Writing Right with Dmitri: Einstein's Hobby

1 Conversation

Writing Right with Dmitri: Einstein's Hobby

Editor at work.

I've read that once, someone asked Albert Einstein if he had any hobbies. 'Yes, ' he said, 'I think.' Now, before you decide that this statement sounds a bit highfalutin' from a renowned physicist, let me tell you what else he was reported to have said. According to Einstein, when he had mental downtime, he spent it going over old proofs in his head – reviewing things he knew. That helped him to understand things better. In other words, the scientist was doing mental housecleaning. Not a bad hobby.

Now, I couldn't draw Riemann geometry to save my life, but I do something like that myself. Only it involves storytelling. When I'm not thinking about anything else, I tell myself stories. I go over events I've experienced, or stories I've read/seen on TV, and relate them to myself. That way, I get in practice at summarizing things. This is sort of my own mental housekeeping.

I started doing this as a kid, I'm not sure why. But I've found it helpful. Have you ever been trapped in one of those conversations? The kind where the person is trying to tell you what happened, only they can't remember the events in order?

'And then she said to me…but you know, the day before yesterday, she burned the toast…' That kind of thing. By the time the speaker gets to the point, you don't know what the story was about. A little practice would help here.

Worse is the kind of storyteller who buries the lead. Like a relative of mine. One day, I called, only to find that she'd been rushed to the hospital emergency room the day before. She was okay now, but I wanted to know what happened.

'Oh, it all started when I went out to the garage to get a fresh can of syrup. You know how I like pancakes. Well, I got a new recipe, and I was trying it out. I can send it to you, if you like…'

You're on tenterhooks until she gets to the part where she tripped over the dog. That pancake story is really not where you want to start on this one. Trust me.

So, do you practice? Do you tell stories in your head? They don't have to be exciting, not even to yourself. They could be a sort of mundane catalog of events. But you could practice telling them coherently, in order – and not burying the lead.

Okay, I have a confession. I do remember why I started telling the stories in my head. Now, don't laugh: it was a form of prayer. You see, somebody in Sunday School pointed out that the Bible said, 'Pray continually.' Don't tell something like that to an eight-year-old. The eight-year-old will take it literally.

The problem was, I didn't have all that much to bother God about at that point, not being very important and all. But again, the Sunday School teacher said that prayer was 'talking to God'. Okay, talking. I could do that. So I kept giving God a report on the doings in Memphis, Tennessee. I didn't want to insult the Deity by rambling on, so I tried to make my stories well-organised. And I tried to make them interesting. I mean, what would a benevolent extraterrestrial power want to know about? Oh, how about the cool science experiment we did today?

Anyway, I did that a lot – I was a weird kid – and God seemed not to mind. At least, He never told me to shut up. I guess you might say the Almighty was my first internet buddy, only I didn't have to log on or write it down. I just had to think it.

So, whether you keep notebooks – I know some of you do – or journal notes, or whatever, I recommend that you practice in your head. It's good mental exercise, and it saves your friends and relatives from having to listen to drivel.

And if you decide to tell God all about your day, go ahead. Take it from me, he's had a lot of practice listening. And he hasn't complained yet, not once.

Writing Right with Dmitri Archive

Dmitri Gheorgheni

07.04.14 Front Page

Back Issue Page


Bookmark on your Personal Space


Conversations About This Entry

Entry

A87826477

Infinite Improbability Drive

Infinite Improbability Drive

Read a random Edited Entry


Disclaimer

h2g2 is created by h2g2's users, who are members of the public. The views expressed are theirs and unless specifically stated are not those of the Not Panicking Ltd. Unlike Edited Entries, Entries have not been checked by an Editor. If you consider any Entry to be in breach of the site's House Rules, please register a complaint. For any other comments, please visit the Feedback page.

Write an Entry

"The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is a wholly remarkable book. It has been compiled and recompiled many times and under many different editorships. It contains contributions from countless numbers of travellers and researchers."

Write an entry
Read more