Impromptu Impromptu Cues, The Purpose of Life, It's All Small Stuff and Cats - iterations at Early Birds

Dear Members, Friends and Guests,

 

TM Carmine impromptuly led us in impromptu speaking.  These are some of the gems we heard…

 

• TM Chris fantasizes about being a Queen in procession and her valet swarms about her deploying a royal umbrella to protect her from purple rain.  Her husband is a real-life close second in the umbrella deployment department.
• TM Jose discourages golfers from using their golf umbrella – it’s better to experience purple rain than to be hit by lightning, but hey golfers,  it’s your choice!
• TM Scott’s father-in-law offered to help redecorate Scott’s fixer-upper house by lighting a match and since then, Scott has had a strong affinity for orange sunsets.
• TM Aleta does not have a back porch per se but she is not lacking, oh no, as she has a sun porch facing East,  a front porch facing West, a screened porch facing North and a deck facing Southwest.  Amazingly, she has a house too!
• TM Randolph likes to spend private time in his bathroom, where he can reflect, collect his thoughts and reconnect with himself – away from the kids for 5 glorious minutes per week!  He Won Best Table Topics Award.
• TM Pam is a card-carrying beachcomber who collects seashells and reflects about them in her spare time caused by the fact that, yes,  there is hardly any trash on the beach anymore!!

 

 

We heard interesting prepared speeches today…

 

• TM Lois (who has been demoted from being the newest EarlyBird member since the return of TM Scott) told us about how to find purpose and meaning in life at 88 – being available to herself, enriching her journey, helping others and consistently checking out books from her mental library.
• TM Scott did an iteration of his icebreaker.  He has suffered trauma with a lower-case t and reminded us not to sweat the small stuff – and it truly is all small stuff anyway.
• TM Tom shared his unexpected feline ownership enthusiasm and how it’s best to embrace change.  Now he keenly witnesses his shit-su’s and his cat’s bloodless staredowns.  He Won Best Speaker Award.

 

Along came evaluations….

 

• TM Randolph suggested to TM Lois that she is a born salesperson, and he’s ready to buy her product, sight unseen.
• TM Aleta commended TM Scott for his speech clarity, organization, structure and composition.  We like happy endings!  Great addition to our club!   
• DTM Jim D. praised TM Tom for his multiple directional feelings and the iteration of the self-evident truth that felines are the ruling class.  He Won Best Evaluator Award.

 

Our Timer, TM Jim G., experienced iterations of being ignored throughout the meeting and had to iterate and reiterate his incarnation time and time again.  Pun intended.

Our Grammarian, TM Marie, pointed out that for such an illustriously intellectual group, we iterate lotsa  ‘gonnas, haftas, gottas’.  Get with the program, people!

 

The Word of the Day was

 

ITERATION, noun

1. Version or incarnation of the operating system.
2. The act of iterating or repeating.

 

Example: 

 

Incarnation iteration is the state of a newborn baby who drinks his second bottle of evaporated milk. 

 

The recording of today’s meeting:

                                                                                                                                          

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-n64EcnshEe

 

 

See you next week!

 

Ana I.

Recap Writer

Impromptu Impromptu, Purposes, Intents, Felines - iterations at EArly Birds

Dear Members, Friends and Guests,

 

TM Carmine impromptuly led us in impromptu speaking.  These are some of the gems we heard…

 

• TM Chris fantasizes about being a Queen in procession and her valet swarms about her deploying a royal umbrella to protect her from purple rain.  Her husband is a real-life close second in the umbrella deployment department.
• TM Jose discourages golfers from using their golf umbrella – it’s better to experience purple rain than to be hit by lightning, but hey golfers,  it’s your choice!
• TM Scott’s father-in-law offered to help redecorate Scott’s fixer-upper house by lighting a match and since then, Scott has had a strong affinity for orange sunsets.
• TM Aleta does not have a back porch per se but she is not lacking, oh no, as she has a sun porch facing East,  a front porch facing West, a screened porch facing North and a deck facing Southwest.  Amazingly, she has a house too!
• TM Randolph likes to spend private time in his bathroom, where he can reflect, collect his thoughts and reconnect with himself – away from the kids for 5 glorious minutes per week!  He Won Best Table Topics Award.
• TM Pam is a card-carrying beachcomber who collects seashells and reflects about them in her spare time caused by the fact that, yes,  there is hardly any trash on the beach anymore!!

