Picking the fruit of knowledge from a rock garden

“Yes, Jack.”

“That’s not what is says. It says that we give up our keys only temporarily when on leave or sabbatical.”

“Jeff.”

“Define what is meant by the word temporarily. Does it mean only during the actual time of the leave of sabbatical, and that the keys will be retained in custody for the professor, or that we must reapply for new keys?” Leave it to someone from the social sciences to run around asking for definitions of everything.

“Jack, do you want to address that question?”

“Well, uh, the administration hasn’t quite addressed that problem yet, but I do think that it probably means just temporary. They’re still your keys.”

“No. They’re the university’s keys. Just on temporary loan.” Ruth was always a stickler for accuracy.

“Margaret. I see that you’ve been trying to ask a question for some time.”

“Thank you. I just wondered about illnesses. Do we have to give up our keys if we have a heart attack or something and will be out of work for a couple months?”

“We weren’t given guidelines on that. But, it does seem that the purpose of this policy is to prevent faculty from taking keys, then leaving and not returning from their leaves.”

“Mr. Chairman! Have any faculty ever gone on leave, and then never returned? “

“There’s been a couple. Took leaves, then took new jobs.”