It was the end of Rey’s term as president, and her last meeting with us before her move to Washington.  The tears started right away when our Invocator Patrick led us in “You are my sunshine.”  Our theme was Thank You, because Rey has done so very much for our club.  We were blessed to have you as our president.

Corky, our Toastmaster, demonstrated his skill by all at once honoring the sentimental tone of the meeting, keeping it moving at a lively pace, and welcoming guests to make them feel immediately at home.

During Table Topics, Eric did a tongue-in-cheek tribute to Rey, recounting all the ways Rey got on his nerves: her hatred for animals, her history of puppy-kicking, and her draining downbeat attitude.  Taline tried bravely not to cry while describing the ways Rey has been supportive and generous to Taline and Taline’s whole family.  No surprise there, as we have seen that Rey is a loyal friend and advocate to all. Maureen raved about Rey’s ability to bring the positive energy, and the wonderful way she has set the tone for our club, like a … wait for it …Rey of Sunshine.

Wendy did a serious speech today, and quite a thought-provoking one at that. We were asked to ponder the fates of criminals and schizophrenic children – how much sympathy is in order, and what role are we expected to take to be of assistance?  Evaluator Lora applauded Wendy for leaving her comfort zone by confronting a difficult topic, and for responding gracefully to the technical difficulties in the video presentation portion of her speech.

Carlos completed his tenth speech, earning the Competent Communicator certification, giving our club 10 out of 10 goals for the President’s Distinguished Club award.  In our second uncharacteristically serious speech of the day,  Carlos talked about the atrocities of animal cruelty, including seal clubbing, dog fighting, and the oil spill’s tragic impact on wildlife.  Especially fascinating was the section on Michael Vick, who now speaks to kids about how wrong animal cruelty is.  Evaluator Robin pointed out the unintentionally funny aspects of Carlos’ Power Point Presentation, and lightened up the mood in the room, while making some insightful points about maintaining consistency in the tone of a speech.

Stuart did a humorous, witty, self-effacing speech about weddings, taking one last opportunity to poke fun at the ever-good-natured Rey.  Brian did an exemplary evaluation, shining a spotlight on Stuart’s easy charming demeanor, his comfort in front of the group, and the fine job he did on presenting a well-organized speech.  It’s always a challenge for an evaluator to find ways Stuart can improve: Brian suggested that Stuart experiment with moving around more and tapping into his more tender emotions for future speeches.

New officers were installed, and that was that.  We love you Rey!!!
Congratulations to our ribbon winners!

• Best Table Topic: Eric
• Best Speaker: Stuart
• Best Evaluator: Brian
• Most Enthusiastic: Rey
• Best Use of Humor: Robin

Looking forward to seeing you all next Wednesday to kick off a new Toastmasters year with our new President Corky!

Best Table Topic – Brendan

Best Speaker – Russell

Best Evaluator – Brian

Most Enthusiastic – Erin

Best Use of Humor – Albert

Becky was Table Topics Master calling on Heather, Russell, and Amy.  Heather talked about and demonstrated the advantages of reverting to a grunting, pointing form of communication for humans – our lives would be so much simpler rather than trying to use clever words to convey our thoughts and feelings.  Russell shared with us his mission to hold onto his aging, technologically challenged car that he simply will never let go.  From Amy, we learned about the Amy-Amy click; it was Amy and Amy’s good high school friend, Amy.  Amy and Amy had complimentary strengths that got them through the trials and tribulations of American teenage life.

The day’s speakers were Jim, Robert, and Taline. 

Jim gave his icebreaker speech in which he talked about his life in Namaste.  He shared with us a series of stories from his life starting when he was just five years old and his discovery that he can connect and build friendships with anyone.  Robert shared a sweet story about a fellow toastmaster, Eric, and the care Eric provides to his aging father.  It was told in the realm of recognizing our opportunities to learn from others around us and to care for those around us.  Taline gave a heart warming speech about friends.  She spoke about how powerful friendships are – they are bonds of choice.  Through the sweet and hilarious stories she told, Taline illustrated how friends can truly understand you, get you at moments when your family simply does not.