 

 

We heard interesting prepared speeches today…

 

• TM Lois (who has been demoted from being the newest EarlyBird member since the return of TM Scott) told us about how to find purpose and meaning in life at 88 – being available to herself, enriching her journey, helping others and consistently checking out books from her mental library.
• TM Scott did an iteration of his icebreaker.  He has suffered trauma with a lower-case t and reminded us not to sweat the small stuff – and it truly is all small stuff anyway.
• TM Tom shared his unexpected feline ownership enthusiasm and how it’s best to embrace change.  Now he keenly witnesses his shit-su’s and his cat’s bloodless staredowns.  He Won Best Speaker Award.

 

Along came evaluations….

 

• TM Randolph suggested to TM Lois that she is a born salesperson, and he’s ready to buy her product, sight unseen.
• TM Aleta commended TM Scott for his speech clarity, organization, structure and composition.  We like happy endings!  Great addition to our club!   

<![if !supportLists]>·       <![endif]>DTM Jim D. praised TM Tom for his multiple directional feelings and the iteration of the self-evident truth that felines are the ruling class.  He Won Best Evaluator Award.

 

Our Timer, TM Jim G., experienced iterations of being ignored throughout the meeting and had to iterate and reiterate his incarnation time and time again.  Pun intended.

Our Grammarian, TM Marie, pointed out that for such an illustriously intellectual group, we iterate lotsa  ‘gonnas, haftas, gottas’.  Get with the program, people!

 

The Word of the Day was

 

ITERATION, noun

<![if !supportLists]>1.    <![endif]>Version or incarnation of the operating system.

<![if !supportLists]>2.    <![endif]>The act of iterating or repeating.

 

Example: 

 

Incarnation iteration is the state of a newborn baby who drinks his second bottle of evaporated milk. 

 

The recording of today’s meeting:

                                                                                                                                          

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-n64EcnshEe

 

 

See you next week!

 

Ana I.

Recap Writer

 

Love is in the air... Inspiration and Communication - a veracious Early Bird meeting!

Dear Members, Friends and Guests,

 

Table Topics were inspired on Love Songs.  We learned that….

 

• TM BeckyJo has indeed done a lot of foolish things that she really didn’t mean, and the main one was signed, sealed, delivered - I’m yours for 25 years.   And then the backout was good.
• With a backdrop of meteorites flying through space, DTM Kip admitted that he’s much more amiable when he’s made to feel good.  It knocks him right off his feet – and he wasn’t even referring to Pathways!
• TM Paolo would have agreed that when a man loves a woman, he’d trade the world for the good thing he’s found -  if only he had heard it.
• DTM Mary Helen delighted us with a brief rendition of “It Had To Be You” – and yes, it had to be DTM Jim.  They are even melodically synchronized in their Table Topics time.  She Won Best Table Topics Award.
• DTM Jim D. agreed that the power of love is a curious thing and for him it all started on their first lunch together, and here they are, six happy years later….

As far as prepared speeches go, we had plenty of inspiration today…

• TM Lois reminded us that happiness is not what happens, but how we interpret what happens.  She climbed a mountain and continues to challenge herself.  Keep going, Lois Lane!
• TM Jose demonstrated that the last two years have been a bullet with a silver lining and is living proof that when life gives you lemons… you can make great sangria!!  He Won Best Speaker Award.
• Returning TM Randolph revealed that he is a multidimensional man –  sociable, enthusiastic, while systematic and perfectionist.  A devoted father with musical talent. 

