Icebreaker - Nick Samoylov

While preparing this speech I made quite a few discoveries (thank you, toastmasters system!). The biggest one, I realized how lucky I am. Sure people told me this, and I felt lucky and was grateful for all the blessings, but I never actually tried to account how many of those blessings were provided. Just to name a few.

First of all - nothing terribly new here - my wife and our two daughters. With Luda we married many (I am not allowed to disclose how many) years. Most of this time we worked together – in the same company, on the same project, even sitting next to each other, as right now too in Jeppesen (Boeing Corporation). We are literally 24 by 7 for many years. We used to it and miss each other very quickly.

Our girls are delight of our hearts, realization of dreams we did not even dare to have, and justification of all our efforts. They graduated from college already. The older Kateryna graduated from Harvard (now is doing PHD in philosophy in Brown). The younger Maria graduated from Tufts (now works as an investment analyst in JPMorgan Bank in NY).
Another example of my luck, I studied English behind the iron curtain and knew I had no chance to use it. Normal people never crossed USSR borders, there were no foreigners around, and I had a clearance on the top of that (I worked for Star Wars project). My friends were puzzled: “Why?!” I could not explain. I just loved to learn a new language. Than - sure enough, my luck kicked in - the USSR collapsed, and suddenly I am among very few who can communicate with new world over the broken fence. Quite a few people said later: “Wow! How smart were you that studied English!” This first speech – in English - in front of English speaking audience is the fulfillment of my childhood dream.

The collapse of the USSR was lucky for me in several other ways. The scientific research lost funding, and we had to hit the market. First devastated and lost, I soon discovered joy and power of the free enterprise. I created two companies - all around computers – and not only kept afloat, but actually prospered by standards of those days. Since 1991 I am not afraid of anything… except myself.

The last example of my luck is related to our coming to the US. You know that many people try many different ways for many years to come here and cannot succeed. We tried it only once. Luda, my wife, pulled a Green Card Lottery ticket and got it right – just like that – in the critical moment when we desperately needed to re-unite the family (our daughters were schooling in England at the time; they were accomplished piano players and got scholarship in Royal College of Music, also in Claremont Fan Court school and Cheltenham Ladies College). At that time I worked for a German company. We tried to build a bridge between western money and Ukrainian brains. I traveled between Germany, Russia, Ukraine, and England, to visit kids, who were 10-14 and 12-16 years old. Luda also visited them, but we basically stuck in the Ukraine. The chance to live again as a family in a civilized country was just blessing.

There were several other discoveries… Manual recommends be more personal during the icebreaker. …One of my discoveries was my night cap – my private view of self. Everybody has one. Mine is Sylvester Stallone with Leonardo Da Vinci’s brains and Prince Charles’ manners. My secret initials are “LCS”. The icebreaker helped me to shed light on this monster. I have to work on the beast to bring it closer to reality.

Oh, yes, another thing … Did I mention I am a convicted felon currently charged with an identity theft from a Ukrainian guy? Just kidding.

Meeting Notes - September 20th

Tracy Goodman delivered her Ice Breaker today. Tracy's speech followed a geographic theme. Tracing her beginnings from St. Clairsville, OH, to Wheeling, WV, to Oxford, OH, to Pittsburgh, PA, and finally to Denver, CO. Tracy's speech had a geographic theme. More specifically, it had an I-70 theme, never taking her more than 20 miles away from the Interstate.


Paul Sadowski surprised us all by stepping into a temporary gap with a speech. Paul told the group the story of Minamata, Japan. A community so devastated by Mercury Poisoning that it has the dubious honor having the associated disease Minamata Disease, named after it. It's a cautionary story warning us to beware of the risks that environmental pollutants pose.




Mike Angell, our clubs poet laureate presented two poems by William Blake, from his Songs of Innocence and Experience. Illustrating Blake's use of opposites.



The awards were distributed at meetings end. Tracy Goodman received the honors for Best Speaker. John Wierzba was our Best Evaluator. Paul Sadowski took the honors for Best Table Topics.

Next week....
We have space and need for a speaker, and a General Evaluator.

Evaluation Contest - Sept, 6 2007

Punters sat on the sideline today as three very accomplished contestants vied for the Best Evaluator honor, and the right to represent Triskelions in the district contest. Past accomplishments eviscerated the odds preventing any gain from betting on such a tight contest.

The meeting began with the final arrangements for the contest. Lots were cast to determine the order of the contestants. Ballots were distributed among the three judges. Tracy was selected as timer, and she carefully reviewed the requirements for fulfilling her duties. A point of order was reached to compensate for the absence of our Sargeant-at-arms, an honor system was worked out, and controls implemented to insure fairness.

Nerves started tingling as the contest began. A speech was delivered by an annonymous Toastmaster. We listened intently to the strangers voice, observed his body language, read the audiences reaction to his speech, and made our own internal evalutions of his presentation. Would the contestants observe the same points? What would they say.

At speeches end the contestants were ushered from the room, and given time to prepare their evaluations.

In the mean time Nick treated us to an interview of the annoymous speaker. David Doud's his name. David joined Toastmasters 20 years ago in Germany earned his CTM, and stepped away from the organization. Twenty years on David is now the President of the Pioneer Club, and an Area Governor.

