Femke's SCA Heresy of the Day

[femkes_follies]

Cookies Are Meaningless.

I have come to this conclusion for a variety of reasons. And I'm not vehemently opposed to awards. In point of fact, I've spent more hours than I have any desire to tot up working on "award documents" (The PC current term for "scrolls"). A fair few of those hours, just this week.

Things that have led to my conclusion:

Watching a Mid-level award turn an already obnoxious individual into an unreasonable bundle of ego when she found out her shiny new award put her above most of the local folks she hangs out with in the order of precedence. She's been cookie-driven for years, and this has only fanned the flames. It would be one thing if this would inspire her to do more worthwhile things for the Kingdom and The Dream. More likely it will convince her to find things to do that will specifically garner more cookies.

The inequity of the Cookie system is inherent. The Crown, by its very nature, can't see everything, and therefore is dependent on recommendations. However, I've seen Shires write each other in for every award in the book. Their stated goal is to have everybody in the Shire get SOME kind of Award whenever they have a royal presence. ?!? Honestly? Every year, everybody needs SOMEthing? Accckkk!! This makes me bananas. There is, for instance, no way that a small group should host a Royal Court with 20+ awards that are all FROM that group. Or nearly all. Especially when the group only has 25 or 30 people. And I've seen it happen.

A lot of genuinely nice people get grant-level awards for not doing really very much. Mostly because their local peeps like them and want them to have an award. This is not a problem in and of itself. However, a lot of quiet folks can hold Regional, Kingdom, or broad offices and never get any recognition at all. Some of those jobs are particularly thankless, time- and event-eating, and burn out-inducing. But since they're not autocrating and event or serving as the local Youth Minister - nobody local realized they're "doing anything," since its not a local office. And nobody higher up seems to take any notice at all.

Then there's the rub between precedence-bearing and non-precedence-bearing awards. I've mentioned some of the problems with the former. The latter retain their cache for exactly as long as they're given rarely. I hope they remain that way. The Award of the Sapphire and the King's Chalice are both still "OOoooh, Ahhhh" worthy because they don't get doled out much. This is a Good Thing(TM) to my mind.

It does seem to be that each couple tries to find that happy medium of trying to find a way to thank all the myriads of people who help with their reign without becoming cookie factories. Of late, Royal Augmentations have become popular. In the past, it's been Court Baronies, Dragon's Hearts, fill in the blank.

It's giving me a headache. I think I'm swearing off cookies for a while. 'cept maybe the chocolate chip. Where did I put those?

Comments

[mistressarafina.livejournal.com]

Heh. If it makes you feel better, it seems to be this way in any organization that has more than 2 people.

Being an a-hole, generally does keep you from getting a peerage, if that's what this person is after. Although some do slip through the cracks for whatever political reasons, there are many THLs who will remain at that level indefinitely.

Do I know this person?

[femkederoas.livejournal.com]

If you do, only in passing.

It came to mind as I worked on my assignment for this weekend. Mostly because I cam getting to know enough about enough people these days that I see many incidences where there are multiple awards given to a number of people in the same area for the same general thing. But there was enough difference in the recommendations that the minor player gets a Grant-level award and the dedicated person the AoA-level. Which almost seems like a back-handed complement of sorts. *sigh*

[lady-guenievre.livejournal.com]

However, I've seen Shires write each other in for every award in the book. Their stated goal is to have everybody in the Shire get SOME kind of Award whenever they have a royal presence

Really? Really really? *Wow*. I believe you, but I've never seen it (for which I am grateful).

Are your Grant level awards polling, there? They are here and I wonder if that makes a difference.... though I think part of the difference ends up being the people who travel more get seen more, rather than those whose local groups think they're great. To-may-to to-mah-to, in some ways.

[femkederoas.livejournal.com]

Are your Grant level awards polling, there?

There's a whole 'nother can of worms. Some are, some aren't.

