don't look up

Nefarious - Part 5

a bit part in a TV gangsta pilot

meet the family -
I mean "THE" family

[continued from posts of May 3 & 26, and June 7 & 21, 2009]
- - - - - - - - - -
NEFARIOUS

Pronunciation:

\ni-ˈfer-ē-əs\

Function:

adjective

Etymology:

Latin nefarius, from nefas crime, from ne- not + fas right

There were a lot of things that were not right in the unfolding of these vignettes. Like many things, though, you sometimes don't spot them except with hindsight. Then it is usually too late to change things.

- - - - - - - - - -

The next two weeks were spent living in our Detroit Headquarters. I was constantly on the phone trying to resurrect expired Government contracts. It was no easy matter. Most were either expired by a seeming 'lack of interest' on our part, or canceled 'for cause'. 'For Cause' meant we screwed-up somehow. I was now trying to convince rigid government underlings that we would do a very good job the next time - if there was a next time. Part of my spiel was that we had new owners who were very interested in, and committed to, serving our government.

My job also involved convincing our operations people that this was priority freight. If any of our branch locations was tendered freight by any government entity, it must be handled, and must be handled efficiently and expeditiously. They already had their hands full trying to meet other expectations of various sales managers from around the company. All of them were under the gun from headquarters to generate more revenue by soliciting and moving more freight.

Everyone was getting a lot of pressure and 'intimidation' by the new guys. It was beginning to take its toll on a lot of people. Long hours, and long days on the road away from home were becoming the norm for most of us.

Two weeks after the meeting at which I was given the charge to reestablish the 'lost' government business of our company, we had another meeting. This one was attended by all the players from that previous gathering. We each had to report on our successes. The higher ups seemed to have little tolerance for non-success reports. Individuals presenting reports with little to show for the past two weeks were summarily castigated in front of everyone present. The message spread quickly through-out the ranks: succeed, or lie real good.

For my part, while we were not actually handling any government freight, yet, I reported on the successful reestablishment of a number of government contracts. I also reported on my efforts with operations people in various of our branches. I reported how they were gearing-up to handle this renewed and soon to be tendered business.

I concluded, waiting for the shoe to fall and the screaming to start - yes, I said screaming. Our CEO had developed a reputation for 'screaming fits'. Instead, I felt the grip of this strong hand on my left shoulder. I looked up and saw the face of the man from the corner. He bent low and spoke in my ear. In those few seconds between feeling the grip of his hand on my left shoulder and looking up and seeing his face, I swear I broke into a sweat. He said something like, "Nice report ... keep up the good work." He returned to his seat in the corner...and I filled my drawers. Well, not really, but I could have.

Oh, the screaming fits. The first one I experienced was during that time I was 'living' in our Detroit Headquarters. They had a group of us who were from out of town holed-up in a hotel nearby. One night, a little after 3am, my room phone rang. The voice on the other end was Mr. B. himself. The words he spoke were distinct and certain. "There will be a sales meeting in the Conference Room in one hour - be there!"

As I struggled to make some sense of this nightmare I was sure I was having, I suddenly realized it was the real thing. I brushed my teeth, combed my hair, put on my suit and tie and headed out to find someplace between the hotel and the office to grab a strong cup of coffee. As I came through the hotel lobby I met several compatriots. They were all comparing stories of similar nightmares.

We all made it to the Headquarters Conference Room on time. We were all a little on edge as to what was about to happen. It didn't take long to find out.

He entered the room, followed by the guy who always sat in the corner. He began a tirade about how slowly our company revenues were increasing. He was almost literally having a fit. He appeared to be, quite honestly, 'stoned'. When he started throwing things across the room, the man in the corner rose, moved to him, grabbed him by the arm and quickly escorted him from the room. The man in the room who bore the title of President of Operations rose. He said he was 'sorry' for what had happened. He also suggested that what had happened here not be talked about ... among ourselves or with others.

He said we were all to leave ... go home, or back to the hotel ... get some sleep. Then he said we needed to be back on our job, whatever capacity that was, by 11am. If we were people who normally had appointments with customers or vendors, we should be sure to keep any appointments we had already made for that day. Also, we were to take Mr. B.'s comments seriously. We needed to increase company revenues more quickly.

