Meeting Minutes for October 22, 2007

Greetings Fellow Toastmasters,

The meeting of October 22, 2007 was called to order at 8:00 P.M. by Club
President Anna D. with Marlene Flom presiding as Toastmaster and Joanne E.
as Word Master. She chose the word "disingenuous" as the Word for the Day.
As part of her work in the Advanced Series, Anna D. also served as both
Table Topics Master and General Evaluator. Malcolm agreed to serve as Ah
Counter, and Branko served as Timer. Jim, Arlene, Grace, Michelle, Joanne,
Joe, and Doris all responded to a variety of questions posed during the
Table Topics session, and all speakers completed the task within
Toastmasters International recommended time guidelines. All of the
participants were good, but Arlene's quote from an Ogden Nash poem - "God in
his wisdom made the fly, and then forgot to tell us why - was especially
memorable. Joe spoke of vicarious experience and of living on Mars 100
years from now, and Doris spoke eloquently, using the word for the day in
the process. When the ballots were counted, however, Michelle walked away
with Best Table Topics Speaker honors. The quality of her comments about a
chair, her great presence, and her vocal variety won audience favor. The
four guests present - Maria, Dana, Judy, and Diana - participated in the
voting, and they were also invited to introduce themselves. Elena was the
first scheduled speaker on the agenda. She completed "Shaky Memory" - Speech
Project #5 (Your Body Speaks). Good vocal variety and expressive body
language made her commentary about the Loma Prieta Earthquake in California
very interesting indeed. Kim was her evaluator. Don spoke next and completed
Speech Project #7 (Research Your Topic). The topic: "War Between China and
Vietnam," allowed him to use Google Map features and other visual aids in
his very effective presentation. Arlene was his evaluator. Linda completed
her Icebreaker, "Grandmother at 62." I was impressed by how well she
connected with the audience with good body language, warm eye contact, and
excellent vocal variety. Malcolm and Doris both spoke as Evaluators of her
presentation. Melissa completed Speech Project #5 (Your Body Speaks)
titled:"Useful Tips From An Expert." As her evaluator, I was most impressed
by her strong opening and closing statements, her overall expressiveness,
her purposeful and animated body language, and her strategic use of humor in
a very well organized presentation about the care of an infant, where she
outlined and explained five techniques. When the ballots were counted, Linda
was voted Best Speaker, and Woody (me) was voted Best Evaluator for the
evening. After a brief business session led by Kim, the meeting was
adjourned shortly before 10:00 P.M.
The next regular meeting is November 12, 2007 8:00 P.M. Westview Community
Room