I hate to think what this piece would read like if I didn’t keep checking my AutoCorrect spelling/wording. I have always hated people putting words in my mouth - or words on my page. Actually, I wrote a character in a play who keeps finishing peoples’ sentences incorrectly - until, at the end, with her destined happy-ending partner, she gets it right. “Exactly, what I was going to say,” he says, and you can see they are meant to be together. She is quite endearing because she always gets it wrong. I do not find my AutoCorrect endearing, but once it gave me an in-joke. Now, from the few sentences above I have already written:

hate changed to have

always - was changed to awash

destined - changed to defined

endering - it corrected me to endearing which is what I meant. One out of four isn’t bad, I guess.

Last year when I was planning my aborted trip to Easter Island, my prospective room mate and I were planning by mail because we don’t live near each other. She suggested a Drinks Package but the word for drink came out derek. Not only inaccurate but presumptuous on AC’s part. [don’t was dog; only was ply] But it corrected my spelling of presumptuous. Actually, it corrected my typing. I’m a very good speller but my fingers tend to be careless.

Anyway, my friend and I have ever since, though not constantly [contatnly corrected to constantly, for which I am grateful) - we have said “Let’s have a derek.” [It tried to correct derek to deer - not accepted.]

Years ago, several incarnations of computers past ago, I had a program that corrected my typos. I often write hae for have and mh for my and I appreciated the adjustments. Oh, and teh for the. (It just corrected teh to the.) But I don’t like it second-guessing me and doing it automatically.

I hope I got this right. (it tired rift—oh dear it tried tired)

I’ll quit while I’m ahead.