Other duties as assigned

Today was a day filled with things that can only fall under the horrific line on your job description of other duties as assigned. We all have that line. We all know what it means. I'm a cataloger, so one would think that the majority of my time is spent doing actual cataloging.

Today...not so much. I spent the day doing the following:

1. lots of email
2. committee work (both internal and external committees)
3. trying to track down objects and/or people (often both at the same time)
4. answering questions about procedures and policies (which in a couple of cases also involved tracking them down, see item #3)
5. fielding random questions about software
6. working on the drafts of several proposals (projects, policies, etc.)

Last time I checked, my title still ended with cataloging librarian. Yet, if you read the above list, not one of those items involves any direct cataloging work. I tried to do some actual cataloging today, in between everything else. Unfortunately, every title I pulled from my to-do pile is now in the waiting-for-something-or-someone-else pile. One title was completely checked out (all 10 volumes!). Another one is just a big mess and has now required THREE emails to different centers and people and it's still in the waiting pile. Everything in my to-do pile that I picked up today needs intervention or clarification from a third party before I can finish it. I really really tried to do cataloging. But ultimately today was one of those days where everything else ended up taking over.

Other duties as assigned bites again.

[deep sigh]