Dinner at Mellow Mushroom.
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| Everyone |
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| Intriguing wall-art! |
Friday, 29 July 2011
27th Meeting of 2011
The theme of the meeting was "Whose Toast Is It Anyway", with a series of improvisational activities for TableTopics. The Toastmaster of the Day was Jag Swaminathan, and the Word of the Day was "instinctive".
We had two prepared speeches. Tatiana Makhinova delivered her #3 speech on "Pharmacoeconomics: Why do we need it?". Alex Loh gave his #2 speech on "Every hero needs a Sidekick".
Justin Hall, as Topics Master, gave each speaker a simple question, such as "What did you do in the morning". Halfway through the talk he offered the speaker a word randomly pulled from a hat, such as "zucchini", which the speaker had to incorporate into the talk as seamlessly as possible. This led to some hilarious results, such as the bushel of zucchini that Eamon claimed to have eaten during the course of his morning run.
Eamon O'Dea was the General Evaluator. Jordi Calveras and Maryam Ali evaluated the speeches. Supporting roles were filled by Andrew Engel (Grammarian), Xiang Hu (Ah Counter), Irina (Time Keeper), and Jordi Calveras (Vote Counter).
Attendees were: Jordi Calveras, Kayoko, Xiang Hu, Irina, Tatiana Makhinova, Andrew Engel, Eamon O'Dea, Maryam Ali, Hieu Nguyen, Dmitri, Justin Hall, Jag Swaminathan, Tom Vamvanij.
We had two prepared speeches. Tatiana Makhinova delivered her #3 speech on "Pharmacoeconomics: Why do we need it?". Alex Loh gave his #2 speech on "Every hero needs a Sidekick".
Justin Hall, as Topics Master, gave each speaker a simple question, such as "What did you do in the morning". Halfway through the talk he offered the speaker a word randomly pulled from a hat, such as "zucchini", which the speaker had to incorporate into the talk as seamlessly as possible. This led to some hilarious results, such as the bushel of zucchini that Eamon claimed to have eaten during the course of his morning run.
Eamon O'Dea was the General Evaluator. Jordi Calveras and Maryam Ali evaluated the speeches. Supporting roles were filled by Andrew Engel (Grammarian), Xiang Hu (Ah Counter), Irina (Time Keeper), and Jordi Calveras (Vote Counter).
Attendees were: Jordi Calveras, Kayoko, Xiang Hu, Irina, Tatiana Makhinova, Andrew Engel, Eamon O'Dea, Maryam Ali, Hieu Nguyen, Dmitri, Justin Hall, Jag Swaminathan, Tom Vamvanij.
Friday, 22 July 2011
26th Meeting of 2011
This week's theme was "iPhone apps". The Toastmaster of the Day was Tom Vamvanij, who coincidentally thinks iPhones are evil. The Word of the Day was "superfluous".
Our two prepared speeches were "The Golden Goose" by Maryam Ali for her Project #6, and "Success through Failure" by Justin Hall for his Project #5.
Tom Vamvanij served as TableTopics Master.
Andrew Engel was the General Evaluator. Jag Swaminathan evaluated Maryam while Ahmed Aldkhil evaluated Justin. Supporting roles were filled by Eamon O'Dea (Grammarian), Xiang Hu (Ah Counter), Andrew Engel (Time Keeper), and Ahmed Aldkhil (Vote Counter).
Today's attendees were: Maryam Ali, Tatiana Makhinova, Giacomo Ravo, Ahmed Aldkhil, Andrew Engel, Jag Swaminathan, Eamon O'Dea, Jordi Calveras, and Justin Hall.
Guests were: Kayoko, Irina Zvyagintseva, Heiu Nguyen, Xiang Hu, and Dmitri Iourovitski.
Our two prepared speeches were "The Golden Goose" by Maryam Ali for her Project #6, and "Success through Failure" by Justin Hall for his Project #5.
Tom Vamvanij served as TableTopics Master.
