look out! it's the grammar police!

[sandra902]

hi everyone

i hope i word this kindly and not primly or school-marm-y.

 

there is a big difference between "accept" and "except" and it is puzzling when reading posts to run across "excepting" when one really means "accepting".

 

now i know i'm living in a glass house since i refuse to use proper capitalization when writing in a casual forum so if i have a couple jabs coming i'll take them gracefully.

 

and i won't split hairs over correct use of the apostrophe and the difference between plural and possessive. when i read those things the writer's intent is clear so i only shudder for a moment and read on. so please do not think i scour everyone's posts for incoorect usage, i certainly don't, it's just that the "except" and "accept" kind of leaps out at me.

 

hope i didn't dig myself a big hole, have a great day and keep writing!

[danmcq]

LOL Sandra!!

 

You didn't dig a hole, but probably are bringing up a good point. Some of us, like myself, being at work hammer out a response in 45 seconds and hit send. :-)

 

So I may be an offender and honestly, I just don't take the time to read what I wrote to check for grammatical, spelling, capitalization, proper etiquette, good sentence structure or anything else.

 

So, if I have thrown your train off the track a few times, I apologize. But, I can guarantee it will happen again, so I apologize for those in the future a head of time. B)

[sandra902]

tee hee hee no harm done! i was laughing with one of my more challenging accounts yesterday that thanks to them i'll never get alzheimers due to the mental challenges they always present.

 

so really i should be thanking YOU for helping me avoid alzheimers as well!

[dicky601]

I "except" "you're" point of "few"

[sandra902]

hooray!

 

let's have some fun with this!

[FeatheredFiend]

if i would of excepted this constructive criticism, than i could of seen that your just trying to help.

[judygram]

Sandra you bring up a good point and frankly, I am an older person and set in my ways and I ain't gonna change now so take me like I am or ignore it, whichever is easier for you, but I yam what I yam.

 

 

 

{Feel-good-0002006E}

[Dave007]

I'll respond in a more serious way because this is my family group. Many people here have grammatical problems. Many people here don't habe that problm. I don't believe that picking out certtain misspelled words means anything because the one most important thing that people do here is to practice how to get their message, reply or original post across in a meannggful, understandable way. The quaality of the content is much more important than gramatical mistakes. People here have much more imporntant things to do in every day life. If a person was standing face to face with these same people, understanding them would be no prolbem. It doesn't take a brain surgeon to understand people's different replys or posts, questions or answers on this board. I don't believe that people should be reminded about their lack of gramatical talents or evven how they exxcel in this area. If a person lacks talents in certain areas of spelling, then who cares. The intensity and feelings of people's posts can be very easiy seen. Some people lack the talent of correct spelling on a keyboard but excel at the art of verbal communication. Some can't express themselves verbally but do excel with a keyboard. Should people be reminded about their lack of verbbal communication? I doubt it. I'm fluent in 2 languages. Does it mean anything important here? I doubt it. What would be cruel is me replying to people in a diffent language. So, my point is this...grammar police aren't nesacary in an area where the understsing of communication has been extremely sucsesful. Notice that I intentionally put in misspelled words but I'm positive that people will understand this post word for word. We are a family and we really do understand each other's message. Correct spelling is way down on the list of things that have to be corrected or reminded of.

 

PS--there are also many people here from foreign countries who have their own way of spelling and I don't believe that they too haven't mastered our english language but they make their point very clearly.<br><br>Post edited by: Dave007, at: 2007/12/05 19:55

[danmcq]

Eye tottalee acree wit watt yur saayin mr spot. I sea you dont mime mi saaing sew ethur. :-)

[birdgranna]

In the birdie world, we all knows what we is talkin abowt, so continue writin all yur wonderful helpful posts. I reely has learned such a lot from this site. Eye dont care how you spell.

[Laurie]

Hi, Sandra -

I know it's totally meaningless, but I get irritated when the English language gets mangled, too. It really only bothers me when it's a business that does it. For example, when a place that sells drinks advertises that they have "ice tea." IT'S ICED TEA for goodness sakes!

