Every now and then some "forward-thinking" boss thinks they’re going to extract more out of you by taking you off campus for some extended meeting. I’ve been a part of my fair share of these torturous "change of scenery" experiments. Like the time I was dragged to some townhouse owned by Art Garfunkel where they fed us soul food and had some British mediator cut us off when we went too long. Or the time I had to go play tennis and we broke into small groups and participated in "icebreakers."
Note to bosses. Making me go to a new and fresh environment will not stimulate me. It will frustrate me as a worry about how I’m going to get there and back without sitting in traffic. I will also resent you for forcing me to interact with folks who won’t even make eye contact in the hallway at work. And then, we’ll be forced to pretend we know each other… for a week… until it all wears off.
But I have no right to complain. One of our loyal fans tipped us off to his/her offsite meeting that’s going on this week. This could be the oddest and most painful type of work-related punishment I have ever seen. Check it out below and please tell us your thoughts on offsite meetings!
——————————
The Runelords is a fantasy series similar to The Lord of the Rings Trilogy but it is perhaps more far-fetched and dramatic. In the universe of The Runelords, there exists a unique magical system which relies on the existence of distinct bodily attributes, such as brawn, grace, and wit. These attributes can be transferred from one individual (or animal) to another in a process known as “giving an endowment”. A person who gives an an endowment then becomes a “dedicate” and no longer possess that attribute. Lords who have taken many endowments become extremely powerful, almost superhuman, and are known as Runelords. There is constant strife and upheaval throughout the series and the feeling that you get while reading passages from this series of books is that with every action the fate of all mankind hangs in the balance. There is a great deal of vivid imagery depicting things like spells being cast, personal betrayals, and refugees fleeing hordes of Reavers.
The activity that we are going to be doing with the Runelord series of books is meant to be fun, silly, and creative and will bring out the interpretive actor in each of you. The rules will be minimal to allow for creativity and the guidelines are as follows:
* You will be divided into 5 random teams.
* Teams will choose ANY passage in the book you are assigned and teams will act it out in ANY manner they see fit according to the guidelines.
* You will have 15 minutes to choose and prepare your acting scenario.
* Anything that is immediately at hand and appropriate can be a prop.
* Passages that are acted out must last at least 90 seconds and not go longer than four minutes.
* All teams must assign ONE and only ONE narrator who will COLORFULLY read from the book while the others act out their interpretation of what is happening.
* Remember that the fate of mankind hangs in the balance so the reading and acting should reflect this.
*Sound effects from the actors of any kind whether they are human, animal, mechanical, exhilaration, or despair are highly encouraged and are not bound by the actual text in the story but rather the actor’s interpretation of what is happening in the story. (This is where style points add up!)
* ALL members of each team with the exception of the narrator MUST have some sort of an acting role.
* We realize that some passages may only have a few main characters so it is okay if a team member only acts as say a villager, soldier, or follower adding depth and context to the passage. (Make us feel like we are there!)
* After every team has acted out their passage there will be a round of voting by applause. You may not applaud for your own team.
* The team with the most raucous round of applause wins!
* Lighten up and have fun!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
For obvious reasons we are keeping the sender of this e-mail anonymous. But isn’t this some of the most twisted crap ever!
Leave a Reply