Defendant: Cabot’s Florist, Long Island.
Count 1: Misdemeanor spelling.
Count 2: Reckless disregard for the nomenclature of one’s own profession; a misdemeanor.
Count 3: Displaying said error on a double-sided sign in a high-traffic venue.
Count 4: Presumably going to and from work and not noticing this.
Report: While engaged in a search for the local Salvation Army chapter, Officer “Mighty Rerun” of the Long Island Grammar Constabulary spotted the transgression in the Patchogue/Medford area of Route 112. No chase was necessary – as signs do not move – and the incident was captured on digital media.
Fine: $175, delivered the next day if you order before 10am.
Brian Sack
I started Banterist in 2003 after this conversation with my cat. It led to all sorts of good things.
I recommend the culprit be pardoned, based on one of my favorite quotes: “It is a damn poor mind indeed which can’t think of at least two ways to spell any word.” (Andrew Jackson)
You should totally change that sign to “Sore Yak OB”. People are always looking for bovine gynecologists.
Saw these 2 hand drawn signs in the BVI (where I live in the winter):
1) On a coke machine in front of a supermarket: “This machine don’t take no pennys.”
2) In the window of the main supermarket: “We got flowers. We got roses. We got daisies.”
haha, they probably lost the Qs or couldn’t find the Us.
wow, and love that Frappr map! just added it to my blog.
You’re kinder than I would have been. Reckless disregard for the nomenclature of one’s own profession should be a felony, punishable by the application of thorns.
But that’s just me.
Well, this could be a ‘whimsical’ spellng, which may be considered twice as egregious.
(See here: http://www.quotedb.com/quotes/793 )
More investigation is required.
It’s pronounced “bucket.”
found you through the pants eBay listing. Love your humor–I’m sure I’ll be stopping by often.
Cheers,
Jared
Painted on the side of a dustbin (how does that translate?) near my home in London, four words, two mistakes. All wrapped up with threatening language. It says:
Thief
This
Your
Dead
This “offender” is due a pardon. Although bouquet is the true and correct spelling, within the floral industry the “bokay” spelling is appropriate. As a former floral worker bokay works better for the average knucklehead on the street. If I had a dollar for each oxygen thief who asked me for a floral banquet, I could afford Starbucks.
[ Clemency denied! I don’t believe we should pander to dummies. It creates more dummies, then they come here and leave comments. See the Paris Hilton post comments for example. -B]
It’s pronounced “bucket.”
But I’m sure it’s a first-class stamp establishment…
You said ‘oxygen thief’!! I love it! You know what they say, any addition to your vocabulary must be used in the next 48 hours to be retained. Hmmm… there’s a mouth-breather holding up the check-in line because he can’t operate the touch-screen kiosk at the Southwest ticket counter! Here goes nothing.
“If you can’t check in for a flight, you may be an oxygen thief.”
Ahhh… the benefits of the Banterist. I’m glad that stumbled upon you. Almost better than the Onion!! (http://www.theonion.com)
Are we sure this was not a special Halloween sign?
Boo! ‘Kay?
Well hell, they would have mispelled that as well. Nevermind.
I believe we were all expected to adopt that spelling any minute now circa 1960, along with “thru,” when newspapers were already printing such things as “cigaret” and “employe.”
“Bokay residence, lady of the house speaking”
After reading the comments related to the Paris Hilton, I am swayed.
May the streets run a frothy pink with the drool and blood of the oxygen thieves.
But seriously…
i thnk thiz site iz so kewl. kp up the good wrk! rawk!
Funny site, funny stuff! The sad part about these errors are when you read them on political signs and such. Where did these people go to school?
I was born in Patchogue….but I can spell.
Thank you Grammar Cop.
I sleep a little better at night knowing you are protecting us from these gross offenders. Haven’t these people heard of spell check? It werks.
literide – excellent. That was pure funny, but I thought it was Bucket?
Agree that clemency should be denied, op cit.
I think Cabot should fire his/her Florist. Maybe Paris Hilton would hire him/her/trans.
All I can say is I LOVE the Grammar Cop. I teach Freshman Writing, and visiting this site makes my job seem more and more worth the effort.
Can’t this reckless disregard for proper spelling be assumed as intentional? Maybe gross misspelling is coming back into vogue… I thought that long ago, it became cool to approve of something by saying it’s “oll korrect”… which was shortened to O.K., which eventually became “okay”. I thought about this the other day when I saw “won’t” printed in a newspaper without the apostrophe. It’s a pointless contraction: if you expand it you get “wo not”, which I’m sure lots of grammar cops will jump on. If it can’t be expanded, it shouldn’t be contracted, so why not just spell it “wont”?
Found some grimly unintentional humor near the OSU campus here in Ohio several years ago. The storefront of the building that housed the Planned Parenthood clinic was being rehabbed, and there was a handlettered sign posted on the front which read: “Planned Parenthood – use rear entrance!”. No grammatical errors per se, but I did wonder how many college students wished they would have thought of that first…
Graffiti seen next to a Condom vending machine:
“For refund, insert baby.”
The last comment reminded me of this.
The flowers are gathered from nature when they are just at the point of perfection and it is important that the flowers are free from any toxins and preservatives.