Title TBD: Tell Me a Story

Zane Ewton
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Small stories and other things we might share around the kitchen table zaneewton.substack.com

  1. Zane & daughters search for the Flatwoods Monster

    May 19

    Zane & daughters search for the Flatwoods Monster

    I’ve got something a little different for this installment of Tell Me a Story. Rather than recapping an experience, tag along as I took my daughters on what has become an annual spring break thing - American cryptid road trip. I dropped a recorder in my pocket and hit record at different moments during our three day road trip from Raleigh, NC to Sutton, WV (home of the Flatwoods Monster) and the Lost World Caverns and back home again. Full disclosure: the audio can be a little rough in places but you’ll get the flavor of what it’s like to sit in a car with me and my daughters while we talk discover trolls that look like Jesus (but might not be trolls), why Bigfoot is much more of a presence in the northwest yet still has his own museum on the east coast, how Zendaya is everywhere, breakfast with the West Virginia Bowhunters Association, what was it that angered bat boy, was Bob Seger a serial killer, why is the last two hours of a road trip the longest experience of our life and more. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit zaneewton.substack.com

    25 min
  2. Andy says, "Hey, man! That's my shirt!"

    May 5

    Andy says, "Hey, man! That's my shirt!"

    Ever been to a Banana Republic or Gap store in the ‘90s? Ever hunt the thrift shops for Banana Republic or Gap clothes from the ‘90s? If so, there’s an excellent chance you have something sitting in your closet now that Andy had a hand in designing. In this installment of Tell Me a Story, Andy shares two similar experiences where the work he was doing at that time would later turn around and find him again. Once while on a first date at a Manhattan restaurant where he thought he might get shivved for shouting “hey, man! That’s my shirt!” to a man passing by. And then 30 years later when his teenager daughter came home from the thrift store and mentioned, “I think I got a shirt from that place you worked in your 20s.” There’s a legacy you leave when you make things for other people, because often those things come back around to you in fun and unexpected ways. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit zaneewton.substack.com

    8 min
  3. Only Jordan knows the name of the painting

    Apr 21

    Only Jordan knows the name of the painting

    Jordan didn’t know a homecoming to his alma mater’s dive bar would change his life, but he did know the woman he met that night, the woman floating above the bar sludge, would be his wife. At least that’s what he told her ex-boyfriend. In this installment of Tell Me a Story, Jordan starts with how he met the woman who would be his wife, how he almost messed it up and how they endured long distance romance before he gets to the main event: an elaborate marriage proposal at an NYC art gallery featuring his own painting (he’s not a painter), the mysterious (and completely made up) rules of an art show, a gallery owner he met only a few weeks prior who went above and beyond to help him and an international community of well wishers waiting around to see the proposal. Spoiler alert: the painting now resides in their bedroom. Have a story of your own to share? Please let me know. I’d love to hear it. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit zaneewton.substack.com

    24 min
  4. "I'm doing this for more time, but you're going to survive," said the 80-year-old man to Daniel

    Apr 7

    "I'm doing this for more time, but you're going to survive," said the 80-year-old man to Daniel

    When Daniel was in his first year of college, he started feeling a strange sensation and pain in his leg. Being a sensible young adult male, he actually went to a doctor to get it checked out. He didn’t anticipate testicular cancer. In this installment of Tell Me a Story, Daniel shares his experience in cancer treatment and how facing mortality so young took him to a dark place mentally. However, he also sought counseling (I told you he was a sensible young adult male) and was able to find a path through his physical and mental challenges. Coming out the other side with a hopeful perspective, a commitment to serve others and the blessings of raising his own family. Coincidentally, April is Testicular Cancer Awareness Month. If you’d like to learn more or provide support, Daniel recommends the Testicular Cancer Foundation. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit zaneewton.substack.com

    10 min
  5. 'Weighing the trash of my total existence' with Ellen

    Mar 17

    'Weighing the trash of my total existence' with Ellen

    A quiet moment of terror, standing at a trash can in an Airbnb, led Ellen to a choice that sparked changing pretty much everything about her life. Bigger changes than a kitchen remodel in the middle of a global pandemic. In this installment of Tell Me a Story, Ellen shares her experience starting anxiety medication, finding support in unique places (like an astrologer with an MBA) and how it led her to take new directions in her life and work. Ellen discusses mental health challenges in this story, puts specific language to those challenges and shares some actions that worked for her. If you’re working through anxiety, depression or other challenges, please don’t wait to reach out for some help. Have a story of your own to share? Please let me know. I’d love to hear it. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit zaneewton.substack.com

    17 min
  6. Put Damon in, Coach. He's ready to play

    Mar 3

    Put Damon in, Coach. He's ready to play

    As a young sports reporter in Casa Grande, AZ, Damon was covering local community college and high school sports. That was the case until a press release announced a new professional football league was bringing a team to town for it’s pre-season training. In this installment of Tell Me a Story, Damon shares his experience covering the Oregon Lightning Bolts of the Professional Spring Football League, connecting with coach Craig Morton and very nearly taking the field to get a real taste of what it was like to be on the team, not only reporting from the sidelines. It didn’t quite work out in professional sports stardom for Damon, but it was an experience that taught him to say yes to opportunity, because you never know when the door may close. Have a story of your own to share? Please let me know. I’d love to hear it. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit zaneewton.substack.com

    13 min
  7. When the mom math isn't adding up with Cassandra

    Jan 6

    When the mom math isn't adding up with Cassandra

    After losing a deeply wanted pregnancy, while also dealing with corporate upheaval, Cassandra found herself doing what she calls “mom math.” These are the constantly ongoing calculations a mother makes to take care of…everything, really. In this installment of Tell Me a Story, Cassandra shares a deeply personal experience about the highs and lows of motherhood and career, and the constant calculations that go into finding work/life balance, with the understanding of how that is an impossible task. Mom math means considering everything, often putting the mother’s needs on the backburner, and being left to clean up the mess at the end of the day. And sometimes that mess means staying somewhere she probably should have left years before. At it’s best, corporate America can give you a space to work with purpose, to lift others up and to create a life for yourself and your family. But even at its best, we have to realize the other shoe could drop at any moment and we’ll be a name on a list of people headed out the door. Cassandra has gone on to create community outside of her day gig, which she talks about a little in this story. It’s a reminder to connect with real community, because your “office family” might not be as loyal as you are. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit zaneewton.substack.com

    14 min
  8. 10,000 miles with Molly

    12/16/2025

    10,000 miles with Molly

    Can you call yourself an American if you haven’t at least sketched out a rough itinerary for cross country road trip? One of those trips where the main goal is seeing things and trying things and maybe even escaping things. Following some unique and terrible health challenges in 2024, Molly felt the call to travel now while she still could and this past summer crossed the U.S and back in about four months. In this installment of Tell Me a Story, Molly shares some of the details in what turned out to be a classic American road trip: with all the helpful strangers, off-the-clock mechanics, national parks trolls and crawfish étouffée you would expect. Listen in and I’d dare you not to want to gas up the car and start heading to the farthest coast away from you. You can read Molly’s story (and much more) on her Substack: This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit zaneewton.substack.com

    11 min
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Small stories and other things we might share around the kitchen table zaneewton.substack.com

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