Pretty well, overall. I have dealt with a variety of new and different things. If you're not in the business, I hope this is interesting and informative to you.
- How many librarians does it take to change a light bulb? Within minutes of the former director's departure, we had to call the township's maintenance people due to a faulty lighting outlet in the bathroom. It was fixed the next morning, after the maintenance man had to call the electrician to take care of it.
- Meetings. The library is in the process of moving and expanding. I attended the township's zoning board of appeals meeting, where we were granted all variances and other such things, and learned of a neighbor's concerns about our expansion. A week later, I was at the library board's special meeting to discuss these matters, and to view and discuss the building plans with the architects. There are many steps in creating a new home for the library. The next step is to take the plans to the planning commission.
- Ordering supplies and books. This is pretty mundane stuff, but a lot of that is still new to me. I'm pretty good at being frugal. The one surprise here is how quickly the office supplies arrived after I ordered them. I called in the order on Wednesday, and most of it appeared on Thursday! This is pretty amazing, especially being in the middle of nowhere, Upper Peninsula of Michigan. If you're in the need for office supplies for a business, might I suggest Quill?
- Staff scheduling. This wouldn't be an issue if the interlibrary loan (ILL) delivery system weren't changing its delivery schedule. On the one hand, the company is giving all the libraries that had been on a 2 days/week schedule an extra day free (and boosting 4 days/week to 5, at larger libraries), to see if that makes ILLs faster and easier. On the other, it completely throws staff schedules for a loop when it shifts from Tuesdays/Thursdays to Mondays/Wednesdays/Fridays. And we were only notified Wednesday, with the change going into effect next Monday, July 1. Ack.
- Auditors aren't as scary as some people think they are, so long as all your money is accounted for.
- There is always someone higher than you, even if you're the boss. In this case, I answer to the library board. And at least for now, they want to know pretty much everything I do.
