Oh How the Mighty Have Fallen

This week we are EXPERIENCING PUBLIC HUMILIATION. That’s not actually in the book and I’m not about to relive any public humiliation I experienced as a kid, but I do want to write about the crushing humiliation I experienced last week when I published a blog post with a glaring grammatical error in the title!

Sitting on my couch, elderly dog by my side, I was looking at the stats for the blog post. I can see not only how many visitors and views but also how they were referred, Facebook, Google, etc. and where they viewed the post from (whoever is reading this from Sweden, I thank you and question your free time.)

At this point, a certain word in the post title caught my eye. No. I quickly googled the word and its related counterpart. Then I screamed. “No!!!!” Loudly. Also at Lee, who was my proofreader. Heartbeat rapidly accelerating, I jumped in and edited the title, knowing it would only fix things locally. Any shared post would retain the title. I learned that I could not resend an already submitted post without upgrading to the “Explorer Plan” (thanks, WordPress.)

I deleted the Facebook posts, on the Before You Grow Up Challenge and my own Facebook page, including any likes or comments, which was a bummer. Ditto with LinkedIn, then shared the corrected link to both sites again. You can’t automatically post upon publishing to Instagram unless you have an Instagram Business account (thanks, Instagram) which in this case is good because those posts just link to the blog site, no issue there. Subscribers (thank you!) get the blog post emailed directly and we all know there is no retrieving that email.

Why is this high-profile grammar error is so distressing? Short answer, I’m a grammar snob. I care about words, language, and although I’m no expert (see excessive and irrational comma usage), it’s kind of my life’s work as a librarian and writer. Also, errors within the body of a blog post are easier to forgive than one in the title! Even people who never click over to actually read the post can still see an error in the title. I experienced a low-cal version of this a couple of weeks ago when it became apparent that the blog title in my draft and on the site is always in ALL CAPS but not when shared (thanks, WordPress.)

The thing is, I was embarrassed. I am embarrassed. I am not a judgy person but I can be judgy about grammar. I pride myself on knowing the correct usage for your and you’re. I don’t like when people mix up there, they’re, and their, or to and too. Google it, people! So, I was greatly distressed when I wrote breath when I meant breathe. And yet, I really wouldn’t judge you, because I know you. And I know that if you make a mistake you were either in a hurry or typed it incorrectly, and honestly, I’d just feel bad for you because, well, it sucks. And this is how I walked myself back from the edge, reminding myself (actually my sister, Emilie, reminded me after receiving a flurry of anguished texts with corresponding emojis) that some people might not notice and others wouldn’t care. For anyone who did care, that’s what I get for being a high and mighty member of the grammar police (this part is mine, not Emilie’s).

Thanks for reading and hit subscribe if you’d like to have uneditable proof of any future grammatical errors sent directly to your inbox!

Before you go…last week I forgot to include a recommendation to watch the Ken Burns documentary, The Address. Don’t worry it’s not 20 hours long, it’s 90 mins and you won’t regret it. It is about a boarding school for boys with learning disabilities that has an annual tradition of students learning about and then reciting the Gettysburg Address. We watched it on PBS Passport (see, snobby) but you can probably find it elsewhere, too.