Just writing aloud

Normally, I suppose that would be just thinking aloud, but in this medium, I guess "writing" is more apt. Though it does cause one to wonder exactly how we use language to serve as a rational form of communication when we can twist meaning around to create a new form of intended meaning - sort of like double entendres.

I find that I am able to convey meaning via the written word oftentimes much better than I do the spoken word. With writing, it requires more time and effort to form the content of what I wish to convey and thus there is a forced deliberateness that allows me to express what I wish in a more structured format. With the spoken word, there is not that same sort of time to force a coherent sense of communication all of the time. As any of my friends will attest, there is little in the way of a filter between my brain and my mouth at times and things that pop through my head can (and often have) made their way out of my mouth. And while this means that I tend to have a very WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) personality, it has been known to create some awkward moments, too. And since I do not much like awkward (I've had more than enough of that in my life), I'll choose pen and paper (or keyboard, such as the case may be) if given a choice.

This also means that I tend to read a lot, as well. And, in this day and age where the English language is bastardized in ways that I cannot express without additional four-letter invectives, it can be very annoying that there is a growing laxness when it comes to spelling and grammar. Granted, I am not perfect in proofreading my own material before publishing here on this blog, but to see what passes for professional writing (news websites, professional editorials, etc) is often enough to bring the onset of an aneurysm. It gets progressively worse as I view blogs and other similar entities. Perhaps I am getting old and crotchety but I would prefer to think that standards are just failing and that in the generation of my grandchildren the English language will be reduced to nothing more than abbreviations in the written form containing nothing more than 3 consonants and perhaps a vowel. Hopefully the spoken language will not be similarly bastardized. If we think there is a generation gap between the techno-geek generation and their grandparents today, I shudder to imagine it 40+ years from now.

Of course, maybe I won't want to communicate with anyone in 40+ years, so maybe this whole line of thought is best left to the theoretical. And, not so oddly, I think theory is a wonderful thing and would only make the real much better if it were implemented as envisioned.