I was reading an advertisement today about a country property. Yeah, we would like to buy property in the country but can't really afford it right now, so I just peruse ads on the net....
The ad said, "pieceful setting." Yes, there is a red line underneath that word, "pieceful." Do you know why? Please say you do!
Well, it's because it's spelled, "peaceful" not, er, the other way.
I get text messages from my kids often; I mean OFTEN! I read one the other day that had words like, "yea" and "yay!" in it.
I don't mean that I never make mistakes. But there is a difference between a mistake out of carelessness or getting distracted while writing. It's a whole different thing when the child writing the text doesn't realize that "yea" sounds like "yay!" Consider me frustrated.
I often also see, "yeah" misused and the usual "they're, their, there."
So, I have a friend who has a degree in English. He is gifted at finding adjectives to exclaim at one upon exit. It's wonderful to hear words besides, "cool, great" or the all too boring overused, "nice" and "good." (If you ever have time, look up the etymology of the word "nice").
I have heard him say, "have an exceptional day!" I dug that one. Exceptional huh? That would be nice. (ahem ;)
Another friend, well really a friend of my sis in law's, uses "delicious." That is a fun one! "Have a delicious day!" Or, "I am delicious" in response to "how are you?"
I guess I am just hoping to encourage all of us, including me, yes, to expand our word usage. The English language is amazing because it has so much of so many other languages mixed in. It has a huge vocabulary and we have become a lazy society in terms of the words we use and how we (mis)use them.
Please, I know there are other problems we are trying to deal with in society; huge ones. The dumbing down of our language is simply a co-effect of our underlying moral decay. How is that you ask? That is for another day.
As the exceptional J. Vernon McGee used to say, "may God richly bless you my beloved."
IHS,
rachel rivero
