And then....the lights went out....

So this blog isn't supposed to be about ME.  It's about US.  About Stephens.  About all of the amazing and extraordinary people who make Stephens the special and unique place that it is.

But I have to tell you about at least a few of the memories I'm making every day as I settle into my new role.

Last night is a good example.

Last night, I worked until about 11 (OK, so new presidents work long hours....hey, for that matter, old presidents work long hours....), and I came out of my office and locked the door, and walked around the corner to the elevator.

I pushed the button.  And waited.  And waited.  And waited.  (That elevator in LRW Hall has to be the s-l-o-w-e-s-t elevator in the history of elevators.  I think the builder who installed it decided to put half a motor in it so we would all just give up and take the stairs and be much healthier. Just fyi, that doesn't seem to be working so far....).

Finally the doors opened up, I stepped in, and I pushed the button for the ground floor.  And then I waited some more.

The doors crawled shut, the elevator gave a little lurch (as elevators will), and the car began to move.  It's hard to tell that that's occurring in this particular elevator, but you know it's happening because you can see the lights changing on the panel as you move past each floor.

Problem is, the lights on that important panel suddenly went off.

And then, just as it was occurring to me that the elevator actually wasn't moving after all, every one of the lights in the elevator went off.  As in, it got dark.

And I mean dark.

I heard myself say something out loud that sounded a lot like,  "You've got to be kidding me."

I had this flash of a headline run through my mind -- as I always do in such situations, a habit I attribute to decades as a journalist -- "New prez plunges to death in slowest elevator on earth."

I started to breathe just a little harder.  It was really dark in there.

And I thought about pushing the red panic button, but all I could think of were the sirens going off and the fire engines racing onto campus and the people lining up because the new president was stuck in the elevator.

Didn't seem like the best next move.

So I waited some more.  And finally -- after what was probably 2 minutes but seemed like a couple of weeks - the lights came back on.

Big improvement.  The elevator wasn't moving, but at least I could see where I was (in an elevator that wasn't moving).

And as soon as I could see where I was, I started to do the only thing I could think of to do: I started pushing the buttons.  Over and over.  I had moved past the plunging-to-my-death thing; I figured that probably would have happened by now. So now it was a matter of showing the elevator who was boss.

That would be me.

And finally, with another little lurch, the new elevator started to do what new elevators are supposed to do:  it started to move. 

It crawled down to the ground floor, the doors opened, and I all but leapt out into the hallway.

"Safe!"  I heard myself pronounce.

I clutched my briefcase, marched down the hallway and out into the parking lot, and headed toward Tower Hall -- where my room is on the first floor.

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And P.S.: It turns out that the power in LRW Hall went off just after 11 p.m. last night, causing all electrical devices -- such as elevators -- to stop operating. 

It was, in other words, an act of God.

I figure He was just sending me a message that this time, He really means it: We really do need to start taking the stairs....

Comments

[Lisa Scheese]

Your blog made me remember about my times in the library elevator here at Stephens. The 4 flights of stairs in the library I climb up and down, 12 times a day on average, have given me calves of steel. It's a running joke whenever I need to go up in the elevator to my penthouse office that a Stephens librarian is posted to hear if I yell for help. If you really want to have fun, use the library elevator and come visit me in the penthouse. You get to bounce up and down a couple of times once you get to my floor. Although, ironically I heard it was fixed yesterday. :0)

[Ashley]

I have to agree that elevator is the slowest elevator I have ever seen, and you are stronger than me, I would have pushed the panic button the moment I noticed the car wasn't moving. Really enjoyed this story!

[Paulina Ramirez]

Oh the LRW elevator. I've actually taken the stairs while a friend waited for the elevator and I beat her by 3 minutes. Sad, I know. Trust me, I wasn't running up the stairs either.

Although I am glad to hear that you made it out safely and there weren't crazy headlines about the new prez in the Columbia Tribune.

Once again, loving the blog. Can't wait to be back on campus... waiting for that elevator.

[Yvonne Chamberlain - Graduate Resident: Hillcrest and Roblee Halls]

Welcome to Stephens College, LOL!!! My senior year I was working the front desk in Tower when my friend kept calling me - from what I thought at the time was the computer lab. I was in the middle of a phone call from my mom and kept telling her to hold on; only to realize 25 minutes later (as her mom and grandma arrived for a visit) that she was trapped in the elevator between floors. I (and she of course) can laugh about it now, but the truly disturbing thing was that she never once said "Hey, I'm stuck in the elevator", she just hang out in their reading until I realized she was stuck.

So you are not alone in your evaluator entrapment experience.

I look forwarded to sharing more experiences and stories with you when I return to campus (later this summer).

All the Best,
Yvonne Chamberlain

[Melodie Mayo]

Hey prez, you need to take the stairs for that fitness thing you mentioned...sometimes it may be the only exercise you (or whoever else joins in) will get the entire day! And then there's that slow thing too. Great story, thanks for sharing.