Don't Dominate Party Conversation. . .

One of Miss Holly Golightly's cocktail parties in the Truman Capote novel (and later a Blake Edwards film) Breakfast at Tiffany's.

When you find yourself in a social situation, say for example a cocktail or dinner party, or even a less formal backyard picnic in the summertime, don't be the guy who dominates any conversation of which he is a part. Usually these guys are louder than everyone else too. It's far better to get a grip on those jitters -- nervousness is usually the root cause -- calm down, and listen. Wait until you can contribute something pertinent to the general chat around you, or until a question or remark is directed to you. And, of course, if you can be wryly witty and amusing when your turn to speak arrives, so much the better.

While you certainly do not want to sit there like a mossy bump on a log next to your spouse or significant other all evening, neither do you want to be that obnoxious blowhard, who takes over the room with vacuous talk that grows louder with each drink consumed. You do not want to be the source of loud, raucous laughter either, or (figuratively speaking) end up dancing in a corner with a lampshade on your head by evening's end.

It's not a pretty picture to observe and leads to hushed reactions like, "My God, who is that?" among the other guests. Such behavior will almost certainly ensure that you are not invited back by your hosts the next time they organize any kind of gathering. Instead, it is much better to control of yourself and avoid dominating party conversation.

-- Heinz-Ulrich

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Up North Style. . .

Bad Dad makes a friend. YMP and Bad Dad on the shores of Lake Michigan. Or was that Crystal Lake? The Grand Duchess takes a selfie in her kayak. How NOT to impress the girls sunning themselves along the river. YMP and Bad Dad kayaking on the Platte River headed toward Loon Lake. J ust back from a week in Northern Michigan in a charming and spacious house on the banks of the Betsie River outside of Thompsonville. A largely pleasant seven days despite some challenging episodes with the Young Master, who has picked up some very questionable habits and language from his friends in the 8th Grade during the school year just ended. But otherwise, we enjoyed ourselves and contemplated remaining for a few days longer since the house was available. In the end, we decided to return home as planned originally since neither my wife, nor I wanted to spend the remaining days chained to our computers in Zoom meetings from our vacation destination. I actually managed to leave the laptop and ip

Mid-June Thursday Style. . .

A nother pretty typical variation on the theme for late spring, summer, and very early fall. I'm a huge fan of Madras and have several such shirts in the seasonal rotation. Lightweight, exceedingly comfortable, and even dressy when pressed and tucked in, which is the usual way of things here at Totleigh in the Wold. Now, if I had my druthers, I'd still rather be skiing the trails in the upper half of "The Mitten" (of Michigan), in the Upper Peninsula, or Ontario. But summers ain't so bad either, and I'd look pretty funny walking around in cross-country ski attire during June. -- Heinz-Ulrich

A Lazy Saturday at the End of June. . .

A sleepy first half of the weekend here at Totleigh. Warmer and quite humid ahead of an approaching cool front here in Mid-Michigan. Perfect for yet another pair of chino shorts an a seersucker shirt -- tucked in of course -- with the usual leather deck shoes and ribbon belt. Otherwise, not much accomplished beyond a page or so of writing and monkeying around with audio settings for an upcoming podcast episode. However, I was not completely useless yesterday! I made a huge fruit salad for dinner, which the Grand Duchess and I enjoyed a short while later at the table on the back porch. The Young Master, as is his wont on Saturday evenings, took his dinner on a tray in the TV room upstairs where he whiled away a couple of hours on Flight Simulator, flying some sort of commercial airliner to some destination across the Atlantic or Pacific. I would have loved that sort of technology at about nine or 10 way back during the late 1970s, aka The Stone Age. As it is, my sister and

Classic Style

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