Andrew Engel was the General Evaluator. Jag Swaminathan evaluated Maryam while Ahmed Aldkhil evaluated Justin. Supporting roles were filled by Eamon O'Dea (Grammarian), Xiang Hu (Ah Counter), Andrew Engel (Time Keeper), and Ahmed Aldkhil (Vote Counter).
Today's attendees were: Maryam Ali, Tatiana Makhinova, Giacomo Ravo, Ahmed Aldkhil, Andrew Engel, Jag Swaminathan, Eamon O'Dea, Jordi Calveras, and Justin Hall.
Guests were: Kayoko, Irina Zvyagintseva, Heiu Nguyen, Xiang Hu, and Dmitri Iourovitski.
Thursday, 21 July 2011
Visiting: Austin Tastemasters
Several members of our club went to visit the Austin Tastemasters for their July 21st meeting, held at Cannoli Joe's in South Austin.
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| Tom, Alex, Maryam Tatiana, Giacomo, Anastasia, Ahmed |
Friday, 15 July 2011
25th Meeting of 2011
This week's theme was "Pirates versus Ninjas". Maryam Ali was Toastmaster of the Day for this celebration of epic rivalries. The word of the day was "enthralling".
We had two prepared speeches today - Jag Swaminathan's #5 speech titled "Oh My God", and Giacomo Ravo's #2 speech exploring the differences between "Old World vs. New World".
Andrew Engel organized an exciting Table Topics session, using presentation slides as prompts for rivalries ranging from the eponymous "Pirates vs. Ninjas" to "Cats vs. Dogs" and "Windows vs. Mac". (Linux won that battle.)
Jordi Calveras was the General Evaluator. Jason Yan evaluated Jag and Jordi Calveras evaluated Giacomo. Supporting roles were played by Weijia Li (Grammarian), Alex Loh (Ah Counter), Eamon O'Dea (Time Keeper) and Ahmed Aldkhil (Vote Counter).
Today's attendees were: Jordi Calveras, Eamon O'Dea, Maryam Ali, Ahmed Aldkhil, Giacomo Ravo, Alex Loh, Jason Yan, Andrew Engel, Jag Swaminathan, and Weijia Li.
Our guests were: Jim Jin, Xiang Hu, and Anastasia Kokanina.
We had two prepared speeches today - Jag Swaminathan's #5 speech titled "Oh My God", and Giacomo Ravo's #2 speech exploring the differences between "Old World vs. New World".
Andrew Engel organized an exciting Table Topics session, using presentation slides as prompts for rivalries ranging from the eponymous "Pirates vs. Ninjas" to "Cats vs. Dogs" and "Windows vs. Mac". (Linux won that battle.)
Jordi Calveras was the General Evaluator. Jason Yan evaluated Jag and Jordi Calveras evaluated Giacomo. Supporting roles were played by Weijia Li (Grammarian), Alex Loh (Ah Counter), Eamon O'Dea (Time Keeper) and Ahmed Aldkhil (Vote Counter).
Today's attendees were: Jordi Calveras, Eamon O'Dea, Maryam Ali, Ahmed Aldkhil, Giacomo Ravo, Alex Loh, Jason Yan, Andrew Engel, Jag Swaminathan, and Weijia Li.
Our guests were: Jim Jin, Xiang Hu, and Anastasia Kokanina.
Friday, 8 July 2011
24th Meeting of 2011
This week's theme was Extreme Sports, and Eamon O'Dea made his debut as Toastmaster of the Day. The Word of the Day was "Exhilarating".
The prepared speech was delivered by Jordi Calveras, a "Professional Seminar" talk for his Advanced Communication manual.
Giacomo Ravo debuted as Table TopicsMaster and asked us about the extreme sports we may have participated in or adamantly avoided.
The General Evaluator was Andrew Engel. Tom Vamvanij evaluated Jordi's speech. Supporting roles were played by Maryam Ali (Grammarian), Tatiana Makhinova (Ah Counter), Time Keeper (Jason Yan), and Justin Hall (Vote Counter).
