Big doin's around Granny's House...by this time next week we'll have a really full house with the Slaughters, Weltys, and Longenbaughs pouring in for our Fun Family Week, complete with family portraits and the inevitable 9 siblings pics and games and good food and drink and cool weather and lots of laughter and chaos. Bring it on! 

Labels: Books, Family, Homemaking, Homeschooling, Kids, Language, Movies, Music, Sundays

So now there's a "top tier" of GOP candidates. With the entrance of our governor, the exit of the Minnesota former governor, and the "just barely" win of the congresswoman from Minnesota, we are now looking at Mitt Romney, Rick Perry, and Michele Bachmann as the trio of front-runners. And for the record, I am not excited. Well, I'm excited that we're putting an end to the current administration, and ANYONE currently in the race would be better...but not so much better that I'm getting a thrill down my leg or anything.

Labels: Family, Food, Language, Movies, Political Observation, Sundays, TV, Weather

Just in case this might make an impact on your speaking or writing:


Mr. Rewrite never, ever aims to be impactful

Labels: Language

I really, really like you, Alot.


hat tip: Janelle B.

Labels: Fun, Language

a*maze', verb 1. to overwhelm with surprise or sudden wonder; astonish greatly. 2. Obsolete. to bewilder, perplex

Labels: Fun, Language

Labels: Language, Theater of the Absurd

Labels: Fun, Language

Labels: Family, Food, Homeschooling, Language, Movies, Political Action, Social Observation, Weddings

I probably expend too much mental energy bemoaning the illiteracy (as well as innumeracy, but that's another post) of "the young," as well as the now middle-aging forty-somethings who haven't been forced by a scary job market into learning to write well.

But there's at least one place that I can echo the Bible verse (taking it completely out of context of course), "...and a little child shall lead them." That place is the space, not spaceS, between sentences.

Old habits die hard. But some of those habits need to die, and one of those is the tendency that we Boomers have of placing two spaces rather than one after a period or a colon. Never mind that most people can't use colons (not to mention their offspring semicolons) properly...at least if you're over forty you've always remembered that they require a separation of two spaces.

Give it up, friends! Our kids have something to teach us here...you won't catch THEM wasting extra spaces after periods. Of course, you won't catch them wasting vowels when they write "ppl" but I'm not advising you mimic them in text-speak. Again, that's another post.

In looking for a succinct explanation of the rationale for the one-space standard, I came across this:

Much has changed along the journey from typewriters to setting type on computers. Still, there are a number of typewriting conventions that are no longer relevant but which stubbornly refuse to go away. At the top of this list is the practice of putting two spaces between sentences. Forget about tolerating differences of opinion: typographically speaking, typing two spaces before the start of a new sentence is absolutely, unequivocally wrong.

Why We Do It
Why is typing a double space after the end of a sentence such a common practice? And why do so many writers still deliver copy this way? The answer: typing class! This is how most of us were taught to type (and still are, in many cases). The two-space habit is based on the limitations of typewriters; specifically, of typewriter fonts.

Finish reading here: Double Spaces Between Sentences...NOT!

[Just in case some of you die-hard typing class aficionados think I'm cherry-picking my sources, just try Googling "spaces between sentences" and see how many sources you can find who still want you to adhere to 1950's standards in spacing.]

I spend the first few minutes of every proofreading job just checking for illegitimate spaces between sentences, and sometimes in the second round of proofing a document, these bad boys have miraculously regenerated themselves! Come on, folks, help me out here by extinguishing this outdated habit...it really only takes a few days to overcome if you type a lot. Follow your kids' examples in this, and you'll save your proofreader time and heartache. (What? You don't have a proofreader? Click on my email on the right sidebar ;-) )

There. I feel much better.

Labels: Language

Proper grammar, despite what many of us would LIKE to believe, is really a matter of a consensus of educated people. (Sometimes it ends up being the consensus of UNeducated people, but then that's another post.)

What's clear is that proper grammar isn't static, and words, spelling, and syntax that were acceptable in 1910 are not acceptable in 2010, and vice versa. Some of the longest held "rules" of grammar are now in flux, and I as a writer am having to adjust, which is not always easy for folks in their second half-century of life.

Today I ran across a summary of some of the sacred rules of grammar and how it is now perfectly acceptable to bend or break them. Because I tend to agree with this particular list, I encourage you to go read it, especially if you're teaching writing or grammar to children. Don't saddle them with the constraints of a previous century when they have to live and write in this one.

