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Successful Project Management 7Th Edition Gido Solutions Manual Full Chapter PDF
Successful Project Management 7Th Edition Gido Solutions Manual Full Chapter PDF
© 2018 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
1
CHAPTER 7: DETERMINING COSTS, BUDGET, AND EARNED VALUE
Chapter Concepts
In addition to establishing a baseline schedule for a project, it is also necessary to develop a
baseline budget. Estimates must be made of the costs for each specific activity. The project budget
is determined by aggregating the estimated costs for all the activities. The budget must then be
spread over the expected time span of the project to create a time-phased baseline budget that is
used to analyze cost performance of the project. Once the project starts, it is important to monitor
actual costs and earned value of the work performed. At regular intervals during the project, the
following cost-related parameters should be monitored:
• Cumulative actual amount spent since the start of the project
• Cumulative earned value of the work performed since the start of the project
• Cumulative budgeted amount planned to be spent, based on the project schedule, from
the start of the project.
Comparisons must be made among these three parameters to evaluate whether the project is being
accomplished within budget and whether the earned value of the work performed is in line with the
actual cost expended.
If at any time during the project it is determined that the project is overrunning the budget or the
value of the work performed is not keeping up with the actual cost expended, corrective action must
be taken immediately. Once project costs get out of control, it will be very difficult to complete the
project within budget. As you will see in this chapter, the key to effective cost control is to analyze
cost performance on a timely and regular basis. Early identification of cost variances allows
corrective action to be taken before the situation gets worse. Based on the actual cost expended and
the earned value of the work performed, you will learn how to regularly forecast whether the entire
project will be completed within budget.
Learning Outcomes
After studying this chapter, the learner should be able to:
• Estimate the cost of activities
• Aggregate the total budgeted cost
• Develop a time-phased baseline budget
• Describe how to accumulate actual costs
• Determine the earned value of work performed
• Calculate and analyze key project performance measures
• Discuss and apply approaches to control the project budget
• Explain the importance of managing cash flow
© 2018 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
2
CHAPTER 7: DETERMINING COSTS, BUDGET, AND EARNED VALUE
Teaching Strategies
1. The two vignettes reinforce the requirement to use lessons learned to inform the
next project, increase consideration of risk management, have change control
strategies, set appropriate responsibilities, have a communication plan, have
procedures for addressing common issues, organize project sites, and align
stakeholders. The goal is to detect and curb systematic cost underestimation and
manage scope changes to avoid cost and schedule overruns. The first vignette
explores a tidal project that incorporated lessons learned from a demonstration
project and listened to key stakeholders to build trust. The second vignette
reinforces the need to examine the relationships among scheduling, costs, benefits,
and earned value in order to have successful projects.
2. Tell students a story of a project that has spent all its money but hasn't finished all
the tasks. Have students determine what could have been done to avoid the
situation, remedy the situation, or absorb the cost overruns.
3. Have students use a work breakdown structure and network diagram for a project
they will have to complete during the class semester to develop the costs. Have the
students estimate the earned value at different time periods of the project given a
scenario on how far along they have completed their projects.
4. Have students simulate actual completion dates for the consumer market study in
Microsoft Project to see how they accumulated actual costs and earned value
change over time.
Lecture Notes
© 2018 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
4
CHAPTER 7: DETERMINING COSTS, BUDGET, AND EARNED VALUE
o Travel — travel (other than local travel) required during the project
o Reserve — also referred to as contingency, to cover unexpected situations that
may come up during the project, such as items that may have been overlooked
when the initial project scope was defined, activities that may have to be redone
because they may not work the first time (redesigns), or a high-probability or
high-impact risk that may occur
• Figure 7.1 depicts the estimated costs for each activity in the consumer
market study project.
• It is good practice to have the person who will be responsible for the costs associated
with the work make the cost estimates.
• Historical data can be used as on the current project.
• Cost estimates should be reasonable and realistic.
• At the beginning of the project, it may not be possible to accurately estimate the costs
for all activities. This is especially true for longer-term projects. It may be easier to
estimate the costs for near-term activities, but as the project progresses, the project
team can progressively elaborate the estimated costs as more information is known or
becomes clear to allow for more accurate estimated costs.
• When the budgets for all the work packages are summed, they cannot
exceed the total project budgeted cost.
• Figure 7.3 and Figure 7.4 depict the network diagram and the work
breakdown structure with costs assigned. This example is used
throughout the remainder of this chapter.
• The cumulative budgeted cost (CBC) is the amount budgeted to accomplish the work
scheduled to be performed up to that point in time.
• Figure 7.5 depicts the budgeted cost by period for the packaging
machine project.
• Figure 7.6 depicts the cumulative budgeted cost curve for the packaging
machine project. The points on the graph correspond to the cumulative
total in Figure 7.5.
• The CBC for the entire project or each work package provides a baseline against which
actual cost and work performance can be compared at any time during the project.
• The cumulative budget is the standard against which actual cost is compared.
A. Actual Cost
• To keep track of actual cost on a project, it’s necessary to set up a system to collect, on
a regular and timely basis, data on funds actually expended.
• Large projects will have charge codes for the work package numbers to determine how
the actual costs compare to the planned costs.
