Short Autobiographical Stories

By jeand

  • 13524 reads

Most of the Deadly Sins

By jeand on Fri, 28 Feb 2014

The idea of spending two weeks of the Costa del Sol with three friends sharing my passion for bridge sounded delightful. Of similar age, I assumed...
Autobiography
Story
Certificate U
1 likes

My Man

By jeand on Thu, 27 Feb 2014

My man is so clever I'm ever so proud. I n'er miss a chance To praise him out loud. If he frowns when I cook I'm sure I'd agree That things taste...
Poem
Certificate U
Cherry

Second Grade Scandal

By jeand on Tue, 11 Feb 2014

I loved going to school but cried on the first day because I had wanted Sister Martha, who used to give the children crackers to eat after they’d...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U
Cherry

The Gypsy - part 1

By jeand on Sat, 22 Feb 2014

THE GYPSY part 1 My neighbor, Gladys and I were sitting quietly in my kitchen having coffee and biscuits and our bi-weekly chat about our children,...
Autobiography
Story
Certificate U
1 likes
Cherry

The Gypsy - part 2

By jeand on Sat, 22 Feb 2014

Part 2 For a few seconds after I returned to the table neither of us spoke. I was quite sure that the gypsy was smoldering at her lack of success...
Autobiography
Story
Certificate U
Cherry

The Letter

By jeand on Sun, 16 Feb 2014

I hadn't liked her at all. Not many people did. She was loud and rude and critical and demanding. But now that she is dead, I guess I shouldn't be...
Other Non-fiction
Story
Certificate U

Drama on C3 - part 1

By jeand on Wed, 05 Mar 2014

Part 1 Before the drama commences, just a quick note as to how I came to be on C3 which is the surgical/urology ward at the local hospital.. One...
Story
Certificate U

Turkish Delights

By jeand on Sat, 08 Mar 2014

“I would like to take you to my bed ---.” These words, whispered softly but quite sincerely absolutely threw me. What was going on here? Why did this...
Autobiography
Story
Certificate U

Frank and his cat (The Odd Couple)

By jeand on Wed, 12 Mar 2014

When I was 21, I lived in New York, on Staten Island, and worked as an Dietitic intern. It was a wonderful year, and I made many very good friends...
Autobiography
Story
Certificate U
2 likes

For Elice

By jeand on Tue, 18 Mar 2014

I was a Foods and Nutrition major in the Home Economics Department at North Dakota State Universiry. I didn't really enjoy food that much, but this...
Autobiography
Story
Certificate U

Betty and Bruce Come to Visit (or what makes Americans Ugly)

By jeand on Sat, 19 Apr 2014

Scene 1 As scene starts, the view is a small train station. Jean and Philip are standing on the platform waiting for the two carriage train to arrive...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

Family Meals

By jeand on Tue, 06 May 2014

Jeff: Oh, I see we are having roast beef for dinner today. I hope it’s Aberdeen Angus. You don’t know for sure? It’s the only kind of British beef...
Autobiography
Story
Certificate U

Going Home

By jeand on Fri, 20 Jun 2014

When I met my future husband, almost the first question he asked was “Are you prepared to live in England?” I suppose if I had said “No”, that would...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

Wedding rehearsal

By jeand on Wed, 09 Jul 2014

I've played the organ since I was 13, and was much in demand to perform at weddings all through my teenage years. On this occasion, I was 19 and the...
Inspiration Point (work that responds to our weekly writing cue)
Non-fiction
Certificate U

The Ring

By jeand on Thu, 10 Jul 2014

Having been told by my step-mother that I should have a good search through her apartment and take what I liked, really hit my gready bone. I am a...
Other Non-fiction
Biography
Certificate U

Holiday in America - part 1

By jeand on Sun, 24 Aug 2014

A few months ago, I wrote an introduction to the big trip to America which I was about to take, and it is only fair to say that I was dreading. This...
Autobiography
Story
Certificate U

Holiday in America - part 2

By jeand on Thu, 28 Aug 2014

To say the drive across half of the States was uneventful would be untrue. But the only events were the beautiful scenery and the perfect weather...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