I don't mean by this that it's okay to have sloppy writing or grammar or to make up our own rules...just that we need to stay in tune with what's generally acceptable in educated circles so our kids don't come off as sounding pretentious or stilted when they write. That is something 'up with which we should not put' (to quote Winston Churchill). ;-)

5 Simple Grammar Tips

Labels: Language

So this year's New Oxford American Dictionary Word of the Year is.....


I will refrain from criticism, switching from my prescriptive to my descriptive grammarian hat when I know there's no sense in protesting. It is what it is, and I humbly confess to having used the word (as a verb) many times this year and last.

In case the Oxford WOTY is new to some of you, previous selections in the past two decades include:


Obviously, some of these have enjoyed more longevity than others. We'll have to see how "unfriend" fares....Perhaps by 2030 we'll have figured out how to choose only friends who last.

[I do admit to being relieved that three of the finalists didn't make the cut: "tramp stamp" (a tattoo on the lower back, usually on a woman), "choice mom" (a person who chooses to be a single mother), and "deleb" (a dead celebrity).]

Oxford Word of the Year

Labels: Language, Social Observation

We've talked here before about the correct use of apostrophes and how many people don't care to take the time to learn their correct use and so they just give up and pretend that precise use of our beautiful language is unimportant. I had occasion this week to be challenged in a work project to think carefully about some of the "grayer" areas of apostrophe use (yes, there are some), and so I was delighted today to find this little flowchart. It presents in a visual and humorous format some ways to remember when and when not to use apostrophes.

How to Use an Apostrophe

via SPOGG

Labels: Language

Given the scary turns our country is taking lately this hardly seems alarming, but we are seeing the beginning of the end of language as accepted social convention. If you like it, do it. If you don't, don't. The only "rule" will be to make sure people can understand you.

LONDON (AP) - It's a spelling mantra that generations of schoolchildren have learned - "i before e, except after c."

But new British government guidance tells teachers not to pass on the rule to students, because there are too many exceptions.

British government spells end of "i before e" rule

Labels: Language

This morning I stayed home with my sick son. Yes, he's almost 13 and can probably stay alone even when he's sick. But late last night, when it was apparent he wasn't going anywhere today, it struck me with great force that this could be the last time I ever stay home with a sick child. Tim is my "baby" although I wouldn't put it that way if he were a reader of my blog. And each stage I go through with him is therefore my last...each grade, each size of clothes, each time I stay with him and give him cold meds. This season is passing faster than I want to admit, and this morning was, in some way, a salute to an era nearly gone...

The Teaching Company course I'm currently going through (listed on my left sidebar with books I'm reading) has totally captivated me. Linguistics has always been an intense interest of mine, despite my frighteningly surface understanding. This course and its engaging professor (John McWhorter) might have opened up a new lifelong obsession, as well as a slight shift in my outlook from the "prescriptivist" side of language to the "descriptivist." Someday I may do a whole blog post on that...

I have a new fast-food love. Yes, dear readers, I can say without hesitation that Long John Silver's crab cakes are some of the best fast food I've ever put in my mouth. (Notice I didn't say that they were the best crab cakes I've ever put in my mouth...that honor would have to be reserved for a little waterside diner at Good Friday Harbor in the San Juan Islands. But that's another story....) I discovered them by accident on this week's trip to north Texas and I don't think I'll ever get tired of them. 'Course with my luck they're probably a "For a Limited Time Only" promo and I'll be left longing the rest of my life.

For those of you who've been taking bets, no, we don't have a second piano. Yet. Although for most of the week we had a facsimile.

You may remember that early in the year I bought a new Bible, an ESV Study Bible that I returned within 24 hours after deciding I did not want to have to buy a wheel barrow to transport it in. The thing was humongous. I still haven't replaced it, but have since decided to stick with my beloved NASB and forego the study Bible versions in favor of a wide-margin edition. I love taking long notes and outlines in the margins and I have plenty of study helps in other places. So right now this is the one I'm considering, even though size-wise it's not too much different than the big one. It's slightly thinner (1.7 vs. a full 2 inches) but much more supple and supposedly easier to handle, with the benefit of nice wide margins to make lists, outlines, and observations.

Many of you have asked about my mother...all I can say is that each time I visit I think I won't be shocked any more at how quickly she is sliding, and each time I'm still shocked. There is so little left of the woman we knew. She still knows us and can converse, sometimes quite deeply, but she doesn't move except to go to the bathroom and that process takes half an hour. At times she seems to have accepted her condition with grace; other times it's apparent that she has a clear streak of bitterness because of what's happening to her and even toward those who are trying so hard to help her. Needless to say, that causes me great sorrow and frustration.

