RE: watch your language! (or don't)

["Susan W. Gallagher" <sgallagher5 -at- cox -dot- net>]

See, I get mostly just the opposite reaction. Someone says, "how are you?"
and I say, "I'm well, thank you," and they look at me funny. Or I use the
possessive before a gerund or subjunctive case and they look the quizzical
bird, head cocked to one side, eyes squinted. <g> Heck! I can't even sing
along with the song "Homeward Bound" -- every time Simon & Garfunkle sing
"...I wish I was..." I'm singing "...I wish I *were*..." at the top of my
lungs! <g> As a result, I often find myself dumbing down my casual
conversation -- catching those obscure rules like possessive before gerund
or adverb where adjective is more colloquial and making a deliberate mistake
just to make people feel more comfortable.

Weird, huh?

-Sue Gallagher


> diotima said:
>
> > do writers and editors on this list ever feel pressure to speak
> > "correctly" at all times when at work? ...to always speak in
> > grammatically correct sentences...
> >
> Poster replied:
> Yes. I get judged on it all the time and as a result you feel like you
> can never let your hair down. *shrugs* Some folks don't seem to
> understand the difference between formal and informal ...
>


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