Public Speaking Northwest enjoys the words of Lemony Snicket, Dr. Seuss, and Groucho Marx

"Never trust anyone who has not brought a book with them." ~ Lemony Snicket, Horseradish: Bitter Truths You Can't Avoid



Everyone brought a book (or several) with them today; the much anticipated Book Auction and Open House had finally arrived. We welcomed four guests to our Open House and by meetings end, two of them had become our newest members. Nice! 

BOOK AUCTION

     "The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you'll go."
~ Dr. Seuss, I Can Read With My Eyes Shut!

Members of Public Speaking Northwest and those of other Toastmasters clubs, as well, are always learning and improving, growing as speakers and leaders. Toastmasters are going places!

"From the moment I picked your book up until I laid it down, I convulsed with laughter. Someday I intend on reading it." ~ Groucho Marx



Jean

Before we began convulsing with laughter, Jean opened the meeting with Ken, Pat, Juliet, Joanne, Jamie, Deepanjali, Mihaela, Barb, Emery, Kathy, Jan, Lynne, and four guests: Robert, Karen, Bernard, and Tamara in attendance.








Guests: Karen & Tamara



Guests: Bernard & Robert

Mustachioed Ken

Major credit for our laugh riot today goes to our auctioneer, Ken, who kept the festivities moving and never missed an opportunity to wring the laughs out of every moment. On most books, he also goosed up the bidding so we have a nice little nest egg to use on educational materials. Way to go, Ken!




Credit for the entire event goes to Mihaela for planning and coordinating all the details

Party Planner Mihaela

down to the tables appropriately garnished with alphabet letters like the printing from our books. Thanks to her nicely organized sign-up sheet, we all contributed a lovely assortment of treats and beverages to the buffet table - nothing missing and no duplicates! Many thanks, Mihaela, for a splendidly memorable event.







As auctioneer, Ken did not simply stand before us and solicit bids. No, he got into character with a straw hat and an accent that drew inspiration from Jackie Gleason's southern sheriff in the Smokey and the Bandit films. One of Mihaela's aforementioned details was a package of black stick-on mustaches that added panache to Ken's already multi-faceted auctioneer.

Ken w/Deepanjali

Ken the Auctioneer

Assorted party pix from today's Book Auction/Open House . . .



The shared Bounty

The all-important snacks

Potluck sounds so simple but the results almost always out-distance what the word seems to imply. That was certainly the case here today.

Ken & Jean

Ken's hat on Jean

Jean would not relinquish her book until finished extolling all of its fine characteristics, so, Ken, that fine character in his own right, relinquished his hat to Jean.

Joanne, Pat, Juliet

Juliet, Pat, Robert

Right: Juliet appears to be signaling an increase in the bidding.

Left: Enjoying the snacks.

Tamara describes book

Jan w/ her book

This meeting was all Table Topics all the time, as we presented our books with brief extemporaneous descriptions before handing them over to Ken for the bidding process.

Jean, Lynne, Jan, Karen, Tamara

Jamie, Deepanjali, Barb

Listeners considering their bids for the next book.

Barb presents her book

Emery's turn

Jamie offers his

Karen

Robert

Our newest members.

WELCOME, you two!

Kathy

Kathy's expression speaks volumes about our enjoyable Book Auction event.







PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE DAY ~ Deepanjali

Deepanjali w/her book

She was not shy about her first time behind the camera. By far, she shot the most pix at a single meeting.









NEWS YOU CAN USE

Speech-A-Thon coming May 21 ~ A Speech-a-Thon is what it sounds like – a speech marathon. On May 21 we will only be having speeches and evaluations; no table topics.  There will be opportunities for at least 4 speakers, so if you are close to finishing your CC or other manual, consider signing up on the duty roster. We will also need supporting roles – speech evaluators, timer, um/ah counter, grammarian and a Toastmaster. These roles will also qualify in your CL manual so sign up on the duty roster under May 21.

Renewal dues collection continues for the membership period: April 1 - September 30. Please see your Treasurer, Joanne, with either cash or checks payable to Public Speaking Northwest. Many thanks!

Good news! One manual has been returned so far. Thank you (you know who you are). Please help all outstanding loaner CC and CL manuals find their way home. Bring them with you next week, or contact Joanne for alternate arrangements. Much gratitude!


