#memoirmonday

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One of the things I’ve loved for a good long while now is board games. I played some with my sisters after they got married and they would host game nights at their respective homes and I always had a great time with them. I was only a teenager then but then I joined a gaming after school group in high school and I enjoyed that. Of course this was a while back now and a lot of the games we played weren’t actually all that fun. They were games like Monopoly, Stratego, Chess, and I guess those are the major ones that come to mind. Anyway those games aren’t fun they’re made fun by the people around the table. And I know what you’re thinking, Isn’t that true of all games?? No. It isn’t true of all games. Some games even if you’re playing with people that you don’t enjoy much are so fun and thinky in it of themselves that they produce a good amount of to play them. At some point during the pandemic as we were all being paid $600 a week USD plus some other moneys from unemployment after being let go of a job that couldn’t exist during a pandemic I decided I wanted to spend a good chunk of the money I was getting on new board games. Is that fair? Does that misrepresent how many board games I had previous to the pandemic? Previous to the pandemic my roommate (at the time) and I would host a number of game nights but a lot of the games we would play would be easy and quick party games. Certainly not very many of the longer board games that now fill my living room and are the main topic of this point and that I will eventually get to in the post. Memory is a strange thing. I walked away from the keyboard to try and better remember that time before the pandemic and what games we were playing and I can’t say I remember too well. I remember Catan because my friend Gabriel was obsessed with it and also Scythe but only because one of them mentioned it a few weeks ago. I can’t actually remember much of us playing nor did I remember it as I was playing Scythe with several new friends. I found a store that specialized in selling used board games at discounted prices and I started frequenting it a little before the pandemic but not very much. My friend Tyler and I had been given a large number of board games from our friend Gabriel after he left to go live in Korea for some time. None of the games were any good and they’d actually been given to him from one of his professors who was eager to donate them to someone with space. We traded in the games for $90 something dollars in store credit and used to that buy a couple new used games. As the months of the pandemic lingered on more people started trading in their board games as they found themselves with enough time on their hands to clean and organize their houses. Games that weren’t being played or required large numbers--something that was hard to imagine in those deep pandemic days--started to show up at the shop. Many of the games were ones I’d heard about as I started to get deeper into the hobby and so I would buy them hoping for the day to come in the future where my friends and I would finally get a chance to play them. But my friends started to move away during the pandemic. They returned home to be closer to their families as their jobs disappeared or they headed off to grad school after having the time to finally put together an application. And I collected board games. Something I still do now. I shuffle new ones I want to play right away into prominent positions on my bench in the living room while older games that aren’t being played or have never been played get shuffled to the sun room where they can wait out the winter until they are again summoned to potentially be played. The new games shine brightly as I browse through them thinking of the strategies I’ll try while I play them. The others gather dust in storage far from thought and likely to be forgotten like so many memories that run together as time moves on.

“A cult memoir for smart people” - Helen Zuman’s “Mating in Captivity” is the giveaway memoir for November. Helen’s candid account of her time spent within the Zendik community is thought-provoking, heartbreaking and compelling. For a chance to win a copy: Follow Like Comment Winner will be chosen at random on December 1st. #memoirgiveaway #memoirmonday #monthlymemoir #monthlymemoirs #bookstagram #memoir #memoirwriting #memoirs #memoirwriters #memoirauthor #bookgiveaway #bookgiveaways #zendikarrising #zendik #zendikfarm #wulf #wulfzendik #arolzendik #helenzuman #thecultvault #cultvault #cult #cultsurvivor #cults #cultsurvivors #cultawareness #culteducation #culty #cultleader #cultmindcontrol https://www.instagram.com/p/CWHAjFPgAoh/?utm_medium=tumblr