The five minutes were up and one by one the evaluators presented their evalautions. Luayne Trujillo spoke first making many insightful observations. Gary Fuller followed with his own insights. Both Luayne and Gary observed that a story about porcupine quills and a gluteus may have been outside the bounds of the clubs taste. Paul Sadowski wound up the evaluations making a similar observation. The details of each evaluation was similar. Emphasis on the details was all that separated the contestants.

A quick tallying of the votes, and time for two table topics followed. We covered club business, but what everybody really wanted to know was, who's the winner. Having prolonged the agony, and built the audience to a crescendo of anticipation Nick announced that Gary Fuller would represent the club in the next level.

Good luck Gary. Thanks to David for speaking.

Please everyone remember to bring your dues to the next meeting.

Meeting Minutes - August 30th

Meeting Theme: New Beginnings

Toastmaster
Your Toast host: Gary Fuller

Word of the Day
Vocabulary Dose: Infuse

Special Guests:
Dan
New Member: Heidi

Speakers
Orators Grandiose:
Karen "always leave 'em wanting more" Lang
Nick "The Raven" Samoylov

Evaluators
The Whipping Post:
Mike Stablien
Eric Peterson

Table Topics
Janet Reese

Toasts who can boast the most
Best Speaker Karen
Best Evaluator Mike Stablien
Best Table Topics Mike Angell

Summary:
Nick wowed us with an interpretive reading of Edgar Allen Poe's classic "The Raven". Karen gave her Ice breaker. She told us how much she likes her husband, her faith and her job as a behavioral expert. Mike explained how his parents moved away in a sneaky plan tofinally get him out of their house.

Joke of the Day
A man is having a really bad day on the golf course. By the 14th hole, he's missed one putt too many, and he lets loose with a string of profanities, grabs his putter, and storms off toward the lake by the 15th tee.

"Uh-oh," says his caddie to one of his playing partners, "There goes that club."

"You think so?" said the other golfer. "I've got five bucks says he misses the water."

Meeting Minutes - August 23rd

Triskelion Toastmasters
Meeting Minutes
8/27/07

Toastmaster Your Toast Host: John "coming through in the clutch" Wierzba

Vocabulary Dose: Word of the Day "Diligence"

Orators Grandiose: Speakers
Nick and Eric both gave humorous speeches. Nick discussed his latest escapade to the Ukraine. Banking is a little different there. He handed the teller a large bag of cash. She said "thank you" and threw it in the safe. She gave no receipt. "Come back tomorrow at 9:00" was all he got. Eric told us to "stay in school" :)

The Whipping Post - Evaluators:
Deron and Janet

Most Verbose Boasts: Table Topics by Nate
Topicers included Eric, Karen, Mike A., Gary and our guest Steve

Toasts who can boast the Most: Awards
Best Speaker: Nick
Best Evaluator: Janet
Best Table Topics: Steve

Joke of the day:
Three weeks after her wedding day, Joanna called her mom.
"Mom," she wailed, "John and I had a DREADFUL fight!"
"Calm down, my child," said the mom, "it's not half as bad as you think it is. Every marriage has to have its first fight!" "I know, I know!" said Joanna, "but what am I going to do with the BODY!

Meeting Minutes - August 16th

Your Toast Host
Toastmaster
Cindy "Can I catch a break?" Castilow

Vocabulary Dose
Word of the day - "missing"  adjective  "not present" 

Speaker Grandiose
Deron White - "Uncle Charlie and the snowblower"

The Whipping Post
Evaluator John Wierzba

Strange and Verbose
Table Topics Dave Truzpek

Contestants Arose - Tall Tales Contestants
Eric Peterson
Deron White
Mike Stablien
Mike Angell

Toasts who can boast the most
Best Table topics - Gary
Best Evaluator - John Wierzba
Best Tall Tale - Mike Angell


See you next week

Mike
Secretary/Treasurer

Meeting Minutes for August 9th

Toastmaster:
Paul "powerhouse" Sadowski reprised his role as TM

Vocabulary Dose
Word of the Day:
Cindy "Obligate"

Speakers Grandiose:

Eric and Mike Angell did the same speech: Speech 1 from the Entertaining speakers manual.
Eric "discussed" the new company dress code.
Mike wrote a "scientific" study of life on the beach
Eric got more laughs, but only because he was funnier.


Evaluators:
The Whipping Post
Gary "Grandslam" Fuller
Mike "straight and narrow" Stablien

Table Topics: Truthful ... almost
Our Table Topics Master was none other Cindy Castilow.

Wizard of Ahs
Dan Pratt, Grammarian, Ah counter, Timer

Toast Host:
Gary brought his father in law John as a guest

Toasts who can boast the most:
Award winners
Best Speaker - Eric
Best Eval - Gary
Best Table Topics - 3 way tie. Don't ask me how

Toasts at their Post! Meeting assigments for next week
Cindy Toastmaster
Eric Evaluator
Mike Stablien - Tall Tales contestant
Timer/Ah/Grammarian

Still need
Speaker, evaluator, tall tales contestants,
Tall Tales contest - Area "Tall Tales Contest" is coming up. Open to all

Thanks

Mike
Secretary/Treasurer