Today's guests included: Jim Jin, Steve Sedowski, Ruben Rodriguez, and Edgar Edyee Campos.
Next week we debate the superiority of Pirates versus Ninjas.
The prepared speech was delivered by Jordi Calveras, a "Professional Seminar" talk for his Advanced Communication manual.
Giacomo Ravo debuted as Table TopicsMaster and asked us about the extreme sports we may have participated in or adamantly avoided.
The General Evaluator was Andrew Engel. Tom Vamvanij evaluated Jordi's speech. Supporting roles were played by Maryam Ali (Grammarian), Tatiana Makhinova (Ah Counter), Time Keeper (Jason Yan), and Justin Hall (Vote Counter).
Today's guests included: Jim Jin, Steve Sedowski, Ruben Rodriguez, and Edgar Edyee Campos.
Next week we debate the superiority of Pirates versus Ninjas.
Friday, 1 July 2011
Photos from the 23rd meeting of 2011
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| Giacomo Ravo's Icebreaker speech |
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| Toastmaster of the Day, Tom Vamvanij |
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| Zhenya wins a prize for being our 5th new member in May-June. |
23rd Meeting of 2011
At our club we often talk about our experiences traveling but we seldom discuss the means by which we get from one place to another. This week we explored means of transportation under the theme, "Planes, Trains and Automobiles."
Tom Vamvanij was the Toastmaster of the Day. Our Word of the Day was "Wanderlust".
Our new member Giacomo Ravo gave his Icebreaker Speech, talking about his background in Italy and his new life in the U.S. Mick Normington gave a brief talk on popular college majors in Texas and the local job market.
Zhenya Mikhaylova, our newest member, gave her first Table Topics session. Weijia Li won the Best Table Topics award for his story about getting on trains through the window as a kid.
The General Evaluator was Maryam Ali. Speech evaluators were Andrew Engel and Justin Hall. Supporting roles were played by Tatiana Makhinova (Grammarian), Eamon O'Dea (Ah Counter), Weijia Li (Time Keeper) and Justin Hall (Vote Counter).
There were no new guests today. People in attendance were: Jordi Calveras, Tom Vamvanij, Zhenya Mikhaylova, Tatiana Makhinova, Eamon O'Dea, Giacomo Ravo, Weijia Li, Andrew Engel, Ahmed Aldkhil, Justin Hall, Maryam Ali and Mick Normington. Not bad for the middle of Summer Semester!
Based on the goals met in the last week, our club now qualifies for Distinguished Club status! And by becoming our 5th new member in the months of May and June, Zhenya has helped up meet the "Beat The Clock" membership contest set by Toastmasters International. Congratulations to our entire club for reaching these goals!
Tom Vamvanij was the Toastmaster of the Day. Our Word of the Day was "Wanderlust".
Our new member Giacomo Ravo gave his Icebreaker Speech, talking about his background in Italy and his new life in the U.S. Mick Normington gave a brief talk on popular college majors in Texas and the local job market.
Zhenya Mikhaylova, our newest member, gave her first Table Topics session. Weijia Li won the Best Table Topics award for his story about getting on trains through the window as a kid.
The General Evaluator was Maryam Ali. Speech evaluators were Andrew Engel and Justin Hall. Supporting roles were played by Tatiana Makhinova (Grammarian), Eamon O'Dea (Ah Counter), Weijia Li (Time Keeper) and Justin Hall (Vote Counter).
There were no new guests today. People in attendance were: Jordi Calveras, Tom Vamvanij, Zhenya Mikhaylova, Tatiana Makhinova, Eamon O'Dea, Giacomo Ravo, Weijia Li, Andrew Engel, Ahmed Aldkhil, Justin Hall, Maryam Ali and Mick Normington. Not bad for the middle of Summer Semester!
Based on the goals met in the last week, our club now qualifies for Distinguished Club status! And by becoming our 5th new member in the months of May and June, Zhenya has helped up meet the "Beat The Clock" membership contest set by Toastmasters International. Congratulations to our entire club for reaching these goals!
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