Picture an enormous office-building floor like mine, with a thousand cubicles. When the person in the 577th cubicle sneezes, the person in the 578th cubicle says "Bless you!" to the person in the _579th!_ cubicle, who says it to the person in the 580th cubicle, and so on all around the floor until it finally circles back around to the guy in the 576th cubicle, who says it to the original sneezer.
Even though no blesser really knows who sneezed, for a brief period of time all of the cubicles were connected in a special, united purpose.
If you don't hear the person in the next cube say Bless you, hurry and run to the cubicle after that! Don't let someone's vacation day ruin the chance for a complete blessing.-- phundug, Aug 26 2004 Snopes history of the whole "bless you" thing. http://www.snopes.c...hrases/blessyou.htm [Worldgineer, Oct 17 2004] Kind of like the wave, but for cubicles? Hey, I might just try to start a cubicle wave.-- Worldgineer, Aug 26 2004 The bless you thing has always bothered me though. I have no religion, and thus would feel uncomfortable pretending to bless anyone. Of course, this leaves a bit of an uncomfortable pause after someone sneezes. If you're not going to chant a religious blessing at someone, what do you say? I've considered "stop it", but that seems rude.-- Worldgineer, Aug 26 2004 I've said "stop it." The person's usually so shocked that he doesn't sneeze again for days.-- phundug, Aug 26 2004 Funny how people often sneeze in pairs. Then the second time around, I tell 'em they only get one bless you per hour/day/existence, depending on how everyone's feeling.-- yabba do yabba dabba, Aug 26 2004 [yabba], I say that too. Funny.
[phundug], this could be lots of fun...I'd fake sneezes all day just to keep the wave going. Of course, it would take a lot of sneezes, seeing as only 3 of us work in my office.
[World], you can always say "Cheers!" (that's my favorite filler word when I don't know what to say)-- Machiavelli, Aug 26 2004 <Colin Hunt>Big Issue!</CH>-- gnomethang, Aug 26 2004 This would be a noisy workplace if Ach came to visit often. (Knock, knock...Who's there?...)-- FarmerJohn, Aug 26 2004 <CH>'Lord spare us from office jokers.' </CH>-- po, Aug 26 2004 Cheers, [Mach] (takes a drink). Now what were we talking about?-- Worldgineer, Aug 26 2004 Think of it this way: if you sneeze, you can check the halfbakery while you're waiting for the "bless you" to arrive.-- phundug, Aug 26 2004 [Worldgineer], you could always say the german word Gesundheit, which means "Good health".-- MaineCoon, Aug 26 2004 [WE] You could always return to the origins of the "bless you " phenomenon and say, " I hope, for your sake and the sake of those around you, who have no wish to be contaminated, that you do not develop the full blown symptoms of bubonic plague and die". Erm...-- squeak, Aug 27 2004 I'll leave those hayfever tablets at home for the day and nobody will get any work done!-- dobtabulous, Aug 27 2004 You could do like my grandfather used to and say "Gublessyou." (Which often led to questions such as Who's "Guh"?)
Note: In my family we've shortened it further to "Gubloog!" and that seems harmless enough to me :)-- phundug, Aug 27 2004 What bugs me about the "bless you" thing is that it remains an obligation. I don't like either uttering or receiving any words, even good wishes, when it's not voluntary but dictated inflexibly by the circumstances. Especially since "bless you" seems also rooted in old superstitions about the devil stealing one's soul in the instant of sneezing, etc. I wouldn't like to see this obligation expanded into a full-fledged mass ritual.But I do like the "office wave"-like image. So neutral.
Call me a curmudgeon.-- Etymon, Aug 27 2004 Was it not originally formed during the plague era when sneezing lots was a symptom of plagueyness?-- Sattamassagana, Aug 27 2004 Etymon - your a curmudgeon!
Your welcome.-- energy guy, Aug 27 2004 random, halfbakery