JediNickD's Epic Quest

JediNickD · August 20, 2012

My Epic Quest revolves around three things: my family, my personal experiences and skills, and my Jedi training. What about your career, you say? What is the point of a career without a family? How do you excel in your career without a solid understanding of your personal philosophy, ethics, and morals?

The first one are kind of personal, so I'm going to keep them out of here for now, but will probably drop some Woots and Blogs every now and then.

My Jedi training started when I was a young boy and first saw Empire Strikes Back. Since then, I've always seen myself in Luke. I understood his failings easily because they were easy to relate to. As I grew up, I learned more and more about Jedi philosophy and how to incorporate it into my life. While at graduate school in 2006, I found my first online Jedi community and began trading stories, philosophy, and training. I have always valued my own views and experiences over others, because I am one of the few in the online Jedi community without a spiritual background. I am much more scientific in my views of the "Force" or anything supernatural for that matter. I joined my first online Jedi training school, the Institute for Jedi Realist Studies (IJRS), this past winter and put together a training schedule. The training has three main elements: mind, body, and soul. Each training exercise must incorporate all of these elements.

I keep an Excel spreadsheet to track all my goals, but I will share a few here.

GOALS (updated 2019-1205)

Toastmasters International
- Pass 5 lessons by Dec 31st, 2012. COMPLETE
- CC manual by Jan 31st, 2013. COMPLETE 2013-01-22
- 10 Advanced Manual lessons by Dec 31st, 2013 to earn my Advanced Communicator Bronze. COMPLETE 2013-10-01
- Hold a new Club Officer position in July 2013 - June 2014. COMPLETE
- Complete two Successful Club Series speeches by Jan 14th, 2014 to complete my Advanced Leadership Bronze. COMPLETE 2014-01-18
- 10 Advanced Manual lessons by June 1st, 2014 to earn my Advanced Communicator Silver. COMPLETE 2014-03-24
- Serve as Area Governor July 2014 - June 2015. COMPLETE
- Complete term as a Club Coach by June 2015. COMPLETE
- Complete one one-hour Leadership Series speeches by June 2015 to complete my Advanced Leadership Silver. COMPLETE (Speechcraft)
- Complete 10 Advanced Manual lessons and two Educational Training sessions by June 2015 to complete my Advanced Communicator Gold. COMPLETE
- Complete both Advanced Communicator Gold and Advanced Leadership Silver to earn Distinguished Toastmaster. COMPLETE.
- Earn a Triple Crown (3 or more Toastmaster Awards in a year) every year with a minimum of 20 speeches in a year. ON GOING
  - Pathways Program: Effective Coaching (COMPLETE), Dynamic Leadership (COMPLETE), Presentation Mastery (COMPLETE), Engaging Humor (Level 1-4 Complete, Level 5 In progress), Leadership Development (Level 1-4 Complete, Level 5 In progress), Persuasive Influence (Level 1-4 Complete, Level 5 In progress), Team Collaboration (Level 1-2 Complete, Level 3-5 In progress), Motivational Strategies (Level 1 Complete, Level 2-5 In progress)
Jedi Training
- IJRS Courses: Pass Intro, Meditation 101, and Force 101 by March 1st, 2013. COMPLETE 2013-02-14
- IJRS Courses: Pass 2 courses (Communication 101 and Creed 101) by December 31st, 2013. COMPLETE 2013-12-30
- IJRS Courses: Pass 2 courses. (Spirituality 101 and Personal 101) COMPLETE 2016-12-19
- IJRS Courses: Pass 2 courses. (Jedi Studies 101 COMPLETE, Warrior 101 COMPLETE)
- IJRS Courses: Pass last Novice course. (Situational Awareness 101 COMPLETE)
- IJRS Novice Exam (in progress)
- Maintain CPR/AED Certification Expiration January 2021
- Self Defense
  - Karate
    - White Belt - COMPLETE November 27th, 2016
    - Yellow Belt - COMPLETE
    - Orange Belt - COMPLETE
    - Green Belt - COMPLETE, Senior COMPLETE
    - Blue Belt - COMPLETE
    - Red Belt - COMPLETE
    - Purple Belt - COMPLETE
    - Brown I Belt - COMPLETE
    - Brown II Belt - COMPLETE
    - Brown III Belt - COMPLETE
    - Probationary Black Belt - COMPLETE
    - Black Belt Shodan - COMPLETE
    - Black Belt Nidan - In Progress
  - Tool Training
    - Nunchucka
    - Katana
    - Bo Staff
- Helping Others
  - Extra Life
    - 2016 Gameday COMPLETE
    - 2017 Gameday COMPLETE
    - 2018 Gameday COMPLETE
    - 2019 Gameday, COMPLETE, Gold Medal Fundraiser, +$1k
    - 2020 Gameday, COMPLETE, Gold Medal Fundraiser, +$1k
    - 2021 Gameday, COMPLETE, Gold Medal Fundraiser, +$2k
Website, Blogging, and Vlogging
- Jedi Training Website/Blog - Combining with Coaching
  - Determine Objective
  - Find proper format based on objective
  - Establish Website/Blog
  - Maintain Website/Blog
- Coaching Website/Blog - COMPLETE and in Sustainment
  - Determine Objective
    - Vision, Values, and Mission
    - Long Term and Short Term Goals
    - Brainstorm Branding (few ideas)
  - Find proper format based on objective
  - Establish Website/Blog
  - Maintain Website/Blog
- Practice Vlogging (Facebook Live, YouTube) for Website/Blog content
  - Jedi
  - Toastmasters
  - Coaching
  - Fitness
  - Extra Life Charity
Home Renovation
- Electrical and Lighting Wiring for the Deck
- Electrical and Lighting Wiring for Basement Closet COMPLETE
- Clean up basement for construction projects COMPLETE
- Second Basement Bedroom COMPLETE
- Kids Playroom / Craft Room COMPLETE
- Clean up Laundry Room / Workshop / Storage Area COMPLETE
- Fix Electrical Wiring in Laundry Room and First Basement Bedroom COMPLETE
- Attic Storage
- Garage
- Backyard Wiring and Plumbing
- Backyard Garage and Shed

BUCKET LIST:

