Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Principles of Management, Chapter One

You know I have too much time on my hands when I start posting my school papers.


Management Applications Found in the Lord of the Rings

The Lord of the Rings trilogy of films’ main theme is the classic saga of good versus evil. For good to triumph over evil, the Ring of Power must be destroyed and the race of man must unite in order to battle their common enemy, Lord Sauron. These movies possess a rather large and diverse cast of characters, each of whom displays at least one form of the four management functions as well as multiple management skills. The two main management/authority figures in the series are Gandalf and Aragorn, both of whom incorporate all four management functions – planning, organizing, leading and controlling – in addition to all of the management skills – conceptual, human and technical.

Gandalf is an old and wise wizard who discovers the Ring of Power still lingers in existence, an item which if gained by Sauron is capable of destroying all life on Middle Earth. When Gandalf finds the enemy is looking to obtain it, he makes plans to have the One Ring destroyed. He organizes this mission by designating Frodo, a young and naïve Halfling, as the ring bearer who must destroy the Ring. Gandalf leads Frodo by telling him that he is the only one who can complete this task and reassuring him that he has all of Gandalf’s trust, faith and confidence. As the story progress, Gandalf sets out to find Théoden, King of Rohan, one of the two remaining free settlements of man. Gandalf informs the King that his people will soon be under attack. As opposed to fighting in their capital city of Edoras, a disappointed Gandalf finds that Théoden will be evacuating his people to seek refuge in Helm’s Deep, a fortress in the mountains. The wizard feels that this is a death sentence and knows that in order for the enemy to be defeated the Kingdom of Rohan must aid in battle. He controls the situation by making changes to his course. Gandalf ventures off in search of fighters, men who had previously been banished from Rohan, in hopes that these men will return and help their kinship in battle. Before leaving, Gandalf tells Aragorn that he will return, in turn giving Aragorn hope that all is not lost. This new found hope motivates Aragorn to become the man he is destined to be.

Aragorn is a Ranger who had once forsaken his right of to the throne. He realizes that it is time to fulfill his destined role and become the leader of man. To complete this goal he plans to unite the two remaining colonies of men and encourage them to fight together in the Battle of Minas Tirith. Aragorn is able to convince Théoden of this plan and the two worked together in mustering up all of Rohan’s forces. The evening before their departure to Minas Tirith, Aragorn met with an unexpected guest, the elf Elrond, Lord of Rivendell. Elrond presented him with a sword reforged from the shards of Narsil, the weapon which had initially defeated Sauron long ago. Aragorn altered his course to go into the Paths of the Dead, as with this sword he was able to command the Dead Men of Dunharrow, an unstoppable force which owed allegiance to the heir of the throne. Through the unification of men and the help of the Dead Men of Dunharrow, the Battle at Minas Tirith was successful. After the battle concluded, Aragorn was able help Frodo by leading the remaining army of men to the Black Gates of Mordor, home of Sauron. It is here in one the final scenes in the films that Aragorn motivates his fellow men by giving them a speech which restores the courage and strength they need to continue fighting. The group worked together to create a diversion which gave Frodo the additional time needed to destroy the Ring.

Both Gandalf and Aragorn held the technical management skills needed to defeat the enemy. Both were masters in their fields, wizardry and fighting, respectively. They used the conceptual skill to strategically plan their roles as well as the roles of their comrades throughout the films and were ability to apply the human skill effectively, motivating their peers to continue on and persevere.

Monday, August 25, 2008

Yahyah, Minister

Both sides of my family are classic Jerry Springer cases.

I may have already posted this but let me give you some background on my uncle David (my Daddy's brother) and his family.

We *think* my uncle David is gay and hiding deep within the closet. About 15 years ago he impregnated and married a woman by the name of Tara. This was Tara's 2nd marriage and child. Her first husband's name was Aziz and he was an extremely wealthy, hard core Muslim man who was from and lived in Morocco. Together they had a son, Yahyah, who had the nickname Tweety, which is what we called him when he was younger although I have no idea why. When Tara married my uncle, she forfeited the alimony she was receiving from Aziz.