If you'd like to join us for polishing your presentations, developing leadership skills, and making friends, we welcome you.

We meet every Tuesday from noon to 1:00 PM. You'll find us at the Seattle Times Building in Bothell, Washington ~ 19200 120th Avenue NE. Feel free to bring your lunch.

To find out more contact: Jean Tracy, JeanTracy@kidsdiscuss.com, 425.745.0022.



Respectfully submitted,
Joanne Carnevale, Secretary/Treasurer

Joanne

 

 

 

 

Public Speaking Northwest follows the words of Jean de la Bruyere

"There are certain things in which mediocrity is not to be endured, such as poetry, music, painting, and public speaking." Jean de la Bruyere (1645-1696 French satiric moralist)

At Public Speaking Northwest and other Toastmasters clubs, members develop into first rate public speakers. With three guests at today's session, we wanted their meeting experience to be first rate, as well.

Jean opened the meeting with with Barb, Jan, Elaine, Kathy, Kimberly, Ken, Joanne, Pierce, Abe, Eugene, Pat, Juliet, and three guests: Eneida, Sravanthi, and Todd.

Eneida (right)

Sravanthi

Todd

As we've noted before, Toastmasters support each other and pinch hit when needed. After introducing Barb as our Toastmaster for the day, Jean then stepped into the role of Grammarian, and Ken did the same as Ah-Counter; unforeseen circumstances waylaid the members who'd originally planned to fill those roles. Jean even had a Word of the Day -- POSITIVITY -- in her pocket. Juliet, as timer, completed Barb's GATE team.

Barb ~ Toastmaster

Jean ~ Grammarian

Ken ~ Ah

Juliet ~ Timer

SPEAKERS & EVALUATORS

Pat

With his guest and fiancee, Eneida, looking on, Pat presented his second project from the CC manual, Organize Your Speech. He opened with the grim statistics we face in planning our financial futures, then provided further details about those stats. Finally, Pat closed on an encouraging note. The way we think about money plays a role how we manage it. Well said and well organized, Pat!






Jan praised Pat's talk for its organization which supported his smooth presentation and

Jan

stated that she took such a personal interest in his topic she nearly forgot to evaluate.
She appreciated Pat's attention-grabbing close about the way we "think" about money.

Ken

In addition to filling in as Ah-Counter, Ken also gave an  impromptu speech as a fill in second speaker. He opened his talk by asking audience members for their definitions of the word impromptu, then segued into our Toastmasters club mission, again asking the audience to provide quotes from the mission statement. To help us determine if we were merely involved in our club or actually committed to providing a mutually supportive and positive learning environment, Ken shared the "ham & egg" analogy where the chicken is merely involved but the pig committed.




Nicely utilizing the Word of the Day, Abe appreciated Ken's positivity. Abe praised Ken's

Abe

questions to the audience which grab our attention and draw us into the talk. In perhaps highest of praise, Abe stated that this speech would have inspired him to join Toastmasters if he'd first heard it as a guest. 






TABLE TOPICS

Elaine

Always fun and surprising, and Elaine's first gig as Topics Master did not disappoint. Offering True or False flash cards, she selected first Abe, and then our guest, Todd. Each participant shared the statement on his card, then decided if it was true or false and supported his decision in the allotted time. Both guys went with false; in each case, upon turning over the card, the opposite answer was revealed. Elaine inspired another wacky and crowd-pleasing Table Topics with much laughter from the members.


OUR BLUE RIBBON WINNERS

Best Speaker ~ Pat

Best Evaluator ~ Abe

Best Table Topics ~ Abe


GUEST FEEDBACK

Whenever guests attend, before adjourning, Jean always asks for their impressions. The positivity of each comment was inspirational and we hope these guests join us permanently

Sravanthi

in the near future. Sravanthi summarized the meeting perfectly when she said it was "an hour well spent."









PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE DAY ~ Pierce's first camera duty

Pierce

 

NEWS YOU CAN USE

Coming April 9, don't miss our highly anticipated Book Auction and Open House. This will include good eats so plan to bring guests with whom we can share the bounty. Every attendee, member or guest, should bring a new or gently used book for the auction. Using Table Topics format, we'll present our donated books and fan the flames of desire among the bidders. Ken will be our auctioneer extraordinaire.