Local US Travel
- Yosemite
- Yellowstone
- Niagara Falls
- Appalachian Trail
- Experiences
  - DONE (x2): Hike Mt. Whitney to 10,000 ft (Lone Pine Lake)
  - DONE: Hike with Redwood Trees (Trail of 100 Giants)
  - Hike Mt. Whitney to summit 14,000 ft
  - DONE: Hike Mt. Mitchell to 6,684 ft in Appalachian Mountains (highest East of Mississippi River)
  - Hike and Camp at the Grand Canyon
  - Sky Dive
  - Ride in a Plane / Jet
World Travel
- Asia
  - Okinawa, Japan
  - China
- Australia
- New Zealand
  - Rugby Matches
  - Lord of the Rings
  - Moeraki Boulders
- North America
  - Costa Rica
  - Spotted Lake, British Columbia
  - Whale Watching in Grand Manan, New Foundland, Canada
  - Alaska
  - Hawaii
- South America
  - Brazil Rain Forest and Amazon River
  - Marble Caves, Chile
  - Cao Cristales River, Columbia
- Africa
  - Pyramids
  - Safari
- Europe
  - Greece (Parthenon), Spain, France, Poland, Netherlands, Iceland, Ireland, England
Physical Feats
- Free Handstand for 10 seconds without support
- Free Handstand walk for 5 steps
- Muscle-Up
- Toe Above Bar
- Run 5 miles
- Run 10 miles
- Run Half-Marathon

JediNickD · August 20, 2012

The initial post will be used to track my Epic Quest, so it'll be editted a lot in the future; therefore below is a repost of the important stuff from the initial post:

Well, my Epic Quest revolves around three things: my children, my wife, and my Jedi training. What about your career, you say? What is the point of a career without a family? How do you excel in your career without a solid understanding of your personal philosophy, ethics, and morals?
The first two are kind of personal, so I'm going to keep them out of here for now, but will probably drop some Woots and Blogs every now and then.
My Jedi training started when I was a young boy and first saw Empire Strikes Back. Since then, I've always to like Luke. I understood his failings easily because they were easy to relate to. As I grew up, I learned more and more about Jedi philosophy and how to incorporate it into my life. While at graduate school in 2006, I found my first online Jedi community and began trading stories, philosophy, and training. I have always valued my own views over others, because I am one of the few in the online Jedi community without a spiritual background. I am much more scientific in my views of the "Force" or anything supernatural for that matter. I joined my first online Jedi training school, the Institute for Jedi Realist Studies (IJRS), this past winter and put together a training schedule. The training has three main elements: mind, body, and soul. Each training exercise must incorporate all of these elements.
I keep an Excel spreadsheet to track all my goals, but I will share a few here.
Toastmaster International: Pass 5 lessons by Dec 31st, 2012. 3 COMPLETE
IJRS Courses: Pass 4 courses by Dec 31st, 2012. 1 COMPLETE, 2 In Progress
Register with a second Jedi school and complete 1 course.
Maintain a weekly workout schedule
Maintain First Aid and CPR/AED Certifications Expire in December

JediNickD · August 20, 2012

Blog Entry 8/9/12

August 7th Toastmasters Meeting: A Lot of Lessons!

Yesterday's meeting was a good one. We had two inspiring speeches on mindfulness and communication. The Table Topics revolved around Toastmaster principles. There was a lot to take away from the experience. Let me share them with you.

The first prepared speaker was Donna completing the second lesson from the Competent Communicator manual titled "Organize Your Speech". I couldn't really focus on how organized her speech was, because I was in the role of the Grammarian and Ah Counter, so I was paying close attention to her words and fumbles, but I was able to grasp her topic, "The Art of Mindfulness." Donna did an excellent job explaining a concept of which I am very fond. She even stepped us through a calming exercise where we took deep breathes tp relieve tension, anxiety, and nervousness. It seemed to work for her as her grammatical errors and crutch words mostly cleared up! Donna didn't go deep into the art of mindfulness and didn't use any Jedi quotes, but I still really enjoyed her speech.

The second prepared speech was "Comm-Unity" given by an excellent orator in the club, Kashia. He is so good at writing and delivering a speech that you'd believe him to be a professional motivational speaker. And the topic proved his expertise as well, because he discussed the many aspects of communication and the value therein. He began by stating that communication is the second most intimate activity next to sex. That's both an attention grabber and a intriguing idea. He had the audience hanging on his every word as he explained how communication involves sharing knowledge, absorbing that knowledge, and incorporating it into our own knowledge, thus changing who we are. When we communicate, our ideas and thoughts are mixed with other peoples. We test our ideas and thoughts against other peoples. We form new ideas and thoughts from those interactions. It was quite a compelling speech which I wish I could have recorded so I could play back and absorb every nugget of information.

Doug came with an excellent idea for Table Topics. Each participant was to choose one of the ten Toastmaster speech tips to discuss and explain why it is most important. Each has much value, but the participants could only choose one each. Their choices were "Know Your Audience", "Practice, Practice, Practice", "Don't Apologize", and "Realize that people want you to succeed".

The first choice "Know Your Audience" refers to tailoring your speech to the audience so they are not bored or left wondering what you were talking about. A group of technical professionals and a group of high school students are very different and would require the speaker to adapt to each.

The second choice "Practice, Practice, Practice" would have been my choice had I volunteered. Without practice, you cannot execute. The more practice you endure, the more you will improve. The harder you practice, the better prepared you will be.

The next choice "Don't Apologize" is one I have trouble adhering to. You are there to give a gift to the audience. There is no need to apologize if the gift isn't perfect. Secondly, you are there to inspire, motivate, and captivate, but these are difficult to accomplish if the audience loses confidence in you, which is what apologizing can do.

The final choice "Realize that people want you to succeed" is just that. People do not file into a room to listen to someone because they have nothing else to do. They attend to get a message. If you fail, then they fail, right? The audience wants you to have a good speech, otherwise they are wasting their time.

With all those lessons, it was quite an eduational meeting.

JediNickD · August 21, 2012

Win the Battle Within: The True Competition is Yourself

Got this from a friend:

The true competition is YOURSELF
Your biggest challenge isn't someone else
It's the ache in your lungs, and the burning in your legs and the voice inside that yells, "CAN'T"
BUT YOU DON'T LISTEN, you just push HARDER and then you hear the voice whisper... "CAN"
And you discover that the person you thought you were, is no match for the one you REALLY ARE.

It is the person you THINK YOU ARE which drags you down. It the person you ACTUALLY ARE which drives you to new heights.

Let me say it another way:

Our true self does not change with our perception, but our perception of our self can keep us from achieving heights which our true self can reach.

Before challenging an opponent, you must first challenge YOURSELF to extend the challenge and prepare for it. Before or during a challenge with an opponent, fear and doubt might keep you from competing at your full potential. You must challenge YOURSELF first to overcome the fear and doubt to compete at your full potential.

