Dilbert way of drawing for prizes ...

Do you know why so many people find Dilbert hilarious? It's because there is truth to so much of it!!! If you have worked in an office, especially a cubicle-filled, high-tech office, you know EXACTLY all too well what I'm talking about. I don't read it daily like that hubby of mine, but I do peruse it once in a while, and am reminded why it is that I'm glad not to be working anymore! (At least not working out of the home for a paycheck.)

Anyway, we had a Dilbert experience this weekend at Paul's company party. When we came in they gave us tickets to put into a drawing. They asked us to write our name on one half and to keep the other half (you know, the one that says, "Keep this ticket"). So, we got our names in the drawing for prizes. We saw the prizes, and there was definitely a plethora -- a LCD TV, a nice tool set, a digital picture frame, a couple $50 gift certificates to Outback, a bunch of $15 gift certificates for iTunes, some 1-lb Kara chocolates, and a few boxes of orange sticks. Yes, those yucky jelly-covered orange sticks.

We didn't want the orange sticks, so we got to work in the games. For "mingling" and answering questions from other people, we got more tickets. So we made the rounds and got lots of names. We were one of only a few to get an additional 6 tickets from our names. Yes! Then Paul and I both participated in other games and got probably another 4 tickets each. So, we were building up our number of tickets. We had a chance for a really good prize ... or so we thought ...

Turns out the way they did the drawing was a bit backwards. So, this is how they did the drawing: They drew out a ticket, and the first person they drew could say whether they wanted to pass or take the prize. There was only one prize allowed per couple. Then the second person drawn HAD to take the prize. This would work great if they started with the TV and went down from there. They didn't. They started with the small dumb prizes, so you can guess what the people with the most tickets in the drawing ended up with. No, we didn't get orange sticks. But don't be too relived for us yet -- we got raspberry sticks instead. I was SO BUMMED! Had we known how they were going to do it, we would not have entered our extra tickets. So, those who got involved like they wanted were "rewarded" with orange and raspberry sticks. One couple got to "pass" four times, while we were stuck with raspberry sticks.

The Dilbert-ness of this was emphasized when they came and took away your remaining tickets when you won a prize. What good did that do? They still drew out our names for several more prizes and then just threw them away. In fact, towards the end they were taking out handfuls of tickets and trying to find someone who hadn't won a prize. In the end they had to have the five prizeless people come sit at a table, picked the five best prizes left (there were more prizes than people there), and enter a new drawing. Sigh.

Mind you, if they had started with the TV and big prizes and we hadn't been chosen, we would have taken the raspberry sticks as a consolation prize. But to be stuck with them and not have a choice? I was annoyed. Definitely a Dilbert way to do it -- reward the person with the fewest tickets in the drawing. (It really happened that way -- the guy who won the TV had come alone, so he had half as many tickets as everyone else who came with a spouse/date.) Sigh. I guess my prize is having a spouse to go with, and to actually have a Christmas party to attend. Paul's previous company canceled their Christmas party this year right before announcing the CEO is leaving and the "cut-back" guy who is a horrible manager is taking over as CEO. Merry Christmas, DirectPointe employees!

On that note, we'll take our disgusting raspberry sticks and be grateful for Paul's wonderful job. (I told Paul he should stick a bow on the box of raspberry sticks and give it to his president as a Christmas gift. :)

Oh, and thanks to Marilee for the pilates recommendation. I was beginning to feel unloved in my comment-less posts! :) Good news for me, though. Bob from the Biggest Loser is coming out with a weight-loss yoga DVD. I've been asking for more than a year when he's going to do this since he is always touting the benefits of yoga. Apparently Hilary or Paul got sick of me asking and contacted the network to make it happen. Now I just hope it's good!