Solving the Nancy Problem

BULLETIN:  We will be down, 7:00 AM to 6:00 PM tomorrow and Thursday.

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I’m very proud of this proposal: what I’m proposing here will solve, I think, the Nancy “problem.” 

I want to propose that when I, functioning as the communications person, want to pitch an action, that I write to you and Dyan, then we three can work together to achieve public communications deliverables (press releases, social media posts, the newsletter, ads, etc).  I’m proposing that all public communication going out will be developed together and approved by you for action or after approval by the board.

I think it would be a good working relationship for us and the Foundation. This is a new operational department for both the board and our membership and Facebook friends, and islanders in general plus any other audiences as the R&R campaign initiatives with the new social media consultant will create. As we get involved with social media, we want to do a good job, That means we have to develop copy/information to make our social media presence be intellectually and/ or emotionally fulfilling, and that we speak in one voice. I’d like to remind you that we’re talking increasingly with imagery as well as words, I’m doing more and more graphics to bring vitality to our public communications; more complex deliverables are coming for approval. As the action man. I'll either get a go ahead from you two, or in a board meeting.

Yea?

I’ve been developing a communication plan with Dyan over the past several months as part of my work with the clinic’s Communications Committee. It has yet to be shared with the board, before that happens, it must be approved by the Communications Committee. If you agree that what I’m proposing is a good idea, I will add a new policy to our draft Communications Plan.

I attached a link to the communications plan at the bottom of the email. How can they refuse? This is an ideal strategy to end the troubles I’m having, working with two bosses who operate independently. If they both accept this, there’ll be no more problems for me.

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Monday, I was reeling from the shock of being reconnected. I had 66 emails to answer, and scores more came in yesterday as word spread that Gabriola had reconnected to the world. Bruce called very early in the day (we both get up early in the morning), and I could not believe the phone was working. Then, as we talked, I noticed that my router was working, and the Internet was back. Oh, happy day.

I had arranged with Stacy to walk with her and her dog at 9:00 in the morning. We’d set up the walk when she’d dropped by to wish me a happy birthday on Sunday. But before leaving to meet her, I answered many emails to explain my absence to friends and colleagues. I was particularly happy to let my friends at STAMMA know why I’d disappeared.

I read not a word on the page yesterday. I was online all day, writing emails or talking on FaceTime. It was back to normal, and I preferred the endless reading of the previous week. I will find a balance going forward. It was a day to catch up on things missed yesterday, including up and racing with clinic emails and their fallout. Dyan has asked to meet with me this afternoon, at her house, to, I think, make an operational action plan for the new year.

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I’ve begun watching Three Pines on Prime. It’s a crime series set in Quebec drawn from the writing of Canadian author, Louise Penny. I’ve read every one of her Armand Gamache books. As I write this, I’ve only seen the first 2 episodes, but I’m liking it. The first 2 shows are from a novel I remember, but they’ve added a very strong indigenous plot line about the legacy of colonialist policies. I really liked the first 2 episodes, but it’s mighty quirky. 

It's likeable because it has good production values and is set in Canada and about Canadian culture and history. And it’s by a Canadian writer, and I love the characters. It’s not for everyone, but it’s good for me. I saw characters I’d followed through 18 novels come to life and I thought everything was okay, I’m speaking of the sets and characters, Ms. Penny gave the film makers the plot. I respect lead actor Alfred Molina, but I think I might have preferred a sexier lead. Still, he’s acceptable to me.

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I’m half-way through my second Commissario Brunetti novel. I realize I read these books to go to places in my imagination while I’m in a quiet and safe environment—even better if it’s cozy.  I like a movie at night, but I love, love, love reading by the fire in Winter. 

When I was involved with seeking approval, I chose to focus on works with literary cred. Some were remarkable, many were fine, one stank. I chose carefully to my taste and much to my delight and surprise, my favourite book of all time might be Angle of Repose, by Wallace Stenger, It’s set in the American west, and those two words, describe a genre I would have said I wanted nothing to do with.

I think I like reading all these detective series because they remind me of what is, perhaps, my favourite memories of childhood—reading The Hardy Boys in our living room. Commissario Brunetti is as endearingly alive as was Bruno, with as charming an ensemble of minor characters as had Bruno. Bruno is dear to my independent rural island heart, and I’m a Francophile, but I’m enjoying that Guido—yes, Guido—is a married man with children. And, above all, it’s in Venice, and as with Bruno, it’s written by an American with a long life of living in the setting of their books. 

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I went to bed confident that my proposal will be acceptable for Dyan and Nancy, and that I won’t be as vulnerable to triggers working without this being stated operational policy. I’ve been going back and forth with two leaders of separate but equal campaigns, both of whom create public communications. It feels good that the unpleasant aspects of my recent history with clinic work may not recur. And it feels good being proposed by me. Now my only remaining problems are my broken generator and having to get another urine sample from Sheba.

On my computer, the best way to view these images is to click on the first one and then, when it opens in a larger window, use your "right" button to scroll through them.