Run What You Brung
One of my core traits is hoarding junk and using it creatively to solve problems inexpensively. I have been doing this since I could walk, and a good example is my fishing tackle box. It was a birthday gift when I was eight, and I packed it with tiny light bulbs. When I needed one, I would open my carefully organized box and select the perfect bulb for an electronics project.
Around age fifteen, we took a driving trip, and I packed my tackle box with candy to select the perfect sweet for each location. Later, I used this box for screws and then switches. By high school, this box was falling apart, and I needed to use a screw to hold it shut. By then, I had a new interest in technical drawings, and I packed this box with templates, erasers, pens, mechanical pencils, lead, ink, and colored pencils.
I do all my technical work on a computer, but these drawing tools are still contained and organized in that same fishing tackle box, ready for immediate use. This core hoarding value is improving with age as I constantly find new uses for my junk.
This value also extends to writing, and I rely upon life experiences, English knowledge, and what I see around me to create engaging stories. My trait reminds me of a phrase that violates some grammar rules, “Run What You Brung.” It means do your best with what you have, and I rely on all my wisdom to write.
An example is a scene I created in my second book, where I described what it was like to be in a relationship. I have had three long ones and recalled the most relevant moments from each to create the following paragraph:
“Good relationships are hard, really hard,” Gabe continued. “They require a lot of effort just to stay at a normal level, never mind being happy with the person you’re with. In the beginning, everything is wonderful, new, and exciting. I know when I am in love because every song on the radio is the best one ever. But those feeling fades. A long-term relationship involves commitment, hard work, sacrifice, and adapting yourself to your partner. Also, dating a person and living with a person are completely different. For example, the first time I slept with my girlfriend, I knocked her out of bed, reaching for the darn alarm clock.”
That paragraph was honest, direct, and amusing, but that is not quite what I wanted to discuss. It is the humble word “run.” What is so special about that word? It’s simple with three letters, super-easy to pronounce and understand.
It turns out that the word has multiple meanings and uses. This article claims the words to be the most complex word in the English language, with 645 Oxford English Dictionary definitions:
https://www.onlygoodnewsdaily.com/pos...
That article was eye-opening, and I looked up the word run for myself:
https://www.dictionary.com/browse/run
Not quite 645 definitions, but a staggering 143 definitions. I had no idea there were so many, but I knew that more than one usage was possible. Like running a program, running late, a runny nose, run a business, runny eggs, run out of fuel, engine stopped running, and a movie runs for an hour. Yet there were many more.
From dictionary.com: The salmon are running, the ship ran aground, let the water run before you drink it, the river ran into the sea, wax ran down the burning candle, materials that run when washed, cars run on gasoline, the well ran dry, the bill ran to $100, the easement runs with the land, shelves ran from floor to ceiling, a thought ran through his mind, she ran her fingers over the keyboard, run an errand, he ran out of breath, run home in my car, run guns across the border, ran the presses 24 hours, run the car motor, run the water for a bath, he ran a large monthly tab, run a line through a word, this watch runs $30, the car repair will run you a couple of hundred, she took a five-minute run, to take a run up to New York, the plane took a strafing run, a long run on Broadway, a run of salmon, to run through a fortune, she ran into an old friend at the party, his speech ran over the time limit, please run off 500 copies, run along, my watch has run down, he ran away from home three times, running up huge debts, and he ran off with the money.
Wow, so many uses that I was unaware of. What is the tie-in? The word is a perfect example of gaining and storing writing knowledge for future applications. I can now apply the word run better, resulting in improved sentences with fewer mistakes. So, I guess what I am saying is, “I brung more to the party.”
You’re the best -Bill
February 26, 2025
Around age fifteen, we took a driving trip, and I packed my tackle box with candy to select the perfect sweet for each location. Later, I used this box for screws and then switches. By high school, this box was falling apart, and I needed to use a screw to hold it shut. By then, I had a new interest in technical drawings, and I packed this box with templates, erasers, pens, mechanical pencils, lead, ink, and colored pencils.
I do all my technical work on a computer, but these drawing tools are still contained and organized in that same fishing tackle box, ready for immediate use. This core hoarding value is improving with age as I constantly find new uses for my junk.
This value also extends to writing, and I rely upon life experiences, English knowledge, and what I see around me to create engaging stories. My trait reminds me of a phrase that violates some grammar rules, “Run What You Brung.” It means do your best with what you have, and I rely on all my wisdom to write.
An example is a scene I created in my second book, where I described what it was like to be in a relationship. I have had three long ones and recalled the most relevant moments from each to create the following paragraph:
“Good relationships are hard, really hard,” Gabe continued. “They require a lot of effort just to stay at a normal level, never mind being happy with the person you’re with. In the beginning, everything is wonderful, new, and exciting. I know when I am in love because every song on the radio is the best one ever. But those feeling fades. A long-term relationship involves commitment, hard work, sacrifice, and adapting yourself to your partner. Also, dating a person and living with a person are completely different. For example, the first time I slept with my girlfriend, I knocked her out of bed, reaching for the darn alarm clock.”
That paragraph was honest, direct, and amusing, but that is not quite what I wanted to discuss. It is the humble word “run.” What is so special about that word? It’s simple with three letters, super-easy to pronounce and understand.
It turns out that the word has multiple meanings and uses. This article claims the words to be the most complex word in the English language, with 645 Oxford English Dictionary definitions:
https://www.onlygoodnewsdaily.com/pos...
That article was eye-opening, and I looked up the word run for myself:
https://www.dictionary.com/browse/run
Not quite 645 definitions, but a staggering 143 definitions. I had no idea there were so many, but I knew that more than one usage was possible. Like running a program, running late, a runny nose, run a business, runny eggs, run out of fuel, engine stopped running, and a movie runs for an hour. Yet there were many more.
From dictionary.com: The salmon are running, the ship ran aground, let the water run before you drink it, the river ran into the sea, wax ran down the burning candle, materials that run when washed, cars run on gasoline, the well ran dry, the bill ran to $100, the easement runs with the land, shelves ran from floor to ceiling, a thought ran through his mind, she ran her fingers over the keyboard, run an errand, he ran out of breath, run home in my car, run guns across the border, ran the presses 24 hours, run the car motor, run the water for a bath, he ran a large monthly tab, run a line through a word, this watch runs $30, the car repair will run you a couple of hundred, she took a five-minute run, to take a run up to New York, the plane took a strafing run, a long run on Broadway, a run of salmon, to run through a fortune, she ran into an old friend at the party, his speech ran over the time limit, please run off 500 copies, run along, my watch has run down, he ran away from home three times, running up huge debts, and he ran off with the money.
Wow, so many uses that I was unaware of. What is the tie-in? The word is a perfect example of gaining and storing writing knowledge for future applications. I can now apply the word run better, resulting in improved sentences with fewer mistakes. So, I guess what I am saying is, “I brung more to the party.”
You’re the best -Bill
February 26, 2025
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