My Office

For those of you who don't know, I'm teaching religion courses at a local college right now. It's my first "real job" - I don't get paid very much, but I do get benefits and don't have any other jobs on the side, so it feels pretty cushy. They even gave me an office. I'm not much of a decorator - the most distinctive feature of my office is... piles of papers on every flat surface. (All of my current and former roommates now sigh, "Big surprise!") But I do have an original Amber Lee piece on the wall and a coffee pot. That's enough to make it feel homey.

The only problem is one over which I have no control: the air conditioning. Based on how cold my work space is, I'd have to say that the thermostat is set on "arctic." The first week of work, I went out and bought a sweater to keep in here. Last week, I finally gave in and brought a crocheted blanket from home that I shamelessly wrap myself in during office hours. When it's my lunch break, I put on the sweater and go to the park - there I remember what it feels like to be warm, even - *gasp - hot! Then I go back to my office and freeze again. (Maybe this is why I've been sick recently...)

Last week we had a cooler spell - for several days in a row we had pleasantly mild temperatures. Thursday I arrived early to school to put finishing touches on my lesson plan and prepare my mind for class. I was shocked to discover that my office was a bearable temperature! The classroom was a little warm, but during office hours later that day I didn't even need my blanket! "This is more like it!" I thought to myself. I was hoping that the change in temperature outside had influenced the powers that be to be a little more reasonable about the thermostat settings. I was so excited.

Then I went to a meeting. They apologized for the heat in the room. It turns out that my office was a tolerable temperature because the air conditioning in the whole building was broken! Boo!

We're back to "arctic" again this week.