A little bit of this, a little bit of that and a few things I learned on the way to someplace else.

His way with words

Columnist William Safire died Sunday. I miss him already.

Oh, not for his politics. Although I often agreed with him, I didn’t read Safire for his views on the world. I looked forward to his views on the words.

Safire’s “On Language” columns were often brilliant and always readable. As Ted Pease put it, “Anyone who can care about the appropriate use of ‘wackadoodle’ - and language and life in general -as Safire did -is OK with me.”

Cokie Roberts remembered him as “someone who could disagree without being disagreeable.” That’s a cliche Safire would have hated, but a trait I wish would catch on, especially with the TV pundit crowd. Most of them make a point of being disagreeable, going out of their way, in fact, to be insulting, rude, stubborn, boorish and arrogant. They make me mad, even when they are right. That’s wrong.

Safire could say more in a sentence than most of them can manage in a half hour of (hot) air time.

His humor was often on display, like when he offered these examples of useful writing advice:

1. No sentence fragments.

2. It behooves us to avoid archaisms.

3. Also, avoid awkward or affected alliteration.

4. Don’t use no double negatives.

5. If I’ve told you once, I’ve told you a thousand times, “Resist hyperbole!”

6. Avoid commas, that are not necessary.

7. Verbs has to agree with their subjects.

8. Avoid trendy locutions that sound flaky.

9. Writing carefully, dangling participles should not be used.

10. Kill all exclamation points!!!

11. Never use a long word when a diminutive one will do.

12. Proofread carefully to see if you any words out.

13. Take the bull by the hand and don’t mix metaphors.

14. Don’t verb nouns.

15. Never, ever use repetitive redundancies.

16. Last but not least, avoid clichés like the plague.

I n other words

A few years ago, in what passed for a tribute to Andy Rooney, I expressed my admiration for the word “curmudgeon.” It seems to fit Rooney perfectly, and it also described William Safire, the Pulitzer-prize winning wordsmith, speech writer and columnist who died Sunday.

“Curmudgeon,” Safire said, means, “a likeably irascible old man.”

Hmmmm. So what do we call a likeably irascible old woman?

For, er, personal reasons, I really need to find out. With Safire gone, I may never know.

Pretty in pink

My admiration for those who go the extra mile for good causes is endless. The good folks who decorated Lafayette Square for last weekend’s “Paint the Town Pink” celebration, for instance, did an awesome job. With the obvious exception of flag-flying days, the square has never looked better. And the hard work wasn’t limited to blowing up balloons and tying ribbons. Organizers expanded the festival beyond its primary focus on breast cancer awareness to include all sorts of issues affecting women’s health.

Good job, ladies and gents, and thanks for helping women get and stay “in the pink.”

No fair-weather fundraisers

It looked for a while like the annual “Leggin’ it for Literacy” race would be a wash out, due to Saturday evening’s heavy rains.

The downpours did drown out the children’s activities and made it impossible for the band to play in the Country’s restaurant parking lot, as planned. But when 10 p.m. rolled around, no less than 90 runners - yes, 90! - were on hand for the ‘Leggin’ it race. That’s amazing - and very inspiring.

Lisa Sapp and Junior Woman’s Club deserve a special shout out. This was Sapp’s third year organizing the event and the second time “under the stars.”Given the challenges the volunteers faced, no one would have blamed them for “leggin’ it” home to a cozy, dry place.

But they persevered - just like the hard-working people who put in the hours and study necessary to earn GEDs and other literacy skills.

Our hats should be off to both groups - those determined to learn and those who ‘leg it’ to help make learning possible.

Andrea Lovejoy can be contacted at alovejoy@lagrangenews.com