The conversation started out on baseball, went then to politics, stayed awhile on the price of gasoline, touched briefly on tofu recipes and settled finally on house guests. I liked that last topic because I was able to think of something to contribute, which is rare. People think of me as a storyteller, but I can almost never come up with anything to say in social situations that seems appropriate.
Some people are expert at telling stories that apply neatly to any discussion going on.
I know guys who can walk into a room where people are talking about nuclear physics, tax reform, partial birth abortion or the rules of soccer, and they can join right in with comments entirely pertinent. Maybe they prepare speeches that will fit a range of conversational topics. Fire ant control. Selective cutting in public forests. Sounds to me a lot like work.