Best Table Topic – Heather

Best Speaker – Taline

Best Evaluator – Stuart

Most Enthusiastic – Taline

Best Use of Humor – Taline

Corky was Table Topics Master tossing questions at Wendy, Becky, Robin, and Albert.  Wendy told us about a time her tongue got her in trouble.  Well, really it was the stubborn tongue piercing that took pliers to wrench it free from her mouth before a Takwendo competition.  Becky shared with us how she planned to fill in the lost spirit and enthusiasm of the “soul sisters” (Rey and Erin) once they move to the Northwest.  It appears platform shoes and spirits serve as the foundation for Becky’s plan.  Robin had us chuckling as he talked about a few times where he was quite a heel.  Sometimes Robin can get a bit intense in jam sessions particularly when he is trying to take his rake playing to a whole new level.  Finally, Albert talked about his interesting shoe store experience in which the shoe salesman had him try on some exotics….exotic shoes.

Brad and Stuart were the day’s speakers.

Brad gave his seventh speech from the Competent Communication Manual.  It was titled “Wedding Speech A”.  He delivered his wedding speech for his friend, Brad, and Brad’s soon to be wife, Kristen.  It was a hilarious and heart warming speech.  We learned quite a bit about Brad 1 and Brad 2 including one of the more revealing moments in their friendship where they ran naked through the streets of Burlington, VT.  Fortunately, Kristen is also adventurous and is a great match for Brad’s friend, Brad.

Stuart delivered a speech from The Successful Club Series manual titled “Creating the Best Club Climate”.  It was a wonderfully informative speech about what we can do to make sure Capital City Toastmasters remains a comfortable, inviting, encouraging environment in which people can overcome their fears of public speaking and can always continue to improve upon their public speaking skills.  Some of the twelve items Stuart noted as ways to improve our club climate include: 1) volunteer for committees and officer positions; 2) be supportive of others; 3) mentor others; 4) give excellent evaluations; 5) recognize others’ achievements; and 6) foster camaraderie.  All things we do at Capital City, but we can always find ways to do more of them or to do them better.

Ribbon Winners:

Best Table Topic – Wendy

Best Speaker – Brad

Most Enthusiastic – Amy

Best Evaluator – Brian

Best Humor – Brad

Louis was Table Topics Master sharing some anecdotes about his personal efforts to avoid paying income taxes.  He prodded Russell, Carol, and Albert with questions regarding their views on taxes.  Russell shared with us his opinion that more tax money should be designated to help improve public education as well as offer adults affordable opportunities for professional development.  Carol entertained us with her story of being audited by the IRS!  As she put it, “Why are you picking on me?  I don’t have any money, people!”  The IRS seemed not to care; they audited Carol anyway.  Our emperor, Albert, told us his thoughts on what would be the best tax system – get rid of income taxes and have a national sales tax.  A proposal that even won support from Corky.

Darron, Robert, and Erin were the day’s speakers.

Darron gave his second speech from the Competent Communication Manual.  He titled it “John’s Wedding Speech”.  He shared with us the best-man speech he wrote for his best friend’s John’s upcoming wedding.  It was an entertaining, humorous speech about these two quiet, soft spoken bachelors, devoted wingmen to each other and their quest to each find the perfect woman to marry – a challenging quest to undertake in the bars of Austin.  Both found the woman of their dreams in slightly different ways, but supporting each other along the way.  It was a sweet, funny, and sincere speech – no doubt, it will be hit at the wedding reception!  We are looking forward to speech number three!

In his fifth speech, Robert discussed his recent adventures in “Speed Networking”.  As part of Robert’s new business adventure, he decided to go to an e-women’s networking conference to meet potential clients.  He was the only man among about 70 women.  Robert received a crash course lesson in reading and understanding the body gestures and facial expressions of quick thinking, businesswomen at work – everything from “the shoulder shrug” to the “moving on look”.  It was an experience that seemed to have a positive influence on Robert as he plans to go back for more with subsequent conferences.  An entertaining speech and we are hoping Robert will do more impersonations of women in the future!