 

We had excellent evaluations…

 

• TM Chris commended TM Lois for implementing new ideas into her speech delivery and suggested that she modulate her voice to match the emotions she is expressing.  She Won Best Evaluator Award.
• TM Aleta praised TM Jose for showing us the good, the bad and the ugly that we’ve all faced and reminding us that when you change the way you look at things, the things you look at, change.  She suggested less screen share, more Jose for his next speech.
• TM Pam lauded TM Randolph for his many sides and she’s looking forward – as we all are- to hear more about his musician side.  She urged him to never let the truth get in the way of a good story – a quote whose source is dubious.

 

The Word of the Day was

 

VERACIOUS, adj.

 

Habitually truthful or honest; accurate, precise.

 

Example:  A good Table Topics need not be veracious – simply entertaining.

 

Here is the link to today’s recording:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=thmdhhhVY_g

 

TM BeckyJo provided this link to a melodious symphony:

 

https://youtu.be/afPh1slPAsc

 

Next week:  love, love, love… makes the world go round!

 

Lovingly submitted,

 

Ana I.

Recap Writer

 

 

 

Solstice, Hannukah and Mentoring - an ethereal morning of EarlyBird Toastmasters!

 

Dear Members, Guests and Friends,

 

TM Jim G. led us in a Solstice Invocation, which marked the way to Solstice-inspired Table Topics by TM Aleta.  We thus discovered that…

 

• TM Chris used to play midnight hopscotch growing up with her friends in Alaska, where solstice is known as an oxymoron.   She Won Best Table Topics Award.
• TM Paolo used to like Florida’s hot, hotter and hottest seasons but after 20 years he now likes it cold, colder, coldest – but balmy indoors. 
• DTM Kip does his level best to help the sun rise by reveling, partying, carousing and yuletiding – everywhere except in the Mediterranean, where the sun doesn’t need his help.
• I, Ana, agree that guests and fish get smelly after a few days.  This applies specifically to in-laws, and excludes my dear brother.
• TM Marie is convinced that the elf-on-the-shelf is creating a new generation of paranoid humans with delusion of persecution.  Her personal Santa Claus does not keep score.

 

And then came the prepared speeches…

 

• TM Lois told the story of Judah Maccabee, who led the Maccabean Revolt against the Syrians which gave birth to Hannukah, when she and her family have a Secret Maccabee Gift Exchange.  Her gifts were heartwarming this year.
• TM Jim G. delighted us with an excellent rendition of “A Visit From St Nicholas”, a tradition started by late EarlyBird TM Neil many years ago.  He Won Best Speaker Award.
• DTM Kip reminded us that in the world of speaking, laughs are gold.  Call to action:  Consider using a mentor, we don’t know how far we will go.

 

As far as evaluations…

 

• TM Paolo lauded TM Lois for her passion, enthusiasm and excitement and encouraged her to stand up for her next speech to give us a greater range of vision.  He Won Best Evaluator Award.
• TM Marie praised TM Jim G., storyteller extraordinaire, for an almost ethereal impersonation of St. Nicholas, including the hearty laugh and the twinkle in the eye.
• TM Aleta commended DTM Kip for his speech on mentoring.  Kip, mentor of mentors.  Motivational speaker par excellence…

 

The Word of the Day was:

 

ETHEREAL, adj.

Extremely delicate and light in a way that seems too perfect for this world.

 

EarlyBirds voted to have another ethereal meeting next week, on the eve of New Year’s Eve.

 

Dates to Remember:

 

Jan 13, 2022 – Table Topics Club Contest

Jan 20, 2022 – International Speech Club Contest

 

Here’s the link to today’s recording: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1zCediohX8

 

Ethereally submitted,

 

Ana I.

Recap Writer

Old proverbs, Thanksgiving, Negotiations and Leadership - a flexous morning at EarlyBirds!

Dear Members, Guests and Friends,

 

TM Carmine started us off with some foreign proverbs.  We thus learned that….

