# Why the 15 second rule at Argo Tea? Any thoughts on how to follow up? **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [March 28, 2010, 5:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-15-second-rule-at-argo-tea-any-thoughts-on-how-to-follow-up/534119 "2010-03-28T17:00:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Sailboat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sailboat/32/461_2.png) [@Sailboat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sailboat)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2010, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-15-second-rule-at-argo-tea-any-thoughts-on-how-to-follow-up/534119/101 "2010-03-30T16:21:15Z")
> [@DianaG](#): > > Then he shouldn’t be in line. I’m guessing from this part: > [@](#): > > [REDACTED] harassed my husband because he would not respond to her commands to ‘get in the tea ordering line’ or ‘get out.’ that he _wasn’t_ in line. ---
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2010, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-15-second-rule-at-argo-tea-any-thoughts-on-how-to-follow-up/534119/102 "2010-03-30T16:26:13Z")
> [@Sailboat](#): > > I’m guessing from this part: > > that he _wasn’t_ in line. Post 54. Post 62. ---
**Author:** ![SeaDragonTattoo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/df705f/32.png) [@SeaDragonTattoo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SeaDragonTattoo)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2010, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-15-second-rule-at-argo-tea-any-thoughts-on-how-to-follow-up/534119/103 "2010-03-30T19:16:23Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > Do I have to get the coffee[sup]\*[/sup] first? I don’t want to be sitting there, holding back the tide, as it were, while trying to relax and enjoy a hot beverage. I don’t want to leave my coffee unattended while I use the bathroom. And I really don’t want to take it in there with me. Do you mind if I take care of the high-priority tasks first? I promise that when I’m done, I’ll order something. > > Or cocoa, in my case; never been a big fan of coffee. While I totally understand where you come from on this, because I’m a law abiding and normal person myself, I have to assume perhaps you have no idea what people might do in bathrooms that are available willy-nilly to the public. I’ve been in the same predicament of needing to use the facilities, being alone, and having to buy something first. The secret is: Order first, then tell the barista you’re going to the bathroom and will be right back. Your drink is safe, and you’ve ordered and paid. Your drink is ready and waiting at the pickup when you come out. Having worked in coffee, and still having friends who work in coffee, I have a pretty good idea what can happen in coffee/tea house bathrooms. It’s not pretty. While disgusting and crazy things still happen even with the paying customers (I worked in a boystown location!), it pales in comparison to the people using the sink for a bath or using the room to shoot heroin. You’d be surprised how “normal” these people look, and trying to size them up before they pay and show they actually have disposable income to buy a $4 latte is impossible. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2010, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-15-second-rule-at-argo-tea-any-thoughts-on-how-to-follow-up/534119/104 "2010-03-30T19:32:06Z")
> [@A Monkey With a Gun](#): > > I wrote a nasty e-mail to Argo Tea over a similar incident, and asked that management respond to my complaint directly. I was then contacted by a “Mr. Tea” who proceeded to inform me that I was a fool and that he felt pity towards my person. [Mr Tea](http://fc04.deviantart.com/images/large/indyart/comics/Tea_Time.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![maplekiwi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a4c791/32.png) [@maplekiwi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/maplekiwi)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2010, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-15-second-rule-at-argo-tea-any-thoughts-on-how-to-follow-up/534119/105 "2010-03-30T21:43:33Z")
> [@SeaDragonTattoo](#): > > The secret is: Order first, then tell the barista you’re going to the bathroom and will be right back. Your drink is safe, and you’ve ordered and paid. Your drink is ready and waiting at the pickup when you come out. > > Having worked in coffee, and still having friends who work in coffee, I have a pretty good idea what can happen in coffee/tea house bathrooms. It’s not pretty. While disgusting and crazy things still happen even with the paying customers (I worked in a boystown location!), it pales in comparison to the people using the sink for a bath or using the room to shoot heroin. You’d be surprised how “normal” these people look, and trying to size them up before they pay and show they actually have disposable income to buy a $4 latte is impossible. What Sea Dragon Tattoo (cool user name BTW) said. Or get your companion to order for you. & I work in a supermarket & after several disgusting incidents the public toilet is kept locked & patrons have to ask a checkout supervisor for the key. People can be pigs. & thanks everyone for the laughs! ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2010, 8:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-15-second-rule-at-argo-tea-any-thoughts-on-how-to-follow-up/534119/106 "2010-03-31T08:58:05Z")
