9/15/20
Molly was our Toastmaster with a theme of “Fun Montana Facts.” Molly started off the meeting by sharing nine random and fun facts about the state. For example, one of these facts is that there are more cattle in Montana than there are people. She discussed an annual festival tradition, the Testicle Festival, held in Clinton, Montana for 35 years starting in 1982. It was known as the craziest, most unpredictable festival in Montana. At the festival they served what’s known as Rocky Mountain oysters, which are skinned and deep fried bull testicles coated in flour, pepper and salt. The festival was canceled in 2018, as the organizer sought a career change, mainly due to too many instances of debauchery such as stabbings and fights.
Molly also discussed how some of the charm of Montana can be found in its ghost towns. Two popular ghost town sites rich in history that are worth a visit are Bannack State Park, south of Dillon, and Garnet Ghost Town, east of Missoula. Garnet was named one of America’s coolest ghost towns by Travel & Leisure. To round out the meeting, Molly talked about eight weird Montana laws, such as it’s illegal for unmarried women to fish alone, and talked about fun things to do in the state. Some fun activities include hiking at Glacier National Park, swimming in Flathead Lake, visiting a hot springs, skiing, or enjoying live theater at Bigfork Summer Playhouse.
Miguel was our speaker for the evening with a speech titled, “What Would Lincoln Do? My Leadership Style”. Miguel stated how he would like to emulate in his leadership style what President Lincoln would do durIng the Civil War. Some of these characteristics include: studying everything about a topic; digging into the details when leading a project; know and be aware of what the team he is working with is doing; listen to advisors and stakeholders to help guide decisions; lead through action (for example, working later or longer on a project); and follow through with accountability on decisions. Miguel’s thoughtful speech was 6:46 in length.
Vinod was our Debate Master with a timely question related to the election coming up. His question was “Should we have voting be mandatory?” The pro side argued that voting should be mandatory, while the con side argued it should not. The pro side won the debate. Bill led the Table Topics session with a series of fun questions: What is a place in the U.S. you have never been to but would like to visit?; What is your favorite outdoor activity or exercise?; What’s your favorite mode of travel to travel across the U.S.?; What is a state in the U.S. you didn’t want to visit but we’re pleasantly surprised by?; and What is one time spent outdoors that is your favorite memory?
Our word of the day was sublime. How sublime!
We had 16 attendees, including five guests. Thank you all for attending!