My Favorite Mensan
It’s quite interesting the way the blogosphere operates.
Today, for some reason, everyone I’ve visited are discussing IQs and Mensa is getting a bad rap.
To redeem this fine organization, I’d like to briefly introduce to you someone I met at last year’s Regional Gathering. Yes, I actually went with my family. My poor husband hated every minute of it (except for the homemade beer tasting - he liked that part. I was with the kids, so I have regrettably missed it). I, on the other hand, enjoyed talking to people and playing board games. Then again, I’m easily pleased.
The kids were in a separate room the whole time playing video games. K9 was fascinated by a 15yo boy he met. The boy was very good-looking, apparently very popular in his school, and his parents brought him to the RG as a punishment. That’s right, he came there because he was grounded. K9 is into all things cool and popular, and followed the guy for three days like a puppy, asking his advice on how to be cool, how to get a girlfriend (God bless the guy – he told K9: “you don’t really need one in 3rd grade”), et cetera et cetera.
Anyway, during the RG, I met this man and I am still fascinated. You should meet him. He’s been a member forever. And, unlike myself, he really is a proud member. I mean, he told me he goes around starting conversations with random strangers, telling them about Mensa and trying to convince them to join. The night we met, he went to a local IHOP to grab some food and struck a conversation with a girl behind the counter. The message he’s trying to get across is, “look what I found, this is so cool, wanna do it too? – I’m sure you can” rather than: “I’m a member and you’re not, so I’m smarter than you are”.
He is an awesome conversationalist. The things we talked about. This man should have a blog. It is a crying shame if he doesn’t. He switched careers several times in his life, and for the last ten or fifteen years, he’s been teaching ballroom dancing. From what I gather, he’s very good at what he does. He can train pros, he can train average Joes like you and me to dance at weddings and other formal events, and he also does rehab. My feeling was that he considers rehab the most fascinating part of his work. Teaching ballroom dancing to disabled people. People that have been badly injured and have trouble walking straight, much less dancing. He told me how their lives had changed because of the lessons they had received from him.
As long as this guy is a Mensan, I ain’t quitting. I will continue being a member just on the off chance I’ll bump into him at another RG sometime. When you’re in NYC, look him up. Tell him I sent you.
Today, for some reason, everyone I’ve visited are discussing IQs and Mensa is getting a bad rap.
To redeem this fine organization, I’d like to briefly introduce to you someone I met at last year’s Regional Gathering. Yes, I actually went with my family. My poor husband hated every minute of it (except for the homemade beer tasting - he liked that part. I was with the kids, so I have regrettably missed it). I, on the other hand, enjoyed talking to people and playing board games. Then again, I’m easily pleased.
The kids were in a separate room the whole time playing video games. K9 was fascinated by a 15yo boy he met. The boy was very good-looking, apparently very popular in his school, and his parents brought him to the RG as a punishment. That’s right, he came there because he was grounded. K9 is into all things cool and popular, and followed the guy for three days like a puppy, asking his advice on how to be cool, how to get a girlfriend (God bless the guy – he told K9: “you don’t really need one in 3rd grade”), et cetera et cetera.
Anyway, during the RG, I met this man and I am still fascinated. You should meet him. He’s been a member forever. And, unlike myself, he really is a proud member. I mean, he told me he goes around starting conversations with random strangers, telling them about Mensa and trying to convince them to join. The night we met, he went to a local IHOP to grab some food and struck a conversation with a girl behind the counter. The message he’s trying to get across is, “look what I found, this is so cool, wanna do it too? – I’m sure you can” rather than: “I’m a member and you’re not, so I’m smarter than you are”.
He is an awesome conversationalist. The things we talked about. This man should have a blog. It is a crying shame if he doesn’t. He switched careers several times in his life, and for the last ten or fifteen years, he’s been teaching ballroom dancing. From what I gather, he’s very good at what he does. He can train pros, he can train average Joes like you and me to dance at weddings and other formal events, and he also does rehab. My feeling was that he considers rehab the most fascinating part of his work. Teaching ballroom dancing to disabled people. People that have been badly injured and have trouble walking straight, much less dancing. He told me how their lives had changed because of the lessons they had received from him.
As long as this guy is a Mensan, I ain’t quitting. I will continue being a member just on the off chance I’ll bump into him at another RG sometime. When you’re in NYC, look him up. Tell him I sent you.
