Thursday, January 24, 2008

Banana, Bananna or Bannaa?

I have never been much of a speller and have therefore always been within arm’s length of a dictionary while writing essays in school, reports at work or even here while blogging. Though our blog pads all have spell checks, I will never dare compose directly into my blog without first creating it in Microsoft Word.

There are a few common words such as banana and parallel that insist on plaguing me while writing. Every time I write these plus other such words, I spell them wrong! You would think that, by the time I was in my forties, I would start getting them correct but oh no… I can’t do that now can I! I have to go back, right click on the word and choose the correct spelling… every time! Now thank goodness that Microsoft Word now has auto correct for people like me who cannot spell words they have been using for decades.

Now I know that there are individuals out there who are dyslexic so I do want to say that this problem which I have bestowed upon myself is in no way like their disability. I am also in no way poking fun at other people. People with Dyslexia have found amazing ways to deal with their disability and I take my hat off to them. But me… what’s my problem??

Another spelling problem I curse myself with is deciding whether to use the British way or American way to spell. We all know that the English language is an amalgamation of many languages but when you live so close to another country such as the U.S.A., it makes it real difficult to pick a correct spelling to use. Often, you will find me spelling words two different ways because I can never decide which one to use and besides, I always worry about some American thinking I am spelling things incorrectly or some Canadian thinking that I am a lousy speller or some British thinking I am a pathetic speller. Do I write a cheque or do I write a check? Am I an honourable person or am I an honorable person? Is red my favorite colour or is red my favorite color?

And so on…

A few yraes ago, I cmae acrsos a sudty wichh siad taht the hamun biarn dsen’ot need to wrroy aoubt irecrocnt sienlplg in oderr for it to urnndetasd the wrod as lnog as the frsit and lsat lrtetes of a wrod are in tiehr crcroet palces. Is tihs ture? You tlel me!

Wow! Does this mean that now I don’t have to worry about spelling anymore?? Wishful thinking!

So, in the future when you see a misspelled word in one of my posts, take pity on me and blame it on the fact that I am British born, Canadian raised and American influenced… That should do it!

42 comments:

virtual nexus said...

Love this post - parallel has parallel bars in the middle....
and I came across that Cambridge University research the other day on first and last letters, funnily enough! Dyspraxia has dyslexic elements but not usually the other way round...way to go, whatever colour you spell it.....!

Dave said...

Thank you Julie! You have helped me figure that one out... Now WHY didn't I think of that!!!

Have a great day! :-)

sandy said...

hahah funny post..I love the pic...in front of magnetic letter..great idea. I'm not dyslexic but I sure am dysfunctional!!

Billy said...

Ah! I love it! Nice picture!

Wanda said...

Funny Funny...This was an extremely fun post to read!!

Karen said...

I know exactly what you mean Dave? My spelling isn't the problem though. When I post I have to try and not use Aussie slang because most other people don't have a clue what I'm talking about. We spell things the British way here so that's another thing that gets me into trouble with my American friends. Throw in the odd time zone and I feel like a bump on a log a lot of the time.

Karen said...

PS That's a cute pic!!!

Cycling Goddess said...

Great post Dave, enjoyed reading it and cool pic!

I can add another dimension to this problem, I'm French Canadian so sometimes the way I write has a distinctive French twist to it :)

Monika said...

My son is dyslexic, and sometimes I think he has this inherited from me, though I'm not diagnosed. What am I going to say, I'm ESL too. I think I'll live dangerously and write my posts directly, and let the spell check do its work. My kids don't read my blog, because they squirm and roll their eyes, and tell me, I shoul say this and that differently, so they rather don't read it at all. :o) I DO try my best, and as long as people can understand me, and come back for more, that's good enough for me. :o) Darn, no spell check here.

geewits said...

I have the exact same problem! There are certain words I have to always look up. I call them the double letter words like professor, assessment, but I also have trouble with separate. I always want to spell it "seperate."
At least I don't have all the other problems. I only know American English and sometimes it's just Southern American English. But I've always spelled "grey" with the e. I have no idea why.

jAMiE said...

Sounds perfectly fine to me no wonder you are confused!

...and is it grey or gray? I can never remember...

Take care, have a great weekend!

Russell said...

Great post! I am the world's worst speller - even with the aid of a spell checker! (Is spell check one or two words???!!)

I am 53, so I have you beat by a decade! Yet I can never, never, never spell occasion right!! Just now I did what I always do - spelled it "ocassion"! Of course, I was wrong!! As always when it comes to that word!

Today I posted something on my blog and was debating whether to spell "theater" as "theatre" since that is a popular spelling, I think, in Canada or at least in some countries. I figured I would just go with the American way of spelling and let it go. I confess, though, "cheque" is most more glamorous than "check" - a word that seems so plain and ordinary as contrasted to "cheque" which sounds elegant.

I enjoy your blog. Take care.

monsoon dreams said...

hey dave,
thanks for visiting my blog.i am so glad to read urs,coz u think a lot like me.how come?feels great to meet u.

quintarantino said...

Hello Dave... having a good time are you?
As for the the banana question, put the blame on the keyboard. It was a fun post.

Anonymous said...

I like this article you have posted very much. I'm faced with this problem as well.

Sometimes I've got this feeling that after I stop using the computer for sometime, my spelling and memory improves. hmm... I'm wondering if this is related to technological advancement.

Dave said...

Hi Sandy,

dysfunctional huh? You and me both!

Hi abbagirl!