Tomorrow begins the last month of the first half of '09. Why does that seem so unbelievable to me?

Next on my list of changes/upgrades to Granny's House: a gas range. It's something I've wanted for years and years, and we're just now getting around to really doing something about it. First up is getting a plumber to estimate what it will cost us to bring the gas into the house...that will let me know if the job is feasible. One of my dad's favorite sayings was always, "Now you're cookin' with gas!" I hope to make that a reality shortly :-)

Two weekends ago all of our family piano and voice students had their spring recitals. This weekend we were treated to the last recital of the season, grandson David. David is learning to play the violin, taught by our sweet friend Julie (seated at right in the photo). Julie hosted a lovely recital in her home, and we were so proud of David as he participated in what we hope is just the first of many such events!

We're all missin' The Papa this week...good thing I've got lots of strong young men to take care of me in his absence. It's very comforting to have wonderful sons-in-law and grown sons around!

And speaking of grown--on Tuesday, Nathan, our eldest son, will turn 21. The chubby little guy with the round face, big smile, and drool all down his front has somehow turned into a handsome, charming, capable man with a great voice and an even bigger smile. And he can reach the high stuff in the pantry! Happy Birthday, Nate!

Snip, snip, that's all folks!

Labels: Family, Food, Grandkids, Homemaking, Kids, Language, Learning, Music, The Papa

A little explanation here about the W.O.W. hiatus.

Yes, I have been very busy lately what with a trip out of state, The Papa's absence, end-of-year activities heating up, and trying to get everyone's teeth, eye, and medical appointments taken care of for the year.

But the real reason is that I am growing discouraged in the area of language.

I am definitely a language enthusiast though not a purist. I am not afraid of change in the language and I have loosened up on many things, especially where the traditional grammar begins to sound stilted in light of popular usage.

However, I see much of what's happening to the English language today as the result of exceedingly poor or non-existent grammar and spelling education, and the capitulation of dictionaries and language "authorities" for fear of being shut out of the popular market. The result is that for nearly every grammar or language travesty, you can find a dictionary or an expert that will pat your hand and tell you that it's okay, just do it however you feel best expresses what you want to say.

Consequently, for many of the W.O.W. columns I've written, I've gotten emails that tell me I'm wrong because the American Dictionary of You-Name-It at www.yourtheonlyexpertthatcounts.com says it's perfectly acceptable. I'm not kidding--there's hardly a thing I've written that can't be refuted if you really want to refute me. So I think that it's better for my own mental health to just concentrate on being the best writer and communicator I can be and let the rest of the world reduce itself to its lowest common denominator, metaphorically speaking.

You're perfectly justified if you want to call me a snob. That's not the same as being a purist. It just means that I will continue to value the language and its heritage. I am as likely as anyone else to get caught saying, "And I'm like, what?" but I will NEVER tell you it's correct, acceptable, or desirable to litter your speech or your writing with HUNDREDS of likes and y'know's. (There are people I know who are quite literally handicapped in communication because of their inability or unwillingness to work on this and they're passing it on to their children. I don't think they have any idea that people aren't even listening to what they say...they're counting the "you know"s.) And I will not tell you, no matter which dictionary has given in, that it's okay to say "irregardless" or "exetera" or "I'm nauseous." Though I have realized that it is time to let go of the complete ban on ending sentences with prepositions when the alternatives now sound contrived, I will continue to wince and will never approve "Where's he at?" I will not give even a slight nod to an abomination, no matter which former Beatle made it trendy, like "the world in which we live in." And I will not give you a passing grade on a paper on which you've chosen to eliminate all apostrophes because you can't remember where they go and don't even want to try.

Hmmm...does that sound like a rant? Probably so. Nevertheless, I am taking a break from offering unsolicited grammar advice because my blood pressure doesn't need the dressing-down from folks who are inclined to find some source to prove I'm wrong or out of date. I'll continue to sharpen my own skills and even to loosen up when I believe it's to the benefit of my readers, but I will (shall?) also continue exulting in the structure and the beauty of English.

Don't worry, folks. I'm in my mid-fifties already and I won't be around to hound you for long ;-)

Labels: Language, Words On Wednesday

Oh, No Thank You. Really.

Labels: Fun, Language

Language is such a wonderful thing, enabling man to communicate with more than just grunts, signs, and smoke signals.

But what you might not know is that language can actually turn poison into a gift.