And when the grocery stores advertise on the radio that they have Pepsi, 2-liter bottles, at "just 3 for $4!". Don't they know that makes it sound like a bad deal? It would sound so much better if they said, "3 for just $4". I tell ya. These people should hire me! I'll set 'em straight...:laugh:

[judygram]

You go girl!!!!!

 

 

 

{Feel-good-00020069}

[Guest briansmum]

i agree with dave here, i have A-Levels (a really good british qualification, just incase you didnt know) in both english literature and english language (and thats an a-level for each, not a combined one (for the nit pickers LOL and got accepted to six universities to study english literature and journalism. but i certainly do not use "proper" grammer on here.

 

i spell things wrong, use the wrong word in the wrong context and abbreviate words that shouldn't be abbreviated. sometimes i don't even put an ' where there should be one.

 

it doesn't matter here, we come to read to read the posts not analyse them. regardless of spelling or grammer mistakes (and i am more than guilty of a lot of those) and language barriers, we suss out what the poster meant. so.. in short.. type what you like how you like as far as i'm concernd, as long as we get the point is all that matters

 

p.s. sandra, i hope you don't take this personally, i too really love and understand the english language and appreciate proper use of it, it's just that on a casual forum, where we're all friends, i don't think it really matters

[nevjoe]

Hey this is a fun place, and I don't have spell check. I'm sorry if you have no regards for me, who only was a working stiff. I bet you can't cook 1/3 as well as me. I bet you know 0 about fun and having a good time.

 

I DO,

LOVE AND KISSES

JOE

[Guest briansmum]

hey, what's a spell check between friends?

[ziggy]

Great points everybody. this is a fun place and not the ivy league of forums. I am not the greatest in gramma but who gives a s h i t I sure dont. If a word is readable then thats all that matters. What do we need to pass a test now to be a member here. If so GOODBYE I dont need this crap. Politics now on a fun and family based forum i think not. Mabee you need to find a chat room from Harvard and talk to all the professors or a rich a$$hole that if you put him on the street he would die in about 8 minutes. Being from the street I can tell you that street smart people are the ones that seem to have the common sence thing down pac. The book worms are the ones that make new text books on how to be a complete moron in life. This is not a dress rehersal, here it is a fun place to laugh and to help out others that are not so witty about birds,and for the people that have a problem with there pet to get good and honest advise. You said it your self you live in a glass house, and if thats so here is the brick miss PERFECT!!!! you better watch out the brick just broke your glass door. Welcome to the real world that not all people are Perfect. How would you like it if this forum was in Italian and you did not know the proper gramma from Italy would you just not fit in, or do you think that mabee the members would overlook it and say welcome to the FAMILY like we do here. Like I said earlier when you register on this forum I did not see that you needed to hold a 4.0 adverage in gramma. I happen to be great in math should I post a tread about algebra and if you could not answer the question I would make a joke about it. NO I WOULD NOT!!! you want to know why because it does not matter one bit if you could answer it or not. This tread was a stupid tread to post there are so many other thing more impotant then this shit. Try coming up with one that is worth while next time. On behalf of myself and all the other dumb people here Sandra Thanks for pointing this out and making people here feel like they need to be more gramma whitty.<br><br>Post edited by: ziggy, at: 2007/12/06 04:20

[jamie777]

were can i getta proof read? Any bada know where i can getta spill checkk round here?

hhhhmmmmmmm...:lol:

 

Love ya bunches,

Jamie

[Number6]

OMFG LOL!!!!

 

Some people just really need a Prozac

 

Sandra, karma to you

When you get a chance, try "African Grey" vs. "African Gray", guaranteed someone will have an aneurysm. :laugh:

 

I'm out, ya'll have fun. B)

[lovemyGreys]

Well my cents/ pennys worth,

im often running around after 1 dog, 1 puppy, 3 greys, 2 kids,cooking dinner,doing housework after a days work,& i really am not bothered if my grammar leaves something to be desired for ! i have to reply quickly & yes i am lazy when it comes to grammar i know what i mean & i'm sure members do too

[BMustee]

I am the world’s worst speller and yes, many times I will run a spell check in word because I must have OCD or something. I'm on the forum while at work and sometimes I don't have the time to get all nit-picky. I also could care less if someone was to use the word "there" when they should have used "their". My mother was an English major so I got corrected every time I used the wrong grammar when speaking, but in an internet world that used terms like LOL, JMO, IDK, BRB, and GFY, grammar is the last thing on anyone's mind.

