Really Old (but Cool) Stuff
Really old Dixie Cups in even older Dixie Cup dispenser.
In a couple of months, my association is moving. We aren’t going very far, basically just across the street and up a block. But every time I think about moving, I look at all the stuff around the office. Some of it is really old stuff too.
Some of it is cool old stuff. The absolute coolest are the 80 year-old Dixie Cups in 100 year-old Dixie Cup dispensers sitting in the conference room. We also have conference agendas and programs from the 1950s. But we also have a lot of it is “why did we keep this?” stuff such as letterhead from the association’s previous address from 10-years ago, a whole slew of printed material with our old branding on it and among the old rubber stamps that say “confidential” and “first class” is one that reads “Should I feel guilty?”
We have a record retention policy, but not an old office supply retention policy.
My old association had a display case full of old equipment from the profession. I really got a kick out of checking out when a new item came in. But that display was built and maintained on purpose and they weren’t so big on keeping old office supplies.
There is something fun about the old treasures that crop up that were never intended to be such (then again, I am a bit of a history buff/museum liker). It’s like office association archeology. Even things such as old logos, old letterhead, and office gadgets that have a mysterious function as far as I can tell a lot about an association and where it came from and can add some interesting perspective on where things might go. It makes me wonder how many other association offices are out there full of interesting little odds and ends from the organization’s history.
