I was on a strict diet and brought my own smoothie ingredients to work every morning — pre-portioned fruit, protein powder, almond milk. Nothing fancy. Just enough to keep me on track.
And then they started disappearing.
At first it was small. A missing banana. Half a container of berries. I told myself I miscounted. Then it kept happening. Containers lighter. Sometimes completely gone.
I didn’t complain. I didn’t email the office. I paid attention.
Every time my food vanished, one coworker — let’s call him Greg — magically had a smoothie ten minutes later. Loudly slurping it. Joking about how “someone left great stuff in the fridge.”
So one night, I made a special batch.
Same labeled container. My name on it. Inside: unsweetened protein powder, plain kefir, turmeric, cayenne, ginger, and a heroic dose of fiber supplement.
Healthy? Yes.
Drinkable? Barely.
The next morning, Greg walked past my desk with a smoothie.
He took one sip. Then another. Then froze.
Five minutes later, he was pacing.
Ten minutes later, he vanished into the restroom.
That afternoon he came to my desk, red-faced.
“Uh… I think I accidentally drank your smoothie.”
I said, “That’s why I label my food.”
He never touched my stuff again.
Neither did anyone else.
Sometimes respect doesn’t come from meetings or emails.
Sometimes it comes from a very memorable smoothie.
