Shower? That’ll be £30 please! @ Jamie Dixon

Shower? That’ll be £30 please!

Posted on September 4th, 2009 Jamie 8 comments

When was the last time you paid your hard earned money to take a shower? (do we even call it ‘taking’ a shower in this country? Should I say ‘have’ a shower?)

The journey to and from work has been part and parcel of working away from home since the beginning of mankind.

Ever since my second real job, I’ve taken either public transport or driven. I think there comes a time in every persons life when they realise they’re not quite as fit as they’d like to be and for me, that time is now.

As a result of this I made a decision to start cycling to work. Boris would be proud!

I set out and bought myself a new bicycle, helmet, bike lock, new snap proof pedals (since the plastic ones on the bike snapped off after I ‘tested’ the bike at the weekend) and various bits and bobs including a pump and mudguard (this got very expensive, very quickly!).

My route to work takes me through some lovely parts of London including Putney, Wimbledon, and across the River Thames over a distance of 8.9 miles.

18 miles a day, that’s bound to help increase my fitness and keep the old endorphins flowing. Right?

The only problem is, there are no showering facilities at work! I hear your cries, agast with the anguish of having to sit at work all day smelling like a 4 day dead hedgehog lying by the side of a summers road during a heat wave. So what’s a guy to do?

My first thought was that a quick wash in the sink would suffice. This may indeed be the answer and I’ve certainly not ruled it out.

I had this conversation with another potential cyclist at work and I presented my ideas of the sink wash to an unenthusiastic “yeah, you could do that, I guess”.

My second idea involved scouting out other local businesses and finding one with showering facilities. I figured I could just walk into an office each day, greet them with the usual “Good morning, nice to see you again, love what you’ve done with your hair today”, and proceed to shower and scoot.

It was at this point I was presented with a third option by my new cycling friend. “Why don’t we join the gym over the road so we can use their showers? It’s only £30 a month so you’d only have to cycle 10 days each month to have earned that back in saved transport costs.”

I like the idea of being able to have a nice warm shower each morning after a lengthy ride to work, but £30 a month to shower? That seems just a little backwards to me.

Instantly I responded with “What a great idea! Do you think we can convince them to let us just use the showers for free?”. Those who know me wont be surprised that this was my initial reaction. “Payment you say? How about a lifetimes free trial? yes? yes?”.

Usually when I sugest anything that involves negotiating or being a bit cheeky I’m met with groans and smug looks that sugest “You sunny, don’t know the system like the rest of us do, such innocence”. Yes, indeed.

So what would you do in this situation? Would you pay £30 a month to shower? Try to negotiate a fair rate to use the gym’s showers in the morning? Infiltrate other local businesses? or go for the old strip wash in the sink?

Answers on a postcard…(By ‘answers’ I mean comments and by ‘postcard’ i mean in the little box below).

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8 responses to “Shower? That’ll be £30 please!”
1. Coff September 4th, 2009 at 10:51
  
  Well you’ll have to negotiate it’s too good an opportunity to have a laugh, and if you can get it down to say £15 it’d be a winner.
2. Chris September 4th, 2009 at 11:00
  
  Wait a few weeks. Keep cycling to work. Your colleagues will happily pay the £30 for you.
3. Paul September 4th, 2009 at 11:24
  
  With a £30 membership you could have a jacuzzi too which makes it much more worthwhile.
  
  You could always get the train into work
  *sarcastic face*
4. Stephanie September 4th, 2009 at 12:34
  
  Ah Jamie now here is an idea,
  
  I would look for a nearby tree and attach a solar shower to it. You could get yourself an interesting following and also be WIDE AWAKE for work during those winter months.
  
  You do realise that pics will be compulsory though! ; )
5. Nick September 4th, 2009 at 12:53
  
  The fine English weather should provide you with plenty of showers, all completely free of charge. No?
6. David Rose September 4th, 2009 at 13:24
  
  Hey Jamie,
  
  How about you start some kind of raffle each month for your work colleagues, or some other kind of fund which they each pay into for something in return – and this can fund your shower project.
  
  That might take some of the sting (no, not stink) out of you having to pay…?
  
  Idea to be developed maybe…
7. Jen September 4th, 2009 at 13:27
  
  Chris has a very valid point
  
  Don’t business’ get some sort of grant/reduction in rates for having shower facilities for staff that cycle into work? If so, you could save your employers some money if they install one for you.
8. Nick September 4th, 2009 at 14:07
  
  Have a chat with your employers and ask them to contribute, alternatively see if they will provide it as a perk with you getting a few quid off your wages.
  If you can pay for it before rather than after tax then it will effectively be half price.
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