Absence makes the Farmers stranger...

Get me - doing two blogs in one week again. You can tell I'm not spending half of my life on an aeroplane now eh?

Something funny has started to happen since the travel ban was imposed. I have had my own little mobile phone for a long time - it's very nice although the buttons are a bit big for my paws.  Anyhow, that's not the point.  This phone, although very pretty, never used to ring very much.  The Farmers and the Cheese Suppliers and the Miss Mooses would wait until they saw me, and meetings would be planned and I would attend.

Now it's a case of 'out of sight' but not 'out of mind'.  They still have meetings with me but this is how it happens.

My phone rings.  I answer it. 'Hello, Mouse speaking.'

'Mouse!' bellows the Farmer / Supplier / Miss Moose (except of course, Miss Mooses do not bellow, they speak softly). 'It's me, I'm in a meeting room.  I've got several other people with me.  We have some questions...'

And off they go, question after question. 'The Cheese Suppliers are not working quickly enough.' 'What is the re-order process when we want more Cheese?' 'What if we want a different packaging?' 'What is the name of the Cow supplying the milk for my Cheese?' 'I spoke to the Cheese Supplier and told him we wanted to increase our order, but only the original amount turned up.' etc etc.

All perfectly reasonable, I suppose. But it puts a Mouse on the spot somewhat.

What if I say something that isn't quite correct, or they misunderstand me? What if I don't know the answer?  What if I need to go for a wee and am hopping from paw to paw?

Now I know that when the Farmers made their own Cheese, this is the sort of banter they would have with each other as part of the process.  But it has all changed.  It is no business of the Farmers' which Cow is used for Milk (it says so in the contract - the Cheese Suppliers may use whichever cow they so choose, or a mix of milk from different cows).  There is a process to be followed.  Order increases have to be controlled by a CCR (Cheese Change Request)and go through the system - a chat with Supplier is only that, a chat.

And most of all, where are their good, old fashioned manners?  If you want to ask me all of these questions I am quite happy to answer them IF you:-

Send me a meeting invitation.
Send me your list of questions.
Send me an agenda.
Tell me who will be at the meeting.
Ask me if I want to invite someone.

That way, I can make sure I am prepared.  I can do my homework first, check the contract, ask the Suppliers (or invite them to speak for themselves) and I can make sure I've been for a wee.

It's enough to drive a Mouse to drink...

Hiccup-ingly yours,
Mouse xx