> [@maplekiwi](#): > > What Sea Dragon Tattoo (cool user name BTW) said. Or get your companion to order for you. Alas, most of my coffeehouse visits are solo affairs. I guess I’m not completely clear on how people who drink coffee leave less of a mess in the bathrooms than people who don’t. Is it that they want to leave the place a shambles and then make a quick getaway before it’s discovered? In that case, they could just order a coffee, sit down, drink it, maybe read a bit of the newspaper, do something disgustingly awful in the bathroom and be gone before you were any the wiser. Does shooting up heroin really make a mess, or is it that the shootee tend to just lounge around until it wears off? And should I change my board name to **Babe in the Woods**? ---
**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\ **Post date:** [March 31, 2010, 11:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-15-second-rule-at-argo-tea-any-thoughts-on-how-to-follow-up/534119/107 "2010-03-31T11:01:10Z")
Well, if you’re not good at it, it can get pretty bloody; there’s also the risk of passing out, throwing up, or just generally taking a freaking long time getting ready. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 3:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-15-second-rule-at-argo-tea-any-thoughts-on-how-to-follow-up/534119/108 "2010-04-01T03:37:04Z")
> [@](#): > > I guess I’m not completely clear on how people who drink coffee leave less of a mess in the bathrooms than people who don’t. There are people who are actually customers, and then there are people who are just using the bathroom. The shop will usually make money on people who are customers, even if the customers use the bathroom. However, people who are NOT customers, and who just stop in to use the facilities, are costing the shop money. If they’re actually bathing in the sink or doing dope in the bathroom, they’re likely to drive away real customers, too. ---
**Author:** ![kittenblue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ba8739/32.png) [@kittenblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kittenblue)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-15-second-rule-at-argo-tea-any-thoughts-on-how-to-follow-up/534119/109 "2010-04-01T15:50:10Z")
So. If my SO and I are walking around the Loop, and he wants a cup of tea, and I say “Great…here’s an Argo, let’s stop in there, and by the way, I really need to use the bathroom.” and he says,“Ok, why don’t you stop in the bathroom first while I look at the menu board, and then we’ll order when you get out so we get our orders together and don’t have to hop right back up to use the bathroom?” and he stands to the side a bit to wait for me and see what he wants, because we’ve never even heard of Argo before, much less been in one…does that mean we have broken every single law of society? Because from some of the responses to this thread, you’d think using the bathroom is a crime (because some people leave a mess) and taking a minute in an unfamiliar place to acclimate yourself is a crime, or waiting for the other member of your party before ordering is a crime. Many is the time I’ve entered a store and needed to use the bathroom before starting my shopping. No one has ever indicated this is a bad thing, and it eliminates puddles in the aisles and carts of merchandise blocking the area around the bathroom. And very, very occasionally, I may stop at a McDonald’s or other type place and dash in to the bathroom without any plans to order something. I figure I’m allowed at least one bathroom stop per visit, and since many times I don’t use the facilities while ordering food there, I’m allowed one potty stop without ordering anything…it all evens out in the end. And SOMETIMES…I may come in, use the bathroom, see long lines at the counter and decide to go back out and go through the drive-thru instead! Whoa, Nelly! That would condemn me to death in some people’s view. ---
**Author:** ![Snickers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@Snickers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snickers)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-15-second-rule-at-argo-tea-any-thoughts-on-how-to-follow-up/534119/110 "2010-04-01T17:51:22Z")
I \<3 all the [REDACTED]s in this thread - it reads like MadLibs! Kittens…tangoing…jam…Ford Fiesta…slovenly…turtles? Whoa. The imagery, it’s transcendent. ---
**Author:** ![lorene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/65b543/32.png) [@lorene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lorene)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-15-second-rule-at-argo-tea-any-thoughts-on-how-to-follow-up/534119/111 "2010-04-01T17:58:13Z")
> [@kittenblue](#): > > So. If my SO and I are walking around the Loop, and he wants a cup of tea, and I say “Great…here’s an Argo, let’s stop in there, and by the way, I really need to use the bathroom.” and he says,“Ok, why don’t you stop in the bathroom first while I look at the menu board, and then we’ll order when you get out so we get our orders together and don’t have to hop right back up to use the bathroom?” and he stands to the side a bit to wait for me and see what he wants, because we’ve never even heard of Argo before, much less been in one…does that mean we have broken every single law of society? Because from some of the responses to this thread, you’d think using the bathroom is a crime (because some people leave a mess) and taking a minute in an unfamiliar place to acclimate yourself is a crime, or waiting for the other member of your party before ordering is a crime. It depends. Are you the same race as **ILION** ’s husband? ---