B. Committed Costs
• In many projects, large dollar amounts are expended for materials or services
(subcontractors, consultants) that are used over a period of time longer than one cost
reporting period.
• These committed costs need to be treated in a special way so the system periodically
assigns a portion of their total cost to actual cost.
• Committed costs are also known as commitments or encumbered costs.
• Costs are committed when an item is ordered, even though actual payment may take
place at some later time.
© 2018 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
6
CHAPTER 7: DETERMINING COSTS, BUDGET, AND EARNED VALUE
• At of the end of day 5, you determine that $1,000 has actually been spent, but what if
only three rooms have been painted?
• Earned value, the value of the work actually performed, is a key parameter that must be
determined throughout the project.
• Determining the earned value includes collecting data on the percent complete for each
work package, and then converting this percentage to a dollar amount by multiplying the
TBC of the work package by the percent complete.
• In many cases, the estimate is subjective.
• It’s important that the person estimating the percent complete not only assess how
much work has been performed but also consider what work remains to be done.
• For example, in the project to paint ten rooms for $2,000, if three rooms have been
completed, it’s safe to say that 30 percent of the work has been performed.
• The earned value is
o 0.30 x $2,000 = $600
• Figure 7.9 depicts the cumulative percent complete by period for the
packaging machine project.
• Figure 7.10 depicts the cumulative earned value by period for the
packaging machine project.
• Figure 7.11 illustrates the CBC, CAC, and CEV for the entire project.
© 2018 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
7
CHAPTER 7: DETERMINING COSTS, BUDGET, AND EARNED VALUE
B. Cost Variance
• Another indicator of cost performance is cost variance (CV), which is the difference
between the cumulative earned value of the work performed and the cumulative actual
cost.
• Cost variance = Cumulative earned value – Cumulative actual cost
o CV = CEV – CAC
• In the packaging machine project, the cost variance as of week 8 is given by
o CV = $54,000 – $68,000 = –$14,000
• This calculation indicates that the value of the work performed through week 8 is
$14,000 less than the amount actually expended.
8. Control Costs
• The key to effective cost control is to analyze cost performance on a regular and timely
basis.
• It’s crucial that cost variances and inefficiencies be identified early so that corrective
action can be taken before the situation gets worse.
• Cost control includes the following:
o Analyzing cost performance to determine which work packages may require
corrective action.
o Deciding what specific corrective action should be taken.
o Revising the project plan—including time and cost estimates—to incorporate the
planned corrective action.
• When evaluating work packages that have a negative cost variance, focus on taking
corrective actions to reduce the costs of two types of activities:
o Activities that will be performed in the near term. If you put off corrective actions
until some point in the distant future, the negative cost variance may deteriorate.
o Activities that have a large cost estimate. Taking corrective measures that
reduce the cost of a $20,000 activity by 10 percent will have a larger impact than
totally eliminating a $300 activity.
• There are various ways to reduce the costs of activities.
o Substitute less expensive materials.
o Assign a person with greater expertise or more experience to perform or help
with the activity.
o Reduce the scope or requirements.
o Increase productivity through improved methods or technology.
• In many cases, there will be a tradeoff—reducing cost variances will require a reduction
in project scope or a delay in the project schedule.
• The key to effective cost control is aggressively addressing negative cost variances and
cost inefficiencies as soon as they are identified.
© 2018 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
9
CHAPTER 7: DETERMINING COSTS, BUDGET, AND EARNED VALUE
(Continued)
• Recall from Chapters 4, 5, and 6 that Beth Smith was assigned to be the project
manager by the IS Department of ABC Office Designs.
• Chapter 5 described how Beth had scheduled the ES, EF, LS, and LF times for the
activities necessary to complete the Web-based reporting system development project
for ABC Office Designs.
• Chapter 6 described how Beth and the project team planned the resources for the 60-
day schedule they have to complete the project. Management approved a budget of
$125,000 to complete the project and train the sales staff.
• After confirming with the primary responsible resources that the tasks could be
completed with the estimated level of effort on each task,
o Beth worked with the human resources team to use the hourly wage for each of
the employees to determine the labor costs for each of the Web-based
Reporting System project activities.
© 2018 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
10
CHAPTER 7: DETERMINING COSTS, BUDGET, AND EARNED VALUE
o Beth and the project team estimated the costs associated with traveling to
complete the interviews with users ($3,000), the price of the packaged software
($500), and the costs of the training materials ($1,300).
o The budgeted costs of the work to complete the project were near the $125,000
limit without training the sales staff.
• Figure 7.13 depicts the estimated activity costs for the Web-Based
Reporting Development project with a 5% reserve for cost overruns, fast-
tracking of the project, or increased costs of materials or travel for the
interviews.
© 2018 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
11
CHAPTER 7: DETERMINING COSTS, BUDGET, AND EARNED VALUE
complete should assess not only how much work has been performed but also what
work remains to be done.
• The key to effective cost control is to analyze cost performance on a timely and regular
basis. Early identification of cost variances (CV) allows corrective actions to be taken
immediately, before the situation gets worse.
• For analyzing cost performance, all the data collected should be as current as possible
and be based on the same reporting period.
• Trends in the cost performance index (CPI) should be monitored carefully. If the CPI
goes below 1.0 or gradually decreases, corrective action should be taken.
