Community Clubs: Why The No Food Nor Drinks In Rooms Rule?

Singapore flag.

Community Clubs

I did not understand the no food rule in rooms in Community Clubs until I went to the office and asked for the cost of hiring a room. The cost of hiring a room is in one box. Another box is for the cleaning of the room. You can only leave that box unticked or cross it out if you cay that there will be no food in the room.

So, frequently, at a Toastmasters meeting, the food for breaktimes is on a table outside the room in the corridor. What do you do when the bell rings for returning to the room and you are half way through eating?

Afterwards the paper plates are gathered up. The organizers rush around diligently clearing away. I thought this must be some kindness to cleaners so that they can go home only. Now it appears to me that it is to save the club having to be the cleaning fee - or getting in dispute with the building management.

In addition to Toastmasters Clubs, many other groups adopt the same system of having food outside in the corridors.  I can tell by observing the food on tables in the corridors

What if you or a visitor forget or don't understand and take food into the meeting room?

Does it matter? What could go wrong?

It's very easy to put a plate on the floor and then move your chair or feet and accidentally knock the contents onto the ground. In a hot country like Singapore, you can attract insects.

What about water? Water, if spilled, might dry up fast and without leaving a stain. I often hear people say, "Don't worry. It's only water."

What could go wrong with water?
1 Some insects thrive on water. So does mould.
2 You might walk the mud or dirt o your shoes over the water, leaving dirty patches on the carpet or tiled floor.
3 Water on tiles can make people slip.
4 Kick over water, or even knock it over on a table, you ruin your contest certificate, your notebooks, your books.

The book pages all stick together. The ink runs.

The book sticks to the table. Later the dried up pieces of paper have to be removed. You have to donate tissues to mop up the water. Tissues disintegrate and make more mess.

Attempts to clean up the spillage are a distraction and an embarrassment. At very least, consider what could knock over the paper or plastic cup or glass or porcelain cup. What movement might knock the glass? Such as moving the chair, pushing your bag under the chair, sitting on the plate, dropping the paper cup of water off the collapsing paper plate when passing the half-drunk water to somebody else.

Look for an alternative, such as placing the cup at the back of a nearby surface.

Some rooms have a water dispenser inside the room. That means your glass of water is permitted. But it would still save a lot of trouble if you drink near the dispenser.

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.