Social Studies

I read an article in grad school that had this random paragraph interjected about how elevators make great laboratories for studying human behavior. I would like to agree with that and submit another great lab: the women's class on Sunday in my Church. The specific topic of study is passing a clipboard.

Let me give you an idea of the set up of this experiment. First, the room is probably more than twice as wide as it is long, so we have two sections of chairs, with an aisle down the middle. But to complicate matters, we also have chairs lining the 'long' side of the room (which is really the short side). And on one side, there is room for 3 chairs along the back wall before the built in cupboards start. So, it is not a straightforward layout.

Which is why I have put very simple directions on the front of every clipboard explaining how to pass the clipboards (we always have 2). Because, there is actually a really beautiful system that, if followed, makes everything work out perfectly. Since we have a lot of new faces all the time, it's easiest to just put some instructions on to help people out. And how well does this work out, you ask?

It doesn't. Well, sometimes it does, but just as often it doesn't. I think most of the time, they just don't even look at the cover sheet. But a couple of weeks ago, I saw someone look at the instructions (which say pass it forward) and then pass the clipboard behind her. I've also seen people just set the clipboard on the chair beside them, rather than pass it down three or four chairs to the next person. I'm pretty sure that some people get it from the person behind them and pass it to the person in front of them, instead of the person next to them. Some people sit with one clipboard for about 10 minutes, even though it only has one or two sheets on it.

This isn't that surprising. It seems like passing a roll or sign-up sheet or clipboard should be really straightforward but it just isn't. Ever. Also, people don't read signs. I work in a library. Trust me, people don't read signs.

So, the best way to handle this situation? Don't sit on the end of a row. Problem solved. Unless you are the unlucky winner of the end seat. Then you can just take comfort that it really probably isn't a life or death situation and you shouldn't spend any time worrying about it after you pass it on.

The Friday that isn't

For individuals around the world, today marked the weekly celebration of Friday--that glorious end of the work week and being at your employer's beck and call to being at someone or something else's beck and call. Like cleaning the house, or grocery shopping, or running kids to soccer games or completing the to-do list you've been handed by your spouse. I don't know on some of those because I have neither kids nor spouse, so weekends really are my own time.

But not this weekend, not for me. Tomorrow I get to march right back into work and help researchers.

And I really shouldn't complain. This happens to me maybe once a month, and I have shortened hours, not a full day, and I get to take a full day off during the following week. Usually I don't mind too much at all. But this week really really seemed to drag on and 5:00 today just didn't have the same excitement as other Fridays because I have 5-6 more hours before my work week ends.*

So, as you all enjoy your Saturday, well, just enjoy it.


*And they are weird hours, 10-3. So, too early to really sleep in much but too late to get anything done beforehand. And when I get off, most of the day is shot. Now, I confess, some Saturdays I'm not showered until 3, and the day is shot. But somehow that is less offensive because my day is still mine (although I do always regret days like that). 

A small item of follow up

So, last time I mentioned that I don't remember the details of finding out about 9/11. Naturally, the thing to do was to look in my journal. Which was very informative. Not only did I find out about where I was, but I learned that 38 year-old me finds 21 year-old me really annoying.

I don't find all 21 year-olds annoying.* They are young. They have a different perspective of the world. I don't expect them to be 38 in their mentality. It would be unfortunate if they were. I just find 21-year old me annoying. Because it's me and I was so smarmy and so not like me today.

Also, I don't think I have the same tone in my journal as I do in person. I was writing to an unknown audience, an older me and an invisible and hypothetical posterity. It's a little different than writing to someone who is going to see what you wrote immediately. Hopefully, I was less over the top in person.

The good news is I've grown a bit since 21. The bad news is there's a very real possibility that my 55 year-old self might be equally annoyed by 38 year-old me.

But what can you do, eh?


*Also, I don't know how to hyphenate ages and am too lazy to look it up. 

Getting to know me

I have already started organizing my personal papers (I'm an archivist, okay? This is what I do). Not that anyone will ever want them, but there are about 5 boxes of things I own that document my life. The rest of my possessions are just stuff. 

I like math. I miss doing math. A few weeks ago, I sat down and did algebra problems for fun. And I enjoyed it.

I am a terrible professional presenter because when all eyes are on me, I feel compelled to entertain. 

I understand how approximately 1% (give or take 0.9999%) of the world thinks. Most people's way of viewing the world is incomprehensible to me. I just don't get their process. 

I do not remember how I found out about 9/11. I think I learned when I went to class and it was cancelled, but I'm not sure. I am skeptical about a lot of my memories, really, and have a weird habit of saying so.*

I really want to see more of the world, but I'm a bit of a chicken and don't want to do it alone. I need adult supervision for something like that.

I am really bad at planning my life. I assumed certain things would happen (which didn't), but I don't have any five-year plan or anything like that. Most of the things I'd want to plan are out of my control, anyway. 

Have I mentioned that I hate surveys and questionnaires and rating things? It's all terribly subjective (what does "I really liked it" mean to you? does it mean the same thing to me?) and they never give you enough context to be able to answer the question accurately.

I'm better at ideas than execution. Which makes me a terrible hostess, but a great partner in planning and helping out.

This is not one of my best posts but it's what you get.

*Context: I was listening to a podcast about memory and a study found that about 60% of people misremember where they were and what they were doing when 9/11 happened. I have never been able to clearly remember to begin with. Am I weird?