“The Florida Supreme Court has erected a safety fence outside its building and is beginning repairs to its basement, where water seepage has destroyed some 12,000 books during the last two years.”
Two years?? Really??
This is one of those stories that just beg for the question of “what did they think they were doing??” Putting valuable items in a basement, and then acting surprised by the laws of physics (you know, the one that states that water runs downhill! — something else runs downhill… but, this is a family-friendly blog.)
I’ve worked on projects to replace library collections in the past, and it is amazing how often that good people, with good intentions, can assume that bad things just won’t happen to them. They put some of their most unreplacable treasures in places that are exposed to natural disasters, and assume that it will be safe there until we have the time and money to give it the care that it needs.
Here’s a suggestion: Only put furnature from IKEA in the basement! At least that can be replaced at a pretty reasonable cost. If you put something of value in the basement, then expect that something bad will happen to it. And, when it does finally happen to you, please remember that you are not the victims of the situation, but rather a contributor to the situation!