So many wonderful insights in this! Apparently the equinox has been upstaged. I just learned that the "equilux" is actually when day and night are equal, and it occurs a few days before the spring equinox, this year on March 17. Here's an explanation: https://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/equilux.html. The equinox is still the official event though.
Thanks, Fran. Really enjoyed your column this morning. I, too, still use the AP abbreviations for states. I’ve tried occasionally to use the post office versions but then I feel like I’m about to commit some minor betrayal.
As the manuscript editor for a small academic press, my constant companion is the Chicago Manual of Style, 17th edition, which is full of little tabs marking sections I consult over and over, such as how to handle numerical stuff like fractions and times of day, and endnotes citing various kinds of unpublished manuscripts. And being a devotee of the Chicago Manual, of course I am completely wedded to the Oxford comma!
Regarding the AP style guide, I found myself thinking that maybe its vast expansion over time is not such a good thing as it implies growing rigidity in how to say things.
The AP Stylebook is regularly updated to address cultural and social changes that affect the English language. For example, the latest edition has a new section on artificial intelligence. Previous updates have added guidance for language usage around everything from the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks to immigration to LGBTQ+ terminology to race and ethnicity to technology. (I still remember the great debate when the stylebook switched from e-mail to email.) Wikipedia has a nice entry on the stylebook: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/AP_Stylebook
😂I'm still laughing, delighted to find another person who loves Go dog go! and reading it to grandchildren, funny and poignant stories and jokes, and sharing heartfelt stories. Nice job!
My source on such matters, the witty "A Dictionary of Usage and Style," by Roy H. Copperud, claims Gray is the preferred spelling in America and Grey holds sway in Great Britain. As for sneaked vs snuck, hmm, no judgment on that from Roy. I'm a snuck man, myself.
Thank you Fran. I am delighted to read your post each Saturday. It fills my soul with laughter and today a few tears but always special. I see life through a similar lens. Hope someday we can enjoy a good cup of coffee together ;-)
So many wonderful insights in this! Apparently the equinox has been upstaged. I just learned that the "equilux" is actually when day and night are equal, and it occurs a few days before the spring equinox, this year on March 17. Here's an explanation: https://www.timeanddate.com/astronomy/equilux.html. The equinox is still the official event though.
Thanks for the heads up. I didn’t know that. Big fan of timeanddate.com.
Thanks, Fran. Really enjoyed your column this morning. I, too, still use the AP abbreviations for states. I’ve tried occasionally to use the post office versions but then I feel like I’m about to commit some minor betrayal.
We’ve lost so much . . . Those old state abbreviations are like reading a road map, the kind you can never fold back the right way.
Eerie timing again. Just yesterday I was looking for tickets to "The Picture of Dorian Gray" (notice the spelling), starrring Sarah Snook on Broadway.
Enjoy the show! May in England Gray is the name and grey is the color.
As the manuscript editor for a small academic press, my constant companion is the Chicago Manual of Style, 17th edition, which is full of little tabs marking sections I consult over and over, such as how to handle numerical stuff like fractions and times of day, and endnotes citing various kinds of unpublished manuscripts. And being a devotee of the Chicago Manual, of course I am completely wedded to the Oxford comma!
You and me both on the Oxford comma. I like it but AP don’t use it. Wastes too many pixels, I guess.
When I was freelance editing, I was always getting surprised by how Chicago diverged from AP.
Did you write “it’s elemental”? I like it.
Regarding the AP style guide, I found myself thinking that maybe its vast expansion over time is not such a good thing as it implies growing rigidity in how to say things.
Oh, Bill, I write all the poetry unless I credit to someone else. Thanks for the compliment!
The AP Stylebook is regularly updated to address cultural and social changes that affect the English language. For example, the latest edition has a new section on artificial intelligence. Previous updates have added guidance for language usage around everything from the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks to immigration to LGBTQ+ terminology to race and ethnicity to technology. (I still remember the great debate when the stylebook switched from e-mail to email.) Wikipedia has a nice entry on the stylebook: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/AP_Stylebook
😂I'm still laughing, delighted to find another person who loves Go dog go! and reading it to grandchildren, funny and poignant stories and jokes, and sharing heartfelt stories. Nice job!
Should be in every child’s library! My family went through two copies over two generations because the first copy fell apart from being read so much.
Yes! Same here.
My source on such matters, the witty "A Dictionary of Usage and Style," by Roy H. Copperud, claims Gray is the preferred spelling in America and Grey holds sway in Great Britain. As for sneaked vs snuck, hmm, no judgment on that from Roy. I'm a snuck man, myself.
Thank you Fran. I am delighted to read your post each Saturday. It fills my soul with laughter and today a few tears but always special. I see life through a similar lens. Hope someday we can enjoy a good cup of coffee together ;-)
Thank you for sending me your post this week. My friend Liz Nigma told me about your great post. Laurie Doner
I love it when folks like what I write!