SC - Scottish Feast Question

[Bethany Public Library]

Ras wrote, in reply to the following comment:
<<< Is it really necessary to cultivate an agressively uncooperative
<<<attitude  toward the people organizing the event, especially when <<<you
have (in theory) volunteered to work with them? >>

>Point taken. OTOH, when you hire a plumber you don't tell him/her >how to
do their plumbing. When you  'hire' a Kitchen Steward, there >should be no
reason to tell  him/her how to do their job. It is a matter >of delegating
responsibility. While the Event co-ordinator certainly >should be aware of
what is happening with  various aspects of the >event that awareness does
not necessarily translate into control the >details of that event.
>Micro-management is one of the worst traits found in some would be
>supervisory/director personel. Far better you get a team that works
>together like an well-rehearsed orchestra with an accomplished >conductor
rather than submitting to a somg writer telling  you how to >play your
instrument. :->)

And I can understand how, in your group of excellent minds who have a wee
tendancy towars control issues (this is me being tactful), one could get
sensitive towards micromanagement. In fact i agree with you nine times out
of ten.

BUT (there's always a BUT, isn't there), I'd liketo point out one instance
where micromanagement would have helped a whole lot.

I recently took on the autocrat's mantle, somethign I normally avoid like
the plague. My apprentice, a heretofor upstanding guy, had to cook for such
a  large group his budget was over a thousand dollars. I wanted the barony
to give it to him in increments (that inner sixth sense I guess, being
cautious), but since he was hard to reach they decided to give it to him in
a lump sum. That wasn't my choice, but that's how they wanted it to work.
He'd been feast'crat before with no problems and knew what to do.

His phone was disconnected about a month before the feast. He showed up,
late for lunch, which I had sent someone else out to buy in his absence (I
was really sweating, I can tell you). But he was happy to tell me that even
with the extra lunch, we were at least $300.00 under budget. Hooray! More
money for the Kingdom (it was a kingdom event)! We'll look like heroes,
right?

Wrong! Well, I have to tell you that the Kingdom did eventually get their
cut of the money, but it was almost 8 months later, when the local group
gave up trying to collect that $300. The SCA has decided to proceed with
legal means to collect that money (a nice change from their former attitude
in years past), and so the gentleman failed to show for his court date and
now has a warrant out for his arrest. The funny thing is,if he'd paid back
part of this (even just $15.00), he would have been in good shape. The magic
number in Pennsylvania is $300.00. It's a big crime over $300. It's a petty
crime under $300.

Needless to say he isn't my apprentice any more, and I haven't seen him for
over a year. He has totally dropped out of the SCA which is good since he
isn't allowed to come to SCA events until he's paid back his debt. I did
everything except turn myself inside out to get him to pay back the money,
and now I wash my hands of him.

But yes, micromanagement would have helped, in this case. So, it may drive
me insane with all these picayune regualtions (and living in a Barony we get
way more of them than your average Joe Cook). But I see with painful clarity
how necessary it is to keep a tight reign on things.

Aoife