Does Anybody Know How To Set An Alarm Clock?

Karen and I have had an interesting discussion about this hand.  Your hand is

109 J9876 QJ9753 void

Partner, South, passes and for once the colors are on your side and you can throw a monkey wrench in the works when West opens 1.  You bid 2 showing hearts and a minor.  This is doubled which they play to show a good hand and your partner bids 2NT, asking for your minor.   West bids 3 and you are quite happy to show your diamonds.  East bids 4 and partner competes on to 5.  However West mindful of the colors continues to 5.  This has been the full auction with you on lead:

West	North	East	South
			pass
1	2*	DBL	2NT*
3	3	4	5
5	all pass

What should you lead?  You are playing third and fifth, by the way.  You obviously want partner to give you a club ruff.  Perhaps you should lead your lowest diamond as a wake-up card?  Partner will be alert to the idea of a ruff and that would suggest that you could ruff clubs.  It seems like a good idea.  But wait!  Partner doesn’t know you have six diamonds.  If you lead the 3 partner will deduce that you have five diamonds and may try to cash two of them.  Perhaps this isn’t the best plan?

After some discussion we came up with the 9 as a wakeup card.  This can’t be a true card.  From the auction it will be easy to work out what suit you want to ruff.

Of course after the fact it is easy to make these choices.    Here is the whole hand.  Partner might have tried to give you a ruff anyway but had hopes of a trump trick (and one down) if both diamonds cashed.

	109 J9876 QJ9753 void
AK532 4 6 AJ9643		864 AKQ105 84 KQ10
	QJ7 32 AK102 8752

I love this discussion because I think it is quite cool to figure out how to help partner find the right defense.  There are often no real rules about how to set the alarm clock.