Cover via Amazon"Its time to get 'In The Mode".The first time I heard that phrase was from my friend and, at that time boss, The Centurion. I was a rookie fish monger in my mid twenties, unloading boats in northern British Columbia, and the declaration was terrifying.
"In the mode" means you go until the job is done or you die. Those are the only two possible outcomes of being in the mode. You keep going no matter what.
The phrase has come to mind often, and I am grateful to have understood its meaning. It has steeled me for daunting tasks throughout my working life.
From the salmon fishery, to the restaurant biz and at The Toronto International Film Festival, I have often found myself "in the mode."
And so it is that I have been in the mode these last six weeks. In early July I saw a deep chasm of available shifts and I volunteered for them all.
I like to travel, but in order to travel funds are required, thusly I made a commitment to get in the mode yet again.
Six weeks of 50 hours per have worn me down a tad. My back is killing me, my legs feel like lead and my patience is razor thin.
And tonight I had my Ratso Rizzo moment. Just prior to last call things were blessedly subdued, so I snuck out to the bench on the sidewalk in front of the bar for a smoke and a moment of respite when my nose started bleeding out of the blue.
I thought of Dustin Hoffman on the bus in Midnight Cowboy, and half laughing recalled his line, "I'm fallin apaahht heaahhh".
That may well be, but I am in the mode and I'm almost done.
And the mode has only two outcomes.
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