Realised during a conversation about my friend's wedding plans that I had no idea what the present active verb was for the verb with the passive "strewn". So I looked it up, and it turns out you can use "strew" or "strow". Both sound pretty weird to me, which is probably why I've never heard anyone use either of them, ever.

And now for a rant: At work we have signs everywhere. (I'm fighting a one-woman campaign to prevent our "customer commitments" to be pinned up on the inside of the toilet doors. I go to the loo for a bit of peace, for god's sake.) The level of sloppy language and grammar that I've found in my working environment upsets me.

-- "Don't be afraid to ask for the business?". This irritates me more than I can say. Surely even someone who left school at sixteen can tell this looks horrible. It's an imnperative, not an interrogative!

-- "No cash deposits or enquires". Surely that's just a typo. Although how it escaped the notice of everyone involved in the manufacturing of this official, moulded plastic, outdoor sign I do not know.

-- "Bank assurance". It's bancassurance. Tsk . Honestly.

-- "For yours and your colleagues health interests please wash your hands". This is at the branch I work in on occasional Saturdays. It's all I can do not to take an anonymous red pen to all seven of these signs.


I'm suffering real emotional distress now. I'm going to have to go and lie down.