My Comfort Zone Was Tested and It Was Exhilarating!

Have you ever tried something new, panicked and realized you just might be terrible at it?

Recently, I started a new side hustle pouring wine at a vineyard’s tasting room. How hard could it be? It’s just pouring wine. Nothing to it...right? Greet your wine tasters, pour a little wine, learn a few wine terms and enjoy the camaraderie. 

Turns out, my first day I felt clueless and my comfort zone was challenged. Pouring wine was the one thing I thought I could do with some degree of ability. I mean, having more than a few years of experience pouring wine into my own glass this was sure to be a breeze. 

Truth is... this task even seemed a bit fumbled on my first day. Normally, I could uncork a bottle, pour a glass, and do a jig before you could say Pinot Noir. 

In my defense, I thought I’d have more time to learn about their wines, get acclimated with the wine bar and test drive a few corkscrews before being put in the trenches. 

The first and most important piece of learning the job was the cash register. Well, of course, it was! They’re in the business of selling wine...to make money! So, naturally, charging for wine and getting the cash was a priority.  How silly of me to overlook this important fact. 

Who Wants to Polar Plunge?

Pop-Up Thoughts:

Here’s the deal and what’s on my mind today…if living through a Minnesota winter and a polar vortex isn’t enough torture (as some would see it), there are people that actually gather in droves in the freezing temps to jump in an ice-cold lake.  Some might think they would need their head examined or that the feeling of a thousand ice picks penetrating their body is somehow exhilarating.  

Personally, I’m quite content being bundled up in my boots, parka, mittens and hand warmers (best invention ever) while I watched from the sidelines as my son did the Polar Plunge into Minnesota’s Lake Superior.  This was all for a good cause, of course.  The money raised in donations every year is for the Special Olympics organization.

Polar Plunge event in Duluth, MN

Love Potion No. 9: Revealing the Magic Ingredients

Are you a believer in magic love potions? The unique elements that can make up any couple’s love potion can be as individual or special as the lovebirds themselves.  In this story, the following potion ingredients are only one example of how simple and unexpected they can be. 

This couple's love potion is an elixir of a rustic mountain cabin, bottled water, fly tape, a trash bag, and a bunny hill. 

Before I explain why this combination of ingredients has the magical potion power it does, let me first share a couple of throwback moments.  The 1959 song lyrics from Love Potion No. 9 by the original artists, The Clovers, tells the story of a young man having troubles finding love when he discovers a gypsy mixing up a magical potion that will cure his failing love life. After he drinks the potion, it gives him a little bump of passionate desire in the way of an unwilling recipient...a COP.  Just for fun, have a listen to the catchy lyrics.

Short Story Series: Stiletto Lies & Disco Dilemmas {Part Three}

This is the Final Part Three and continuation of a short story series Stiletto Lies & Disco Dilemmas. 

Here is the link to {Part One} and {Part Two} in case you missed it.

*As a reminder:  be on the lookout for phrases describing shoulders, which were inspired by a few reading friends. I used their suggested descriptions in the story and they’re highlighted in purple. Their ideas were prompted from an earlier request posted on my Facebook page.

Also, the story was inspired using these word prompts: stilettos, disco, lake, marriage, champagne and chocolate.

Stiletto Lies & Disco Dilemmas {Part Three}

By: Laurie Oien

The conversation on the drive over to the ballroom was only a few mumbled words.  The unspoken thoughts between them neared the agonizing level.  Roxanne’s mind spinning on rewind and Wesley’s was on fast forward wondering how this night might roll out. One thing was for sure, he needed to put the green-eyed monster back in the closet and keep his mouth shut.  Roxanne, on the other hand, was striving to remember the last time Wesley called her Foxy Roxy…he hadn’t used that pet name in ages.

Short Story Series: Stiletto Lies & Disco Dilemmas {Part Two}

This is Part Two and continuation of a short story series Stiletto Lies & Disco Dilemmas. 

Here is the link to {Part One} in case you missed it.

Stiletto Lies & Disco Dilemmas {Part Two}

By: Laurie Oien

Wesley retrieved a large trash bag and began clearing the shoe boxes stacked outside the closet. He was shocked at the number of shoe boxes and how Roxanne had actually made the decision to donate them all.  Still stewing over the red stilettos, he wondered why she couldn’t wear a pair from her donation pile. Why did it have to be those stilettos she was so insistent to wear to the holiday party?

Frustrated by the situation, he bent down to finish packing up the last row of boxes when he noticed a light from inside the closet shining down like a beacon directly onto one lonely box; almost like it were a Batman signal or something. Holy Stilettos, that’s it!