Thank you!! You’re so kind.

I actually had an altercation with Bernard Kuchner (currently the French Minister of Foreign Affairs). At the time he was running Doctors Without Borders and one of his minions hired me to do some translating and writing of a press kit. I signed a contract, I produced the press kit and he actually called me to his desk and tried to negotiate down my fee. While he was sitting behind a very nice, very expensive desk in a brand new building built by the organization… .

He suggested his minion was new to “this”. I suggested that with her previous professional experience as a PR person for one of France’s biggest entertainment companies, I was confident that he made a good decision hiring her - after all, she knew media industry pay levels and agreed that my rate was standard when she drew up and signed the contract.

He suggested that the organization was a charity and, therefore, wasn’t a ‘regular’ company so perhaps the rates she was thinking of were too high. I suggested that I’m not a charity - therefore I had no special tax benefits like his organization to make up any income shortfall. Nor am I a regular company but just a one-person show who signed a reasonable contract, produced the goods in a faster-than-normal turnaround period and would like to be paid what the contract stipulated.

He suggested something else (I can’t honestly remember what it was but it was vaguely to do with the fact he hadn’t actually *signed* the cheque… yet… and so… ) and that’s when I almost lunged across his massive desk and grabbed him by his lapels.

In the end, I sat back and decided if I’m not going to get what I was suppose to, neither was he. We haggled a bit and both left dissatisfied with the outcome; me not getting everything in the contract and he not getting nearly enough of a discount that he started our discussions with.

So, yeah. Years of being a freelancer (and living in France) has toughened me up. I’m actually a very good, very conscientious worker (and I always bring cake a couple of times a week). And I’m a smart cookie - I can see if a tense work situation is temporary and toleratable or a pattern of bad management.

But, you know, just don’t try to screw around with me ’cause I’ll call you on it (diplomatically of course).

I’m thinking nothing I just wrote would endear me to a Japanese company… .

Hooo, yeah. I live across the street from an Italian sports bar that’s also second home to the older Italian guys in this once Little Italy section of town (before the ’60s crap one-family houses started going for $750,000 and up).

Yelling, hands flailing and then all is calm - multiple times a day.

I am sooo not like that. But it’s fun and when I get together with my Italian-Welsh buddy from New Jersey, I become so much more animated.

I’ve also always pretty much known who I was. If I don’t want to do something and I can’t reasonably convince myself that I should do it, I really dig my heels in. The last thing you ever want to do is try to push me to do something I’ve already decided (and politely told you) that I don’t want to do.

This would include events I wouldn’t enjoy outside of work hours.

On the other hand, I have a pretty balanced life and relatively little stress (now that I don’t freelance anymore).

No doubt this is helped by not working for a Japanese company

BTW, just by looking at his face, it’s obvious to me that Kouchner is a moron. Well, having morons as clients is quite common these days …

I’ve heard the Japanese workplace described as “little more than a kindergarten with suits.” Now I know why.