We were blessed with a guest for Cocktail Hour one night last week. Ms. Keith joined us on Gin Sling night.
The Gin Sling born in the mid-1800′s, is a precursor of the first drink I mixed, the Gin Fizz. It is very much like the Gin Fizz only it uses still water and a dash of Angostura bitters.
A guest was a fun enhancement to Cocktail Hour and gave us a chance to practice our small-talk skills.
As you know, Gin Fizz night fell short on the small-talk, so I decided to research small-talk and work on it with Hubby. Ms. Keith and I had been talking about how to get conversations going earlier in the day and the conversation naturally continued during cocktail hour. It turns out that 2 out of the three of us are shy by nature; 2 out of the three of us hate pleasantries like “good morning,” and “how was your weekend,” and one out of the three of us really really really really hates discussing the weather (frankly, I’d rather you just broke out into “The Rain in Spain” from My Fair Lady, in which I will join you in a vigorous dance using my invisible castinets, and we will forever bond in friendship. Now that is where musicals really have something going…small-song…I can get behind that!!). Two of the three of us have also sworn off business gatherings due to hatred of small-talk (as well as hatred of dressing up and potential dancing with or in front of co-workers), and one of us goes to business gatherings but requires alcohol to survive them.
I mentioned my small-talk research and shared a few pointers. Then we practiced small-talking. Almost all the advice I read says that you should come up with a few conversation openers like “How do you know the hosts?” that you should introduce yourself shortly after the opener, then use the person’s name during the conversation, you shouldn’t dominate the conversation, you should listen with interest, and you should have a few prepared exit lines like, “Oh, I see Bubba over at the bar, I’m going to go say hello.”
We sipped our gin slings and practiced the small-talk. It went something like this.
Me: So, Ms. Keith, have you had many gin drinks like this before?
Ms. Keith: No, Uninspired, I’ve never really cared for gin. This tastes good, though, it is refreshing. So, Hubby, are you enjoying your Gin Sling?
Hubby: Yes, Ms. Keith. Thanks for asking. However, it isn’t as delicious as the Tom Collins.
….5 minutes elapsed time…
Ms. Keith: Is it just me, or does anyone else think this drink gets sweeter as you sip it?
Me, nodding: Oh yes, Ms. Keith, we’ve noticed all these gin drinks get more delicious about 5 minutes into the drink.
Hubby merely twisted his “gin lips” into a knowing smile.
….elapsed time 10 more minutes….
Ms. Keith: You know, Uninspired, this gin drink is really making me feel happy and warm!
Hubby and I nod. The three of us clink our glasses together, “To cocktail hour!”
Diagnosis: It was delightful to watch a guest go through what I have come to call “The Three Phases of a Gin Cocktail.” I thought it might just be Hubby and I, since we haven’t experienced much gin, so this was a great experiment. The three phases are 1) depending on who you are either “Yikes, this is harsh!” or “Wooooohoooo!” 2) “Wow, this is quite tasty and refreshing!” 3) “Boy, I feel really warm and happy and silly…I think I’ll sing…”The raaaaain in Spaaaaain stays maaainly in the plaaaaain…click click click…”