We recently enjoyed a summer visit to New England. Fall is the time for bright colors. But anytime is a good time to keep an eye out for red circles.
Waiting on these machines leaves time to peruse. The waffles were good; the grammar not so much. First, why is “Not” capitalized? Also, the comma after “not” needs to go. And how does the “there” disaster happen in a society with public schools?
The sentiment is noteworthy. But good Americans are loyal to good grammar as well. Free yourself from misused commas! Use after “store” and “floor.” Use a colon after “USA.” And “Buy American” should end in a period. It matters.
Sautéed peppers and onions, we salute you!
And we go to the video archives for Segment 22: Style. https://youtu.be/Goq4t5nC0aw
From the mailbag: “A unit that heats the air is called a heater, but a unit that cools the air is called an air conditioner. In my home, I don’t want to “condition” the air; I want to cool it. How did this happen? — Dr. Baruch E. Kahana
The “Horribly Wrong” team is familiar with air conditioning. We live in Florida! Eliot wrote more than once about John Gorrie, the 19th -century Florida panhandle doctor who, searching for ways to cool air around yellow fever patients, developed the concept that would become air conditioning. Since that removed the only hurdle to everyone moving to Florida — which everyone pretty much did — Gorrie is either a saint or the devil! Here’s the answer to the doctor’s question. A/C doesn’t just cool air. It removes humidity, which we know ups the misery factor. Here’s more about the history of A/C from the Smithsonian Institution:
Readers: "Something Went Horribly Wrong" features samples of bad writing we see nearly every day. You can participate! Be our duly deputized “grammar police.” Your motto: “To protect and correct.” Send in your photos of store signs, street signs, menus, TV news graphics, newspaper headlines, tweets, and so on. It doesn’t have to be a grammatical error. It can be just what we call “cowardly writing.” Include your name and home town so we properly can credit you. You're free to add a comment, although we reserve the right to edit or omit. Now get out there! Send to Eliot@eliotkleinberg.com
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NOTE: Eliot and Lou Ann are available for speaking engagements, and can travel. Reach us through the comments section. Just think of all of your employees getting back to work on a Monday, their heads filled with all the ways we’ve shown them to be better communicators!