The only way to succeed is to KNOW YOU CAN.

JediNickD · August 22, 2012

The meeting had two prepared speakers.

The first was Tom who spoke about taking a break from the monotomy of the work day to recharge your batteries. Whether just a five minute break or a week long vacation, we need time away from work to relax and de-stress. A break from working on a problem allows you to come back with a different perspective. A vacation can remind us why we work so hard in the first place. Take a break, because you need it.

The second was Doug with a story about a fox and wolf. They were discussing man. The wolf had never seen man and wanted to show man that he was smarter, stronger, and more fierce than man could ever be. The wolf ends up shot and wounded, never wanting to see man again.

What I took away from both speeches was that Tom and Doug are magnificent speakers. The move around the room, use vocal variety, and gesture very well. Neither used more notes than a few bullets. I have a month to get to where these two are and really wow the reception at my brother's wedding. If I can memorize a majority of the toast, then I think I can get there.

I took the role of Table Topics Master. I wanted to do an educational piece like Doug did the week before. I found Motivational Speech Guidelines on the TI site. I decided these would make for excellent TT speeches. I had each volunteer choose one of the 5 guidelines and explain its value. After three volunteers I wrapped up the session by briefly explaining the last two myself.

My first volunteer, Doug, chose â€œBe Enthusiasticâ€. Enthusiasm is contagious. Before you present your ideas, you must think about the aspects of the subject that you find most interesting, and donâ€™t be afraid to let that interest come through in your voice. Tom volunteered next and chose â€œSay You and We, not I and Meâ€. Instead of telling people what you want them to do, present ways for them to work together to achieve their goals. Involve listeners in the success of the group. My last volunteer, Phil, chose â€œSpeak with Confidenceâ€, which was ironic because he is one of the least confident speakers in our club. You must deliver your message loud and clear, while maintaining eye contact with your listeners. Donâ€™t mumble or slouch. One of the remaining guidelines wass "Use Quotes, Stories and Anecdotes". Along with their obvious entertainment value, quotes and stories can lend authority to your topic and provide concrete examples that people can relate to. The last guideline is "Keep it Simple". People arenâ€™t motivated by what you say; theyâ€™re motivated by what they understand. The best way to ensure audience understanding is to break down complex ideas into simple components.

JediNickD · September 20, 2012

Level 3 Challenge complete with a perfect score: http://www.nerdfitness.com/community/showthread.php?15684-Your-perception-determines-your-reality&p=275333&viewfull=1#post275333

Level 4 Challenge posted: http://www.nerdfitness.com/community/showthread.php?17881-No-Try-not-Do-or-do-not-There-is-no-try&p=277445&viewfull=1#post277445

JediNickD · September 26, 2012

After composing a schedule for my 6 Week Challenge Toastmaster goals, I had to take this meeting as my Toastmaster of the Day in order to have two opportunities for my Lesson speech. I requested the role on Friday and as usual, we did not have an agenda settled until a minute before the start of the meeting. I was partly prepared as a couple people had used the website to sign up for speeches, so I could come up with intros for them.

The Toastmaster of the Day's (TotD) duty is to serve as the MC for the meeting. They introduce each speaker and transition the meeting between phases. They are responsible for holding a timely and organized meeting.

The first task the TotD has is to give the audience an overview of the agenda and ensure guests understand the basics. I went through the agenda, but forgot to explain as I went. The agenda was just a mess of changes that I was distracted.

After the agenda has been reviewed and roles explained, I transitioned the meeting into the first phase Prepared Speeches and introduced the first speaker. I was prepared for this so I did pretty well, but I messed up when I called him up by not using his title. The next intro I did better with. My third Prepared Speech intro had to be improvised as he was added before the meeting started. Luckily, the first two speeches had similar content allowing me to use "and now for something completely different" as a transition.

Following the Prepared Speeches portion, the TotD has a reduced role. The second and third phase has their own MC. Table Topics has the Table Topics Master while the Evaluation phase has the General Evaluator. I think I did a fine job transitioning and introducing each, but I failed again with explanations.

I was evaluated for my role. My evaluator thought I did a superb job for my second turn in the role. Of course, I know better. I need improvement in using titles to introduce people while also remembering to give explanations of roles and phases of the meeting. Next time, I plan to give myself two weeks to prepare and assist in setting an agenda ahead of the meeting.

JediNickD · November 19, 2012

On Tuesday last week, I was suppose to be on travel, but some paperwork kept me from leaving in the morning. I ended up making it to Toastmasters meeting for lunch only to find another clusterf___ of an agenda. Doug, our Vice President of Education (VPE), anticipated that people who haven't attended a meeting in months to show up and fill roles which he gave them about an hour notice about by emailing the agenda way too late. I grabbed two of the MIA member's roles, Grammarian and General Evaluator.

Fed up with the state of the agenda and the resulting late starts our meetings have had, I decided it was time to offer our VPE some criticism, solutions, and assistance. During my evaluation of the meeting, I mentioned our failures at filling out the agenda with members who plan to attend and how it negatively affects our meetings, namely, we look considerably disorganized to guests. My solutions were simple. We need to communicate with our members. There are no reminders or notices about meetings. There is no crosstalk about who is filling roles. There is no schedule for the membership to keep to. As Vice President of Public Relations, it is hardly my place to do these tasks, but I certainly know how to do it as I have done it with sports teams in the past. I mentioned utilizing Outlook Calendar to send out an invite to the meeting, updates to the agenda, and reminders. Doug didn't really seem to grasp the magnitude of this issue. We tabled further discussion for the Officer's Meeting on Thursday.

At the Thursday meeting, we discussed a couple of important issues regarding a guest speaker and membership drive. When the agenda issue came up, I pounced on it listing the flaws with the current state of affairs again. I offered my solutions again. Doug seemed unwilling to do it himself, so I graciously volunteered. I couldn't stand to see this issue persist when such an easy fix is available. I just do not understand his lack of ugency, care, and effort in this subject. I know Doug is a driven person and loves Toastmasters (he ran for District Governor last spring). I also know he is a busy person with many things on his plate. I also know he is older so utilizing technology as a solution could be part of his problem. But those are lame excuses for something you appear to care deeply about and wish to be a figure head for.

