"I started in the Comenius building," Jan explains. "After that, I worked at Linnaeus and Erasmus before ending up at Spinoza, a nice building with a friendly atmosphere." The front desk was centred in the middle which meant Jan was right in between all the students. "It was like a living room. We used to sell copy cards and train tickets there, so the counter was sometimes completely full of students." Jan moved with the Faculty of Social Sciences to the Maria Montessori building, where he enjoys working. "It is a beautiful building, and everything has come back together here, like the RCSW, for example. What I like most about my job is the versatility. There is a lot of commotion, and I meet new people every day."
During the conversation, Jan stands up and demonstrates some of the characteristics of the profession he loves so much. "I briefly open the side door for him. He can do that himself, but then he is also happy that I offered, and he can go through with his pallets." On the other side of the corridor, "Thank you, hey, Jan!" is shouted. "The most frequently asked question is where to find certain rooms. People who have never been here before come here every day and so they don't know their way around. The building is used by all kinds of students, not just from the Faculty of Social Sciences. As a result, there is always something happening, and I keep busy."
"What I like most about my job is the versatility. There is a lot of commotion, and I meet new people every day."
One of the porter's duties is to set the clock when the clocks change. Jan changed the clock in spring one hour back instead of one hour ahead. "I was at a birthday party in the evening, and people said the clocks had been moved forward. I said, 'Forward? It's backwards, isn't it?' I apparently set all the clocks wrong... So then I drove back to the university on Sunday evening and set all the clocks right again. Typical of me!"
Jan is going to miss his colleagues, students, and staff the most. "It's great fun working with people; it's dynamic. They are young, and everyone is doing their own thing. Of course, I'm also going to miss the work, but I think at some point I'm okay with that too." Now it's time for Jan's big hobby: homing pigeons! "I have about 500 of them together with a friend, and that's why I'm also stopping working. The two of us are too busy at the moment, and I hope to make more time for that now."
"I said, 'Forward? It's backwards, isn't it?' I apparently set all the clocks wrong..."
So, when Jan actually leaves in nine months' time, he hopes the social atmosphere will remain. "It's a nice building because of the people who are here. Everyone respects each other, and we are all equal. I really like the collegiality and the friendly atmosphere and hope that will remain when I'm gone."