Auntie Nim

Apr 1, 2017 | No-Niche Posts

Auntie Nim was a delightfully infuriating bundle of internal contradictions. Industriously lazy and deeply introverted, she invented the most entertainingly involved excuses for staying home with a good book, doing nothing of note. Her cloudy scowl was seldom a harbinger of rain, let alone thunder; just beneath the surface of her stormy external demeanor, Auntie Nim was a generous burst of laughter and sunshine. Stingy with criticism, but lavish with praise – the perfect traits in an aunt. Wasn’t it the sacred duty of aunts to spoil their nieces rotten and drive their sisters batty? If so, then Auntie Nim excelled at aunthood, frequently doing both at once without even trying.

Admittedly, putting a saddle on the Chihuahua and passing it off as a “miniature purse-pony” for Thea’s sweet sixteenth might have been over the top, but she smiled at the memory of pulling Thea’s feet back onto the ground while scraping her sister’s jaw off the floor.

 


Today’s flash fiction story was inspired by Writing Prompts – Creative Copy Challenge #479. The prompt included the following words: Frequent, Seldom, External, Internal, Generous, Stingy, Industrious, Lazy, Rain, Sunshine.

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I hope that regardless of whether you’re participating in the Blogging A to Z Challenge or not, you’ll subscribe to this blog and follow along, and follow some of the links below to explore others’ blogs, and share your favorites on Facebook, Twitter, or wherever you hang out, with anyone you think may enjoy the posts.

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Holly Jahangiri

Holly Jahangiri is the author of Trockle, illustrated by Jordan Vinyard; A Puppy, Not a Guppy, illustrated by Ryan Shaw; and the newest release: A New Leaf for Lyle, illustrated by Carrie Salazar. She draws inspiration from her family, from her own childhood adventures (some of which only happened in her overactive imagination), and from readers both young and young-at-heart. She lives in Houston, Texas, with her husband, J.J., whose love and encouragement make writing books twice the fun.

34 Comments

  1. Shalini

    Haha! But I love Auntie Jim. She is absolute fun! 🙂
    What a way to start A to Z, Holly!

    Reply
    • HollyJahangiri

      Thanks, Shalini! Her name, “Auntie Nim” is a play on “antonym” (as suggested by the prompt’s word list) – she’s a woman of contradictions!

      Reply
  2. Unknown Journey Ahead

    Flash fiction is something I have never tried (I’m more of a non fiction person) but this was pretty…..strange. And creative. And how do you use all those words?

    Reply
    • HollyJahangiri

      LOL – try it. It gets easier with practice, and your story can be as short (it can even be a poem!) or as long as it needs to be.

      In college, I had an instructor who liked to challenge us with five random, fifty-dollar words – “Use them all in a single sentence that demonstrates you understand the meaning of the words. It cannot be a run-on sentence.” It could, however, be a very LONG sentence; it just had to be grammatically correct.

      Reply
  3. Debbie D.

    Such a clever play on words. 🙂 Cute Chihuahua but I’m sure he/she was less impressed. Dressing dogs in silly costumes for human entertainment is something I don’t care for, but it’s good for a laugh, regardless. Auntie Nim is a hoot, as well!

    Reply
    • HollyJahangiri

      That poor pup looks a bit humiliated. But it’s cute. Not necessarily kind, but then – I’m not necessarily a fan of chihuahuas, either.

      Don’t look at me – I didn’t DO that to it! 🙂

      Reply
  4. Vinodini

    Auntie Nim sounds so real. I am reminded of someone like her in my own family. 🙂

    Reply
    • HollyJahangiri

      🙂 There’s a bit of her in me, too. Although, if my sister in law is reading this…no worries. I won’t be giving my niece a purse pony.

      Tempting as that thought may be…

      Reply
  5. Tina Basu

    LOL – Purse Pony !! haha Love the Flash Fiction Holly

    Reply
    • HollyJahangiri

      Thanks, Tina! My stories usually run a bit longer, but once I had the idea for this one, it practically wrote itself. Funny thing: I write as if I were reading for the first time. The endings to my stories usually surprise ME as much as they do anyone else.