The pressure continued. Some few weeks after the report meeting mentioned above - the one where Mr. Corner Guy gave me a passing grade, we all received word about one of the local sales reps - Timmy O'Reilly. A real leprecaun of a guy. Well liked by everyone. Well known around the trucking business in southeastern Michigan.

He apparently was taking a lot of 'heat' from the new cadre. On this particular morning he was getting ready to make scheduled sales calls across the river in Windsor, Ontario. He was at a gas station refueling his company owned car, when he had a heart attack, and died there on the ground next to his car. His wife and family all immediately began blaming the stress he had been experiencing at work...and so were a lot of other people in our company. The lines were beginning to form in opposition to the intimidation and pressure everyone was feeling. Some quit and went elsewhere. Some thought they could fight back some way. Some of us just kept doing our job as best we could in hopes that this nightmare would soon end.

It had been long enough that some of us were starting to notice some irregularities in the way things were being done. Some people in our accounting department were whispering about new 53-foot semi trailers that had been ordered. They had seen the purchase orders. They had seen the checks go out to pay for this new equipment. No one could find where any new trailers were being delivered to any of our branches anywhere. We were becoming guarded in our conversations. We were becoming watchful in the goings on of the company.

In the mean time, my Vice President of Sales for the Western Region, had an enlightening idea. He called me and asked me to meet him tomorrow at our terminal in Gary, INdiana. Dutifully, I left home early [home was a place where I did actually get to go occasionally], and appeared at our Gary INdiana terminal at 9am, as requested.

=============
[to be continued as I make the time - stay tuned]

Nefarious - Part 4

a bit part in a TV gangsta pilot

meet the family -
I mean "THE" family

[continued from posts of May 3 & 26, and June 7, 2009]
- - - - - - - - - -
NEFARIOUS

Pronunciation:

\ni-ˈfer-ē-əs\

Function:

adjective

Etymology:

Latin nefarius, from nefas crime, from ne- not + fas right

There were a lot of things that were not right in the unfolding of these vignettes. Like many things, though, you sometimes don't spot them except with hindsight. Then it is usually too late to change things.

- - - - - - - - - -

Time to back-up a little.

I had taken on my new side-kick at about the 2 month mark of the new regime's ownership of the company. During that time, they had been very actively meeting with all the constituents of the business: customers, unions, drivers, operations and sales people, office personnel, equipment suppliers, government agencies, freight brokerage agents, et al. The message was pretty much the same. "We're putting millions of dollars into this company to bring it back to life and grow it. We need your help." For many of us, we had no clue it was in deep financial distress.

Feedback scuttle-but from the drivers was that the company was asking for deep cuts and concessions from the Teamsters Union, which represented them. Translated, it probably meant they would be coming to the rest of us shortly. The difference being that they would have to negotiate with the union. With us, they would just tell us how it was going to be.

At about month 3, they backed-up our current pay date by one week. In the past, we were paid one week behind - the work week ended on Friday, and we were paid the following Friday. Now it was going to be 2 Fridays after the end of a work week. Multiply that by 400 employees, and that was a chunk of money not being paid out. They said it would be used to purchase some badly needed new 53' semi-trailers. Seemed reasonable to me. We were all going to have to sacrifice to make the company grow.

In the same general time period, I was a participant in a sales meeting in our Corporate Headquarters Conference Room. Other Sale Reps and Regional Managers were also present. One of the ideas that was seized upon by the new regime was that we needed to recapture some portion of Government Business which, for various reasons, we had lost in the past year.

Who here should be assigned that task? Government Agencies have all kinds of special requirements to meet re bidding and pricing and various other red-tape issues. Somehow, because of my very diverse experience in various aspects of our company, my name got offered for the sacrifice. Once others got someone other than themselves in the spot-light they were, symbolically at least, off the hook - for now.

I forgot to mention one special person who was also in the room. He was present in most of our meetings. He always sat back in a corner and observed. He never said anything. He always accompanied the CEO. He was younger ... had a muscular build ... his last name ended in a vowel ... and he had a noticeable bulge under the left arm-pit area his suit coat.

