Tall Tale Tellers

[LukeTHr]

I thought it would be fun to talk about folks we know or have known that could tell whopper stories and expect you to believe them.

Years back I knew a guy that was always catching big bass and catfish, shooting big deer, had mega-wealthy friends etc...

In the times I fished with him he never caught anything to brag about and as for deer, he never had any big racks to show me. And his wealthy friends... well, never met them either.

He told a story once about being out pheasant hunting around an old farmstead and said when he was walking past the foundation where the house was, he looked down and there was a 20 dollar gold piece just laying there. Funny thing was, when I asked him if I could see it, he said he forgot where he had put it. Now, I don't know about you guys, but if I had found a gold double eagle , I would sure as heck know where I had stashed it.

The topper from this guy was when he said he was dating a 16 yr old from an area town and she was just drop-dead gorgeous. Now, he was in his mid 40's and he was not a looker, pudgy, balding, big round face and neck ( the Far Side cartoon strip had a chubby kid with glasses that we always thought resembled him), he didn't have a job and never had any money... he lived with his parents most of his life, yet this girl was head over heels in love with him, AND her parents thought he was perfect for their daughter... or so he always said. Never met the girl, just always heard from him about her. Eventually she was pregnant and that whole story played out for several months till one day, he showed up for lunch at the local pizza joint and was acting down. He then informed me that his GF and died and they also lost the baby. We all just played along with him like we always had, acting concerned etc.... two days later I saw him and you would never guess that any tragedy had recently occurred. He has passed away since then but I haven't met anyone yet that can make stories up like that guy.

 

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[Monty]

Not to worry. I have met several people of that ilk over the years. Some people just can't bear not being the center of attention and always seem to date the prettiest girls, drive the most expensive and fastest cars and have the most interesting and outlandish lives. They usually try to do you one better if you discuss your past. I know one guy who I told an adventure about me, a true one, and a couple of years later we were at a get together and he told the same story as if it happened to him. Hell, some of them can't even come up with an original story and have to steal them from others. So, don't let it worry you . It is usually a case of the "Walter Mitty" complex, and usually not harmful to eanyone except the person who tells tales as they really appear foolish once you catch on. Monty

 

[LukeTHr]

Not to worry. I have met several people of that ilk over the years. Some people just can't bear not being the center of attention and always seem to date the prettiest girls, drive the most expensive and fastest cars and have the most interesting and outlandish lives. They usually try to do you one better if you discuss your past. I know one guy who I told an adventure about me, a true one, and a couple of years later we were at a get together and he told the same story as if it happened to him. Hell, some of them can't even come up with an original story and have to steal them from others. So, don't let it worry you . It is usually a case of the "Walter Mitty" complex, and usually not harmful to eanyone except the person who tells tales as they really appear foolish once you catch on. Monty

Oh, I never let it worry me or bother me, it was actually quite amusing. I thought maybe some other folks here could share of their stories of "those who spin a yarn"

 

[Saturna]

I thought it would be fun to talk about folks we know or have known that could tell whopper stories and expect you to believe them.

Years back I knew a guy that was always catching big bass and catfish, shooting big deer, had mega-wealthy friends etc...

In the times I fished with him he never caught anything to brag about and as for deer, he never had any big racks to show me. And his wealthy friends... well, never met them either.

He has passed away since then but I haven't met anyone yet that can make stories up like that guy.

Haha, and if you question them about anything, they get super offended & massively defensive, and will consider YOU negative.

 

[spartacus53]

Not to worry. I have met several people of that ilk over the years. Some people just can't bear not being the center of attention and always seem to date the prettiest girls, drive the most expensive and fastest cars and have the most interesting and outlandish lives.

Monty, we met I have no need to embellish any of my stories, it is what it is

Not many know that the Dos Equis character, "The Most Interesting Man in The World", were based on my exploits... It was just toned down a bit for TV

 

[LukeTHr]

Not to worry. I have met several people of that ilk over the years. Some people just can't bear not being the center of attention and always seem to date the prettiest girls, drive the most expensive and fastest cars and have the most interesting and outlandish lives.

