Is it just me, or are we regressing to a bunch of cave people in our use of the english language?
I'm hearing an ad on the radio that so bothers me that I definitely won't go there to buy whatever it is that they are selling. See how much it bothers me? I can't even remember what the product is. The line goes like this, ".....alls ya gotta do is....". Great big ol' WTF on that one. You're supposed to be trying to entice me to come in to your place of business, not repulse me.
As an estimator I read a lot of what could be termed as legal documents (they can, and have been, used in court) and the glaring spelling mistakes included in them irritate me to no end. You're supposed to be the professional, can you not use spell check because you obviously don't have a clue on how to use a dictionary? You're also the one getting paid the big buck, so start doing your job and looking at least half-assed professional!
Example: EC (Electrical Contractor) to supply and install 2 transformer's. Huh? Or my favorite: EC to supply and install 2 transformers'. Double Huh?
Another: EC to supply and install fixture Type A1 for all dinning rooms. Another Huh?
My all time favorite of words that get mangled is the word there. Context people, context! Is it their car? They're taking the car to the shop. Or are they parking the car over there?
Am I perfect? Far from it. I have my favorite shortcuts like prob'ly, y'all, and kinda but at least in business dealings I know to watch what I've written, how I've termed it and what the spell check button is for (and don't forget that spell check does not know context, just spelling)! Do I make typos? Yup, I'll be the first to admit it. I have a little medical condition called MS that has taken my fine motor skills and sometimes when I think that I've hit the letter m (for example), I've missed it and 'much' will come out 'uch'. (course I somehow miss these things before I hit 'Publish' on a consistent basis!)
But that could just be me.
Agreed! As the great Bill Cosby once said, "Pull your pants up and talk right!"
ReplyDeleteYou forgot to add "Put your hat on straight"!
ReplyDeleteWe share the same pet peeve, Deb. One of my favorite quotes in this space goes something like "The primary function of the apostrophe in modern English is to announce the imminent arrival of the letter 'S'." Or sumthin' like that.
ReplyDeleteI use a lot of colloquialisms and blatant misspellings in my writing for the purpose of setting a tone. It's an affectation, to be sure. But I like it. ;-)
I do too, Buck. But we both know the right way to do things and when it's appropriate and when it's not.
ReplyDeleteOh BTW. Have a happy Thanksgiving and have an extra helping of turkey with extra gravey for me!
ReplyDeleteWill do, Deb. And pie, too!
ReplyDelete