 

• Guest Brittany’s ego got bruised by the flexuous tree that got axed.  She’d rather be a potato!
• TM Julie learned the hard way that you can’t count your chickens before the next-door predators snatch them before they hatch.  She Won Best Table Topics Award.
• TM Randolph got caught in a self-imposed flexuous loop of quickly slowly hastening delaying postponing impulsivity that created a collective dizzy spell.
• TM BeckyJo talked about The Italian Game, one of the oldest Chess openings. Dating back to the the fifteenth century, the move was started by Italian players such as Damiano and Greco, hence its name ! ... As a consequence, a lot of lines in the Italian Games are made possible by this pressure on f7.  The King and the Pawn (ie all of us) end up in the dust at the end, Italian or not.
• I, Ana, fondly reminisced about being a mouse with my teenaged daughters and throwing pool parties while The Cat (aka Hubby/Dad) was away on business.

In the prepared speeches…

• TM Lois talked about a special Thanksgiving started by the Pequot natives, who planted corn, squash and beans, nuts and fruits.  For the main course, they shot deer, turkeys, and small game.  Thus, they designed the Thanksgiving menu back in 1621.  They invited the settlers who brought the marshmallows.
• TM Julie pointed out that every time we engage in conversation, we’re really in negotiation mode.  Is it a game table? Or a garage sale table? Or the dinner table?  In the latter, it’s best to be collaborative if you want to save your marriage and eat dinner in peace. 
• TM Marie practiced follow the leader behavior until her parents told her to stay away from bridges.  She is now reading Benedict’s Rule, which clearly states that to be worth following, you must drink Benedictine, a secret elixir / herbal liqueur produced in France by Benedictine monks while meditating.  It’s flavored with twenty-seven flowers, berries, herbs, roots, and spices – great for digestion! She Won Best Speaker Award. 

 

As far as evaluations….

• TM Paolo praised TM Lois for following prior suggestions, accurately positioning the lights and reading the notes in a flexous manner while preparing her Thanksgiving feast.   He Won Best Evaluator Award.
• TM Pam admired TM Julie’s neutral and nondistracting background and her good use of hands – a virtually elusive art for most of us – and suggested she pick one negotiation table for specificity, instead of depicting The History Of The World in one single poster.
• DTM Kip pointed out that TM Marie made a big flexuous splash at the end of her speech and encouraged her to buy Teleprompter Pro.  I bought one on his recommendation, too.  Question to ponder at this point:   Is Kip on their payroll? Hmmmm…..

 

The Word of the Day was 

FLEXUOUS, adj

Having curves, turns or windings

Lithe or fluid in action or movement

 

Ex:  If only they had been Toastmasters,  The Beatles could have titled their song “The Long and Flexuous Road”….

 

Here is the link for today’s recording http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPcyDH3fZAc

 

See you next week!

 

Irreverently submitted,

 

Ana I.

Recap Writer

Halloween Spontaneity, Party Crashers, Ghostly Travelogue and The Raven - a ghoulish morning at EarlyBirds!

 

Dear Members, Guests and Friends,

 

To mark the start of a FUN Halloween meeting, tuxedoed and top-hatted Amazing TM Aleta launched us with very a propos topics.   We discovered that….

 

• TM Marie’s black cats – Puma, Suma and Sammy Miami – are very friendly and bring her good luck, although their noses and their warts protrude at night and they sleep freakingly close to the broom closet….  Just sayin….
• TM Jose plans to take flowers and clean the tomb of departed loved ones and then join millions of Madrid residents in a tumultuously horrendous traffic caravan straight to the nearest beach.  It beats picnicking in a Mexican graveyard!  He Won Best Table Topics Award.
• TM BeckyJo positively thinks stealing candy from a trick-or-treater bag is the crime of all crimes.  BeckyJo’s own mother stole candy from her bag when she was 8 years old and BeckyJo is still in therapy to this day.
• TM Chris highly doubts she will meet a vampire or a werewolf because she, Chris, turns into a pumpkin at 7 pm and dreams about the headless horse in The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.
• TM Jeff is declining the offer of a high salary paid by now-hiring Ghostbusters, Inc. because he’s got too much going on right now getting married and whatnot.
• TM Paolo dearly misses his young daughters’ mischievous trick-or-treating in their outgrown Halloween costumes and will be a candy-hoarding Gondoliere trick-or-treater on All Hallows’ Eve.

 

We then proceeded to prepared speeches….