Renewal dues collection continues for the membership period: April 1 - September 30.  Please see your Treasurer, Joanne, with either cash or checks payable to Public Speaking Northwest. Many thanks!

Please help all outstanding loaner CC and CL manuals find their way home. Bring them with you next week, or contact Joanne for alternate arrangements. Much gratitude!


If you'd like to join us for polishing your presentations, developing leadership skills, and making friends, we welcome you.

We meet every Tuesday from noon to 1:00 PM. You'll find us at the Seattle Times Building in Bothell, Washington ~ 19200 120th Avenue NE. Feel free to bring your lunch.

To find out more contact: Jean Tracy, JeanTracy@kidsdiscuss.com, 425.745.0022.


Respectfully submitted,
Joanne Carnevale, Secretary/Treasurer

Joanne

 

     

Public Speaking Northwest Enjoys the Words of Jerry Seinfeld

"According to most studies, people's number one fear is public speaking. Number two is death. Death is number two. Does that sound right? This means to the average person, if you go to a funeral, you're better off in the casket than doing the eulogy." Jerry Seinfeld


Despite "most studies" mentioned by Seinfeld, Toastmasters know that public speaking is alive, well, and thriving. Public Speaking Northwest and other Toastmasters clubs continue to welcome all, fearful or not, who desire to grow in speaking and leadership roles.


Today's meeting was no exception as we welcomed

Kimberly

Kimberly, our newest member. 






Our President, Jean, opened the meeting with Lynne, Mihaela, Pierce, Ken, Kathy, Jerry, Pat, Joanne, Kimberly, Abe, Casey, Kyle, Elaine, and our Area Governor, Tammy Preuss in attendance.

Jean with flyer

Toastmasters are also creative leaders. Jean reminded those present of our upcoming Book Auction and Open House. She distributed the eye-catching new flyer, a fabulous design collaboration between Mihaela and Barb. This will be a fun All Table Topics meeting coming on April 9. 





Lynne, today's Toastmaster, introduced her GAT(E) Team

Lynne

Grammarian: Jean / Word of Day = CAPTIVATE
Ah-Counter: Pierce
Timer: Elaine

Jean and Pierce

Elaine

SPEAKERS & EVALUATORS

Jerry

Jerry, speaking first today, brought us a topic valuable to all, but especially pertinent to Toastmasters. His title: "Are You Listening?" Hearing is a passive activity; listening is work. We should listen with silence, then paraphrase, and try to close the "gap." Jerry shared an easy reminder with us. The letters in the word LISTEN can be rearranged to spell SILENT. Good one, Jerry!

Abe

Abe praised Jerry's opening and his use of the white board for an organized presentation of information. Abe also appreciated the LISTEN = SILENT anagram. He said the anagram and several of Jerry's examples were memorable for providing relatable points at which listeners can relate and "close the gap."

Kathy

Kathy, our second speaker, gave an interpretive reading from from a 10th century Japanese story, The Bamboo Cutter and the Moon Child, considered one of the earliest examples of science fiction in that one of its characters comes from the moon. 

Ken

Ken began his evaluation by inviting three audience members to show how well they listened to the reading by offering one suggestion each. Ken incorporated those suggestions into his evaluation. He praised Kathy's gestures and how they accentuated points in the story.





TABLE TOPICS

Mihaela

Mihaela presented another fun Table Topics by having her volunteers select cards on which were written headlines. The participants had to share the headline and tell its story.






Joanne's headline: Finding better ways to change students' misbehavior.
Pierce's headline: Hundreds checked after organ donor dies of rabies.
Abe's headline: Lead batter recycling has moved to Mexico.

Pierce

Abe

OUR BLUE RIBBON WINNERS

Best Speaker ~ Jerry

Best Evaluator ~ Abe

Best Table Topics ~ Pierce

Before Jean adjourned the meeting, Tammy Preuss, Area Governor, thanked our club for its support and participation in last week's area contest.  

PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE DAY: Joanne

NEWS YOU CAN USE

Coming April 9, don't miss our highly anticipated Book Auction and Open House. This will include good eats so plan to bring guests with whom we can share the bounty. Every attendee, member or guest, should bring a new or gently used book for the auction. Using Table Topics format, we'll present our donated books and fan the flames of desire among the bidders. Ken will be our auctioneer extraordinaire.

Dues collection continues for the upcoming membership period: April 1 - September 30, and we want to qualify for the District 2 incentive prize drawings. Please see your Treasurer, Joanne, with either cash or checks payable to Public Speaking Northwest. Many thanks!

Please help all outstanding loaner CC and CL manuals find their way home. Bring them with you next week, or contact Joanne for alternate arrangements. Much gratitude!


If you'd like to join us for polishing your presentations, developing leadership skills, and making friends, we welcome you.

We meet every Tuesday from noon to 1:00 PM. You'll find us at the Seattle Times Building in Bothell, Washington ~ 19200 120th Avenue NE. Feel free to bring your lunch.

To find out more contact: Jean Tracy, JeanTracy@kidsdiscuss.com, 425.745.0022.

Respectfully submitted,

Joanne, Secretary/Treasurer

Notice of Upcoming Book Auction & Open House!

Book Auction -       

 

An All Table Topics Meeting -

 

Would you like to SHARE A BOOK that you just loved?

Wouldn’t you like to BUY A NEW FAVORITE FOR PENNIES on the dollar?

Do you ENJOY THE FUN OF TABLE TOPICS?

Here’s a unique opportunity to experience it all at a memorable Toastmasters meeting!

Come to Public Speaking Northwest’s special meeting:

Book Auction

Tuesday, April 9, 2013, 12:00 - 1:00 p.m.

Seattle Times Building in Bothell

19200 120^th Ave NE, Bothell, WA 98011

BRING A “GENTLY USED” BOOK AND BE PREPARED
TO TELL US WHY WE WOULD LOVE IT TOO.

Then let the Auctioneer take over!
(Proceeds will be used for educational materials for new Toastmasters)

All guests are welcome – even more welcome if you bring a book!

For more information, contact Mihaela Susan, Assistant VP of Education, Public Speaking Northwest Toastmaster Club. Contact info: mihaela_susan@yahoo.com /206.972.8260

 

Public Speaking Northwest Enjoys the Words of Franklin Delano Roosevelt

Today's meeting met with some potential obstacles. Illnesses and emergencies left us with several roles unfilled at the last moment.

"When you come to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on." Franklin Delano Roosevelt

Toastmasters are hearty folks, able to persevere and "hang on" in the face of adversity.

Jean

Our President, Jean, took on the duties of Sergeant-at-Arms and Toastmaster. She opened the meeting with Mihaela, Kyle, Jamie, Barb, Joanne, Eugene, John, Juliet, Cheryl, Pierce, Kathy, Elaine, and one guest, Matt in attendance.


Due to our increased membership, and in an effort to allow more speaking opportunities without losing Table Topics and General Evaluator, as well as holding the meetings to one hour for working members, Jean announced some time-saving measures we will try in hopes of accomplishing those goals.

Items we will delete from meetings:

~ Invocation
~ Thank G-d for Toastmasters *
~ Weekly Toastmasters will no longer need to determine a theme, thus saving them time before and during meetings in researching and sharing theme-related quotes and anecdotes.

Remaining in our meetings will be the Mission Statement and Pledge of Allegiance. If these measures save enough time for two Table Topics, we will be spared from having to extend meetings an extra 10 minutes.

* We members will still experience TGFT moments when our speech training gets us through a situation that would have knocked us flat prior to Toastmasters. We are encouraged to share them with Joanne for inclusion in this newsletter. For instance, Joanne shares the following quasi-TGFT incident (admittedly not the "textbook definition" of TGFT).

TGFT

The Sunday, February 24 NWJobs section of Seattle Times printed a Career Center post from one of its bloggers entitled Why you must be able to speak in front of people. The author points out that most people at a funeral would prefer to be the deceased rather than the person giving the eulogy. She makes an excellent case for why we need to overcome this fear: interviews, meetings, daily work interactions; she closes with "The key is practice. Good luck." but never mentions where one might find opportunities for practice. Joanne visited the blog site and left a comment directing its readers to our club's web site and that of Toastmasters International.

