Book of D: Old Memories, New Office, and New Colleagues

Well, the move is official. I am no longer in the Falcon Center (a.k.a. Falcon Zone) on the first floor next to the Falcon Bookstore. I am on the 4th floor in the north wing (in the Counseling hallway). Both the graduate programs, counseling and psychology, facilitate their respective practicum programs within this part of the building; therefore, I'm right smack in the middle of the grind, if you will. I get melancholy walking through the hallway as I remember my stint as a mental health counseling student. Those days were rough, but I learned so much. It was such an arduous process, and I am still not sure how I managed to get through it. I worked fulltime and attended grad school fulltime. There were days that I would be gone from home starting as 7 am till 11 pm because I worked at the university during the day, then I transitioned into grad student at night. The last couple of semesters of practicum and internship were the most grueling, but it has paid off immensely. 

Anyway, suffice it to say, I really like where my office is situated now. I have more interaction with other people, not just in my division, I am close (in proximity) to the professors who are pooled within the department of literature and languages and history, which includes my bestie who is a history prof, Ana; she is just 50 feet from me. So, woo hoo. The other wing on the 4th floor (the south or admin wing) consists of all the executive/senior level administrators (University President, VP, Provost, Chancellor, Dean, Comptroller, Title IX team, etc.), so I am going to get to schmooze, big time with the big wigs. Kidding. Or not. Baby needs a new pair of shoes😄.

Sidebar note: The Wi-Fi has always been somewhat problematic in this building, the Mesa Building (MB), even when I was on the first floor. I think it is because when the MB was first built in the early 70s, the "brutalist" architecture was popular, so our campus, well, our main building where I am situated, was constructed to model that kind of rough aesthetic. The bad thing is the thick concrete walls muddle with our Wi-Fi, but on the bright side, if a tornado comes through, we'll be safe. Hahaha. Knock wood. Funny thing is when I have an attachment to send via text, I have to literally open the door to my office (just a smidge) for the pic or whatever to send; otherwise, I get an error: "message failed to send"! Stupid, yes, this I know, but it's technology and modern or not, it is flawed like most things. When I was on the first floor, I would have to leave the area and walk outside to the Quad to send texts with attachments. Now, I just have to open the door. I usually keep the door open unless I have a Zoom or Teams meeting or training, so the Wi-Fi isn't as brutal, plus, I get to look really "woke" by having an open door to meet with our "open door policies." Cheesy joke, this I also know. I am lucky I don't have worse things to complain about - aside from missing my former colleagues; the ones who moved to the new Center for Student Belonging and Inclusion. However, my new cohorts are really nice. Plus, we have more in common since we all have counseling and psychology in common. 

The other thing I have to get situated, which is also minor, is getting my late coworker's office furniture switched out with my new office furniture. It's weird being in Stacie's office especially using her desk. I had the university moving team bring my chair from my other office, so at least I am not using her chair. The two recliners she personally bought and had in the office were donated by her mom to UTPB. My supervisor had them removed and the moving team took them to the east campus storage facility where they will probably get auctioned off - unless someone else wants them. I am okay with Stacie's desk for now; although it is more utilitarian (drawer files and bins), I am not fond of the executive (bulky) style or beechwood color. The new office furniture that awaits me is walnut and although I am not overtly fanatical of the color, the style does suit me more. It is more modern (minimalist) and comes with an electric standing desk, so I can stand whenever I want to because sitting and being stationary kind of sucks. I'll try to post pictures. I have to get them from my phone to my computer first. Let's see how Mr. Wi-Fi allows that transfer to take place. LOL.