Holiday in America - part 3

By jeand on Fri, 29 Aug 2014

Church was lovely. Kathleen and Mark go each week to a pretty modern church, and the priest, Father Pat, is an interesting man and a good friend of...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

Scary Nights (IP)

By jeand on Sat, 13 Sep 2014

“There's somebody on the porch,” whispered my sister Judy, in great alarm. We were alone in the house, our parents having gone on a trip to San...
Inspiration Point (work that responds to our weekly writing cue)
Story
Certificate U

Letter from America - September 25

By jeand on Fri, 26 Sep 2014

Hi I'm sitting in the breakfast area at my Comfort Inn motel, with free computer use - so I guess I will try to keep a sort of log of my trip. I flew...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

Letter from America Saturday Sept 27

By jeand on Sat, 27 Sep 2014

Hi Thanks everybody for your comments from yesterday. I can't spend too much time on the computer as there are others wanting to get on it too. We...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

Letter from America - Monday Sept 29

By jeand on Mon, 29 Sep 2014

Hi I did write yesterday, but I must have done something wrong, as it doesn't appear to be here. I'll try to remember what I said. It was my son's...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U
Cherry

What's In a Smile?

By jeand on Tue, 07 Oct 2014

“It's so nice to see pictures where you are smiling,” she said. We were going through the picture album I had quickly assembled before I'd left on my...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

The Warning

By jeand on Sun, 02 Nov 2014

It was a week before Christmas and I so wanted to finish painting the living room before my husband returned from his conference. He hated it when I...
Inspiration Point (work that responds to our weekly writing cue)
Story
Certificate U
Cherry

The Out of Body Secret

By jeand on Mon, 24 Nov 2014

Having had the letter from Grace, we were prepared for her phone call. “Your dad is not doing well. I think you had better come home,” she said...
Inspiration Point (work that responds to our weekly writing cue)
Non-fiction
Certificate U
1 likes

Not Afraid

By jeand on Sat, 31 Jan 2015

Not Afraid “It’s not death I’m afraid of – it’s the process of dying.” I've said that over the years to various people. Having a strong faith in life...
Inspiration Point (work that responds to our weekly writing cue)
Non-fiction
Certificate U

Phantom Freakout

By jeand on Thu, 30 Jul 2015

I practically live on my computer. It's the first thing I turn on when I get up in the morning, and the last thing I turn off at night. It lives...
Rant
Non-fiction
Certificate U
Cherry

The Trip - part 1

By jeand on Sun, 04 Oct 2015

My son left home 18 years ago – and has only been back for a long weekend once since. So his 28 years of accumulated junk has for the most part...
Autobiography
Story
Certificate U
Cherry

The Trip - part 2

By jeand on Mon, 05 Oct 2015

The Trip – part 2 “You must be Barbara Day,” said the lady at the motel as we walked in. At first I thought that I was special in some way – to be so...
Autobiography
Story
Certificate U
Cherry

the Trip - part 3

By jeand on Tue, 06 Oct 2015

The trip part 3 The next day our plan was to go to Gem Mountain in Spruce Pine, North Carolina. I had no idea what this would entail, but Jenny had...
Autobiography
Story
Certificate U
Cherry

The trip - part 4

By jeand on Wed, 07 Oct 2015

Trip – day 4 Abingdon, the little town where I was staying, is very much a tourist trap – with loads of antique shops, gift shops, interesting old...
Autobiography
Story
Certificate U
Cherry

The trip - part 5

By jeand on Thu, 08 Oct 2015

On Sunday, we decided to go and visit a cavern. We had gone to the Bristol Caverns, quite nearby, last year, and I saw that there was something...
Autobiography
Story
Certificate U
Cherry

A poem for Samuel - aged 3

By jeand on Mon, 07 Dec 2015

We couldn't find her for ever so long When Grandma came on the train We were waiting along side the track And she was stood in the rain First we went...
Autobiography
Poem
Certificate U

On Shaving

By jeand on Fri, 11 Dec 2015

I must admit I don't shave my legs very much, except in the summer when if the temperature allows, I wear shorts. But I must also admit a miscarriage...
Autobiography
Story
Certificate U
Cherry

