Friday, September 21, 2007

some serious press

hey, check it out! The "blog" and I are getting some big press this week. Yesterday I did an interview with an AP writer (see link for story). All of you who have been having fun and "submitting" your stuff can congratulate yourselves for being ahead of the curve.

53 comments:

Anonymous said...

I just read the article and have come to your blog. "This is great!"

Anonymous said...

I never heard of you, but you popped up on my homepage as the main story under "Entertainment News" (sorry I couldn't resist)!

Congratulations!

Laura said...

Just read your article on Yahoo... This is literally the most "awesome" blog I've seen!

Kaitlen said...

"Congratulations!"
Next you need to take on unnecessary apostrophes. (CD's, the 1980's, etc.)

keithandrandie said...

"Hello". I just "discovered" your "blog" on Yahoo News. This stuff has always "bothered" me. I once walked past something called "beef", fearing that it wasn't really beef, only named such.
Thanks for your tireless and world-changing work. Okay...it won't change the world. But it will make folks like us feel better!
-Keith H.
Texas

keithandrandie said...

Oh! And you "can" also take on superfluous "whats". For example, "I did that better than _what_ you did."

I dunno. Maybe it is a Texas thing.
-Keith H.
Texas

Corie said...

I saw the article on Yahoo.
I immediately felt guilty. I know I over-use quotations! Oops!

Anonymous said...

It's ironic (no quotes) that the AP article contains a link to this blog. The version I read didn't work because the link was in parenthesis! Oh well, at least they "tried".

Anonymous said...

Just added your site to my list of "permanent" favorites. As news editor for a technical magazine devoted to quality assurance [see www.qualitydigest.com] running across your site--"Thanks!" yahoo.com--is like a breath of fresh air. I can't wait to "waste" more time browsing through the posts here during work time. It's research into the "quality" of modern language after all.
Thanks for a good laugh,
Carey

Anonymous said...

Hey! Just found you on my entertainment home page. I hate unnecessary quotations!!

No offense to the South Dakotans and Wyomingites, but I just got back from a road trip through there, and never before have I seen such quotation abuse. Send someone there to capture many an example.

Anonymous said...

I wish I'd discovered your blog earlier!


There's a local temp agency with a sign in the window that reads "Parking in the rear." In quotation marks, of course! I actually know the owner, so I took it upon myself to give him a hard time. Between the italics and the quotation marks, it looked like a slogan!

Anonymous said...

http://www.betelnutrestaurant.com/betelnut-dinnermenu.pdf

check out this "menu" and have a "laugh". i actually used the quotation mark gesture with my hands when i ordered the "little dragon" dumplings a few months back, and my friend who paid for the meal put quotes around the tip amount he left for the server.

Anonymous said...

Thank you Bethany! I am always flabbergasted by the abuse of the written word by many in this world. I fear that since the instant message (IM) and texting has become the norm no one knows how to spell, punctuate, or (gasp) quote. In fact, if you could also point out the overuse of commas, the use of initials instead of spelling things out, unnecesary apostrophes, and the lack of spelling acumen then this blog would be entirely complete.

Congratulations on the publicity. All the best to you.

Anonymous said...

Read the AP article in Montana. This is your pet peeve. Just thought you'd like to know mine... When advertisers use the phrase "for all your ________ needs". The blank can be filled in with literally any word you can think of. (Roofing, travel, etc. etc.) URG!!

Anonymous said...

Love your blog - do check your legal disclaimer, though. It uses "it's" in a way that is worthy of a posting on apostropheabuse.com.

I think you mean "its." And yes, I was reading your legal disclaimer.

Anonymous said...

You "go" girl! They're one of my pet peeves, too. Nice to see this getting the press it "deserves."

Margo said...

Bethany - Great blog! I agree with Kaitlen! I think you should check into people misusing apostrophes. That's my pet peeve!

Margo said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

You've reached the "Tipping Point"

Anonymous said...

I love it! I always hated inappropriate quotes too (I use quotes often myself, but only when it makes sense to). By the way, at a certain nudist resort near West Palm Beach, they felt the need to put quotes around the campsite numbers (on the little signs at each campsite). Just don't ask how I know this :-)

Anonymous said...

Sometimes quotation are omitted when they should be used, like

"President" Bush
Homeland "Security"
"Patriot" Act
Civil "Liberties"
"War" on Terror

Any others? "Thanks"

Anonymous said...

"THANK YOU" for pointing out illiteracy! Can you please also chase after those college grads climbing the corporate ladder and "stepping" over me ("Ouch") while writing run on sentences with way too many repeated redundancies, and who use far too many commas, with lots and lots of redundancy? Oops, what was I saying... Oh, I meant to say, simply, "Thank you". Your blog is great.

Anonymous said...

Professor Hoy points to the aggravating habit of some lecturers who make quote marks in the air while they are talking. At least they have an audience. Some years ago, while watching my wife do what she does quite often, the thought struck me like a lyric searching for a song: She makes quote marks with her fingers, even when she's on the phone! I never have bothered to point out this little quirk to my wife because I like being married.

Sweet Cottage Dreams said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

"you rock"

IAMARTHURMORGAN said...

