Don’t Kick Food!

use/utilize
Use the word use. Utilize is the awkward verb form of the obsolete adjective utile.

literally/figuratively
Literally means in an exact sense. Figuratively means metaphorically or in a manner of speaking.

Right
The furnace literally exploded.

Right:
He was so furious he figuratively blew his stack.

Wrong:
He was so furious he literally exploded.

It’s delightful, that sentence demonstrating proper use of “figuratively”.

Also, the first sentence of this entry:

regardless
This is a word. Irregardless is nonstandard and should be avoided.

And from the “It’s like Freedom Fries, only more Revolutionary War” department:

toward/towards
Toward is standard U.S. usage; towards is the predominant form in British English and should be avoided.

I got a little excited the day that I found out about the existence of the University of Pittsburgh Style Guide.

I like language (though not in a Word Watch sense – though that is a post in and of itself), and I’m pretty sure “Familiarity with University Style” is good to have on any application for a job here at Pitt.

Today, I came across this bit:

PITTSBURGHESE

“Avoid the use of Pittsburghese, as in the following:
The clothes need washed.
The dog needs out.

Say/write instead:
The clothes need to be washed.
The dog needs to go out.”

As far as I can tell, it’s the only time where the guide explicitly states the rule applies to spoken as well as written communication.

1. Overindulge in energy boosting drinks (processed sugar and caffeine 4 lyfe!)
2. Place headphones in ears
3. Close browser, turn off phone ringers, close messaging services
4. Select Born to Run on mp3 player
5. Turn mp3 player up very loud to block out all potential distractions
6. Realize that you may be singing along at your desk
7. File
8. Crash (processed sugar and caffeine may not have been the best idea)

I promised myself I would post multiple times a week on this blog – Youtube embeds count.

While some ’spies post about philosophy and TV shows (one that has been on my list of shows to watch for a while now – the only thing standing between me and apparent total TV bliss is the fact that I can’t get through the first episode…) or their dreams (ranting about phones in an office where the cubicles have been disassembled and are being cleaned by the workers – my subconscious requires no full post!), I will copypaste this spam comment I received on a post written back when this blog was nothing more than a class project:

Soacegofe | gerifnkkoq@peugeot-club.org | IP: 158.144.44.202

Hi
A balance transfer is the act of transferring debt from one credit card to another assuming the newer card has better terms and rates.
What do you think about balance transfer credit cards

Good luck

As long as the spambots can’t open doors….

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