Party Foul
Here I was at a New Year’s Day party thrown by some people we know. I don’t know if I would call them friends, but I like them a lot (so does my wife) and we hope they like us. But this isn’t about them.
We’re at their party, it was a good party. I was talking to this guy, at somewhat great length. I didn’t know anybody and tend to get a little nervous in social situations. He seemed like a smart guy we talked about a bunch of stuff. I got up on my soap box a couple of times. This was, for me, basic party bullshit. I didn’t know anyone else at the party and he seemed
to be interested in continuing the rabbit trail of a discussion that was going on. I don’t think
I had him trapped like some kind of B movie bad-party guest.
He then noted to me that I had an interesting rhetorical technique, sprinkleing my conversation with a few facts to establish a position if you don’t know what your talking about. Not that I didn’t know what I was talking about, he said, but people who don’t know what they’re talking about might do this same thing. I forget his exact wording and I was like “What?”. He said all this and then excused himself to go the bathroom.
I’m an asshole? I was too taken back to ask what the hell he meant. Did I take it wrong? Is giving facts an “intersting rhetorical technique”? What? Huh?
I don’t even really know how much of my “facts” were really even facts. I didn’t go look them up. I was at a party. I’ve been kindof obsessing about this since it’s a rather sensitve spot for me. I’m really vain about the brain, as it were. My wife laughed it off because, lets face it, who thinks about someones “rehtorical technique” at a party? But I’m not so sure.
I think about peoples rehtorical technique at parties. I’m a really fun guy 
Other than that rather strange incident, the party was fun. Lots of people, hopping jack in a crockpot (I love hoppin jack) and cool people to hang out with. I’m going to let this go now.
But it’s a new year, and I’m certainly not going to discuss anything but Football at the next party I go to, you count on that. And I really don’t know anything about american Football other than I like the St. Louis Browns.
