Flatpacks,flashbacks and getting a job done
I spent a good slice of the Saturday of my weekend off putting together a piece of IKEA furniture.I have delved into the magic that is IKEA flat pack furniture on several occasions and had come prepared.
I had, to hand, a good ratchet screwdriver with assorted bits,a small tub of wood glue, a mixture of odd spare screws and essentially the Collins book of Anglo Saxon swearwords when I was occasionally looking for a bit of variety at my lowest moments.
It did take me longer than anticipated but eventually it all came together.
I think it might have been the mixture of stewed tea and wood glue fumes but it all started to remind me of a recent Aid I had been on.
The OP order was pretty much like the instructions and diagram you get with the flat pack. It obviously meant something to the person who wrote it but didn't make much sense to anyone else.It had detail in abundance, times, venues..down to the call signs of and radio channels used by units I had never heard of. But like a lot of the bits that came with the flat pack there always seems to be a bit missing.
Unfortunately the bit missing was what we were actually supposed to do to make our end of it work.
A uniformed inspector did turn up at some point to peruse our array of confused faces.
I realised as I looked at him that I was getting very much past it in the age stakes. He looked so young and fresh faced with a uniform that didn't quite seem to fit that I thought he may be part of some Youth 'be an Inspector for the day'Scheme.
However I realised he was likely to go far when he parried our questions with phrases like 'you need to work together to define the details' and he was there to provide 'overall administrative support'
Like any other time in the job we all shrugged,sat down amongst ourselves, came up with a working plan and got on with it.
Which made me think again about this job and flat pack furniture.. you can carefully package and write about something all you like but you only get it to function if you get hands on and work at it for an end result..
Which is what the rank and file do in this organisation everyday....
I had, to hand, a good ratchet screwdriver with assorted bits,a small tub of wood glue, a mixture of odd spare screws and essentially the Collins book of Anglo Saxon swearwords when I was occasionally looking for a bit of variety at my lowest moments.
It did take me longer than anticipated but eventually it all came together.
I think it might have been the mixture of stewed tea and wood glue fumes but it all started to remind me of a recent Aid I had been on.
The OP order was pretty much like the instructions and diagram you get with the flat pack. It obviously meant something to the person who wrote it but didn't make much sense to anyone else.It had detail in abundance, times, venues..down to the call signs of and radio channels used by units I had never heard of. But like a lot of the bits that came with the flat pack there always seems to be a bit missing.
Unfortunately the bit missing was what we were actually supposed to do to make our end of it work.
A uniformed inspector did turn up at some point to peruse our array of confused faces.
I realised as I looked at him that I was getting very much past it in the age stakes. He looked so young and fresh faced with a uniform that didn't quite seem to fit that I thought he may be part of some Youth 'be an Inspector for the day'Scheme.
However I realised he was likely to go far when he parried our questions with phrases like 'you need to work together to define the details' and he was there to provide 'overall administrative support'
Like any other time in the job we all shrugged,sat down amongst ourselves, came up with a working plan and got on with it.
Which made me think again about this job and flat pack furniture.. you can carefully package and write about something all you like but you only get it to function if you get hands on and work at it for an end result..
Which is what the rank and file do in this organisation everyday....
2 Comments:
More meaningless meanings that mean nothing at all. That's good because there is real progress on the ground, where it matters. We are making positive steps forward.
I must stop now because I feel another migraine coming on.
at least you read the instructions before realising they didn't make sense!
Don't forget the types who refuse to read the instructions, then break the job long before they find bits missing!
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