• As part of the regular cost performance analysis, the estimated or forecasted cost at
completion (FCAC) should be calculated.
• The key to effective cost control is to aggressively address work packages or activities
with negative cost variances and cost inefficiencies as soon as they are identified. A
concentrated effort must be applied to these areas. The amount of negative cost
variance should determine the priority for applying these concentrated efforts.
• When attempting to reduce negative cost variances, focus on activities that will be
performed in the near term and on activities that have large estimated costs.
• Addressing cost problems early will minimize the negative impact on scope and
schedule. Once costs get out of control, getting back within budget becomes more
difficult and is likely to require reducing the project scope or quality or extending the
project schedule.
• The key to managing cash flow is to ensure that cash comes in faster than it goes out.
• It is desirable to receive payments from the customer (cash inflow) as early as possible,
and to delay making payments to suppliers or subcontractors (cash outflow) as long as
possible.
13. Summary
• The total project cost is often estimated during the initiating phase of the project when
the project charter or a proposal is prepared, but detailed plans are not usually prepared
at that time.
• The project budgeting process has two steps: the budget for each work package is
determined, and the budget for each work package is then distributed over the expected
time.
• Aggregating the estimated costs of the specific activities for the appropriate work
packages in the work breakdown structure will establish a total budgeted cost (TBC).
• The cumulative budgeted cost (CBC) is the time-phased baseline budget that will be
used to analyze the cost performance of the project.
• At any time during the project, it is possible to forecast what the total costs will be at the
completion of the project or work package based on analysis of actual cost expended
and the earned value of work performed.
• The key to effective cost control is to analyze cost performance on a regular and timely
basis.
• It is important to manage the cash flow on a project.
Questions
1. Describe why it is necessary to develop a baseline budget for a project.
© 2018 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
12
CHAPTER 7: DETERMINING COSTS, BUDGET, AND EARNED VALUE
It is necessary to prepare a budget, or plan, for how and when funds will be spent over the
duration of the project to ensure that everything is within budget.
2. List and describe items that should be included when estimating activity costs.
The cost section of a proposal may consist of elements such as the following:
• Labor. The estimated hours and hourly rate for each person or classification.
• Materials. The materials that need to be purchased for the project.
• Subcontractors and consultants (if used). People who have the resources or experience
to perform certain tasks that the project team cannot.
• Equipment and facilities rental. Special equipment, tools, or facilities the contractor
needs for the project.
• Travel.
• Reserves. An amount to cover unexpected situations that may come up during the
project.
3. What does the term reserve mean? Should a reserve amount be included in a project
proposal? Explain your answer.
Reserves are funds to cover unexpected situations that may occur during the project. The
contractor or project team may include an amount for reserve to cover unexpected situations
that may come up during the project within the estimated budget in the proposal. For example,
items may have been overlooked when the project cost estimates were prepared, tasks may
have to be redone because they did not work the first time, or the costs of labor (wages,
salaries) or materials may escalate during a multi-year project.
4. What is the problem with making cost estimates too conservative or too aggressive?
Cost estimates should be aggressive yet realistic. If cost estimates are overly conservative, the
total estimated cost for the project is likely to be more than the customer is willing to pay—and
higher than that of competing contractors. On the other hand, if cost estimates are overly
optimistic and some unexpected expenditures need to be made, the contractor is likely to either
lose money or suffer the embarrassment of going back to the customer to request additional
funds to cover cost overruns.
5. Describe the project budgeting process.
The project budgeting process has two steps. First, the project cost estimate is allocated to the
various work packages in the project work breakdown structure. Second, the budget for each
work package is distributed over the duration of the work package.
6. Define the following: TBC, CBC, CAC, CEV, CPI, CV, FCAC and TCPI. How is each
calculated?
© 2018 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
14
CHAPTER 7: DETERMINING COSTS, BUDGET, AND EARNED VALUE
b. Below is a table of actual costs. What is the cumulative actual cost at the
end of week 6? Determine whether there is a cost overrun or underrun.
What is causing it? Amounts are in thousands of dollars.
Week
1 2 3 4 5 6
Cumulative 10 36 54 66 95 112
There is a cost overrun of $12,000. The actual cost of Task 1 was $34,000 while only $30,000
was budgeted for it. The actual cost so far of Task 2 is $68,000, while
only $60,000 had been budgeted up to week 6. The actual cost of Task 3
is $10,000 which equals its budgeted amount at week 6.
c. Below is a table of the cumulative percentages of work completed by
the end of week 6. What is the cumulative earned value of the
project at the end of week 6? Is it good?
Cumulative Earned Value by Week
TBC 1 2 3 4 5 6
Task 1 30 9 24 30 30 30 30
Task 2 70 7 17.5 24.5 38.5 45.5
Task 3 40 4 8
Task 4 30
Total 170 9 31 47.5 54.5 72.5 83.5
The cumulative earned value at the end of week 6 is only $83,500; however, $112,000 has
already been spent.
d. What is the CPI at the end of week 6? What is the CV?
CPI = 83,500 / 112,000 = .7455
CV = 83,500 – 112,000 = -28,500
e. Calculate the FCAC using the first two methods described.
Method 1 – Assuming the same rate of efficiency.
