Strange Language

Isn’t modern written language strange? For the most part I can understand the reasoning, bearing in mind that the cost of texting demands that we abbreviate words, but when I come across blatant misuse I get slightly miffed. What is the point of all that English language education if we don’t use it?

I guess Kids R Us and Toys R Us are gimmicky ways of promoting themselves, I mean that’s a case of ‘once seen, never forgotten’. Kids do remember, I only hope they also remember what their teachers tell them.

Using the word heart instead of love amazes me. I guess it’s an attempt at humour, or maybe it’s merely a way of expressing a feeling but surely ‘I heart you’ doesn’t have the same impact as ‘I love you’. Can you imagine a couple in the throes of courtship, embracing each other with the words ‘I heart you, darling’. Still, this is about the written word not the spoken one but am I right or wrong in thinking we write as we speak. Yeah … Ooops!

And then there are words like hugz. Why change the s to z? It’s not even text speak so where’s the sense in that … it doesn’t even save a space when texting. One that made my blood curdle, and raised this whole issue in my mind, was a sign seen recently over a new hairdressing salon …. Fanci Stylz …. I kid you not.