Jammed Printer

Writers: Allison, Emma
Date Posted: 11th October 2007

Characters: Thanja, Jenalla
Description: Thanja unjams Jenalla's machine and the two discuss women in the craft.
Location: Harper Hall
Date: month 6, day 9 of Turn 4

Jenalla frowned at the printer. She didn't know what she'd done, but the machine had stopped right before her current page was finished. "Come on, don't do this to me now!" she muttered to the machine, jiggling a few of the knobs and frowning down at the offending piece.

"Problem?" asked the Hallsecond as she walked past.

Jenalla jumped and spun around. "Oh! You surprised me. I'm just having a problem with the printing machine. It seems like it's jammed up on me and I'm not sure how to get it working again."

"Have you checked the feed into it?" Sometimes they jammed, if the paper was too thick for how the machine was set.

"Hm, no I haven't," Jenalla said and squinted at the machine's slit, seeing if there was something there. "It looks like there's a small piece sticking out, but I'm not sure if it's the whole paper. Should I just try pulling it out?"

"That's possibly the worst thing you could do," explained the Master Printer. "It might cause more damage. If you look to your left, you'll see a handle? Yes?"

Jenalla glanced over and blushed. "Oops, here it is. I'm glad you came in to help me with this, otherwise it would've been a much more serious problem obviously!"

Thanja ignored the blush. "Turn that handle a quarter-turn anti-clockwise, and see if the paper comes free then."

Jenalla pushed the handle away from her and then checked the slot. More of the paper had come free, but she could still see that it was stuck by the corner. "Well, it looks better, but it seems to be stuck at the corner here. Should I turn the handle again?"

"Another quarter turn, it'll widen the slot slowly, and you should then be able to remove the paper with ease."

Jenalla did as she was instructed and, when the paper did indeed easily slip through the opening, she grinned. "Well, I guess we learn something new every day right? I knew taking the opening in the Printer Hall would require me to learn new things, but sometimes it feels like I've stepped back to being an apprentice!"

"It takes time to learn. If you haven't been using this particular machine for long, it has some 'quirks'."

"Well, I've only been here for a few months, so that makes sense," Jenalla replied. "Once I've been here about a turn or so, I'm sure I'll pick up on all that."

"You will no doubt, it takes time," advised the Hallsecond. "Don't be afraid to ask questions, there's no such thing as a stupid question, it is far more stupid not to ask."

"Yes, I always try to ask when I have a question. I figure that if you don't ask and something goes wrong, it's your fault if something. You're a Master in printing right?" Jenalla asked.

"Correct," Thanja moved so that her knots were more clearly visible. "Those knots represent turns of hard work though."

"How long have you been at it, ma'am?" Jenalla asked respectfully. Seeing the Hallsecond adjust those knots reminded her exactly who she was talking to and how long Thanja had been working at the Harper Hall.

"Since well before you were born," admitted the Master Printer.

Kiala laughed. "I'm sure it hasn't bee that long." She pulled two stools over to where they were standing and sat down. "Have you always been here in the South?"

"We came from the North, to Topaz Sea Hold before the storm."

"That storm sure hit us hard, too," Jenalla said, with a serious look.
"What is the craft like up North? Is it different than what it is here in the South?"

"It's a separate hall, with no restrictions on who may craft." The southern idea that females should remain in the home as wives and mothers still occasionally perplexed her. Surely it was possible as she had proved, to have both.

"I wish the Southern hall was like that. I mean, I will hopefully have my own family someday and I don't see that interfering with what I do around here," Jenalla said, gesturing around her.

"It should only interfere if you let it," explained Thanja. "If you need to take time to raise a family, the Hallmaster will understand. And when you want to come back, you'd be welcomed with open arms."

Jenalla nodded firmly. "And that's how it should be." Jenalla glanced over at the machine and noticed her copies were finally done. She stood up and stretched. "Thanks for the conversation Hallsecond. I think I need to get these copies up to the Master though. I am glad we have a woman Hallsecond though, let me tell you!"

Last updated on the October 14th 2007

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Jammed Printer