FCAC = TBC / CPI
FCAC = $170,000 / .7455 = $228,034.87
Internet Exercises
Assign the Internet Exercises to your students as homework or complete them together in a
computer lab.
A number of cost analysis tools are found on the Internet. Adding the term "project
management" to the search will yield results focused on cost benefit analysis for projects.
Results of the cost forecasting search are centered on management in general cost forecasting.
Adding the term "project management" changes the sites found to those focused on cost
forecasting in project management.
ProjectSmart provides project management resources for project managers at all levels. The
site features articles, presentations, and other information of interest around the world. The
White Papers link contains to a number of papers on topics to help improve project
© 2018 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
15
CHAPTER 7: DETERMINING COSTS, BUDGET, AND EARNED VALUE
management performance. The site’s articles, books, presentations, and case studies that help
reinforce the project management concepts.
This case continues through to chapter 8. Each chapter has questions to reinforce the concepts
presented. Have students save their work for this case study for the work they will do in chapter
8. This is an open-ended case study. The students have the opportunity to be very creative on
this one. Encourage that creativity.
Answers to Case Questions
1. Using the schedule from Chapter 5, estimate the cost for each activity.
If using Microsoft Project, enter the rates of the work and material resources on the Resource
Sheet. Assign the cost resource amount on the Task Information window for the task where the
resource is assigned. Any resources that are not assigned to work the duration of a work
package should have a percent of effort assigned, or the task should be changed to a fixed
duration and the amount of work changed.
2. Determine the total budgeted cost for the project.
Determine the TBC for the project using the top-down or the bottom-up approach. If using
Microsoft Project and assigning the costs to the work packages, the approach is bottom-up.
© 2018 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
16
CHAPTER 7: DETERMINING COSTS, BUDGET, AND EARNED VALUE
• a) top-down = allocates a portion of the total project cost to each work package.
• b) bottom-up = sums the costs of all the activities that make up that work package.
3. Prepare a budgeted cost by period table (similar to Figure 7.5) and a cumulative budgeted
cost (CBC) curve (similar to Figure 7.6) for the project.
If using Microsoft Project, the visual report, Cash Flow report, depicts the amount of cost per
quarter, week, or day and the cumulative budgeted cost curve. The Cash Flow report provides a
table of the costs and the total costs per week for the project.
Group Activity
Divide the course participants into the same groups as for the previous chapter’s group activity.
Then address each of the steps listed above.
© 2018 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
17
CHAPTER 7: DETERMINING COSTS, BUDGET, AND EARNED VALUE
Questions
1. What is the time–cost trade-off methodology, and when is it used?
The time–cost trade-off methodology is a way to incrementally reduce the project duration with
the smallest associated increase in incremental cost. It is used when the project’s schedule
needs to be accelerated.
2. Why do you need both normal and crash times and costs for this procedure?
You need normal and crash times and costs in order to determine the cost associated with
accelerating the project from a normal timeframe to a crash timeframe.
3. Assume that an activity has a normal time of 20 weeks, a normal cost of $72,000, a crash
time of 16 weeks, and a crash cost of $100,000. By how many weeks, at most, can this
activity’s duration be reduced? What is the cost per week to accelerate this activity?
The activity’s duration can be reduced by 4 weeks at most. This will result in an increased cost
of $7,000/week.
4. Why isn’t it appropriate to crash all of the activities in a project to achieve the shortest
project schedule?
It is not appropriate to crash all the activities because expediting activities not on the critical path
will not reduce the project completion time but will increase total project cost.
Figure 7A.2 depicts the Cost Resource Entry for Task. The cost of a cost
resource is entered as a cost on the Resource tab in the Task Information
window. To open the Task Information window, double-click on the task's
name in the Task Name column and click on the Resource tab. Choose
the name of the cost resource using the drop-down arrow in the Resource Name
column for the next open row of Resources. There is no entry for a cost resource in the
Unit column. Only the amount of the cost is entered in the Cost column.
© 2018 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
18
CHAPTER 7: DETERMINING COSTS, BUDGET, AND EARNED VALUE
Figure 7A.3 depicts the Work Overview Report. The reports in Microsoft Project 2013 are in the
Reports ribbon. If the task resource information is updated, then this report will show the actual
versus baseline for work resources. The Work Overview report provides a quick report for
stakeholders about the key performance information for the project.
Figure 7A.4 depicts the Cash Flow Report. During the planning phase, the cash flow
report communicates the amount expected to be expended during each week of the
project. The cash flow report helps inform the plan for payments from the sponsor.
The dates printed in the report can be selected on the print menu to communicate
costs to the stakeholders.
Figure 7A.5 depicts the Tracking Gantt to Display Actual Finish Dates.
The tracking Gantt chart has two bars for each task. One bar depicts the
planned time duration for the task. The second bar depicts the actual time
duration for the task that has been recorded for the task. As the project
moves forward and the project manager enters actual information for
each task, the tracking Gantt chart displays the project progress as the graphical comparison
display.
Figure 7A.8 depicts the Cash Flow Report. During the planning phase, the cash
flow report communicates the amount expected to be expended during each
week of the project. The cash flow report helps inform the plan for payments
from the sponsor. The dates printed in the report can be selected on the print
menu to communicate costs to the stakeholders. Because the status date has
been updated, the actual costs will be reflected on this report for the status
date if the actual work has been recorded for the activities and resources.
