I'll write more about the ongoing train wreck that is our district math committee, maybe after I've had a few drinks. It's all rather dispiriting and would be wonderful material for Muriel Spark or Evelyn Waugh or anyone else with a gimlet eye for the evil of banality.
3 comments:
Did I ever tell you my corporate politics coping mechanism: "Wildlife biologist studying the elk rutting season."
It's helpful to step back and mentally scribble notes "Bull #A5 paws the ground and shakes his head 4 times, then rushes Bull #c7 as Bulls #b4 and #A2 watch. Then when bull #A5 and walks away, bull #A2 challenges the weakened #c7 to get the herd." Sometimes, it's all about status and how big your rack is. A.hem.
The real point of this perspective is that I figure that, so long as I'm not close enough to be gored as collateral damage, it's kind of fascinating. And when I do wind up getting close enough to catch the gamey whoosh! as they rush by, I don't take it personally.
Lately, I've been doing a lot of presentations before the lower-echelon elk and had them commenting on my upcoming paper/presentation, so I've spent a lot of time observing the rituals...
You really should have been a writer, not an engineer, Carol. I love the elk analogy, especially the phrase "gamey whoosh." I always start out from a would-be objective perspective but end up getting sucked in, all mad and excited, etc. It *is* rather fascinating, but rather like seeing sausages made.
Thanks, Emily! I don't feel like a writer-type. Even my coping strategies are nerd-oriented!
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