The Daily News
1 Monday. Darned hard to believe.
2 Yeesh.
3 I'm recovering from what I thought would be a small little get-together to celebrate five October birthdays. Talk about Octoberfest! Great fun!
4 Turned out to be one of the best parties ever.
5 You never know with parties. We spent two straight days cooking, cleaning, and turning the back yard from something neglected to something spiffy.
6 Just an unexpected great time. I really wanted to see Coley and Matt, but she has been WAY busy with school, online classes, being a master teacher, and juggling a bazillion different things.
7 I still hoped they'd get up here. I even made a little barricade to keep Rocky in the yard, but I made it look a little like a beach setting, complete with party umbrella, a door mat that slightly resembled a beach towel, and a tin lawn ornament that is a bunch of beach sandals lined up next to one another. Rocky the Beach Comber. Rocky is their dog. Here is a picture of Coley, Rocky, and behind them, Phoebe, who passed away last year.
9 Nicole can hold court at a party, especially with war stories about first graders. Plus she's a major goof.
10 Call it serendipity, but a moment later I got word they were on their way, with the Rockstar. I also got word we were getting more people coming, and it didn't take long for this to turn into an amazing party. They concocted a pitcher of something with a variety of fruits, wines, and brandy. The food smelled great, and the party had all sorts of goodies: chips and a variety of dips, guacamole, Cheez-Its, followed by a multi-meat taco bar with a zesty chicken, pulled pork from a pork roast that cooked all day in a crock pot, cheeses of all sorts, lettuce, onions, and all the rest.
We had a ton of fun during the cocktail hour, which went longer, because of all the snack-gnawing. I ran around like a head waiter, filling bowls with more chips, fetching drinks, and bringing music up and down depending upon the conversations. If people started to dance a bit, or if I heard three or four people singing, I'd slowly bring the music up. It was Pandora, so I liked songs that I knew had artists who could get a party going and "liked" them: Otis Redding, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Led Zep, and on and on. I essentially spiked the music. We ate, laughed, and the evening continued. I watched as the food and the drinks kept disappearing. That's a fun party!
This eventually culminated in a group-singing of Billy Joel's Piano Man. We all fell right into all of the "nah, nah, nah, nah, nin-nah nah's" and the entire room booming, "SING US A SONG, YOU'RE THE PIANO MAN, SING US A SONG TONIGHT; WELL WERE ALL IN THE MOOD FOR A MELODY; YOU GOT US FEELIN' ALL RIGHT...." How can a song that corny take over a room? It did, the result being the first huge party at the new place. Fun time with the family. Good times, good times.
All pictures courtesy of my sister Linda, standing directly behind Coley. I stole every one of 'em!
11 Moving On, Part One: I need a jump start.
12 Moving On, Part Two: Let's write! I'm discovering that as I offer writing tips and tools, I need to include a golden rule.
13 I thought a bit and came up with this: if I had one rule that every writer should attempt to follow, I would offer this to the masses. Listen. First, once you have finished any piece of writing, consider it a rough draft.
14 Go through each paragraph, sentence-by-sentence.
15 You are now ready for the golden rule: When you are stuck on the wording in a paragraph or sentence, ask yourself, "What the heck am I trying to say right here?"
16 How about a case study, based on the DN. Whenever I write this, I write as late as I can into the night, and then I hit the hay.
17 As soon as I can the next day, I begin going through each paragraph with a fresh head. I do this sentence-by-sentence. Each day I find one that is a monster.
18 I then begin using some of the basics tips and tools I've shown here in recent weeks.
19 I will find myself blowing up large parts of what I wrote. I will step up and re-write, and quite often the words will come.
20 Here is how I would break down the last sentence in item seventeen, above, which originally went like this: "Each day I would find one that is a bugaboo." Here are three sentences that lined up for me. I'll break that down in a second, but right now, read each:
Each day I find one that is a bugaboo.
Each day I find one that is a monster.
Each day I find one that is monstrous.
21 Here is how my mind edited: The first thing that popped into my head was the first of the three, "Each day I find one that is a bugaboo."
22 I started the next sentence, but then I thought, "Bugaboo?Does any normal person ever use that word?" I wasn't even certain if I was using it correctly. I went to Dictionary.com for a quick check to be sure I had the right word.
23 The rough definition of a "bugaboo" is "something that causes fear or worry." So it worked.
24 The third sentence, "Each day I find one that is monstrous" I found to be formulaic. I generally find linking verbs not to my liking. They don't give too much power to a sentence.
25 The middle sentence, "Each day I find one that is a monster" works for me despite the linking verb, because it also works as a metaphor.
26 I wasn't thinking all of that, but I did toy around with the sentence until it said exactly what I wanted it to say.
27 It may not be the best sentence, but if you write, then you produce a lot of words. These decisions need to happen fast.
28 It is just about that simple. Write something. Read it. If it works, read on. If your re-read isn't clear, ask yourself, "What the heck am I trying to say right here?" That is my golden rule.
29 Then juggle things around. Delete that one sentence you love if it isn't working. If you want to save it, write it on a different page. But get it out of there. Sentence by sentence. "What the heck am I trying to say right here?" And fix whatever needs fixing. It's that simple. It really is.
30 Am I implying that you should edit as you write? No, not at all. I do because I can, but if you are newer, allow the ideas to flow out of you and on to the page. If you are writing, you probably have a reasonably good idea as to where you are headed. Head there and let it flow naturally.
31 Once you're done, call it a rough draft. Then attack each sentence. When a paragraph or sentence tries owning you, stop and use the golden rule. Ask: "What the heck am I trying to say right here?" It's fun because it interrupts the frustration but is as sweet as humble pie.
24 The third sentence, "Each day I find one that is monstrous" I found to be formulaic. I generally find linking verbs not to my liking. They don't give too much power to a sentence.
25 The middle sentence, "Each day I find one that is a monster" works for me despite the linking verb, because it also works as a metaphor.
26 I wasn't thinking all of that, but I did toy around with the sentence until it said exactly what I wanted it to say.
27 It may not be the best sentence, but if you write, then you produce a lot of words. These decisions need to happen fast.
28 It is just about that simple. Write something. Read it. If it works, read on. If your re-read isn't clear, ask yourself, "What the heck am I trying to say right here?" That is my golden rule.
29 Then juggle things around. Delete that one sentence you love if it isn't working. If you want to save it, write it on a different page. But get it out of there. Sentence by sentence. "What the heck am I trying to say right here?" And fix whatever needs fixing. It's that simple. It really is.
30 Am I implying that you should edit as you write? No, not at all. I do because I can, but if you are newer, allow the ideas to flow out of you and on to the page. If you are writing, you probably have a reasonably good idea as to where you are headed. Head there and let it flow naturally.
31 Once you're done, call it a rough draft. Then attack each sentence. When a paragraph or sentence tries owning you, stop and use the golden rule. Ask: "What the heck am I trying to say right here?" It's fun because it interrupts the frustration but is as sweet as humble pie.
32 I gottago. Hope this helps.
33 Have a thoughtful day.
34 See you again.
35 Peace.
~H~
fin.
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