Title TBD: Tell Me a Story

I’ve got something a little different for this installment of Tell Me a Story . Rather than recapping an experience, tag along as I took my daughters on what has become an annual spring break thing - American cryptid road trip. I dropped a recorder in my pocket and hit record at different moments during our three day road trip from Raleigh, NC to Sutton, WV (home of the Flatwoods Monster) and the...

Ever been to a Banana Republic or Gap store in the ‘90s? Ever hunt the thrift shops for Banana Republic or Gap clothes from the ‘90s? If so, there’s an excellent chance you have something sitting in your closet now that Andy had a hand in designing. In this installment of Tell Me a Story , Andy shares two similar experiences where the work he was doing at that time would later turn around and find...

Jordan didn’t know a homecoming to his alma mater’s dive bar would change his life, but he did know the woman he met that night, the woman floating above the bar sludge, would be his wife. At least that’s what he told her ex-boyfriend. In this installment of Tell Me a Story , Jordan starts with how he met the woman who would be his wife, how he almost messed it up and how they endured long distanc...

When Daniel was in his first year of college, he started feeling a strange sensation and pain in his leg. Being a sensible young adult male, he actually went to a doctor to get it checked out. He didn’t anticipate testicular cancer. In this installment of Tell Me a Story , Daniel shares his experience in cancer treatment and how facing mortality so young took him to a dark place mentally. However,...

A quiet moment of terror, standing at a trash can in an Airbnb, led Ellen to a choice that sparked changing pretty much everything about her life. Bigger changes than a kitchen remodel in the middle of a global pandemic. In this installment of Tell Me a Story , Ellen shares her experience starting anxiety medication, finding support in unique places (like an astrologer with an MBA) and how it led...

As a young sports reporter in Casa Grande, AZ, Damon was covering local community college and high school sports. That was the case until a press release announced a new professional football league was bringing a team to town for it’s pre-season training. In this installment of Tell Me a Story , Damon shares his experience covering the Oregon Lightning Bolts of the Professional Spring Football Le...

After losing a deeply wanted pregnancy, while also dealing with corporate upheaval, Cassandra found herself doing what she calls “mom math.” These are the constantly ongoing calculations a mother makes to take care of…everything, really. In this installment of Tell Me a Story , Cassandra shares a deeply personal experience about the highs and lows of motherhood and career, and the constant calcula...

Can you call yourself an American if you haven’t at least sketched out a rough itinerary for cross country road trip? One of those trips where the main goal is seeing things and trying things and maybe even escaping things. Following some unique and terrible health challenges in 2024, Molly felt the call to travel now while she still could and this past summer crossed the U.S and back in about fou...

Like many young men coming out of a divorce and struggling with direction in their lives, Mike bought an oversized motorcycle he couldn’t handle. After misjudging a curve, he was flung from the motorcycle at 60 miles an hour. The motorcycle went up in flames and Mike’s leg was demolished. In this installment of Tell Me a Story , Mike shares the road he took forward after more than a year of painfu...

A young man, son of Italian and Ukrainian immigrants living in Canada, was working as an elevator operator at a medical university in the 1930s before opportunity opened a door to become a medical photographer. That already sounds like the making of a movie, but Andrea’s story starts some years later. The young man is her father and his work in freelance photography included photographing the work...

A little enthusiasm and a dose of confidence can carry any of us toward wonderful adventures. But sometimes we are reminded we might not be quite ready for the spotlight. In this installment of Tell Me a Story , Amy recounts how bringing the house down at the company talent show as one part of a Sonny & Cher duo led her to take another shot at a dream she had since childhood: auditioning for her f...

“You have a sister!” is a phrase typically shared with kids on the arrival of a new baby. But sometimes it’s reserved for later in life when you might be a complete grown up with a career and a life and everything. And it might be a total surprise. And that new sister might be 10 years older than you. It might happen. It certainly happened to Kyla. That’s the story she’s telling in this latest ins...

