Tag: storytelling

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Tags discussion, personal narrative, storytelling, writing, your voice matters

Lifestyle

Gift Exchange Ideas They Will Love!

Post author By Liz Brenner
Post date December 29, 2023
1 Comment on Gift Exchange Ideas They Will Love!

Mostly True Memoirs

Gift Exchange Ideas

There were some great gift exchange ideas.

I was the most-stolen-from guest at the Dirty Santa Gift Swap.

My first present was a chocolate assortment.

They were high-quality chocolates.

So yeah, I got robbed right away.

My next gift was a soap assortment.

It was high-quality soaps.

I got robbed again.

The next package was an absolute winner.

A People of Walmart coloring book.

Everyone was passing it around, laughing hysterically.

I was already working out in my mind who I would color which picture for.

And I was already composing the inscriptions that I would add.

But would you believe it – I got robbed yet again.

I was quite disappointed.

This is exactly why the game is called Dirty Santa.

However, in the end, I received the Best Gift Ever, so it’s all OK.

What did I get?

A waffle blanket.

Yes, a waffle blanket.

A blanket patterned like a waffle.

What a great gift exchange idea.

I had never even thought of such a thing.

I’ve thought of waffles for breakfast.

Or dessert.

Or even for dinner.

I have never thought of waffles as a blanket.

It’s one of those things that you never knew was missing from your life.

However, once you’ve had a taste of it, you wonder how you ever got along before.

Who doesn’t love waffles?

Who doesn’t love blankets?

Wouldn’t everyone want to be wrapped in a warm and fluffy waffle on a cold winter night?

What will they think of next – a bacon blanket?

OMG

I already know what I want next year.

Liz Brenner

Everyone has a story to tell.

Even you.

Especially you.

Tags dirty santa, gift exchange ideas, personal narrative, storytelling, waffles, writing stories, yankee sawap

Lifestyle

My Inner Clean Freak Freaks Out On This Day

Post author By Liz Brenner
Post date December 26, 2023
No Comments on My Inner Clean Freak Freaks Out On This Day

Mostly True Memoirs

Clean Freak

The holidays conflict with my inner clean freak.

It’s not just one day, it’s the whole season.

It starts with Thanksgiving.

The weather is still warm and pleasant.

There are beautiful fall leaves on the trees.

Anticipation is in the air.

All month there are parties.

Decorations.

Delicious food.

And gifts.

Then the weather starts to get colder.

The leaves drop from the trees.

And the anticipation keeps building.

It’s such a lovely time of year.

Until December 26.

Like clockwork, I wake up feeling Grinchy.

The house is a wreck.

I’ve been eating nothing but junk for an entire month.

And I’m exhausted.

My inner clean freak wants to pick up the house immediately.

What was festive yesterday is aggravating clutter today.

I am done with the holidays.

Would I be a Debbie Downer if I put away the holiday stuff today?

Yeah, probably.

I’ll leave it all up for another day or so.

But my entire house will be picked up, swept, dusted, and scrubbed to start the new year.

It was fun, but now I’m done.

The holidays are over.

Right on schedule, my inner clean freak is screaming for mercy.

Liz Brenner

Everyone has a story to tell.

Even you.

Especially you.

Tags clean freak, personal narrative, storytelling, writing stories

Lifestyle

Vermouth – It’s Why I Go To The Liquor Store

Post author By Liz Brenner
Post date December 21, 2023
3 Comments on Vermouth – It’s Why I Go To The Liquor Store

Mostly True Memoirs

Vermouth

I’m not much of a drinker.

But I cook with vermouth.

It goes into several holiday dishes. _{(paid link)}

I love to go to the liquor store and wander up and down the aisles.

Most of the stuff on the shelves is a mystery to me.

But the bottles are so beautiful.

I was tempted to buy a $100.00 bottle of I-don’t-know-what.

Just to have that magnificent container.

I didn’t make any outrageous purchases this time.

Next time I run out of vermouth, who knows?

I may come home with some very expensive mystery booze.

In a beautiful bottle.

Liz Brenner

Everyone has a story to tell.

Even you.

Especially you.

Tags personal narrative, real stories, storytelling, writing life

Family

A Boy Mom Is Required To Say Some Weird Stuff

Post author By Liz Brenner
Post date May 30, 2023
No Comments on A Boy Mom Is Required To Say Some Weird Stuff

Mostly True Memoirs

I’m A Boy Mom

I pan fried a couple of steaks.

They turned out very tasty.

But the kitchen filled with smoke.

I had to open up the back door to clear the air.

The open door let in about a billion flies.

Luckily, the Grown Son is quite handy with a fly swatter.

It was actually kind of impressive.

All I ever do is scatter the flies around.

I never actually smash one.

The Grown Son proudly deposited each dead bug onto a napkin so that he could keep count.

It was gross, but it was effective, so I couldn’t complain.

I made him throw the mess in the garbage.

He can take a picture if he wants a memento.

“We’re not keeping the dead flies,” I informed him.

After all these years of being a boy mom, this isn’t even close to the weirdest thing I’ve ever said.

Liz Brenner

Everyone has a story to tell.

Even you.

Especially you.

Tags boy mom, communication, memoir, microstories, storyteller, storytelling

Lifestyle

It Was Chaotic – How To Have A Crazy Weekend!

Post author By Liz Brenner
Post date May 23, 2023
No Comments on It Was Chaotic – How To Have A Crazy Weekend!

Mostly True Memoirs

It Was Chaotic!

It was a crazy weekend.

One kid moved out.

And one kid moved in.

And the moving-out kid’s roommate came in from out of state.

