Filter Coffee #165

On Getting Your Ducks in a Row

FC 164 fetched some ‘perfectly’ good comments. Some were a bit long and I have taken the liberty of abridging them to conserve space. I fear that if I take too much space, the readers may space out.

• Dr Vandana Shashi from NC, USA writes: “I have been silent, but as an ardent fan of Filter Coffee I felt compelled to comment about perfection. While it takes courage to be vulnerable and show one’s imperfections to others, I also think one needs compassion to accept one’s and others’ imperfections. With that, the good becomes perfect!”

• Nisha Sinha writes: “Another thought-provoking one! It reminds me of a young student who saw ‘beauty in imperfection’ and made it the theme of her ‘ways of seeing beauty’ exhibit. This included forgotten and sometimes broken treasures valuable to the owner, and the stories and memories they brought to mind, including a picture of a gnarled, work-worn hand, and a lined and wrinkled face.”

• Shanti Dugar points out that: “excellence is a never-ending pursuit whereas perfection, if achieved, marks the end state.”

• Shereyar Vakil says: “I am reminded of what a great American coach once said: ‘Perfection is unattainable but if we chase it we can catch excellence.’”

• Kripa Murthy is generous to a fault when she says: “I love FC. Each one is better than the other! Pras you have a way of captivating the attention of the reader by your immaculate handling of the subject with so many sensibilities and expressions. Keep the potion going!”

• Tapas Bhattasaly says: “Good is the enemy of the Best. It’s like the javelin throw by Neeraj Chopra, keep perfecting.”

• Swati Belur says: “Perfect start to the morning! There is no limit to achieving perfection, and it makes sense to settle for a ‘good enough’. I am reminded of the Japanese term Wabi-sabi. Wabi-sabi centres on looking at and appreciating the beauty of imperfection. From wabi-sabi derives Kintsugi which highlights imperfection aesthetically… broken ceramic pottery is joined together with lacquer mixed with powdered gold.”

🦆 Get Your Ducks In a Row

Truth be told, I am beginning to write this post on Thursday night, cursing myself for not organising my schedule as I do, at least most of the time. I have failed to stay on course.

As a confessional, l I write about the importance of being organised. I wrote about being organised albeit in a different context. Please read FC 39 here: 🔗https://mrprasanna.substack.com/p/filter-coffee-039.

The idiom ‘get your ducks in a row’ is said to have its origin in the natural trait of ducklings following their mother in a row. But since it is the ducklings that are in a row and not ducks as the idiom suggests, one could consider the ancient bowling alley as a more plausible origin. It is said that arranging nine duck pins would be a metaphor for having all the bowling pins organized and properly placed before the next ball is rolled down the lane.

In my early days in the legal profession, I was interning under my father and brother, both lawyers. My father who practised until 1976, was more into pro bono practice and would fund a litigation that helped a poor farmer or a lady secure justice. My brother handled complex legal matters, mostly of corporates. Not that Mysore, in those days, had many such corporates. So, when a case was scheduled to be heard, the juniors’ job was to make sure all the relevant papers, exhibits, depositions and case laws were arranged in a particular order, like ducks in a row,  to facilitate the presentation of arguments in a structured and story-like manner. Some of you may recall that in one of my earliest posts, I had mentioned that the person who tells the story right was likely to convince the judge. Please browse through FC 08  at your convenience: 🔗https://mrprasanna.substack.com/p/filter-coffee-008.

The relevance of this idiom is not alien to the medical profession. Managing the arrangement of surgical instruments, as well as equipment like defibrillators, oxygen concentrators, sterilizers and anaesthesia machines, and even the light at the surgeon’s disposal ensure that all surgical procedures are conducted safely in the hospital. This underscores the need for strict adherence to the rule of getting the ducks in a row.

My net scan revealed that “duck” is a device that holds the keel in place while building a ship. The first step in building a ship is to get the ducks in straight rows thus ensuring a straight keel.

In our daily life, we tend to overlook the importance of getting things in order and a certain randomness sets in. Speaking for myself, which means echoing my wife’s complaints, I am very disorganised. Much to my chagrin there are two guys, Srini and Debu, who are very meticulous, and they keep things in such good order that I consider them meticulous to a fault.

It is not that I am ducking the ducks and keeping them in disorder, it is just that I find it too stressful to get them all in a row. When a particular task is to be performed in a sequence getting the ducks in a row makes sense, but not so when you can attend to a few things concurrently.

Planning a formal or family party is very stressful for me. Not because I do the planning. It is my wife who plans but in the process, I get stressed trying to stay out of her way. She has all the ducks in a row and anything I do which might change alignment will be viewed seriously. I offered to help, but it is not taken seriously. 

There is a children’s book ‘Ducks In A Row’ by Jackie Urbanovic. The book is about ducks but the phrase ‘get your ducks in a row’ means to be organized and helpful. The book is useful in teaching children about being helpful, responsible, and thankful for parents and guardians who do these things all day every day. I think I will buy it and read it as a first step towards improving my ratings with my wife. I don’t want to be a sitting duck.

Changing a job or relocating involves several ducks, and one ought to get them in a row. It helps identify the merits and demerits of making such a life-changing move. It is not just about you. It concerns your wife and children who may be affected or benefit by the move. I remember colleagues checking out school admissions, a house near the school, an alternative job for the wife and many other aspects that might have influenced his decision to make a move.

Ducks in a row is not good news for a cricketer. It could put an end to his cricketing career. As we know, it took Sachin Tendulkar almost 5 years and 78 ODI matches to score his first-ever ODI century. But an interesting fact is after his first century, Sachin got out on a duck in the next 3 consecutive matches.

If you are a cricket buff and want to know more about cricketers who scored ducks please see 🔗5 Batsmen with most consecutive ducks in Test cricket.

Now to end in a lighter vein:

This one is for your kids: Duckuiz

How many ducks would there be, if you saw two ducks in front of two ducks, two ducks between two ducks, and two ducks behind two ducks?

Here’s one for you. You can duck this one and not read it. 

A duck walks into a bar, and asks the bartender, “Do you have any grapes?”

The bartender says, “I'm sorry, Duck. We're a bar, and so we have wine and beer and mixed drinks. But no grapes.” The duck is sad and leaves the bar.

The next night, the duck comes back into the bar and asks, “Do you have any grapes?”

The bartender says, “No, Duck, I told you last night. We don't have any grapes! And if you come back here tomorrow night asking for grapes, I will nail your beak to the bar!” The duck hops down off the bar and runs out the door.

The next night, the bartender is waiting for the duck to come back in, and sure enough, he does. The bartender grits his teeth as the duck asks, “Do you have a hammer & nails?”

The bartender explodes. “What? No, of course, I don't have a hammer & nails!”

So the duck says, “Do you have any grapes?”

Hope you enjoyed the ducks in a row. A piece of free advice: If ever you find yourself getting into a row, it’s better to duck 😀

See you next week. Take care & be safe. Ciao!