More pop culture goodness and a grammar lesson

[raybear]

1. Did anyone alive actually buy Natalie Merchant's last CD (Motherland) and if so, was it any good?

2. The following songs seems to play in every grocery store in the Chicago area when I'm there shopping: Jewel's Standing Still; Vanessa Williams and Brian McKnight's "Love Is"; something from Rod Stewart circa 1993; Phil Collins's "Groovy Kind of Love".

3. Was TLC really working on an album, or did they throw that isht together this summer using outtakes and answering machine messages recorded by Left Eye?

4. I hereby ban the phrase "this is the remix". No artist is allowed to title an album with it, nor are they allowed to say it an any point in a song.

5. How long do you think the trend of people buying CD's based on car commercials will last?

Today's Grammar Lesson: When making a word possessive, the rule is to use an "apostrophe s" unless the word is already plural AND ends in "s". If the word just ends in S, but is not plural, you add an apostrophe S, not just an apostrophe. (e.g. Venus's, Mr. Jones's, bus's) Think of it phonetically. You say both S's, so write both S's.

I thought this lesson was covered very early on the American grammar career, but I think people forgot it the year after and I've been fighting this battle since middle school. Of course, I had a rather fascist and highly passionate drill sergeant of an English teacher for most of my schooling. But I won't give up. Tomorrow's lesson: the predicate nominative!

Comments

[the-passives.livejournal.com]

Natalie Merchant inspires my homicidal tendencies

[raybear.livejournal.com]

so....that's a thumbs down?

[ex-divalibby633.livejournal.com]

*shamefaced*

I'm guilty of that grammar mistake.

sorry.

[raybear.livejournal.com]

no shaming or blaming! only learning. ;P

[legalmoose]

Unless adding the extra syllable would be awkward, then you only put on the apostrophe.

i.e., Jesus' wine; Moses' ark; New Orleans' restaurants.

[limenal.livejournal.com]

So...it's discretionary? I've been struggling with this for years.

[legalmoose]

Depends on the reference text you use. Unlike France we have no one, central authority on "official" language for English, so the rules frequently have variations.

[raybear.livejournal.com]

That's not the lesson I learned. What exactly would be the definiton of awkward in this context? Personally, Jesus's wine or Moses's ark doesn't seem awkward at all.

I even was nerdy and looked up the rule on a couple websites, including these:
The English Professor
Lesson Tutor

[legalmoose]

I was using the Gregg reference manual from one of our secretaries.

I'll have to see what Strunk and White say on it - they're my usual source and bible for such things.

[vfc.livejournal.com]

Okay, here goes (keep in mind I work with AP style):

's unless:

1. It is a proper noun that ends in s ("I think Jesus' beard is sexy.")
2. It is a common noun that ends in s that is followed by a word beginning with s ("I'm sick of listening to that actress' story.")
3. It is a noun that is plural in form but singular in meaning (i.e. mathematics, measles)
4. It is a plural noun ending in s ("That is the the room the girls share. It is the girls' room.")

[raybear.livejournal.com]

I never learned AP -- only MLA. But I can get behind this because there are concrete rules to follow, versus just a general "at your discretion" or "it seems awkward" way of grammar.

I heard you preferred gouging out your eyeballs instead of watching 'Dancer in the Dark'. I too am deferring from the Harry Potter viewing tomorrow afternoon, and I might walk down to Second Hand Tunes and other things near your neck of the woods. Want to do something in the afternoon and/or do something in the evening involving the new episode of Simpsons?

Off to watch Bjork get iced!

Re:

[vfc.livejournal.com]

Maybe. My parents are coming sometime in the morning/early afternoon to drop off some stuff for me, but I'm not exactly sure when. Maybe gimme a call before you leave on your ventures. I doubt I'm game for Simpsons viewing. I have a long-distance telephone date around 7. Heh.

[penpusher.livejournal.com]

1. I just heard the couple of songs she did on Letterman from it. I never heard it on the radio or any of the Video Networks. I wasn't impressed by the "single" she did... and I guess no one else was either.

2. They have a music service that psychologically plans out what songs are more conducive to buying. Apparently, sentimental and/or upbeat but not overpowering sounds are helpful in getting shoppers in the proper frame of mind for purchasing.

3. Actually, TLC was planning the album at the time of Left Eye's death, but I don't know how far along they were with the recording sessions. I think they had started to go into the studio, but they couldn't have done much. Does this mean the next album will be by TC?

4. Good luck with this one! I'm hoping this remix trend will end, but as long as WinMX and KaZaA, etc. exist, artists will want to do more with their music. Though I think that only makes such music share services even more popular.

5. As long as WinMX and KaZaA, etc. exist... oh, wait! People are actually BUYING those CDs?

Try not to ever split your infinitives. ;)

[raybear.livejournal.com]

Wow, your information in #2 is awesome. I want to read more about these music services. Once I read an article in an airplane magazine about some sort of color insitute that studies trends in colors and makes plans for the upcoming years! There are people sitting around in a room deciding that mauve and taupe will be big in 2005. So strange.

I should probably have mentioned in my post that my grammar lessons don't necessarily apply to livejournal posts -- I'm often guilty of numerous errors in my entries, like ending sentences with prepositions.

[softheartedgrrl.livejournal.com]

#1-Motherland was the worst of the three cds she put out so far, I think. I never listen to it. It's very dull, I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.

songs you know all the words to...

[sharkysmachine.livejournal.com]

the top songs i *always* hear in wal*mart in the middle of the night...

1) can't fight the moonlight/leanne rimes
2) cruisin'/gwen and huey
3) keep on loving you/REO speedwagon
4) sara/starship
5) find 100 hundred ways/ james ingram?
6) woman needs love/ gay...errr ray parker jr.
7) superman/five for fightin'
8) with every beat of my heart/ taylor dayne
9) hot hot hot/ buster poindexter
10)ALL I FUCKING NEED/ JACK MUTHERFUCKING FRISCO JONES WAGNER!!!


8)

[kisha.livejournal.com]

Mitsubishi has the best songs, so i've been downloading them.
i mean, how could anyone hate 'days go by'?

[wearemany.livejournal.com]

AP style says, essentially, when in doubt, use fewer characters. so, Chris' dog, but the exception is that the quick brown fox's collar still gets an apostrophe-s.

i'm not saying i totally disagree with the use of it. i just don't like it much. :)

[katemosey.livejournal.com]

Well, as long as we're handing out advise on grammar, I've got a good one.

It's called the conditional tense and it is "If I were ... " NOT "If I was."
that drives me crazy.

"I wish I were ... " NOT "I wish I was ..."

etc ... etc ... etc ...
And I agree, Strunk and White's Elements of Style is a great resource on such matters.

[raybear.livejournal.com]

Strunk and White was the bible of all english classes in english. My best friend is supposedly a writer but he had NEVER heard of it. I don't trust he can really be a writer, even though he seems to be able to pay rent by doing so. Of course, he's a journalist, and they're a different breed.

[raybear.livejournal.com]

um, I meant "in high school."