After I had been duly acknowledged for taking on this new task, I felt this very strong hand grasping me by the left shoulder from behind. I looked up and over my left shoulder. It was the mysterious and somewhat frightening stranger from the corner of the room. He bent over and whispered in my ear, "We're sure you'll do a good job ... won't you?" And he returned to his corner.

============
[to be continued as time is available]

Nefarious - Part 3

a bit part in a TV gangsta pilot

meet the family -
I mean "THE" family

[continued from posts of May 3 & 26, 2009]
- - - - - - - - - -
NEFARIOUS

Pronunciation:

\ni-ˈfer-ē-əs\

Function:

adjective

Etymology:

Latin nefarius, from nefas crime, from ne- not + fas right

There were a lot of things that were not right in the unfolding of these vignettes. Like many things, though, you sometimes don't spot them except with hindsight. Then it is usually too late to change things.

- - - - - - - - - -

My new friend, side-kick, and boss [the new Vice President of Sales for the Western Region] was gone about 20 minutes. I waited and had another drink. I didn't know, or suspect, that this would be only the first of many similar meal interruptions. I had the opportunity to eat at many fine establishments over the course of the next 6 months.

"Just had a little business to tend to." That was pretty much the normal reply when he returned to the table. I use the term "reply" although that suggests there was a question; I never asked any questions. I suspected his "reply" was all I needed to know.

Not all these places had curtains to pass through. Sometimes it was just a table or booth back in a corner someplace out of sight and hearing. Although, I do admit there were a few occasions when loud, agitated voices could be heard ... and while the conversation itself was not understood, the heat of the discussions could be sensed.

There were some occasional meetings where he had "...a little business to tend to" at someplace other than a nice restaurant or bar. Those gave me the opportunity to set and wait in the reception area of several businesses in the Chicago area. I would wait while he met with someone in an office elsewhere on the premise.

On one such occasion, the office in which he was meeting was very nearby the reception area. The loud voices could be heard by everyone. Suddenly the door to the office in which he was meeting flew open. He was exiting, with an older, very irate man close behind him shouting obscenities and calling him names. As he passed me, on his way out, he motioned for me to follow. The older guy continued his tirade, adding, "Don't you and your goon ever step foot in MY business again."

First time I'd ever been called a 'goon'.

Then there was another time I remember with almost a sense of awe. It was middle afternoon - between the regular lunch hour and dinner-service time. We went to a very modest, but nice, restaurant. It was bright and cheery and well lit - many places we went were dimly lit. I always found those places to be a little difficult to see people clearly, unless you were relatively close to them. I now suspect that was more by design - for reasons that were for other than ambiance only.

He said he had someone to meet and had me set at a table fairly near the entrance. He then went to another vacant table across the room. Apparently his 'client' had not yet arrived. I ordered a drink, and told the waitress I needed to get something from my car, but I'd be right back. I figured that if I was going to be waiting a while, I may as well go through some paper-work in my briefcase.

I left the establishment and headed down a sloped sidewalk to the parking area. Coming from the other direction I encountered a very attractive woman. She was a little taller than average; slender; light-brown hair; lightly tanned; red lipstick which complemented her bright red form fitting knee-length dress; medium height high-heeled shoes; shapely - by almost anyone's standards: very attractive.

We nodded a quaint 'hello' to each other as we passed.

I retrieved a couple of folders from my briefcase and returned to my table in the restaurant. I looked over at my friend's table to see if his 'client' had yet arrived.

There she was - the lady of my sidewalk encounter - at his table. I almost choked in disbelief.

This gal had people turning heads, and she was seated with my boss, the Vice President of Sales for the Western Region of the company.

I ordered another drink.

I never knew how long these meetings of his were going to last - 20 minutes, an hour? This one was not too long - less than half an hour. I noticed him stand and she rose right after he. They started coming across the room. I was near the entrance, and they'd have to come past me on the way out. I was riding with him, so I was fairly confident that he wasn't leaving without me - at least not for any length of time.

They were along side my table very quickly. They stopped. I stood. He spoke.

"Jimmy, I'd like you to meet my wife."