Erin gave her tenth speech; it was titled “Nine Months”.  It was a farewell speech with the element of inspiration.  She opened the speech with a poem by Edgar Lee Masters titled George Gray – the same poem she opened her icebreaker speech with nine months ago.  Erin recounted what she learned from various fellow toastmasters.  Her stories and lessons evoked laughter and smiles from many – and of course, tears as well.  In one month, Erin will move to Portland, Oregon for her career.  She will miss us all.  Her speech reminded us to make the most of our surroundings:  Give each other love and support; don’t shrink from it or run from it. Embrace sorrow because to know it is to know happiness.  Most of all, answer the calls of ambition; strive to achieve more than you think you can and you will be stunned by where you end up, and the people you get to meet along the way.  Take to the seas my friends – I hope to see you out there.

Ribbon Winners:

Best Table Topic – Albert

Best Speaker – Darron

Most Enthusiastic – Erin

Best Evaluator – Patrick

Best Humor – Robert

The ever awesome and glowing, Ms. Rey of Sunshine was Table Topics Master.  She picked out four victims: Wendy, Becky, Patrick and Amy.  Wendy shared her thoughts on public rail transportation – she made Erin, the resident transportation engineer, so happy and proud by spouting off all of the great economic benefits rail can bring to a city.  Becky told us about her suffocating carpooling adventures with smoky Shirley and her husband – Becky drew the line at serving as a car seat for Shirley’s niece. Patrick synched a slew of ribbons the moment he handed his chewed gum to Rey.  He went on to give an enthusiastic rant about the need for more character and attitude in the Austin skyline.  Amy confessed she is the problem neighbor: a front door with paint and dried tomato (or was it egg) peeling off of it, a lawn tall enough to hide a decades worth of Easter eggs, and spirited, lively, inspirational dogs.

Li and Louis were the day’s speakers.

Li gave her second speech from the Competent Communication Manual; she titled it “Real People, Real Case”.  From Li we learned about Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and the real people influenced by SSDI.  Li told us about a memorable case she handled (she is an agent that reviews claims made in Texas).  We heard about the five-step process cases go through to determine whether the individual applying for SSDI is eligible.  We also heard about some of the heartbreaking plight in some individuals’ quest to obtain SSDI benefits.  Li’s take home message was to remember there are people and stories behind the snippets of statistics we see each day.

Louis gave a speech from an advanced manual, the Interpersonal Communication Manual.  The title of the project and speech was “The Coach”.  Louis did a nice job of introducing us all to the topic of coaching in a business atmosphere.  Essentially, considering how to effectively and positively influence an employee’s job performance.  The speech was organized into some introductory remarks, which flowed into a role-play with Robin serving as the employee with potential to improve.  The speech closed with a summary by Louis and a question and answer session with the audience.  Corky even pitched in his words of wisdom when it comes to coaching employees – managers/owners should approach the subject from the perspective of wanting to help the employee make more money, succeed beyond his or her current company position or another similar angle where the employee can see the clear benefit to himself or herself.

Ribbon Winners:

Best Table Topic – Patrick

Best Speaker – Li

Most Enthusiastic – Patrick

Best Evaluator – Darron

Best Humor – Patrick

Lora was Table Topics Master tossing questions at Leeanne, Carlos, and Stuart.  We heard about a recent bizarre dream Leeanne had – within the dream, Amy ended up sleeping in a coffin.  Carlos told us about his family’s tradition of always being at least a couple hours late to most planned events.  Stuart shared with us some of the teasing he endured as a child due to his name…pour, Stew.

The day’s speakers were Joey, Erin and Taline.

Joey’s speech was titled “The City of Enchantment”; it was his third speech from the Competent Communication (CC) Manual.  We learned about Joey’s hometown, Lake Jackson – The City of Enchantment, in his eyes.  A city with catchy street names: “This Way”, “That Way” and “Winding Way”.  A city’s whose residents have found ways to make the most of its “Gumbo” ground creating the actual Lake Jackson from a swamp and turning it into a premiere training ground for scuba diving amongst wreckage.  A one of a kind hometown!