Monty, we met I have no need to embellish any of my stories, it is what it is

Not many know that the Dos Equis character, "The Most Interesting Man in The World", were based on my exploits... It was just toned down a bit for TV

yeah, that's the kind of stuff I'm referring to....... Stay thirsty my friends...

 

[spartacus53]

Many moons ago I was aces at telling stories. Trust me, if I told you a story you were eating out of the palm of my hand. I was king in mixing a fact and fiction, just enough to blur the lines and make you think, or should I say, rather believe. I remember having started a rumor at one of my first jobs, by the time the story got back to me, I almost ate it up until I remember I concocted it

 

[hypoman]

Here's one that my Grandpa tells...... I wrote it into story form.



I’m sure we all have heard the legendary fish stories that get passed around like candy. You know the ones: “She was a whopper!”, or “It darned near pulled the boat a whole mile!” Then there are the other fish stories, the stories that are whoppers in and of themselves. My Grandpa seems to tell these stories more often than not. There’s the one about the catfish he caught that jumped up in a tree, laying over a branch perfectly. All he had to do was paddle the boat over and lift him off. Then there was the one where, for no apparent reason, a rabbit jumped right up into the tree that he was fishing by. When told by him they are really funny. But there is one story that he tells that can't be retold by anyone and do it justice.
My Grandpa and his brother Butch were fly-fishing the rivers of West Virginia. Grandpa staked a spot in the middle of the river right by where a large stream forks into the river. His brother Butch was a ways ahead of him, trying his luck there. Now the river is flowing pretty well and one would not be able to hear much going on around him. This presumably was the case for Grandpa, because just as he was getting a good rhythm going, a big old black bear had snuck up behind him and wrapped his arms around Grandpa! Well, Grandpa is not the type to go down easily. He starts squirming and wiggling, trying to get free. The bear just squeezed tighter. His brother Butch is over on the bank by now, pointing and laughing. So Grandpa steps it up a notch. He starts elbowing that bear in its ribs, starting at the tops of the ribcage and ending at the bottom. This doesn’t seem to be working either. Grandpa is getting desperate, what with Butch just pointing and laughing away over there, Grandpa knows the only way he is getting out is by getting down right ornery. Grandpa reaches his left hand back down between the bears back legs and gives that bear a tickle he won’t soon forget! This must have shocked this bear something fierce, because he let go all right! As soon as he did Grandpa took off. He only paused to look back once, and would you believe what he saw? That old black bear was still standing there, but waving at Grandpa to come back……with a smile on his face!

 

[mikeofaustin]

When I used to frequent bars, I met a few. One guy had the whole bar going for years about him being a DPS trooper. False. He was an A/C repairman. Another guy talked of being a movie producer. False (he is an autobody repairman and drove clients expensive cars up to the bar). My lie? Yes, I lied too. Occasianly, I would get a random strange women start talking to me and ask "What do you do?". "We'll I work part time for a landscaping company. I'm really hoping to go on full time soon". They will immediately leave. Sometimes without even a 'see-ya'.

 

[ohioaxeman]

No bull here. I actually had a part as an extra in Rambo III in late 80's while serving in the marines. Was telling my story to a group of friends i know back home (at the bar) and this guy that was with them started saying how he worked for MGM studios as a security guard on the Wheel of Fortune set, and he says "I actually met Alex, whats his name"? I said Sajack? and he was like "YES, alex sajack thats him, and we had a beer together etc etc etc." I was Lmao, but I let him have his fame!

 

[mikeofaustin]

No bull here. I actually had a part as an extra in Rambo III in late 80's while serving in the marines. Was telling my story to a group of friends i know back home (at the bar) and this guy that was with them started saying how he worked for MGM studios as a security guard on the Wheel of Fortune set, and he says "I actually met Alex, whats his name"? I said Sajack? and he was like "YES, alex sajack thats him, and we had a beer together etc etc etc." I was Lmao, but I let him have his fame!

Yep, I almost always let them have their fame... I believe you, simply because you don't have any reason to lie....But, in a bar, they will lie in an effort to gain a stature. More over, if they start telling their fib to my friends, I'll be sure to take them aside and let them know they are a very big dreamer. (personally, I hated liars).