My Columbian Hotspot

Most nights after a cold shower and buffet dinner in the resort-like cafeteria, I make my way back to my room, pick up my laptop and head into the courtroom where I am able to get a signal.  A Flowerpot works as a desk and I sit on a concrete curb.  The guys come out of their rooms for a smoke when I am able to talk on Skype and I often share my space with numerous toads and salamanders...

Tech Cominco Nov 2010

So I have worked around the three furnaces at Tech Cominco for a month now. I understand how the electrodes create so much heat that the ore forms a pool of liquid 4' deep and as wide and as long as a house.  This pool of molten lead forms a coating on top much the same as on your chocolate pudding with the slag off the top running into the slag fuming furnaces and the hot liquid lead on the bottom running into the CDF (Continuous Drossing Furnace), again with the top skin being taken off there. From there it runs like rivers into large molds which are trucked far and wide. I get that, but after a month and as I near the end of the job, it occurred to me that I had no idea where or how the ore gets into the furnace.  So adventuring I did go tonight and (as I warmed myself) on top of the reaction shaft roof, I found what was I was looking for marked "Feed".  So then, floor by floor, conveyer by conveyer and hopper by hopper, I climbed the stairs to floor 18 until I figured it out. It wasn't until the general caution signs turned to Warnings and Do Not Enter signs that I stopped. Actually it was the one that said "Radio Active: You should be dead by now" that finally turned me around. My conclusion: the ore comes from a big conveyer way up in the sky.

Columbian Pics

Assertiveness 101

 

Assertiveness 101

My blog today concerns itself not so much with what was for breakfast or the weather and more with a human phenomena that I have had the opportunity to observe, play with, work with and become frustrated with for the better part of my life. Now I would keep this private except that I know my experiences are no more unique to me than is using a washroom or wearing pants, and collectively we can all learn from my observations.  There are case studies all around us!  What I am talking about is aggressive people, not to be confused with assertive people who are just fine in my book.  Call them what you want and we all use different names and tags for them: Type A’s, Aggressive, Domineering, Condescending, Bullying, Patronizing, Overbearing, Abusive, Intimidating, Manipulating, Intense, Overwhelming, Arrogant, and one of my personal favourites, “Assholes”.   For the purposes of this essay, we will simply call them  “Dominant Apes”  but feel free to call them whatever you want.  They come in both male and female versions and in all likelihood, are important to our very survival as a species. In fact, I believe if us passive people took out the aggressive people, in short order, some of us would probably step in and become the next generation of dominant apes.  Go figure.  These are the guys and gals who feel their view of the world is always correct and it is difficult for them to receive any feedback on their behaviour. They lack the capacity to see that their behaviour is causing a problem with the impact they have on other people.

So lets take a moment and review our pasts and start a little roll call of all the Dominant Apes we have known. Go into the theatre of your mind and recall the strongest aggressors you have known. It won’t take long and as a rule, I have found there is always at least one in your life, and often two or three or more. One is often a family member, the other one  connected to your career, and yet another one usually in business or government. You get the odd Grand Poo-Bah that comes along too.  Maybe its meant to be that way.  That’s just the way it is.  And that said, don’t be too hard on them for surrendering to one of the most basic elements of human survival. Someone has to step up and fight the sabre toothed telemarketers, the bankersauruses!  But then again, sometimes they go too far.  You see, there is a mark that intersects the line somewhere between being very passive and being very aggressive and marked in red bold is a word marked “ASSHOLE”. These are the ones I want to talk about.

I have one here in Columbia. Yes go figure. They are everywhere.

They can not answer a question without being condescending, raising their voice, and by their behaviour, they MUST be dominant. They love an audience and given one, they insult people’s intelligence, belittle what we do, believe what needs to be done is obvious and think it should be obvious to everyone else as well. They get impatient with people who do not see things as they do.  When they feel that someone is resisting them, their impatience quickly becomes irritation, indignation, and then anger.

So what does one do?  Life has taught me that it does no good to show weakness or rage in return. They only become more aggressive and where would that get us? 

You can expect to feel awkward, distraught, and angry about the situation. These are natural and appropriate reactions to aggressive people. But it is crucial that you respond to them assertively. If you do not, they will continue to act as though you are inferior to them.    Here are the tricks of the trade for assertive people: 

1.      Aggressive people have a strong need to be accepted. The crack in their armour is that they are actually quite fragile and insecure.

Aggressive people respect and are even terrified of people who stand up to them and will even become friendly towards people who do. If they are unable to overwhelm you, they will not see you as a competitor. They will respect you for asserting yourself and not running away like others do. However, they generally want to be accepted only by people who are strong. Once you behave assertively, they will recognize you as a strong person who is worthy of their friendship though, you must never let down your guard.

2.      Do not act weak around them.

Because they value aggressiveness and confidence, they devalue those who lack these qualities and see them as inferior. So by degrading others, they create a sense of self-importance and strength. Every time a person acts weak and confused around them, their sense of superiority is reinforced.  Practice in your mind, “Fuck you Dominant Ape… You and the horse you rode in on.”

3.      Look them in the eyes and let them finish

The first thing to do with an angry person is to give him/her time to run down and finish what he is saying. Then count a slow silent count to ten to regain the control. While you do this, look directly at him/her.

4.      Hold your place

Wherever you are, hold your place while he/she is presenting his/her hostility. If you are standing, stand with your feet firmly planted on the floor and your arms loosely at your sides. If you are sitting, sit with your back straight and your arms comfortably in your lap or on the table.