Figure 7A.9 depicts the Task Cost Overview Report. The budget report displays
the total cost, baseline cost, and variance for each activity. Be sure to save the
project baseline when planning is complete in order to populate a report like the
budget report and track the actual costs versus the planned costs. As with other
reports, you can select the number of pages and the dates for the report on the
print menu for the budget report.
Figure 7A.10 depicts the Cost Variance Table for Tasks. This cost table
is one of the table views available in Microsoft Project. Entry, Schedule,
and cost are table types. If you view the Resource Sheet and choose the
cost table view, you can see the costs for the resources by resource. To
make sure that you view the costs for the tasks, be sure to have the Gantt chart entry table
visible before choosing to view the cost table. The Tracking Gantt is visible in the Gantt chart
window by selecting Tracking Gantt in the Task Views group.
© 2018 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
19
CHAPTER 7: DETERMINING COSTS, BUDGET, AND EARNED VALUE
Figure 7A.11 depicts the Cost Variance Table for Resources. To view the costs for resources,
first view the Resources Sheet in the Resource Views group. Choose the Cost table view in the
Data group on the View ribbon. As with viewing the cost of the tasks, the baseline for the project
must have been created for the comparison to be made to the actual progress of the project. If
tasks finish early, the variance will indicate that the project is operating under budget.
Figure 7A.12 depicts the Earned Value Table. The table depicts the
budgeted cost of work scheduled, earned value of work performed, actual
cost of work performed, budgeted cost at completion, estimated cost at
completion, and any variances. Tracking actual progress and setting the
baseline are required to populate this table. Like the Cost, Schedule, and Entry tables, the
Earned Value table is another view in the Data group on the View ribbon. Note that MS Project
2016 includes the cost resource within the Earned Value (BCWP) column for the project and
does not include the value of the cost resource in its calculations for Planned Value (BCWS) and
for AC (ACWP) on the Earned Value table.
Figure 7A.16 depicts the Earned Value Table on the Tracking Gantt chart
that now updated to include the cost of the travel expense in PV (BCWS)
and AC (ACWP).
Figure 7A.18 depicts the Visual Earned Value Over Time Report, Displayed in
Microsoft Excel. The graph displays the earned value, the planned value, and
the actual costs for the project. Setting a baseline and entering the project
progress are necessary to provide the data to generate this report.
© 2018 Cengage. All Rights Reserved. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part.
20
CHAPTER 7: DETERMINING COSTS, BUDGET, AND EARNED VALUE
Another random document with
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Bep en Tommy hem telkens in den weg liepen, steeds juichend: "En
hij kan ons lekker niet krijgen!"
Hij had de kleintjes al lang kunnen pakken als hij gewild had, maar
't was hem dezen keer om Lineke te doen, en dat kind was hem
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keek van zijn courant op en zei, op Eduard wijzend: "Maar je hoeft
anders niet te vragen of die hier soms al ingeburgerd is!"
"'t Was leuk!" verklaarde Lineke, en nog puffend van 't harde
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Beppie hield Eduard stevig vast; "nu nog een ander spelletje!"
vleide ze.
"Een ander spelletje naar bed!" zei haar Moeder. "Denk je dat Edu
maar altijd zin heeft om spelletjes met jou te doen?" en tegen
Eduard: "Is je werk al af?"
"Bijna, Tante, 'k moet alleen nog een Fransche les leeren," en
haastig voegde hij er bij: "maar ik kan best eerst nog een spelletje
doen!"
Tante Lina lachte. "Nog even dan, maar dan ook dadelijk meegaan
als de juffrouw komt, Bep! Broertje is al lang onder de wol, wed ik!"
"'k Zie 'k zie wat jij niet ziet!" bedacht Bep, "jij moet eerst opgeven."
"Goed," vond Eduard, "ik weet al wat, 't is blauw." Hij dacht er
opeens aan hoe hij vroeger, toen hij nog heel klein was, met Moeder
dit spelletje gedaan had; later heelemaal niet meer.
"Zoo is 't niet, je moet zeggen: "'k Zie 'k zie wat jij niet ziet," en dan
moet ik zeggen: 'Wat zie je dan?'"
En Eduard herhaalde geduldig: "'k Zie 'k zie wat jij niet ziet!"
"Iets blauws."
"De gordijnen?"
"Nee."
"'t Behang?"
"Nee."
"'t Tafelkleed?"
"Nee."
"Nee."
[a108] "Nee, heelemaal niet; 't is ook niet donker maar lichtblauw!"
Beppie keek nog eens rond. "O, 'k weet het al!" riep ze met haar
hoog stemmetje, "dat blauwe jurkje van dat kindje op dat schilderij!"
Eduard keek er naar en lachte; 't heele poppetje was niet grooter
dan zijn duim. "Nee."
"Ja, ik wel."
Bep greep naar haar krullen. "Mijn haarlint?" vroeg ze, en ze trok
aan de strik.
"Ja, erg gauw; nu moet jij opgeven!" Beppie keek Eduard even
nadenkend aan, en begon toen te lachen. Toen keek ze met een
eigenwijs gezichtje naar de deur, naar de muur, en naar 't plafond,
en zei langzaam, steeds naar boven kijkend: "Ik zie, ik zie, wat jij niet
ziet!"
