8 ms·

This as good a place as any to mention one of my favorite authors, Dishwasher Pete[0], who wrote a zine about dishwashing and dishwashers[1], and a memoir about

by khrbrt 2y ago

This as good a place as any to mention one of my favorite authors, Dishwasher Pete[0], who wrote a zine about dishwashing and dishwashers[1], and a memoir about his quest to wash dishes in all 50 states[2]. 0:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dishwasher_Pete https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dishwasher_Pete 1:https://archive.org/details/dishwasher7 https://archive.org/details/dishwasher7 2: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/827458.Dishwasher https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/827458.Dishwasher

mattpallissard 2y ago
"The dishwasher" is a great take of working as a dishwasher. It's from "the ice cream man and other short stores", you can read the whole section on Google books.
725686 2y ago
The True Story Of The Fake Dishwasher Pete https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DqWRyote2Q https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DqWRyote2Q
- e40 2y ago
  That was such a wild story. Such a delight, on so many levels. Thanks for sharing this.
e40 2y ago
I have fond memories of checking out the local comic store in Berkeley, CA in the 90's, after lunch once a week, to see if the new Dishwasher was in. If it was, I knew I'd have a great time that evening reading his exploits and learning a lot of history. He'd often include a history lesson about local labor relations over the last century. Not always, but sometimes. I have all of them in a box somewhere. I, of course, also have his book on my shelf. IMO, Dishwasher Pete is a national treasure.
samstave 2y ago
When I was a teenager and I had just got heavily into martial arts - my Professor was teaching us about perception. (1992) One of the examples he used, was to ask us "Who is the most important people in a restaurant?" >"The dishwasher, and the Janitor" >>"Do you think you'll go to a restaurant again if its bathrooms are filthy and your dishes are dirty?" His point was that you have to look beyond whats in front of your face, and look at things as a whole, as a system, identify all the components, even if you cant seem them - you can see their impact on the situation.
- doubled112 2y ago
  On a bigger scale, look anywhere garbage collection people have gone on strike. There are tons of jobs many take for granted and are much more important than we give them credit for.
- pbhjpbhj 2y ago
  I think if you're asking "Who are the most important people in a restaurant?" then you're already on the wrong path. The janitor and dishwasher are vital, but so too are most of the roles. It's a collective effort. Which of the legs of a chair is most important? Silly question imo. Which person is least important, usually the one that makes the most money. Their capital is important, but with a more distributed wealth in society the workers would be able to own the restaurant without an overlord. I'm really interested in the idea of flat wage structures. The cleaner is possibly one of the lowest paid people at my office, but they give up just as much time to be there for an hour as the CEO does.
  - bumby 2y ago
    >they give up just as much time to be there for an hour as the CEO does. I think this misunderstands a fundamental economic idea: people aren’t paid commensurate to their time or sweat invested; they are paid (in theory) with their differential contribution to the economy. Therefore, people who get paid well tend to have at least two things: 1) a rare skill and 2) a relatively high contribution to the economy. Sometimes those are correlated with effort and time, but they don’t have to be.
    - praptak 2y ago
      Isn't this a circular explanation? You are paid for your contribution to the economy. What is your contribution to the economy? Well, it is the amount you are paid.
      - natmaka 2y ago
        In theory the more difficult to replace you are, the more you are paid.

by khrbrt 2y ago

mattpallissard 2y ago

"The dishwasher" is a great take of working as a dishwasher. It's from "the ice cream man and other short stores", you can read the whole section on Google books.

725686 2y ago

The True Story Of The Fake Dishwasher Pete https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DqWRyote2Q https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5DqWRyote2Q

e40 2y ago
That was such a wild story. Such a delight, on so many levels. Thanks for sharing this.

e40 2y ago

I have fond memories of checking out the local comic store in Berkeley, CA in the 90's, after lunch once a week, to see if the new Dishwasher was in. If it was, I knew I'd have a great time that evening reading his exploits and learning a lot of history. He'd often include a history lesson about local labor relations over the last century. Not always, but sometimes. I have all of them in a box somewhere. I, of course, also have his book on my shelf. IMO, Dishwasher Pete is a national treasure.

samstave 2y ago

When I was a teenager and I had just got heavily into martial arts - my Professor was teaching us about perception. (1992) One of the examples he used, was to ask us "Who is the most important people in a restaurant?" >"The dishwasher, and the Janitor" >>"Do you think you'll go to a restaurant again if its bathrooms are filthy and your dishes are dirty?" His point was that you have to look beyond whats in front of your face, and look at things as a whole, as a system, identify all the components, even if you cant seem them - you can see their impact on the situation.

doubled112 2y ago
On a bigger scale, look anywhere garbage collection people have gone on strike. There are tons of jobs many take for granted and are much more important than we give them credit for.
pbhjpbhj 2y ago
I think if you're asking "Who are the most important people in a restaurant?" then you're already on the wrong path. The janitor and dishwasher are vital, but so too are most of the roles. It's a collective effort. Which of the legs of a chair is most important? Silly question imo. Which person is least important, usually the one that makes the most money. Their capital is important, but with a more distributed wealth in society the workers would be able to own the restaurant without an overlord. I'm really interested in the idea of flat wage structures. The cleaner is possibly one of the lowest paid people at my office, but they give up just as much time to be there for an hour as the CEO does.
- bumby 2y ago
  >they give up just as much time to be there for an hour as the CEO does. I think this misunderstands a fundamental economic idea: people aren’t paid commensurate to their time or sweat invested; they are paid (in theory) with their differential contribution to the economy. Therefore, people who get paid well tend to have at least two things: 1) a rare skill and 2) a relatively high contribution to the economy. Sometimes those are correlated with effort and time, but they don’t have to be.
  - praptak 2y ago
    Isn't this a circular explanation? You are paid for your contribution to the economy. What is your contribution to the economy? Well, it is the amount you are paid.
    - natmaka 2y ago
      In theory the more difficult to replace you are, the more you are paid.