Christmas in Bury - part 1

By jeand on Mon, 28 Dec 2015

The pattern for my Christmases is to alternate between my two daughters – one lives in Chester and the other in Shipley, Yorkshire. This year it was...
Autobiography
Story
Certificate U
Cherry

Christmas in Bury St Edmunds - part 2

By jeand on Tue, 29 Dec 2015

Part 2 - Other Grandma's house Jeff drove us to Horringer, the suburb where he had grown up. He knew Bury a bit, as he had had a moped and was a...
Autobiography
Story
Certificate U
Cherry

Christmas in Bury St Edmunds - part 3

By jeand on Wed, 30 Dec 2015

Boxing Day We decided we would have the in-house breakfast at the Premier Inn. There was a choice of a Continental breakfast for £6.99 and a Full...
Autobiography
Story
Certificate U

Thalidomide

By jeand on Thu, 21 Jan 2016

I watched Call the Midwife this Sunday, and, as usual, thought what a wonderful programme it is, to not shy away from the huge problems that the...
Autobiography
Story
Certificate U

Sarah

By jeand on Fri, 05 Feb 2016

I have a telephone friend who called last night after an unprecedented period of time without ringing. I should add that she always calls me. I never...
Autobiography
Story
Certificate U
Cherry

I Hate the Word Love

By jeand on Fri, 12 Feb 2016

I hate the word Love. Let me give you an example. My step-mother, aged 98, says she loves me whenever I speak to her, and expects me to say it back...
Autobiography
Story
Certificate U

The Uninvited Guest

By jeand on Tue, 07 Jun 2016

I like living alone. I like doing my own things, when I want to. I like not having to weed my garden, that only I see, or dust my house, that only...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

The House that Badger Built - part 2

By jeand on Wed, 15 Jun 2016

Having returned from my week's babysitting stint, I was anxious to get to my garden and see what had happened to my uninvited guest. I suppose I was...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

The Plop Thickens - part 3

By jeand on Sat, 18 Jun 2016

Steve, my builder, fixed my front door so that the latch would connect without slamming. He then kindly said, “Is there anything else I can do for...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

The Officials get involved - part 4

By jeand on Sun, 19 Jun 2016

On Friday morning, I entertained my U3A reading group. Our subject was the book Philomena, which we all thought was far too long, had too small print...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

Trip to Say Goodbye - 1

By jeand on Sun, 03 Jul 2016

Two weeks ago, I was packing my bag, and the thought that predominated my mind was, “In two weeks, I will be home again.” It was a very long two...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

Trip to Say Goodbye - 2

By jeand on Mon, 04 Jul 2016

Tuesday morning Cathy and I left her house and drove to her dad's Foley, but stopping en route at the Hmung Market.(pictured above) This place has...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

Trip to Say Goodbye - 3

By jeand on Tue, 05 Jul 2016

Knowing that we had only 400 miles or so to cover, Larry wasn't in any big hurry to start in the morning, but we did get going about 7.30. The...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

Trip to Say Goodbye - 4

By jeand on Wed, 06 Jul 2016

We got off to our early start, and as soon as we had gone ten miles down the road, it was time to change our watches back by an hour to Mountain...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

Trip to Say Goodbye - 5

By jeand on Fri, 08 Jul 2016

On Friday our Quality Inn provided a very nice buffet breakfast, and we took advantage by having waffles and omelettes and a little bit of just about...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate 15

Trip to Say Goodbye - 6

By jeand on Sat, 09 Jul 2016

We got on the way about 6.30, but didn't want to arrived in Portland before 2, as we had said we would have had lunch. We were to drive to my niece...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

Trip to Say Goodbye - 7

By jeand on Mon, 11 Jul 2016

Mary K was sure that Kathleen's nearly comatose state was not typical, and that she would be all right the next day, the day of the family gathering...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U
Cherry

Trip to Say Goodbye - 8

By jeand on Tue, 12 Jul 2016

Cathy got up early on Monday and went for a five mile run up to Mount Tabor. She didn't get a very good view of Mt. Hood and was disappointed about...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U
Cherry