"Iets bruins!"
Beppie gierde het uit van pret. "Dommerd!" riep ze, "jij kijkt zelf met
je neus! Zie jij hier niets bruins? Haast alles ziet hier bruin!"
Eduard keek haar bedenkelijk aan en krabde zich achter zijn oor.
— Toen begon hij, steeds malle gezichten trekkend,
achtereenvolgens al de meubels in de kamer op te noemen, en
lachend schudde Bep haar bol bij iederen nieuwen stoel dien hij
aanwees.
"Nog heel eventjes, toe Juf?" smeekte Bep, en tegen Eduard: "Heb
je 't nu nóg niet geraden?"
De juffrouw stak Bep haar beide handen toe, en 't kleine ding liet
zich optrekken; toen greep ze [a111] Eduard stevig bij zijn mouw
vast om 't naar bed gaan nog even te verschuiven.
"Geef je 't op?" kraaide Beppie, aan een hand met de juffrouw
meeloopende, en omkijkende: "'t Zijn je oogen, jouw eigen oogen!"
"Ga maar bij Hugo en Piet zitten, daar zit je rustiger dan hier."
Eduard trok naar de leerkamer, waar hij 's middags ook al had
zitten werken, en waar zijn neven nu bijna de heele tafel in beslag
hadden genomen. "Kan ik hier ook zitten, zeg?" vroeg hij met een
twijfelachtig gezicht naar den rommel kijkend, en Hugo schoof
zonder op te kijken een paar boeken op zij. — Piet, die wanneer hij
zat te werken blij was met iedere variatie, was opgestaan, en zette
nu met een sierlijke buiging een stoel voor Eduard neer. "Zeker
meneer, zeker!" zei hij gedienstig, "gaat u zitten, meneer!"
Een oogenblik had Eduard lust, hem een klap te geven, maar hij
bedacht zich juist bijtijds, en zonder iets te zeggen bukte hij zich, om
uit zijn tasch zijn Fransch boek op te visschen. Toen zocht hij zijn les
op en begon te leeren.
Piet was weer gaan zitten en had zijn bezigheden voortgezet, die
hoofdzakelijk bestonden uit het illustreeren van zijn
geschiedenisboek. Al gauw zat Eduard er naar te kijken.
[a113] "Mooi, vind je niet?" begon Piet, hem het boek onder zijn
neus duwend. Eduard lachte even om de malle poppetjes.
"Nee?"
"Dat is de oppasser. Die heeft precies zoo'n neus en hij steekt altijd
net zoo mal z'n duimen vooruit; je moet morgenochtend maar eens
opletten!" Piet wees op een ander poppetje. "En weet je wie dat is?"
"Nou?"
"Dat is 'Laat ze maar' als hij aan 't schaatsen-rijden is."
"Wie?"
"Ja, nou, we noemen hem altijd 'Leeuw' natuurlijk, en die praat zoo
gemaakt, en dan roept hij door de gang 'Máatselaar,' en dan draaien
wij het om, 'Laatsemaar' of 'Láat ze máar.' Geestig he?" en zonder
op antwoord te wachten: "Nou, hij laat ons ook altijd maar, als hij ziet
dat je er aankomt wacht hij altijd met bellen."
"Bij ons niet," zei Eduard, "Beek is een echt mispunt en als hij ziet
dat je er aankomt doet hij gauw de deur voor je neus dicht en dan
holt hij hard naar de bel, en dan ben je natuurlijk te laat, en ...."
[a115] "Houden jullie nu toch je monden!" viel Hugo nijdig uit, "die
algebrasommen zijn toch al zoo ellendig lastig, en dan dat gezanik
van jullie nog!"
Eduard zweeg verschrikt, en keek strak in zijn boek, maar Piet liet
zich door zoo'n kleinigheid niet van de wijs brengen. Hij was aan
dergelijke terechtwijzingen van zijn broer gewoon. "Nou, heb maar
zoo'n lèf niet!" zei hij, en na een minuut of vijf half fluisterend: "Zeg
Eduardje!"
"Nee."
"Waar heb je dan schaatsen gereden?"
"In Amsterdam was 't moppig, 'n prachtige groote ijsbaan, tien
minuten van ons huis af; fijn man!"
"Alleen? Ja, meestal wel; of bij Vader als Vader thuis is."
"Waarom?"
"Wel waar, je doet aldoor zóó!" En zijn mond bewegend maakte hij
een zacht zoemend geluid.
Eduard was vuurrood geworden; met een "klets niet" begon hij
weer aan zijn les, en hij drukte zijn lippen stijf op elkaar.
Een poosje bleef 't stil in de kamer. Toen vond Piet 't weer lang
genoeg.
"Zeg!"
"Doe er dan een beetje zout bij!" Lachend klapte [a118] Piet zijn
schoolboeken op elkaar, en met zijn ellebogen op de tafel ging hij
zitten lezen.
Eduard keek op de klok; 't was half negen. Eigenlijk tijd om naar
bed te gaan, hij had Vader beloofd nooit veel later dan gewoonlijk te
gaan! En zouden die jongens hier altijd den heelen avond blijven
zitten? Nu nog maar even leeren; dat afschuwelijke Fransch ook!
