Hi, for some reason working on the minutes this morning kept reminding me of the the following song, which I realized might be a useful case study of resource management. It was published back in 1962, by a British academic named Bernard Cribbins (http://www.answers.com/topic/bernard-cribbins) - think of him as the British working man's Tom Lehrer (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Lehrer). I suspect all the Brits and their children will know the song pretty well, but I doubt if it's well known anywhere else. The resource in question was a piano, and the management task was to get it out of a house. The process they followed is roughly the same as the modern-day working group process of repeatedly taking a stab at a problem and then heading for the bar (and slipping the schedule) when it proves too difficult, but the language is particularly British, so for those who are unfamiliar I've included a Glossary. :0) - Jem Right Said Fred Performed by Bernard Cribbins Lyrics reproduced without permission Right said Fred, both of us together, one each end and steady as we go Tried to to shift it, couldn't even lift it, we was getting nowhere And so, we, had a cup of tea Right said Fred, give a shout to Charlie, up comes Charlie from the floor below After straining, heaving and complaining, we was getting nowhere And so, we, had a cup of tea Charlie had a think and he thought we ought, to take off all the handles And the things that hold the candles - but it did no good (well I never thought it would!) Right said Fred, have to take the feet off, to get them feet off wouldn't take a mo... Took its feet off, even with the seat off, should have got us somewhere, but no! So Fred said let's have another cup of tea, and we said "right-oh!" Right said Fred, have to take the door off, need more space to shift the so-and-so Had bad twinges, taking off the hinges, and it got us nowhere And so, we, had a cup of tea Right said Fred, have to take the wall down, that there wall is gonna have to go Took the wall down, even with it all down, we was getting nowhere And so, we, had a cup of tea Charlie had a think and and he said look Fred, I've got a sort of feeling If we remove the ceiling, With a rope or two we can drop the blighter through... Right said Fred, climbing up a ladder, with his crowbar gave a mighty blow Was he in trouble, half a ton of rubble, landed on the top of, his dome So Charlie and me had another cup of tea And then we, went home! [Spoken, fading out...] I said to Charlie we'll just have to leave it standing on the landing, that's all. You see the trouble with Fred is, he's too hasty. Now you never get nowhere if you're too hasty... Glossary mo = moment right-oh! = an expression of cheerful agreement so-and-so = an exasperating person or other resource blighter = so-and-so dome = head landing = upstairs hallway ________________________________ Jem Treadwell Hewlett-Packard Company 6000 Irwin Road Mount Laurel, NJ 08054 Phone: 856-638-6021 Fax: 856-638-6190 E-mail: Jem.Treadwell@hp.com <mailto:Jem.Treadwell@hp.com>