For the 2014-07-16 meeting of the Toastmasters club of Port Orange, FL, I was the table topics master and the theme was “Singing in the Rain.” Here is the introduction and topics I came up with:

The purpose of table topics is to help improve members’ extemporaneous speaking skills by giving them an opportunity to practice impromptu speaking on topics they do not have advance knowledge of.

1. Talk about a hurricane, snowstorm, or other bad weather that affected you. What was it like to go without electricity for several days? Did you have a lot of cleanup work to do after the storm?

2. Talk about a time when you’ve had a party or beach day rained out, OR talk about a day when you were worried it would rain but the storm passed over.

3. Have you ever kissed someone in the rain? Share your thoughts on how bad weather can be romantic.

4. Discuss how trying to use an umbrella can actually be counterproductive, especially over short distances where you have to extend and collapse the umbrella in the rain to avoid getting water in your car.

5. Have you or a friend or family member had any close calls with lightning? Share some tips to stay safe in a thunderstorm.

6. Do you sing in the shower? Why or why not?

7. Share some tips for hurricane preparedness or disaster preparedness in general. Feel free to include tips about cutting down dangerous tree branches and securing doors and windows.