      Reply
  6. Zainab

    Aunty nim sounds real! Real like any of us!
    🙂 nice post

    Reply
    • HollyJahangiri

      Good characters (and naughty ones, too!) should always be believable. 🙂

      Reply
    • HollyJahangiri

      Thank you, Cathy! I enjoyed your sketches and look forward to stopping by again! You’ve inspired me – we “not-an-artists” should doodle more often and share our work, anyway. I may do that, too, before the month is out!

      Reply
  7. Shilpa Garg

    I like Auntie Nim. Her company would be so much fun.
    Love the way you have woven the prompts in the story! Great going, Holly!
    Looking forward to read all your posts this April.
    Cheers 🙂

    Reply
    • HollyJahangiri

      Thank you, Shilpa! Even I don’t know what they’ll be, just yet! I look forward to sharing the fun of it, both here and in your blog!

      Reply
  8. Mayuri Nidigallu

    Auntie Nim sounds like the kind of Aunt I’d like to be for my twin nieces!:))) Enjoyed getting to know her, Holly. Not sure the poor dog enjoyed being dressed so though! :)))

    Reply
    • HollyJahangiri

      Good! I’m glad to hear that!

      I think you’re right – that dog looks mortified.

      Reply
  9. Shalini

    Oh the pic of that dog is just adorable. What a humorous n warm post to kick-start the challenge.
    Cheers

    Reply
  10. shubhangi srikanth

    The picture of the Chihuahua all saddled up had me roaring with laughter! I enjoyed reading this post…and getting to know Aunt Nim…I would love to have her around!

    Reply
    • HollyJahangiri

      Thanks! The image of the chihuahua purse pony occurred to me, followed closely by, “You can find ANYTHING on the Internet – surely there’s a chihuahua dressed in a saddle, somewhere!” Damned if there wasn’t! LOL

      Reply
  11. Suzy

    Fiction? Aunty Nim souds real and a lot of fun too. Love the little Chihuahua. Poor little tyke. Great start Holly.

    Reply
    • HollyJahangiri

      That’s the goal, in fiction, to create characters that are believable – not real, but believable. 🙂 Granted, there’s probably a little “Auntie Nim” in me, somewhere. 🙂 Thanks, Suzy!

      Reply
  12. Ruchi Verma

    I loved your flash fiction theme and Aunty Nim is really cool to read ..looking forward to read more !!

    Reply
    • HollyJahangiri

      Thanks, Ruchi!

      The theme is actually “Food, Fantasy, and Fiction.” Figured that would give me plenty to work with, throughout the month. Glad you enjoyed this one. Glad the bouncer finally got the message and let you leave a comment, too. 😉

      Seriously, I can’t blame him for this one – there was nothing in spam at all. But your last comment did show up in moderation, finally!

      Reply
  13. Bellybytes

    ha ha. I love these kind of pranks and on APril Fool’s day too! Look forward to more stories from you.

    Reply
    • HollyJahangiri

      Thanks! I used to dread April Fool’s Day. My husband is the master of pranks and subtlety. One year, though, I turned the tables on him. That was the year he quit pulling any pranks (though for the first year or two, that was the biggest prank of all, since I’d wait in fear till midnight!). I think he knew, once I got in the game, myself, things would escalate. 🙂

      Reply
  14. Rajlakshmi

    Hahaha Aunt Nim sure has some novel ideas. Loved that chihuahua picture ?

    Reply
    • HollyJahangiri

      I’m glad you enjoyed the post! Thank you for visiting and commenting on my blog.

      Reply
  15. Sampada

    Wow! You have used the seemingly disconnected words really well in describing one person! Very well done.

    Reply
  16. Pratikshya Mishra

    Interesting one indeed…never known much about Aunty Jim though…

    Reply

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    […] Linking to: Blogging from A to Z / Blog Chatter / It’s All a Matter of Perspective […]
  2. What bloggers have to say post A to Z Challenge 2017 - Part 1 - Write Tribe -
    […] Auntie Nim and Berries, Bananas, and a Blender  appear to be the most popular – certainly the ones with the…

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