you can give it all up for a place in the sun

There was an admins meeting at the board yesterday (they have them at least monthly). So, no PHP II at work, at least.

Except she must've been bored cus I got a half dozen emails for me. Wanting me to put up the OH&S minutes before they're approved by the committee. *sigh* Okay, whatevs, but I'm NOT sending them to the board before they're approved. Then a list of books for mi'kmaq heritage and african cdn/american stuff. She wanted to know what we didn't have...of course it was a pdf so I couldn't do it back to her electronically but gave her the paper copy today.

Then she sent me some stuff for the SAC section of the website--and with that one I won the arguement about putting the minutes up before committee approval. Anyhow she wondered if she could have admin access to the website. *TWITCH* There are many reasons I'm in library sciences. Control freak are two of them. I was initially going to email her back and pretty much say, in a small voice, "um, no, if that's okay with you." But I knew that would only spur her to want access and show me not to be a Team Player (there is no I in team (but there IS "me" if you rearrange the letters)).

I quickly threw out that idea and instead went for defeat via techno babble. I emailed back and said that while she could certainly have access, well, right now you have to upload files via Front Page as the FTP isn't working...and that while she could upload, I'd rather be the one to do the links, since the sites CSS could easily be affected and mess up the entire site. *halo--sitting on the devil horns* I also pointed out that I can generally get things up the same day as I have access to the website from home and do check my email on the weekends (my weekend includes Mondays).

And it was the right tack to take as she quickly emailed back that it would be easier for me to do--as she thought it would be. I wonder if it was an intentional test... To see how cooperative I'll be. I always feel like I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop with that woman.I've been really good about not asking her to stop using my secret door.

I have two doors into the library--they're on the same wall but at different ends; the door the kids use is goes the hallway--the other door is across from the main office door, but also right next to the door into the above mentioned hallway and near the lobby. If it was used during class time by the kids, the congestion would be quite bad. I call it my secret door as one day, early on during my time at the school, Principal mr K was at the office door when I came out of the library door. He called down the hallway to the VP: "Hey, S, the librarian found the secret door!" So that's what I've called it ever since. I'd rather she didn't use it, but hey, as one of the EAs I work with says: "That's not a hill I want to die on." Yep, pick yo' battles, man.

I'm currently staying at PD's place as they're on their trip to the NASCAR race and to meet Jimmie Johnson down in Charlotte, NC. (Her son had to have a heart transplant a year ago Memorial Day weekend.) So they're off, I'm here and abusing her washing machine and dryer, but she said I could. LOL I don't think she thought I'd bring all my laundry--I did leave towels and sheets at home. Just a few small washes. *g*

the boys chased the girls with the curls in their hair

I'm doing up my substitute plan--I do it every year--revise the classroom schedule. I also include a section on how to use Alexandria. I've got an appt this Tues--it's with the eye specialist and was set last year before I even knew how LTs would be treated by the board. And I can't change it easily. So for subs this year, we have to give preference to those LTs who got laid off last school year. We've an automated system for this, so my fave five are former LTs (while I understand this, it annoys me slightly cus I have a sub I've trained myself and who's worked for me for two years--also done tremendous work as a volunteer). Anyhow, my first choice is A, who worked in our board several years ago; she remarried and moved to Cali, she came back last year and started working at the board again. Bad timing, eh? Anyhow, I know she knows her shit.

Also found out the person I replaced at school B has her name on the sub list. I'm going to both my admins and saying that I do NOT want her subbing for me at either school, ever (if I'm sick and put in an absence the system doesn't follow the fave five...it can go to anyone). My reasons are a few fold: first of all, she's NOT a trained LT, she's barely a trained clerk; she's obviously NEVER done automated circ and she was really unprofessional when she left School B. She left me NOTHING about how she did things, where things were located, what she did for fundraising/bookfairs. I think I mentioned I didn't contact HER at the end of last school year cus I was warned by a few folks she was royally pissed; had she called me, I would've gone over to visit. So, no, I don't want her at School A and def not at School B--who knows, she might try to sabotage something. (Look, I'm an Aquarius with Scorpio rising; suspicious is second nature to me.)

Soooo... I'm typing up my sub plan and adding school B stuff, when I realise that I'll have to take a picture of the electrical panel in the library as THAT is where I have to turn my lights on. Yes, I have to flip circuit breakers to turn my lights on and off.... I'm taking a pic cus that's just easier than trying to write it all out. I can do arrows and stuff. I'll also have to do screen shots of the Mac cus some of the stuff on that is a bit different...like how to shut programs down. (Oh, no, don't let the x put you out of the program. You can do that but then you STILL have to go to the menu to close it out. Yeah, Macs are so much fucking better. Not.)

So, yeah, doing some work on the weekend.

your head feels twice the size

Getting so behind on this already!

My current sched has me at school A all day Tues and Wed and then Friday from 11:30 til 2:30 ish, including my lunch time. I'm at school B all day Thurs and Fri. morning.

I'd ask K when he was doing schedules last year, if he'd schedule the actual library times--he had the master sched and it was easier for him to do it as he could rearrange other things as need be--since it was a matter of scheduling 16 classes over two days (leaving me Fri afternoons to do library work). He'd asked me how I'd wanted my time structured--it's easier doing full days and given it's a 15 min drive between my two schools, cheaper. Anyhow, he set it up for me, and said, when it was done "There, I've done it for you, you big baby!" (Teasing me--in prior years I'd let the teachers pick their times and done up the sched).

I did my sched at School B with the teachers coming to see me--there's only 8 home rooms; half what I have at school a. Anyhow a bit more unscheduled time there, which I'm gonna need.

