ok, so I lied. My cold has been hanging on so I didn't put up my post last weekend. I didn't do much of anything in fact. Well, I did cough a lot. I am still coughing a lot actually. Can't seem to lose the cough. It's really annoying.
Right now Shelley and I are at a coffee shop. I'm a little on edge because just before we came here I watched a true crime documentary about people going crazy and going on killing sprees. I keep waiting for someone to bust through the door any second now with guns blazing. Even though I know the odds are nil that this will actually happen I can't help but coming up with contingency plans. Did any of you ever do that when you were a kid? When I was younger I used to lie in bed at night sometimes and imagine what I would do if someone broke into our house and tried to rob us. I would actually kinda get worried about it and would make up some sort of game plan.
Recently I read a study done by some research team. They were studying cleanliness in restaurants. They found that ice machines are some of the most bacteria ridden places because they are rarely cleaned out, (mind you, they tested the entire restaurant including the bathrooms). In part because many of them, especially the ones connected to soda machines, are very difficult to clean. That makes a lot of sense. I never worked in food service but that seems like something people would let slide. I mean you have to empty out all the ice to clean it and then refill it. That's a hassle. The reason why I brought this up is I have been drinking water from the cooler in the coffee shop. The dispenser is clear and there was no ice in it when I filled my glass. However, just a minute ago the coffee guy (barista seems too formal for the guy at the local Thomas Hammer) just poured two large amounts of ice out of a very suspect looking plastic bucket. Sure, the bucket did have 'ice bucket' scrawled across it in black marker but just because it is designated as something does it necessarily mean it is inherently right for the job? These are the questions of our time people. Also, if you are going the expose the 'ice bucket' to the public maybe you should make sure it doesn't look like it could have been used as the 'mop bucket' in a previous lifetime. So, I am left looking at my glass and wondering how up to snuff this local coffee shop's cleaning practices are, and all I can think of is, 'Man, I could really use a glass of water.'
ok, while I'm being kind of whiny here's another pet peeve of mine. I've been hearing it more and more lately. Probably because I've become more sensitive to it. Basically it is this: people always say 'blank and I' did this or that, even when they should say 'blank and me'. Using me is correct much of the time but for some reason people think it is incorrect. It drives me crazy. Here's an example:
Jeff and I went to the park to see Bob. ----------That is correct.
Bob went to the park looking for Jeff and me. -----------That is also correct
Here is what you will probably hear more often.
Bob went to the park looking for Jeff and I. ----------Incorrect!!!!!
One of the easiest ways to test which was is correct is to take out the person before the and, and the and itself. IF the sentence still makes sense then it is correct.
For example:
Bob went to the park looking for me.
Bob went to the park looking for I.
I hear politicians make this mistake all the time.
'The funds raised tonight have come as a great surprise to my wife Debra and I.'
Incorrect!!!!!!!!
Using 'I' sounds more formal so they use it but in fact it just means they don't know basic grammar.
Anyway, I know this is being a little picky. Shelley laughs at me because it bothers me so much. But seriously, it is everywhere! Keep your ears open. You'll hear it all the time. I don't know why it bugs me so much. My mom was really big on correcting our grammar when we were kids so that's probably it. One of my favorite stories about that is about my Aunt Jenny. When my mom was in Spain going to college, Jenny (who I think was in middle school at the time) would write her letters and my mom would send them back with corrections. That always makes me laugh. So, you can see where I might get my hypersensitivity about grammar.
But enough about that.
I'll try and get up a post tomorrow about Alex and my adventures.
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