Lately I've been working on my spelling and grammar skills.
I've always been ok at that sort of stuff, but not great. It's so easy to be lazy and use spell-check religiously, but then, before you know it, you're 23 and battling over how to spell the word 'vague'. Ehem.
I've always been ok at that sort of stuff, but not great. It's so easy to be lazy and use spell-check religiously, but then, before you know it, you're 23 and battling over how to spell the word 'vague'. Ehem.
Anyway, I was teaching literacy, so I got confronted by my crapness and figured it was time to brush up. Now I'm quite into it!
I started reading this book today: Eats, Shoots & Leaves - it's great!
The author, Lynne Truss, points out that punctuation is generally pretty misunderstood today, and examples are everywhere. She also highlights the importance of punctuation in shaping the meaning of our words and uses this example (which I have uplifted) to make the point:
Dear Jack,
I want a man who knows what love is all
about. You are generous, kind, thoughtful.
People who are not like you admit to being
useless and inferior. You have ruined me for
other men. I yearn for you. I have no feelings
whatsoever when we're apart. I can be
forever happy - will you let me be yours?
Jill
Different use of punctuation results in...
Dear Jack,
I want a man who knows what love is. All
about you are generous, kind, thoughtful
people, who are not like you. Admit to being
useless and inferior. You have ruined me. For
other men I yearn! For you I have no feelings
whatsoever. When we're apart I can be
forever happy. Will you let me be?
Yours,
Jill
Ahh, I like tricky things like that. But the one thing I don't agree with in this book is the idea that text messaging is ruining our spelling/grammar skills. I think that predictive has actually made my spelling skills a whole lot better, because it doesn't let you write the word incorrectly. I have learned many a word after stubbornly trying to enter the spelling I have (for my whole life) believed to be correct, only to find - living a lie.
Not much else to say on this, because I've learned from experience that often what seems interesting in my head can turn out to be a rock chained to the leg of conversation which then gets pushed into the sea.
Could have done with a comma in there?
ALRIGHT, I'm going
xx
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