Let the Games Begin

On July 13, my boss at the library called me into her office.  Nothing good has ever happened to me when I've been called into her office and this time was to be no different.  She sat at her desk  and I sat in one of the two rocking chairs which while comfortable, put the visitor a full 10 inches lower to the ground than the director's office chair.  She has the literal high ground to go along with her moral one.

A year and a month to the day she hired me, the director sat behind her desk and explained that due to a new policy that would take effect September 1st,  the library would no longer employ reference staff that did not hold an advanced degree in Information or Library Science.  As I do not hold a master's degree, my 8.5 hour shift would be eliminated.  The reduction of hours consequently meant I would no longer qualify for benefits  leaving me with a 21 hour circulation manager position.

I asked what brought on the new policy and was told it was in keeping with the standards of the Texas State Library.  As I was the only person working reference without an advanced degree, it was pretty clear that a bigger agenda was behind this, an agenda she obviously thought I was too dull-witted to see.  When I pressed her for the real reason she was implementing the policy, she summoned up all her southern Texas charm, feigned discomfort and said she was trying to be gracious about this.  I told her not to worry about being gracious and just go ahead and say it.  She said members of the staff had voiced concerns about my abilities to help patrons with reference work. This was news to me.  I worked my reference shifts alone. When had anyone been around to see my interactions with patrons?

When I pressed further and asked for specific concerns, the director mumbled something about staff wondering why the new girl, a recent library school grad who is working as a circulaton manager as well, knew about "things" but Wren didn't.  Her voice trailed off and she looked at me pleadingly, as though asking me to please not force her to say things that were so hard for her to say.  It was an Academy Award winning performance. It was also a load of rubbish.

I said I was very surprised by all this. In an environment where we are required daily  to be in touch via email, an online forum, inter-office envelopes, phone calls and face-to-face interactions, no one had said anything to me about my job performance.  She said she was giving me the news so now I had time to make plans and then sat there waiting for me to leave the office.   A few minutes later, a representative from an auto dealership arrived to deliver the director's new car.

And now here we are on the 20th of August, with September 1st looming.  I've been filling out applications and sending off resumes looking for a job of any sort that will get me away from what has been the most disheartening job I've ever had.  I've seen the staffing schedule for reference for the weeks ahead.  Three of the  staff now have expanded hours thanks to my Thursday pay and the monthly pay out for my health insurance.  It's odd that I've been good enough to staff the desk for the six weeks after the proclamation but as of September 1 will be useless.  Still, live and learn.

So the purpose of this new blog is to share the adventures of job hunting and living in Austin and to share the random things that seem to wander into our life with alarming frequency.  Jamie and I will be writing the blog together.  He's going to start with a background on his coming to Texas.  For those of you who don't know me, you can visit http://gypsywren.blogspot.com/ to find out how I ended up here in Austin, how I ended up at the little library of horrors and how Jamie and I came to be Mr. & Mrs. Pearson.  It's a crazy story and there's lots of pictures for my friends who would never read what I wrote but liked to see what Texas looks like.

We hope you enjoy the blog.  Be in touch.  And here's a sample of what's to come.  Below is a job posting on Craigslist.   I didn't know what a MUD was and when I went online to find out, I found the accompanying news article on the very MUD in the job listing.  MUD means municipal utility district and something else messy and black in Wells Branch! Here's the job ad:


Covenant Assistant at Wells Branch MUD
Wells Branch is a close-knit community built on old-fashioned neighborliness and modern responsive management. Wells Branch MUD is looking for a Covenant Assistant to be responsible for providing administrative support to the Covenant Manager.


This job requires light physical activity performing non-strenuous daily activities of an administrative nature and the ability to lift and carry items up to fifty pounds.

Here's the news article:


http://www.kvue.com/home/Black-mold-Found-in-Wells-Branch-Municipal-Utilities-District-offices-99988754.html

Black Mold found in Wells Branch MUD Offices

KVUE ...Aug 4, 2010 ... Nine employees of the Wells Branch Municipal Utility District were on the move Wednesday, carting boxes and computers to the nearby recreation center....
(Ah...that's why you need to be able to lift heavy things to apply for this job--so you can take your computer and run away from airborne pathogens!)

I didn't send a resume....

See you all soon!