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.
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I can see this guy’s point … though it’s extremely odd to have brought it up at a new year’s day party.
some people DO use that as a rhetorical tactic … but i know you, and i know you wouldn’t do that. my wife says you’re the smartest person she knows, and as we all know, wives are never wrong.
what an ass.
i thought you liked the ny mets squadron.
Comment by el jefe — January 7, 2004 @ 4:42 pm
As far as I can tell, this jerk had a distended bladder, and instead of doing the normal thing, which would have been to say “gotta pee” (or something more poetic, like “need to drain the lizard) and then just returning and picking up the conversation, he had to leave off with what amounts to just a classic ad hominem attack. Oh, yeah, I already used the operative word. “Jerk.”
Comment by John Avelis Jr. — January 8, 2004 @ 6:25 am