Posted by Tania Kindersley.
Meant to say: deep thanks for the particularly kind comments you have all left this week. Have been useless at replying but DO NOT THINK THIS MEANS that I do not read and appreciate them all. There are days, in fact, when I crave comments, in a slightly worrying way.
And: I have a horrible feeling that there were some commas in the wrong place in the last post. There is nothing I can do about it since my brain has lost all rigour and even if I squint and stare I cannot see the error. I just know it is there. From one pedant to any of my fellows out there: I apologise. I know it's a beautiful thing for humans to embrace their flaws, but a misplaced punctuation mark can put one in an ill temper for hours.
Stopping now. Really.
I *think* this sentence may contain the comma issue - just that odd flavour which correctly spelt words have when you look at them too hard.
ReplyDelete"However, because I did finally manage to get to the camera shop, I have a new swanky lens, and so, after a whole week, there is finally a photograph of the south."
Loving the photos (Virgina has an uncanny resemblance to Winston-the-bull-terrier after he has eaten and has remains on his nose).
While putting the newspaper to bed last week, I corrected a headline error. In thick red marker pen. It somehow slipped through production, and spoilt my Friday. I cannot be angry with the culprit, because being involved in producing a rag - whether as subeditor, proofreader or on the production side, makes you humble: people never see the errors you spotted, only the ones you do not...
ReplyDeleteIt was a comma.
I suspect that most literate people, interested in language and punctuation, unconsciously insert correct punctuation unless the error is truly glaring. This is part of the difficulty of diligent proof-reading. Anyway, as my French granny used to say, do not derange yourself; worse things happen at sea.
ReplyDelete