 

• TM Lois donned a feather mask and, party girl extraordinaire, told us of her memorable costume party where her younger brother exercised his lifelong role as party crasher.
• I, Ana, also donned the same feather mask (Party City special) and took the group on an otherworldy magic carpet ride of weird, weirder and weirdest superstitions.
• TM Jim G. looked the part in a maddeningly horrendous 18^th century night cap and delivered his extraordinary rendition of The Raven.   He Won Best Speaker Award.

 

As far as evaluations….

 

• TM Paolo loved TM Lois’s speech and is definitely counting on being invited to her next party.  Otherwise he’ll crash it.
• DTM Kip liked my speech, word usage and my quick recovery from note-fumbling.  He seriously encourages me to buy a White House-style teleprompter (currently a Best Buy special).
• TM Marie praised TM Jim G.’s delivery of the heart-wrenching story from love to madness, avoiding Raven singsong and making good use of a hoodie.  She Won Best Evaluator Award.

 

The Word of the Day was

 

HORRENDOUS, adj.

Shockingly dreadful

 

Ex.: Horrendous is a catchy word – everyone used it multiple times during the meeting today.

 

Thank you, Kip, for taking on multiple roles – General Evaluator, Evaluator, Timer.  You are truly an inspiration to our group.

 

Here’s the link for the recording:

 

link https://youtu.be/wYrbSnrLDCI

 

See you next week!

 

Ana

Recap Writer

Idioms, Missing Coats, The 4th Level and Shotgun Conflict Resolution - bedlam at the Early Bird Corral

 

Dear Members, Guests and Friends,

 

TM Carmine led us on more Idioms based on the word GET.   Get it? Got it! Good!

 

• TM Aleta gets a kick by making lemonade out of lemons – her new neighbors crashed their car against her property fence but oh well, now they’ve become BFF.
• TM Jose has learned as a tall man he can’t sit in the back row of the classroom any more, and he gets off the hook by keeping the fish by hook or by crook.
• I, Ana, have done most things in my life by getting into the swing of it and found an area of compatibility with my swing dance partner, aka my husband.  I Won Best Table Topics Award.
• TM Mary  is building back the bedlam of the last few weeks by getting on the ground floor and trying to steer her virtual students into a bedlamless life.
• TM BeckyJo just realized that her Dad pretended to like her friends but in reality was engaging in water sports child slave labor.
• TM Randolph’s motto is get up and go – for starters (pun intended) he’s the family’s alarm clock and gets the whole day going.
• Reporting from a lasagna aroma-filled room back home, TM Paolo cleans the body pipes regularly by confronting others and getting things off his chest.

 

Along came the prepared speeches…

 

• TM Lois delighted us with a story of her lost & found David leather coat purchased in Florence, Italy, returned to her by Michelangelo Buonarotti himself.   She Won Best Speaker Award.
• TM Jim G. developed his Level 4 plan and built an ipso-facto team made up of ‘all y’all’ unsuspecting EarlyBirds.   More to follow!
• TM Tom regaled us with a tale of his great-grandpa who lived in Coffeyville, Kansas, where they had bank vaults on timers and resolved conflict with The Daltons via shotgun and had them sign up for a tv series.

 

As far as evaluations….

 

• TM Jeff admired TM Lois’s storytelling capabilities and good vocal variety and suggested cliffhangers are not the best way to end a speech.   He Won Best Evaluator Award.
• TM Aleta praised TM Jim G. for his impeccable virtual manners and his uncanny ability to rope us into his team without all y’all even noticing.
• DTM Kip lauded TM Tom for his tale of a gunfight on Main Street which has provided Tom with invaluable skills to deal with HOA bedlam conflict resolution.

 

In case you didn’t GET it yet, the Word of the Day was

 

BEDLAM, noun

 

Pandemonium, chaos

 

Example:   Peaceful evenings preceded bedlam at the OK Corral, now known as a national chain called Snarky Tones BBQ and Grill.

 

Meeting Recording is at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JjWdXoDBkA

 

See you next week!

 

Ana I.

Recap Writer