Sign. By. Shatner.

If you read all the extraneous punctuation in this sign, it sounds a little bit like you're using the William Shatner Method of Dramatic Acting (with a touch of the Mike Myers "Ax Murderer" poetry inflection thrown in for good measure).

Thanks to Craig Conley (who has a new iPad app for Scrabble lovers who want to use all their consonants) for the photo, and to Kevin Emerson (who has a new vampire book out) for the Shatner joke.

They Had Us At Menopause

Oh, it's just a small thing, really -- that extra apostrophe in "its." But we'd like the record to reflect that our brains are functioning well enough that we recognized that errant bit of punctuation.

Confidential to the people who write these ads: the liberal use of bold text, enlarged text, italics, and bold italics, along with an exclamation point, does not make the study sound any more appealing. We're middle aged, not moronic. 


Thanks to Linnea D. for sending the image along.

So That's What She Does with the Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Thanks to assorted SPOGGers who sent this along, we now know that Rachael Ray is a cannibal. A cannibal who not only gets nutrition from cooking her family and her dog, but also inspiration.

We think we're going to barf right about ... now.

(And yes, this demonstrates why commas are sometimes very necessary. But next time we're hungry, we'll be sure to consult her recipe for cooking family members. Some of our nieces and nephews look delicious.)

Update: Tails magazine says the cover was Photoshopped. It's still funny, though.

Happy National Grammar Day

Today is National Grammar Day, a time for us to raise our grammartini glasses and clink to the beauty of a well-constructed sentence, or to eat grammar crackers and milk while toasting the same thing.

The Society for the Promotion of Good Grammar founded National Grammar Day officially in 2008, although we celebrated it earlier with our high school students.

In the years since, it's grown far beyond us, thanks in large part to the participation of the many bloggers listed in the link parade on the side of this site.

Oh, and Grammar Girl. Inviting her to a party is like inviting Lady Gaga, but a Lady Gaga dressed in suitably warm late-winter clothes, ready to sing the official National Grammar Day anthem.



Last year, the event became a trending topic on Twitter. Katie Couric even mentioned it in her evening broadcast, earnestly offering up bad grammar advice, the well-intentioned but fake rule cautioning people not to end a sentence with a preposition.

The irony of this runs a close second to the National Grammar Day letter signed by President George W. Bush that we received in 2008. (We nonetheless remain grateful to the thoughtful people in his office who made that happen.)

People will be chatting all day on Twitter about the holiday using the hashtag #grammarday. Feel free to join in.

Meanwhile, we will be judging Editor Mark's haiku contest, reading the stunning conclusion to John McIntyre's grammarnoir extravaganza, and of course, drinking a properly chilled grammartini.

Grammar Smackdown: Men's Room Edition

People can get, well, pissy about a lot of things.

Nonetheless, we enjoyed this exchange (thanks, Lance!), almost as much as we enjoy that technicolor subway tile.

That is a nice bathroom, people. Let's keep it clean.

National Grammar Day: A Haiku Contest

How can you resist
The chance to wax poetic
About sweet grammar?

If you are so moved
Go to Editor Mark's blog
The details are there.

(P.S. National Grammar Day is Friday! March 4! Wuhoo! We'll continue to punctuate as if there is a sale on exclamation points until it's all over! Sorry! We can't contain our excitement!)

How Do You Spell Divorce?

Tales from the Casting Ouch

From our Genuine Hollywood Actress friend, a series of errors from actual casting calls:

A casting call used the word "thy" when they meant "thigh."

Another notice used the phrase "age rage" instead of "age range." That simple typo made me picture someone fuming over a birthday cake.

We are excepting kids.
You meant to say "accepting," because if you except them, then you're leaving them out and thus no kids will show up to your auditions.
If your into wearing the smallest string thing and very exposed, submit your photo.
Shudder. No comment.

And then there's this Craigslist ad:

Are you a ghost rider? Did you used to be? A popular TV show going into its fourth season is looking for a ghost riding expert to give an on-camera interview. What drives people to ghost ride? What are the risks? Let us know!

 We of course have a certain Johnny Cash song stuck in our head, which we offer up as your blurry but free Friday entertainment. We do think perhaps they are looking for ghost writers--and for their ads, ghost copy editors.

The Thin White Line

Jim F. sends this photo along from the Los Altos City Council meeting. While "uniformed crime report" makes it sound a bit like evil deeds committed by men and women in uniform, it's a typo. They meant "uniform" crime report.

As typos go, it could have been worse. Or from where we sit, better. We'd definitely like to have heard about "unformed" crimes--you know, those half-baked plots where someone in a Nixon mask decides to rob a convenience store and leaves his wallet behind, and the getaway driver forgets to put gas in the tank so they run out just as they're speeding past the police station? Yeah. That kind. Maybe next time. 

Diagnosis: Spring Fever

Symptom: the unnecessary apostrophe in "days." Oh, you crazy crafters. When will you ever learn (and thanks to Tamara for the find).

Meanwhile, there's less than a month until National Grammar Day. What will you do to celebrate on March 4?