When I first sat down to think about what I would write about for my last blog, I had a small case of writer's block. I really wanted to go out big, do something different and exciting that would tie the entire semester together. But as I stared at my computer screen, all I could think about was the amount of work I have in these upcoming weeks and when I am going to start studying for our final lab test.
My eyes kept darting between When Words Collide and the AP Stylebook on my top shelf. I was going back and forth in my mind trying to give myself a brief summary of usage, case and, of course, punctuation before I started studying.
And then it came to me.
I have never done a link to a You Tube video. People always talk about the links to their videos when we discuss our blogs in class, but I’m old fashioned; I’d always rather just write.
When I was describing this class to one of my friends, I kept calling it my punctuation class. To this day, she does not seem to understand that we do not just practice placing commas and periods in the correct spot all day. I promise I’m going somewhere with this.
So as I said, it hit me. Even though I know I have learned rules about grammar, usage, case and more that I did not even know existed, I think I will always remember this class as my punctuation class. So as my farewell, I embraced punctuation and gave in to the rest of the class. I finally got a link to a You Tube video: The Punctuation Rap.
After just a few months of my punctuation class, I already find myself thinking about punctuation more than a normal person. Just yesterday, I was taking the Dow Jones Business Reporting Internship Test (what a mouthful), and I found myself thinking about punctuation. There is a section of the test where you simply need to choose between two words and pick which better fits the sentence; usage. But for some reason, even after I completed that section I could not stop looking at it because I wanted to correct the punctuation. It was not required and was not supposed to have mistakes, but I was positive that something was wrong. Oh punctuation class, what you have done to me….
7 comments:
I agree.. but no matter how much we have learned this semester, there is still so much more to learn. My friends think I am annoying when I correct their grammar and word usage, but I am no where near being the queen.
It happens more frequent though, so if my friends get bothered I'll just blame it on j420
Haha. That rap was hilarious. I'm going to have that in my head now when I try to fall asleep. I totally blame this class for my new obsession with editing things 24/7. But like Missy said, I know there is still so much more to learn. I do appreciate what this class has offered, and I feel like its content will be extremely useful in our future careers whether it be at a publication or not.
Cute video. The quotation mark verse was the best, now I might rap that verse in my head whenever I see them, but lets hope not.
I pretty much am obsessed with grammar now, too. However, I wish I could say I correct people. I basically hear or see a word, and wonder if its right. Then I have to go check the AP Style guide. It's becoming an annoying habit.
Love the video. I also feel this class has shed some light on some things in the editing world. Everything we've learned will be useful in any job. I just hope I don't become all anal and start uneccessarily editing things
Punk, Punk, Punctuation. Thank you Jean for never making us do this. I think we learned the least about punctuation. I probably will continue to misuse commas and semicolons, but at least I know it's probably wrong.
That video was great. Punctuation is actually underrated. Without it, language would be in a lot of trouble.
I hope the world becomes inundated with punctuation music videos.
Haha. I liked the video and especially your headline. They're creative.
One thing that I wish we had done more of in class was "creative editing." The blog posts allow us to have some kind of personality in our writing (which breaking news journalism restricts). But I was hoping to learn a little more about how to write a creative headline for my blog, for instance, or how to formulate an effective opinion piece. Or, in terms of editing, what's permissible and what's not in a story or headline. We don't necessarily have to go into great detail on this, but maybe devote a class period to it.
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