In some families, teaming up to prepare a single dish can be fun. It's become a holiday tradition for Kristieinbc's family. But it doesn't quite work for us. Thursday night my wife and I collaborated on a simple tuna salad for dinner. I didn't put in enough mayonnaise and she put in too much celery. It's an old story for us. We do better when we split work up into discrete efforts. As an example, for holiday dinners, I make the stuffing while she makes the yams. One chef per dish is the way to go for us.
We've had similar experiences outside the kitchen. When we moved into our house, it had an above-ground pool. We winterized it after our first summer and something unfortunate happened. For those who've had a pool, you know that you need to empty some of the water, add a HUGE amount of chemicals to the remaining water, place a float (inner tube) in the center, and cover it all up until summer. I handled all the preliminary work, but needed my wife's help pulling the cover on the pool. She was on one side and I was on the other. It sounds simple, but the cover kept getting caught on the inner tube.
We agreed to both lift on the count of 3, but lifted at different times. I tried counting, she tried counting, but we just couldn't coordinate our efforts. We tried 5 times, 10 times, 15 times and failed over and over. Finally, I knew what I had to do. I jumped into the pool, despite all the chemicals. It was then a simple matter for me to lift the cover over the float and lock it down tight after I got out (so no one could get in over the winter).
Because of the chemicals, I hoped I might develop super-powers...and my wife thought it would be a good idea if we didn't have any more children!
Gosh, I forgot my point. Oh yeah, try to be flexible in dealing with others and learn to work together or you too may end up in a toxic stew. Even a metaphorical toxic stew is no fun.
PS - Splitting up projects and working on them seperately IS a form of teamwork. It's the American football version of teamwork--offense, defense, and special teams, all important, all part of the team, but never on the field at the same time. ;P
PSS - I always open and drain the tuna when we have it. My contribution usually stops there.
i think some people can focus more when working alone. :)
ReplyDeletesorry you needed to jump in the pool and expose yourself to various chemicals. but hey, at least you developed super powers! i wonder what kind... LOL ;)
So you jumped into the pool with all the chemicals?! Boy, doesn't THAT explain a lot! =P
ReplyDeleteYes, that's the teamwork.. different hands working on different task, contributing to come up with one project.
ReplyDeleteAwww pity you didn't develop any super powers.. or did you? ahaha xD
ReplyDeleteI prefer working alone, I get more work done that way and not talk my time away =.=
I remember when our teachers used to make us do group projects when I was still studying. I haven't been the luckiest when it comes to groupings so I was always paired with ehem, should I say my more laidback and happy-go-lucky classmates. I just KNEW they'd make a complete mess of everything so I ended up doing all the work! For me back then, it's better to slave over a supposed group project than to get a low grade! Yikes I was such a nerd x_x
ReplyDeleteLOL, I hope you do develop super power!
ReplyDeleteNow I am wondering if your skin is green from your chemical bath???
ReplyDeleteYou and your wife are married and raising a family, and those two things require a very high level of being able to work together, so don't feel too bad about the failed tuna salad!
I like how you defined teamwork in your PS. :) it's a whole new way of looking at the term :) I learned something new today. thanks ric :D
ReplyDeletei love the analogy to football...it's so true!
ReplyDeletei tend to work better when i don't have someone else telling me what to do. that doesn't mean i'm not a team player because i am. one of the best, if i do say so myself. lol.
haha! My husband and I work together pretty well...as long as he listens to me :P
ReplyDeletewww.clothedmuch.com
If you start to grow a third limb, we'll know why. ;)
ReplyDeleteFor us, it really depends on the task. If it's cooking for example, we do better together.
When Im doing anything, working or cooking, I prefer to do it on my own (so anti social I am hehe) but because I have such high expectations on the way things should be I feel like I have to take control on every little detail. Gosh, I think I just gave away my OCD and possible deluded personality in this short paragraph (:
ReplyDeleteHi, i saw your avatar at krissys page. im new to blogspot and looking for new friends on blogger.
ReplyDeleteabout your post - i always have difficulty working in groups cause of my fear that someone might eventually turn up to be a loose cannon and mess everything up. i should change and learn to trust more. nice post ❤