Today was the first day of my internship at the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum. I wasn't sure what to expect, to be honest - although I've done a bit of volunteer work over the years, it's been a long time, and I had no idea what to expect.

I felt very silly in my brand-new work clothes. Museum volunteers/interns are to dress as if they were 20th century explorers - that is, khakis and white collared shirts. I don't know if there's anything more polar opposite to my usual wardrobe! When I looked at myself in the mirror this morning, I couldn't shake the feeling that I ought to be operating a Jungle Cruise boat at Disneyland.

The other interns/employees at the museum were all very welcoming and friendly. In the morning, it was quiet, so I helped inventory some merchandise from the old gift shop and listened to an audio tour while wandering the four exhibit galleries. To the surprise of everyone on staff, the afternoon was crazy busy, and I had to help patrol the upstairs gallery as best I could. This largely consisted of "Hey, kid! Where's your parent?" and "NO RUNNING IN THE MUSEUM PLEASE!!!" Once or twice, I had to answer an actual question, but I think I did OK. It's hard to tell, to be honest.

After eight hours, my feet ached (I'm going to have to reconsider the boots I wore, but I love them so!) but I had a lot of fun. I'm looking forward to going back tomorrow, although I have to admit I'm a little nervous how I'll manage this once school starts. It's a lot of moving around, and at the end of the day I was tired!
(On the plus side, maybe I'll lose a little weight with all the scurrying around I'm doing.)


An old stock photo of the Egyptian Museum's facade.  I think it's actually been remodeled since this was taken.