After working at the airport information desk for a long time, the thing I couldn't do without turned out to be not coffee, but a clothing steamer.
Airports have a very magical ability.
It can make a person look as if they've been alive for a whole day at five in the morning.
Really.
Especially those working at the airport information desk.
You think our job is:
Hello, may I ask if you need any help?
In fact, it's more like:
- Human-shaped GPS
- Emotional trash can
- Luggage detective
- Temporary psychological counselor
- Plus the scapegoat for flight delays
And all of this usually happens before you are fully awake.
The most outrageous thing is that no matter how much you are falling apart inside, you still have to maintain a "professional" appearance on the outside.
The uniform must not be wrinkled.
Hair can't look fried.
One's expression shouldn't look as if they just had a fierce fight with life.
So later I found out that after working at the airport for a long time, people would start to rely crazily on some things that "reduce the probability of breakdown".
For example, clothing steamer.
I used to think this thing was for "refined people".
Later it was found that it wasn't.
It's for people who don't want to lose their minds first thing in the morning.
Airport uniforms are really something that likes to cause trouble for people.
Our uniform looks quite smart when it's hanging up.
As soon as I put it on, problems arose.
Sit on it and it will wrinkle.
If you take two steps, it wrinkles.
When you fasten your seat belt, it can precisely leave an impression right on your stomach.
Sometimes, I just finish organizing my clothes in the morning, take the staff bus for twenty minutes, and when I get off and look in the mirror,
Very good.
Like I'd been rolled into a ball and stuffed into a suitcase.
It's even more outrageous in summer.
In Tokyo, your clothes end up looking like they just came out of the washing machine still soaking wet.
I used to use a traditional iron.
Later, I gave up.
It's not that irons are bad.
It's the night shift people. They simply don't have the energy.
Just imagine:
Five thirty in the morning.
While looking for your work ID, you heat up your coffee and check your phone to see if there are any major flight delays.
At this point, the ironing board still has to be taken out.
That's the kind of moment that makes adults want to quit their jobs instantly.
The greatest advantage of the handheld clothing steamer is that it doesn't require you to think.
Plug in.
Wait a moment.
Steam the clothes.
Done.
The entire process is particularly similar to:
"All right, all right. That'll do. It's good enough to show to people."
The first time I bought a steamer, it was like getting a temperamental small appliance.
I was after a bargain at that time.
It turned out the thing acted like it had a personal grudge against society.
Sometimes there is no steam.
Sometimes it sprays water crazily.
Once I was all ready to go out, it suddenly spat a mouthful of water all over my dress.
I looked down at my soaked uniform, with only one thought in my mind:
"OK, now I look like I wet my pants at the airport."
And many cheap steamers are particularly fond of:
It steams for two minutes.
Take a five-minute break.
Like it's slacking off at work.
When you stand there waiting for it to steam up, you'll start to question your life.
Later, I came to realize that people who use clothing steamers every day actually care least about the fancy functions.
But rather:
Don't be mischievous.
Really.
The biggest demand that adults have for household appliances now is that they don't cause trouble.
Why do airport staff increasingly prefer portable clothing steamers?
Because we really don't have time.
The work at an airport is all fragmented and disjointed.
You never know what will happen in the next second.
I might have just helped an uncle who couldn't find his boarding gate.
The next second, someone else rushed over.
My flight takes off in eight minutes!!!
The entire hall instantly resembled a scene from "The Fast and the Furious".
So after work, many airport staff have only one requirement for life:
Simple.
The simpler, the better.
This is also why portable clothing steamers are now used by a lot of people.
Especially:
- Flight attendant
- Hotel front desk clerk
- Exhibition staff
- Real estate agent
- Luxury goods salesperson
- Cruise ship employee
Because all these jobs have one thing in common:
You can be tired.
But you can't look too tired.
It was only later that I discovered that the best time to use a steamer is actually not for ironing clothes.
But it's "saving clothes".
