The Joys of Spell Check

Some days, spell check is my best friend in the whole world. And then, on other days, I just don’t think it likes me very well.

I’ll openly admit that I am not the greatest speller. All the time growing up, I thought there would come a magical moment – possibly the day I turned 15? – that I would suddenly just know how to spell things… that and how to do multiplication. I could always recognize those ah ha! and light bulb moments when they occurred – the same that any child experiences during their education. Why would spelling be any different?

But that, as I learned the hard way, was not to be the case. Therefore, because of my lack of interest in spelling homework at a young age, I am now nearly spell check dependent. Let me tell you, it’s not fun. It’s kind of like having a handicap – except that you don’t get the perks of a special parking space.

I think my newspaper editor must buy stock in red ink pens. She has to go through a truckload every year while just correcting my assignments. Having worked together for nearly five years now, she is well aware of how spelling-impaired I am. But even at that, she couldn’t help but burst out laughing at my latest gaffe.

I’d written an article about an upcoming pre-Christmas celebration that is held annually in our community. There was a line that was supposed to describe Santa Claus coming to deliver treats to the kids on Main Street while riding a fire truck.

The line was supposed to read, “Santa will come cruising down the street to deliver goodies…”
However, instead of “cruising,” my spell check was feeling especially evil that day and changed the word to “cursing.”

After having our own personal joke, my editor asked permission to share the goofy moment on Facebook – to which I agreed, knowing that my bad spelling wasn’t that big of a secret to anyone who knows me.

A good laugh was shared by all who read the post. Responses ranged anywhere from “bad Santa,” to a general concern from parents about the color of their children’s language had that error made it into final print. However, by far, my favorite was, “I always wondered how he got away with, ‘Ho, Ho, Ho.’”

So I guess from now on I’ll have to be spell checking my spell check.

What's the worst spelling error your spell check has let slip by?