Henceforth, this blog/newsletter looks forward to including your TGFT stories, either textbook or quasi. Keep 'em coming!

Today's GAT(E) Team

Grammarian: Juliet / Word of Day ~ AROUSE
Ah-Counter: Pierce
Timer: Mihaela filled in (Kyle took over during her Table Topics segment)

Juliet

Pierce

Mihaela

SPEAKERS & EVALUATORS

Kyle

Our first speaker, Kyle, presented Project #7 from our CC manual, Research Your Topic. He has researched his company's entire technological manual in preparation for an upcoming training workshop which he will teach. Kyle asked for an audience member to call out a number; using that number, without prior planning, he presented Chapter 8 from his company manual as a practice workshop. Way to go, Kyle!

Jamie

In Jamie's evaluation, he praised Kyle's comfort with and knowledge of his material, so obvious in that he could ask the audience to supply the chapter number. Jamie also appreciated the restaurant analogy Kyle used, which gave a relatable image for the non-techies in the audience. Jamie even had a couple of helpful suggestions for Kyle to integrate into his real workshop.

Elaine

Speaking second, Elaine shared a talk entitled Spring Cleaning, appropriate for Project #2 Organize Your Speech, in the CC manual. She displayed house cleaning props, described the cleaning and organizing process, then seamlessly transitioned into de-cluttering our lives and making way for the accomplishment of our goals. Well done, Elaine!

Jean

Jean enjoyed the speech so much, she began her evaluation by asking Elaine to be her cleaning lady. In an appropriate use of the Word of the Day, Jean praised Elaine's ability to present a problem, arouse us to its importance, then provide a solution. Jean made special mention of Elaine's use of metaphor: house cleaning and life de-cluttering.



TABLE TOPICS

Mihaela

Mihaela held index cards on which were written less commonly used vocabulary words. First, John selected a card and had to convince us of his definition of the word centurion. The second volunteer, Elaine, defined the word sapience for us. Mihaela presented a fun and creative Table Topic while her participants piled on the enjoyment with their responses to the little-known words. Applause for all!


OUR BLUE RIBBON WINNERS

Best Speaker ~ Elaine
Best Evaluator ~ Jamie
Best Table Topics ~ Elaine

Before adjourning the meeting, Jean called on the Treasurer, Joanne, to update us on the status of renewal dues collection. Joanne thanked all who renewed so far, stating that we qualified for the first District 2 drawing. She attempted to arouse more members to renew as we focus on the second D2 drawing which requires at least 90% of base renewed before March 15.

Matt

Jean acknowledged our guest, Matt, and asked him for his impressions of our club. Matt has been auditing several local Toastmasters club meetings and commented on our ability to "take in stride" multiple absences at the last minute. We hope to see Matt again soon.




PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE DAY

Eugene

Although still a "new" member, he didn't hesitate to volunteer for camera duty today. This edition of the newsletter benefits from his splendid shots. Great job, Eugene.







NEWS YOU CAN USE

Coming April 9, don't miss our highly anticipated Book Auction and Open House. This will include good eats so plan to bring guests with whom we can share the bounty. Every attendee, member or guest, should bring a new or gently used book for the auction. Using Table Topics format, we'll present our donated books and fan the flames of desire among the bidders. We're hoping one of our favorite speakers will act as auctioneer. Fingers crossed!

Dues collection continues for the upcoming membership period: April 1 - September 30, and we want to qualify for the District 2 incentive prize drawings. Please see your Treasurer, Joanne, with either cash or checks payable to Public Speaking Northwest. Many thanks!

Please help all outstanding loaner CC and CL manuals find their way home. Bring them with you next week, or contact Joanne for alternate arrangements. Much gratitude!


If you'd like to join us for polishing your presentations, developing leadership skills, and making friends, we welcome you.

We meet every Tuesday from noon to 1:00 PM. You'll find us at the Seattle Times Building in Bothell, Washington ~ 19200 120th Avenue NE. Feel free to bring your lunch.

To find out more contact: Jean Tracy, JeanTracy@kidsdiscuss.com, 425.745.0022.

Respectfully submitted,

Joanne, Secretary/Treasurer