The theme Seattle Sunrise Toastmasters this week was Coming of Age, and our first-time Toastmaster Nicole S. did a fantastic job shepherding our meeting through. She also brought a great and inspiring story of the academic maturation of one of her teen clients, with whom she worked for a long time.
Our first speaker of the day was Vince H., who delivered his CC Project #4 speech, “Little Dream Homes, Big Green Energy,” in which he discussed the history of Seattle’s building industry as it evolved. Noting that while sustainability and green energy are new concepts, he said the original settlers in the Seattle area for the most part built small homes made from natural, local materials and were therefore better from an environmental perspective in many ways than many contemporary structures. Interesting ideas, Vince. Look forward to hearing more on this topic from you in the future.
Ken B. was up next, bringing another story from his life to fulfill his CC Project 4 speech, “Yin, Yang, and the Power of Women.” He related an incident that happened during a Filipino Kali matial arts class in which he was paired to spar with a woman. As a self-proclaimed traditional-minded man when it comes to the sexes, Ken was at first reluctant to spar with a woman because he had been raised not to hit females. However, once the fight started, he found himself outmatched by her agility and technique which left him exhausted and beaten (literally). An entertaining speech, Ken.
Next, Kiki N. gave her CC Project #5 speech, “Lesson Learned: a Coming of Age Story,” during which she described a slumber party she attended when she was 11. As the youngest of the group, she was a little intimidated at first and eager to be considered a big girl, and so when the others decided to participate in the 1970s mischievous activity of streaking, Kiki went along. The group of went out in sneakers and blankets and nothing else (except a dog) and walked around the neighborhood in the dark until they were spotted by a motorist who pulled over and then pursued the girls down an alley, where they fled to hide. After a tense period of hiding, the car left and the girls finally found each other and went back home, leaving young Kiki in not such a hot hurry to grow up after all. Great story, Kiki!
Our last speaker was Michelle D. She delivered her Project 3 speech from the advanced Entertaining Speaker manual, “Baby Lawyer’s Big Day in Court.” She told us about her first experience as a lawyer appearing in court alone before a judge to deliver a motion. Although her boss told her that the motion was almost a formality and would most likely fail, she was optimistic and determined to do her best, so she put on her best lawyering suit and drove her spiffy fuel-efficient car over the mountains into eastern Washington where she appeared in the courtroom. The judge was buddies with the opposing counsel and was distracted by other business, barely acknowledging Michelle’s argument. As her boss predicted, her motion failed and she left feeling a bit deflated, but her coming of age as an attorney had passed. Not to mention, she came away with a funny story. Thanks, Michelle!
I was our Table Topics Master this session. As “coming of age” films are a staple of cinema and the genre contains several of my favorite films, I brought in prompts from The Graduate, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Superbad, and Almost Famous for Neva C., our regular gueststar Jerry R., Tina H., and Brett S. to riff on. Tina won Best Table Topics for her response. Congratulations, Tina!
Our evaluators this meeting were Alexa V., Katey R., Scott C., and Nancy M., who provided feedback for our speakers, and Peter F. was our General Evaluator. Scott won Best Evaluator for his feedback on Kiki’s speech. Good job, Scott!
Tom B. was our Grammarian, and his Word of the Day, “Schwag” was used several times during the meeting. Mackenzie M. was our Timer.
Our next meeting will be March 12. Brett S. will take the podium as Toastmaster for the first time and our theme will be “One of a Kind.”
Hope to see you there!
I'm a writer, editor, sit-down comedian, and keeper of many hobbies.
