Almost handed-over

Over the past week I've continued juggling three jobs and have almost handed everthing over so I can concentrate on the new one!   We successfully re-opened Alfreton Library and most customers liked it although we had the inevitable one who hadn't been to spec-savers and couldn't see what we'd done!  Self-service seemed to be accepted by most people too with only a small handful refusing to use it!  Good job we have the option for service at the counter.

On Friday we had the 'official' opening which went well, despite the fact that our attemp at producing a 'photo' cake was doomed by all the local stores seemingly having the same failure in their machines!  After trying six stores I lost the will to live, bought a decorated cake and added our own inscription to it!

I spent two days with a colleague touring 15 libraries so she could become acquainted with them - and now they are all hers...well almost - just the odd issue of a banner and a couple of rugs to sort out!

If I learnt anything last week - other than how frustrating it is trying to sort out cakes - it was how tiring it is visiting 15 libraries in two days!   I fell asleep at 7pm on Friday and after a fairly hectic weekend plopped back into bed at 9pm on Sunday - I so know how to live it up!

However, on Saturday I did have a lovely afternoon with the Karen (Burmese) community in Sheffield as they carried out their wonderful and I suspect very unique teachers celebration, where they thank teachers for their dedication to the students in a fun ceremony giving each teacher a hand-made decoration rather like the hawaian flower garlands.  They also gave a presentation to each student moving onto University - not bad for a group who only came to England 5 years ago.  They value education so highly and work so hard it is a delight to experience.   The teachers certainly seemed to value the students too and expressed what a priviledge it is to teach them. 

At last Alfreton opens today

and finally - thirteen weeks later Alfreton Library is re-opening today.  Everyone has worked really hard and it all looks lovely.  A great new quick choice reception area with the new self-service machines, all new non-fiction area with health and wellbeing zone and tarted up teen and childrens' areas.  It looks wonderfully bright with the new lighting and decoration and hopefully in winter the new heating will work better too! 

Refurbishing is always an exhausting but very rewarding process - lets hope the customers like it too! 

Learnings 1

Yesterday I started the day moving stuff to my new desk, then dashed off to Alfreton to meet the furniture fitters who were coming back to finish off.  Next stop Ripley to see a designer and discuss the new Health & Wellbeing zone and exactly where we can situate it!  Needed his advice as a team of us had spent two hours debating it and struggling to envisage how it could work! Then off to Alfreton again to answer lots of questions, talk nicely topeople to get things done and shelve books.  Finished at 5.15 feeling absolutely exhausted only to find a ticket on the car windscreen!  Learnings - don't try to squeeze so much into a day and check where I'm parking!