You just had to be there to appreciate this moment - I was in a state of shock and awe. I have no recollection of what I might have said - although I probably slobbered as I spoke. He said he'd walk her to her car and then be back in.

I look back at that event and the word that comes to mind is something like:

moll
n. Slang.

1. A woman companion of a gunman or gangster [usually very attractive].

=============
[to be continued as I make the time - stay tuned]

Nefarious - Part 2

a bit part in a TV gangsta pilot

meet the family -
I mean "THE" family

[continued from post of Sunday May 3, 2009]
- - - - - - - - - -
NEFARIOUS

Pronunciation:

\ni-ˈfer-ē-əs\

Function:

adjective

Etymology:

Latin nefarius, from nefas crime, from ne- not + fas right

There were a lot of things that were not right in the unfolding of these vignettes. Like many things, though, you sometimes don't spot them except with hindsight. Then it is usually too late to change things.

- - - - - - - - - -

Cancelling my lunch appointment with my new business prospect was not difficult. He almost seemed glad to hear from me. It probably saved him the task of calling me at the last minute and canceling for some obscure reason of his own - that would not have been uncommon for a first meeting. Statistics indicate that it takes 7 contacts with a new prospect before your trucking company starts handling any of their freight. After-all, they already have their freight being handled by somebody and, barring some major failure, they don't really relish changing things.

The trip from Milwaukee took me a little over 3 hours. Traffic through Chicago was especially bottle-necked in several places. When I arrived at the company's terminal office in Gary IN I found everyone hard at work - or trying to get their work done. There was a 'stranger' in their midst asking questions and watching everything they were doing - our new Vice President of Sales for the Western Region.

He immediately noticed me when I came in the door to the dispatch office. He seemed relieved and happy to see me - almost genuinely so. He had been hanging around almost four hours [I did learn he went out for lunch for almost two of those hours]. We introduced ourselves, exchanged a few pleasantries, and went into an office adjacent to the dispatch room. This was the 'Sales' office for this terminal.

Because I was the company's Regional Manager for this area, I was also the current Sales Rep - the previous occupant of that position had recently moved on to a competitor. It appeared the newly appointed Vice President of Sales for the Western Region had already made himself at home. Sales Reports and other materials were scattered about the desk; the local terminal manager, who had also just met our newly appointed Vice President earlier in the day, had been providing him with records as requested.

From appearances, I guessed we were about the same age. It also seemed to me that he liked to eat more than adequately - his girth was substantial. I was not in especially great physical shape myself, but I was in an acceptable weight range for height and age. I did also note that although he lived in the Chicago area instead of NJ, his last name also ended in a vowel ... like those new guys in our headquarters in Detroit. I wondered if they were all related somehow.

It was now approaching mid-afternoon. He explained that he had been hired by the new owners to help us increase our sales revenues in the 'Western Region'. He asked a lot of questions about my background and experiences with the company. What positions had I held, and where had I worked, and how long I had been with the company, etc., etc.? It seemed to me that he would have already known most of this information. It seemed reasonable to me that he should have been adequately prepped before our meeting.

He also told me that the company wanted to expand into some different types of businesses. He felt his strengths were with the 'connections' he had all around the Chicago area. He stated he believed we would work well together, as I had been highly commended by our new owners in Detroit - pure schmooze.

Small talk only goes so far. There were more significant matters to start discussing. He suggested that, if I was available, we should continue our discussions over a nice dinner somewhere. I soon learned that was his M.O. [modus operandi]: let's talk about it over food [and drink]. His preference that day was in a south-side of Chicago suburb. We ended up at a very nice, but noticeably plain-looking [on the outside] restaurant in Cicero. This was closer to the southwestern suburb in which he lived - I was the one who would have to travel back to where I was staying in Merrillville IN, south of Gary.

This is where it started getting to be a little bit like being in 'a bit part in a TV gangsta pilot'. The decor was classical Mediterranean - pillars and vineyard type decorations. We were seated in the main dining area. There was also a very nice bar off to one side, separated from the dining room by a half-wall partition. At the far end was an arched doorway going into another area. The archway was adorned with a curtain hanging from it. On both sides of the archway were dining booths - both were occupied.

