Typical Day
Janitor Jim (affectionately known as JJ) isn't ready to talk just yet. He's up at 4:00AM and in desperate need of coffee. As the pot brews, he pulls on his freshly-pressed grey uniform and buttons it up before taking a look in the mirror to make sure that he's looking good.
Even if he's not going to be seeing anybody, JJ feels it's important to stick to his motto: A clean you, a clean me, a clean world for all to see. Okay, he's not Walt Whitman, but it's still pretty catchy.
After running a comb through his hair, he heads into the kitchen and pours his freshly-brewed java into a mug shaped like a bucket. His breakfast consists of a healthy pile of scrambled eggs, some bacon, and roughly eight slices of toast. (Healthy in the "healthy helping" sense anyway.) He'll need those carbs if he hopes to make it through another day at Sheffield Elementary School, which he affectionately calls The Pigsty.
JJ rolls up to school just in time to see the garbage truck picking up his hard work from the day before: forty-four bags of sticky tissues, fruit snack wrappers, lost lunches, and whatever else the 450 students at the Pigsty managed to drop, toss, or lose during the course of the day. As he enters the building, JJ takes a moment to revel in the silence of the empty hallways.
This is his favorite part of the day. The halls are still fresh from his last cleaning the day before, and he can take this quiet time before school starts to prepare a preemptive strike against the inevitable onslaught of germs and grime that are soon to assault his workspace. It's a war and he's more than ready for battle.
Before the students enter, JJ gives a last wash to the floors and takes time to get his supplies ready. Bleach, a full bucket of fresh water for his mop, trash bags, and his handy list of daily tasks. All his efforts to be prepared will likely be thwarted within the next few hours, but for now, it feels good to be prepared.
The teachers slowly start entering the building around 7:00AM, but all remains relatively calm until just before 8:00AM, when the first student arrives. He gives JJ a smile and disappears. Seconds later, the main doors burst open and hundreds of students come rushing in, loose pencils flying from backpacks and half-eaten breakfast items falling to the ground, only to be flattened under a stampede of light-up shoes. The war has begun.
Over the next several hours, JJ divides his time between his orderly list of tasks and the not-so-unexpected surprises that arise throughout the day.
As he finishes washing the windows of the main entrance, he hears his name resonate over the loudspeaker. The boys' bathroom toilets are overflowing...for the third time today. As he makes his way to the bathroom, he can't help but think about how ironic it is that he works in a school.
He hated school with a capital H when he was a student. Now, as a janitor, he actually kind of likes it. Not with a capital L, like-like sort of way...but it's alright in his book. Plus, his job allows him to play with his band on the weekends. That's enough to keep him happy.
As the last bell rings and the dust of the day settles (literally), JJ is finally able to restore his workplace to its former glory. Some people would be frustrated by having to clean up the same mess every day; not JJ. He finds a lot of satisfaction in a job well done. He also finds himself exhausted. Being a janitor is no easy task regardless of the environment, but being a janitor at an elementary school is a constant uphill battle.
Just as he's about to head out for the evening, a call comes over the loudspeaker informing JJ that he's needed in the gym. Looks like the basketball practice has run into some trouble. Is it just some spilled Gatorade, or a broken nose?
JJ grabs his mop and bucket and heads to the scene of the disaster to save the day—again—before packing it up at 6:00PM for some well-deserved Swedish meatballs at IKEA. (It's a deal night.)