Hobbies
by Rubette Cowan
On January 25, 2022, Peter Gierlach led our meeting as Toastmaster, with a theme of Hobbies. Hilarity ensued.
Boy, do we have an interesting and diverse group of hobby-ers. Since there was only one speech that night, there was time for lots of Table Topics. People told us about hobbies they started during Covid, hobbies they went back to during Covid, hobbies they would like to start after Covid. Here’s a list of what people shared:
Baking
Hot air ballooning
Tennis
NFTs and cryptocurrency
Starting a YouTube channel
Dancing in the shower
Volunteering
Pandemic gardening
Horseback riding
Camping and backpacking
Relearning how to play violin
Watercolor painting
Cross-stitching
These were all really fun to learn about from our fellow Toastmasters, but the most unique and fun hobby by far was the one we learned about from Pat deSa. Her favorite, and in her words “crazy” hobby is… (drum roll) Human Pyramid-ing!! What is that, you might ask. Here’s Pat’s explanation of what it is and how she came to enjoy it so much.
“It all started when I was 14 and was asked by a total stranger to be in a human pyramid as part of her initiation into a sorority at Stanford. Turns out the stranger was famous: Olympic and national figure skater Debi Thomas. I've enjoyed making pyramids ever since - with family, with friends, with coworkers...anyone willing and able. My family even did a human pyramid for a holiday card one year. Today in 2022, I'm realizing what I love about human pyramids is that they're the antithesis of social distancing: fitting a bunch of people into about six cubic feet of space!”
And if you need proof:
Achievements!
Katie Gibbons has successfully completed Levels 1, 2, and 3 of Presentation Mastery.
Kristen Clopton has successfully completed Level 5 of Strategic Relationships.
Making History
Women's History month is here and I wanted to highlight our current Toastmasters World Champion; Verity Price. She is a keynote speaker, facilitator, and MC from Cape Town, South Africa. The winning speech she gave was titled "The Great Read", which tells the story of how reading a letter changed her outlook and her life.
Though the Toastmasters organization began in 1924, women were not admitted into the club until 1973. And in the almost 50 years since women became members, only 5 other winners have been female. Verity Price is the 6th woman in Toastmasters history to accomplish this feat.
To succeed in public speaking, Price outlines 5 successful tips.*
Be clear on the message you want to get across
Spend time structuring your speech
Find your natural speaking voice
Remember the audience
Practice, practice, practice!
To gather more inspiration for your next speech you can watch Verity's winning performance here. Her 2021 Toastmasters semi-finals speech is also available to view on YouTube. Her 2015 winning evaluation for District 74 Evaluation Champion is here.
*Reference Forbes article "How To Speak Like Toastmasters World Champion Verity Price" by Henry DeVries
Potluck Performance
Rockridge Toastmasters took advantage of the sunny day to gather and enjoy some good food. Our potluck on Saturday, February 19th was a great opportunity to connect with members we have not seen in person for over two years. This was also an opportunity to meet members we only new via Zoom.
The afternoon was full of delicious food, drink, and conversation. Dishes included black pepper macaroni & cheese, vegan empanada, lasagna, salads, sausage dish, and desserts such as cake and brownies. But les plats du jour were the speech given by Russ Singer and his evaluation by Megan Pratt.
Russ' speech was titled "Starting from Scratch"... a nod to giving a speech for the first time in person in over two years. Giving this speech to an audience took Russ back to the beginning when he began with Toastmasters. He said he could feel the butterflies and nerves come back to him prior to the speech, but once he was speaking again, he got back into the groove. Megan joined only a month before confinement began, so this was her first time giving an evaluation in person and did an amazing job. Both of our speakers gave wonderful performances that entertained the audience and gave us a glimpse of returning to "normal" club meetings. Our timer, Rubette, also did a great job and was well prepared by brining her own green, yellow, and red cards to assure the speakers see them clearly.
Thank you to all the Rockridge Toasties who attended and brought such delicious food and great conversations to share!
Happy Persian New Year
By Monir Memarpuri
The Iranian new year “Norouz”, with it’s roots in ancient Zorastrian religion, usually begins within a day of 20 March of the Gregorian calendar and has been celebrated for more than 3000 years. Norouz is the first day of spring, which coincides with the spring equinox, a point where the sunlight is evenly divided between the north and south hemispheres therefore day and night are even.
Before Norouz, Persians clean their house completely, which is known as “shaking house.” An Iranian tradition is to purchase a new set of clothes.
The Wednesday Eve before Norouz, otherwise known as Chahar Shanbeh Suri, the community gathers to lite bonfires, over which people take turns to leap, to chant, to trick or treat, and display fireworks.
As shown in the photo below, people decorate the "haft sin" table with offerings that include 7 items whose names start with the "S" sound, symbolizing seven holy immortals. A traditional family meal is rice with green herbs served with smoked/fried fish and herbal Kookoo (a frittata).
During this 13-day holiday, people visit families and friends, the elderly first, and exchange gifts, and brand new money. Hosts serve fresh and dried fruits, nuts and pastries. On the 13th day, people enjoy nature and picnic outdoors. Unmarried individuals may tie knots in the greenery collected on this day as a wish for a partner.
