Rambling then Outline of Lizzy's Cuteness

Two big things happened today: the stock market went down by over 320 points, and my granddaughter Alex had her 7th birthday. Now, there are those who would say that one of those events is unimportant, irrelevant, trivia while the other is significant. Half of those would say that it is the birthday that is truly important—they are the existentialists. The other half would say that the birthday, because its significance is limited to so few people is the trivia while the other event affects billions of people causing a deep and profound resonance around the globe. Those are the dickheads.

Both may be important, but I have to admit that the birthday is the one that finds resonance with me. I didn’t take pictures, sing songs and give gifts because of the stock market. And it is a true phenomenon of nature that a granddaughter can have so much importance to an old man. But there you have it. I cannot defend myself. It was just damn cute how her little sister, Lizzy, doted on her and enjoyed the whole process too. No matter what Lizzy or Alex say it is cute. I see each of them the same way many people see god—always getting praise and never blame. I told my son the other day that his curse was that no matter how bad Lizzy was, even when she was acting really snotty, she was cute. He agreed that it truly was a curse. Poor man.

My other fun for the day was working on a spreadsheet for Lorri. A spreadsheet can soak up a ton of time and while sporadically frustrating, overall it is just fun. To put something from your abstract a priori thinking onto a spreadsheet as a series of formulae, then see it actually work…it is just great.

My latest theory about writing is that it is essential to write a lot—reams and reams or words—in order to get better at it. Of course proofreading it is critical, but the sheer volume or writing is fundamental. The question remaining is whether that alone is enough to make one a credible writer or if you have to take analysis, correction and criticism from others to make much progress. So far I resist that idea because I don’t have someone to do the criticizing. That is why I’m sticking with my theory that sheer volume is the key factor here.

Of course other ideas can be of benefit too. I think it would be helpful to outline a piece—fiction or non-fiction and learn to flesh out an outline. The stylistic writing might not improve but the force and cohesion of an argument would have to improve. I’ll have to try it and see how it goes. The evidence for the need is this piece itself. I rest my case.
 

These two episodes were written from an outline:

Lizzy is our granddaughter. Her cuteness is more than just the cute face of a little 3 year old girl. The other day we were in Mark and Amy’s (Lizzy’s parents) living room. Her other grandfather Gary had come from work and his wife Barb brought him a clean shirt to change into. He took off the dirty shirt and was putting on the button up shirt when he saw Lizzy staring at him. Now Gary is a macho blue collar guy who is all extrovert and a little overweight. He pattered his protruding belly and said, “Hey Lizzy! See my big belly?” Totally unabashed Lizzy boomed in a loud voice, “Yes. And I see your big boobs too!” Caught off guard Gary was quiet for about 5 seconds then tried to cover himself with some bravado. But it was too late. The rest of us were already rolling on the floor laughing.
Then Lizzy’s father Mark told about a comment Lizzy uttered a couple of days ago. Apparently her mother was in the kitchen and had one of those badly timed minor kitchen accidents. Exasperated she blurted out, “Oh s---!” Lizzy said, “Moma!” Quick on his feet Mark jumped in to save the day, “It’s OK Lizzy. That is a grown up word and Moma is a grown up, so it is OK for her to say that word.” Lizzy, quick on her feet for a three year old said, “I know Dad, but that word is only for driving!” Mark was stunned for a second but then was laughing too hard for a comeback.