lydamorehouse | (Reply)

From:

I used to work in archives (my wife still does, being the Minnesota State Archivist,) at the Immigration History Research Center at the University of Minnesota. It has since moved to a swanky new building with climate controlled archives, etc., but when I worked there it was housed in an old coffee warehouse... that leaked. So, I feel your pain, my friend.

I found the few times that I helped out with archives that it was gross (one shipment included cockroaches! Thanks!) and there were boxes to lift, but the pace was... fairly relaxed? Like, you were expected to take your time sorting and reading and doing whatever. To be fair, this is from the outside looking in, because I mostly answered phones at the IHRC. I'm sure there was some pressure to do things quickly.

The thing about Ramsey Library is the pace. I'm sure it's difficult to even believe how many books we move in any given day, but it really feels like a factory. It slows down (at Maplewood, anyway,) after the second delivery, but mornings are crushing. It's weird.

Anyway, hello, fellow archive worker!