Pygmalion

Yes, I am the grammar police. While I do not claim to be perfect in my own speech or writing, I do make a concerted effort to be clear and correct. Much of it goes back to my education and on-the-job training. You may not know it by watching those 24-hour news channels or by reading the paper (does anyone still do that?) but the study of journalism does-- or, at least, did-- focus largely on grammar, spelling, punctuation and language.

Now, I've given up the fight on some common writing errors that are really just "rules" that most people never bothered to memorize: there/their/they're, possessive vs. plural, that kind of thing. And, some are quite minor, not exactly incorrect... Still, if they were the pet peeves of my mentors and coworkers, I picked up on them. I remember one anchor who got irked if a script ever read "has got" because it's redundant. Just say "has."

Then, there are others. Things people say ALL THE TIME, and they are ALWAYS WRONG, but we hear them so often, maybe some people think they're correct... or at least passable. Public figures say them. Celebrities talk this way. World leaders can't seem to help themselves. These are the kinds of things that really get me:
"him and I"
"a whole nother"
"she's a girl that" (person=who, thing=that)
"realator"
"nuculear" (Yeah, thanks, President Bush.)

I could go on, but my head is starting to hurt. Todd's head hurts, too, because, whenever we watch television together, I end up screaming at the TV. I swear, I am so glad that cute Bachelorette Jillian finally found her guy and got off the airwaves, because "him and I" were sick of listening to her.

Here's a little hint about the "I/me/she/her/he/him" thing: When you're not sure which to use, try leaving out the other person. For example: "Him and I went to the movies" or "He and I went to the movies?" Take out "I," and you would never say, "Him went to the movies," right? So, it's "he." Easy. Works the other way, too: "Do you want to eat with Bill and me?" or "Do you want to eat with Bill and I?" You know you wouldn't ask, "Do you want to eat with I?"

I'd be a really awful teacher because I have NO PATIENCE for anyone who is not my actual offspring, but this lesson will keep you from getting a grammar citation. I don't know why I just wrote all that. I'm crabby.