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Vol. 19, No. 7, AUGUST 15, 2006 |
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THE FRIDAY PROGRAM: A Year in Hungary (Laurel Gordon) | Friday Potpourri | Third Thursday Social Hour | New Member (Not Really) Mixer | Reveille MIX-Up — The Best-Laid Plans | BBRC Fields Team for Speed Croque | Classification Talk: Mitch Freedman — Stand-Up Comic | RI Team for National Immunization Day in India | Rotarians Doing Business With Rotarians | Web Fun |
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The Friday Program
Laurel chose Hungary and ended up living in a small town on the Slovak order named Salgotarjan (this is without the little curly thingies over the letters and without the benefit of Laurel’s pronunciation). It is a small town about the size of Woodinville which was a mining center, and under Soviet rule, an industrial center with several factories. Now it is a declining city but, because of its industrial past and close ties to the Soviet Union, it is still known as “Little Moscow.” 
President Jimmy Z called the meeting to order. John Armenia provided the invocation [see below]. Roger Allington introduced guests and visitors.
Andrew also attempted to squeeze $20 out of Zul Alibhai in honor of his son’s wedding, but Zul turned the tables on him and volunteered a $100 contribution. Way to go, Zul! • • • Invocation August 11th Paul Harris wrote in My Road to Rotary, “The ramification of Rotary are beyond imagination. Nearly every phase of modern life is influenced and the outlook of members is broadened, and through it all there is the benign influence of fellowship which sweetens life. Many a member’s outlook is different after he (or she) becomes a Rotarian and sees the opportunities for service at home and abroad.” August is designated as Rotary’s Membership and Extension Month. The success of Rotary depends on our ability to promote, grow, and sustain membership. In Rotary, we need a membership that speaks of “we” and “us” rather than “you” and “I.” In Rotary, we have a membership that understands the words of English poet John Donne, “No man is an island, entire of itself, every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main.” In Rotary, we are proud that all religions are represented ... when we are invited to become members we are not asked, “Are you a Protestant? Hindu? Muslim? Christian? Agnostic? Catholic? Jewish? Or Buddhist?" In this month of August and through out the year, we need to invite into our membership men and women who can bring their values, skills, intelligence, enthusiasm, expertise, energy, and passion to the service of others in our local and world communities. In Rotary, we need a membership that has taken to heart the advice of former US Supreme Court Justice Hugo Black who wrote, “At the end of life, we shall not be asked how much pleasure we had in it, but how much service we gave; not how happy we were, but how helpful we were; not how ambition was gratified, but how in love we served. He who would be greatest among men, let him be server of all.” Reveille MIX-Up — The Best-Laid plans One of John Mix's first priorities upon arriving in Moscow, ID, the weekend of August 4 was to get his computer up and running so he could write the Reveille and get it published on time, as he has done for nigh on the past 20 years. Unfortunately, John's computer had other plans. Apparently, it didn't take too kindly to the car trip to Moscow and thumbed it's nose at John when he tried to get it going to start work on Sunday. The computer ended up in the shop, but is back now and appears to be operating just fine, since John has been firing out emails left and right.
• • • LATE BREAKING NEWS: On a separate, but related, note, in keeping with the BBRC's goal of attracting more members under the age of 30, the Board of Directors recently voted to bestow upon John Mix a retroactive honorary lifetime membership in the BBRC. John's photo may be used in what is expected to be highly successful future marketing campaigns targeted at the under-30 set ...
BBRC Fields Team for Speed Croquet Classification Talk: Mitch Freedman — Stand-Up Comic
Mitch seemed to be leading to the point of explaining that he is, today, a tax accountant; however, it quickly became clear that he is, in reality, Woody Allen’s brother. After explaining that he fled Syracuse, New York, after college to avoid being permanently attached to his parents, he described how he ended up in New Jersey, where he was immediately evicted from his new apartment because the landlord claimed that he kept him up all night lifting weights, a bum rap, according to Mitch, who struck a Mr. Universe pose to prove his point. After working 100-hour weeks for Lehman Brothers in New York, Mitch decided to move to Medford, Oregon (he never did explain why, out of all the gin joints in the world, he hit on Medford), but he quickly determined that there were likely few job opportunities in Medford and ended up in Seattle. That, unfortunately, was as far as we got, but Mitch promised to continue the saga during the coming year, as he takes advantage of David Bolson’s classification talk program. Rotarians Doing Business With Rotarians At the instruction of District Governor Mike Montgomery, Rotarians are encouraged to do business with other Rotarians, at least within District 5030. David Bolson, Chair of the Vocational Service Committee, announced plans to allow everyone in the club to give a short classification talk. A sign-up will be available soon. David handed out some guidelines for the talks which are available from him. Everyone is invited to take the opportunity to remind BBRCers about what they do and what they might provide to other fellow Rotarians. The Sergeant at Arms will not be collecting fines for these talks. The Friday Program
Laurel chose Hungary and ended up living in a small town on the Slovak order named Salgotarjan (this is without the little curly thingies over the letters and without the benefit of Laurel’s pronunciation). It is a small town about the size of Woodinville which was a mining center, and under Soviet rule, an industrial center with several factories. Now it is a declining city but, because of its industrial past and close ties to the Soviet Union, it is still known as “Little Moscow.” Laurel found this opportunity through an entity known as “Sharing One Language,” and became a teaching assistant in the local secondary school for those who were going to go on to a university education. She was not the primary English teacher, but rather one who, as a native-born English speaker, could afford the students an opportunity to catch up on the latest idioms and other quirks about not only the English language but American culture.