Saw the "article" at kgw.com... I like the "premise" of your blog. ":)"

Anonymous said...

I just read the article about your blog on www.comcast.com. Unfortunately, you do one of my biggest pet peeves, which is to use a puncuation within a quotation mark incorrectly. You only capture the puncuation in the quotation if it is an actual quote - not a word or title. For example, if I were asking if you had seen a movie, the correct way for it to be written would be: Have you seen "The Movie"?. If you are going to be a stickler about puncuation, please be one across the board.

victoria said...

Alas, I wish I could say I knew about your awesome blog before the Yahoo article told me...I'll have to live with being a follower. (Insert clever superfluous quotation marks here.)

Anonymous said...

Quotation marks are annoying, but what really irritates me is people who use 's when they are only making something plural!! This is rampant in the South! It makes me crazy!

Anonymous said...

I "found" your blog through "Hot Air". You are now "bookmarked"!

Anonymous said...

What a pointless article.

Tiffany (Quotation Lover)

Juliette said...

Your blog is too TOO great...finding you just made my day. The best part is that as a marketing copywriter, I have an excuse to browse your site during work hours. :)

Anonymous said...

I'm not one of the people who are "ahead of the curve" (j/k...although I believe that is the correct use, right?! I feel a little paranoid now!), but I LOVE your site! You've hit on almost all of my grammar pet peeves.

~b~ said...

Love the blog. I work in government and find rampant overuse of quotation marks and capitals. We tend to Capitalize things that are "Important." Drives me "crazy."

Anonymous said...

Read the AP article and LOVED the idea of this blog. Grammar/spelling errors are my BIGGEST PET PEEVES! Unnecessary quotation marks really annoy me. Another one is confusing "affect" with "effect." Thank you for making this blog. One day they'll learn...

Anonymous said...

I LOVE your blog and your links to other language arts peeves, but since I couldn't link over to the apostrophe one, i'm putting it here: go to www.lyndenffa.com for an example. I just hate it when days of the week become possessive!

Anonymous said...

RE: www.lyndenffa.com above -- click on corn maze!! i forgot that part!

Zeno Izen said...

Congrats on the publicity. Subscribed.

Anonymous said...

You know you love the air quotes. This should get a laugh... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D09SQRW7Xt4

Kjaere said...

Hey, thanks to you and you linking to my blog, I've had a lot of publicity too! THANKS!

==www.whythatplate.blogspot.com :-)

Unknown said...

This is great! I am going to try to get a photo of one of my favorites, a local sort-of-veterinarian who posts an A-frame sign on the sidewalk advertising free "anesthetic" with certain procedures. I'm picturing a huge, cartoonish mallet. You've inspired me to take up the fight against my own punctuation pet peeve, superfluous apostrophes, in spite of the fact that I once was nearly thrown out of a supermarket for correcting signs int he produce department.
http://pretepress.wordpress.com/

Anonymous said...

LOVE your blog! My mother-in-law always puts a person's name in quotes when she gives you a birthday or Christmas card......why? ("Kim", "Julie") Is she trying to imply that these really aren't our names but only what we assume them to be? :)

NotMoira said...

"Holy crap, I love this."

Anonymous said...

I just read an article about your site on CBC News in Canada. (http://www.cbc.ca/cp/technology/070921/z092119A.html)

Keep up the good work!

CrazyRunner v.2 said...

I'm in love with your blog. It's great to find company in this pet peeve.

I was waiting for a friend outside her appt complex. There was a sign saying that the "rent office" would be closed for Memorial Day.

I took down the sign and wrote misuse of quotation marks. At the same time, I was wondering if I had too much time on my hands.

Anonymous said...

When I write letters to my mother, I always write "Mom" because it's not her real name. Glad to find people who "get me."

Keep up the funnies!

Anonymous said...

I just read an article about this site on my homepage which has all the news. I thought that I always wanted to show people how annoyed I get when they spell words wrong on signs or advertisements. This site is great, you should add that annoyance to the blog!!!!

Joel B. said...

Geez, Bethany....my site had 1400 clicks from your site alone yesterday.

Congrats on your press and your traffic!!

Anonymous said...

Bethany, thanks for such an entertaining (ahem, "entertaining") site. I read about it this morning in my local newspaper and thought, [non-ironic quotation marks], "Right on!"

I don't find most punctuation rules to be overly confusing (with a few exceptions), but I suppose that some folks are so intimidated that they throw every mark they can find into their sentences in the hopes that one may turn out to be correct.

I agree with Kaitlen... down with superfluous apostrophes! ("The Superfluous Apostrophes" would be a great name for a band.)

bethany said...

dear everyone who hates incorrect apostrophes: check my sidebar for someone else's site exclusively about that.

Anonymous said...

Bethany,
Been with you for a couple weeks now. I'll be linking over to you for my post about National Punctuation Day this Monday.

"Congrats" on the great press!

Anonymous said...

I read the article on Wii news (the Wii is a video game system if you didn't know).

Anonymous said...

I saw an article on the front page of our local paper yesterday and made a mental note to check out your blog, then happened upon a blog with a link to yours. I was so excited! I am a bit of a grammar and spelling freak, so I think it's fun to make fun of other peoples ignorance sometimes!