Grammar Snob - Part 1: Your Unique

Seen on the marquee outside a Bremerton business:

       ALWAYS REMEMBER YOUR UNIQUE,
       JUST LIKE EVERYONE ELSE

I love the humor in that sentiment, but it has been up there for a few weeks and have the owners not yet realized that it should be "you're" instead of "your"? Or did they do it wrong on purpose so grammar snobs like yours truly would be bugged enough to write about it in a blog?

Another pet peeve of mine is the wrong use of the apostrophe as seen on house signs around town. Not to slam a family I know, but it should be "The Olsons," not "The Olson's"!

A grammar snob walks around with a virtual red pen in her brain. I know this to be true, because I am one. If I were a grammar slob I would put it this way: I know this to be true, because I are one. It don't matter to me if it don't matter to nobody else. I seen the President on TV a few months ago and even he said something about it being Febuary. Why do people leave the brew (bru) out of February? Drink up, and pronounce it right!

I remember back when my middle son was in seventh grade. He came home with a paper from his history class, and the teacher had written 'A' on it in red. As I read through this paper I was appalled at my son's poor grammar, incomplete punctuation and spelling errors. This was not a rough draft but rather the finished product. Without hesitation I pulled out a red pen and began correcting the grammatical, punctuation and spelling errors in his prize-winning paper. I didn't mean to burst his bubble, but I knew the importance of being able to write as well as speak correctly. I congratulated him on knowing the history topic but then challenged him to rewrite the paper in order to receive an 'A' should that same paper be presented to his English teacher.

Then Open House happened. I swear I wasn't the one to initiate this conversation, but I remember my son's English teacher making this statement:

"We don't really teach grammar at the junior high level. Grammar isn't important. What's really important is being able to express your ideas."

No, English teacher, grammar IS important, and I'm glad to have this opportunity to express my ideas about it.