Thanks to Amy for this Blog Post.
What a start to our Toastmasters meeting! When Narelle accidentally locked the hall keys inside the venue, she remained remarkably calm under pressure. Thinking quickly, she came up with the brilliant plan to use the PA system at the nearby Sands Social to call for assistance, specifically requesting help from any ex-military members who might know how to contact an RSL Hall keyholder. Thankfully, someone stepped up to make the call, and a very kind keyholder drove all the way from Burpengary to unlock the hall and rescue our meeting.
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| Locked out |
While waiting, we didn't waste time. We started our meeting
in the cold, windy front area of the RSL. Narelle wore many hats - Sergeant at
Arms, Madam Toastmaster, Speaker, and President. VPE Peter Dooley announced the
program changes.
Chris led the Toast for the evening, perfectly matching our
"Retro Revival" theme. He recalled when "jorts" (jean
shorts) were in fashion and how they've now come full circle, mentioning he recently
borrowed his son's. We all toasted to "Jorts"!
Madeline shared our word of the evening,
"Antiquated," meaning outdated. She told us the interesting fact that
the word itself originated in the 1800s and was literally quite antiquated.
Robert then led us straight into Round Robin with the question ‘what is
something we fondly recall from days gone by’.
Despite the rocky start, our meeting showed just how flexible and resourceful our club can be when faced with unexpected challenges.
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| John T |
First evaluator Gail H introduced our first speaker, John T, with his speech titled 'Leadership in the Classroom'. John shared wisdom from his pre-retirement teaching days, describing how he adopted what he called a "Genghis Khan/Dalai Lama style" of leadership. He outlined his recipe for effective classroom management: the 3 E's (lead by Example, provide Encouragement, and Enforcement of rules) and the 4 R's (everyone's Right to be Safe, Right to Learn, Right to be treated with Respect, and Responsibility and Rules).
Trish introduced (and evaluated) our second speaker, Eoin, who gave an engaging and educational presentation on World Wide Web evolution. He began with Sir Tim Berners-Lee's creation of the World Wide Web before exploring encryption history, from the basic Caesar Cipher to Alan Turing's codebreaking work in World War II. Eoin then brought us to today, explaining Cloudflare's security measures, including those "I'm not a robot" puzzles we all face. The most interesting part was learning how Cloudflare uses actual lava lamps to create secure encryption keys, capturing the random wax movements to generate truly unpredictable data.
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| Eoin |
John introduced (and evaluated) our third speaker, Gail H,
who presented on "Time Management." Gail shared her personal journey
with time, growing up on a farm where time was marked by activities like cow
milking, feeding cattle etc rather than clocks. Everything changed when she
started school, and her mum had to balance getting kids to school on time with
her dad's farm schedule. Later as a teacher, Gail's days were regulated by
school bells helping her with time management. Now retired, she confessed to
being a procrastinator who leaves things to the last minute. Despite this, she
emphasised the importance of planning ahead, breaking tasks into smaller
chunks, and reviewing your work, a strategy she applied to prepare this very
speech. Gail concluded with the honest admission that she'll likely always be a
procrastinator at heart.
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| Gail H |
Chris H introduced our fourth speaker, Paul, who presented "Life is a Marathon Not a Sprint." Paul shared his journey from once telling his wife after a half marathon that he would never do a full marathon, yet he's now preparing for one this July. He offered five preparation tips: pick a marathon and lock it in (requiring 3-6 months of preparation), get a training plan (he's following an 18-week program), buy proper running gear (specially fitted shoes, anti-blister socks, hydration belt and anti-chafing cream), look after yourself with good nutrition and sleep, and run consistently. Paul concluded that this has been a rewarding journey, reminding us to "never say never.
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| Paul |
John introduced and evaluated our final speaker, Narelle, who delivered a humorous "acceptance speech" titled "Humility is Optional." In this clever presentation, Narelle "self-awarded" herself for her role as Sergeant at Arms, highlighting her critically important duties managing the equipment bag and handling setup. With tongue firmly in cheek, she expressed that serving was a privilege and offered advice to her successor, particularly emphasising one crucial tip: don't accidentally lock out the Toastmasters group.
Miraculously, the meeting was running seven minutes ahead of schedule heading into supper. Prior to the break, Raffle Master Amy presented the delightfully retro-themed prizes, including a vintage magazine featuring an article on why Tom and Jerry was banned from television, a puzzle, Polly Waffles, Love Heart candies, and a "fetch me a drink" bell.
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| Amy's Raffle |
After a delicious supper kindly supplied by Arun and Robert, Madeline delivered some retro-inspired table topic questions to Amy, John, Narelle and Peter about TV show gadget comebacks and best era experiences. Paul provided evaluations for each delivery, followed by a "Are You Listening" session led by Chris H.
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| Chris |
The Word Master award went to consistent winner Trish. General Evaluator Arun delivered a comprehensive evaluation report, doing an excellent job.
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| Trish |
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| Arun |
Newly appointed President Chris H announced the trophy winners: Best Speech went to Gail H, Best Table Topic was tied between Amy and John T, Most Improved was awarded to Eoin, and Best Evaluator went to John T.
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| Award Winners |
Before closing, Raffle Master Amy announced that Paul had
won the raffle.
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| Paul wins raffle |
The meeting closed on time, with the next meeting scheduled
for 7pm on 10th June.
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