Typos

In a stage whisper a la Haley Joel Osment's character in The Sixth Sense: "I see typos . . ."

• In the newspaper.
• On TV.
• In books.
• On signs.
• Most recently, at my cousin's Senior Exhibition for the College of Design at the Ohio State University.

It takes every ounce of self-control I have not to take out a red pen or make a comment, but I try to contain myself (usually) because I know that the general populous isn't just waiting around for me to point out errors. Plus, I know I can be overly critical, and that doesn't do anybody any good.

I also know how it feels to be on the receiving end of those kinds of comments--they always come too late to do anything about them. A former coworker of mine had a knack for waiting until whatever I had written had been sent off for printing or distribution before coming up to me to point out a typo. I always felt like strangling her while yelling, "Where were you when I was begging people to proof my work?!"