In Which I Take a Second Look

I used to work in an office that had an ice machine. It had a proximity sensor so it only dispenses ice when you put your cup underneath the chute. Despite the fancy technology, it worked only sporadically. You'd put your cup under the chute and wait for the ice, but nothing would come out. Move your cup closer and then farther away, still nothing. Just as you got fed up with the machine and take your cup away, it would dump ice all over your hand and spill onto the floor. This happened a lot, so you either had to prepare to get a little wet (that's what she said), or simply go without ice.

As result of this finicky machine's behavior, there were often are bits of ice on the floor that melted and caused things to get a little slippery. Instead of putting down a mat to absorb the water, the cleaning crew in the building decided it would be better to place a "Caution Wet Floor" sign in front of the machine instead. They don't bother mopping up the water, but figure that if you see the bright orange sign and still slip and fall on your ass, well, they tried to warn you and it's your own damn fault.

One day, I was on my way to the bathroom by way of the kitchen and I noticed that the Wet Floor sign had somehow migrated away from the ice machine and into the middle of the floor. I kicked it lightly with my foot on my way past, and something caught my eye.

I stopped and asked myself if I truly saw what I thought I saw:

I turned around to take a second look, and was proven wrong:

Truth be told, I was a little bummed out that someone hadn't swapped out the sign with the one I thought I saw. Would have made the rest of that Tuesday afternoon at the office a bit more enjoyable.