A lot of the problem I've had is trying to convince people that "giving wise counsel to the Crown" means only putting people in for something you honestly feel they've earned - not trying to get "our share" of the Kingdom awards. Grrrrr.

[situveuxmoi.livejournal.com]

I know this person don't I?

It's all enough to make a person want to *headdesk* till kingdom come.

And if it is the person I know, it doesn't put them above anybody since they got the award after these people this person is still technically 'below' them.

I love it when they give out the Chalice or the Sapphire because of it's rarity. It makes it more special, imo. It seems like there's a ton of purple frets given out recently.... and Dragon's Hearts too...

Have you tried orange chocolate chip cookies? They are delish. :)

[femkederoas.livejournal.com]

And if it is the person I know, it doesn't put them above anybody since they got the award after these people this person is still technically 'below' them.

Well, timing only matters if the awards are equivalent in precedence. In this case, they're not. So a jump in rank IS a jump in rank.

Yeah, the frets and DHs are going like hotcakes lately. And what is bugging me is that there doesn't really seem to be any sort of "standard" applied for how much "service" is required for each. I have my own opinions on the subject.

[landverhuizer.livejournal.com]

But I like cookies! well... it's what I thought before I read the next line and bothered to peek at the title :P

Am guessing awards are still somewhat rare where I'm from, from my own experience... somewhere between 1 every 4-5 years but for many much less often. My husband played for quite a while but sortof faded into the scene, was active and volunteered and slowly faded out of the scene without ever seeing an award but never mentions it (I actually had to think about it).

There are some, however, that do seem to pop up out of nowhere and end up with loads of awards in short order... not all bad people, just very popular, but it does leave some folk kinda of bummed out. Annoying people seem to just become more visibly so :P but I've seen such people fade back to their previous 'level'.

Did go to the odd event attended by Royals where half the group seemed to have been written in for something... haven't figured out what goes on here, seems we have lean years followed by mass award giving all at one event!

[femkederoas.livejournal.com]

It would have been one thing if Royal visits were rare. But annually or at least every other was pretty much the norm. *eye roll* I don't really believe THAT many people had been "overlooked" in the past.

[eleanor-deyeson.livejournal.com]

I'm a bit surprised, but I suppose it's the different Kingdom dynamics. While the tendency to write lots of award recs may be universal, our crowns tend to carefully balance the awards. Sometimes people are put off to the next event not because they aren't worthy, but because court is theatre, and to make it interesting to everyone, you can't give out 20 AoAs. A nice blend of award types and ranks makes it more interesting. And many of our crowns have been interested in keeping court from getting too long. (There are stories about the (in)famous Lilies court where King Rorik stopped time.)

I agree, people who do good work, but quietly, are more likely to be overlooked. The squeaky wheels can get more attention than they truely deserve. Life isn't fair.

That's why I like the mental concept of awards as winning the lottery, not earning a scout badge. You've got to do the necessary things to "buy" your lottery ticket, but that still isn't a guarantee. But if you stop buying a ticket, fade into the mundane world or whatever, you won't ever have a chance of winning.

[femkederoas.livejournal.com]

Yeah, some Crowns understand the "theater" aspect better than others. I suspect someone locally told them that Royalty never comes, nobody gets awards, yada yada and they thought they were Righting a Great Wrong.

That IS a good mental concept.

I think it ties into why I just hate the whole structure with the Grant Level Awards. In the MK, for instance, the AoA service award is an Award. The GoA is an Order. So the AoA one can be given repeatedly and should be. BUT, now that it's overshadowed - it sometimes feels/looks like an "also ran" sort of thing.

[ablackram.livejournal.com]

thank you for scribing and illuminating our cookies so that they look so cute together. :)

I'm out of chocolate chips.... smoked fish I have, boston butt is in the smoker.

Off to get it in before the storm hits tonight around 2 am to 7am. Coming from the south. I hate the ones coming from the south.