 

I tell you what, reading all the posts with purposely-misspelled words made me feel like I was reading Flowers for Algernon...LOL.

[sandra902]

oh my goodness i have a funny story about being a bad speller! well you-all might not find it as funny as i do but here goes.

 

i used to work for a very colorful person (former employees call him 'satan') and to label him a psycho is not so far from the truth. anyway, one of his little customs was that each employee spent a time on the 'hot seat' meaning nothing this person could every do during this time was right or good or reasonable. it could last for a day, a week, a month; you never knew. we all learned to laugh amongst ourselves about taking our turns on the hot seat.

 

well it was my turn and one day he decided he was going to make me cry. that is a very difficult thing to do because i have a very good self image overall and believe we are all entitled to our opinions and so i do not take a great deal personally from most people.

 

so here he comes and closes the door to my office and launches into his litany of all my faults and this and that. to which i replied 'that is your opinion and you are entitled to it' and generally did not offer defensive replies or explanations for his accusations.

 

so he was becoming more and more frustrated that he could not make me cry or get me upset and became more and more desperate. he tossed one out: 'the men don't like you' to which i responded 'you didn't hire me for the men to like me, you hired me to tackle certain tasks.' the last jab which only made me laugh was 'well i'm happy your dog died'. how pathetic! so we closed our interview with 'i know you have never been a pet-lover'

 

so after this was over i went to my buddy's office and related this entire episode to her and as we were shaking our heads and laughing she said to me, 'sandra, what could he have possibly said that would have shaken you up?' and the first thing that popped into my head and out of my mouth was 'if he called me a bad speller'

 

so now all these years later we are still calling each other 'bad speller' when we want to get a rise out of each other.

[KatB]

Great story, Sandra! I know what you mean. I've noticed over the years that very few people appreciate criticism of their literary creations. Not me, though. Whenever anyone criticizes my writing I just ignore it because I know they must be misguided

[birdmom]

LOL this is funny stuff! I have to laugh altho I dunno how this topic got started....I'm a volunteer newsletter 'editor' for a club I belong to. But I do it for fun, and to be involved. So, unless there is time for someone else to proofread it, it gets printed errors and all. I don't really care but every month the gal who maintains the club website, finds typos and errors and calls me up on Friday night to tell me all the mistakes. Nver fails. Then she sends out Emails to the members and solicits their feedback on my behalf 76$^%^#!! At first I was offended, then I got pissed off and set a boundary with her but it went in one ear and out the other.

 

Now I notice she tells everyone else how to do their jobs too, so I try not to take it personally. After reading this topic I think I can go forward and deal with her by laughing about it. When I go to the business mtg next month I'll keep this one in mind LOL! If she continues to complalin and puts me in the HOT SEAT, I'll advise her to rerport it to the grammar police! LOL

 

Maybe I just need to misspell her name and phone number (passive agression no-no)...

 

And then when she tells me what she wants me to do in the Newsletter, I think Ill reply, "How does it feel to want that?" LOL Thanks!

 

joanne

[KatB]

LOL, if we put our minds to it I'm sure we can come up with a great plan for handling her! Not exactly on topic, but I write software and at one time worked with a man who liked to tell everyone how to do their jobs. One small utility program I wrote had a place to diplay the name and phone number of the author in case of mal-function. It was in a test phase and did have a bug or two, so I put his name and cell phone number on it. Much more irritating to him than if it had been a perfect work, let me tell ya! Of course, it was a joke and I removed it within a day or two (but not before he saw it).

[spookyhurst]

I'm a bit of a perfectionist. Before I hit submit, I click on spell check on my Google toolbar :blush:.

 

sandra, here a t-shirt for ya :

 

http://www.cafepress.com/cp/moredetails.aspx?showBleed=false&ProductNo=46737922&pr=F