Friday, May 6, 2022

Open for Business

Today was the first day in over two years that my workplace has been open for business on a regular basis.  We had some form of our fall fundraising events for the past two years, on a truncated basis, but our regular day-to-day visitation was on hiatus.

It was a soft opening today, the weather being unseasonably cool and rainy was enough to dissuade walk-in visitors from coming, and there weren't too many pre-ticketed visitors.  It's not necessarily a bad thing- the site that I am currently working has no functional plumbing, due to a water main break. There are a couple of porta-potties set up in the parking lot, and two cases of bottled water in the breakroom fridge, but no running water just isn't pleasant.  I joked with the manager on duty that she should contact the staff of the nearby pizzeria to arrange bathroom privileges.  

Meanwhile, the site looks gorgeous, with the lilac bushes and apple and dogwood trees in bloom.  I would have taken pictures, but for the rain.  It's a nice place to be, even when you have to use a porta-pottie.

As far as my job goes, it's going to be wacky because of our staffing issues.  I close up here and have to go to another site for a midnight-to-seven graveyard shift.  My boss told me that they have a bunch of applications for positions in my department, but no hires yet... I made sure to tell him that he needs to ask candidates if they are afraid of the dark.  I often describe my job as a 'Scooby Doo' episode every night, and individuals who get freaked out by weird noises and hard-to-decipher chiaroscuro conditions don't do well with us.  Weekends will be pretty bad, with me cramming three days' worth of work into two days, but I can't say I'm not happy with going to a four-day week.

Tomorrow is also supposed to be foul, weather-wise, but being a Saturday, we will probably be busier than we were today.  I sure hope so, the sites need to be appreciated by the general public, not just lucky employees like myself.  It's been two years of loneliness, these places need love.

3 comments:

Anathema Device said...

I hope your water and staffing issues are quickly resolved. We recently went through weeks of having no water or bathroom in our primary residence, and although we had somewhere else to stay, we had to come back to the house every few days. Not being able to use the loo (the builders had a portapotty set up in the garden which you could not pay me enough to look at, let alone use), drove my stress levels up to eleven.

Have a safe and fun working weekend!

Richard said...

Off topic. My mother lived in Vienna for 7 years after the war, and she came home with the Radetzky March and a love for Strauss operas? I wish i could talk with her. I have a lot of questions. What happened? Why do you read this John Birch society bullshit? By the time trump came along, she didn't care anymore. She had alzheimers.
My mother breaks my heart. But i want to understand what happened to her. I have a lot of questions!
Happy Mother's Day.

Big Bad Bald Bastard said...

We recently went through weeks of having no water or bathroom in our primary residence, and although we had somewhere else to stay, we had to come back to the house every few days.

UGH, that's terrible!

My mother breaks my heart. But i want to understand what happened to her. I have a lot of questions!
Happy Mother's Day.


UGH, that's terrible. I'm reminded of a Brad Neely line: "Grandpa had become a mean thing."