Grammar Nazis?

[Nipple]

Apostrophe: It's tricky to follow its rules.

[aserendipity]

you got it Grai
the problem is SEX
not grammar

[Dr. Pyro]

If you ask me, the answer is sex.

[aserendipity]

both problem and answer
Sex

[moonrise]

My hearing is bad.

Is this a form or a forum?

John Form
John Forum
John Forum Sex

[Rice]

My hearing is bad.

Is this a form or a forum?

John Form
John Forum
John Forum Sex

Yes, Bacon!

[Ugly Dougly]

John Frum he cum!

[edbrez]

Yah! Suvannuh! yu tuk the werds rowt uf my mowth. its so grate that you it don't matter if peeple have bad grammer. I'm with you. It don't make no differance to me!

I'm completely guilty of this, I spend very little of my day typing or reviewing grammar
Maybe that's a flaw of mine or maybe I just don't have the time to worry about such things
As long as the message is understood, result...

God help any Euro burners where English isn't their first language... please go easy on them

[theCryptofishist]

I have an odd facial tic.

It manifests whenever I notice apostrophe abuse and is directly proportional to the font size of the error.

You must learn to embrace the greengrocer's s.

[9ah]

Apostrophe: It's tricky to follow its rules.

Yes!!

[Oldguy]

Ain't it though.

[Elliot]

I am sooooo staying away from this thread!

Unless anyone wants me to resume the English lessons in my signature.

All right, one of the above-mentioned items: It is very easy to keep "lose" and loose" apart -- since sex was mentioned.... Think of a "loose woman", which is spelled with "oo", as in a pair of bOObies. If those bOObies are pretty, you would not want her to lose them, which is the other spelling and meaning, with one "o".

Not that I hang around with loose women, but....

[aserendipity]

naughty Elliot !

[Elliot]

The whole point of correct usage is to convey the intended meaning accurately, while minimally wasting the reader's time -- a matter of courtesy, if nothing else.

[graidawg]

I have somewhat changed my opinion on punctuation and grammar as a poorly constructed sentence with no punctuation (as my stupidity and not knowing the meaning) has cost me a job.

let me put the sentence below as it appeared on my pda, if anyone would like to put in the punctuation and follow with what they think the sentence meant it would reassure me i am not a complete twat.

please reglaze window in bedroom
pease E&A bedroom door please force
entry and change lock on balcony door


thats how it appeared if you imagine the end of a line is the edge of a screen (if it helps E&A means ease and adjust) use of the oxford comma to indicate pauses is fine - bear in mind i could of saved myself a lot of grief (and unemployment again) by using the other feature of my pda and making a phone call, so i am not completely blameless in this instance

[moonrise]

Life's too short . . . and plenty of poor spellers are fucking brilliant in other ways. Yes, errors do stick out. Yes, one sometimes one compulsively longs to edit. And when spelling or grammar is poor enough, sure--it sometimes limits someone's ability to be easily understood, or taken seriously in the business world, but making too much of it is like being one of those Burnier-Than-Thou folk who say "Where's your costume?" to a Burner in khaki who may very well have just finished building the @#$% Temple or come off of a 12-hour volunteer shift.

If I put something in my sig, I admit I'll correct the spelling (if needed). Otherwise . . . fuck it.

I'm glad I'm a good speller--it's very handy--but that's all. It's an inborn visual talent, not a virtue.

Savannah, Dat's schweeet! ^
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Grai,

I can see how a boss might not have read "Please force entry and change lock on balcony door." in pda speak.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I heard grammar Nazis don't floss their teeth, ewww, yuk!

[Roark]

Food for thought: i normally try to be my own grammer Nazi... until I pick-up the iPad. Then all bets are off.

Trifocals, size 42 thumbs, a cat in my lap, and a precariuosly perched beverage all conspire to kill my inner Nazi.

[FIGJAM]

Totally
Wierd
And
Twisted

[aserendipity]

Elliot, yes but it was a new element of description.

Grai, the teacher part of me wants to comply but the all of me is asking what did you force wrong ?

Roark, right on !

xoA.