We both ordered a drink and studied the menu. He stated, very matter-of-factly, that in many of the circles in which he had contacts, things were done or accomplished as favors or as repayment of favors. He helps me - I owe him. I help him - he owes me. We both know people we've helped and now they owe us. We remind them that they owe us, and together we get our goals met and the company gets the increase in sales revenues for which it is looking.

I think I was starting to understand his take on this ... and merely accepted it as a view of a way in which business can be conducted. He was my new 'boss' and I really did want to accomplish 'growing' the company - our new mantra.

It was during this part of our conversation that he revealed he had never worked in the trucking industry before, and knew very little about it. I was to be his connection - his 'joined-at-the-hip' companion - his right-hand-man. I would help him, and he would help me. Such an offer.

I started having flash-backs to another person I knew. He operated a vending machine business - his name was Tony.

After a couple of drinks and between the main course and desert, he excused himself. He walked towards the archway at the far end of the room - the one with the curtain hanging from it. As he neared the archway, an occupant from each of the booths on either side stood and 'challenged' his approach. There were some quiet words exchanged. One of the 'gatekeepers' disappeared behind the curtain. In a brief moment he returned. The 'gatekeepers' sat down. My new friend passed through the curtain.

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[to be continued as I make the time - stay tuned]

Memorial Day 2009

another day, another hero

...in the valley of the
shadow of death...

- - - - - - - - - -

Government cover-up

first Georgetown - then:

TOUCHDOWN !

- - - - - - - - - -


- - - - - - - - - -

How to negotiate with God

inch by inch by inch

and then God said...

- - - - - - - - - -

A man walking along a California beach was deep in prayer. All of a sudden he said aloud, "Lord grant me one wish". The sky clouded and a booming voice said, "Because you have tried to be faithful I will grant you one wish." The man said, "Build a bridge to Hawaii so I can drive over anytime I want to." The Lord answered, "Your request is very materialistic. Think of the logistics of that kind of undertaking: the supports required to reach the bottom of the Pacific; the concrete and steel it would take. I can do it, but it is hard for me to justify your desire for worldly things. Take a little more time to think of another wish. Think of a wish that would honor and glorify me".

The man thought for a long time. Finally he said, "Lord, I wish that I could understand women. I want to know what they feel inside. I want to know what they are thinking when they give me the silent treatment. I want to know why they cry. I want to know what they mean when they say 'nothing'. I want to know how I can make a woman truly happy?"

After a few minutes God said, "How many lanes do you want on that bridge?"

- - - - - - - - - -

the e-mail is in the mail

latest poll numbers show...

how bad is it?

- - - - - - - - - -

One day God was looking down at Earth and saw all of the rascally behavior that was going on. So he called one of His angels and sent the angel to Earth for a time.

When the angel returned, he told God, "Yes, it is bad on Earth; 95% are misbehaving and only 5% are not. "

God thought for a moment and said, "Maybe I had better send down a second angel to get another opinion."

So God sent another angel to Earth for a time.

Upon returning from earth, the angel went to God and said, "Yes, it's true. The Earth is in decline; 95% are misbehaving, but 5% are being good.'"

God was not pleased.

So He decided to e-mail the 5% that were good, because he wanted to encourage them, and give them a little something to help them keep going.

Do you know what the e-mail said?

Oh, you don't?

That's OK. I was just wondering,

because I didn't get one either.

- - - - - - - - - -

[thanks to Billie Sheppard for this one]

Nefarious - Part 1

a bit part in a TV gangsta pilot

meet the family -
I mean "THE" family

It played like a poorly written script for the Pilot of a TV series. If it had been promoted as "based on real events", I doubt anyone would have bought it. Although, I've learned that reality sometimes resembles and often times out-surprises fiction.

NEFARIOUS

Pronunciation:

\ni-ˈfer-ē-əs\

Function:

adjective

Etymology:

Latin nefarius, from nefas crime, from ne- not + fas right

There were a lot of things that were not right in the unfolding of these vignettes. Like many things, though, you sometimes don't spot them except with hindsight. Then it is usually too late to change things.

