July 16th 2023
Lenin
I was the leader of the Revolution, a master of intrigue whose deeds are really known only to a few ones. Those few ones are not living anymore and I would wonder to myself on the contrary, since everything happened around one hundred years ago. I am now a useless actor, interpreting myself in a museum set up by fanatics and nostalgics of the ideology that partially bears my name. I do not know whether to be proud to read my name beside that of a stranded German philosopher, but I suppose that my background cannot be judged much better. To feel my free time, that is abundant, I lost any passion for reading political newspapers or writing letters to politicians, intellectuals and philosophers who would consider my writings the fruit of a chronic mental disease. Or perhaps I could get the attention of the media and be broadcasted as in the movie of that Hitler who comes back again. It could work in Germany, but really few would find an interest in Lenin speaking again in Schwyzer-Dutch. The state television would be further accused to lean too much to the left and to waste further money on a show followed by few. I experimented the social media, but you can find there such a perverse mechanism that only the simplest and trivial concept can prevail. Taking care of my own small apartment is the best way to express myself, in front of the greatest public, me.
The art dealer
I have lost a great deal today. A piece of David Shrigley that could have really been sold for nothing if my fingers had been only faster. The Internet site did not allow any lottery. The faster you are, the cheaper you could have acquired the piece. In the best case paying less than one thousand pounds for a print worth at least three thousand. That is a small sum if compared with the above thirty millions dollars spider sold two years ago at Art Basel, on the very first day of the preview of the previews. Anyway one thousand pounds is an amount within my budget and it is useless to dream for higher figures if I live with such a constraint. I met someone who, even without realizing that, found himself with a painting collection enviable by any museum. If I persist, I could take advantage of my knowledge of the art market to make some good points and grow up to the next career level.. Meanwhile I should be happy with my work, as a Japanese Colonel continuously said in an old war movie I have forgotten the title. My dad loved these war movies. Most of the stories have focused on something to explode, destroy or keep against an overwhelming number of Germans or Japanese. I found that boring. Propaganda cliche as much as that pro-vietcong poster “And Babies?... and babies”. The artist chose to ignore how many babies, and dads, and mums had been killed, or starved to death, because of the viet congs. And how many families lost their houses and had to flee to the West. Perhaps the war movies were based on better principles.
The consultant
I thought I had been hired as a senior manager, but when I looked at the organization chart I found myself placed as a plain manager. I cannot understand the quid pro quo, since the HR, at the time of having hired me, clearly spoke about a senior manager position. Also at the time of the contract, when I asked what that code meant. I now find myself downgraded, with the only fault to have trusted an hr manager at the time of signing the contract. For someone alien to the mechanisms and not written rules of consultancy, it is just a formality. For someone obsessed with consultancy rules it is extremely important, because after a certain age it can hinder the chance to get promoted to partner level. That is actually the primary goal of any consultant. In the beginning it is just a dream, because many do not survive the first couple of years. Not to mention those who resign after three months or less. But, when after many years of humiliation, you are getting close to the goal and only because of the wicked, or stupid, arts of a hr manager, you miss it, that is despicable. It is irritating and makes me crazy because I cannot resign, but if I stay longer my career will be ruined as well. A solution can be to create my own company. I will exploit the time by working on the idea. After all, I am on the bench. An Italian Prince would have put some poison in the golden goblet of the HR manager, but I am not interpreting a tragedy. At the best, I am playing the fool in a brilliant comedy.
