I have a long list of pet peeves. Whenever something consistently tends to annoy me, I mentally add it my list (ie: self-check out counters at stores, people who don’t say “please” or “thank you”, etc.), and if I had the time, I’d rattle off some more of them.

However, one of my biggest annoyances is the misuse of the word “your” with the contraction “you’re”.

During my time as EIC of my high school newspaper, I’d catch the mix-up in a lot of my reporters’ articles. Nowadays, I see it used when I talk to my friends via iChat or texts. Needless to say, it bothers me.

I’ve wondered to myself exactly how those two words can get so mixed up. For example, if someone wrote a sentence that said: “Your so busy with school”, I would assume that they would say the sentence in their head and realize it sounds funny. And, that they would just know the difference between “your” and “you are.” But, maybe that’s just my assumption.

I think there are many factors to blame for the misuse of those two words.

I believe that our lazy way of communicating has led many of us to use “ur” to stand for both “your” and “you are” (I admit that I am to blame for using “ur” a lot), and when it comes time to use the two words formally, it becomes hard to tell the difference.

Being exposed to the different ways “your” and “you’re” is used in the English language also plays a part. I was – and still am – a bookworm, so I’ve seen the different uses and it has just been engrained in me.

I try not to correct my friends too often, however, because I’m sure one of their pet peeves is “Jemma always corrects my grammar.”

I’m not sure if anyone else is as bothered by this as I am, but I just thought I would share it!

Anyway, check out this wikiHow “How to use You’re and Your” page; it has some nice tips and amusing pictures for anyone interested.

** This has nothing to do with what I just talked about, but I found a website that explains the “life cycle” of a blog. You learn something new everyday. =)