Skip to main content

Make My Day


 

This week a friend suggested I check out a Facebook group all about soup. Yes, there are groups just for soup lovers. Who knew? Considering how much I publicly long for soup in my blog and on social media, it seemed like a very good fit.

It turns out that the greatest joy I have experienced from this group so far has come not from recipes or tantalizing photos but from posts like this:


And:

Does anyone  have a good potatoes soup, that is more brothers then creamy? Thanks in advance.

Yikes.

I am a sucker for typos and bloopers and humorous autocorrects. I grew up in a home that fostered word play. We listened over and over again to our two Kermit Schafer “Pardon My Blooper” albums on my dad’s hi-fi stereo system and got the same helpless giggles every time. Of course, the naughtier ones went over my head. (I never noticed.) Certain audio clips became catch phrases around the house, notably, 

This is an educational toy. It teaches children how to cuss.

In my late elementary years I seized upon two paperbacks of my mother’s that were collections of newspaper bloopers. I read them. And read them. Then I went around the house reading choice selections to my family members. Then I committed entire sections of the books to memory. I must have been a joy at the dinner table during those days. 

I can still recite portions of those books word for word…many years later. 

Lettuce won’t turn Brown if you put your head in a plastic bag and put it in the refrigerator.

When the baby is done drinking, unscrew and put under a cold tap. If the baby does not thrive on fresh milk, it should be boiled.

Spend your Saturday nights out on the town and your Sunday mornings in bed with a Progressive Alaskan.

Oh my. This could get out of hand.

I am so fortunate for all the people in my life who fostered my love of words and language. That’s undoubtedly why I am still writing every day. A side effect of all that ‘word love’ is the inordinate joy I take in bloopers, typos, you name it. Why, just recently:



My friend Marge, a retired journalist, has a similar fascination. We send such gems back and forth via text messaging. Some people collect antiques. We collect gaffes. Word play may never increase in value over time like physical objects, but, on the other hand, a really good typo can absolutely make my day.

Unless it’s mine, of course. 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Getting Fresh

One of my favorite days in the Spring comes when this year’s list of Farmer’s Markets is released. That happened this week. New this year are markets in Old Ellicott City and the “Merriweather Market” which, according to the address, will be located here . I mistakenly thought at first glance that it was in the new-construction part of the Merriweather District. I find the name confusing considering its actual location. I’m going to guess that this market is an initiative of the Howard Hughes Corporation because the name seems chosen more for branding purposes than anything else.  Alas, the market in Maple Lawn is gone. The thread on the markets on the County Executive’s FB page will provide you with quite the education in who actually runs the Farmers Markets vs what people often think is going on. Short answer: they are not  chosen nor run by the county. Each market is an independent entity, sometimes started by community volunteers, other times supported by local businesses...

They Can Wait

This is not a typical Saturday post. That’s because, in my community, it’s not a typical Saturday.  Oakland Mills High School, after years of deferred repair, needs massive renovation. It’s pretty simple: when you don’t fix a problem it gets bigger. The school system itself said the the OMHS school building was  "no longer conducive to learning" back in 2018.  2018 .  But Thursday the Boad of Education voted to push it out of the lineup of important projects which will be given the go-ahead to proceed soonest.  In my opinion it’s a terrible decision and sets a dangerous precedent. To explain, here’s the advocacy letter I sent in support of Oakland Mills High School. I was rather proud of it. I am writing to ask you to proceed with needed renovation at Oakland Mills High School in the most timely and comprehensive manner humanly possible. I have read the letter sent to you by the Oakland Mills Community Association and I am in complete agreement. You are extremel...

What Kids Are Thinking

  It’s a Monday in February, and if you guessed that a lot of Howard County students have the new cell phone policy on their minds, you’d be right. It will mean big changes and it will be stressful, no matter how much good we hope it will do in the long run. But on this particular Monday cell phones might not be top of mind, as amazing as that seems. Some kids will go to school wondering if they or family members will be seized by ICE. Some will fear that their parents’ employment will be purged by the ongoing rampage of Elon Musk and his cronies through Federal Government. Some fear heightened and renewed racism as programs that supprted Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion are vilified and destroyed.  Some worry that it soon won’t be safe for them to use the bathroom in school anymore. It goes without saying that some kids fear going to school every day because of the prevalence of school shootings.  And look! Here’s something new to fear. That old hate group, Libs of TikTo...