Fast forward to about 10 years ago - Tara and my uncle decide to get divorced. Tara moved her and the two boys up to Massachusetts. The two brothers attended a Muslim school up in New England. My cousin, Justin (the spawn of David and Tara), was about 5 years old when Tara announced she would no longer be Tara. She would be having a sex change and she would be going by the name of Ty.

David and his 'friend' Tim moved up to Massachusetts about 5 years ago so David could be close to his only son (By the way - at this time Massachusetts was the only state to allow same sex marriages. Coincidence?). David, Tim, Ty (formerly known as Tara) and Ty's girlfriend (I guess Ty/he/she turned into a straight man) all have a good, albeit non-traditional, family relationship.

Needless to say, Aziz did not like the fact his former wife was now a he and started sending the child support he paid for their son directly to Yahyah. As stated before, Aziz is a filthy rich and a hard core Muslim. David told me when they visited him in Morocco many a year ago, someone would ask how his (Aziz's) day was and he'd reply in Arabic, "It was a good day. A Jew died today." <--- I hear this is the same as, "Good thanks and yourself?" in the Arab world.

Yahyah is now 17 and just moved off to attend a state university in North Carolina. Dad, of course, is paying for his son to attend college, as Aziz is under the impression that Yahyah is going to school to become a lawyer. This is not the case. Apparently Yahyah will be majoring in Conflict and Peace Negotiations (who knew there was a major for that?) and his higher goal is to become a Unitarian minister.

Facinating.

It's That Time of Year

I don't know why my summers always get so hectic. I feel horrible for not blogging. It's not like I do anything. The boredom is setting in. Fortunately, it's still summertime so there are some requirements I have yet to meet.

I'm going to Busch Gardens today with my two-father having emo cousin. Hehehe. We're having dinner tonight at Pops' house. Tonight Grandma will finally get to meet Jeff. I'm sure a good time will be had by all. I will try to take notes as dinner conversation should be interesting with my liberal father, my in the closet uncle and my 'I Hate Everything and Everyone' Grandma. Jeff should be in for the ride of his life.

My Crazy Mother will be down somewhere in September or October. I think it'll be just her. Thank goodness that spoiled little brat, also known as my brother, will not be here. I guilt tripped the hell out of her so it looks like she'll be financing a month off of work for me. I'm not going back to work until my unemployment runs out in January.

I've decided to go back to school, again. This epiphany came right before the start of the semester so my class choices were limited. I'm taking two classes, Personal Finance and Principals of Management. Both are online. Both look to be easy A's. I completed my first assignment for Personal Finance last night - I had to create financial goals. Next week I have to create a balance sheet, which means all I have to do is go into Quicken and print a report.

I have two assignments due this week for Principals of Management. The first assignment as shown on my syllabus - Enjoy a movie! Your choice, then write a brief summary about each management activity/skill displayed or any management theory learned in Chapter One. My movie choice(s) - The Lord of the Rings trilogy. You gotta love me. Depending on how the paper turns out, I may post it on DIOdC. I'll let you know.

Life on the home front has been pretty quiet. My friend JC is getting married (and I don't mean that Jesus Christ has divorced Mary Magdalene and has found a new bride) in September and My Man has agreed to accompany me as my date. He is a bit hesitant as he's still afraid I'll make a scene of some type but he's on board. I've decided to play nice - I will not be adorning myself in red or winter white. I'm even going to check to see what the brides colors are so I don't step on any toes. Apparently my ex Jason, who was slated to be the best man, will not be the best man. Nor will I. Jason dicked out on a few of his best man duties and JC had to have a heart to heart with him. I hear JC is pretty heart broken. Poor thing.

Well I better head on out. It's gonna be a long, hot, family oriented day so I better get a move on.


TTYL.
Xoxo.

~Gossip Girl~

Sunday, August 10, 2008

I Had a Vision

Sorry I haven't been keeping in touch. It's been a good type of manic week and I've been accomplishing a lot of physical labour. Thursday I cut up a mattress into manageable strips, rolled the up, tied them with Christmas ribbon (I had no twine) and put them out on Friday for the rubbish man. Friday I demolished a 6 foot long, all wood chest of drawers and a mattress box spring with nothing but a hammer and my bare hands. Today I tore apart an antique vanity - that was ridiculously well made I might add. I will regret ripping apart later as I found the manufacturer's seal inside and I'm sure the Antiques Road Show would have probably told me it was worth like $2k or something.