**Author:** ![descamisado](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@descamisado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/descamisado)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-15-second-rule-at-argo-tea-any-thoughts-on-how-to-follow-up/534119/112 "2010-04-01T19:02:09Z")
> [@Contrapuntal](#): > > Post 54. Post 62. And Post 97 with a little editing. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-15-second-rule-at-argo-tea-any-thoughts-on-how-to-follow-up/534119/113 "2010-04-01T19:50:13Z")
And that’s YAHTZEE!! ---
**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\ **Post date:** [April 1, 2010, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-15-second-rule-at-argo-tea-any-thoughts-on-how-to-follow-up/534119/114 "2010-04-01T20:18:22Z")
> [@YogSosoth](#): > > Just curious, but why would rant by a random person on a message board, even if using a real person’s name, be subject to libel laws? Why wouldn’t it? There’s no “rant by a random person on a message board” exception in defamation law. The relevant questions include: 1. Is the person identifiable? 2. Is the statement made in a manner that can be viewed or heard by the public? 3. Does the statement tend to harm the identified person’s reputation? 4. Sometimes others, depending on jurisdiction, such as “Is the statement true?” “Is it a statement of fact or is it opinion?” “Is it a statement that the public would tend to believe or not believe as being factual?” Something being a “rant by a random person on a message board” doesn’t get you around these. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2010, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-15-second-rule-at-argo-tea-any-thoughts-on-how-to-follow-up/534119/115 "2010-04-02T03:36:14Z")
> [@](#): > > Many is the time I’ve entered a store and needed to use the bathroom before starting my shopping. No one has ever indicated this is a bad thing, and it eliminates puddles in the aisles and carts of merchandise blocking the area around the bathroom. In most places, it’s OK to use the potty before starting to shop. I greatly suspect that there were things that the OP didn’t see fit to tell us about this visit. It can get VERY aggravating for a store to be used as just a convenient place to use the bathroom. It’s even more aggravating if there’s sex or drug use going on in the bathrooms. This particular shop might well have a problem with people who constantly use its restroom to do things which should not be done in public. I mean, my local branch library has a sign up that explains (in English and Spanish) that it’s Not OK to bathe or wash one’s hair in the library restroom. One would think that people would know that this is Not OK, but one would be Wrong. ---
**Author:** ![kittenblue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ba8739/32.png) [@kittenblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kittenblue)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2010, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-15-second-rule-at-argo-tea-any-thoughts-on-how-to-follow-up/534119/116 "2010-04-02T12:05:13Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > It can get VERY aggravating for a store to be used as just a convenient place to use the bathroom. It’s even more aggravating if there’s sex or drug use going on in the bathrooms. Well, then I guess I’m okay. While I DO do drugs in the bathroom (that’s where the medicine cabinet is kept) I confine that to At Home. And I have had sex in a bathroom a couple times, but again, only At Home…no showers in those McDonald’s bathrooms… Oh, and I have no idea if I am the same race as the OP’s husband, since she neglected to mention that fact. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2010, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-15-second-rule-at-argo-tea-any-thoughts-on-how-to-follow-up/534119/117 "2010-04-02T12:20:51Z")
I suggest that you DON’T do drugs in the bathroom, even at home. Perhaps especially at home. The bathroom gets awfully hot and humid, which isn’t good for the drugs. Similarly, drugs shouldn’t be kept above the kitchen sink, which is also frequently hot and humid. You have my permission to have sex in your own bathroom. Just in case you were worried about that. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [April 2, 2010, 12:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-15-second-rule-at-argo-tea-any-thoughts-on-how-to-follow-up/534119/118 "2010-04-02T12:22:31Z")
> [@A Monkey With a Gun](#): > > I wrote a nasty e-mail to Argo Tea over a similar incident, and asked that management respond to my complaint directly. I was then contacted by a “Mr. Tea” who proceeded to inform me that I was a fool and that he felt pity towards my person. I don’t care who you are, that’s funny right there! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![kittenblue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ba8739/32.png) [@kittenblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kittenblue)\ **Post date:** [April 3, 2010, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-15-second-rule-at-argo-tea-any-thoughts-on-how-to-follow-up/534119/119 "2010-04-03T01:49:14Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > I suggest that you DON’T do drugs in the bathroom, even at home. Perhaps especially at home. The bathroom gets awfully hot and humid, which isn’t good for the drugs. Similarly, drugs shouldn’t be kept above the kitchen sink, which is also frequently hot and humid. > > You have my permission to have sex in your own bathroom. Just in case you were worried about that. 😉 Oh, it’s okay…the drugs are kept in the half-bathroom that has no shower or tub. No heat or humidity issues! And thanks for the permission…I’ll tell the SO! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-the-15-second-rule-at-argo-tea-any-thoughts-on-how-to-follow-up/534119.md?page=5)