Important key

 The level of activity is not that great but there have been a few things to make note of. Easter was spent at the summerhouse with my mother and her boyfriend. The food was good, as always. We visited the cemetery to plant flowers. Another day we went to a bird feeding area where there were about 6800 cranes to look at. Several other species of birds also took the opportunity to get easily accessible food. At the summerhouse I made use of the water hose and washed my car. Also cleaned it inside. My mother gave me a haircut. The last day of Easter it was my birthday. It was celebrated in modesty. I was treated to lemon cake, and got one present: a pair of kitchen towels my mother had made. On the way home there was a terrible snowstorm and the speed on the highway was not as high as normal. 

Just before Easter it was a very intense period at work. I worked ten hours several days. A little later it calmed down. Right now it's low season and the staff has been able to get other projects done. I'm still busy weeding the reference collection. Just this week I found out that they plan on building yet another storage at the place we have ours. We have decided to move out of one of ours and get space in the new one instead. I accepted the task of making plans regarding what collections to move there. This is a long term project. The last time they bult a new storage it took six years from start to finish, so I'm not that stressed. 

This past Saturday there was a crisis when both the scheduled staff members got sick. I was contacted in the morning and said I could take the shift at the desk. We were two people working, both regular staff. This is not common, usually it's student workers. We understood pretty quickly that routines have changed and we were not updated. It took ten minutes just to find the right key to the front door. We got it opened with seconds to spare. I never work at the desk normally, so when people asked for library cards and how to make copies, I had to hand that over to my colleague. On the other hand, when there were reference questions, I excelled. I know the book collection very well, and could answer sometimes without checking the database. In all, it was an interesting experience. If this happens again, at least I know where the most important key is.

This week I sent out a bibliography I had compiled. It contains references to articles and books about the library I work at. It's 36 pages long and I sent it to all the librarians at the university. The response was very positive. It happens quite often that students ask about the history of the library and we have had difficulties answering properly. This bibliography will be helpful, I hope.

Book moving project

I still have back problems, despite two visits to the chiropractor and one visit to get massage. It's really problematic since my job requires heavy lifting. Yes, books are surprisingly heavy. 

Last Monday we started a book moving project at the storage. Three guys from a moving company were hired for the job. When they arrived I was really surprised to see a familiar face - one of them had actually been involved in the Big Book Move 2012-2013. The books we need to move are science journals. The shelving system works very badly right there and the company which installed them says it's because we have loaded the shelves too much. I disagree, but we have to thin out the collection to see if the situation improves. While the guys are moving books I have been at the storage to shelve and to review other collections. It's hard work to be at the storage all day and I'm very tired in the evenings. 

My paper filled with anecdotes has received praise from colleagues. I plan on making a revised edition, since I have found more photos. 

Apart from work, nothing much is going on here. It's at the end of winter, with storms and a fair amount of rain.

Back issues

Thursday last week was the first time I had to wear a mask. I had an appointment for a routine check-up at the hospital and was told to come ten minutes early and cover my mouth and nose. It was ok but the mask made my glasses misty.

For the past two weeks I have had back problems. I got treatment by the chiropractor but the problems persist. So incredibly annoying. I can't drive the storage round and my colleagues have to do some of my work also. Not what we need right now with so many people absent. 

Last week we got a very challenging request from the Royal Library in Stockholm. They had actually not succeeded in finding the correct reference for one of their patrons. The person who asked had two print-outs from old biographical works but couldn't remember the titles. I could see that the books must be printed between 1820 and 1880 because of the old spelling. After browsing the stacks, the public reference collection and the manuscript department reference books plus some googling I managed to find the correct titles. It was a great feeling to tell the Royal Library of our achievement.

Yesterday I published a chronicle of the stacks. I wrote down some of the history of my department and included many anecdotes and photos. It ended up filling 38 pages. 

The weather is different, it's a lot warmer. All the snow has melted. The spring flowers are already showing up in the park at the library.

Snowy weather

The start of the semester is difficult any year but especially this year. We are few staff members and have to help the desk staff also. One colleague injured her knee and is still on sick leave a month later. My overtime is increasing again and I can't do anything about it. I now have internal desk duty both Mondays and Tuesdays (the worst days), drive the storage round Wednesdays and shelve at the storage every Thursday. Meetings that require my presence must be held on Fridays, so I'm fully booked all days of the week. Not surprisingly, my back is not doing that well, so I had to get treatment by the chiropractor again.

On the positive side, a big mystery was solved this week. Two years ago someone misplaced a folder in the stacks. It was grey cardboard (like most others here) so it was difficult to search for it but we did of course go through hundreds of shelf meters. Yesterday the colleague who misplaced it managed to find it on top of a shelf somewhere. We were so happy about this that we ate cake today to celebrate this marvellous find. 

The weather is cold and stormy with a fair amount of snow. It's worse than recent years so it has been a challenge to drive to work. It's rather icy, especially on the minor roads. I noticed for the first time that there is an anti-spin function in my car. The big roads are plowed but the winds are so high the snow drifts in over the roads again within seconds.