Last week, however, in my endless time at home, I had a vision. I've been known to scare people with my visions before. They tend to be a bit outlandish but I generally bring them to fruition.

Last year my buddy JC and I went up to the good ol' Webster Flea Market for my birthday where I picked up two old chests for whopping $10 a piece. Grandma wasn't very happy because I my house was already packed full of this and that. One was a very distressed wooden chest that I find absolutely beautiful. The other was a green traveling chest with the original metal closing things, hinges, lock and key (The debris surrounding it in the picture below it is that of the former dresser. My living room has been my work shop.).





I picked these up because I've always wanted my home office to look kinda like an old, rich man's study with forgien type stuff so I'd seem travelled. Over time I have collected a lot of very nice and interesting pieces from around the globe.

I also have a love of old books (I am diving WAY off subject here, lo siento) the earliest being Maunder's Biographical Treasury dating back to 1851 (NOTE: I do not own the updated 1854 version of this book. I have the original edition cause I'm bad ass), which talks about the origin of the big three religions, Islam, Christianity and Judaism. The book states Mohammed, founder of the Islamic religion, was illiterate and unable to write down his teachings. Two of his friends, a Christian and a Jew, aided him in the physical writing of the Koran. Ironic, huh?

My other favorites are my first editions: Winston Churchill's Richard Carvel, (1899); The Gathering Storm, also by Churchill (1948), which is the first of 6 books containing his memoirs; and the newer first addition classics, Anne's Rice's Interview With the Vampire; Mario Puzo's The Godfather; Jay Anson's The Amityville Horror (I used to keep this one on my nightstand). In addition to those, I also have a ton of books that date from the late 1800's through the eraly 1900's. I have two large bookcases in my office packed full of books (all hardcovers of course - you know me) and unfortunately I've had to put the ix-nay on book buying.

Now that we've gone through all that, my apologies for the delay - let's head back to the vision.

I've had this green chest standing upright in my office for the past year. I always wanted to get some vintage travelling/vacation stamps to put on it so I could get the cultured, travelled look I so deeply desire. I searched the web for these items at little to no avail. Then one night, all the sudden it came to me (kinda like the whole concept of the $1 move in program as I was drinking coffee on a Sunday morning, playing Final Fantasy XII).

My Vision




I know I need to go back and shore up the tilted top shelf, but when I have a vision I got to get going. The whole job took me about a half hour. Jeff was a little irritated with me because he wanted to go to the Home Depot to pick up some new wood for the interior and all the right hardware but I refused. The wooden inside support and shelves were left over pieces from the big ass dresser that went bye bye. I had nails and a hammer at the house. I even got to use my jigsaw. Total Price: $10.

I am SO FUCKING PROUD of both my vision and the outcome of what is now a very unique piece of furniture which I am displaying quite proudly in my office. The fact I used recycled materials is the icing on the cake.

I've had 2 other visions. I believe one will be a much lengthier process with 2 items I'll have to purchase. I have to buy some paints for the other, but I'm not 100% sold on it due to the fact I do not have a knack for drawing. I do, however, think the idea for latter is wonderful and the first creation will be a prototype. And guess what, both of these will also utilize recycled materials I have in my home. I'm crafty in more ways than one.

Jeff and I have our 2 person family dinner on Sunday nights. On the menu tonight - Mushroom Sauced Pot Roast.

I'm sorry but I must depart now to clean up what's left of the vanity. I'll try to be back as soon as possible. I've been lazy on my hiatus.

Sincerely:

June Cleaver
Betty Crocker
Martha Stewart
Bob Villa

P.S. Just finished dinner - it was off the chain. Let me know if you want the recipe. It literally had less than a 10 minutes prep time and sat in the crock pot for 6 hours. The perfect Sunday dinner for the fam!