5.      Start making assertive statements

As soon as he/she begins to lose momentum, start making assertive statements about the situation he is angry about. Do not wait for him/her to allow you to enter the conversation; he will not do so. Interrupt him/her if you must. If he interrupts you, say firmly, "You interrupted me." Say this a number of times if he/she continues to interrupt you. Demand that he/she let you say your piece.

To get their attention, call him/her by his name. Use the name that is appropriate for your level of acquaintance with him/her. Ask him/her to sit down

If you are sitting and he/she is standing, stand up slowly and push your chair back so you are able to look him/her directly in the eye. If possible, try to get him/her to sit down since most people are less aggressive when they are seated. Point to a chair and say, "Look, if we're going to talk about this, we might as well be comfortable." Start to sit down yourself. But watch the other person. If he/she continues standing, you should also.

6.      Use "I" statements

State your opinions in an assertive manner using "I" statements. These express your own viewpoint or perception but do not imply a direct attack on him/her or what he has said. Use sentences that start with "In my opinion, it's a good idea to. . ." "I disagree with you about that. . ." and "I can see that you think. . .but my experience has been. . ."

Many aggressive people begin to respect you when you are assertive with them. They may even make friendly overtures to you. Be ready for this and be friendly back to them. Don't be surprised or get angry with them. You may be able to create a productive relationship when they respect you.

And on a final note.  Sometimes non-assertive people feel they must serve others and be tender and compassionate to everyone else at all times. When you express yourself mainly through meeting the needs of others, you may be prevented from being assertive. It is important to remember that you need to value your own feelings and consider them as significant as you consider the feelings of others, maybe even more so.

Thankyou and good night.

Wednesday March 3, 2011 Travelogue

Wednesday March 2, 2011

I had a warm shower last night! It only lasted for about a minute but oh sweet heaven it was nice while it lasted. I managed to shampoo, rinse and lather up my muscular body, and as sudden as it was warm, it went cold, drowning my sudden euphoria and bringing back my girl-like squeals.

I was delighted to wake up this morning with no coughing, hacking or gobs of snot that wouldn’t go down the shower drain.  Amazingly I am 99% recovered, can hear again and am feeling great. Nice!

Today was a neat day for me in that I was called to a meeting, assigned an interpreter who communicated to me via my headset and we rolled out the next stage of the project. It was cool to participate in the task hazard analysis and they were very impressed with my input.  A couple hours of later I had completed a 7 page analysis complete with controls and risk ratings before and after the controls and names of people responsible to make it all happen. 
I’m surprised how quickly darkness falls down here. Last night I bent over to tie my boot laces and when I got up again, it was dark. It’s just that fast and it happens right around 6 pm. I guess its autumn here and we are just starting the rainy season.  Its now raining here several times a day and as I type its coming down in sheets, which only ads to the humidity. Now I know why they suggested an umbrella which is packed safely back at my room. Thank goodness I spend 90% of my time in an air conditioned office.

Tuesday March 1, 2011 Travelogue

Monkey Brain Fruit

Tuesday March 1, 2011

I woke up to a torrential downpour and  had to wear my rainjacket and cap to breakfast. These showers only last a few minutes but what they lack in duration, they make for with volume and lingering humidity.  I have decided to pick up a vice and I don’t mean a big heavy cast iron one for my shop. I have been watching the other guys and I have my choice between cigarettes, whiskey or wild wild women and all things considered, booze is probably the safest. I’m already coughing enough without smoking anything.  So with thoughts like that, my waiter Carlos slipped me a couple beer last night. I found my 1^st Columbian beer really bitter and it tastes dark though I can’t see it in the can. I don’t know if I can keep up this new life of sin but at least there's something waiting for me when I get home.

Dinner was large extra thick pieces of sirloin steak and mashed potatoes last night, salad on the side and a jello custard dish for dessert. No complaints from me and Carlos slipped me an extra steak too so the whole idea of losing weight is seeming less likely with every meal. Oh and they finally found some real Columbian coffee and are supplying us with an urn in the mornings.  For reasons I don’t understand, they also provide scalded milk and a bowl of sugar but no complaints. Its no Starbucks but its strong and its black and I delighted myself with several cups this morning.  Lunch at the cafeteria was potatoes and chicken and a side of curry and beets/tomatoes/cilantro salad. Not bad.  Yesterday I asked for a second piece of chicken and the lady took my scoop of rice away so I am learning to take what I get. Too funny.

Last night, I researched Columbian history and found it interesting that the CIA took out Pablo Escobar just down the road from here.  He was the 7^th richest man in the world at the time, worth $25 billion and change and all he had to do to get from rags to riches was fly a plane back and forth to the states.  He had a policy with politicians that boiled down to “plata o plomo” which translates to “Silver or lead” and he is credited with the death of over 600 policemen and politicians who stood in his way. He even bombed a plane (107 deaths) and a government building (52 deaths) and stormed the Supreme court (killed half the judges) at Bogota which is where I flew in.  In fact, my passport is in the very same building he bombed as I type this… hmmm. (The most common cause of death in Columbia is traditionally from violence) Anyway the CIA tracked him down and shot him in 1993, though they haven’t openly admitted it yet.

Interesting.

It turns out that Jesus is running the show down here.  The top dog for this project is one Jesus Sanchez (pronounced “Hesuse”) and I’ve met with him twice now. He looks nothing like the one in the bible as he has a shaved head, is as white as me and has large round glasses. The things is, and maybe its just the name, but when Jesus speaks, I listen.