I just got a news release here at the paper that seems like it was just MADE for me and my blog readers. And, like the title of my post says, I'm not sure whether I'm flattered or... just slightly insulted!
It's from local writing/editing coach Cindy Kalinoski.
A new seminar unveils a local writer's passion to eliminate "York-isms" from business writing. The seminar, entitled "The English Makeover," addresses the 15 most common writing mistakes, beginning with the errors most often found in our area.The seminar's creator, Cindy Kalinoski of The Word Helper, says, "If you're in York County for more than a year or so, you're likely to catch yourself saying these incorrect phrases. It's just part of the regional language. But that doesn't mean professionals can make these mistakes, so I'm determined to help them stop using 'York-isms,' at least in writing. At home, it's okay to communicate informally, but when we're representing our employers, we need to use correct language."
In the seminar, the first mistake under this category is leaving out the phrase "to be." If you've grown up in York, you've probably said something such as, "My house needs painted," not realizing this is incorrect. The proper way to express this would be: "My house needs to be painted."
The second error in the York-isms list addresses a common mix-up between the verbs "let" and "leave."
"There is a lot of confusion about these words locally," observes Kalinoski. "Rather than,'She let a message on his voicemail,' we should say, 'She left a message.' If you're trying to allow something or to dismiss or move past a subject, the popular way to say this locally is, 'I left it go,' when letting something go is correct. There are many different uses for these verbs, so with local usage, it's no wonder people often use the wrong one."
Want to go? Check out TheWordHelper.com.
And, if you're interested in reading more about one of Cindy's topics, check out this previous post:
· Aug. 18, 2007: You let my bad grammar alone
Joan,
Why can't people just let us enjoy 'our' York-isms? (I type that with a grin) Trust me, go anywhere in the country, have a short conversation with any local there and after a few minutes, one of them will ask..."Are you from Pennsylvania (or York or Lancaster...)? We know subconsiously that we speak differently and can have fun laughing about it. Personally, I would take this article you received and run with it. Make it into something fun for the whole of York to read and comment on. I will never lose my York 'accent', no matter where in the world I am. OK, enough rambling. Thanks for the forum.
Auf wiedersehen!
Mark
Don't worry; I doubt we'll succeed in eliminating "York-isms" from the local vocabulary. And who would want to? I find them endearing, with the exception of the tendency of some to say things like "Where's the turkey at?".
They can be cute verbally. But in writing? Not so much. That's one reason why I developed the seminar. It's only one of 15 Mistakes You'll Never Make Again, but it gets the biggest laugh next to the No Typos section.
Cindy Kalinoski