Oslo, Norway

Over to Oslo tonight for an all day working session tomorrow w/ my #2. He will be taking over for me in a few months when I go so I am trying to make as many trips here as possible to get him as prepped. We have an interesting situation to deal with tomorrow and I am intrigued to see how he handles it.

The problem is that 1 of the groups in the project is supposed to write a document for the end users on what will happen before during and after we show up to do the installation. The rub is that the people tasked to do it are developers and not well suited to writing things for other humans to read. I picked a couple of Danish guys in a different group and told #2 to have them write it. They won't be able to do the whole thing but can make a start for us and the developer people can refine it.

I saw the response from the Danish guys before I flew out today. "This is not our task, Development must do it". Classic Scandinavian response. They really seem to get off pointing out what is not their job. The proper response at this point of course (according to the Baker management handbook) is "your task is whatever I say it is" but I am not sure how #2 will handle it.

The Scandic hotel for tonight is in a mall, thats kinda funky.

Flipping through commercial TV and I am realizing Norway is a giant red-light district. Starts with the weather girl on the news in a tight low-cut button down shirt and painted on jeans. Flip to the other channel and this one is in a super short skirt and high heels. Next they are showing what is on later tonight. 1 square per show and at 21:45 the square is the title shot of the show Lost etc. etc. At 23:45 its the interesting part of a topless woman. At the train station the magazine rack must have had 25 different magazines (of a lascivious nature) in plain sight. I am just saying its a different place, not that any of this is interesting to me personally at all.