Wednesday before the storm

There's supposed to be a big snowstorm in our region starting tonight, so I thought I'd better give you the news today in case we close tomorrow.


Exchange "good mornings" with the two men who are always here first thing when we open. I have never answered a question for either of them at the ref desk, although there is a third man who comes in a little bit later and asks about the newspaper if it hasn't been put out yet.


Coworker goes downstairs to take a found driver's license and library card down to lost and found.


Janis is here this morning as well. I showed her how headphones work (well, I showed her where to plug them in, I assume there will be a Part Two about how to put them on your head). Yes she is a lot of work, but she's so nice. I was relieved to find out she lives in an adult foster home, so someone will be making sure she does get home okay if the storm hits.


Make change for the same man twice because he's printing a huge number of documents. I'd better remember to put in more paper when he's finished.


Janis comes to let me know she has to go brush her teeth.


The printing man drops a twenty dollar bill. He's lucky my coworker and I see it first.


Our new elevator has a button to call the elevator company installed it in. This button is low to the ground, probably for the legitimate reason that people who are short, young, or in wheelchairs should be able to reach it, but people lean on it without noticing all the time, and then it broadcasts a dial tone for ten minutes and no one in the building has the power to turn it off.


Janis has left her cup for rinsing her mouth down on the first floor, so she needs to know what button to push on the elevator to go down and get it to brush her teeth.


For some reason our library system's boss of finance is here using the copier and printer. I hope he at least has an override key of some kind.


Coworker comes by to return the props I used in a Detroit/Motown/Underground Railroad display for Black History month.


We get Janis logged in to a computer and watching a video of Janis Joplin. She is really making progress!


You got newspapers up here? (Which ones?) Oh, just any.


Lend out a scanner.


Help a nice woman looking for books on parenting shy kids.


MAC calls for a couple of phone numbers. Ugh.


People need a tax form. Sorry, the copier doesn't do double-sided.


The elevator opens to a deliveryman with a box of pizza. Uh oh.