Reviews from

I Was a Teenage Weightlifter

...And a Reputation Hangs in the Balance.

48 total reviews 
Comment from R.E.R.
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Great small humor poem. Sounds like quite the day! Great storytelling, and I hope you do well in the contest. Have a great week, and stay humorous and healthy!

 Comment Written 03-May-2021

reply by the author on 03-May-2021
    Thank you, R.E.R., for your kindness and your well-wishes.
Comment from --Turtle.
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Hi, Jay,

I read through this flash on experiences in unintended flashing. Enjoyed the word play of reputation hanging. Ha!

In a short amount of time, you covered a lot of ground, setting up the moment experienced, giving weight beyond not just an audience seeing the embarrassing moment, but a new girlfriend as well. Also, highlighting extra points by picking what your mom had mentioned... stinging insult to injury. Super embarrassing and all emotions, visuals, and non-fiction flashing that need no explaining.

My empathy, though, as anything super embarrassing in teenage years can leave a blush mark.

Clean, concise writing. Relatable incident. High and low humor.
I enjoyed.

 Comment Written 03-May-2021

reply by the author on 03-May-2021
    Glad you caught the nuances in the subheading, Turtle. You're only one of two who mentioned it. Thanks for reading. Glad it gave you a chuckle.
Comment from muffinmama
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Oh, how embarrassing that must have been!
Oh, how the mighty have fallen - LOL
I like your expression: 'the sudden intimacy of cool air'

This was funny!

 Comment Written 03-May-2021

reply by the author on 03-May-2021
    Haha! Thanks so much, Ryma. Yes, it's safe to say I was embarrassed.
Comment from Seshadri_Sreenivasan
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Ha! Haa!! That could have been a worse situation had your GF seen it! I can mentally construct the funny incident thanks to your fine description in 100 words. Good luck!

 Comment Written 03-May-2021

reply by the author on 03-May-2021
    Thanks for reading this, Seshadri. I'm glad it gave you a chuckle.
Comment from Bill Schott
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This one-hundred-word nonfiction story, I Was a Teenage Weightlifter, captures one of those choice moments when the whole world is watching and one's exposure is as humiliating and devastating as a young man can experience while squatting in public. Funny.

 Comment Written 03-May-2021

reply by the author on 03-May-2021
    Thank you, Bill. Glad you enjoyed it.
Comment from Elizabeth Emerald
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Hilarious--from a spectator POV--how long did it take before you could laugh about it? Great story--masterful build-up to the riiiip. Priceless punchline.

 Comment Written 03-May-2021

reply by the author on 03-May-2021
    Who's laughing? Okay ... LOL. I remember really very little about the aftermath. There was a lot of whispering and snickering in the halls. So it didn't take my peers very long at all. I'm still friends on FaceBook with the girl in question and neither of us ever broached the subject. Thanks for reading and for the stars, Liz.
Comment from Erika Seshadri
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Ha! Oh my goodness. This reminds me of my husband. He was a bodybuilder in his early twenties, before I knew him. After we met, he told me all about it and said he won a few competitions, including being named Mr. Mysore (Mysore, India). I said, "What? Mr. Eyesore? That doesn't sound like something to brag about." Bahahahaha.

Have a good evening!

 Comment Written 02-May-2021

reply by the author on 02-May-2021
    That was a funny remark, Erika. I'm sure your hubby appreciated that. Lol, thanks for reading and reviewing my flash story and the lovely stars.
Comment from Sharon Davis
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A very humerous true flash story. The photo that accompanies the piece suits the storyline well - added to the imagery created by the prose. Your story flows well. Great job.

 Comment Written 02-May-2021

reply by the author on 02-May-2021
    Yes, the picture I searched long and hard for. It shows roughly the position I was in when my gym shorts ripped. Thanks for reading and for the lovely stars.
Comment from amada
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This is a very lovely recound of a great memory that happens when you were a teenager. Your lines have a great pitch and tone, as if you are living again that episode in your early life. Ha, ha, it is great to remember some crazies of our past.

 Comment Written 02-May-2021

reply by the author on 02-May-2021
    Many thanks, Amada. Yes, it's more fun now to recount it than when it happened.
Comment from BethShelby
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Thanks for the great laugh. I've seen such things filmed and shown on funniest Home videos. I think this happens often enough that pants for weightlifters should have rubberized bottom inserts built into them.

 Comment Written 02-May-2021

reply by the author on 02-May-2021
    Thank you, Beth. I've never seen accounts of it happening to others. Hopefully they were better prepared than I.