The Full-Time Custodian
The Stuff You Never Knew You'd Like to Know
Walking to work alone at 4:00 AM
The Sky: It's wonderful. Have you seen the stars that early? It's not your usual night time view. If you've been up late the night before, you can see the change that's taken place in only a few hours. No one is out on the streets. In the early morning peace you can stop, even in the middle of the road, and wonder and God's creations.
Paranoia: I played night games a bit this summer. I've stood on campus, knowing full well that there are more than twenty people within 50 feet of me, and not single one of them is visible to me. And here I am, walking up a hill called "Rape" that's marked with signs warning "Do not walk in this area at night." The adrenaline rush is a great way to wake yourself up.
PPE
Ahhh Personal Protection Equipment, better known as gloves and goggles. The gloves I understand. After all I'm a custodian. I touch dirty things. Yep, it's just what I do.
Now the goggles are a different story. Do you realize that wicked, passive-agressive OSHA makes me wear goggles when using ANY chemical. Oh yes friends, that means I wear goggles when I wash the windows with windex. I can't even try to save face by using safety classes. It has to be the big green goggles that stick out 3 inches from my face, tie on with an elastic cord, and leave a deep, and very red line on the unhappy skin around my eyes. Also, my eyes were harmed far more by having goggles than windex could ever do. They slip in your gloves as you put them on and ..SNAP.. right in the face.
What makes the goggles worth it is the funny associations my brain has made with them. For some reason Whenever I have on my goggles I tend to forget that I am not underwater. I get this sensation that I cannot be seen, which is relieving because I'm wearing giant green goggles. I also forget that I can still talk. When you're under water that doesn't work so well. ...neither does breathing in through your nose or out through your mouth...just saying.
Solitude
First thing in the morning I meet up with a largish, squarish, redish machine. I'm pretty sure it has a name like Tornado, or Tsunami or something stormy...ish. I know for certain that it has an acronymn that I could never remember. So for narration purposes we'll call it Vinny. Anyhow I'd fill the Vinny up with water, grab my PPE then head for the elevator that would take me to the 4th floor.
The Benson is the chemistry building, which means that all the upper floors are labs. In wee hours of the morning those labs are still clinking, dinging, rumbling, and smoking away. Some labs have signs forbidding the use of lights. Other signs inform you that there are highpowered magnets in the room. One of my personal favorites is the sign that warns that if you open the door you may have your eyes burnt out by lasers.
I would drag Vinny through the dark of these labs, cleaning the chairs while trying not to mess with the chemist's messes. It was fun.
Sunrise
By far the best part of the day was sunrise. From the 4th floor, in the corner office you have a view that stretched from the temple, across the mountains, over the valley and to the other side. The sunrise is spectacular.
Random
A few other random things I'll miss: the numatic (vacumn with a happy face),
the machine rooms in the basement, especially the wind room,
and the chasm (you don't even know I'm down there).
The Stuff You Never Knew You'd Like to Know
Walking to work alone at 4:00 AM
The Sky: It's wonderful. Have you seen the stars that early? It's not your usual night time view. If you've been up late the night before, you can see the change that's taken place in only a few hours. No one is out on the streets. In the early morning peace you can stop, even in the middle of the road, and wonder and God's creations.
Paranoia: I played night games a bit this summer. I've stood on campus, knowing full well that there are more than twenty people within 50 feet of me, and not single one of them is visible to me. And here I am, walking up a hill called "Rape" that's marked with signs warning "Do not walk in this area at night." The adrenaline rush is a great way to wake yourself up.
PPE
Ahhh Personal Protection Equipment, better known as gloves and goggles. The gloves I understand. After all I'm a custodian. I touch dirty things. Yep, it's just what I do.
Now the goggles are a different story. Do you realize that wicked, passive-agressive OSHA makes me wear goggles when using ANY chemical. Oh yes friends, that means I wear goggles when I wash the windows with windex. I can't even try to save face by using safety classes. It has to be the big green goggles that stick out 3 inches from my face, tie on with an elastic cord, and leave a deep, and very red line on the unhappy skin around my eyes. Also, my eyes were harmed far more by having goggles than windex could ever do. They slip in your gloves as you put them on and ..SNAP.. right in the face.
What makes the goggles worth it is the funny associations my brain has made with them. For some reason Whenever I have on my goggles I tend to forget that I am not underwater. I get this sensation that I cannot be seen, which is relieving because I'm wearing giant green goggles. I also forget that I can still talk. When you're under water that doesn't work so well. ...neither does breathing in through your nose or out through your mouth...just saying.
Solitude
First thing in the morning I meet up with a largish, squarish, redish machine. I'm pretty sure it has a name like Tornado, or Tsunami or something stormy...ish. I know for certain that it has an acronymn that I could never remember. So for narration purposes we'll call it Vinny. Anyhow I'd fill the Vinny up with water, grab my PPE then head for the elevator that would take me to the 4th floor.
The Benson is the chemistry building, which means that all the upper floors are labs. In wee hours of the morning those labs are still clinking, dinging, rumbling, and smoking away. Some labs have signs forbidding the use of lights. Other signs inform you that there are highpowered magnets in the room. One of my personal favorites is the sign that warns that if you open the door you may have your eyes burnt out by lasers.
I would drag Vinny through the dark of these labs, cleaning the chairs while trying not to mess with the chemist's messes. It was fun.
Sunrise
By far the best part of the day was sunrise. From the 4th floor, in the corner office you have a view that stretched from the temple, across the mountains, over the valley and to the other side. The sunrise is spectacular.
Random
A few other random things I'll miss: the numatic (vacumn with a happy face),
the machine rooms in the basement, especially the wind room,
and the chasm (you don't even know I'm down there).
You are spectacular, and this is a great post! If I had quit a 4 A.M janitorial job, my only thought would probably be "AWESOME! I can sleep now!"
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