It's all about me!

I don't know if this is a sign of age or control - if I have a task that I want to make sure gets addressed before leaving for work, I put a "Post-It" note on the back door. Last night I stuck up a note to bring tomatoes and jalapeno peppers in to work.

I prep the coffee pot (for me), fill the tea ball (for Paul) and set two mugs/spoons on the counter the night before.

I reconcile the checkbook every day (because I can't convince he-who-shall-not-be-named that yes, the money does come out of our account the moment you use your ATM card, not when you enter it in the checkbook)

And have added a "countdown" clock to the Building section of the Human Ecology website, counting the days/hours until we begin the migration of instructional spaces and offices back to the new building - May 21, 2012.
http://www.sohe.wisc.edu/new/about/newbuildingintro.html

Writing this I wonder, is this a sign of age? That I will forget something as small as morning coffee or the promised garden-ripe tomatoes for a friend? Am I super organized? A control freak?

Or a super freak.

Meat Product or Helpful Tool?

Today I spent a good chunk of my morning in a meeting to discuss and decide trash and recycling containers for the new building. No kidding, locations of what trash container would go into what room. Up until now the only "Slim Jim" in my world was a dehydrated jerky product or a tool used when I lock my keys in the car; and a "Brute" was an oaf who cut in front of me at the bar.

For those of you who are wondering, we decided the Dean's office was no place for a "brute" - sometimes I crack myself up!

Doris gave me a polite chuckle, but that's because we share an office.

Preschool Petting Farm Receives first Resident

"Snippity-snip, snap and swill,
The tale begins upon a hill…"

Three Billy Goats Gruff, a Norwegian folktale.

This week the first members of the Preschool Petting Farm arrived at 1300 Linden Drive, safe and sound. Happy and hungry, 32 goats call the north hillside of the Human Ecology building project home. What a delight - they are a herd of friendly and most efficient goats. They will spend their days munching on Buckthorn, a particular favorite, and are happy to be part of our community.

Giraffes will be added to the family as soon as we get approval - there may be concern the giraffe heads could be seen from Linden Drive. As I learned during the discussions over the green roof, seeing heads - human or otherwise - from Linden Drive is just not historically accurate.

"All summer long they ate the lovely green grass in both meadows until they all grew quite fat. And they walked back and forth over the troll-free bridge whenever they wanted."

Snippity-snip, snap and snout,
This little tale has been told out!"

For the real story, click on this link:

http://www.news.wisc.edu/19605

New Building will have a New Name!

In 2004 School of Human Ecology alumna Nancy Johnson Nicholas, with her husband "Ab" Nicholas, provided the $8 million lead gift for the building project. Eight years later, the name "Nancy Nicholas Hall" will grace the new entry at the Link - where the addition and the existing building converge (see image to the right)

Click here to read the news story:
http://www.news.wisc.edu/19561

I remember the event hosted by Dean Douthitt to announce the lead gift -it was far from the stuffy and formal press conferences you might expect. It was an ice cream party where the whole school was invited to celebrate with Nancy and Ab Nicholas. Faculty, students, staff, friends from campus all came for a scoop and a handshake, to personally thank Nancy and Ab. The Dean had asked the preschool children to draw pictures of what they would like to see in a new building, and she had the drawings bound and presented it to Nancy - a brilliant and very personal gesture.

I went to the party and offered my thanks to which Nancy said "oh my, don't thank me" and she was quite sincere. After a few minutes of mingling and chatting, I walked back to my office thinking "oh how nice, a new building" - I had been part of the staff for less than a year. Little did I know what was in store.

The Nicholas family together has most generously supported the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Their quiet philanthropy is a marvel.

Oh, and a note about the children's ideas for what should be in the new building - unfortunately for this project we were not able to accommodate requests for a pool, a candy mountain or a lot of ponies. Those notes are in my file for "Building Project Phase Two: Expansion to the East."

Another First

The building project is a cascade of "firsts" for me -- from learning the difference between a concrete and steel structure, to Environmental Impact Statements, to learning that "10,000 rubs" isn't about a magic lamp - last Thursday I attended my first beam signing.

The good folks at JP Cullen orchestrated the construction part while Human Ecology handled the celebration end of things - we do love an excuse to party. More than 100 people attended, enjoyed Babcock ice cream and signed the last beam that would connect the historic building to the new addition. Then the beam was raised and spot welded into place. I admit, I got a little emotional - combination of relief and joy. What a milestone to reach.

Beam me up!

It seems like these past few months I've been pumping out communications that start with the line, "...we have reached an important milestone in the building project..." so it will come as no surprise to you that I've got another one!

On June 23, 2011 the good folks at JP Cullen will be lifting the final connecting beam, primed and painted white, into place to complete the structure for the Link, bringing the addition and the existing building together. Now this milestone can be listed among other transforming connections such as the Chunnel, linking of the Central Pacific and Union Pacific railroad, and the Hadron Collider.

Ya gotta think big...unless you living on the edge, you're taking up too much room.

Helium: Friend or Foe?

As part of preparing to "operationalize" the new building, the Day One Readiness team has been working over the past few months to identify best practices and wherever possible, gather written (or web) examples.

I have been reading the "Facility Use Guidelines" adopted by the good folks at the UW-Madison Health Sciences Learning Center (HSLC) - it's a thorough document with lots of links to campus guidelines. For instance, there's no need to write a whole big process for catering, because the University has clear guidelines and policies.

And sure, it would be really easy to draft a lot of rules and regulations about keeping the spaces clean and to pick up after yourself but we are all adults.

But helium balloons, now that's a good one.

When I first read the policy banning helium balloons I thought, "well, that Med School is really stuffy. I mean really, who could begrudge a few bright red balloons to welcome students back in September? Or a colleagues birthday celebration, a bouquet of Mylar balloons swaying about?"

Then I remembered we have two major spaces in the new building with ceilings two stories high. The Link and the Concourse are both jewels - and there is nothing more pitiful than watching a couple of balloons begin the painful journey back down as they slowly leak their Helium.

In some facilities on campus Helium balloons are not allowed because they can set off fire alarms and are considered a safety risk. Maybe we should just have a practice that if someone is using these balloons, they need to dispose of the gas the old fashioned way...sucking it in and talking funny.

I'll need to dig a little deeper.

On a Clear Day

Loving life here on campus -- we are just a few short days away from commencement, parking will be a little easier and I won't have to schedule meetings around class change times (driving anywhere around campus during class change means you have to factor in an additional 15 minutes.)

Most of all I am thinking that in just 12 months we will begin moving into our new building. On a day like today when it's a comfortable 75 degrees, sun shining and a light breeze I imagine sitting on the roof terrace of Human Ecology. To the north I will see Washburn Observatory, peek to the west and linger on stately Ag Hall, then full east to take in the glory of our new addition. At night the 100 Women scuplture on the glass wall will be lit with energy effecient LED lights, creating a totally different feel for the area.

I'm counting the days.

Planning the Migration

I could get all clever and talk about the great migrations of our time...bird migration, the Migration Policy Institute, the monarch butterfly, or for smarties, migration as defined by the movement of one atom or more from one position to another within a molecule.

This time I am talking about the Human Ecology migration back to 1300 Linden Drive, going home.

I just sent an email to the good folks at Facilities Planning and Management (FP&M) to let them know at the last all-School meeting we let everyone know they are expected to be packed and ready to move by May 21, 2012. Packing crates will arrive sometime in March/April.

The last day of class is May 11 and finals go through May 19, 2012 and the faculty 9-month contract ends May 27.

Just two semesters to go and we are in the new building!