Make Mine a Double

Merry found a double apostrophe catastrophe in Allston on voting day.


Well, I suppose apostrophe catastrophe isn't quite accurate since the sign is missing a comma and an exclamation point, but you know what I mean. Merry and I agree that the sign should say, "Speak Up, Allston! Vote!"

Thanks, Merry!

Drunken Punctuation

My friend Merry took photos of four signs outside a liquor store in Allston. Two of them contain apostrophes, and two don't. Behold!


It looks like they snuck the apostrophe in at the last minute on this one:


And here are the two without punctuation:



According to their web site, the official name of this liquor store chain is Blanchards. Interesting! Before I went to Blanchards' web site, I assumed that the signs without the apostrophes were the erroneous ones.

Merry has previously pointed out mistakes from Dave and Buster's, Macy's, and Charlie's Kitchen. Thanks again, Merry!

Get This Sign a Colon Cleanser!

This is the second submission from Merry this week! She took this photo from a bus:


Impressive! This random colon was spotted in Brighton, MA. Thanks again, Merry!

It Takes One to Know One

A friend of my friend Merry took this photo at the Tea Party protest on September 12 in Washington:


Oh, the irony.

And see those yellow flags in the background? Those have apostrophe catastrophes in them, too!

Thanks, Merry (and her Republican friend)!

Sleigh Bell Is Ring

My friend Merry found this apostrophe catastrophe in the bathroom of a Somerville apartment.



Thanks, Merry!

Gaga Ooh-La-La

Ever since I heard "Bad Romance" for the first time yesterday, it has become difficult for me to accomplish anything besides listening to it on repeat and (mostly successfully) trying to avoid dancing in my cubicle. So, in honor of Lady Gaga (and certain friends of mine who knew she was brilliant all along), today's chosen apostrophe catastrophe is the ubiquitous womens error. Reminder: women is already plural; womens is not a word.

My friend Merry took this photo at Wonder Bar in Allston, which happens to be across the street from one of her previous apostrophe catastrophes, Blanchard's.


Thanks, Merry! It has been too long since I posted one of your catastrophes.

Too Many Republican's and Other Problems

This blog's best contributor, my friend Merry, sent a screenshot of the Pez web site that's littered with errors. This pains her because she's a big fan of Pez dispensers. How many apostrophe catastrophes and other mistakes can you find?


Thanks, Merry!

J. Crew Mens

My friend Merry found this badly punctuated sign in the high-end Copley Place mall in Boston.


Skinny jeans may come and go, but apostrophe catastrophes are never in style.

Thanks, Merry!

Catastrophe News Network

Another day, another apostrophe catastrophe from my friend Merry. This time it's from CNN.com.


If you look closely at the middle of this screenshot (click to enlarge it), you'll see that the writer added an 's to the end of Obama. "Obama's slams McCain..." doesn't make much sense.

Thanks again, Merry! Check out her other submissions here.

Making the Same Mistake Twice

As my friend Merry pointed out here, Charlie's Kitchen is missing an apostrophe in its sign. A few months ago, they opened a beer garden that features the same mistake.


I would praise them for being consistent, but they have a neon sign in the window that does contain an apostrophe.

Thanks again, Merry!

Holiday Apostrophe Catastrophe

An anonymous reader found this apostrophe catastrophe while holiday shopping at TJ Maxx.


Good grief indeed! Maybe if Lucy had just said "Merry Christmas," this catastrophe could have been avoided.

Thanks, person who sent this to me!

Target Christmas Sign Catastrophe

Merry Christmas, Apostrophe Catastrophes readers! I hope everyone is having a wonderful holiday season. Personally, I try to avoid all stores during December, and this sign from Target, which was submitted by several members of the Apostrophe Catastrophes Facebook group, reaffirmed my belief that it's better to stay home (or shop online) instead.



Thanks, Jen (and others who sent in this catastrophic picture)!

I guess hipsters can't punctuate.

I've walked by Charlie's Kitchen about a million times and never noticed that its sign lacks an apostrophe! The neon sign in the window is properly punctuated, though. Thanks to my friend Merry for taking this photo and sending it to me.



I might not be able to go to Charlie's anymore! Especially since they painted over the Morrissey graffiti that used to be outside the bathroom.

In Reality, This Is a Catastrophe

Why, oh, why does Terrell Owens have a reality show? Clearly, the show is too low budget to hire a proofreader, as evidenced by this apostrophe catastrophe.


Thanks to my friend Merry for sending in this catastrophe! I wonder why she was watching the T.O. Show anyway...

And Speaking of the Red Sox...

You can buy tickets from this place on Brookline Ave if you aren't put off by their poor punctuation.


Thanks again, Merry!

What the World Needs Now Is Semicolons

Semicolons are a dying breed of punctuation marks. But there's one person out there who still defends them and uses them properly: Barack Obama. I recently started reading Dreams from My Father, and have been very impressed with Obama's punctuation skills. The creator of this sign could take a lesson from our new president.


Some people say that a comma can separate two short sentences, but I think the sign looks sloppy and should use a semicolon instead. The comma doesn't indicate enough of a pause between the two statements. An em-dash might work, too.

Thanks (again!) to Merry for sending this one in.