I've just been reading a story in which the 'Mary Sue' character is a 6' 3" man, his wife is 5' 4" and they have a daughter who grows up to be 5' 2".
My first thought was that in real life, the 'Mary Sue' character would be extremely unlikely to be the daughter's biological father unless she had some sort of developmental problem.
Am I being too nitpicky?
I wasn't so fazed by the 'Mary Sue' character's 9" penis - that's only average for male 'Mary Sue' characters.
AJ
I've just been reading a story in which the 'Mary Sue' character is a 6' 3" man, his wife is 5' 4" and they have a daughter who grows up to be 5' 2".
My first thought was that in real life, the 'Mary Sue' character would be extremely unlikely to be the daughter's biological father unless she had some sort of developmental problem.
Genetics can often spur strange offspring. Things like height can come from many things, not just genetics.
My mom was 5'1", my dad 5'7". Yet I was 5'9". My late fiancee was 5', yet both our kids are 5'10"+.
And my dad was blonde, my mom had light brown hair. Yet my hair is dark brown. And 3 of my 4 grandparents come from lines that suffer from male pattern baldness, with some being bald before 40. Yet I still have a full head of hair with no thinning at 56. And neither the French and Norwegian light skin of my parents, but the darker skin tone (and hair) from her mother's side.
So it is not unusual at all. It is very common for traits to skip an entire generation or two, then pop up again generations later.
You've just shattered my heart into a million tiny pieces.
Then next time say thank you when I empty your balls of 250 million sperm..!!
(Farting and falling asleep does not a "thank you" make.)
Farting and falling asleep does not a "thank you" make.
Was he a gentleman, and kept more than half his weight on his arms, or did he simply fall asleep on top of you?
Unless it was cowgirl, in which case was he already asleep before you made your dismount? (8.0, 8.6, 5.8 from the East German judge) ... :)
You were the six, your mum was the nine ;-)
No wonder you had bruises... Mum dislikes the fart and fall asleep thing even more than I do.
:)
If you'd stayed awake, you wouldn't have missed out on a threesome.
@joyR, I apologise.
My feeble attempt at humour went beyond the bounds of decency. Thank you for taking it in the spirit it was intended.
AJ
@joyR, I apologise.
My feeble attempt at humour went beyond the bounds of decency. Thank you for taking it in the spirit it was intended.
Accepted unreservedly.
Because I know that humour aside, you are a gentleman.
Offspring height is predictable based on parent heights and nutrition. Normal children height and weight develops along a 'curve' etc and in many countries this is checked every year or so to determine if there's any worry. Of course there are always exceptions and outliers.
So anyway reading anything here requires the utter suspension of belief, so don't beat up an author who hasn't had children and taken them for checkups and stuff; the author probably hasn't made love ever either, and neither perhaps have most of their audience.
the author probably hasn't made love ever either
Given the sheer number of retirees that are writers here, that would be sad...
Given the sheer number of retirees that are writers here, that would be sad...
Perhaps they've simply forgotten rather than never experienced it? After all, there are those who given the choice would rather suffer Parkinson's than Alzheimer's, because they'd rather spill their drink than forget where they put it.
Offspring height is predictable based on parent heights and nutrition.
It's possibly even more predictable than actuarial tables suggest because they trust that parentage records are accurate and they take no account of medical conditions of either the parents or the offspring.
AJ
Am I being too nitpicky?
Yes.
I'm 6'2", my wife is 5'4", my son is 6'1", and my daughter is 5'5".
I have a cousin whose husband is 6'6", she is 6'1", their son is 6'4", and their daughter is 5'9".
It's just a combination of genetics in combination with nutrition.
If I were to comment about individual anecdotal testimony, the discussion would have the potential to turn very ugly.
AJ
Yours
Sure. I'm up for a three way. But I'm US and your both UK, so I'm not sure how well that will work.
Why don't you both just hook up in Dover and get it over with? Spare the rest of us the trouble?
Why don't you both just hook up in Dover and get it over with? Spare the rest of us the trouble?
Once isn't enough for you? You need us to do it Dover and over...
Once isn't enough for you? You need us to do it Dover and over...
The two of you could joint the mile high club over Dover.
The two of you could joint the mile high club over Dover.
I can't speak for AJ, but I'm already a member.
:)
If the stories are anything like real life there is also the 10% (or more) where the 'father' on record is not who actually supplied the DNA.
The tallest man I have known was 7'7" (231 cm). He has two siblings - a twin brother the same height, and a sister only 5'2" (157 cm) tall.
Am I being too nitpicky?
Yes.
Judging only from the parents is a mistake. If an unusual characteristic pops up, it could be from previous genetic predecessors of either parent.
Personal example;
I'm 6'4" my father was 5'10" and my mother was 6'1". My youngest sister is 5'10", my middle sister is 6'2", and my oldest sister is 5'5". My son is 6'5" at 16 years old and still growing. My wife is 5'4".
All of those are covered in family genetics. That's long before we get to hair, eye, and skin colors.
Search for Andre the Giant and his mother. She was 4'10" if I recall. My aunt met them on a flight to England once.
Search for Andre the Giant and his mother. She was 4'10" if I recall.
I believe that was the consequence of a medical condition.
AJ
I believe that was the consequence of a medical condition.
Yes, gigantism due to excess growth hormone. Likely genetic in origin. Had the excess growth hormone had an external cause, it could have possibly been stopped before he got that big.
Just because something is defined as a medical condition doesn't necessarily mean it's not genetic.
Dwarfism is the same way. The genetic trait that causes it is recessive, so normal sized people can carry it and produce a dwarf child.
Of course while a couple that both have dwarfism is more likely to produce a dwarf child, it is possible to get a normal sized child from a dwarf couple.
Tumors pressing on the pituitary gland (which IIRC is the most common cause of gigantism) aren't always operable. Now, maybe the imaging technology is good enough, but back then? Nobody would want the risk of brain surgery that could result in blindness or other damage, particularly since there was little health risk from not bothering.
Nobody would want the risk of brain surgery that could result in blindness or other damage
Of course a tumor in the brain could also lead to blindness and other damage.
A child with an inoperable brain tumor is not likely to make it to adulthood.
That depends on a number of factors. How fast is the tumor growing? Is it benign or malignant? Where precisely is it located?
How fast is the tumor growing? Is it benign or malignant? Where precisely is it located?
You've already posited it in the brain. Unless it stops growing altogether, which is unlikely even with a slow growing benign tumor, a brain tumor will eventually kill.
I believe that was the consequence of a medical condition.
The man I mentioned, Mike Lanier, died at age 48 of complications from pancreatic cancer and acromegaly, a condition where too much growth hormone is produced.