Thank you.

[Thomas]

Gents,

Last week I took over as President of my local Toastmasters club. In giving my inaugural speech I set the theme of the year, which was "surprise yourself".

To start, I took a straight razor (edge dulled beforehand) from my jacket pocket and asked the audience to raise their hands - if they knew what it was. Half the hands went up. I asked them to keep their hands up if they had used one. Hands were hastily withdrawn.

I told the story of my first razor (thanks Namdas), and my travails in using it. Then I moved on to the theme which I boiled down to this: taking risks. Not so much doing crazy things (well, crazy is in the eye of the beholder) but rather doing something new and expanding your comfort zone, and suddenly finding yourself in a whole new comfort zone.

Shaving has put a spring in my step - not so much the shaving part, but the fact that I've picked up a new skill. And it gave me a vivid example and a soapbox upon which to stand as I push new speakers towards new, larger comfort zones. I wouldn't have taken up the straight were it not for your support (enablers!) and for that I thank you all.

 

[Straight Arrow]

Thanks for the report. This supports my belief that proper shaving actually makes one a better person.

 

[Doc4]

I am at your meeting. You have asked your questions, and my hand is still held aloft. ... but only thanks to the knowledge, support and encouragement I received here.

Brother, can you spare a Chubby?

(You intentionally dulled a straight? Infamy!! ... or was it a Zeepk?)

 

[Thomas]

(...)
(You intentionally dulled a straight? Infamy!! ... or was it a Zeepk?)

I received a tarnished and pitted W&B, and in my haste I put an edge on it before doing anything else. A few acquisitions later, I started polishing it up, and the edge went away. There's a LOT of steel left on this one, though, and it's nearly ready to jump back into the rotation.

What's a chubby?

 

[Doc4]

What's a chubby?

Okay, you are forgiven.

Oh, a Chubby is a brush model from Simpson ... http://badgerandblade.com/vb/showthread.php?ltr=S&t=8967

 

[izlat]

You realize all these people are convinced they have a Prezident who's crazy, right?

And now you have to buy a Chubby, of course

Cheers
Ivo

 

[Thomas]

You realize all these people are convinced they have a Prezident who's crazy, right?

And now you have to buy a Chubby, of course

Cheers
Ivo

Hah! They knew I was crazy from my very first speech! Except the newbies, and they're getting a crash course. I think each of my first ten speeches revealed a certain mental imbalance that they must have found charming.

I might have properly set the tone for the year when I opened the meeting with "Good Evening, welcome to (redacted) Toastmasters. I'm Thomas, and you're not."

I did get rave reviews, so that was nice.

SBAD has yet to darken my pocketbook, razors and creams have done enough damage already!!! But there's the SR 3124...

 

[Doc4]

You realize all these people are convinced they have a Prezident who's crazy, right?
And now you have to buy a Chubby, of course

Cheers
Ivo

Toastmasters or Americans?

 

[ouch]

Toastmasters or Americans?

Good point.


The last time I pulled out a straight razor at a meeting, people started handing me their wallets.