The government's TARP plan was never a big hit with the public, based as it was on saddling the taxpayer with troubled, or "toxic" assets (which seems to me to be the very definition of "liabilities," not "assets," but whatever...). So what to do to make the next round more palatable?

These poison loans, poison because they have a low probability of ever being paid back, let alone making a profit for their lenders, and in desperate need of YOU taking over the payments, will hereafter be known as -- TA DA --


Isn't it beautiful? Now we have the added advantage of being reminded daily, hourly, that our skyrocketing tax bills, coming runaway inflation, and decreasing ability to get legitimate home loans is really just a way of giving a lovely gift to our children and posterity! Come on, folks, LEGACY! Who doesn't want to be in on that? You'd be downright unpatriotic and yes, anti-family, to be against legacies, right?

It's a stroke of genius!

Unfortunately you can put lipstick on a pig, but....

U.S. Treasury ‘White Paper’ on Buying ‘Legacy’ Assets

Meltdown 101: What are toxic assets?

Labels: Language, Political Observation

Okay, I am sorry this story involves a murder, but this is the funniest misplaced modifier I've read in years:

A 23-year-old Chicago man was charged with first-degree murder today after officials said he "took a mechanical implement" and struck a Bloomingdale business owner he claims made sexual advances at him about 25 times on the head.

No bail for suspect in Bloomingdale slaying

hat tip: Trish, who writes, "I'm trying to imagine what act was being attempted."

Labels: Language

It's National Grammar Day!

It's one of Granny's favorite "holidays," right behind Christmas and Easter and Thanksgiving and Van Buren Day. I haven't exactly decided what traditions I want to establish for National Grammar Day, so until then I'll let those of you who are so inclined just browse:

National Grammar Day is March 4

Which Grammar Will You Be Celebrating on National Grammar Day?

National Grammar Day 2009: the Bloggers

National Grammar Day: Exploring Unbeknownst


I'll be out of pocket next Wednesday, so unless I end up with unexpected time on my hands, W.O.W. will be on vacation...but I'm planning some doozies :-)

Labels: Language, Words On Wednesday

My sweet sister-in-law Suzanne has a beef with a man of the cloth:

Our pastor keeps saying every week that we need to "reverence God". I understand from my dictionary that reverence can be a verb as well as a noun, but wouldn't "revere" sound better?

W.O.W. to the rescue!

Yes, Suzanne, your ear is a good one. I can't put this one in the black and white category of "its and it's," but I can register my complaint about the sloppiness of usage that allows the willy-nilly transfer of one part of speech to another simply because today's writers and speakers don't have vocabularies rich enough to make use of the great words we already possess.

What is it that makes someone feels that "reverencing" God is better than "revering" Him? Reverence is the noun that is produced by the act of revering. Using reverence as a verb ends up reducing the impact of a beautiful noun.

And let's talk about "impact," shall we? Impact is a noun. The music has an emotional impact. Yes, I realize that it's now become acceptable to use it as a verb, as in, The music impacted me. But the only reason it's acceptable? Enough people misused it that some lame-brained dictionary finally included it as a "variant" and there you go...all other dictionaries that needed to sell a few copies had to fall in line so as not to appear backward. *Sigh* Because I write for businesses and organizations that can't seem to get enough of impacting their world, even I have succumbed.

But please, PLEASE don't ever expect me to use or even approve the further degradation of the word by letting it slide into adjectivity (hey, you like that??). The music was not, and must never be allowed to become impactful. Sorry, there are some lengths to which I will not go. Unless you're paying me a very large hourly fee and will accept full responsibility for the consequences.

Finally, I would be remiss if I addressed this topic and did not include one of my family's perennial favorite pet peeves, one of those words we love to hate: orientate. This is an example of a word that started out as a perfectly lovely verb (orient, meaning to familiarize a person with new surroundings or circumstances, or the like: lectures designed to orient the new students; OR to place in any definite position with reference to the points of the compass or other locations: to orient a building north and south). Then somewhere along the line it was expanded to the "tion" form to become a noun (orientation, meaning the act or process of orienting; OR the state of being oriented). So far, so good.

But it wasn't long before some folks who had no idea where the noun "orientation" came from tried to turn it back into a verb and completely, well, mangled the word. Friends...I don't care which dictionaries try to suck up to the masses by giving their grudging nod to "orientate," I will not be a part of this national travesty. No matter HOW much you pay me per hour. You'll have to find yourself another writer. Yes, even in a recession.

Suzanne, I would not recommend making an issue of reverencing God with your pastor. I'd just keep it out of your own speaking and writing :-)

Labels: Language, Words On Wednesday