Especially in places like airports, the smells are particularly complex.
Coffee flavor.
The smell of aircraft fuel.
Rain and dampness.
The staff canteen smells of fried chicken.
Sometimes when I get home and take off my uniform, the clothes are not dirty, but they smell like I've been on three consecutive night shifts.
I used to wash things crazily.
Later, it was found that some coats don't need to be washed every day.
Steaming it and then hanging it up to air out will make its condition much better.
Especially suits and overcoats like these.
After steaming, people will feel that the clothes have "come back to life".
Nowadays, many business travelers also specifically bring travel clothing steamers.
Hotel irons are just too unpredictable.
You'll never know:
It might work normally today.
And still leave a permanent mark on your shirt.
The first time I noticed Nesugar was in the staff lounge.
It was particularly quiet that early morning.
Everyone was so tired it felt like their souls had left their bodies.
My colleague is standing beside the cabinet and sorting out the uniforms.
The steamer was making this soft little sound.
There is no such rumbling sound as that of a tractor starting up.
It wasn't spraying water everywhere either.
It didn't have that helpless feeling of heating up forever only to act like a humidifier.
While she was folding the clothes, she said:
Right now, I really just want to use something that won't cause any trouble.
I really wanted to nod right then.
After working for a long time, you will find that:
Often, what truly drains people is not the major events at all.
But rather those fragmented little irritations.
For example:
- The clothes are wrinkled.
- The zipper is stuck.
- I can't find my name tag.
- Coffee spilled on my pants.
- The iron suddenly leaked water.
None of these things, taken separately, is serious.
But if they all happen at six in the morning.
People will directly turn into walking time bombs of temper.
Those who truly use the steamer every day will eventually become more practical.
I used to love watching advertisements when I was shopping.
Now I'll just look at a few questions.
How quickly does it produce steam?
Because an adult's patience in the morning is really only thirty seconds.
I get annoyed if it lasts more than a minute.
Will it spray water?
This is the absolute bare minimum.
No one wants to go to work with a water mark in their crotch.
The air conditioning in the airport is especially strong.
Once it gets wet, the airport AC makes it cold enough to question your life choices.
Is it heavy or not?
This is particularly important.
Many people underestimate the weight of a steamer when they buy one for the first time.
Until you hold it up to iron the second piece of clothing.
My hands are starting to ache.
Suddenly, I understood what "fitness equipment disguised as household appliances" meant.
Can it fit into a small space?
Many of the airport staff live in apartments.
There is pitifully little storage space.
So compact clothing steamers will become increasingly popular.
After all, no one wants to set aside half a closet just for ironing clothes.
Sometimes, the state of a person before going out really depends on those last few minutes.
This statement is particularly reminiscent of adult-oriented mysticism.
But really.
Some days, actually, not much happens.
But if in the morning:
- The clothes are wrinkled.
- The hair is frizzy.
- The phone battery is down to 3%.
- I can't find my employee card.
Your whole mood just collapses.
On the contrary.
If the clothes are a little more smooth and tidy, a person will indeed feel inexplicably calmer.
Especially jobs like those at airports where you deal with strangers every day.
Passengers look at you first, then decide whether they trust you.
So later on, I increasingly felt that the clothing steamer is not merely an appliance.
It is more like a kind of:
"A decent little tool for adults to strive to maintain."
And it's the low-cost type.
One of my favorite moments right now
It was before going out in the early morning.
It's still dark outside.
The coffee machine is making noise.
The uniform is hanging by the door.
The steam gradually dissipated.
The clothes gradually flattened out.
That moment was particularly strange.
It will suddenly make one feel:
"All right, I should be able to hold on for today."
It's just ironing some clothes.
But it will give people a sense of:
Life doesn't feel completely out of control for the time being.
Perhaps this is also why more and more people nowadays can't do without a handheld clothing steamer.
Because what it organizes is never just clothes.
There is also the precarious sense of order that adults cling to before they step out of the door every day.