[canexplain]

I used to be a bit more loose (:) in my spelling but on the Coachella board, I got dogged so much, I am much more cognizant of what I write. Beside with spell check, it's really easy to correct 90 % of your posts. Just me. I do use then and than wrong sometimes. cr****

[Elliot]

please reglaze window in bedroom
pease E&A bedroom door please force
entry and change lock on balcony door

The "classic" that I learned in childhood was a telegram from the governor to the executioner:

"Hang him not, wait til I arrive."

Which was transmitted as "Hang him, not wait til I arrive."

[graidawg]

Elliot, yes but it was a new element of description.

Grai, the teacher part of me wants to comply but the all of me is asking what did you force wrong ?

Roark, right on !

xoA.

the front door from the outside rather than the back door from the inside.

[theCryptofishist]

Yeah, they could have been a bit more precise...

[Elliot]

please reglaze window in bedroom
pease E&A bedroom door please force
entry and change lock on balcony door

Well, it is sad that this mishap had such consequences. But I like to see mishaps as learning opportunities, so let's look at it.

I have never been able to understand much poetry, but I still find it interesting to read some. So... the transmitted message immediately looks to me like a poem, and I automatically begin to explore and interpret it. Soon I recognize a pattern independent of the lines, and I see that each instruction begins with "please", and ends with the location of the task. The nature of the work is in the middle. Which gives us (and I'll highlight the locations)...

Please reglaze window in bedroom
Please E&A bedroom door
Please force entry and change lock on balcony door

I agree that the phrase "force entry" is ambiguous at best, and downright misleading at worst -- unless this phrase is commonly used in the trade to mean all opening of locks for which the keys have been lost. I might have said "pick the lock as needed".
Most trades have their own vocabularies. I remember being puzzled the first time I was asked to fill out a "bad order form". Turned out it was a request for repair -- the item was in bad order = out of order.

The lesson learned is to read all kinds of books, including poetry, and reading-comprehension will automatically improve -- even to the point where you can sometimes sort out other people's iffy writing. Onward!

[graidawg]

please reglaze window in bedroom
pease E&A bedroom door please force
entry and change lock on balcony door

Well, it is sad that this mishap had such consequences. But I like to see mishaps as learning opportunities, so let's look at it.

I have never been able to understand much poetry, but I still find it interesting to read some. So... the transmitted message immediately looks to me like a poem, and I automatically begin to explore and interpret it. Soon I recognize a pattern independent of the lines, and I see that each instruction begins with "please", and ends with the location of the task. The nature of the work is in the middle. Which gives us (and I'll highlight the locations)...

Please reglaze window in bedroom
Please E&A bedroom door
Please force entry and change lock on balcony door

I agree that the phrase "force entry" is ambiguous at best, and downright misleading at worst -- unless this phrase is commonly used in the trade to mean all opening of locks for which the keys have been lost. I might have said "pick the lock as needed".
Most trades have their own vocabularies. I remember being puzzled the first time I was asked to fill out a "bad order form". Turned out it was a request for repair -- the item was in bad order = out of order.

The lesson learned is to read all kinds of books, including poetry, and reading-comprehension will automatically improve -- even to the point where you can sometimes sort out other people's iffy writing. Onward!

you are quite correct Elliot, that indeed was the correct interpretation and yes in the housing association maintenance business force entry simply means force open, as opposed to my interpretation of force entry (to the house) and change lock(s including) on balcony door.

still we live and learn. in future i shall phone on every job to clarify what is meant. When i get another job that is

[Elliot]

You would all be amazed at some of the blunders that are made in trucking. We once hired a fellow in Sacramento, California, and his first task was to deliver a load to an address in Pittsburg, California. He heard "Pittsburg..." and was off-and-running -- towards Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Luckily, he telephoned from Reno, Nevada. New-job-jitters, I suppose, and I'm inclined to blame the dispatcher, but....
I'm'a tellin ya, concise communication matters!

[Roark]

We must all vehemently eschew obfuscation!

[Elliot]

Darn tootin'!

[aserendipity]

Ah Roark, obfuscation indeed is a wonder
Yes Elliot , one result of reading too much is the permission to obfuscate into poetic license
xoA.

[Roark]

Yes Elliot , one result of reading too much is the permission to obfuscate into poetic license.

My two favorite subjects in school were Poetic License and Revisionist History. Were we in the same class perhaps? LMAO!!!