JediNickD · November 19, 2012

On Saturday, I refereed three high-level U15, U16, and U18 girls soccer games. The first game, I was the center official with Erol and Steve as my assistant referees (AR). I arrived at the field 30min early as expected and put on my kit. While stretching my first AR arrived. When he was ready, we went to check the teams in. Concerned we would be missing our third, Erol phoned him. "Steve is waiting for us in the parking lot," he said. An odd place to meet to referee a soccer game. Five minutes later, Steve arrived at the field and suited up. I gave my pregame concentrating on hustle and communication as I always do. We started a little late because of Steve's tardiness, but that was not too big of a deal.

Erol turned in a nice performance outside of an instance where he wanted me to not call a foul, which I clearly saw. He wanted the girls to keep playing through the foul for an advantage, but I saw none and whistled the foul. ARs are exactly that: assistances. He should not have insisted that I hold my whistle for his flag. I didn't bug him about it, because English wasn't his first language and that seemed to be part of the communication issue.

Steve on the other hand was a train wreck at this level. He was slow to stay with offside, but his attention was so focused on it that he could not multitask to call out-of-bounds correctly. He consistently signaled wrong. He claimed to know the call, but just signaled the wrong direction. He tried to correct this by saying the color of the team to put the ball back in play. Still wrong sometimes. Now, he could be telling the truth, but I didn't really care if he was right or wrong. I told both ARs in my pregame that no matter what they signaled for out-of-bounds that I would mirror them. That only works if they signal with confidence. Steve's mechanics were also terrible and lacked confidence. He would put the flag up briefly at awkward angles. I coached him up at halftime telling him how to signal properly and with confidence. There was some improvement early in the second half, but that faded quickly into a worse performance than the first half. He just is not cut out for this level. I'd hate to see him at a boys or mens game.

Steve had the next center spot. He did alright for the most part, but his position about the center circle made it difficult to see pushes in the back. I let him know that he needs to get different angles to see these pushes by getting to the sidelines. He made zero improvements in his positioning. I was very disappointed and wished I had more time with him, because he seemed eager to learn more and improve his game by asking questions, but lacked the ability to implement anything new on his own.

Erol took the third match, the U18 girls game. This was quite a game and Erol just was too slow to keep up in the second half. He only missed one critical play on my side of the field, and I was shielded by players and couldn't tell what really happened. After a corner kick, there was a mix of players in front of the goal. The ball was shot from around the edge of the penalty box and struck a defender in the face at the edge of the goalbox, so I thought. The ball was cleared out and the player went to the ground, like someone who got hit in the face with a ball. Between what I saw and what the players described, I was able to piece together how the girl was kicked in the face. Yes, she was kicked in the face and neither ref saw it. Of course, every single person on the sidelines saw it and let us know we missed it. She likely broke her nose and there was a lot of blood. I felt awful, but knew there wasn't much I could have done to see the kick better. Erol, though, should have been in position to see it, but was just too far outside the penalty box. With the ball and all the players, it is just a tough situation, but he could have been closer. After three games, it is a labor to ensure you are in position for every call no matter what your fitness level. I will never understand why they always schedule the older kids for the last game, but this is why hustle is my number one pregame point.

JediNickD · November 26, 2012

Han Solo is famous for uttering the phrase, “I have a bad feeling about this,” which has also been the response of many Star Wars fans with the announcement of Disney buying Star Wars. I have a good feeling about it, because any purchase which brings us a new Star Wars movie is a good one. And when Disney announced the acquisition, they also announced they plan to release a new Star Wars trilogy.

There is a lot of speculation about the new Star Wars films with many fans making their best guess at the storyline. I have my own forecast which I’d like to share today. It is my opinion that the films will begin about 40 years after the end of Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, will follow new main characters with the former three main characters in supporting roles, and those new main characters will be of the Skywalker blood line.

Let me examine the timing of the films first. In the announcement of the Disney’s Star Wars purchase in the Associated Press release, Ryan Nakashima writes that the working title for the first film is “Episode 7” to be released in 2015 with 8 and 9 to follow. He notes the trilogy will tell the story of Luke Skywalker, Leia Organa, and Han Solo beyond the end of Episode 6. The original actors, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and Harrison Ford, who starred as the main characters in Return of the Jedi are expected to reprise their roles as per an interview with Mark Hamill himself. Entertainment Weekly sat down with Hamill who revealed that he and Fisher had lunch with Star Wars creator George Lucas where they discussed the possibilities of another trilogy. Hamill specifically said in the interview, “When [Lucas] said, 'We decided we're going to do episodes VII, VIII, and IX,' I was just gobsmacked.”

Lucas’s original Star Wars saga was 12 episodes. Dale Pollock, author of the Lucas biography, "Skywalking: The Life and Films of George Lucas," confirmed that in an interview with The Wrap. The author says that while he was doing research in the 1990s, he was allowed to read the outlines to the 12 stories. He also said that episodes 7, 8, and 9 of the outline feature Luke Skywalker in his 30s and 40s. No other details were given due to a confidentiality agreement Pollock signed.

Luke Skywalker’s life in his 30s and 40s has already been pretty filled up with stories written in novel and comic book form. In fact, the books pretty much cover his lifetime into his sixties. For a complete history of his life, you can read a wiki website called Wookieepedia where fans have cataloged everything Star Wars in their online encyclopedia. Published by Lucas Arts, these books, known as the Star Wars Expanded Universe, are accepted as canon and all met the approval of Lucas himself. Do they fit into Lucas’s original 12 part saga?

According to Wookieepedia, with the ending of the “Fate of the Jedi” novel series, the door is wide open 45 years after Episode IV: A New Hope or roughly 40 years after Return of the Jedi. The next story line is a comic book series 85 years later called “Legacy”. That is a lot of empty timeline, which I personally feel Lucas wanted left open for these new films.

I expect they’ll have to take some liberties with character age from Lucas’s original work. With such a dense history already formed, there isn’t much room for a new untold story following Luke in his 30s and 40s. By the end of the most recent released novel, “Fate of the Jedi: Apocalypse,” Luke Skywalker is already 63 years old. This is a big reason I see Luke, Leia, and Han returning in supporting roles.

Another reason for them to be supporting actors is the actors’ ages and credentials. Born in 1951 according to Wikipedia, Mark Hamill is 63 years old, coincidently the same age as Luke Skywalker following the last novel, or maybe not. Coincidence or not, a 60 year old actor is not an issue with CGI these days. The bigger issue for Hamill and Carrie Fisher is that they never developed as actors. According to the Internet Movie Database, Hamill’s credentials are filled with voice acting jobs and hardly a hit movie since Return of the Jedi. Fisher has done many small parts since Return of the Jedi, but again nothing to show she has the ability to headline a blockbuster. Harrison Ford is the only one of the three who has any real acting ability, but then his star power and asking price would likely keep Disney from offering him a big part anyway.

