Oulipost #25. Larding: Aka “line stretching.” From your newspaper text, pick two sentences. Add a new sentence between the first two; then two sentences in the new intervals that have become available; and continue to add sentences until the passage has attained the length desired. The supplementary sentences must either enrich the existing narrative or create a new narrative continuity.

Another Friday Night in the Suburbs

So here we go again.

A feud between a frat boy and uptight newbie parents spins out of control.

Forget about logical thinking.

We stood eye to eye and then the little guy turned and ambled under a car parked in the driveway of the house we were passing.

He wavered like a tiny little drunk.

Later as he was getting really frantic and tired with his tongue hanging out – way out – I realized he was quickly running out of time.

Allow me to explain. Otherwise, let it be.

It’s an inherently suspenseful and dramatic tale.

Every second fraught with tension.

The villain is weak.

He feared for his life.

It’s hard not to be moved.

Now second-guessing leaves me wondering.

Was this the right thing to do?

Teen spirit is shaped by a keen awareness of mortality.

Sourced from The Contra Costa Times, Bay Area News Group, April 25, 2014.