Have you seen my imagination? I think it’s missing.

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From 2002 until 2005, I was Annie the Nanny for two little boys in Seattle. The first year was a full-time job, and the next two were part-time as I finished school. These little guys were my funny companions, my paper airplane playmates, the reason that I wanted to pull my hair out and the reason that my heart spilled over with love. Even after I finished my stint as their nanny, I continued to see them about once each week. Now that I’m in Nashville, I miss them a lot.

One of their favorite treats was to be told stories – stories made up on the fly, extemporaneously, in real time, with virtually no prep.

Ready, go.

In fact, my very first day on the job, it was requested of me to tell a story that integrated the lives of a Red-Tailed Hawk, a Black Widow Spider, and a Hyena. Welcome.

I found that, when telling stories about fictional characters in fantastical scenarios, my mind would tend to go blank, and then I would scramble. Put on the spot, my best character names were drawn directly from prescription drugs: “Captain… Zoloft, and his flunky… Prednisone!” In order to avoid the inevitable panic that would set in on the days when I had absolutely no creative spark, I began to build upon two series of stories; it was easier to make up something on the fly when I had already developed some characters to draw from.

My first series: “Crabs on the Loose.”

It was not about an STD.

My second series: “Annie Queen of Doom.”

“Annie Queen of Doom” starred myself, naturally – cloaked in a black cape and wearing excessive amounts of eyeliner – and two Komodo dragons, named after the boys. These illustrious characters lived on Mt. Distromotry (a fictional term which, very technically, translates to “acid mixed with lava”), next to the Bog of Eternal Stench, where they often battled Emperor Badbum. Emperor Badbum was constantly after the Rainbow Sapphire, buried deep within the bowels of Mt. Distromotry, and so our heroes were always on guard. He was a terrible enemy, but he had one weakness: crying babies. And so when Annie Queen of Doom and her Komodo dragons would march into battle, they would push trams full of wailing infants.

Sometimes I wonder what happened to my creativity.

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9 Comments

  1. Greta on May 14, 2008 at 10:58 AM

    I loooove what happens to my imagination when I’m around little kids. It EXPLODES into random fantastical conjectures and stories.

    Can you write a children’s book about Annie Queen of Doom? Please?

  2. MB on May 14, 2008 at 1:00 PM

    I was going to say the same thing Greta! Being around kids, especially happy, creative kids, spurs on the imagination. During my summers I’ll sometimes try to write a clever song or story for my curriculum, and I can barely do it. However, put me in a classroom full of kids pretending to be private eyes, pretending to listen, pretending to be fabulous movie stars, pretending to be explorers, archaeologists, or cartoonists (among other things), and I can do it on the spot.

    So if you really want Annie Queen of Doom to return, along with her cape of creativity, you have to find some new sidekicks. – Matt

  3. Mary on May 14, 2008 at 1:37 PM

    “trams full of wailing infants”

    wow.

  4. Julianne on May 14, 2008 at 7:43 PM

    Annie…tell us more nannie stories–they’re the best! (like the one about climbing up the letters of Jesus!)

  5. Deborah Barnett on May 14, 2008 at 8:43 PM

    will you be my nanny? I mean, I don’t have kids… I want you to babysit me!

  6. Angela Hart on May 15, 2008 at 12:55 PM

    I just found your blog and really enjoy it! And we have a few things in common: I too live in Nashville and I supported myself during grad school in Seattle, WA nannying two sweet little girls. I miss the NW!! Nice to read about somebody else that knows both. Look forward to reading more.

    Angela

  7. Lyla on May 15, 2008 at 4:02 PM

    I need to kidnap some kids for you to nanny just to hear the stories.

  8. Nicolas Frisby on May 15, 2008 at 7:12 PM
  9. hootenannie » Blog Archive » Ghost town on November 15, 2011 at 8:18 AM

    […] What happened to those months in 2008 when I was posting every single day?  I was an ever-flowing fountain of entertainment!  Bra shopping?  Check.  Sprite sprayed you-know-where?  You got it.  Annie Queen of Doom?  Duh. […]

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