Laurel described the warm hospitality that she encountered in her stay in Hungary and some of the strong friendships that she formed. It was clear that she not only enjoyed her year in Hungary but learned much from the experience. Being a person with a very bubbly personality, Laurel will undoubtedly make a mark for herself in her future endeavors and delivered a highly entertaining travelogue to the BBRC. Historic Hollywood Squares Q. Do female frogs croak? Q. If you're going to make a parachute jump, at least how high should you be? Q. True or False, a pea can last as long as 5,000 years. Q. You've been having trouble going to sleep. Are you probably a man or a woman? Q. According to Cosmopolitain, if you meet a stranger at a party and you think that he is attractive, is it okay to come out and ask him if he's married? Q. Which of your five senses tends to diminish as you get older? Q. As you grow older, do you tend to gesture more or less with your hands while talking? Q. Paul, why do Hell's Angels wear leather? Q. Charley, you've just decided to grow strawberries. Are you going to get any during the first year? Q. It is considered in bad taste to discuss two subjects at nudist camps. One is politics, what is the other? Q. During a tornado, are you safer in the bedroom or in the closet? Q.When you pat a dog on its head he will wag his tail. What will a goose do? Q. If you were pregnant for two years, what would you give birth to? Q. According to Ann Landers, is there anything wrong with getting into the habit of kissing a lot of people? Q. Back in the old days, when Great Grandpa put horseradish on his head, what was he trying to do? Q. Who stays pregnant for a longer period of time, your wife or your elephant? Q. When a couple have a baby, who is responsible for its sex? Q. Jackie Gleason recently revealed that he firmly believes in them and has actually seen them on at least two occasions. What are they? Q. According to Ann Landers, what are two things you should never do in bed? |
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with admin questions. 
Chris Ballard pitched the beach party on August 24, from 4:30-8:00 p.m., at Vasa Park on West Lake Sammamish Parkway, otherwise know as the BBRC New Member Mixer. Families and partners are welcome, and food and beverages will be provided free of charge. This is not only for new Rotarians, but for ALL BBRCers.
Emerald City Club member Warren Crain, who spends half of his year living in India, encouraged BBRCers to join him in India between November 19 and December 2, 2006, for National Polio Immunization Day. As Warren pointed out, India is one of only four countries in the world were polio is alive and well.
Laurel Gordon, daughter of Program Committee Chair Jim Gordon, was introduced by her father and then described her experiences living for a year in Hungary after graduating from college. Laurel graduated from Columbia University with a degree in English and Religion and, before proceeding to graduate school, she decided to live for a year in an Eastern European country. 
Sergeant at Arms Andrew Face “nicked” Nick Paget for not only losing his sunglasses at the Rotating the Wheels Dinner, but also for losing his name badge. 
The Reveille that never was will be published eventually be published, with any important and not-so-important information included in subsequent Reveilles. 
Mitch Freedman really never got to the point of stating what his “real” job is on Friday. The closest he came to that was wearing the red T-shirt, which he had under his regular shirt, that stated, “Life Can Be Taxing — See Mitch.” On the back it said, “He’ll Keep You Rich.”
Laurel Gordon, daughter of Program Committee Chair Jim Gordon, was introduced by her father and then described her experiences living for a year in Hungary after graduating from college. Laurel graduated from Columbia University with a degree in English and Religion and, before proceeding to graduate school, she decided to live for a year in an Eastern European country. 
Laurel explained that the Hungarian language is very hard to learn, is entirely different from the Slavic languages of Eastern Europe, and most closely approximates the Finish language, suggesting that somewhere in the distant past there was a connection between the peoples that populated Hungary and those that populated Finland. She explained a Hungarian joke, the gist of which was that when the future Hungarians were migrating from the east, they came to a sign saying “turn right” towards Finland, but since they could not read, they turned left. Those who ended up in Finland being better educated, read the sign and turned right. She also described that this joke, in its reverse form, is apparently told in Finland.
If you remember the Original Hollywood Squares and its comics, this may bring a tear to your eyes. These great questions and answers are from the days when "Hollywood Squares" game show responses were spontaneous and clever not scripted and (often) dull, as they are now. Peter Marshall was the host asking the questions, of course.