Evening star., 1924-09-26
THIS AND THAT
BY C. e. TRACEwELI..

II one ought not to go around talk
ing about himself all the time, what
on earth ought he to talk about?
This is the question uppermost
when one decides that using his pre-
cious self as a topic of conversation
is both a bad habit and distinctly bad
taste.
No matter how great or fine one is,
or how decidedly interesting what he
thinks or does is to himself. others
seldom enter into the matter with
any way near the same Lest.
He who insists on telling the world
all about his exploits turns the world
against him, although the polite may
not openly tell him SO.
What to talk about?
X X X X
Well, the best way to solve this
problem is to regard each person one
meots as some thing, occupation or
topic perSonified.
This is not Sam Jones, then. but
Sam Radio, looked at from the stand
point of his conversational abilities.
If you want to get along pleasantly
with SAM. start talking radio to him
the minute you meet him.
IL you are not interested in radio,
work up an interest in IL, as 1t is
very much worth while. both for its
own sake and because it makes talk
ing to Sam easy and pleasant.
Formerly you wondered what on
earth to say to him, after the usual
preliminaries of Fine day, Sam" and
mo, it doesn't look like it would
rain" One shuns strict grammar in
talking to Sam. "As if' sounds so
pedantic-especially to Sam.
Once you get hep to the fact that
radio is the biggest interest in Sani's
life, conversation with him may be
maintained by the hour as easily as
by the minute. He could talk all day
and night about condensers, bypass
and otherwise.
Orations on regeneration and audio
amplifica tion are distinctly his meat.
Sam, why is it that my tube does
not oscillate on the local stations?"
you ask.
Not osciIlate on the local stations?"
replies Sam, his face lighting up.
why, your tube does oscillate, only
the stations are so powerful you don't
hear them" Then he launches into a
technical description, from which you
may get a few real pointers.
BY the time you meet Sam next
some other radio question comes up,
so you ask him to elucidate, which
he does promptly, informing you that
either your grid leak is wrong
being one megohm, 1t should be three
megohms-your ticker is too tightly
coupled, or else your fllament is being
burned too brightly.
Take your choice.
X X
John Smith becomes John Music.
The burning passion of Johns life
is music. He earns his living as a
ola hut hah oI he Iityip
art.
Anything and everything that has
TO do with music is meat and drink
to John. He is an amateur musician
of parts. knows the worlds greatest
music forward and backward, talks
familiarly of Beethoven and seems to
have known Stephen Foster.
Mr.. J. Music has catholic tastes.
Chopin or the latest fox trot. it is
all one to him. Mention any piece Of
music, he will hum it for you. He
is not a stickler for any particular
school or composer. He loves music,
and welcomes all music, although he
has his own ideas about the re-
spective merits of various works.
II like that term piece to describe
musical composition" he will tell
you. Il have no sympathy with those
who try to run il down. 1t Is an
eminently fitting word, it seems to
me.
you see, musical composition, es-
pecially a short one, as compared
with symphony. is distinctly a piece
of music, a bit of pure music taken
out of the great ocean of melody.
AT least, that is what a real piece
of music ought TO be. In music, as
in life in general. what a thing ought
to be- often is quite different from
what it is. I believe in taking music
as you find it. Wherefore, 1 like
jazz"
Billy White ought to be named Will
liam Theater.
The theater is his delight. Talk to
him about plays and playgoing, he
becomes animated, alert, witty,
whereas just the moment before he
was boring you terribly.
Mention the latest play, his regard
for you picks up perceptibIy. This is
one of the finest points of letting the
other fellow talk about his hobby
Three birds are killed with the one
stone.
In the first place, il stops him from
talking about himself In the second,
it makes him an interesting CONVEX
sationalist. In the third place, il i'm
mediately raises you in his estima-
ton.
'I like that fellow" he is apt to
think, after you have left. AS a mat
ter of fact, what he likes about you
is simply that you let him talk on
his favorite topic
Smithers Offenbach has the auto
complex. SO you rechristen him
Smithers Automobile and let him
run on.
Anything in the world of motors.
old or new, pleases him. He will
discuss who ought to have the credit
for the invention of the modern traf-
fic problem or why a car sometimes
will "shimmy" with balloon tires, and
how to obviate that trouble.
The delectable topic of comparative
merits of specially treated gases finds
him going at full speed. He will tell
you in detail how there has not been
a. speck of carbon in his motor since
he started using Tornadoized gas. Of
course, it costs 2 cents more a gallon
but think, man, of the ultimate saw
ing, etc.
x X X x
So you know Mr.. Post Office, Mrs.
Baby, Mr.. Avia ton, Mr. Office Routine.
Mr.. Lawns, Mr.. Meat Market Miss
Tennis. Mr.. Army, Mr.. Navy, Hector
Base Ball. MT. w orld series, etc.
Who has not felt that intangible,
yet very real barrier, between them
selves and certain persons? Per-
haps it is wholly mental. Perhaps
actually there is physical atmos-
phere, aura, or whatever you want to
call it, that springs up.
Anyway, it is not comfortable to be
long with such a person. You may
get along famously with this man,
whereas l feel terribly uncomforta BILE
with him around.
We try to be pleasant, but in a few
minutes we are glad to part. The So