Erin gave her eighth speech from the CC Manual.  She expanded our minds and pushed our abilities to new levels by teaching everyone how to juggle.  Erin chose two fellow toastmasters, Lora and Stuart, to try learning how to juggle in “Three Easy Steps”.  Both Lora and Stuart made strong progress with Erin’s instruction.  Everyone got to take home a handout to practice on their own.  Rumor is there will be some follow-up “pop-quizzes” in the future to check on everyone’s progress.

Taline gave her second speech from the Specialty Speeches Manual; it was titled “Jeff Wilson”.  It was a touching speech about a close friend of hers, Jeff, whose life was cut tragically short by a driver that lost control of a vehicle.  Jeff was the kind of guy that made the most of life.  He knew life was precious and sought to fit in as much of the things he loved as he could – his friends, music, concerts.  He shared this wisdom with others with one of his last blogs reading “Grab ‘Let it Be’, preferably on vinyl, sit back and listen.”

Ribbon Winners:

Best Table Topic – Stuart

Best Speaker – Erin

Most Enthusiastic – Erin

Best Evaluator – Albert

Best Humor – Stuart

Maria served as Table Topics Master.  She got Keith to talk about what his four legged, creepy crawly friends from the garden say to him – we learned Keith is very protective of his crops.  Maria also got Neil to discuss the conversation he had with the giant red oak trees in his front yard – turns out Neil isn’t all that fluent in oak.  Finally, Li shared with us stories of a family reunion filled with plenty relatives – everyone from youngest cousin to oldest aunt.

Darron, Robby and Rey were the day’s speakers.

Darron gave his icebreaker speech; it was titled “Wedding Season”.  We learned his final push to join toastmasters was motivated to be prepared for wedding season.  Darron wants to get geared up to rock his best man speeches at his upcoming buddy’s, John, wedding.  He also has his own wedding to look forward to on June 5^th.  During the course of his story telling it also became clear that Darron is the guy to see if you need to improve your golf swing – and who doesn’t need to improve their golf swing, really.  All in all it was a great first speech – we hope to see his second speech on the way soon.

Robby gave his third speech from the Competent Communication Manual.  His speech was titled “Social Entrepreneurship”.  He enlightened us on ways entrepreneurs can develop successful business models that not only turn a profit but also give back to communities.  A central example in his speech was TOMS shoes.  For every pair of TOMS shoes purchased, a new pair of TOMS shoes goes to a child in need.  His supporting example came from the founder of Patagonia who has been a life long outdoors enthusiast who has found ways to make outdoor recreational sports, like rock climbing, less destructive to the natural environment.  It was definitely a thought provoking speech.

Rey gave her 5^th speech from the Interpretive Reading Manual.  She recreated Princess Diana’s famous speech, “Responding to Landmines”.  Princess Diana originally gave the speech on June 12, 1997.  The speech calls to attention the lethal impact such mines have on some of the poorest citizens of the world.  The extent of land mines death toll is largely unknown in many developed countries, but a stark living reality in previous and current war torn countries.  Rey did a beautiful job bringing this speech to life again.  We commend her on tackling a difficult speech project and doing so with such a famously powerful speech.

Ribbon Winners:

Best Table Topic – Keith

Best Speaker – Darron

Most Enthusiastic – Brian

Best Evaluator – Amy

Best Humor – Keith

Brian was Table Topics Master for the day.  He confessed he has the hidden talent or maybe not so hidden talent of aggravating his wife – even when he has the best of intentions.  Heather, a brand new member, was the first victim to face one of Brian’s table topic questions.  She responded like an absolute pro – as if she was born for table topics.  She shared with us and showed us her hidden ability to read people’s minds by simply holding something they own – it was awesome.  John was Brian’s second victim.  John told us about his aspirations to make it onto American Idol – he only needs to find a way around the age limit (as he said he is only a few days beyond 27 years old) and that trivial piece of singing in the correct key.  Taline was so thrilled to get to answer Brian’s third table topic question.  Taline shared with us her dream of having a weekly news column to comment on people, places, events, and her latest movie star crush.

Brandon, Wendy, and Stuart were the day’s speakers.