I didn't have classes the first week of school at either site. Which was good cus last Thursday, DT (my tech at school B) got me an imac--he asked when I wanted it. I said now? He said: Done. Then went upstairs and got it. We got Alex and other things I needed set up. Bless him--he's so much faster at stuff than SR. I still <3 SR, but he was supposed to upgrade my pc at school A to win7 over the summer. Never happened.  Not shocked, I've worked with him for 12 or so years now and same as always. *sigh* He's a good tech just fucking slow. As I told PD--DT is my favourite tech now...not that I've broken the news to SR. *heh*

Anyhow, had a good chat with DT Thursday--him ranting about how things are done with/via the techs for the board and what he'd do differently if he was in charge. He's so funny--one of THE most laid back guys I've ever met (even more than SR) yet he gets so worked up over shit he cares about. I had a couple simple questions for him today--so I went upstairs to the Tech Cave (my name for it) and asked, but it would've been as easy to email. I asked him if he minded if I did email him--he said he doesn't care, go ahead. (I only ask cus not all techs like folks emailing them about stuff--we have an online help desk to submit things--but if it's a question, email's easier; SR lets me email him as well).

So, Thurs, at School B, I called Comp Corp who own Alexandria to get my codes for v.6 (licence/reg codes change with the update)...the rep said it wouldn't propogate on their servers for about 3 hours; told her this was fine as I wasn't going to update til the next day. Friday morning and I had my updated codes and d/l the installation file for Alex--but there was a line of instruction that I didn't quite get, so I was going to call their tech support, but got no answer (3 hr time diff, it was 7 for me, 4 a.m. for them tho it's 24 hour support). Anyhow DT showed up and he had no idea what they really meant (probably don't overwrite the previous install--it's a bloody mac). He was looking for Alex and saw that I'd dropped the program from the app window onto the desktop. Hee. DT was all "Why did you do that, you don't move programs like that on Windows, etc, etc"; I'm pissing myself laughing at this point--managed to sputter out "but I don't use macs" and "It still worked". hahaha. Yeah, still getting used to the dock thing.

So, we get Alex installed and she doesn't want to let me log in. I'd logged into V5 before I upgraded... DT can't figure out what's wrong, we try again, still didn't work; DT went back to the Tech Cave...I ended up calling Alex tech support--turns out that sometimes the login info doesn't transfer, so he gave me a backdoor pword (yanno what? DID NOT have this problem with Windows...). It worked and I was able to set up users again. Yay. Went upstairs to find DT to let him know it worked.

Then I discovered there was no iTunes. On an iMac. o.^ Couldn't d/l it either (DT doesn't believe me that it's because https sites are blocked, except for whitelisted sites--one of which he showed me that worked. I smirked rather muchly when he couldn't access the d/l even when he used Safari.) I told him, when I'd gone up to ask about it, that I was whiney and needy. He replied, "Only til you get what you need." I forgot to ask about the iTunes today til after he'd gone...so I emailed him tonight.

He really is one of the good guys (married, natch)--today on one of his many forays to and fro from his vehicle to upstairs, he poked his head in and asked if everything was okay. I said it was except I wanted a PC. He responded with sign language...I'm sure you can guess which one. Another reason to like him! LOL

Okay, this is getting long....there's a surprise. I'll talk about first days more in my next post.

Haven't used this for a few years

I'm going to try and keep this blog up and running. I plan for it to mostly be about work; yes, there will probably be some venting now and again. Railing against the system or myself or others.... I will do my best to keep it pro--no one will be referred to by their real names (Or as one of my former teachers always put it, "Names have been changed to protect the guilty"--which will apply in some cases.). I shall try to avoid mentioning specifics about any of my students--if I tell a story it will be in the most generic of terms....

I am a very fannish person, but other than the occasional squee about a new show or one of my faves (and possibly posts of some guys I consider hotties), I'm really going to try and keep this blog work related. I have other places to be fannish...but I'm not linking to them here. I have no desire for my fannish life and my work/personal lives to intersect.

So background--I know in my user info it's hard to see but that's 22.5 hrs per week to run two school libraries (not 225). I live in a rural area of NS Canada; both of my schools are in large villages/towns; School A at which I have 15 hrs per week, is the larger of the two (and what I consider my home school as it's where I was last year before the changes--more on that later) with ~400 students in P to 5. School B is actually in the village I grew up in, however I didn't attend this school as at the time, it was only for DND dependents who lived in the PMQs. Now, however, it only has ~150 students, also P to 5. The school board has said they're going to look at the boundaries and I hope they do as the boundaries school B shares with the school in the next village over are ridiculous.

Last year, I had a 30 hour/week position at school A (which was considered full time). The provincinal gov't here has been cutting back and cutting back and cutting back on education and health care severely. The next board over initially had all their library staff laid off (they only brought back MS and HS folk). Here? The solution was to cut all library positions (most of us being LTs with a few untrained-but-grandmothered-into-our-contract workers) by 50%. Then they'd pair two schools up and we'd be reassigned, choosing our schools by seniority. With a couple LTs opting to take only one school it ended up that 22 out of 43 of us kept our jobs (there was one retirement in there). My position fell from 30 hrs to 22.5--I was 11th on the seniority list, however any 6 hour positions were so far away that any gain I'd have by that 1/5 hours would be lost in the cost of gas. And I've done the 45 min or more drive to work and it's awful, esp in NS winters. So, I chose these two schools....

And now as I look at the clock on the comp, I realise it's 2:30 in the a.m. No work on Monday (my sched is done over 4 days, thanks to K, my previous admin at school A.) but I do have things I'll need to do later today so I should get a few hours sleep. G'night.