About once a week I amuse the grammar troops by torturing some aspect of the language in my writing. Hey, I don’t do it on purpose and I love that I’m able to provide an otherwise cuddly group of individuals with a steady flow of chuckles.

I’ve had this post in the back of my mind for some time, but I was prompted to write it today by a LinkedIn status update I saw yesterday. (Name of victim withheld) – “Excited to attend my first titter conference today.” In the always on, say what’s on your mind, send it, but you can’t take it back world we live in, we could all take a moment from LOLing. (This is not me throwing stones, I am definitely guilty.)

It’s funny how minor mistakes can slow down and even alter the meaning of something we write.

Here’s my A team, all-world, really bad typo story. I was working on an annual report for a very large non-profit agency. In the report there was a sentence that was to refer to the organization’s work and gifts on behalf of underserved families. However, the sentence actually spoke glowingly about their work and gifts given to undeserved families. Kind of different, oops.

I would love to hear your grammar and type horror stories. Seems like a good Friday outlet. Share them in the comments.

Here’s the list of resources I turn to whenever I get the urge to keep the grammar police at bay for a day.

Grammar Girl’s – Quick and Dirty Tips – Mignon Fogerty’s awesome podcast

Elements of Style – William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White – I like this illustrated version with Maira Kalman

Eats, Shoots & Leaves – The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation by Lynne Truss

Image credit: Loopzilla