PowerMugging

What is a PowerMug?

A power mug is a very special and valuable mug. It has the following characteristics:

Holds an awful lot of coffee (or any other beverage, but coffee rocks)
Is cleaned only at a monthly basis, so exciting and interesting life forms have a basis of their joyful existence. This also makes the mug possible to threat people with.
Either
- Bears the logo and/or name of a preferably inventious and state-of-the-art computer technology creator. Or;
- Has so special properties that it can be classified as a cult item. This could be an extraordinarily decorated mug with flowers on the side.
Is used at universities and at offices but never at home.

Who started this PowerMug thing?

The origins of the PowerMug thing is a bit shady, but it is thought to be invented by Christian Ravn Haslam of Aalborg University. His PowerMug doesn't advertise any high tech computer firm, but instead has the ability to contain more coffee than you can shake a stick at. He got ultimate power in his project group by pointing his PowerMug at those who didn't agree with him.

Other people say that this isn't the case and that the first PowerMug was introduced to planet Earth by extra terrestrial beings in the mid fifites. Those people have been locked away securely and now wear funny shirts with very long arms.

Some say that the last sentence isn't true, but you must admit that it is funnier than the truth.

Well, nowadays the PowerMug celebration is mostly concentrated around and in room 311 at Langagervej 6, Aalborg University, where you may be lucky to find the founder enjoying a mug of steaming hot coffee.

How do I PowerMug?

You can only PowerMug satisfyingly, if you either work at an office or study/work/clean up/teach/assist on a university. Then you need to have a PowerMug. We link to some of the places which have them, so you can find one for yourself. Be creative!

When you've got your PowerMug, use it at your university/office whenever you are drinking coffee (or other hot beverages), even if you get the coffee in plastic or styroform cups. If you are drinking coffee and have to go elsewhere on campus/office, remember to take your PowerMug with you.

The clear advantage of PowerMugging is that it makes you look more as an inreplaceable piece of inventory, thus preventing people from asking exactly what you are doing, and if you really have the authorisation to do the things you're doing. PowerMugging is a life style which makes it look like you're having control and influence.

If you PowerMug really good, you may see yourself smoothly and silently end up as a successful Ph.D./Dr./professor/consultant/boss/leader within your organisation. Noone will ever think of expelling/firing/downsizing/rightsizing you because of the status given by your PowerMug.

The advantage of downtoning the cleaning part is that people when confronted with your power mug, will rather do what you say than be exposed to the dangers of fungus and mildew. This combined with the inventory part gives the owner infinite power. You don't know anything about power, till you've tried a PowerMug.

What are the ethymological facts?

What a question. So you want to know some more lexical details. Here you are:

PowerMug, subj.
Special coffee mug with certain properties which indicates usefulness to an organisation. Ex: "Keep your dirty hands of my P."

PowerMug, verb.
To use a PowerMug to gain a state of perceived usefulness and dependence within a larger organisation dealing with lots of paper work. Ex: "Before Scott was promoted, he would PowerMug all day."

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