March 4 is National Grammar Day, and this is our National Grammar Day Post — enjoy!
Facts
National Grammar Day was established in 2008 by Martha Brockenbough. Who is she? She is the author of Things That Make Us (Sic) and the founder of the Society for the Promotion of Good Grammar. As you see, President George Bush sent a letter commemorating the day.
Fears
Although there is no “grammarphobia” (fear of grammar) or “punctuatiophobia,” here are some things that might make National Grammar Day scary:
allodoxaphobia – fear of opinions
bibliophobia – fear of books
didaskaleinophobia – fear of going to school
epistemophobia and gnosiophobia – fear of knowledge
graphophobia – fear of writing
lalophobia – fear of speaking
logophobia – fear of words
metrophobia – fear of poetry
papyrophobia – fear of paper
scolionophobia – fear of school
scriptophobia – fear of writing in public
sesquipedalophobia and hippomonstrosesquipedalophobia – fear of long words
Faves
On the other hand, celebrants of National Grammar Day might have these traits:
bibliophile – lover of books
logophile – lover of words
philologist – lover of words
philosopher – lover of knowledge
Fests
Here are some other holidays you might want to celebrate:
January 23 – National Handwriting Day
February 5 – World Nutella Day (irrelevant, but who can leave it out!)
February 14 – Library Lovers Day
March 2 – Read Across America Day
March 8 – National Proofreading Day
March 13 – Smart and Sexy Day
April 2 – International Children’s Book Day
April 13 – Scrabble Day
April 14 – Dictionary Day
April 23 – English Language Day/ Talk Like Shakespeare Day (and his birthday)
May – Take a break
June – You need a longer break
July 17 – World Emoji Day
July 31 – Paperback Book Day
August 2 – National Coloring Book Day
September 8 – International Literacy Day
September 24 – National Punctuation Day
October 5 – World Teachers Day
October 18 – Dictionary Day
November 1 – National Authors’ Day
December 21 – Crossword Puzzle Day
Fanfare
Ways to celebrate National Grammar Day:
- Buy a grammar book (hint, hint)
- Buy a grammar mug or tee-shirt
- Drink a grammartini:
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The Grammartini
National Grammar Day founder, Martha Brockenbrough, shares her grammartini recipe:
2 1/2 oz gin
1/2 oz dry vermouth
1 green olive (Some people use lemon.)
Pour the ingredients into a mixing glass filled with ice cubes.
Stir or shake for 30 seconds.
Strain into a martini glass.
Drink
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Faux Pas
Here are two ways NOT to celebrate National Grammar Day (even after you have drunk a grammartini or two).
- Correct a friend’s grammar on social media.
- Correct a friend’s grammar in person.
Famous Words
“Nostalgia is like a grammar lesson: you find the present tense but the past perfect!” ~Attributed to both Owens Lee Pomeroy (1929–2008) and Robert Orben (b.1927)
“Grammar is a piano I play by ear, since I seem to have been out of school the year the rules were mentioned. All I know about grammar is its infinite power.” ~Joan Didion, “Why I Write,” 1976
“A double negative is a no-no. ” ~Author unknown
“Do not be surprised when those who ignore the rules of grammar also ignore the law. After all, the law is just so much grammar.” ~Robert Brault, rbrault.blogspot.com
Quotes courtesy of The Quote Garden.
Happy National Grammar Day, Everyone!
Next Week: Part 2 of the “Exception”al Verbs
What is the appropriate costume to celebrate The Ides of March which is also Smart and Sexy Day? Shall we dress smartly with bubbles?
Well, good question. It seems a toga might be appropriate for the Ides of March, which could also be sexy…maybe some glasses might add smart to it!
I clicked on the link to The Quote Garden an immediately saw this wonderful piece of work:
Man 1: Where are you from?
Man 2: From a place where we do not end sentences with prepositions.
Man 1: Okay, where are you from, jackass?
~Author unknown
My day cannot get any better!
The Quote Garden is great! And that grammar quote is also great! Thanks for sharing it with us all! And don’t end your sentences a preposition with!
I see there are two Dictionary Days! Woo hoo!
Yes, some of the Holidays are duplicated — or sometimes very close in wording to each other.
I hope this doesn’t make you angry, but I DO correct someone’s grammar on social media…on the occasion it is someone who is completely politically incorrect and basically, a moron!
I do love your posts, Arlene. Happy Grammar Day!
I would never fault you for that!