Unfinished Words

Last winter/spring/summer, I collected yogurt lids in the hope of getting the right letters to win a beach vacation.  I didn't get them.  But I did end up with tons of lettered lids in my desk drawer at work.  When I left my job, I saved the lids so I could use them for an elaborate art project for my then-boyfriend.  When we broke up, I saved the lids because I couldn't bear to throw out the results of such a sustained effort toward something.  When I moved out of my apartment, I finally got rid of the lids, but first I took this picture because I didn't want the letters to have been a complete waste:

All of those letters scattered on the floor made me realize something: sometimes you have to go through a lot of wrong words before finding the right one.  And also, I ate a lot of yogurt last year.

I Like Words

You always read about people who've taken a creative, bold, and usually seemingly silly approach to getting hired and ultimately reaching their goals, and you think, Well, sure, it worked for this guy/gal, but that's the exception.  I don't really feel like an exception.  (Maybe you don't think exactly that because you don't use the word "gal," but you get the idea.)

But these days, these acts of "nonconformity," if you want to call them that, are actually so abundant that they've almost become the norm.  So why haven't I done something like it yet?  Why haven't I written a letter like this one (that, in 1934, probably was a little more unique)?

I guess it's because I feel like these ploys are gimmicky, and I shouldn't have to stoop so low as to stand out based on my tactic.  I should be successful based purely on my talent. 

Of course, there's the argument that people who come up with these tactics are obviously creative and talented.  And then also the one about who cares how you were discovered, because in the end the important thing is that you were.

Both very good arguments.

Grammatically Incorrect Words

In years past, I may have delighted in today's holiday, smug in the knowledge that even if I sometimes break grammar rules, I almost always know them.  I may have felt a little sad for the future, acknowledging that writing the possessive its with the apostrophe is becoming so common that it may soon become acceptable (I mean, I hope it doesn't, but you never know).

But this year I've decided not to gloat about the fact that I understand when to use "your" and "you're."  I've decided not to write about funny grammatical errors other have made.  Instead, I'm celebrating by remembering that, while fairly important (at least to me), proper grammar isn't everything.

Tomorrow, I will go back to making fun of people who can't distinguish between a comma and a period.  Today, I will just wish you a happy National Grammar Day.