful day we would break them out:) I've never actually used it as a writing utensil!
  • doorki
    doorki Posts: 2,576 Member
    Personal items on the drone work spaces are frowned upon.
  • galegetsthin
    galegetsthin Posts: 1,340 Member
    I am loving all these items and the stories behind them!!!!!! Keep 'em coming!
  • bikermike5094
    bikermike5094 Posts: 1,752 Member
    I have a statue of KOKOPELLI dancing on a rock i got at a gift store at the grand canyon. Just reminds me of a great vacation with the family a few years ago.
  • WhatDoesLisa
    WhatDoesLisa Posts: 214
    This is kind of morbid but I have a collection of stuff from people who were laid off. I have..

    -a rubber hammer
    -a coffee cup
    -a magic 8 ball
    -a weird little doll (I think it is from South Africa)
    -a big paper clip to hold notes
    -a "Fun" meter button
    -a weight from an old-fashioned scale
    -an M&M with someone's face stamped on it
    -a green puzzle that you can twist into many shapes
    -a Woodie marionnette from Toy Story

    And my tiny shrine to Karl Lagerfeld because I think he says the dumbest things!
  • Wonderwoman2677
    Wonderwoman2677 Posts: 428 Member
    I have a cut out picture of Luigi on it that my son did while waiting for me to finish working one day. I also have a pretty plastic fish in a clear plastic case that my daughter gave me as a gift. A card with roses on it from my husband from before he was my husband. Also a beaded lizard that my daughter made.

    I also have a real fish tank with a fish in it and a plant.

    There's a lot of stuff on my desk :/
  • PapaverSomniferum
    PapaverSomniferum Posts: 2,670 Member
    my work desk is shared with other staff so it's not personalized.

    but my car has a pink unicorn and a saint bernard stuffed toys on the dash, and a string of snail shells hanging from the rear-view mirror. These seems random, but they each have personal meaning to me.
  • Nerple
    Nerple Posts: 1,291 Member
    I only have a picture of my niece, otherwise my desk is pretty spartan
  • BruteSquad
    BruteSquad Posts: 373 Member
    Living just north of Cincinnati (We call it Cincinnasty) No self respecting meerkat would actually go there, and definately would not get off at the bus station.

    I keep all the pictures and such at home. My job has been to travel for so many years that 5 months at the new job I haven't
    "Moved in" to my desk yet.
  • Tree72
    Tree72 Posts: 942 Member
    I have a rock, a bit smaller than the palm of my hand, that's carved into the shape of a rat. I got it when I was on a business trip to Taipei (when I worked for a different company). I chose it because I was born in a year of the rat.
  • still_crafty
    still_crafty Posts: 682 Member
    hand lotion and cuticle oil sits dead center right under my monitor screens . . . because I'm a bit obsessive about my hands and nails
  • razorbecky
    razorbecky Posts: 134
    I have a pink and black mug with my name on it, It was a gift from a friend and i also have a picture of my dad walking me down the isle ... I miss him everyday
  • jedibunny
    jedibunny Posts: 321
    I have a paper clip chain extended across the top of my cubicle from which dangle various sci-fi/fantasy and gaming references... does that count? :)

    2012-05-09%252010.56.44.jpg
  • galegetsthin
    galegetsthin Posts: 1,340 Member
    oh........ That TOTALLY counts! AND..... I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!
  • tageekly
    tageekly Posts: 3,755 Member
    @jedibunny - I love that!! :heart:

    I have all sorts of random crap on my desk - most of it collected from other jobs and it has no place at home so I keep it on my desk...

    - Ingemar (from IKEA) bobble head
    - Staples "easy" button
    - a dammit doll
    - a Spongebob Rubik's cube
    - my red stapler, of course!
    - a plaque that says, "Impossible you say? Nothing is impossible when you work for the circus."
    - a rearview mirror on my monitor
    - packages of Nerds candy (I'm a nerd, it seemed appropriate)
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