First-time Toastmaster Preston K related the disastrous speaking event that led him to Toastmasters and the stepping stones and milestones that have led him from that point to now, when he can speak with confidence to a group. It’s been an impressive and fun experience to watch Preston step or leap from one speech milestone to the next, developing that confidence and ease which he showed throughout the meeting. Excellent job, Preston!
Our first speaker was Jung K, who gave her CC Project #2 speech “To Buy or Not to Buy.” In it, she related her experiences and difficulties as she and her husband ventured out into the booming real estate markets of the DC/Virginia area and then Seattle, only two of the most expensive and competitive in the nation. Great speech, Jung!
Ken B. was up next, giving his CC Project #5 speech “The Gripping Fear that Gelds Both Man and Beast.” He spoke about the difference between the way human beings experience fear versus the way other species do, relating two stories to illustrate—one about the fear experienced by a dog that he rescued from an abusive owner and one about his first experience tandem skydiving. Entertaining and very animated. Nicely done!
Nancy M. went rogue and gave an off-manual speech called “When the Chips are Down.” She told us of her addiction . . . to paint chips—the samples they hand out at the box store paint departments. One such store was the setting for an entertaining story about how her addiction got her into a colorful incident that cost her her favorite soft smoky mushroom pants to a spatter of Coral Gables Biltmore Mediterranean Caramel. However, the store made restitution and she even made a profit that allowed her to buy a Coral Gables Biltmore Mediterranean Caramel sweater to go with her paint-spattered pants. Thanks, Nancy!
I wa
s up next, giving my first speech from the advanced manual The Entertaining Speaker, “Sucker: How Not to Buy a Used Vehicle.” It was the story of the purchase of my very first truck from a shady used car dealer and the subsequent woes and expenses. Here is a picture of it. You can almost see it mocking me, even now.
Steve W. used his role as Topics Master to deliver a strategy for becoming successful at table topics. For many, if you have difficulty in this portion of the meeting, the difficulty is not speaking but coming up with an idea on the spot to speak about. Steve reminded us that you can keep a few table topic-length speeches in your memory and use them when you want to, regardless of what the prompt is. Like politicians who stay on message and steer the discussion in accord with their agenda no matter the question, you are under no obligation to actually answer the prompt, so if you’re stuck, you can go with one of your memorized speeches. Steve then encouraged Jerry R., Peter F., Paula L., and Nicole S. to respond to a few questions from a board game without necessarily answering them.
Our evaluators were Andrew H., Nicole S., Peter F., and Alexa V., who provided feedback to the speakers, and our General Evaluator was Katey N., who reported on the overall meeting.
Our Timer was Mackenzie M. and our Grammarian was Paula L., whose word of the day was “zest.”
Nicole S. came away a double winner, receiving the ribbons for Best Table Topics and Best Evaluator. Congratulations, Nicole!
But Nicole was not the only double winner! President Peter F. competed in the Area 23 International Speech and Evaluation contests held at Lake City Library later that day and handily won both competitions with a speech he’s been working on with our club in recent weeks. It was definitely the best delivery yet, and I was happy to get to see it in this perfected incarnation. Congratulations, Peter and thanks for doing our club proud!
Peter will go on to represent Seattle Sunrise and Area 23 in the District 2 conference on April 30 in Mulkiteo 12-3pm. See the District 2 website for more information. Also, thanks to Ken B. for coming out to support Peter and our club!
Our next meeting will be April 9. The theme will be “Victorious,” and our host will be Mark W.
I will be out of town, so Vince H. is taking over for me as Secretary for the meeting. Thanks, Vince!
Thanks also to our frequent guest and club in-law Jerry R for the photos of this week’s meeting.
I'm a writer, editor, sit-down comedian, and keeper of many hobbies.
Love the truck photo!!!
Thanks, Katey!