= = = = = = = = = = = = = = =

In January of that year I had passed my 19th year of service with the company, a mid-sized interstate trucking company headquartered in Detroit. It was now June, and I was facing yet another Company announcement - THE COMPANY HAD BEEN SOLD...again.

The sale of trucking companies is fairly common. Many are privately held businesses with aging owners who are ready to sell them and 'go fishing'. Another reason to buy a trucking company is to get access to the customer base and grow your existing enterprise. These are common and legitimate reasons. The company I worked for was bought and sold seven times while I worked for them. Counting the original owner and founder, I worked under a total of eight owners.

As with most acquisitions, the new owners come in with their own agenda and their own way of doing things. Change is inevitable. Much of that change is in terms of which of the acquired employees will be kept. Through all of those changes in ownership, I survived. I don't know if it was because I was very good at what I did, or because I was grossly underpaid.

None-the-less, through all those gyrations of change, I never got used to it. The first couple of months seemed to be directionless. Keep doing what you're doing, just do more of it. The new owners and their crew seemed to be throwing around a lot of money - big dinners with major customers - luncheons and conferences with union leaders - they even had food delivered to the drivers' break room regularly. They were trying to win everyone over with a message of, "growth is good for all of us, and we're going to grow."

Some items of note: the holding company which the new owners operated was based in East Patterson, NJ. The new leased company cars we were assigned were from a leasing company in Bayonne, NJ. The last names of these new people that came in to run 'our' company all ended in vowels. Some of the people that were now walking the hallways of our Corporate Headquarters had an noticeable 'bulge' under the left arm-pit of their suit coat. Some of them had a very distinctive and blended NJ / Italian accent.

But, hey! I'm not prejudiced or nuttin - my wife's mother was first-generation Sicilian; my wife's maternal grand parents were from Palermo, Sicily; my mother-in-law's brothers and my wife's cousins looked like and sounded like these guys. It was like meetin' wit more of 'THE' Family ... only my wife's relatives were all from Chicago, not NJ.

I digressed. Sorry.

At about the two month anniversary of the 'take-over', things started jumpin'. I was in Milwaukee, WI. I had several appointments scheduled that day. Two were with existing customers, and one was with a potential new customer. I met with the first mid-morning, a brewery of some size and reputation. It was a routine generic 'keep in touch' kind of meeting.

I had an hour to kill before my next appointment. This was in the days before we all carried pagers or cell-phones. The routine was that you called your office 3 or 4 times a day to get messages and field questions from whomever. That meant finding a pay-phone somewhere and making the call. I found a phone and made my call.

- - - - - - - - - -
Her: "Where are you?"

Me: "Milwaukee."

Her: "Call Detroit headquarters and talk to Mr. Bxxxxxxxx."

Me: "Mr. Bxxxxxxxx?!?!"

Her: "Yes, Mr. Bxxxxxxxxxx!"

Me: "What's up?"

Her: "I don't know. They just want you to call him right away. They're waiting for your call. In fact, I'm supposed to call them and let them know that I've heard from you...so don't blow it off. OK?"

Me: "Okay!"
- - - - - - - - - -

Mr. Bxxxxxxxxxx was the new CEO - the big cheese - the big kahuna - the top dog. In two months time he had proven that he had a silvery tongue ... he could talk almost anyone into or out of almost anything [including Teamster Union Officials - but, I'll save that for later]. Then he could turn around and cuss you and demean you and question your manhood and make you feel like a worthless piece of xxxx - without ever taking a breath or blinking an eye. A real expert in the use of words. That day he was fairly calm ... but emphatic.
- - - - - - - - - -

He: "Where are you?"

Me: "Milwaukee."

He: "How far are you from our terminal in Gary IN?"

Me: "In driving time, probably about 3 hours...gotta go right through the heart of Chicago."

He: "You need to get down there right away. Your new boss is there waiting for you."

Me: "My new boss?"

He: "Our new Vice President of Sales for the Western region."

Me: "I've got a lunch appointment scheduled with a potential new customer."

He: "Cancel it!"

- - - - - - - - - -

I didn't even know we had a Western Region ... but hey, it's their company.

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[to be continued as I make the time - stay tuned]