All on the same weekend.

It was chaotic.

Absolutely chaotic.

My not-quite-healed postop knee got me out of the heavy work.

I scoured sinks and washed floors while the guys hauled heavy stuff and lost their s**t on each other.

But it all got done.

Thanks to Bob who lost his s**t louder than everyone else.

At the end of the day, I tried to relax in the back yard with a glass of wine.

And wouldn’t you know, a fly dove right in and drowned.

Ewww.

Yup, that’s what kind of weekend I had.

All I need to do now is get the moving-in kid organized.

And get the house back in order.

And maybe, finally, enjoy a fly-free glass of wine.

Liz Brenner

Everyone has a story to tell.

Even you.

Especially you.

Tags chaotic, memoir, microstories, moving day, no fly zone, storyteller, storytelling, wine

Lifestyle

Humblebragging – I Definitely Deserve It This Time!

Post author By Liz Brenner
Post date May 18, 2023
No Comments on Humblebragging – I Definitely Deserve It This Time!

Mostly True Memoirs

Humblebragging!

Yeah, I’m humblebragging, but I won!

OK, I know, this is just a first-world problem.

But it’s more than that.

It’s a first-world, freakishly-small-woman problem.

The shopping carts at Winco are very deep.

Very, very deep.

They are so deep that sometimes I lose small items in the bottom of the cart.

I have to dive in head-first to get the stuff out.

At this store, you have to bag your own groceries.

If I’m wasting time fishing things out of the bottom of the cart, it’s going to slow down my bagging at the other end.

The people behind me get angry.

At least, I feel like they’re getting angry.

Today there was only one cashier.

And a very long line.

But I had loaded my items strategically into the cart so that I didn’t lose anything at the bottom.

Whew – I deserve some humblebragging this once!

Freakishly-Small-Woman 1, Winco Shopping Cart 0.

Liz Brenner

Everyone has a story to tell.

Even you.

Especially you.

Tags freakishly small, humblebragging, I won, memoir, microstories, shopping cart, storyteller, storytelling

Dog

Why It’s Important To Teach Your Dog To Heel

Post author By Liz Brenner
Post date May 17, 2023
2 Comments on Why It’s Important To Teach Your Dog To Heel

Mostly True Memoirs

Teach Your Dog To Heel

Heel!

I’ve got Blue in a dog training class.

She’s very smart, and she’s very eager to please.

At our last session, we worked on “heel.”

One lady took her dog and left class.

She thought that this lesson was boring.

Seriously?

It’s the most fundamental thing to teach.

Once the dog learns to heel, all the other commands fall into place.

Plus, heeling makes walks more fun because the dog doesn’t pull.

It’s a huge loss if she doesn’t learn this thing.

During our dog class, a rabbit wandered by.

It was either a very stupid rabbit or a very brave rabbit.

All the dogs went nuts.

The rabbit, either very stupid or very brave, lived, thanks to the very skilled dog trainer.

It was a teachable moment.

Heel!

Liz Brenner

Everyone has a story to tell.

Even you.

Especially you.

READ MORE DOG STORIES!

Tags dog training, good girl, heel, memoir, microstories, rescue dog, storyteller, storytelling

Lifestyle

This Time, The Jokes Just Wrote Themselves

Post author By Liz Brenner
Post date May 15, 2023
No Comments on This Time, The Jokes Just Wrote Themselves

Mostly True Memoirs

The Jokes Just Wrote Themselves

We used the Shop Vac to clean up a mess.

But then something got lodged in the hose.

We used a broomstick to poke the mess out.

And broke the end of the broomstick.

We had to do an emergency surgery.

It was not as simple as it appeared to be.

The blockage was really lodged in there.

Bob, the Shop-Vac Surgeon, did not appreciate my colonoscopy humor.

At least not in the midst of the delicate procedure.

Once the patient was successfully cleaned out, he laughed.

As he should.

I mean, come on, this time the jokes just wrote themselves.

Liz Brenner

Everyone has a story to tell.

Even you.

Especially you.

Tags #shop vac, colonoscopy humor, memoir, microstories, storyteller, storytelling

Lifestyle

I Have One Brown Thumb and One Green Thumb

Post author By Liz Brenner
Post date May 13, 2023
2 Comments on I Have One Brown Thumb and One Green Thumb

Mostly True Memoirs

One Brown Thumb

I have one brown thumb and one green thumb.

On the one hand, the trees are doing great.

Several years ago, I planted a row of Chaste trees with the intention of creating shade from the brutally hot sunrises in the summertime.

These are very fast-growing trees, and this summer it seems like we will finally have shade from our beautiful and lush trees.

I planted several crepe myrtles around the property.

They are growing beautifully.

One of them appeared to have suffered from the ice storms we had in the winter, but with some TLC, it is growing and healthy.

We have a mature crepe myrtle that had some terrible disease and we thought we lost the tree, but it, too, is coming back strong.

Our oak in the front yard suffered some damage in the Snowpocalypse of 2022, but it, too, is bouncing back to good health.

I planted a row of blackberry bushes and they are thriving and producing tons of fruit.

I put in some purple hyacinth bean vines to climb up a trellis, and they are growing like crazy.

On the other hand, my vegetable garden is not doing well.

All of the plants look kind of scrawny and pathetic.

Except for the pumpkins.

The pumpkins have taken over the garden.

We will have a billion jack-o-lanterns for Halloween.

But very scant tomatoes, peppers and herbs.

One brown thumb and one green thumb.

Liz Brenner

Everyone has a story to tell.

Even you.

Especially you.

LEARN TO WRITE YOUR OWN STORIES!