Brandon gave his first speech!  It was titled “A Little Learning is a Dangerous Thing”.  Brandon, another very new member, spoke like a natural with a pleasant, calm, composed demeanor.  As Albert put it, he is clearly future Emperor material; he did a great job bringing literature to life.  We got to hear about Brandon’s experiences in reading some of the classics like Don Quixote and some of the disastrous things that followed when he would try to apply what he read in books to his every day life.  It was an entertaining speech revealing depth and wisdom – we are looking forward to speech number two.

Wendy gave her sixth speech from the Competent Communication Manual; her speech was titled “Confessions of a Secret Agent Wanna-Be: Part 2”.  It was the continuing saga of Wendy’s quest to become an FBI Secret Agent.  We heard about her Phase 1 testing experience in San Antonio.  She had us chuckling as she recounted the tight security screening they had to endure and the three elements of Phase 1 testing: biodata, logical reasoning test, and a situational judgment test.  But, alas, while we heard about these tests we did not hear whether she continued onto Phase 2.  There are rumors that this story will continue with an upcoming “Part 3”.  Please keep an eye on your local listings (i.e., the roster) for the next installment of this adventure.

Stuart was the third speaker of the day; he gave his last speech from the Speaking to Inform Manual.  The title of the speech was “Begging the Question”.  We learned the structure of a logical argument, what a logical argument looks like and how to most effectively use them.  This knowledge led the way for Stuart to teach us what “Begging the Question” really means – it is so commonly miss used in every day language.   The phrase refers to a logical fallacy (i.e., an invalid argument).  It occurs when someone uses circular reasoning to “prove” or “conclude” something.

Ribbon Winners:

Best Table Topic – Heather

Best Speaker – Wendy

Most Enthusiastic – Wendy

Best Evaluator – Louis

Best Humor – Wendy

Albert served as Table Topics Master with a record setting (or near record setting) five table topic speakers.  Erin honored her younger brother with a toast to wish him the best in his new marriage.  Li gave her acceptance speech for winning the award for the greatest movie of all time.  Russell recounted his unique tale of how he saw one of his all time favorite films, Forrest Gump, for the first time.  Zhara had us laughing as she recounted some of the racy scenes she shared on the big screen with stars like Tobey Maguire – it is all work and no play.  Corky aged himself by telling us how the film Tom Jones enriched his life when it first came out in 1963- never underestimate the wisdom that can be found in a British comedy.

Wendy, Kristina, and Amy were the day’s speakers.

Wendy gave her fifth speech from the Competent Communication Manual; her speech was titled “Confessions of a Secret Agent Wanna-Be: Part 1”.  She told us her story of how her mid-youth crisis (she recently turned 33 years old) had inspired her to push the envelope, step outside of her proverbial box.  She considered the Peace Corps, military, but then she stumbled upon an opening for Special Agent in the FBI.  She applied and low and behold she was selected for Phase 1 testing.  Tune in next week to hear what happened next!

Kristina gave her ice breaker speech; it was titled “Confession of the Day: “I ‘Slike’ You!”.  In her first speech, we learned Kristina is one humorous and adventurous person.  She is of Danish decent; was born in Columbia…..South Carolina.  She has lived in Austin for about 20 years with a five-year stint in Los Angeles, California mixed in.  In LA she experienced earthquakes first hand.  She is now back in Austin working as a consultant in conflict resolution.  We are excited to have her as a member of our club and are looking forward to many more speeches from her.

Amy gave an advanced manual speech titled “It’s Never too Late”.  She caught our attention with a story about a kind, patient waiter whom resembled Antonio Banderas and taught her the lesson that it is never too late for just about anything.  Amy admitted she tends to be late to many things….not using the internet until age 40, stand-up comedy at 45, and just last year she started banking online.  She was also way behind on induction ceremonies.  And since it is never too late, new members since last July were inducted.  Becky, Li, Joey, Brandon, Kristina and Erin are all now officially members of Capital City Toastmasters.  Congratulations!

Ribbon Winners:

Best Table Topic – Erin

Best Speaker – Wendy

Most Enthusiastic – Patrick

Best Evaluator – Stuart

Best Humor – Wendy