If Luke, Leia, and Han are supporting characters, then who takes center stage? Well, their kids, of course. Much of the Star Wars literature following Return of the Jedi follows not only Luke, Leia and Han, but their children, as well. Leia and Han marry and have three Jedi children; the youngest is named after Leia’s father, Anakin. The eldest are twins Jacen and Jaina. Jacen meets his end in the Fate of the Jedi series, leaving Jaina and Anakin. Luke also marries and has a Jedi son, Ben. With three children of the Skywalker bloodline and strong in the Force, there are plenty of main characters to build a storyline around; characters that have already been heavily featured in the Star Wars Expanded Universe.

To summarize, it is my opinion, and an opinion with plenty of supporting facts, that Episode VII will take place about 40 years after the end of Return of the Jedi. It will follow three new main characters of the Skywalker bloodline; namely, Ben Skywalker, Jaina Solo, and Anakin Solo with Luke, Leia, and Han in supporting roles. In anticipation of the film’s release in 2015, speculation of the films’ plot will continue to be a hot topic amongst Star Wars fans. Until then, may the Force be with us.

JediNickD · November 28, 2012

Yesterday, I presented my "When You Wish Upon a Star Wars" speech outlining my opinion of the plotline of Star Wars Episode VII. The manual lesson was "Research Your Topic" emphasizing research into you topic, then presenting the sources, references, or data articulately. I used a fair amount of different internet sources to support my main points and presented them in a way that others could check them on their own. The speech was not a problem and I thought I knew it very well. I wrote note cards to help me get out from behind the lecturn, but they didn't help. I froze up when I messed up a sentence. The note cards just made me freeze longer as I tried to figure out what was next. I was a little irritated that I took the risk with the note cards, because I felt like I had made a lot of progress since March, which it felt like the experience sucked away. To illustrate the misstep further, I ran long for the first time.

After the speech, I vowed to re-assure myself by doing a solid Table Topic speech. My topic was what vehicle would you like to have and why. Well, I've always wanted a boat, so that was immediately where I went. I discussed how my wife and I like to live near the water and how we could use a boat to visit places. It was a little shorter than I wanted, but I ran out of stuff to talk about so I summarized and concluded. Of course, I thought of a couple more points as soon as I sat down. Typical. Anyway, I rocked it without a stumble. Not even an Ah or Um.

For my next speech, I need to pick a topic which I talk about fairly easily. I can make note cards with just bullets of my main and sub points (maybe my opening, lead, and conclusion, too), but I need to be able to do it without a written speech. I think I can do this with GeoCaching. Security was my other option and made a bit more sense for the lesson "Vocal Variety", but I might want to save it for one where more preparation is required. I can slip in Vocal Variety to a GeoCaching speech.

JediNickD · December 4, 2012

Toastmasters Speech "Three Principles for Success"

[1] Toastmaster of the Day, fellow Toastmasters, and honorary guests. Today, Iâ€™ll be completing Lesson 10 from the Competent Communicator manual titled Inspire Your Audience. My speech title is â€œThree Principles for Successâ€.

Let me start off with a question. Do you stockpile anything? (ask audience members)

Stamps, coins, action figures, sports memorabilia.

How about something that is more than a hobby? Maybe you collect notes for a book you want to write or blog you been meaning to start. Maybe collect research for diet or exercise plans. Maybe you stockpile information on schools or jobs you want to pursue. Maybe youâ€™re a Toastmaster researching a speech topic.

[2] How about underpants? Does anyone here stockpile underpants? Iâ€™m not talking about buying an obscene about of underwear either. Iâ€™m talking about other peopleâ€™s underpants. Nobody? I guess we do not have any Underpants Gnomes here. How many of you have heard of the Underpants Gnomes? For those that havenâ€™t, let me introduce them. [3] These Gnomes live in the quiet town of South Park, Colorado. They sneak into peopleâ€™s houses in the middle of the night and steal their underpants, but they do so with a plan in mind. [4] They have a three phase business plan to lead them to success. The first phase is to â€œcollect underpantsâ€ and the third phase is where they profit, but they have no clue what phase two is or how to get there. Now, a savvy person can break anything up into a multiple phases or parts, but three is the magic number as it gives you easy to remember parts: a beginning, middle, and end. An essay has an opening, body, and conclusion. A Toastmasters meeting has three sections: prepared speeches, table topics, and evaluations. A good western movie has the good, the bad, and the ugly. The plan which the Underpants Gnomes are using is more similar to a three phase plan laid out at eHow.com by contributor Wendel Clark for Strategic Marketing, which can be used with just about any facet of life.

[5.1] Phase 1 is the research, development, and planning phase. This is where you collect underpants. You explore your subject and stockpile all the resources you can get your hands on. If your plan is to lose weight or get in shape, then you could be reading diet or fitness books. If you are preparing to write or give a Toastmasterâ€™s speech, then you could be jotting down speech ideas or researching a subject for main points and references.

[5.2] Phase 3 is the production and continuation phase. This is where you profit. Youâ€™ve achieved your goal and produced a product which you want to continue to maintain. Youâ€™ve reached a healthy lifestyle goal and now you need to maintain it. Youâ€™ve completed your Toastmasterâ€™s speech and wish to retain the lessons you have learned.

[5.3] Phase 2 is the implementation and execution phase. This is where the work gets done. Start eating healthy. Get to the gymâ€¦ or make a gym at home. Start writing that book, blog, or speech! Implement your research and execute your plan.

[6] Successful people dominate Phase 2, because Phase 2 is about taking that dream you pined over in Phase 1 and turning it into a reality. My objective today is to explain to you how to dominate Phase 2 and find success with three basic principles: take a leap of faith, learn through failure, and never give up. Together, these principles are unstoppable.

[7.1] In the movie, Inception, the character Saito says, â€œDon't you want to take a leap of faith? Or become an old man, filled with regret, waiting to die alone!â€ Now, that is a bit over the top for our subject today, but the sentiment is there. Do we want to wonder what might have been? Or do we want to test our limits?

[7.2] By taking a leap of faith, you are putting aside the fact that you do not have 100% knowledge required, but you understand that youâ€™ll pick it up as you go, learning from experience. [7.3] You might see a leap of faith as a big risk. Phase 1 is about minimizing the risk by obtaining knowledge, but if you understand risk management, then you know that risk can never fully be eliminated. There will always be unforeseen circumstances.

