thoughts on grammar

Anyone who knows me knows I'm a stickler for grammar/spelling, etc. I confess one of my major pet peeves is poor grammar---perhaps because it's something we all learn in elementary school and because writing is one of the primary ways we present ourselves to others. It can be a horrible first impression if you can't grasp the simplest of rules. I'd love to take this opportunity to go over the most common/glaring mistakes.

Lesson 1: Your & You're
Your denotes possession, i.e. "I love your sweater."(think of his, hers, its, theirs--these all denote possession without using an apostrophe!!)
You're = you are. The apostrophe alerts you to a missing letter, the "a." For example, "You're going to the movies with me tonight." In the same vein, it's = it is.

Lesson 2: To, Too, and Two
To is a preposition, i.e. "We are going to the mall."
Too means also, i.e. "She likes pink, too."
Two is a number, i.e. "We have two daughters."

Lesson 3: Should have
I swear if I read one more thing that says, "I should of studied more." That makes ZERO sense. It should instead read, "I should have studied more." Of is a preposition and doesn't belong in that sentence. Period. End of story.

I will have to ponder on some more and add them later. Or feel free to submit your own!

I realize some people think this is really silly, but if I was trying to hire someone for a job and saw mistakes like these on a resume, cover letter, etc., I'd run the other way. It amazes me how some people got through elementary school, high school, and college without ever fully comprehending these basic rules....although I did work in the Millsaps Writing Center and we were encouraged not to correct students' grammar errors. I think the general consensus was it was a waste of our time, and if those people didn't know their grammar by then, they would never learn it at all....