Alone

Somehow I survived Friday evidenced by a Saturday-fatigue that dogs me like a shadow. End of the day yesterday was good and bad and only three additional mugs of coffee could prop me up until the pub welcomed me into it’s smoky embrace at 19.00. Several large deals had been scored, several more cooking, all of which needed contracts and invoices but the problem was that I was the only soul in the back office able to do this as everyone else had the day free. No contracts people, no property managers, no receptionist (weep). We’ve talked for years about how to avoid all ‘key’ people being out at once yet fail predictably to prevent this. At least this was only one day but, with depressing certainly, two-week long vacation plans will overlap in the late summer, lengthening days and shortening tempers.

Your moped is (nearly) on fire

The jury is still out and so is Jimmy. It's midday. He’s viewing something somewhere with someone. Breathless, he crashes through the door around 12.30. It went well. Very well. Couldn't have been weller. Excellent - a deal then? No. They may be moving as late as March 2008 and are not sure of their budget... or preferred location. One hopes we're talking the Netherlands here.

This morning, the moped scooted me workwards. It is the habit of the police and me to cordially ignore each other - the mutual respect of one skilled-road user to another speaking volumes.

At a red light, I stop. It's the law. Next to me, a police van pulls up in the other lane. The driver looks at my newly tuned and serviced machine and begins to lower his window. I wonder if he'll have time to deliver his compliment before the lights turn green. He does. He says, "there is petrol gushing from a fuel-line onto your engine. You are in danger of blowing yourself up." Looking down, my shoes, the engine, and the road are soaked. I see he is right. Looking up, I see he is gone. Long gone. Not wanting to have fragments of exploded engine parts sticking out of your body is a powerful motivator.

Abandoning the moped at the side of the road for later collection by the repair shop, I jog to the office for my 9.00 meeting. At 9.20 I learn it's cancelled and the clue to this cancellation is that nobody showed up.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!

That feels much better.

After an uplifting start to the week on Monday we are plunged by the roller coaster on which we unexpectedly find ourselves to a new low and, now that I think about it for a moment, one of the carriage wheels appears to be loose and a 6G bend approaches.

For those of you wondering what the difference is between ‘normal’ force and G-force, Wikipedia provides for the following: Unlike simple acceleration, 'g-force’ is a measure of the magnitude of the acceleration relative to the local gravitational acceleration vector, rather than being compared to an inertial reference frame.

A while back we stepped into a big project as a minority investor. The owner of the project is a complex man who habitually pretends to be a simple man in order to thwart any attempts at debate whenever a discussion point comes to the fore. Instead of ‘talking stuff over’ he feigns lack of comprehension and, later and only following serious study, communicates with us via his ‘messenger’ – a sixty-five year old grump with whom empathy is difficult. The arrangement – as least from our perspective – is that he would build the thing and we’d exploit the thing (‘exploit’ in our world means ‘rent the sucker’).

An incongruence of perspective doesn’t quite do justice to the contrasting positions that have materialised following the investor’s letter (via the grump). On the one hand, the investor feels strongly that he has bought, renovated, and furnished the property and we should exploit the apartments and be happy with remuneration in the share-holding alone. On the other hand, running the exploitation is costly and, not having even close the same financial resources as the investor, we feel that asking us absorb all operational costs is not only unrealistic but, plainly said, would cause bankruptcy.

We ponder a response.

Super start to the week

At the end of a long Monday, a happy update from our big fashion retailer to whom we pitched last week. A green light. Yes, green. Somewhere between traffic light green and Kermit green. As sales manager, Klaas was a little too willing Friday to concede to their demands for a massive discount on our standard commission of one month. In the end – by keeping our leg stiff as the Dutch are fond of saying (usually amongst themselves) – we gave away just enough allowing both parties to feel satisfied with the negotiation process.

Our deals in The Hague are causing mind-bending grief. Our consultant there – George – is very strong with clients who like her at once thereby increasing the likelihood of a deal just by being vivacious. Problems invariably start when the administration kicks in. Contracts and invoices depend on data. Wrong data equals incorrect unusable and documents. It DOES matter that the start date is correct. Yes, George, the specific address is important and Single 200 is NOT the same as Single 200-iii. Oh and, by the way, please at least try to SPELL the client’s name correctly – a small point but it can niggle.

Wave anaology

The week ahead builds like a wave - a big wave atop which surfers cut and swerve while a crowd of wide-eyed onlookers gawp and clap. In the first scenario, I am up there with the best of them and confidently ride this crest, paddle ashore and am greeted with smiles, slaps on the back, and a beer so cold that the glass sweats. In the second scenario, I fall from a great height, get clattered in the teeth by my board before twenty tonnes of salty brine crashes down and breaks three ribs.

The week ahead in CliffsNotes: Our very expensive lawyer has drafted a very long letter that we’ll submit Monday to Dienst Wonen who, in their ‘wisdom’ (forgive the quotes), are on the brink of withdrawing our permit to broker rental properties. Their ‘case’ (excuse the quotes) is built on flimsy, balsa-wood straws and involves ‘findings’ (sorry about the quotes) that wouldn’t even stand up to the scrutiny of the guy taking my order at the drive through Burger King last week who… never mind.
Tomorrow is also the day that we submit our full proposal to a large fashion retailer to handle their gargantuan volume of housing requests over the next several years. Our two previous meetings went swimmingly and only became tetchy on their suggestion that we work for fifty percent of our normal rates. Discount are fine but, really, we have to pay the rent (get it?).

A proposal made last week to a big (in the biggest sense of this small word) consumer electronics retailer should, we hope, come back with news. Not totally comfortable that we’re in with a realistic shout so have crossed many things and am praying daily to all the gods I can find on Google.

Another quality rental client lead...

From: delivarance ministries [mailto: revpastoreze_dmtries@yahoo.com ] Sent: Saturday...

Dear most honoured 3irs -

How are you today?

I received your mail,please could you put me through clearly as i did not understand fully what the contents of your mail is saying,but i read that you are doing a survey on my request.

In case you did not explicitly undertand my proposal,let me explain to you again.

I am the General overseer of the Victorious Deliverance Ministry by name Rev Pastor Philip Eze,I solicit that you help me procure a sizeable proportion of land or a building where i can establish a branch of my ministry in your country,together with a living house for me and my family.

So as soon as you are through with your survey which i faithfully believe that will be successfull,then i will now inform you on how the money for the project will be sent to you,only be faithfull and kind to me and the church,as the God almighty will not disappoint you in all your endeavours.

Remain Blessed.

Regards,
Rev Pastors Eze Philip.
Feed overseer,
World Wide Victorious Deliverance ministries (WWVDM).