I was in the post office lobby yesterday. Standing on an ??X? made out of HI-Vis tape. 6 ft behind me on another ??X? was an old ??Nam vet and his wife. I turned to him and said ?? kind of reminds me of those yellow foot prints in basic training.? A big smile broke across his face as he nodded back.
You reminded me of my college days and the occasional trip to an office labeled Aids and Awards.?ÿ That office dealt with scholarships, student loans and student jobs on campus.?ÿ The desk clerk would announce that I was to go talk with Mr. Moneybags so follow the yellow line.?ÿ If it was Ms. Bigbucks it was the red line.?ÿ If it was Mr. Youarealoser it was the blue line.?ÿ Etc.?ÿ I will admit the set up was a lot like a maze they would use to study lab rats.
I've seen the colored lines used effectively in hospitals and large cliinics, although I don't think our local ones use them now.?ÿ Red line to emergency.?ÿ Yellow line for lab tests. Etc.?ÿ Hospitals are notorious for having additions slapped on at odd places and sections remodeled with different hallways so they become a maze.?ÿ I've visited in one where the room numbers down one side of the hall go 309, 311, 313, 415, 417 ...?ÿ because the addition has one more lower floor than the old part.
Our current office layout is a maze...may need to suggest the colored tape on the floor to help.
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This reminds me of a trip I once took to El Paso from Austin. I hadn't been a crew chief very long and was being sent to El Paso for an aerial mapping control job. Me being a small town farm boy from Kansas, now driving to El Paso, Texas, I had no idea what that trip looked like. Either way, off I go. Headed down I-10, I passed one town, then another...cruising at a solid 80 mph down the interstate in a 4 wheel drive truck that gets about 11 miles to the gallon. Not far past that second town that my fuel light came on. No signs, to towns, no traffic...where to get fuel became a real question. I slowed the truck to 55 mph to try and conserve what fuel I had to make it as far as possible. Finally, I see a sign pointing south with a town name (I don't remember the name)...8 miles the sign read. I exited the highway and at about 8.3 miles, I found a full service gas station. The older gentleman came out and pumped my $50 of gas...whew.
Making small talk with the gentleman, I ask, "If I head up this road here, I'll hit the highway again, is that correct, sir?"
Gentleman: "You're a surveyor, you figure it out."
I'll never forget that trip...learned a lot on that trip.
My weekly visit to the grocery store today revealed some changes.?ÿ They've set aside 2 hours/day M-F for old folks only, a godsend compared to the crowded bedlam last week.?ÿ A big sign at the entrance stated "if you have a cough or sneeze please do not enter, come back later when you are well."?ÿ A sign on the door stated "maintain a 6' distance from all other shoppers at all times."?ÿ Another sign said "all sales final, no returns allowed."?ÿ A sign in the produce section stated "if you touch it you've bought it, no exceptions", which was generally ignored by the picky old biddies.?ÿ
About 20% of shoppers were wearing masks; where they got them I do not know.?ÿ The cart rack had a sanitary wipes dispenser with a sign stating "Wipe the cart handle and your hands before taking your cart."?ÿ A series of red taped lines on the floor were spaced 6' apart at the checkout counters.?ÿ You can't put your purchases on the belt until the previous person leaves the counter.?ÿ If you pay with cash and/or have coupons, the cashiers will sanitize their hands after handling it.?ÿ If you've got reusable bags (which are mandatory or buy new ones for about a year now) the cashier can't touch them; you have to bag your purchases yourself.?ÿ About half the checkout counters were in use, and every ten minutes they'd shut down an active counter and switch it?ÿ to a sanitized counter.?ÿ ?ÿScary stuff,?ÿ but it shows they're trying.
Still a lot of empty shelves, notably TP, cleansers and sanitizers.?ÿ I was able to get some eggs, which I'd sorely missed last trip.
Oh I forgot, there was a sign at the entrance that stated "maximum occupancy 150 people by order of the CHD" and a forlorn Fire Department guy was there with an up-down clicker. Not a problem during old folks hours but he said he's stopping people from entering the store when his clicker hits 150; when someone exits, he lets the next in line in.
