Saturday morning.  Sleepy.  Groggy.  Wondering what it is was about ‘retirement’ that included this?  But it may be a harbinger of things to come.  I may have to work now and then.  Once in a while.

Damn. 

I confess that this idea of semi-work is a bit of a dilemma for me.  I love having ‘something new’ to do and I especially love dealing with problems and challenges that fall outside the ‘ordinary’.   I like the idea of being a consultant to the odd – in any sense of that word, the client, the project, the circumstance……..whatever.  This current project certainly qualifies.  Gimme weird.

But any consultancy, strange or otherwise, requires diligence and focus and a sincere commitment to helping out to the best of your ability.  And there is the implicit expectation that effort is not enough – they want results!   I have no problem with that requirement except that I am no longer as good as I was.  A client still gets a ‘good guy’ but not one with an ‘edge’ anymore.  I am not au current.  I am not hip.  I am not the sharpest knife in even the ‘odds and ends’ drawer.  In fact, I may just be the oddest end in the empty drawer.

So, I have been cheating. 

My current client thinks I am doing a great job.  Little does he know that the results I am delivering are the combined efforts of both Sally and me.  Yep, you got that right.  He is getting a two-fer, a genius at organization and paperwork and a walking, talking gadfly of communications. 

And yes, it is true – she is not the ‘sharper edge’ she was either.  We are both ‘out of tune’ to some degree.  Still, it is much better for the client than just getting me.  ‘Course, you knew that.  But it is kinda weird being a two-fer consultant.   

The fun part is in finding a solution.  It is not hard to find possible solutions.  We all do that everyday.  But finding one that will work right out of the box – that is the challenge.  We (the client) doesn’t have the resources for us to learn, research, investigate, attempt, prototype, experiment or any other of the safer, better-business-practices that everyone knows about and suggests.  We have to get a base hit our next turn at bat or else we (me) will be benched.  In my case, I am more likely to be sent back to the ‘farm team’ (literally) instead of the bench.  Consultants don’t have much tenure.

The weekend will help.  New ideas percolate during ‘down time’ and we have some of that for the next two days.  Whew!

I guess I am writing this to illustrate the ‘change of pace’ we have just experienced.  We have gone from idle to red-line in just a few days and it is leaving both of us a bit shocked.  But it is all good – for us, anyway.

Now, if I can just do something good for the client, it will be a wonderful way to have spent a few weeks this winter.

“Gimme that bat!”