woot!

Here's how awesome heinous_bitca is: I now have Photoshop. It took me an hour to figure out how to do text. BUT STILL.

(Seriously, is there some sort of Photoshop for Dummies out there? I keep trying to read the Help file, but it reads like stereo instructions.)

ETA: So basically, I'm not an idiot? It really is that hard to maneuver? (Thanks for all the suggestions, btw. I'll definitely check out icon_tutorial.)

Days recap

Welcome to all the new Days readers! If you came here from somewhere outside Livejournal, leave me a link and let me see how you got here--just curious, is all.

( You hear dead people, Celeste. That's what you do. Shouldn't you be used to it by now? )

The grammar wank ends HERE.

Look, I don't mind grammar discussion in the Troy comments. What I do mind is the attitude (falling on both sides of the matter, by the way), that OMG YOU ARE SO STUPID if you learned it one way or the other.

Here's what the Chicago Manual of Style has to say:

Q. When indicating possession of a word that ends in s, is it correct to repeat the s after using an apostrophe? For example, which is correct: “Dickens’ novel” or “Dickens’s novel”?

A. Either is correct, though CMS 15 recommends the latter [Dickens's]. Please consult 7.18–22 for a full discussion of the rules for forming the possessive of proper nouns, including exceptions and examples. For a simpler statement of the rule, see paragraph 5.26. For a discussion of the alternative practice of simply adding an apostrophe to form the possessive of proper nouns ending in s, see paragraph 7.23. [Granted, I can't get anything on special cases like "Moses" or "Jesus" or, apparently, "Achilles" to come up on their site, and I don't have the book on hand.]

Another site cites Strunk's Elements of Style:

Some writers will say that the -s after Charles' is not necessary and that adding only the apostrophe (Charles' car) will suffice to show possession. Consistency is the key here: if you choose not to add the -s after a noun that already ends in s, do so consistently throughout your text. William Strunk's Elements of Style recommends adding the 's. (In fact, oddly enough, it's Rule Number One in Strunk's "Elementary Rules of Usage.") You will find that some nouns, especially proper nouns, especially when there are other -s and -z sounds involved, turn into clumsy beasts when you add another s: "That's old Mrs. Chambers's estate." In that case, you're better off with "Mrs. Chambers' estate."


My point is, NO ONE CAN AGREE ON THE MATTER. In fact, the current academic predilection seems to be towards s's, while everyone in practice wants to use only s'. There's enough dissension that, as the second site recommends, consistency is the key more than anything. So everyone chill, okay?



ETA: Look, it's my horoscope for today:

Quickie: A friendly debate is just that: friendly. It's not as important as you think.