#129 Tigh Na Mara

Steve: Hi Jill.

Jill: Hello again.

Steve: Here we are at EnglishLingQ.com and of course LingQ is l-i-n-g-q. com and Jill and I are going to talk about the fact that we are probably what, a week or so away from the, a couple of weeks away from the company outing, and what are we going to do there?

Jill: We are going to have a whole variety of events for everybody to participate in. All of the employees here are going with their families, children, wives, husbands so I think there's going to be 45 people or something all together at a resort in separate rooms, obviously, but together and spending a lot of time during the day and I guess in the evening together. Steve: You know, I was thinking we could save money if we all stayed in a big gymnasium or barn so that was my vote to save money but I was voted down so we ended up going to a fancy resort where every family gets their own room. It sure adds to the cost. I don't know why the barn area, the barn idea didn't fly but anyway, there we are. It's more of a kind of a together type experience if we're all staying in one big gymnasium. We could even have like triple layered bunks, have an outhouse, you know? Anyway, that was not, no one went for that idea. I thought it would save the company some money but I was voted down. So, where is this place?

Jill: It's on Vancouver Island, about an hour and a half ferry ride from Vancouver and then I guess we drive for maybe 40 minutes after we get off the ferry and it's right on the ocean, outside of a small town on Vancouver Island. Steve: And it's actually a very nice resort. It's a very nice resort nestled in amongst these large Douglas Fir trees and it's right on the ocean. There's a beach there, the children can go down and look for sand dollars and starfish and clams and this kind of thing. And, of course this is also going to be the 20th anniversary of K.P. Wood which is our activity here that's involved in the wood business and which started in the year 1987 so it's the 20th anniversary so we're going for four days. Four days we'll be shut down here and we will be just having fun over there. What were some of the events again that we have planned?

Jill: I think that we are going to go, there's some caves around there that you can climb down into, climb around so I think we're all going caving. And, I think we'll probably have some volley ball games and some things like that. I can' remember the other activities. Steve: Well we have golf.

Jill: Oh yeah.

Steve: We have our golf tournament which is whatever it's called, Texas scramble type of golf. Maybe some volley ball and of course we want to be building that, we want to be doing team building in this thing. That's my objective here is that people should feel that they can rely on each other in a team so we've got to devise some events like blind, like going into the cave blind and relying on someone else to guide you. And then maybe lowering people into a hole where they hold on to a rope and they're blind folded and everybody's blind folded. Jill: Right. I can see you going for that. That's not going to work. Steve: Well, so that the person who's being lowered down, he has to trust the person who's lowering him and the person who's lowering him is blind folded so he has to take responsibility. Jill: Yeah, and then you have a 120 pound girl lowering down a 200 pound guy.

Steve: Mind over matter. Mind over matter you know. If she wants to, you know, I believe if she wants to drop him she can be, she can be 200 pounds and he's 120 pounds, she'll drop him but if she is committed to the task, to her job she'll hang on even if the rope is burning her hands. That's what I believe. That's the kind of commitment that we want from our employees. Jill: You have a lot of faith. A lot of faith.

Steve: Do you think I might be disappointed?

Jill: I think a little bit, yeah.

Steve: Well, there could be some changes to the plan. In any case I'm not responsible for these activities so they don't allow me to, they don't let me make these plans and so forth. We're hoping we get good weather. Unfortunately here on the coast because we're right on the coast and different weather systems blow in across the Pacific, you know, we can have, it can be 25-30 degrees and sunny or it can be 15 degrees and rainy and we just don't know which we're going to get. We know what we got today.

Jill: Yeah, the 18 degrees and pouring rain.

Steve: Pouring rain. What is your favorite sport?

Jill: To play, to do, for me?

Steve: Yes.

Jill: Um, I don't know. I guess I really enjoy hiking.

Steve: Oh yeah, you're a hiker and of course we talked about you climbing up, but how about tennis or no? Swimming, are you a big swimmer?

Jill: I was as a, when I was younger I was into swimming. I was diving, I was in synchronized swimming, yeah, so swimming was definitely my favorite sport all through my childhood. We had a pool at my house until I was ten so swimming, I do love swimming but I don't swim very much anymore. Steve: How about kayaking?

Jill: Um, I like it but I prefer the two man kayaks where Chris does all the work and I just kind of hang out there with my feet dangling in the water.

Steve: You know one year, one of our outings we had a kayaking experience which was a lot of fun and for many people it was their first time in a kayak and we took off to this island and the weather changed. And, we went over there as a group of about 15 kayaks, many of whom were in a kayak for the first time. Now, everyone had a life jacket on and we had been given instructions but kayaks are not very stable. It's very easy to tip a kayak. And, so we went out there in a tight group and the weather was okay. We went to this island, we played on the island and then the weather changed. The wind picked up. It was raining, it was dark. We had to go and this was the ocean we're talking about, this is not a lake and we had to get back home and we were on an island. We had girls or two wives who were in tears and who refused to go back, at least initially. And we had to tell them there was no choice. We had to go back but if we all stayed together it wouldn't be a problem. And, of course we got back so it was a very important bonding experience. Very good. I didn't plan that one though. Jill: Well, I know, I was thinking it could almost be a good thing to have an experience like that. It sure does make you rely on each other and trust each other and help each other out.

Steve: And of course, so typically in those kinds of situations the actual danger is actually very, very minimal. There are so man people. Kayaks float, everyone has the life jacket. If the kayak should flip then you hang on to your kayak. The water is not cold, I mean it's not warm but it's not freezing cold. You have your life jacket, you hang on to the kayak, a few people go in and get somebody with a boat, I mean there was really no danger but psychologically if someone has, is not comfortable in a kayak, is not comfortable in water.

I mean it's fine for me to say because I like to swim, you like to swim, I don't mind the water, getting wet, tip, and it doesn't bother me but if I don't like the water and I'm not, yeah, I can see where. Jill: Oh yeah.

Steve: I think there was some husbands who were in deep trouble that night.

Jill: Well yeah. We'll see how people do with the caving too. I mean, the dark, enclosed, narrow space. I think there could be some people who, who may have some problems with that too. So we'll see. Steve: You know then Jill we'll have to report back and we'll see how the 120 pound girl does lowering a 200 pound man down the hole in the cave. Jill: Blind folded.

Steve: Blind folded. Alright then, that'll do for now. Jill: Bye, bye.

Steve: Once again, it's EnglishLingQ, l-i-n-g-q.com and it's www, lingq.com and one thing we would like to know is what kinds of discussions do you like? Do you like us to talk about the language? Do you like us to talk about every day life? Would you like us to talk more slowly? What would you like? Please let us know. Wouldn't you like to know Jill? Jill: Please give us some feedback.

Steve: Okay. Thanks, bye, bye.

Jill: Bye, bye.