Christmas and New Year's

It was a rather quiet holiday. Early Christmas Eve I drove to the summerhouse, where my mother and her boyfriend were staying. We kept a distance and were careful with hygiene. There was great food in the seasonal style, like Janson's Temptation, meatballs and sausages. I got some very nice presents: a sheepskin to have on the car seat, several types of lotion and soap, a wall calendar, a Christmas kitchen towel, a small led light to have outdoors when it's dark, a Christmas tin containing assorted nuts and a small decorative dog with a Santa hat. My sister gave us a jigsaw puzzle with 1000 pieces. The image was the Titanic, so a large part of the ship was black, the sky was dark and also the ocean. It took over a week to get it done. It was a nice break from the TV watching and the crosswords. 

After the four days off I worked three days and then it was time for the New Year's. The same routine, I drove early on the 31st to the summerhouse. My mother suggested that I should cook a three-course meal for that evening. She helped, also. We had shrimp salad toast, baked salmon with almonds and potato gratin, and dessert was chocolate mousse (made from scratch). It was very tasty. At midnight we stood on the beach looking at the fireworks both to the south and north. 

Monday the 4th we were two people working in the stacks. I was really surprised to see the amount of requests. It seems like many students experienced a sudden urge for books over New Year's. We just barely managed to retrieve everything before noon (when the library opened). It slowed down the next day, thankfully. Wednesday was also a holiday (Twelfth Day), which I spent at home. My father came to visit, primarily I think because he doesn't have a TV and wanted to watch winter sports. We also went out for pizza. 

Today most of the staff members in the stacks were on site to handle the relatively large amount of requests. The semester starts soon and there will be lots to do the next few weeks, even though we have limited the number of studying spaces and closed off parts of the house. The feared virus is increasing here and we try to limit people's presence in the library as much as possible.

Merry Christmas

The new staff member seems to have more energy than the rest of us. He took the initiative to drive to the storage (in his own car) to shelve. He thought it was practical, because he can drive home from there in the afternoon. We are happy about his engagement in the work.

The Christmas party was held online, on Zoom. It was difficult to log on but when it finally worked it was very nice. One staff member showed images of handwritten texts from the 13th century, where the figures we now associate with Christmas were mentioned. He also talked about the traditions in the 19th century. The university archivist was invited and gave a presentation of some books relating to the history of the university. And then the big event - we all took part in an online live viewing of the Hallwyl Palace Museum in Stockholm. Two of their staff members walked around in the museum after hours with a film camera and showed us some of the best items on display. We saw Dutch 17th century paintings, the book collection (of course), the interiors of the kitchen, the first telephone in Stockholm, the grand piano room where most of the items were covered in gold and the dining room set for dinner. I have been to this museum in person and have to say this viewing was very good. 

The Christmas present from work was a gift certificate to use on a website. We usually get this and it's nice to pick out your own gift.

Two colleagues have had the corona virus, both are ok. One of them said she lost the sense of taste and smell, but no other side effects showed up. 

Last Monday the authorities in Sweden sent a text message to all the listed cellphone numbers, urging us to follow the restrictions and reminding us of the danger. No more than 8 people are now allowed to gather in a public space. The library has even shorter opening hours now, 12-17 on weekdays. This Friday the restrictions got even tighter and today the library boss is in a meeting with the vice chancellor to discuss the issues. 

Only a few days left to the big holiday now. I have sent out the annual letter by e-mail. If anyone feels neglected, please let me know. I wish you all a Merry Christmas!

Black Friday shopping

I could only take two Mondays off because my colleagues had problems coping with the work load. Instead I have taken a few afternoons off, so by now I am down to the agreed limit of overtime. Recently I have also engaged more in the storage round and have participtated more actively in the daily chores, since several people are physically absent. This past week we got a replacement for a colleague who was transferred. The new guy has experience from another university library, so I don't have to explain everything from scratch. He takes initiative to shelve, which we are happy about. 

Shopping at Black Friday is something I normally don't do, but this year the deals at the plus size clothing store were very good. I waited until the last opening hour and was all alone in the store. I got two pairs of pants at a very affordable price. At another store I got a new nightgown. Around the same time I had to buy a new TV, since the old one stopped functioning. The one I wanted was of course not on sale, but bought it anyway.  

At my place the Christmas tree is already up and decorated. At this time of year (especially this year) we need more lights and decorations in our lives.

This Sunday I drove to my birthtown, Norra Strö. My friends had at last published the book about the church and were selling it at the historical society museum. I got one copy for free, since I had helped with literature and proof-reading. The book is very extensive, 200 pages is a lot for a book about a small countryside church. 

It's dark and relatively cold here now. It's just above zero, some nights below. Several mornings I have had to get the windshield wipers removed from the windshield using quite a lot of force. So far, there are no problems driving.