Summer Weekends 2012: Games with the Girls

What beats the summer heat/day off doldrums but a day out with your girl friends, for food, fun, laughter, and re-discovering your inner children?

I met up with Amelia and Christine for an afternoon of sensory overload at a suburban marketing mecca that housed a Dave & Busters. Look at the girls go!

Skeeball, Hoops, Wack-a-Mole, Dance Dance Revolution, Ms. Pac-Mac, Air Hockey, and so much more ... including a game where I oh-so-slightly scared them with some stress-relieving shoot out with digital demons. Watch out!

I tried to document how fast the girl were going in this Speed of Light game, but my pictures were all blurry.

Waiting for an "artistic" rendering of the three of us, by a mechanical Michaelango.

More fun and games. Check out the cheater at hoops there on the right.

The Shushing Librarian joined us, of course, and had her own version of a good time. She spent a lot of time trying to get to the chocolate, the bullion, reliving some good times on her Harley,

feeling the need---the need for speed, and trying to let off some stress by imagining particularly problematic patron's faces on targets, oggling the dudes, and batting for swag.

After we escaped the sensory overload and a spice load-up trip to Penzeys, we revisited the scene of the Service Shower to say hi! to Alithia and family ... just timed perfectly (somehow) for dinner. Grilled pizza, salad, and a show from a wee small boyo, Alex.

Good food. Good friends. Good day.

The Amazing Adventures of The Shushing Librarian - What Happens After Hours

With apologies to the narrator of The Real World.

This is the true(ish) story... of seven strangers/library employees... picked to work in a library...work together and have their lives taped (for security purposes)... to find out what happens... when people stop being polite... and start getting real...The Real World: The Library - After Hours.

As relayed by The Shushing Librarian to Auntie Nettie, one night when they both should have turned off the computer and have gone to bed before the next day started.

Once the clock strikes the magic hour, all the patrons are ushered out

[get out get out thanks for coming bye-bye bye-bye-now get out get out
don't let the door hit you on the butt bye-bye get out get out get OUUUUUUUUUT!]

-- sometimes forcibly by security,

and the doors are locked, the library staff breathes a huge sigh of relief.

They power down their computers,

and the staff logs off all social media, hanging up their 'ats, so to speak.
(P.S. No one needs hear, "Where you at?" all dang day.)

They do rounds to check in to see how fellow staff are fairing.
Poor Kit the Children's Librarian is already curled up in exhaustion,

and Mother Goose's goose, is, well--cooked.

No one needs to be a-moose-ing anymore.

Our mascots can bear-ly keep their chins up anymore.

We're all feel like we've been trampled by a herd of dinosaurs masquerading as patrons.

Though exhausted, we still have to run around and put the place back together for the morning staff.

It seems the pages haven't been putting the books away.
Christmas lights, really? In July?

That's better.

And the custodial staff isn't hopping to work. We've got to roost them off their pads, but they have a Toady of a Union Rep, so it's usually a pretty swampy situation between staffs.

Once everything is done, we walk out the door and find our various ways to put the day behind us -- each in our own little ways. This was sent over to me to enjoy by the Most Interesting Man in the World, who told me that even he doesn't have the fortitude to do what we do.every.single.day.

The End.

Back to the Grind.