The following article was written by Tim Gadzinski, a Marketing Associate at the Manitowoc Public Library.
I was 5 years old. Maybe six. There was a girl that lived at the end of my block. She was five or six, too. Long blond hair and, from what I could tell with the vast experience of a five-year old, very pretty. But, she was also a bit wild. Maybe kind of crazy. Which was fine because I was kind of crazy, too. I mean, seriously, what kid at that age worth their weight in salt isn’t kind of crazy?
Here’s the plot twist. And it’s a game changer—she asked me to kiss her one day when we were playing in the basement of her house. Thing is, I didn’t want to. Like I said, she was a little too wild for me to be interested in that kind of relationship at five. So, even though I’m pretty certain that even back then I was a romantic at heart, I said no. And when I said no, she grabbed the driver out of her father’s golf bag and clubbed me over the head with it.
Oh, yes. There was blood. And crying. A lot of crying. And a bloody run home. I probably should have went for stitches or been checked for a concussion by a medical professional, but my grandma stopped the bleeding while my mom went to have a conversation with the girl’s parents and everything went back to the status quo. If the status quo includes a congealing head wound and a very achy noggin.
I don’t know what the clubber said by way of an explanation about what had happened to the assembled parents, but our families remained friends moving forward and the incident was never spoken of again. For the record, however, I was always wary from that moment on about declining a request for a kiss lest I get clubbed again.
At this point you’re probably wondering precisely why I’m relating this tale of sordid kindergarten romance. It’s a good query with a simple answer—it’s because everyone has a great true story to tell on almost any given topic. And what better way to set up the second installment of Tales from the Taproom: A StorySlam Event for Adults (21+) at PetSkull Brewing Company, taking place from 6-8 PM on Thursday, May 8.
I may have tipped my hand a bit, but the theme for this Episode of “Tales” is “Love Is the Air!” Good dates, bad dates, unforgettable romantic experiences, romantic encounters gone utterly awry, moments that you’ll never be able to forget, be they good or bad—like getting hit in the head with a golf club for declining to smooch! Whatever you feel comfortable telling! And as this is an Adults-Only event, nothing is off limits—if you’re willing to tell it, it’s a story worthy of the hearing.
But, always remember that this is an evening for people to get together to share their true stories. It’s not stand-up comedy or a platform for political manifestos or an opportunity to do a public reading from an as-of-yet unpublished post-apocalyptic neo-tribal vampiric zombie/metadroid saga. It’s a true story zone. There are no props and no notes. Just five minutes and a true, personal favorite story on the evening’s topic. Everyone has a story to tell! Why not tell yours at Tales from the Taproom Episode 2. All the narrative action takes place on Thursday, May 8, at PetSkull Brewing Company, 1015 Buffalo Street, Manitowoc, from 6-8 PM.
As an added bonus, this second installment of “Tales from the Taproom” is going to be hosted by the wondrous Steph Peters, Director of Community Engagement at the YMCA. Steph has fantastic energy, but more importantly, I met Steph in the pre-COVID era when Ryan and Brock at Courthouse Pub took a gamble and hosted our first StorySlams at their establishment. Steph was in town visiting her folks—she lived in Atlanta, at the time—and they had come to CHP for dinner not knowing we were having the event. Her mom wound up telling a story involving a sea cucumber. More importantly, Steph was involved in the StorySlam scene in Atlanta. Now that she’s moved back to Manitowoc, we couldn’t be happier to welcome her to be a part of our slams as more than just a teller of tales, though I suspect she’ll be doing some of that, as well.
You don’t have to come to “The Taproom” to tell a story—you can come to just listen and enjoy. However, should you want to step up to the mic to share a story on-line with the evening’s theme, please note that sign-up begins at 5:30 PM and we’ll fit in as many stories as possible during the allotted time. Five minutes may seem like a lot, but it goes by quickly. And we’ll have a timekeeper to keep you on-track. Keep in mind, though—they will cut you off at five minutes, so knowing your story well is a necessity.
With that in mind, we contacted Ex Fabula—Milwaukee’s preeminent StorySlam organization (www.exfabula.org) to ask for some guidelines for how to best prepare! Without further ado, here are some helpful hints:
- Pick a story that you love. Your story should be true, personal, and related to the theme.
- Tell it to several different people to gauge interest.
- Focus on the moments that push the story forward; cut meandering tangents that don’t.
- Edit and ask yourself questions. How did this experience change me? How is this story universal? What larger themes does my story touch upon? Does my story have details that make it come alive?
- Pare the story down to an outline with a clear beginning, several plot points or turning points in the middle, and a clear ending (that resolves the story), including the final line of your story.
- Rehearse your story. Time yourself; trim the story as needed so it is 4½-5 minutes long.
We can’t wait to hear your personal take on romance at “Tales from the Taproom!” Because, after all, it’s May and “Love Is In the Air!”