"Zeg, hoe lang blijven jullie hier altijd?" vroeg hij aarzelend.
"Waar?"
Eduard bleef nog even niets zitten doen en zei toen: "Ik wou nou
maar gaan."
Terwijl Eduard zijn tasch dichtgespte kwam in Hugo toch 't gevoel
van gastheer zijn op. — "Je kunt alles boven toch wel vinden?"
vroeg hij.
[a119] "Ja, best." En zijn tasch naast de deur tegen den muur
zettend: "Nou, goeie nacht dan!"
Eduard sloot de deur en liep naar de huiskamer toe. Zou hij Oom
en Tante nog goeienacht zeggen? In de gang hoorde hij ze binnen al
hard praten en lachen, en toen hij door de kier van de deur keek zag
hij in de voorkamer allerlei vreemde menschen zitten. Liever maar
niet doen. —
Even knipte hij met zijn oogen tegen 't felle vlammetje, en
ongeduldig streek hij een tweede lucifer af toen de nieuwe kaars niet
dadelijk wilde branden.
Eindelijk!
Eduard keek rond en wreef zijn handen. Wat was 't hier vreeselijk
koud! De bloemen stonden op de glazen! En wat een akelig vreemd
kamertje! Heel wat anders dan die gezellige slaapkamer thuis, en
daar was 't altijd dadelijk lekker als je maar even de gaskachel
aanstak! Eduard wond zijn horloge op en begon zich uit te kleeden.
Zou Vader nu al in Bazel zijn? Zeker wel. Nu was Vader net twaalf
uur [a120] weg. Gek, 't was net of 't veel langer was; er was ook
zooveel gebeurd vandaag! Even langer dan twaalf uur was 't; wat zei
Vader ook weer? "Dag Pepi, houd je taai!" Och, hij wou 't wel, zich
taai houden, maar wat wás 't hier akelig!
"Houd je taai!" fluisterde hij, maar 't maakte hem opeens nog veel
ellendiger dan hij al was, en 't gaf niets meer of hij op zijn lippen beet
en zijn oogen met zijn mouw afveegde.
Als Vader hem zoo nu eens zag! Och, maar wat hinderde het ook!
Zag Vader het maar, kwam Vader nu maar ineens binnen, even
maar, dan was alles tenminste niet meer zoo vreeselijk! Maar Vader
was ver weg, en dit was nu pas de eerste avond! Had Vader hem
toch maar meegenomen!
Eduard pakte Vaders doos uit en stak een flik in zijn mond, maar 't
hielp ook al niets, en telkens moest hij nog zijn zakdoek nemen, tot
hij eindelijk klaar was om in bed te kruipen.
Hij zette de kandelaar op den stoel en bleef nog even met
opgetrokken beenen in bed zitten, zijn hoofd op zijn knieën en zijn
handen onder zijn armen om ze wat te warmen.
[a121]
VII.
Dof klonk het geluid van de voetstappen op den hard bevroren
grond, en bij iederen stap klikten de schaatsenijzers tegen elkaar. —
Uit de kleine zakjes keken vroolijk de gele ijskaarten met de roode
koordjes, met opzet maar half weggestoken door de jongens, om
aan iedereen te laten zien dat ze naar de ijsbaan gingen.
En 't wás koud. — Een ijzige wind blies door [a124] alles heen, en
Eduard twijfelde er eigenlijk aan of zijn Vader hem zou hebben laten
gaan; maar Tante Lina had het goed gevonden dat hij en Piet gingen
en daarom dacht hij er verder maar niet over.
"'t Zal een fijne Zaterdagmiddag worden," zei Piet, en hij bukte zich
om een steen op te rapen.
Bij de brug zag Piet opeens een van de jongens uit zijn klas, die
voor hen uitliep, de schaatsen onder den arm, en met een: "Daar
heb je Wouters, even hollen, dan gaan we met hem mee," zette hij
het op een loopen.
Wouters, een groote, forsche jongen, keek om toen hij het gehol
achter zich hoorde, en bleef toen staan wachten tot de jongens hem
ingehaald hadden.
"Zoo Verhey, ga je ook naar 't ijs?" begon hij, "gaat je broer niet?"
"Ik op de Burger. 'n Fijn hok! Zeg Verhey, heb je al van die scène
met Bakker in de tweede gehoord?"
"Ja, hij had zijn werk vergeten of zoo iets, is 't niet? Huug vertelde
er wat van; weet jij 't goed?"
"Nou, of ik! Holm, dat is die jongen, die bij ons in huis is, zit naast
Bakker, nou, en die deed 't verhaal natuurlijk in kleuren en geuren!
Holm is een leuke vent, en die Bakker is ook een echt type, en dan
zitten ze met hun tweeën op de achterste bank, dus je snapt dat ze
den heelen dag zitten te grinniken en geen steek uitvoeren."
"Ja natuurlijk."
"Nou is Holm nogal vlug, dus die rolt er meestal toch wel door,
maar Bakker is een uil, en gewoon fabelachtig lui, en daarom had hij
zijn Duitsche werk dan ook maar doodkalm niet gemaakt, met het
plan, het dan later wel eens van Holm over te schrijven, en toen de
Mopneus het werk ophaalde zei hij heel leuk dat hij zijn schrift
vergeten had."
