This week’s Correctionists post features a pet peeve rather than an actual error:
I’m not sure if the creator of this sign knows the actual spelling of the word “cruise.” I suspect he does. But it almost irks me more if he willingly chose to spell it incorrectly.
Why spell something wrong on purpose? Is Z that much cooler than S?
The Correctionists. Keeping the blogosphere safe from grammatical and spelling errors, one post at a time. For more from the Correctionists, please visit Amy, Jana, and Kelly.
{ 31 comments… read them below or add one }
Hee! Z is way cooler than s- obviously. :)
Z is definitely cooler than S. But maybe they just ran out of Ss? Though I’d have reversed the Z instead of using it as-is.
I know, I don’t get it either! I take my son to Kids Kuts. Or is it Kids Kutz? Why do people think “k’s” and “z’s” take the kake?
They wouldn’t be able to trademark Kids Cuts, hence the Zs.
I tell my husband that I will never, ever shop in a store titled “Kozy Kottage,” no matter how alluring their antiques might be. Intentional misspellings to be cute (kute?) or clever (klever) Make. Me. Gag.
It is annoying unless you are driving and playing the alphabet game (the one where you have to find signs with each of the alphabet), and the a sign with Z is worth a cheer.
You just made my day!
Haha! Slamdunk made me laugh. When I see these signs I always laugh inside and pointedly make fun of them with my husband. Perhaps, though, the purpose is working? They are getting attention!
The Correctionists? How did I not know this existed? I am beyond thrilled – love the idea. Off to check out the others…
Maybe they used up all the S’s for the sign above? :)
Z is definitely cooler than S, though S is no nerd. But this is a pet peeve of mine as well. I especially hate it when Cs are replaced with Ks. For instance, ‘Kool Kids Klub’ is something I get to see in signage every day. (And yeah, the apostrophe is missing, too.) AHHHHHHH.
We have a Kleen Kars dealership in my area. Why couldn’t they have just spelled it right? It would have been just as alliterative…
We get the more traditional “cruz” in my neck of the woods. I loathe it!
Can you cruize in to buy new shooze. I bet there are some ladies who would go there to buy a pair of Jimmy Chooze.
:)
I think Z gives S an inferiority complex.
There was a Kidz Korner preschool near me a few years back. It didn’t matter how highly recommended it was, if they can’t spell kid’s Corner, they aren’t educating my kids.
It’s incredibly annoying but yes, somehow in popular culture, Z is cooler than S. Who knew there was a coolness scale for the alphabet? There is a chapter in Cinderella Ate My Daughter about how Girlz, under the guise of girl power, has become a symbol for inappropriate toys and programming. Have you read that? I know Baby Sister is not making cultural choices yet, but very interesting.
I have that book on my to read pile. I got it before I had a daughter and now it seems even more compelling.
Maybe too much time on Words With Friends has got some of us generalizing our need to win into thinking that a z is worth more than s… even on a sign. I’m more bothered by “SmarketS” I don’t think that’s a real word.
Words with Friends is my current favorite time suck. Sadly, my Scrabble abilities don’t seem to be improving.
Did you see the shameful typos I found at the San Diego Air & Space Museum last week? And their refusal to fix them? We need to send a team of Correctionists there!
http://perfectingmotherhood.wordpress.com/2011/08/30/interrupting-learning-with-typos-at-the-san-diego-air-space-museum/
Totally! Uze of “Z” az a way to drive home a point iz zo annoying! ;)
Okay, we’ve done the Zs. How about the inappropriate Ys? Like, we really need to do somethingye about that too, Krysten.
These comments are hilarious!
In defense of the ‘z’ I think people do it for street cred. Makes them feel like they’re connecting with the younger generation. Word.
This would make a good reality tv show! “The correctionistz” A team of red penned grammar super heroes coming to save the day.
Not the same, but made me think of a road sign in a construction zone that said something like “My mommy works here. Slow down” but the “s” in “works” is backward.
I am actually more irritated by ten being spelled out, which is bad enough on its own, but all the more egregious next to 8 p.m.
Perhaps the finest people in the Valley prefer z to s. And because of that, perhaps they are not as fine as initially thought. =>
At least they used “till” correctly. Till is a conjunction, representing until. Bugs me when people write til. Til is a noun. Just saying.
The interpretation of till as a conjunction of until isn’t entirely correct. Till actually predates until; the prefix (meaning up to) was added later; the second L was dropped off later still.
Till is also a noun (as in a store’s cash drawer, or glacial deposits) and a verb (as in to prepare land for planting).
Til as a noun is quite uncommon. It has only one meaning, and a rather esoteric one, at that. Unless you are particularly interested in Indian varieties of sesame.
One day all these things will become alternate (than preferred?) spellings.
Just like nuculer.