January 14, 2008 Minutes

From Austin Toastmasters (Balcones, Club #3407)

Balcones Toastmasters January 8, 2008

Chapter 3407 District 55

Minutes of Meeting

The January 14th meeting was opened by President Jonathan Huizingh. Former member Peter Ryon joined the meeting.

• Jerry Barrett led Prayer & Pledge with gusto as he announced "God is already in the room."

Mary Buker was Toastmaster. Her theme was "Where did you grow up and how did that shape you as a person?" She uncovered many interesting features about each of us.

• Amy Always served as grammarian. She picked "obfuscate" (to darken or obscure) as the word of the day. It was used by Steve L, Anne, Vlad, Sonny, Priscilla and others I missed writing down. Amy reported misuse and good use of the English language.

• Vinh Nguyen learned a lot being timer and did a great job reporting that only 2 people were over time by only 10 and 20 seconds.

• Karen Bondy was One Minute Toastmaster. Karen encouraged to do reconnaissance before a speech to find out about the audience and the location. Arriving early is always a good idea.

Anne Child was Table Topics Master and kept with the theme of growing up.

• Harry Savio - Harry was known by the nickname Flip as he flipped from town to town as they moved when he was a kid. He took it to heart and did flips too. His family still calls him that.

• Steve Levering - Steve remembered his performance doing the Charleston for the PTA. He was knocked down by a wild hip from his dance partner and he just escaped off the stage.

• Sonny Sonntag - Sonny learned that he did not want to do manual labor when he grew up. His first job was as a cotton picker for his neighbor. He didn't like it at all.

• Dan Naden - winner - Dan wanted to be a sportscaster when he grew up. He practiced reliving various games with his friends and driving his mother crazy.

Speaker #1 - Amanda Garner - most improved - "Break a Leg" - Amanda's story took us back to Kilgore Texas when she was in high school working hard to be a graceful ballerina. For their senior gala, she was Captain Hook. In the final performance, she fell flat on her backside. She wanted to crawl under the stage but instead got up, did something graceful, finished the performance and bawled. No one noticed her fall. So she learned to take chances, do your best and if you stumble, maybe no one will notice.

Speaker #2 - Steve Gonzales - "Freeze Frame" - Steve told 3 stories where he had conversations with himself about the situation. In one, as a strong Marine, he slugged a thief trying to steal his wife's purse at the Sugar bowl. However in his back swing he decked his mother-in-law too. In another, he raced home to see his child born. Afterwards he jumped into his car to rush off somewhere else but realized that he was now a parent and needed to not take such risks. The third story had him up in the attic looking for someone walking around in the middle of the night. He learned to give in earlier when he knows he can't win.

Speaker # 3 - Vlad Garner - winner - "Non Manual Speech" - Vlad first relieved then distressed about doing his first speech that did not have to follow a manual outline. He cleverly spoke about being organized, using appropriate gestures, and being powerfully persuasive... of not! He could talk about anything. I have not done his speech justice, it was a work of art.

General Evaluator was Jonathan Huizingh. Jonathan appreciated Karen's personal story to back up her One Minute speech. John McMillan's novel analogy was good as was his organization of his comments by subject.

• Table topics evaluator was John McMillan - Each participant provides a chapter in a novel with high quality speeches. Sonny used vivid phrasing. Harry mimicked a girl from childhood for a great conclusion. Dan stayed focused.

• Evaluator #1 for Amanda was Priscilla Oehlert - Priscilla noted how at ease and prepared Amanda was. Her gestures took us through the excitement. She had good eye contact but could have developed the story about the hard work learning to dance.

• Evaluator #2 for Steve G was Gordon Baker - winner - Gordon reported that Steve used his gestures well, pulling down the attic stairs, slugging the thief, and searching the night for the non-existant intruders. His use of aside conversations was great. He could improve by lowering his fists and finding a home speaking location.

• Evaluator #3 for Vlad was Antoinette Griffin - Antoinette enjoyed Vlad's speech as he was not inhibited. He has a commanding voice with an intelligent air. He was funny with good pauses that weren't too long. He had great vocal variety, was obviously well prepared but did not sound rehearsed. Her only suggestion was to add a bit more punch on the conclusion.

Timer and Grammarian gave their reports.

Peter Ryon was glad to see some of the old-timers but new faces too.

Jonathan review the schedule for our next meeting on Monday January 21st which you can reference at http://www.balconestoastmasters.org/schedule/ . And so adjourned a very enjoyable meeting.