Welcome back

I knew I'd been away for a while, but it's been longer than I thought. I've been working on a book concept of my own and helping another author to finish a book he's been refining for nearly four years. The finish line is in sight! And since I have a day job, too, it's been a busy time.

During the time I've not been blogging, some people have sent me a few items I thought were funny or interesting.

1) A former business partner shared a media release that indicated a company's business was growing by "leaps and bounce." It's an interesting picture, but of course, what he meant was leaps and bounds. It like the expression for "for all intensive purposes." Funny to some, annoying to others.

2) Another friend pointed out that we don't buy things on the Internet. We buy things on the World Wide Web. The Internet is the architecture and the Web uses that infrastructure for commercial purposes. A distinction worth preserving.

3) And please, please, can we drop the expression "honed in"? To hone is to sharpen, as in "honing her skills." But to close in on a target, which is what most people mean when they say honed in, should properly be "homed in." It's related to homing devices and other things that guide people toward specific locations. Have you ever heard of a "honing pigeon"? Didn't think so, but the misuse of honed in is becoming overwhelming, and it's one of those things that isn't a result of language change or stylistic preference. It's just wrong.