If you landed on this page looking for advice on the correct usage of lie, lay, and lied, you are probably a fellow grammar geek. As proud as I am of my grasp of the English language, I too must admit that I get tripped up when it comes to lie, lay, and lied. I use these word a lot, and am constantly asking myself: “lie or lay?”
Here are a few examples:
“I want to lie down. I’m soooo tired.”
“Did you lay the baby down?”
“Did you get a chance to lie down?”
But this isn’t a grammar lesson. Not entirely. Not even close.
I’ve been thinking about venturing into the blogosphere for awhile now. But what to blog about?
Another mommy blog (e.g., my kids are driving me crazy and what am I doing with my life staying at home?) A public health blog? Gardening? Vegan cooking? Pictures of bad grammar (e.g., store signs and restaurant menus that CLEARLY do not indicate an understanding of the proper use of apostrophes and quotation marks. Since when did an apostrophe-s mean plural? Argh!)
But I think I can fit it all in under the umbrella of Lie, Lay, Lied.
Here’s how:
1. Lies I tell myself about what it means to be a mother and wife, what it means to have a fulfilling and accomplished career, who I am and what I can be. I want to explore these lies, be done with them, and move on.
2. Lie down: Oh, I am so sleep-deprived. Oh, this baby of 14 months will not sleep through the night. What are we to do? Hence, there will be yet another mommy blog.
3. Lay it all out: I’ll provide commentary in layman’s language about current events, especially in the public health realm.
4. Lie, lay, lied: Fun with language! I love to coin new words, and bad grammar leaves me fuming, so this blog will serve as an incredibly self-serving means to jot down my oh-so-clever neologisms and rant about bad grammar.
I was recently at a training on storytelling for nonprofits, and somebody from the PR side of things said, “Good grammar is sexy!” Lots of us clapped and laughed, and I told my seatmates that I had been thinking of blogging about relationships and grammar and they enthused, “Yes! You should do it!”
So, here I am.
Be gentle!
The Life of Kylie 
I love your blog! Keep writing!
Thank you! I will… as if my life depends on it!
I read one of your posts, and then I read another, and then I read another. All great. All made me laugh. You write very well…looking forward to reading more.
*Blushing*
I’m just seeing this and I LOVE it! Congrats. I will read with interest. And….I totally support the sex talk. Just dive in babe and let it all hang out. So excited for you!!
Thanks Karen!
I’m chickening out on the “getting laid” part of Lie Lay Lied. What about my professional reputation? On the other hand, I’m 38. Time to stop being constrained by my perceptions of how others perceive me, right? Time to make my own way, instead of sticking to what I think I’m supposed to be doing to be successful. Why is sex so taboo? Yes, it’s personal, but it’s also a universal human experience. Maybe the subject for my next blog. Which will have to wait til I’m better rested!! The baby and I are both sick so there has been even less sleep than usual.
Me likey. Wait, that’s not right. Me lie-ky. Lay-ky? Oh, hell, I like your blog 🙂
Thanks Jenn! Awesome advice 🙂 I was wondering about pictures, and feeling a little intimidated by the prospect of trying to create the whole package: honest, hopefully funny, reflective writing complete with visual aids! But, heck, I take enough pics of the kids that I should have plenty to illustrate most of my points.
Yay!! Love the umbrella and will love to read all your posts, so when you are afraid to dip your toes in, just imagine me as your audience : )
Also, every post needs a picture. That’s my one sage piece of advice.