Following the loss of her mom, Ruthann was trying to figure herself out. Who exactly was she at her core? She decided the best way to do that would be to try something difficult and well beyond her wheelhouse. How about Arizona’s toughest marathon? A nature trail marathon through the woods and mountains outside of Prescott, Arizona. Did she train? Not really. Did she look at the race map? No. Did...

Many of us had Covid projects. Those ideas that sparked when we had some time that wasn’t filled with the thought, “what the hell is going on?” My project was this Substack you’re reading, born out of a desire to connect. Mike had a much bigger idea (also inspired by connection) that has grown from a hashtag on LinkedIn into an international recognition program for the communications industry, wit...

Depression was a noisy monster who lived in Heather’s brain. Like a neighbor on the floor above, throwing furniture around, shouting all hours of the night or hosting unwelcome parties. Even in it’s quiet moments, you can hear that neighbor shuffling around on the ceiling above, always there. In this installment of Tell Me a Story , Heather shares her story about inviting that noisy monster for a...

Frank worked 14 years as a police officer. He’s a family man, a helpful neighbor, dutiful church attendee. He checks all the boxes of a lawful, standup guy. But a few years back, he had an experience on a fraud case that shifted his perspective and made him realize there are more shades to life than black and white. In this installment of Tell Me a Story , Frank shares his experience investigating...

It’s summer! A time for neighborhood barbecues. A time for sweaty nights in the Dairy Queen parking lot of small southern towns. A time for watching a six-year-old speed off toward the interstate on a homemade go-kart, terrorizing/horrifying the neighbors along the way. In this installment of Tell Me a Story , Jason shares the no-helmet, full-throttle thrill ride of his first time on a go-kart. It...

Katherine Dunham is a name that should be well known - a legendary figure in dance, she was a choreographer, author, anthropologist, social activist, humanitarian and more. Here’s more on her at the Library of Congress . But this is Sukie’s story. In this installment of Tell Me a Story , Sukie takes us on her journey as a dance instructor navigating social issues and dance within the Dunham Techni...

Chad owns a restaurant and has a long, varied career working and leading in restaurants. He’s quick to say any day working in a restaurant could lead to anything - chaos being a frequent experience. In this installment of Tell Me a Story , Chad talks about one of this favorite days in the restaurant which became an annual event that only grew in size and evolved to become something even more magic...

Becky spent summers traveling with her sisters, following their mother for her work. One of those summers provided the opportunity to see Washington D.C. at a most opportune time - the 1976 bicentennial celebrations. In this installment of Tell Me a Story , Becky shares the adventure of arriving to D.C. and how her mother solved the problem of the rental car company not having the car they reserve...

“I think I have something you may be interested in,” said the man calling the University of Arizona Museum of Art. He did have something. A something that had experienced a renewed level of interest after a writer on the University of Arizona internal communications team wrote a story about the 30th anniversary of a painting stolen (cut right out of its frame) at the UofA museum in 1985. Woman-Och...

The science hasn’t been done yet, but it’s likely 98% of teenage boys in the ‘90s discovered sports via EA Sports video games. This is particularly true of hockey - not the most accessible game to get involved in if you lived in Arizona. John was one of those kids. In this installment of Tell Me a Story , John shares his path from the PC to the hockey rink. As one of those Arizona kids, he was off...

The housing industry went bust in 2008. Banking went insane. For so many, it became a time of survival and putting the pieces back together. Elisabeth was one of the many who lost her job as companies were struggling and began laying off employees en masse. In this episode of Tell Me a Story, Elisabeth shares how, while the setback was humbling, she found a surprising and rewarding new path in a j...

There’s something to be said for putting your head down and charging through a big life change. Or in Kevin’s case, charging through all the big life changes at the same time. In this episode of Tell Me a Story, Kevin talks about uprooting his family, with a newborn in tow, and moving to a new state without a job. It’s the epitome of taking a leap of faith in a new adventure. Now, 18 years later,...

In college, not all the important lessons are learned in the classrooms. Sometimes the best lessons come in late night card games with trash-talking roommates. At least that’s what happened for Pinaki. In this installment of Tell Me a Story, Pinaki shares about a lesson he learned while on the losing end of a card game against his college roommate, and how that lesson has shaped his approach to…pr...