Senior Moments at Christmas Party

By jeand on Sun, 18 Dec 2016

I belong to our local Senior Citizens Association. I joined in order to play in the scrabble group a few years ago, but also volunteered to set up a...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U
Cherry

Good Luck John

By jeand on Sun, 07 May 2017

I haven't used this site for a long time. But I haven't forgotten about you. I regularly think about Rhiannon and wonder how she is getting on with...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U
Cherry

50 Years Ago Today

By jeand on Mon, 31 Jul 2017

July 31, 1967 It' was already hot at 6 a.m. when I woke up. This would be the last time, I thought, that I would be sharing a bed with my sister,...
Autobiography
Biography
Certificate U

Brenda

By jeand on Mon, 14 Aug 2017

Brenda has been my bridge partner for the last 13 years or so. We are about the same age, and level of ability, but our friendship has been very...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

Good Bye

By jeand on Tue, 22 Aug 2017

Continuing my theme of people dying, this has been a busy week. I had two funerals to play the organ for and each had its own challenges. One of the...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

My new neighbour

By jeand on Sun, 14 Jul 2019

As I mentioned in my previous piece, I have a new neighbour. I will call him Ben, and he is in his late 50's and is short and has white hair. He has...
Biography
Non-fiction
Certificate U
1 likes

My brand new plastic eyes

By jeand on Mon, 15 Jul 2019

I am not sure whether they are plastic or glass, but am guessing glass would have too many problems if one fell. When I was five or six I went with...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U
1 likes

The King of Misery

By jeand on Sat, 20 Jul 2019

We were recently challenged to create a card game based on people's emotions. How it works is completely up to us, but presumably there has to be a...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U
Cherry

American Visitors

By jeand on Tue, 23 Jul 2019

My nephew, two nieces, one husband, and a great niece and nephew came from America to visit me this weekend. They are doing a three weeks trip of...
Non-fiction
Certificate U
Cherry

April in Paris 1990 - Part 1

By jeand on Wed, 24 Jul 2019

I was very excited about out trip. I'd never been to France, before, much less Paris. And it is such fun to go off with Philip on our own, without...
Autobiography
Story
Certificate U
Cherry

April in Paris 1990 - part 2

By jeand on Thu, 25 Jul 2019

The Cambronne Hotel was a fairly modern looking building with a sort of honeycomb of brown panels going up the sides of it. These we later discovered...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U
Cherry

April in Paris 1990 - part 3 -Sunday

By jeand on Sat, 27 Jul 2019

We had guessed correctly about the noise from the nightclub which kept us awake quite a lot of the night by coming and goings and loud popular music...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

April in Paris 1990 - part 4 -Sunday

By jeand on Mon, 29 Jul 2019

The registrationprocedure was quite simple We just had to pick up our name tags atthe door - and then go upstairs to the desk and pick up the...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

Happy Anniversary

By jeand on Wed, 31 Jul 2019

I was married to Philip 52 years ago today, but those people in the picture aren't us, but they are Mr and Mrs. J Day, as we were.(Philip's first...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

April in Paris 1990 - part 5

By jeand on Fri, 02 Aug 2019

At breakfast on Monday, I took note of who ate what. It seemed as only Americans or English had cereal for breakfast. Some of the French people put...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U
Cherry

Last Tango in Paris and the Green Eyed Monster

By jeand on Sat, 03 Aug 2019

Bill and Bett, James and Jill and Philip and I were nearly the first on the dinner cruise boat, the highlight of our week, and it transpired that we...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

Letter to Kathleen after my Dad died - 1976

By jeand on Tue, 06 Aug 2019

(I have been going through my letters to my sister, which her daughter brought to me a few weeks ago. Most of them are very ordinary and boring, but...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U
Cherry

Relatively Speaking

By jeand on Thu, 15 Aug 2019

One of my hobbies these days is to find out all I can about my children's English ancestors. When I started doing this about 15 years ago, there was...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

Uncle Frank Suchla - a bad man probably

By jeand on Sat, 17 Aug 2019

Having given one of my husband's ancestors a bad name, I should do the same for mine, I knew a lot about Frank Suchla before this last bit of...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

