Hot Office Administrator Blues

I’ve got the my-office-is-not-air-conditioned administrator blues. I have a pretty high tolerance for heat, but this summer I’ve been pushed to the limit. I swear my brain is actually turning into some type of mush. I’m used to thinking at a pretty brisk clip and it just ain’t happening. Until yesterday I had been pretty much suffering in silence. I’m the only staff member working in the office during summer as usual. Church folk who come and go had been remarking about how hot the office is, but I would just smile and say “Yes, it is.” That is until yesterday when my Building Usage and Office Committee threatened mutiny when they arrived. “No way we can meet it this heat. You just can’t focus!” They demanded we go to an air-conditioned location or no meeting. Huh… my cooked little brain started to ponder, if it is too hot for a meeting, how stupid is it that I’ve been suffering through 5 plus hours every day. No wonder I’m miserable and inefficient! It’s just plain draining.

Even on Sunday when the minister latched onto it as a social justice issue, I was still in my suffer in silence mode. First there were exclamations from well-meaning folks telling me to just go buy an air-conditioner and install it. I pointed out the flaws in the plan (namely I neither have the time nor the ability to install air-conditioners). Once reality hit home, the minister started working on the Facilities committee to install air-conditioning. I think you can understand why I was having trouble envisioning a quick process. So far the two co-chairs have been playing the “I’m not in charge of the project, he is” game. It will probably be discussed at the next committee meeting at which time they will argue over whether bidding it out to a contractor is necessary. I’ve already heard a multitude of opinions about what type should be purchased and where it should be installed.

Meanwhile I’ve gone to modified office hours until it gets cooler or there’s a miraculous installation of an air-conditioner. Blessed is my LogMeIn.com account…

Marguerite

I love your blog! Everyone will want to meet in the office now that there is air-conditioning. It is suppose to be an extremely hot summer.

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UU Soul

UPDATE: As of Monday, July 31, 2006 the church office now has air-conditioning! Yeahhhhh! Miracles do happen!!

Scary, but sadly not surprising! I probably would be arranging for the purchase and installation except we don't have a regular window so it will be a bit complicated. We'll see! You reminded me, I plan to bring a thermometer to work to see just how hot it gets in there. Good luck with your office :)

Anonymous

I feel your pain! Oh dear, do I ever - I'm a DRE who's heading back to work after vacation tomorrow, and dreading it. My office is up away from the rest of the (air-conditioned) offices, in a room with huge west-facing windows that catch the worst of the afternoon sun and half of which can't even be opened. I'm thinking I'm going to be staked out downstairs and/or working at home for most of the next month, no matter what people think about it.

At a previous church I served, when I arrived (in July) I was installed in a tiny little room that, I kid you not, rose above 100 degrees easily every day. I flat out refused to work in that room until they either put an air conditioner in the one window it had, or September came. And even so, I still had to figure out what one to get, purchase it, and arrange for someone to come and install it.

It continues to amaze me how blissfully ignorant many churches choose to be about the conditions they expect their staff to work in.

Good luck getting your air soon!