http://HubShout.com Holiday gifts. Birthday gifts. Gifts rewarding good behavior. I spent some serious hours searching for something unique, something meaningful. Most of the time it was rough going http://story.meblognow.com/2008/10/12/netting-inspirational-stories/ They are laden with disasters and catastrophes. The conversants generally cannot see the life lesson they offer. As a storyteller, my job is to sift through the data and sort out the meaning. To make the tale palatable, I inject a bit of humor. Priceless humor http://pbolduc.com/entertainment/music/netting-priceless-humor.html In the process, I have discovered how world stories arise out of the cultures from which they are born. My firsthand experience of a given culture heightens my appreciation of their stories. My travels have taken me to Southeast Asia, Central and South America, around the United States, Canada, and Europe. The differences as well as the similarities of the various countries impress me deeply. You can find in every culture notions which they hold as sacred http://niftystories.blogspot.com/ Look around you at the great humorists. Art Buchwald. Mark Russell. Garrison Kiellor. Check out the humorists of history http://kidsstories.incomestores.net/?What-in-the-World-Makes-Priceless-Humor-Priceless?&cont=792 The differences as well as the similarities of the various countries impress me deeply. You can find in every culture notions which they hold as sacred. The demonic can also be found. These notions appear regularly in their stories. They make up the mythical soil out of which the stories grow http://niftystories.searchismo.com/?What-Are-Nifty-Stories?&see=503 Maybe there is a message. It might give the listener a suggestion of a new direction. It might even state a moral. It doesn't really matter what name you give to this elusive quality; it is more important that the stories I tell possess it. As a child I found deep meaning in inspirational stories http://niftystories.ilearnt.net/?What-Are-Nifty-Stories?&see=752 And different listeners will carry away different messages. This kind of story is generally attractive to a wider audience. The subtler lessons tend to come from longer tales. One can learn many lessons from epic stories. Think of the difference between an Aesop fable and a tale from the Arabian Nights http://aworldstories.wetpaint.com/ Actually, I hit the books when a listener said my stories were nifty. The current Wiktionary defines the word as "good; a general term for anything that is good, useful or beneficial. " The standard reference Compact Oxford Dictionary states: "particularly good, effective, or stylish. " What makes nifty stories nifty? The stories I choose to tell are, indeed, particularly good and rather effective at making a point, a lesson, a message, a bit of perspective. To me, nifty stories are a blend of entertainment and education, or what some call "edutainment http://story.meblognow.com/2008/10/12/netting-inspirational-stories/ " The standard reference Compact Oxford Dictionary states: "particularly good, effective, or stylish. " What was my listener describing when he called my stories "nifty?" The stories I choose to tell are, indeed, particularly good and rather effective at making a point, a lesson, a message, a bit of perspective. You could say that my idea of nifty stories is stories that enlighten as well as entertain. I look for stories with certain underlying values that help the listener to set their internal compass when sailing through life. For example, a story with a moral is one that provides a clear message