Getting out of the research and exploration phase is the key to moving ahead. With Toastmasters as an example yet again, we all start as guests trying to gauge our interest in the club and whether we believe we will get anything out of it. Without the experience of the club, you just canâ€™t answer those questions. Fear of public speaking keeps people from joining or even returning. The only way to overcome that fear is to speak publicly with success, which is what Toastmasters is all about. Take a leap of faith with an understanding that some things have to be learned through experience.

[8] The trouble with learning through experience is that it requires you to fail. [8.1] In Batman Begins, Alfred Pennyworth tells Bruce Wayne, â€œWhy do we fall down? To pick ourselves back up.â€ [8.2] Nobody learns anything on an easy successful path. All the greatest of anything have had a hard life and earned their success through many failures and defeats, because the lessons learned from failure are the ones which stick with you. There is an emotional attachment to that experience and a desire not to repeat it. Napoleon Hill was an American author who was one of the earliest producers of personal-success literature. [8.3] He once said, â€œEvery adversity, every failure, every heartache carries with it the seed on an equal or greater benefit.â€ [8.4] Failure is the best learning tool at your disposal. Take the simple task of learning to ride a bike. You crash and burn a bunch of times while you learn to balance your body. All you need is the resolve to get back up and try again, which leads us to the third principle.

[9] Be a Goonie, [9.1] because Goonies never say die. Whatever obstacle a Goonie encounters, they find a way over it, around it, or through it. They use all the tricks up their sleeve, too. There will be crushing failures in phase two. Your motivation and confidence will be squashed. You cannot quit if you wish to reach phase three. Instead, take a hint from Wiley Coyote. After getting flattened like a pancake, go back to the drawing board and come back ready to make your next big blunder! [9.2] I believe Jason Nesmith of Galaxy Quest said it best: â€œNever give up. Never surrender.â€ There will be times when you feel dejected, heartbroken, or lost. [9.3] You just need to remember Fievel Mousekewitz from An American Tail: â€œNever say â€˜Neverâ€™.â€ Never say never to your goalsâ€¦ your hopesâ€¦ your dreams.

[10] By taking a leap of faith, learning through failure, and never giving up, anyone can dominate Phase 2 of whatever plans they have and find success. Now, I implore you! Stop collecting underpants! Take on the risk of Phase 2 and get on track to Phase 3â€¦ Profit!

JediNickD · January 9, 2013

Toastmasters Meeting 01/08/13

Positive Thinking, Fun Atmosphere, but Planning is Key

For today's meeting I served as General Evaluator and Table Topics participant. The meeting was pretty upbeat with a lot of positive and fun speeches, but I'll get into that in my description of my GE role. Instead, I'll start off with my Table Topics speech. The Topic was a new concept taken from Toastmasters International website.

The Table Topics Master is the chief editor of a Baltimore newspaper. Each volunteer is a section editor who is pitching a story idea to the chief editor. I drew the Sports Editor. Since I'm an extensive football fan, I opted to discuss a subject on which I hadn't seen an article focused. It went something like the following:

Why Mike Shanahan, coach of the Washington Redskins, didn't trust Kirk Cousins, QB Russell Griffin III's backup, to come in and maintain a 14 point lead in the second quarter? Anyone could see that Griffin lacked mobility and it was effecting the offensive performance. They produced zero points and very few yards allowing the Seahawks to catch up by halftime, then gain the lead right before Griffin ended his day attempting to recover a fumbled snap. At that point in the 4th quarter, the backup now had to come from behind to win with not much time remaining. Inserting Cousins earlier would have protected Griffin from further injury and allowed Cousins time to warm up and build confidence against a very good Seahawks defense. Defending a 14 point lead with a conservative offense is tough, but it is even harder when the defense knows you are playing conservative because your QB is injured. Had Cousins not performed well enough at practice and limited game experience to merit the nod? Now, since Griffin might not return until October 2013, the Redskins are likely to depend on Cousins early next season. Will they trust him next season, or will they turn to a veteran QB to keep them competetive early next season?

Each "editor" had their pick of a wide range of topics, so the concept gave us some clever impromptu speeches. I really enjoyed the idea and told the TT master that I'd be stealing the idea for a TT down the road.

My next speaking role was that of the General Evaluator. I was to introduce each evaluator to give their report. At the end I would evaluate the meeting as a whole. I started by giving an outline of the speakers I'd call up, then called up the first speech evaluator. I still had some notes to prep for my evaluation, so as they spoke, I hurried to complete them. I missed the end of both evaluation being slow to respond to them calling me back up, which was rude and unexcuseable. I need to be better about that in the future.

After the timer report, I gave my evaluation, which is below:

The meeting started off with some good laughs, then we had an award presentation and a toast. It was a very positive and fun start to a meeting. We then had a new, inventive Table Topics concept, which was excellent. But it wasn't all perfect. The Toastmaster of the Day briefly went over the agenda, but we need to remember to add more depth explaining roles and sections when we have guests, which we had two. We typically do not use themes for our meetings, but this time we had an easy one, New Years, and should have taken advantage of it. In the future, it would be good to give our meetings more variety by utilizing themes once in a while.

With the New Year, everyone is thinking about resolutions and how to change for the better. The outlook is always positive with plenty of excitement, but positive thinking can only take you so far. You need a plan to achieve your goals. It seems like a lot of the time we attend these meetings hap-hazardly, show up and fill out the agenda. Today we had a full agenda thanks to our VP of Education being on the ball assigning roles early. Make a plan for each meeting in advance. Know what roles you want to work on and volunteer for them in advance. Schedule your speeches ahead of time. We only had 2 today. Why? Because the rest of us didn't have a speech ready. If we were on the schedule, then we'd have one ready. Look ahead, figure out when you want to give a speech and get on the schedule. With a plan in place, completing your Communicator and Leadership manuals will be a breeze. Bruce Lee once said, "Know is not enough, you must apply. Willing is not enough, you must do."

To summarize, we had a very positive and fun meeting with several funny and charismatic speakers... Oscar as Joke-Master, Doug as Toastmaster of the Day, and even one of our newest members, Arnold, gave us a few laughs in his Ice Breaker. We had a fun Table Topics using a new concept. Lastly, we concluded with a positive Evaluation portion. I'm looking forward to maintaining this atmosphere in our next meeting.