The first #memoirmonday giveaway is all wrapped up. It was such a success. It’s really a wonderful thing to see so many people engaging with the podcast and the guests I have on the show. I am beyond extremely grateful to @ronitplank for being such a wonderful interviewee and for getting the giveaway project off the ground by giving away 3 signed copies of her compelling memoir When She Comes Back. Thank you so much Ronit. I am so excited to work with you again in the future. And one day sit down for that coffee ❤️ 📖 🎙 #memoir #memoirwriting #whenshecomesbackmemoir #memoirs #memoirsofmotherhood #memoirwriters #interviewee #guestspeaker #giveawayuk #bookgiveaway #bookgiveaways #cult #cultsurvivor #cults #cultrecovery #cultawareness #culteducation #osho #wildwildcountry https://www.instagram.com/p/CU-ItlZhivE/?utm_medium=tumblr

The first #memoirmonday giveaway is all wrapped up. It was such a success. It’s really a wonderful thing to see so many people engaging with the podcast and the guests I have on the show. I am beyond extremely grateful to @ronitplank for being such a wonderful interviewee and for getting the giveaway project off the ground by giving away 3 signed copies of her compelling memoir When She Comes Back. Thank you so much Ronit. I am so excited to work with you again in the future. And one day sit down for that coffee ❤️ 📖 🎙 #memoir #memoirwriting #whenshecomesbackmemoir #memoirs #memoirsofmotherhood #memoirwriters #interviewee #guestspeaker #giveawayuk #bookgiveaway #bookgiveaways #cult #cultsurvivor #cults #cultrecovery #cultawareness #culteducation #osho #wildwildcountry https://www.instagram.com/p/CU-CfFUhuod/?utm_medium=tumblr

#memoirmonday brings me to a special one this week - @lisakohnwrites has written such a wonderful memoir about her time in the unification church. The book captures so perfectly the push and pull that spiritual trauma can have on ones life. The fact I got a signed copy sent to me personally and then got to interview Lisa has been the icing on the cake!! Episode coming soon. #memoires #memoirwriting #memoir #memoirsofmotherhood #memoirsofchildhood #graphicmemoir #unification #unificationchurch #moonies #moonie #mooniemonday #moonies🌙 #moony #sanctuarylife #sanctuarychurch #religionclothing #religionsucks #religions #masswedding #maddisonsquaregarden #podcastsofinstagram #podcastshow #podcastsforwomen #spotifypodcast #podcastsetup #cults #cultleader #cultsurvivor #signedbooks https://www.instagram.com/p/CMsqImqsgDE/?igshid=ce5sje4k9efd

#memoirmonday brings me to @sarahedmondson’s ‘Scarred’. A candid and truly insightful look into the cruel inner workings of NXIVM that destroyed so many lives. I cannot recommend this read enough for those looking to learn more. Also, Sarah now has a podcast! It’s called “A little bit culty” and already features some awesome guests. #memoires #memoir #memoirs #memoirsofmotherhood #graphicmemoir #nxivm #nxivmcult #sarahedmondson #keithraniere #cults #cultshit #cultsurvivor #cultleader #cultleaders #cultscultscults #newpodcast #newpodcastepisode #podcastsofinstagram #podcastshow #podcastsforwomen #podcaststudio #applepodcasts #googlepodcasts #spotifypodcasts #guestroom #novels #testimonials #testimonytime #whistle https://www.instagram.com/p/CMdJm7ksGBX/?igshid=k0iibhi5z8gn

Today is #memoirmonday and I am shouting out Jenna Miscavige Hill and her book ‘Beyond Belief’. Another chilling retelling of someone’s experience inside this strange religion. #memoires #memoir #memoirs #memoirwriting #memoirsofchildhood #graphicmemoir #podcastsofinstagram #podcastshow #podcaststudio #podcastsforwomen #spotifypodcasts #podcastsetup #podcastshows #truecrimepodcasts #podcastofinsta #newpodcast #cult #cultshit #cultsurvivor #cultscultscults #scientology #scientologytheaftermath #scientologychurch #leahremini #jennamiscavigehill #beyondbelief #scientologytv #churchofscientology #scientologychurch https://www.instagram.com/p/CL4i1WusgeH/?igshid=9la4ee9ginzw