have you checked out Summa Mamas yet? “One fun, one granola, one old…” (although the “old” mama seems to be in the market for a more um descriptive sobriquet….)
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the two sleepy mommies
have you checked out Summa Mamas yet? “One fun, one granola, one old…” (although the “old” mama seems to be in the market for a more um descriptive sobriquet….)
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Um, with respect to Elinor’s pet peeve … she has a point when it comes to formal writing. But since blogging is sometimes conversational in nature, it makes sense that bloggers occasionally write the way they might speak to you in person. I’m willing to forgive almost anything so long as the capitalization and punctuation is there.
Before we go after the earthy and personal “um”, let’s go after trendiness. As in: One. Word. Sentences. For. No. Good. Reason. Period. Full Stop.
I can take the One.Word.Sentences. effect, but only in very tiny, tiny amounts. I think it’s best used in casual writing, to try to give the feel of actual speech, to capture that kind of James T. Kirk rhythm. For example: “My husband came out, saw the front flower bed, and said ‘I thought. You came. Out here. To plant. Pansies.’ ” But it’s a “special effect” and therefore best used sparingly. The occasional “um” or “uh”, in the context of personal, casual blogging, doesn’t rile me too much either.
I know I have sinned greviously against spelling, affectation, diction, and grammar from time to time, so I don’t want to post any of my pet peeves, as I am probably guilty of all of them!
Good points, Peony. I should add that a lot depends upon who’s doing the “um”. Pansy, for instance, does it really well. It’s perfect for her. When Pete Vere does it, however, he looks like a man trying to imitate Pansy. Not cool.
HA HA HA! The mental picture of Pete Vere dressed up in a Pansy costume — complete with long hair, long skirts, and Birks — had me in stitches!
One of the charms of St Blog’s is the distinctive voices of the parishioners. The occasional “um” — and the occasional slang — sounds natural coming from Pansy, where if I did it I would sound like Al Gore trying to be hip. Every blog has its own little quiddity.