Thursday, September 08, 2005

The Words and the Bees

When it comes to dating it’s not like I’m spoilt for choice. When presented with options however I somehow manage to spoil them for myself, finding flaws and faults that ultimately put me off. You know the thing, she’s got kids, she wants kids, she is a kid…

These are, I suppose, legitimate concerns. The latest however do test the boundaries of fairness. Should I be put off by someone’s misuse of English grammar?

It’s a common mistake, I suppose – to write “should of” instead of “should have.” It’s not like she slept with my brother. (Although my not having a brother kind of works in her favour.)

Then there’s the apostrophe. I imagine that would get between us, and probably in the wrong places.

And what of the semi-colon – the most underused of punctuation marks, so undermined by the comma? You can’t just whack it in when you feel like it. It has feelings.

But, San, you can’t date a semi-colon. You’re right, full stop.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

San, if you're ever looking for a new career my boss would adore you! There can only be a few of us who lose sleep over the use of a comma.
Be good to see you.
Yours, in publishing, Sarah xxx

Anonymous said...

San,

If a split infinitive is enough to put me off then I am with you on the semi colon thing. Call in the shop sometime soon before I forget what you look like ok!
Sian