Fun with Apostrophes (LONG)

[Anne <urbana@charter.net>]

--- In HPFGU-OTChatter at yahoogroups.com, "GulPlum <plumeski at y...>" 
<plumeski at y...> wrote:

> > Melissa, who agrees with Orwell that people who are incapable of
> > writing clearly are also incapable of thinking clearly
> 
> Now that is something with which I must strenuouly disagree. :-) 
I'll 
> give you one example as an illustration. A friend of mine, with 
whom 
> I've collaborated on several projects, is intelligent, well spoken 
> and one of the clearest thinkers I know. However, he is almost 
> incapable of putting his thoughts on paper and if he is forced to, 
> tends to ramble uncontrollably (his handwriting, incidentally, is 
> beautifully neat). I, on the other hand, am almost incapable of 
> presenting a cogent argument in speech (I have no speech 
impediments 
> or anything like that) and tend to spend ages trying to find 
> *exactly* the word I want - people are known to have complete 
> conversations in the pauses I leave between words. ;-) However, if 
I 
> have the chance to put my thoughts on paper I tend to flow a lot 
more 
> easily and *tend* not to ramble anywhere nearly as much. My 
> handwriting, incidentally, is generally considered to be illegible, 
> even to myself. :-)

Richard, you sound a lot like me. I'm great with written words, but 
often have a terrible time making verbal arguments or even completing 
thoughts out loud ;-) This just means (according to a theory called 
Perceptual Thinking Patterns) that you and I have a different type of 
learning pattern than your friend does. I'd go into more about this 
but it's a complicated theory - but I'm very impressed with it 
because it has helped me explain (to myself and others) a lot about 
why I NEED to write things down and DO NOT learn things merely by 
hearing them.

> 
> Ever since I moved from London, our communications are usually 
emails 
> from me to him, and telephone calls from him to me. :-)

EXACTLY!!! I'm the same way. People I know (including my parents) 
often wait weeks or months for me to return phone calls - but I'll 
email them back the same night.
> 
> In other words, some people are better at clear thinking in the 
> written form, and some in oral. To be honest, I regard those with 
> oral abilities more highly, as what they say can always be written 
> down. People who think better when writing have to wait for someone 
> to read their words. :-)

Yes, that's certainly true. Let's hope what we've written is worth 
waiting for :-)

Anne U
(aka KVA, "A at the back")