Bridge Holiday in Luxor - January 1996 - Difficulties with Roommate

By jeand on Thu, 22 Aug 2019

I booked the bridge holiday to Luxor, knowing that I would have to take pot-luck on who I shared a room with, but thinking it was bound to be okay...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

Trip to Egypt - 2 - Adventures while shopping

By jeand on Sat, 24 Aug 2019

The entire group met up for the evening meal, which was excellent. Afterwards we went to our rooms for an early night. It turned out that Win had...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

TRIP TO EGYPT 4 - VALLEY OF THE TOMBS

By jeand on Sun, 01 Sep 2019

I slept very badly that night. Win came in very late, and Fran came knocking on our door even later to tell her about the man who she had been left...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U
Cherry

The camel ride - Egypt Trip 5

By jeand on Fri, 06 Sep 2019

When we first booked to ride on a camel, there as quite a bit of excitement and interest about it. But now, Pat had changed her mind, and the rest of...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

Bits and Pieces - Egypt trip

By jeand on Sat, 14 Sep 2019

Zaib is a Moslem, and therefore she should have been following the Ramadan fast, which means nothing to eat, drink or smoke from dawn to dusk. But...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

The Men in my Life - part 1

By jeand on Fri, 20 Sep 2019

1950 - Jackie Braun - aged 6 I remember that he was good looking and that I very much wanted him to like me. He asked me why my hands hung down from...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

The Sophomore Boys

By jeand on Tue, 01 Oct 2019

Men in my Life 1960- 1965 - aged 16 - 21 I was an Oblate of St. Benedict, a girls’ group which was a sort of being a lay religious (a real perk in...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U
Cherry

Sorority Drop Out

By jeand on Sun, 13 Oct 2019

When I transferred from St. Teresa's all girls’ college to North Dakota State University, one most important ingredient in my life was lacking - a...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

Al and the Levecar

By jeand on Sat, 19 Oct 2019

"What a stupid thing to do. You're just asking to be hurt," said Joyce with a mixture of pity and exasperation. Joyce was my co-worker at the records...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U
Cherry

Al and the Wonderful Summer

By jeand on Sun, 20 Oct 2019

Al's blue and white Buick drove up to my house about 15 to 7 but I was waiting. "I hope you don't mind if we give a friend a lift to her job first,”...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U
Cherry

Al and the Hernia

By jeand on Tue, 22 Oct 2019

A week went by and I had no letter from Al. I was very disappointed and then thought I'd write to him anyway. But before my letter had a chance to...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U
Cherry

Al in Minneapolis

By jeand on Thu, 24 Oct 2019

My work at Fargo Clinic finished at 9 p.m. but instead of going back to the dorm I went right to the train depot and sat alone, reading, until the...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U
Cherry

The Last Man in my Life

By jeand on Fri, 01 Nov 2019

This November marks the 10th anniversary of my husband's death. But rather than writing about those sad days, I am remembering the first thrilling...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U
Cherry

The Last Man in my Life 2

By jeand on Thu, 07 Nov 2019

The following Saturday was a Bank Holiday November 11th, Veterans' Day, and therefore a day when no mail was delivered. I was amazed to see a letter...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U
Cherry

The Last Man in my Life 3

By jeand on Thu, 14 Nov 2019

I won't go into the details of our lives from then on - only to say I saw Phlip every day except for the two weeks when he went to England for...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

The Honeymoon

By jeand on Sat, 16 Nov 2019

This is a synopsis of our honeymoon in England. We spent three weeks there, and arrived back just in time for my sister's wedding on August 23. Hi...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

The Janus Look 1

By jeand on Mon, 31 Jan 2022

Thursday Jan 27 12.02 a.m. Up to the toilet, as usual. Back in bed now, but how strange. I can’t shut my right eye. I will hold it closed, and behind...
Biography
Non-fiction
Certificate U

Janus Look 2

By jeand on Tue, 01 Feb 2022

Thursday 12.05 p.m. I had to knock on the door to be let in, as I hadn’t brought a key with me in the ambulance either. My son answered the door, and...
Autobiography
Non-fiction
Certificate U