Yah, thanks for the compliment! LOL I had to convince myself to insert that photo. :-)

Hi Wanda!

I am glad you liked it. I sure enjoyed writing it.

Hi Gypsy, I know what you mean... I think us "british spellers" will always have this problem. Cute picture huh? Awww thanks! LOL

Hi Happydowntowner!

French Canadian eh? I lived in LAchine Quebec for a while and so I do believe I know what you mean. Good to hear from you! :-)

Hi Monika!

I may not be dyslexic but I do believe that I am ADHD. Unlike your kids, mine don't know about this blog but they sure do role their eyes at me a lot these days! LOL

Hi Geewits!

seperate and separate ... you gotta be kidden! I have the exact problem with thos words as well. Too funny! :-)

Hi Jamie.... I did a bit of research...

http://www.bernzilla.com/item.php?id=232

Maybe that will help the both of us! :-)

Hi Russell... Well maybe not by a decade... 5 years maybe. LOL

Yes, Theatre and Theater are two that I have to think about every time I use it. Go figure!

Hi Monsoon Dreams... Why are we alike? Maybe we have a lot in common. Time will tell. Thanks for coming by!

Hi quintarantino! Yes... It's ALWAYS the keyboard! There you go! LOL

Hi alexander! Just so you know... Nothing will ever help my spelling! LOL

Eric Valentine said...

I think most people have those spelling problems.

If I run into a problem with a word I usually break it down in my head and spell each section ~ works most times... But... :)

Great post, great blog, I like it here. As Arnold Diddlypoop said, " I vill be back!" :)

Akelamalu said...

I've never had a problem spelling but every now and again a really simple word like 'and' just doesn't look right and I have to check it! Perhaps I'm going mental. ;)

Mother of Invention said...

I still can't type "Canada" and "remember" without really thinking!
After teaching Gr. 1-4 for many years, the wrong spelling starts looking good!
I used to laugh at all the kids who used to "Rape" their presents at Christmas time!

Joy said...

Hahaha. Thanks goodness for spellcheckers. Love the accompanying photo.

I'm one of those who beats themselves up for a spelling/typo error. Anal, I know :D I think that's because growing up and studying at a private school run by nuns, it was unforgivable to commit spelling errors!

Have a lovely weekend!

Thanks for visiting Norwich Daily Photo and your kind comments. Drop by again!

joy
A Pinay In England
Your Love Coach

Gudl said...

It definitely sounds like a good excuse!!
:-)

heiresschild said...

and you know what? i was able to correctly read that misspelled sentence. wow, what does that say about me?!

as far as choosing which way to spell, i like to be different, so i will choose theatre over theater just to be different from most americans. i reply on Encarta's Dictionary to help me out.

fun post Dave!

Lo Kelween said...

ah, i don't have problem spelling parallel but i have problem pronouncing properly...it's a tongue twister itself!!!

i came from akelamalu to your blog, have a nice day!! :)

Lone Grey Squirrel said...

I think my spelling is perfect but that's because of spellcheck. In reality I always get the "e" before "i" rule confused amongst other things. In Malay, there is a famous example where mixing the letters but keeping the first and last letter fixed can still get you in trouble.

It is okay to say, "where can I find the asrama?" It is not okay in ultra religious and conservative Malaysia to say, "where can I find the asmara?" The first means "hostel" but the latter means "passionate loving".

Dumdad said...

Dave, you're not alone!

In general, I'm a good speller but there are words that persist in giving me trouble.

For example, people often get seize and siege wrong (those are the correct spellings).

Then there's accommodate - people often spell it with one m; but accumulate is correct!

And what bright spark chose the word dyslexia for people with that condition?!

K M F said...

i love this post

Becky Wolfe said...

Funny - I've always struggled with banana as well. But it seems in this day and age 'typo' is a language of its own on the internet world & people accept it generally as a way to talk without having to be so careful as to make sure its all spelled right. Although it does bug me when wrds r prposflly shrtnd by internet chatters!

sonia a. mascaro said...

Just dropping by to say thank you for your nice comment on my blog and wish to you a good weekend!

CS said...

I am a great speller, but a tragically bad typist. Which makes me look like a phenomenally bad speller. For some reason, mis-spelled words jump out at me when I see them - they have a worngness to them that I almost always cann spot instantly. I can't do this when I hear them spelled, though - it's purely visual.

jAMiE said...

Hello Dave...thanks for the research...i've read it and think i'll stick with grey.

Just stopped in to look for another post from you...hopefully you are off with your family enjoying the weekend.

Take care!

Happyone said...

I read and understood that one paragraph just fine. I'm not a very good speller either but I have gotten better just by blogging. :-)
Great post!

BBC said...

I write my posts in Word also. I guess you can say that I'm just an average speller, works for me.

And I'm often sloppy in how I pronounce words. And I put my comma's where I want to, they are my comma's if others don't like where they are they can just get their own damn comma's.

And I like to tell smug 'word smiths' that say anything to me to get a life.

The English language is crap and I like to butcher it, in as simple of words as I can.

Feel free to help me with that. :-)

Jo said...

I'm a good spellor, speeler, speller.

virtual nexus said...

Included a link to yours, if that's ok, J

Jazz said...

My word is carot... no, carrot. I can never spell it right the first time. Carrot and weird, which I always spell "ie" first.

Other than those two damn word, I'm a great speller. Go figure.

Seema B Menon said...

Hahahahah! Cute post!

Cheryl said...

I like the British spellings. Seems more exotic. Funny...I always misspell the same words. You'd think I'd learn too.

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