Creative Grammar

Grammar Geeks, UNITE!

K, people, confession time:

Do unnecessary quotation marks make your eye twitch? 

Have you ever left a comment on a friend's Facebook status explaining why it's "couldn't care less," not "could care less?" 

Do you fix the spelling mistakes in other people's tweets before retweeting them?

Are you required by forces beyond your control to whip out a pen and correct misspelled store signage?

Must...cross out...apostrophe...

 (And then...fix...capitals...)

(And then...add...exclamation marks...) 

And finally, do you not only know what the Oxford comma is, but have a passionate stance on its usage? 

If the answer to any of those is yes then you, my friend, are a fellow grammar geek. And today is our day. That's right; it's National Grammar Day! WAHOO!

Finally - FINALLY - we can pick apart spelling and grammar errors without fear of judgment from the text-speak-writing language butchers who keep "loosing" their minds! Today we are NOT the nit-picking jerks of the comment section; today we are HEROES. HEROES, I SAY!! 

AHAHAHAHAAA!! 

So let's get right to it:

Ah, yes. [pushing up glasses] You see, "whose" is an interrogative possessive pronoun, while "who's" is the contraction for "who is." In this context, someone is apparently asking for the identity of the owner of something euphemistically known as "40."

Haha! Isn't that a SCREAM?!

I honestly don't know why I'm not invited to more parties, you guys.

Maybe I should have started with something a little more common, though:

Now, see, there's an easy way to avoid this situation in the future: 

Condoms.

And remember, it's "I before E except after C and when you're trying to write the word 'having.'"

Also those little dots are called an ellipsis, and there should only be three of them.

YES I REALLY AM THAT PERSON. 

Not to mention the way that's written makes it look like someone is "haveing" a weird scrolly symbol. (Maybe the artist formerly known as Prince invented a new species?)

 

Hey, do you guys watch Sherlock

What am I saying? You read this blog and therefore have EXCELLENT taste in entertainment, so of course you watch Sherlock.

Anyway, remember the beginning of that episode where Holmes is interviewing a murderer, and he keeps correcting the thug's grammar?

That was awesome.

 

Now where was I?

Ah yes, the importance of punctuation and discerning between "will" and "we'll."

It also appears this person isn't entirely certain that Dee Dee will miss me, which is hard to believe. I mean, in case you haven't noticed, I AM DELIGHTFUL.

And finally, allow me to share a quick word on foreign punctuation marks:

Gesundheit.

 

Thanks to Mary F., Mab R., Catherine B., David S., Bella P., Todd, and Zoë P., who have always known I'm a pro-Oxford-comma kinda gal.

*****

P.S. I found you some cute pens for correcting random signage in the break room. (I know that's oddly specific, but I stand by it, because I know you people.)

Mushroom Ballpoint Pen Pack (30 ct)

'Schrooms! And you get 30 for only $14!

*****

And from my other blog, Epbot:

The "Wonders" (of) Punctuation...

Allow me to present a mini educational series on the "wonders" of punctuation.

[Cue the cheesy music!]

andreamf.ow.misspellpunctuation.jpg

Makes you wonder, doesn't it?

 

Now remember, boys and girls: Punctuation can be a scary thing, but skipping it all together is never the answer.

anneg.lw.seniorgraduationmisspell.jpg

Unless you want to command everyone to love their "senoirs."

 

On the other hand, filling your cake with the wrong punctuation isn't the answer, either.

annas.ow.birthdaymisspell.jpg

Ah, a classic case of WTH: "Where's the H?"

 

Fortunately, punctuation allows us to add an appropriate level of enthusiasm to our greetings:

lindaj.ow.ellipsis.jpg

Pass the tissues. I think Linda is having a moment.

 

...not to mention convey our "sincerity":

margaretj.ow.birthdayquotations.jpg

And we mean that, Elizabeth. Like, soooo much.

(Btw, bonus points for the random asterisk. I assume the footnote came on a cupcake? That said, "Not really"?)

 

Of course, it is possible to go overboard from time to time:

lisa.lw.birthdayrosesmisspell.jpg

Not to mention that pesky "you're" business.

kaylahit.ow.birthdaymisspell.jpg

Yep. Pesky.

 

And will someone please explain this?

debbd.ow.literallol.jpg

Parentheses? Really? Look, bakers, I'm pretty sure no one has ever - EVER - ordered parentheses on a cake, so why would you even consider...

bunnyb.ow.literallol.jpg

Ok, so ONE person ordered parentheses on a cake.

That just means you're both wrong.

"Congratulations."

 

Thanks to Andrea M., Anne G., Anna S., Linda J., Margaret J., Lisa, Kayla H., Debb D., & Bunny B., who I hear enjoy cooking their dogs and their families. So let's eat guys!

*****

P.S. For folks who appreciate a good linguistics lol:

"Synonym Rolls" T-Shirt

"Just like grammar used to make," hehehe. More colors at the link.

******

And from my other blog, Epbot: