Getting Acclimated

I've been feeling pretty tired and scattered. Today I actually sat down and looked at the calendar and saw that I've been at my new job less than a month. And during that month, I had about a week of overlap time where I worked my last job and this new job.

As a good friend reminded me, there is much to adjust to with a new job. New co-workers, new industry (I'm still in retail, but instead of books, I'm selling food), new operations, new commute, new schedules. Lots of new.

I do feel as though I'm starting to get acclimated. I'm feeling more comfortable there both with the people on my team as well as with the work I do.

One of the things I scoped in on right away was the bookcase in the break room. It's there for staff to bring in any books they're done with and want to share. It's a small bookcase with three wooden shelves, and it is full of books. Seeing that little bookcase helped me feel more at home.

When I went into the break room yesterday, I saw that the bookshelf was a mess. Some of the books were shelved neatly, spines out, but many were shelved with spines IN, and more books were stacked on top of the other books. Still others had fallen behind the books. The little bookcase needed some love.

So I straightened the books on the bookcase on my break. Of course I did.

I got to see in more detail what books were there...there were a few about food - NEW GOOD FOOD, INTUITIVE EATING. There were a few mass market paperbacks - a Janet Evanovich, a Dean Koontz, SECRETS OF THE YA-YA SISTERHOOD, a couple of Michael Crichton titles. There were also a few decent trade paperbacks - TIME TRAVELER'S WIFE, LAST TEMPTATION OF CHRIST, ONE DAY by Peter Nichols. But most of the books seemed like ones people brought in because they didn't know what else to do with them. Like books you'd find left over at a garage sale. There was a large hardcover Webster's dictionary, some old textbooks - DISCOVERING AMERICAN HISTORY, BIOLOGY: LIFE ON EARTH, and a few random obscure titles - THE MALE CROSS DRESSER SUPPORT GROUP book, THE ESSAIC REPORT, and an old small paperback called SURPRISING AMSTERDAM that had black and white drawings of scenes of Amsterdam. There was even a vinyl LP by Elton John.

It doesn't seem as though people use the bookshelves much, as some of the books I briefly saw on my first day are still there and many of the titles didn't seem to be ones people would be that interested in. But maybe that can change.

Having the shelves neat makes them more inviting. And perhaps we'll be able to cull some of the books that seem less likely to be picked up by team members. Is anyone really going to be very interested in a 1987 version of BIOLOGY: LIFE ON EARTH?

I know it will take more time before I feel settled into the new job. And I daresay I'm not done being tired and feeling scattered. But I know I'll be keeping an eye on that break room bookcase. And that will help.

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