Tenkan is only half of the picture, irimi is just as prominent.  I view the intercepting irimi to be just as powerful as tenkan, but I associate it with a much more aggressive demeanor.  The theory, after all, is to intercept an attack just as it starts to take form.  This means you must be on your toes.  In social situations, one would have to be extremely perceptive to recognize an 'attack' as it forms.  A few people have an uncanny ability to perceive attitudes that gives them insights of what is about to happen, but many do not.  The other danger I see with irimi-style problem solving would be anticipation, which we know is bad.

In the past, my initiative has helped me solve problems early before they became big.  Upon reflection, that must be the heart of irimi.

Ahh, I see!  Essentially, you must always move first - toward your opponent - regardless of which way you will choose to move.  Irimi will continue that movement straight on through, whereas with tenkan the movement changes direction to blend.

When Phil had us practicing his neat little 3-man drill at randori practice a few weeks ago, it reinforced this principle.  You must always move toward your attacker.  You get no opportunity for control if you are too far away from him.

Back to the original point of this thread (the 'in everyday life' part), I am reflecting on how this would work in confrontation.  Specifically, I am imagining a situation wherein someone is getting in your face trying to provoke a fight.  You must move in close, not in a physical sense (although probably that too) but in a verbal one. 

Seriously, the phrase 'tenkan starts and ends with irimi' rang a bell with me.  I reflected that each time I've done tenkan to my satisfaction (both times ), it has required that I moved into uke's attack, ever so slightly, in a direct way.  In practical terms, it is I who adjust to control the range.  The end of the tenkan technique is when you change direction (turn) into uke.  Really, that is moving irimi only describing it in more nuts-and-bolts terms.

The part that has me thinking is exactly how tenkan is ever-present in irimi movements.  Class last night showed the influence of tenkan in iriminage.  I'm trying to see the same influence in say, shomenuchi ikkyo, which to me is a trademark irimi movement (the irimi version of shomenuchi ikkyo, that is).

I do see that if you boil the concept of tenkan down to a turn, then it is ever present in aikido.  How can you have aikido with no turns?  Can't happen.  It just wouldn't be aikido anymore.  The same holds true with irimi, which I associate with direct lines.  How could you have aikido without direct lines?  Also can't happen, again - it wouldn't be aikido.  It would be kinda interesting to watch, however.  It would probably look like bad ballet.