I first started capturing her storytelling using the video mode on our digital camera, around about April, but she soon refused to let me film her. So I tried writing her stories while she told them, using pen and paper. That lasted for only a few stories too, before she caught on. Since then, I've been recording her using a mini MP3 recorder, which is pretty unobtrusive, and transcribing the audio later. She then objected strongly to this as well... Nowadays I use a combo of MP3 and video to record her before transcribing. I only manage to record a fraction of the stories she tells. I always have a backlog of stories on the recorder that still need transcribing, as it's impossible for me to keep up with her. To help new readers, I've marked my favourite stories with a star (*), so at least you have somewhere to start if you don't know where to begin. Don't forget to check the older archives too - there are some gems in there as well!

Thursday 25 December 2008

I Ate Myself Up, 2008-12-21

This is one of the first stories she's allowed me to record for many many many months. In fact, she actually asked me to get a video of her telling this story, esp. to post for her Internet friends. I'm only posting the transcript here as that now she's older I don't really want to post any pictures/videos of her in the public domain.

Her new set of characters are Hootch (her major character for many many many months now), Hoohp, Hook, to name a few. Hootch is a dinosaur with a human head, but he can change shape from time to time, by magic.

This story also includes "backstroke language", her own made up language that she invented many many months ago. Where such terms occur, I have indicated what they mean in parentheses (she explained it to me when checking on my transcription).

Ok, here's the story. For the record, she's now 4 years and 2 months old.


One day Hootch was very very yonk (=evil), and he ate what you think to be Sam, and he was very very not nice for he longed to be evil.

So one day he made a potion but it didn't last long, when he got smashed into tiny pieces. For when he was evil, he was very very very very very very bad.

And one day Hootch ate himself up!

And Hook killed Hootch. And one day Hook killed Hootch.

And there was another Hootch called Hootch Randeraft!
(That's when Hootch Randeraft comes up. But he's called Hootch for his real name. They don't call him Hootch Randeraft. Because they want him to be called Hootch, not Hootch Randeraft).

So one day Hootch came over. And he said, "Why there's a dead Hootch over here? I thought I'm the real Hootch!"

But he said, "It isn't. You are not the real Hootch!"

So he said, "Why? Why am I not the real Hootch?"

"Because the other Hootch that is dead is the real one."

"What?? Then who killed him?"

They said, "Hmm.... it's you Hook!"

"Hook, why did you kill someone? It's very evil!"

Hook said," Hmm... because I'm very evil!"

"What???"


Suddenly, there was a dungeon. Suddenly somebody slammed open the dungeon. And Hook said, "Why?" "Why? Why? Why didn't you... you... you..."

"I will kill you!"

Suddenly.. (they're killing because it's very scary). And suddenly... {pretends to gag}... "I'm going to die.."

"You are not really going to die," they said. "We know you're bluffing, we just know. Are you bluffing?"

She said, "No, I'm not bluffing!"

Hootch didn't believe it. "You are must not be bluffing." He said, "I'm the real Hootch, that's not the real Hootch, that's the fake Hootch."

"Look, I know you are not the real Hootch, you're the fake Hootch!"

So he took off Hootch Randeraft's bone, and they found it was not Hootch.

"Now we have no more Hootch!"

Suddenly Hootch came back to life! They said, "What?? How is Hootch going to come back to life?"


"Now you have no more Hootch," Hook said to Hoohp.

And Hoohp said, "Hmm... do we have any good ones?"

"No, not even.." Suddenly they stopped. And said, "Hmm... what shall I eat? Cooked villains?"

He stopped. (Pretends to munch). Then, they ate themselves up. And with a large (clicking sound).

Then they ran down, to the large bone. Suddenly they keep running and running until there was a large bone in their front. And they said, "This belongs to a large dog."


"No." So they ran ran ran ran ran ran, dragging the bone behind him as fast as they could so they could get a closer look at him.



Hootch Randeraft was one day licking a large ocean when he said "I'm the real Hootch. I'm not that Hootch. I'm the Hootch that's Hootch. I'm just a Hootchy Hootch Hootch."


But suddenly the real Hootch came!


"I thought... I thought you were dead. That you were the fake Hootch."


"No I'm the real Hootch! You are.."

(Both of the Hootchs are arguing. Hootch Randeraft is the fake one).

Hootch thought, "Maybe this Hootch Randeraft doesn't like me. So he sent up a form of me," he said. "Are you dismayed about the arnodmoned? (=type of phone for imaginary friends to talk to the storyteller).


"What? Who are you?" Suddenly Hootch killed Hootch Randeraft.
He was dead.

"Why are you killing everyone Hootch?" everyone said, as he was washed overboard.

Everyone said, "Washed immediately? Cold? Swim? That's unusual! That's ragged. Evil. Tricky."

"No, I'm not tricky."

"Are you hid? You must be sick."

"I'm not sick. I'm Hootch."


"You are not just Hootch. You are Hootch Randerafti!"


"I'm not Hootch Randerafti. I'm just Hootch."


"You are Hootch Randerafti."


"Who's Hootch Randerafti anyway?"


"You don't know who you are! You must be Hootch Randeraft. If you are you must say answer. You must answer me. Answer me at once."


Hootch didn't reply. He was actually Hootch, not Hootch Randerafti. So Hoohp put the truth potion in him.

He said, "What's a potion?"

"A potion? We don't have any potion here."


"You will tell lie. I know it!
I know it, I just know it. Your bad tricks of Missoe" (=from her imaginary world). Hootch thought.

"Could you stay, please? For one food. One last for all?"


Hootch thought. He had the elsewhere. "I have somewhere else to go. I might be on the mattress though. It might be broken. It could be bad."

Hootch thought, "It cannot," but he stepped. "I'm unsure that I will die. I will really die. I will really die. I will... I just will."
Hootch could not see anyone. "How scary is it?" asked Hootch.

"Hootch! Hootch!"

Hootch thought Hoohp turned around and said, "You must not trouble me again Hook!"

So they waited for Hootch to go. Then they dived into the sea and swam over to Hootch and took his life away. "Bad Hootch, bad!"

The End.