First week's contemplation

Though I've been working for the school system for a hundred days. This week was my first real week back at school. I wanted to document the entire process. I'm posting on social media, but I also wanted to express my thoughts after each day. At the end of my shift I'll be making comments as I'm going through this process. I'm working as a custodian while I pursue my writing career.

Pre-Day One: 8/22/2022

Technically, my first day back in a public school was April 4th. Well, after completing the school year and sweating one sixteenth of my body weight out in the summer. A new school year is about to commence. A new set of feet will be entering the freshly cleaned, scrubbed, and polished space to learn and dream. Also, a lot more for me to clean. I’m curious if these little ones will understand the actual usage of a garbage can, or the fact that it is kinder to dump any liquids in a sink before chucking the discarded item into a receptacle. Just curious.

The antics of highschool is different in this facility. We aren’t a sports. It doesn’t even feel like super academic driven. The school of math and science is just a few blocks away. This is the school of the arts. Ballet, choir, orchestra, poetry, and so much more graces the halls. Corridors filled with Muses. Inspiring young minds and hearts.

Today was the first day for the youngest few. The sixth graders started a day before all the rest. Tomorrow will be the first day of the 2023-24 school year. I’m not sure if I’m ready, but I’ll do my best. Luckily, I’m just cleaning up in the evening rather than instilling new thoughts and dreams into the burgeoning brains. I will be making notes and comments throughout this journey.

Day One: 8/23/2022

It was the official first day of the school year here at Denver School of the Arts. The weather might’ve reached ninety degrees today, which wouldn’t be worst, if there was actual air conditioning in the school. At the end of last week, we received a delivery of portable air conditioners for every classroom. Along, with fans over six feet tall. The building is still sweltering. Sauna level.

Other than that, it seemed like a nice day. I did mistakenly wear a long sleeve button down shirt that I thought would be comfortable under my overalls. My hairstyle was quite appropriate. I went with a simple 1915 updo. Very Gibson Girl with a teal bow in the back. I thought about going more extravagant, but I needed more volume to correlate with the additional adornments.

Teachers and students were elated to see my teal-self. A few shouted out how much they love The Teal Fairy. One sweet student gave me a gorgeous flower. Hardy Hibiscus to be exact. A large magenta flower with a bright orange and yellow pistil. It was a thoughtful gift.

Work itself wasn’t too difficult. I will say that doing the outside trash was revolting. I literally threw up in my mouth while I was attempting to empty every single receptacle. The fact that no one has cleaned them in days and the oppressive heat caused the contents to be disgusting. There only a few times with this particular job that have made me want to spew the contents of my own stomach. I eventually composed myself and was able to complete the rest of my job. Simple things, dumping trash, disposing of excess water from the portable AC systems, sweeping, mopping, and bathroom maintenance.

Today was the first day and I hope I’ll be able to find my rhythm easily.

Day Two: 8/24/2022

Well, I’m completely over the summer heat. I’m frustrated from the excessive sweating. I’m annoyed that I continue to have jobs that make me work in the heat. I’m not meant for the heat. I sweat out all of the liquids of my body. I become dehydrated, hungry, and moist. I’m stating this now, if I complain about the winter, snow, or colder temperatures then I give permission for someone to slap me hard in the face. I want to be tortured by snowflakes. Riddled with a chill. Working in this large school without air conditioning has been ridiculous. There hasn’t been cool air running through this space since June!

I’m still trying to bring my teal self everyday and it is hard because it feels like my face is melting off. I have received kind compliments from others today. My hairstyle today was inspired by popular pompadours from 1906. There is a large swirl of hair close to my forehead and I bookended the bump with teal bows. Since my hair was still textured from the day before, it was quite easy to throw it vertically with simple and sweet tendrils on the sides and back of my neck. I only wish it wasn’t so hot, then I could wear outfits that would compliment the style. Oh well, we must find our joy wherever we can get it.

One of the sweetest moments today is when a youngster compliments my social media posts. There was a comment from another that complimented my singing, which is totally false. There is no singing, maybe some dancing and silly poses. Tonight, I’ve decided to feature my fingernails. They are slightly chipped, polished in dark teal with a gold shimmer topping.

Tomorrow, I’m determined to wear shorts. I cannot handle another awful day of heat. Since we have these portable cooling devices all over the building, it has also caused more work. So, on top of being physically drained from the heat, I’m exhausted from the additional work. To treat myself, I’ll be relaxing in a bubbly, salty, and steamy bath while I work on more of my short stories.

Day Three: 8/25/2022

Today wasn’t necessarily eventful. It was cloudy outside and it even rained for a short period of time. This allowed for a depletion in temperature, yet, still quite warm. The fans and portable air conditioners continue to blast and use up energy. In a time that we KNOW the world is being warmed up and used up by humans, we still require the machines to cool our overly exerted bodies. What are we to do? Allow the children to sweat profusely? They already have a short attention span, I doubt it would work to try and make them contemplate their studies inside a dry sauna. So, the custodial staff is required to keep all of the equipment working properly. Fill and refill the cooling mechanisms each day. The entire process takes hours. Hours and gallons of water.

Now, there was one thing that seemed outside of the norm. That was an individual package of lubricant. I found it in a classroom, I won’t say which one. However, there it was, sitting on the floor. Open, yet still full of water based lubricant. A package of Glide. Now, I’m quite familiar with such packaging. Though, I doubt I’d ever find this in the middle of a classroom. The assumption is that this little teenager had it in their pocket. Showed it to a friend. They most likely dropped, better that they did that other than keep in their pocket. Initially, I thought it was a condom wrapper. It wasn’t until I leaned over with my vacuum pack strapped to myself that I discovered what it really was. It was the most comical moment of my day. So, to whichever teenager decided to leave this on the floor. Thank you! It at least made my day less dull.

I do anticipate the cooler weather. I wore only a T-shirt and shorts today. I ache to wear more layers. More ornate costumes to complete my tasks. Yet, I can’t handle the heat while wearing too many garments. Thus, I feel like I look homely. Of course, I styled my hair. Still simple, but it is designed after the popular styles of 1890. I’m very much thrilled that tomorrow is Friday. So very thrilled!

Day Four: 8/26/2022

I don’t understand why I had to pick up chewed gum from the floor. I’m assuming that these adolescent adults have the ability to open and close their mouths properly. I’d speculate that they also understand how trash reciprocals work. Well, for some reason there were multiple occasions in the hallways and on carpet where I found gum. As if a mentally stunted student didn’t understand how trash works.

I was also perplexed to find grotesque and practically illegible language scratched into the stalls of the bathrooms for females. For a school dedicated to the arts I’d believe that these pupils would have the opportunity to express themselves through multiple mediums. There’s painting, sketching, welding, singing, dancing, theater, and especially writing. So why use the stalls of a waste repository to scribble literal dribble? To add, I’d expect to see better penmanship at least. If you’re going to deface government property, do it with some finesse and flare.