The middle paragraph I had mostly prepared before the meeting as I wanted to inspire people for the New Year.

JediNickD · January 10, 2013

Interview for a local newspaper article about Toastmasters:

====

What value does Toastmasters add to your professional and personal life?

I find myself much more confident when talking to people either professionally or socially. I am typically a shy person terrified of speaking in front of people, but Toastmasters has helped me overcome my fears and be more outgoing. I used to stumble over every other word, uttering "um" and "ah" at every pause, and freezing up when I have to think on my feet. By attending and participating, I have learned to overcome these issues. In addition, I frequently get to utilize and improve my writing skills by writing speeches. Toastmasters has also developed my skills in the workplace, such as properly preparing for demonstrations and presentations by tailoring it to the expected audience. It is easily one of the best decisions I've made in my life and wish I had found it much earlier.

====

Why would you recommend this club to others?

The environment is always positive, welcoming, and supportive. No one is there to judge or criticize you. In fact, everyone is there for the same reason: to become a better speaker and leader. Everyone is struggling with the same or similar obstacle and we are there to help each other succeed.

zackaryirlbeck · January 12, 2013

I was just noticing this post. It may be a little late to post but oh well. I just wanted to say that's freaking awesome. I thought jedie are just In movies. Does this mean my dream of being a ninja can come true too!

JediNickD · January 16, 2013

I was just noticing this post. It may be a little late to post but oh well. I just wanted to say that's freaking awesome. I thought jedie are just In movies. Does this mean my dream of being a ninja can come true too!

There are Jedi all around the world. People living by the same principles which the movie Jedi lived by, which George Lucas borrowed from many religions and practices from around the world. There is no roleplaying or cosplay involved with being a Jedi, just training the mind, body, and spirit while living a life of servitude.

As for being a ninja, anyone can do it. You just have to put your mind to it. Take martial arts and dedicate yourself to the training. Read all you can about the practices and adapt your life to them. We all start with a dream with our starting blocks in various places, but if you do not push off and keep going, then you'll never see the finish line. Don't just dream it, LIVE IT!

Taijibum · January 16, 2013

No cosplay with Jedi? As Jedi realist I suppose not, but a lot of Jedi wannabe's dress up in the robes. If fact I was thinking of wearing the Jedi outfit during my next ultra. A lot of people dress up at ultras, usually as superheroes. I hate the boots though. I'll probably go with a soft soled moccasin type boot if I dress up.

There are a ton of ninja schools out there and the biggest one is Bujinkan- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bujinkan

JediNickD · January 16, 2013

No cosplay with Jedi? As Jedi realist I suppose not, but a lot of Jedi wannabe's dress up in the robes. If fact I was thinking of wearing the Jedi outfit during my next ultra. A lot of people dress up at ultras, usually as superheroes. I hate the boots though. I'll probably go with a soft soled moccasin type boot if I dress up.

There are a ton of ninja schools out there and the biggest one is Bujinkan- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bujinkan

Hehe... I didn't want to get into the whole Jediist, Jedi Realist, Jediism, and so on breakdown of the Jedi community, so I simplified. You don't need a robe to be a Jedi.

Like Mr Miyagi in "The Karate Kid" says:

Daniel: Hey, what kind of belt do you have?
Miyagi: Canvas. JC Penney, $3.98. You like?
Daniel: [laughs] No, I meant...
Miyagi: In Okinawa, belt mean no need rope to hold up pants.
[laughs; then, seriously]
Miyagi: Daniel-san...
[taps his head]
Miyagi: Karate here.
[taps his heart]
Miyagi: Karate here.
[points to his belt]
Miyagi: Karate never here. Understand?

Same logic applies to Jedi in my opinion.

Taijibum · January 17, 2013

I agree.

JediNickD · January 18, 2013

Below is my notes and agenda from serving as Toastmaster of the Day on Tuesday. I removed last names and some other info for privacy. As you can see, I was well prepared for each introduction. I made two mistakes. I forgot to welcome our guest in my opening and I forget to introduce the Grammarian to present the Word of the Day.

I. Meeting Called to Order by Sgt-at-Arms -----------------------------------SGT-at-Arms Donna
                        Pledge of Allegiance
II. Toastmaster of the Day --------------------------------------------------------TM Nick
       Review Agenda & Introduce Grammarian with Word of the Day â€“--Secretary James

III. Joke Master---------------------------------------------------------------------TM Charles

Now, to get this meeting started right, letâ€™s have our Joke-Master come up and get everyone laughing. Please give a warm welcome to Toastmaster Charles!

IV. Scheduled Speakers

        1^st Speaker of the Day--------------------------------------------------------VP PR Enrique
        â€œMy Trip to Miami and New Hampshireâ€

Our first scheduled speaker, completing Lesson #___________________ of the _____ manual, ____ minutes, is fresh off a trip to a couple of very different places. Heâ€™ll be sharing his experiences in his speech titled â€œMy Trip to Miami and New Hampshireâ€. What could possibly lead a man from Maryland to journey to the extents of the East Coast? To put our wonder at ease, please welcome your club Vice President of Public Relations, Toastmaster Enrique!

       2^nd Speaker of the Day----------------------------------------------------------- DTM, President Doug
        ATM Special Occasion Speech #2, Speaking in Praise, â€œOfficer Pins,â€ 5-7 min

Our next scheduled speaker, completing Lesson #2, â€œSpeaking in Praiseâ€ of the Advanced Toastmaster Special Occasion manual, 5-7 minutes, is an experienced Toastmaster and your club President. Today, heâ€™ll be giving a speech titled â€œOfficer Pinsâ€. Now, everyone put your hands together for your club President, Distinguished Toastmaster Doug!

        3^rd Speaker of the Day----------------------------------------------------------- TM Charles
        CC Speech #2, Organize Your Speech, â€œOur Role in Security,â€ 5-7 min

Our last scheduled speaker, completing Lesson #2 â€œOrganize Your Speechâ€ of the Competent Communicator manual, 5-7 minutes, hails from Virginia. After serving nearly 24 years in the Army, he settled in MD. Charles has been married to Kathy for 24 years and there are four children born from this union. Charles is excited to speak with you today about "Our Role in Security".   Now letâ€™s give a big hand for Toastmaster!

V. Table Topics Master ----------------------------------------------------------SGT-at-Arms Donna

With the scheduled speeches complete, we now move into the impromtu speaking portion of the meeting called Table Topics. Iâ€™ll leave further explanation to our Table Topics Master for today. Now, without further ado, please welcome the Table Topics Master, your club Sergeant at Arms, Toastmaster Donna!

