Saturday, July 12, 2008 Our morning newspaper reminded us that the flood happened a month ago today. It seems like yesterday and also months ago. My binding supervisor called letting me know that she has been getting sick everyday she comes to work but thinks she has it figured out. Right near her desk is a littleContinue reading “Dumbwaiter and Phone Bill”
Category Archives: Flood Recovery
African American Museum of Iowa Update
Friday, July 11, 2008 I worked at home to get a little quality time and be a little more focused. Started with breakfast on the deck, caught sight of a humming bird checking out the red salvia, and then segued into working on my email on the deck. Very relaxing. I met with the AfricanContinue reading “African American Museum of Iowa Update”
Flattening LP Covers
Thursday, July 10, 2008 These LP covers were saturated with flood water. Many of them were printed on coated paper which means we couldn’t clean them until they were dry because the water would wash away the image. We used drying racks and a stack dryer which is pictured below. They were hung up until theyContinue reading “Flattening LP Covers”
Bubble Wrap and Mold
Thursday, July 10, 2008 I spent the first part of my morning answering email, checking on staff, noting progress in the preservation area in the basement. Then I packed a ton of stuff – rags, buckets, tubs, face masks, plastic, tape, garbage bags, scissors, lab jacket, anything I could think of that might be assistanceContinue reading “Bubble Wrap and Mold”
Putting Ourselves Back Together
Wednesday, July 9, 2008 Most staff upon returning to the Main Library were able to just turn on his or her computer and pick up where s/he had left off. Not the Preservation Department. Book repair, binding, and marking are in the basement which was flooded. Since we were completely dismantled, we decided it wasContinue reading “Putting Ourselves Back Together”
Temporary Quarters, Again!
Wednesday, July 9, 2008 Since book repair is in the basement along with marking and binding, they can not move back into their original work space. We decided to move them in after marking and binding. Painting will probably be done on Friday but it’ll still take some time to get equipment, shelves, etc. squaredContinue reading “Temporary Quarters, Again!”
Stacking LPs
Tuesday, July 8, 2008 These are some of the first records that we cleaned for the Czech Slovak museum. This is one small stack of the 1,200 33 1/3rds ahead of us.
Moving Back
Monday, July 7, 2008 After three days of guests and almost no flood related activities, it was very hard to get mentally back to work. My host, Engineer Librarian John Forys, gave me a tip on where to find great coffee — The T-spoons. Fortified, I tackled my close to 700 emails, hoping to get partContinue reading “Moving Back”
Drying Out LP’s
Thursday, July 3, 2008 As we are taking out the LPs from their disgusting boxes, the covers and the records themselves are still wet. And caked with mud. And they need to be dried–preferably with some semblance of the order they are in. Luckily, Tim Barrett has allowed us to take over the Paper LabContinue reading “Drying Out LP’s”
Mass Drying
Monday, July 7, 2008 We try to utilize the entire drying rack daily. The records are hung staggered with the covers, which allows air to pass around them all. We set up a few fans around the room, not directly on the rack, as it caused some of the covers to fall, but just toContinue reading “Mass Drying”