"Niks nog, want Bakker gaf 't schrift stiekum aan Laatsemaar en is
er toen zoo gauw mogelijk van door gegaan. 'k Ben wel benieuwd
hoe 't af zal loopen!"
"Ik ook, hij zal wel op zijn kop krijgen, denk je niet?"
"Nou, of-ie!"
"Och, hou je mond," riep Wouters, die 't eerst van de schrik
bekomen was en Brust wel kende.
"Zeker," zei Brust omkijkend, "'k zal 'm ten minste niet aan jou
geven, jij schettert al hard genoeg!"
"'k Hoef jou toch niet te vragen of 'k mag lachen!" antwoordde
Eduard, en Piet vroeg knorrig, kwaad omdat hij midden in zijn laatste
verhaal gestoord was: "Waar is die ijsbaan nou eigenlijk?"
Even keek hij er naar hoe Piet die dingen ook weer vastmaakte,
want hij was half vergeten hoe 't moest, toen plofte hij op de bank
neer, boog zich voorover en ging aan 't werk, de banden zoo stevig
mogelijk aantrekkend. — De twee anderen waren al klaar toen hij
nog aan zijn eerste schaats bezig was, en hij keek er naar hoe ze
druk pratend en lachend samen wegreden, eerst even langzaam
voortschuivend, toen vlugger, met flinke lange slagen.
"Dat Kernertje kent er nog niet veel van," hoorde hij Wouters
zeggen, die hem weer met een sierlijken zwaai voorbij gleed.
Eduard was voor 't laatste gedeelte van de baan blijven staan,
rondkijkend, en niet goed wetend wat te beginnen, want de wind
stond pal op dit laatste eind, en zijn schaatsen zaten ellendig los.
"Dat zegt hij zeker expres zoo hard," dacht [a130] Eduard kwaad,
en hij bukte zich om de schaatsen-banden wat stijver aan te halen. 't
Ging erg lastig, staande, en daarom ging hij maar even op het ijs
zitten; 't was wel een minder gemakkelijke houding, maar dat moest
je er voor over hebben, en toen hij weer stond tobde hij nog wel lang
met den harden wind maar hij bereikte toch het eind van de baan.
Nu even uitrusten, en dan weer verder rijden!
Eduard was blij, toen hij een poosje later Theo de Beer ontdekte,
die nu ook niet bepaald een held op de schaatsen was, en juist met
een kleur van inspanning de vreemdste bewegingen maakte.
Theo, een donkere krullebol, keek zoekend rond, tot hij eindelijk
Eduard in het oog kreeg, die zoo gauw mogelijk naar hem toekwam.
"Wat leuk dat je hier ook bent!" zei Eduard, toen hij naast Theo
stond. "Ben je hier alleen?"
"Ja, maar Moeder zou me straks komen halen. — Ben jij hier
alleen?"
"Nee, met Piet, m'n neefje, maar die rijdt al zoo vreeselijk goed!"
"O. — Moppig dat je me zag, 't is veel gezelliger met je tweeën dan
in je eentje, en nu kunnen we verder den heelen middag bij elkaar
blijven!"
"Ik zie verder bijna niemand van onze school, jij? Ik begrijp niet
waar ze allemaal zitten!"
"Een paar heb ik straks toch gezien, Groeneveld en Van der Wege
en Wim Reinders, maar 't is ook [a131] zoo bar koud!" zei Theo,
tegen zijn handen blazend.
En verder gingen ze, om 't hardst met hun armen zwaaiend en hun
oogen half dichtgeknepen tegen den fellen wind, en luid klonken
telkens hun heldere, hooge stemmen als ze elkaar iets toeriepen.
"Wat?"
"Dat 't nog acht graden vriest!"
"Welnee, sloom! 'k Heb er daarnet ook nog even gereden, maar
daar is 't zulk gemeen ijs, daar ga ik niet weer naar toe!"
"'k Had je vanmorgen nog willen vragen of je ook naar 't ijs ging,
maar onze afdeeling was zoo akelig laat uit, en toen zag 'k je
nergens meer!"
"Nee, 'k was dadelijk naar huis gegaan om gauw te vragen of 'k
mocht gaan rijden, en eerst vond Pa 't maar half goed, en toen heeft
Moeder bedacht, dat Moeder hier in de buurt een visite kon gaan
maken, en toen mocht 't!"
"Om half vier zoowat, geloof ik, hoe laat moet jij weg?"
[a132] "Om half vijf moeten we thuis zijn, en om even over vier ...."
Hij hield op want Theo viel plotseling, en toen Eduard hem helpen
wilde met opstaan, haakten hun schaatsen in elkaar en hij kwam
naast Theo op 't ijs te land.
Lachend krabbelden ze weer op, en duidelijk waren de sporen van
hun val te zien. — Bij de tent bonden ze hun schaatsen weer wat
vaster, en opnieuw reden ze de baan op; wel gleden ze nog telkens
uit, maar ze waren over de eerste moeheid heen en 't ging heusch al
wat beter dan straks.
"Theo!"
"Nou?"