                    Explain Table Topics and Conduct Table Topics Session
      1. _____________ 2. _____________ 3. _____________ 4. _____________
Return Podium Back to Toastmaster

VI. (12:30) General Evaluator (Calls for reports): ----------------------------------OPEN

Letâ€™s get on to the Evaluation portion of the meeting led by the General Evaluator. Feedback is the basis for improvement in Toastmasters, which is why we evaluate the scheduled speakers, but we are not here to criticize and judge. We are here to support and encourage! Please welcome as the General Evaluator, __________________.

        Evaluate 1^st Speaker of the Day-------------------------------------------CC Kashia
        Evaluate 2^ndSpeaker of the Day-------------------------------------------OPEN
        Evaluate 3^rd Speaker of the Day-------------------------------------------OPEN
        Timer Report ---------------------------------------------------------------------OPEN                 Grammarian/AH Counter ---------------------------------------------------Secretary James
        General Evaluatorâ€™s Overall Evaluation

VII. (12:42) Toastmaster Announces Winner & Presents Award -------DTM, President Doug
        Club Business & Closing Remarks------------------------------------DTM, President Doug

The last portion of the meeting is the Club Business meeting run by the club President. Please give a warm welcome to your club President, Distinguished Toastmaster Doug Strand!

12:45 Meeting Adjourned

Taijibum · January 19, 2013

Thats pretty impressive!

JediNickD · January 22, 2013

Toastmasters Speech Lesson #6 Vocal Variety: "Miyagi Life Lessons"

â€œWax on. Wax off.â€ The Karate Kid released in 1984 is a story about a handyman/martial arts master who agrees to teach Karate to a boy who is being bullied at school. While doing so, he shows the boy that there is more to the martial art than fighting. He taught him the secret to Karate lies in the mind and heart. Not in the hands. Iâ€™m not here to teach Karate, but I would like to share how to take three lessons Mr. Miyagi teaches and apply them to life.

When Miyagi agrees to teach Daniel Karate, he agrees with one stipulation, what he says, Daniel does, no questions. The first day of training, Miyagi has Daniel wax about six cars. The next day, Daniel has to sand all of the wooden walkways at Miyagiâ€™s house. He follows that up with painting the fence and the house. Daniel is frustrated at the end of the fourth day as his muscles are sore and he has learned zero Karate.

Human instinct is to believe what we see. Daniel sees himself being used for manual labor. When confronted, Miyagi tells Daniel, â€œnot everything is as seems.â€ Miyagi had Daniel do each chore with a specific technique while focusing on his breathing. The chores built Danielâ€™s muscles. The techniques were each a Karate blocking technique. When Miyagi demonstrates what he was teaching, Daniel is dumbfounded. He completely missed the lesson because he had preconceived notions of what the chores were.

Humans will interpret what we think we see and what we expect to see, because of preconceived notions. There are many different ways to take advantage of this. One way is to trick oneself into liking something. Take a task which is tedious, difficult, or intolerable. Personally, I dislike running. I usually have to run in the same location with the same scenery so I get bored. The pain in my legs and lungs make it difficult and intolerable to endure. If I take a football with me, then I can toss and catch it, kick and chase it, or just pretend Iâ€™m playing a game all while running. Suddenly, running is fun.

Another way to take advantage of this human instinct is to find and make breakthroughs. If you are always questioning how things seem looking to find new points of view, then you are more likely to discover something that was previously hidden. Look at weight loss schemes. There are too many out there to count and most are fundamentally flawed as they rely on you to observe other weight loss principles in conjunction. But their advertisements hardly ever mention the flaws. Instead, they are marketed like a cure all. A little speculation can go a long way.

Later in Danielâ€™s training, he says that heâ€™ll give something a shot. Miyagi takes him aside and explains â€œMan walk on road. Walk left side, safe. Walk right side, safe. Walk down middle, sooner or later, get squished just like grape. Here, Karate same thing. You karate do "yes," or karate do "no." You karate do "guess so," just like grape.â€ What Miyagi is telling Daniel is that Karate is not something you try. It is not an odd looking potato salad that your friend brought to your Super Bowl party. Karate is something which you need to commit fully to. It is something you do.

Life should be lived in a similar manner. It is fine to sample parts of life, but if you want to succeed in an area, then you have to commit to it. You have to believe in yourself, take a leap of faith, and never give up on your goals. Learn from any failures you experience and get back on the road to success, Commitment Avenue.

After Daniel learns to block, his next lesson is to learn to balance his body. Daniel is eager to learn to punch, but to quell Danielâ€™s eagerness; Miyagi dispatches this wisdom, â€œBetter learn balance. Balance is key. Balance good, karate good. Everything good. Balance bad, better pack up, go home.â€ Later, Miyagi confronts Daniel about what is troubling him. Miyagi helps Daniel see the bigger picture by saying, â€œRemember lesson about balance? Lesson not just karate only. Lesson for whole life. Whole life have a balance. Everything be better.â€

Balance is the key for everyday living. For diet, you have your balanced breakfast and three square meals a day. You canâ€™t eat mostly junk food without experiencing health issues later in life. You shouldnâ€™t only eat health food as fats are necessary for building muscle. Of course, I am simplifying but you get the idea. Alcohol is another item which needs to have a balance. Too much has obvious repercussions. Too little or none at all and you are missing out on the health benefits from alcohol.

Even your participation in Toastmasters should have a balance. There are several different roles, each with their own specific lessons. Prepared speeches teach you how to prepare and formulate a speech. Table Topics teaches you to think on your feet. Speech evaluator teaches you to give encouraging feedback. To get the full benefits from Toastmasters you need to experience each role. Your Toastmasters experience needs to have a balance. Your whole life needs to have a balance.

Mr Miyagi was not only an excellent Karate instructor, but a life coach for Daniel Russo. He taught Daniel, and in turn the viewers of the movie, that everything is not always as it seems, commitment is the road to success, and balance is the key for everything in life. Please take these three lessons with you when you leave here today.

And in memory of the actor who portrayed Mr Miyagi, the late Pat Morita. BANZIA!

Heidi · January 22, 2013

O wow!

Well done!

(I hope the crowd went wild with applause.)

SkiBlue · January 22, 2013

A very enjoyable and quite insightful speech! I definitely would've loved to have heard it.

Heidi · January 22, 2013

Hey, Nick --

Do you have a collection of your toastmaster speeches somewhere in the 'verse?

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