Welcome to my blog!

Howdy!
I write a grammar column and often get questions, so I decided to open a blog. I'm open to all kinds of discussions here, except politics and religion! We aren't limited to writing mechanics, but that's where I'll start.

My website has many of my columns; but loading files to a website is time consuming and labor intensive, especially since I have only dial-up.

I also love to talk cooking, especially healthy cooking, which has little to do with writing other than I've written a cookbook. Really, almost anything goes on this blog.

So here is my grammar rant of the day: Near miss. Literally, this translates to almost missed the target. Excuse me, but isn't that a hit? Today I worked the Sunday crossword puzzle and one clue was A close call. The answer? You guessed it. Eight letters: N E A R M I S S. I grumbled as I filled in the spaces, "A near miss is not a close call. The answer should be miss."

I'll try not to let it ruin my day! After all, Hurricane Dennis missed us, although it brought us a lot of rain and wind. It came near but missed us. Hmm. Could I have at last found the origin of this strange expression?

Cheryl