Last week, staff in the circulation unit of the Murray Library finally got the answer to the question they’ve been asking all year: “When are we moving downstairs?” The answer to that question is Wednesday, March 27th, 2019.

Although they had been mentally preparing themselves for months, the announcement of a firm deadline sent them scrambling to clean their desks and pack all of their worldly goods onto book trucks in preparation.

All my bags are packed, I’m ready to go

On Tuesday afternoon, their computers were unplugged and put on carts as well, ready to be put back onto the desks once they all reached their final destination.

I’m standing here outside your door / I hate to wake you up to say goodbye

The desks were left quite bare, as they waited for the arrival of the movers from Facilities Material Handling on Wednesday morning.

But the dawn is breaking, it’s early morn

The movers were a bit late on Wednesday morning, leaving the circulation staff at loose ends, not knowing where to go. But they did finally arrive, shortly after 9, and started hauling everything downstairs.

The taxi’s waiting, he’s blowing his horn

When the desks were removed, many dust bunnies and miscellaneous pieces of ancient debris were discovered. Who knew Duane had so many dried leaves under his desk?

Already I’m so lonesome I could die

Room 122 is now half-empty of people and fully-full of emptiness. Room [number not yet assigned] is now fully-full of people and half-full of hope. Circulation and LS&IT staff are hard at work putting everything together again.

Cause I’m leaving on a jet plane / don’t know when I’ll be back again

There’s still lots to do, so please be patient with Duane, Rachel, Kim, Cathy, Brittany P, Muhammad and Lisa if they don’t respond to emails or answer phone calls today. They literally don’t have computers or phones right now.

(Wondering why all this office movement is happening? It’s all part of the University Library’s Master Plan!)

Are you interested in visiting the new circulation office on the Murray ground floor? We’d love to have you visit, but we’re still unpacking and getting settled in! We are tentatively planning a come-and-go reception for April 17th April 25th. Keep an eye out for an invite in your email inbox coming soon!