I was recently in Waterville Valley, New Hampshire for a couple days. It was a quick business trip, so I didn’t have much time to enjoy it. The morning of my big presentation, I went to the local conference center for breakfast. I wanted to fuel up for the long day ahead of me.
I went through the buffet line and picked up my sausage, eggs and some French toast. (No bacon. That should’ve been my first red flag.) At the end of the line, there was a big bowl of maple syrup. Usually, you see smaller pitchers filled with syrup. This was just a really big metal bowl of syrup. I went for the ladle, picked it up and realized very quickly that I couldn’t pour the syrup. I couldn’t pour it because it had a special pouring spout on the opposite side of the ladle. The opposite side because I’m left-handed and this was apparently a right-handed utensil.
A side spout. Is this really necessary? I mean, is the curved nature of the ladle not enough for people to get the syrup on their plates? Do we really need a spout to ensure accuracy?
I had my plate in my right hand, and the ladle in my left. This wasn’t going to work.
I stopped for a second. Um. How am I supposed to get my syrup on my French toast?
Out of nowhere – or so it seemed – these two young gentlemen who worked at the conference center smiled at my dilemma and started to cheer me on. They told me to switch hands. It was as if they were encouraging me to chug a beer at a frat party.
I sucked it up, switched my plate and the ladle and poured the syrup with my right hand. It was awkward, but it worked.
Righties don’t have to go through these kind of ordeals. It may be small, but it’s still annoying. Particularly because the act of pouring syrup shouldn’t necessitate a dominant hand.
The moral of the story? Just say no to ladles with side spouts.
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