Even heads of state have that awkward moment before a conversation when they scramble for an opener.

While President Clinton would compare neckties with other world leaders, that wasn't an option for Madeleine Albright, the former secretary of state.

Her diplomatic tool, instead, was her pin collection.

If she was in a good mood, she would wear balloons and butterflies, but when she wanted to send a harsher statement. ``I wore spider and snakes,'' Albright told a standing-room only crowd Monday evening at Temple Judea in Coral Gables.

Albright was promoting her new book, Read My Pins (Harper), whose title is a take-off on former President George H. Bush's famous line, ``Read my lips.''

Albright's passion for pins was born when then-Iraqi President Saddam Hussein referred to her as an ``unparalleled serpent,'' in a poem published in a state-run newspaper.

Albright, then U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, had been denouncing Iraq's invasion of Kuwait. After she learned of Hussein's comments, the next time she met with Iraqi leaders she wore a snake pin. Journalists noticed and wrote about it.

``This is fun,'' she said.

Thus began her pin collection and her motto, ``Read my pins.''

She now owns hundreds of pins, most of which are costume jewelry. She views them as an integral part of what she calls ``her diplomatic toolbox.''

When she learned the Russians had bugged the State Department, she wore a big bug pin when meeting with them.

``They got the message,'' she declared to a roar of laughter from the more than 300 people who attended the talk, sponsored by Books & Books.

When she met Nelson Mandela, the former head of South Africa, she proudly wore a zebra pin, bordered with rhinestones.

``He came up to me and said, `I am Nelson Mandela -- like I wouldn't know who he was,' '' she recalled of their first encounter.

Monday night she wore a gold pin called Rockets Red Glare. John Shalikashvili, former head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and someone with whom she worked closely, gave it to her at a book signing in Virginia the day before. She was clearly touched.

Emma Duffie was surprised by Albright's wit and comfortable nature.

``She was not what I expected,'' said Duffie, 52, of North Miami Beach, who was wearing a Teddy Bear pin, similar to one Albright has in her collection. ``I thought she'd be all political, but she was great and came off very human.''

Indeed, a lively discussion about foreign policy and foreign heads of state ensued in the question-and-answer session. Israel. President Obama. Afghanistan -- they were all covered.

``She has a lot of knowledge on policy, and I'm happy she answered our questions,'' said Juan Hernandez, 57, of Kendall.

Hernandez's question got the biggest laugh of the evening: What kind of pin would she wear when meeting Fidel Castro?

That's simple, Albright said: her pin of a bird behind bars.

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