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Dear Annie: After living and working for 35 years in a large city, my husband and I were able to return to our hometown to help care for our elderly parents. I reconnected with a high school friend who asked me to work part-time in her large, nationally known family business.
One of my duties is to assist my friend with media relations, including press releases, something I handled for years in my previous job. However, when I corrected a press release she had prepared, I could tell she was not happy. But, Annie, the release was poorly written and there were several grammatical errors that would have been embarrassing if published. She asked me a few questions about my corrections, but eventually approved the release.
I am now reviewing proofs for a company announcement to be mailed to employees and clients. My friend put an apostrophe “s” in their family name (the Smith’s). When I told her that it should be “Smiths” to indicate more than one Smith, my friend went ballistic. She said I was nitpicking her work. She said that’s how the invitations were done every year, and it was also how they did the company Christmas cards. I told her they had been wrong every year.
Annie, at this point in my life, I don’t need a job, but I enjoy it. The people are wonderful and I know many of their families. But I don’t want my name associated with shoddy work. How do I help my friend understand that my efforts will help her company? — Know the Difference Between You’re and Your
Dear Know: Correcting the grammar of an adult is tricky. A lot of people are sensitive and assume the criticism means you think they are stupid. But grammatical and spelling mistakes are, unfortunately, quite common these days. We recommend a little more tact. Tell your friend that you hope she thinks you are good at what you do, and to please allow you to produce your best efforts, because you want her company to look good on paper, as well as in reality. But the final word belongs to her, right or wrong. If she insists on being wrong, your choice is simply to stay or go.
Dear Annie: Last year on July 4, you printed a column about the Liberty Bell. Thank you for the history lesson. I’ve read that the bell was rung gently on another day of great significance: D-Day, June 6, 1944. When news of the Allied invasion of France reached Philadelphia, the bell was rung and the sound broadcast over the radio. We must never forget the sacrifice made that day to secure the freedom we enjoy today. — P.S., Henryville, Ind.
Dear P.S.: You are correct that the bell was lightly tapped on D-Day. (Also on V-E Day and V-J Day.) The light taps were necessary because the bell had developed several cracks in addition to the famous original. Most of those cracks occurred when the bell was transferred to other cities for special patriotic occasions. The last such transfer was in 1915, after which requests to acquire the bell were refused in order to minimize the damage. (Souvenir hunters were also known to chip away pieces of the bell.)
