Grammar Gaffe: I and Me

One of the grammar gaffes committed most often is the incorrect use of the first-person pronouns: “I” and “me” when used with another pronoun or a proper noun. (e.g., you and I, Frank and me, etc.)

My mother taught me the easiest way to remember which pronoun to use. Just remove the other pronoun so you’re left with either “I” or “me,” and you will usually know which sounds correct.

For example, is it “Me and you went to the store,” or “You and I went to the store”? Just take out “you,” and you know that “I went to the store” is correct, not “Me went to the store.” So, “You and I went to the store is correct.”

What about “He gave the money to you and I,” or “He gave the money to you and me”? Of course it’s “He gave the money to you and me,” because you wouldn’t say, “He gave the money to I.”

Other easy ways to remember which is correct (there are always exceptions to these first two rules):

• If the pronoun comes before a verb, it's usually "I" (Sallie and I went to the theatre, he and I cooked dinner, she and I are siblings)
  
• If the pronoun comes after a preposition, it's usually "me" (e.g., between you and me, with Lance and me, to him and me, from her and me, about Sallie and me, etc.
  
• If you can replace the pronouns with "us," it's "me" (e.g., It's about us – It's about you and me)
  
• If you can replace the pronouns (or pronoun and noun) with “we,” it’s “I” (e.g., We went to the store – You and I went to the store)

If you start to use these rules when you’re using the first person pronouns, then after a while the correct usage will sound right to your ear.

The following are examples of "I" and "me" used incorrectly and correctly (see if you can recognize why they are wrong or right):

Incorrect:

Will me and my brothers get to go to foster care? (Radio - girl interviewed in NPR story)

He’s joining Mercedes and Sam and I to go to prom. (TV - Glee)

I want Hannah and I to be at the end of this. (Overheard)

It means a new start for my husband and I. (Overheard)

It’s fine for your father and I to disagree (Movie – Midnight in Paris)

It’s about the connection between Ashley and I. (TV - The Bachelorette)

Correct:

They’re owned by my sister and me (TV - Antiques Roadshow)

It’s so nice to spend time – just you and me. (commercial)

I hope you’re not doing this because of you and me. (TV - Big Bang Theory)

This isn’t between you and me. (Grimm)

I hope that this post is helpful to those of you who struggle with knowing when to use “I” and when to use “me.”

Just between you and me, I know you and I are on the same page.

Glee: Michael

First of all, I have to say that I'm with Rachel. I never really got Michael Jackson. I have never been a big fan, even though I do like some of his songs. So, I wasn't as excited as a lot of people that Glee was doing a Michael Jackson tribute episode. But then I wasn't too excited about their Britney Spears tribute episode or Madonna, or Lady Gaga. I like some of the songs, but doing a whole episode highlighting their music, *yawn.*

So, once again, Kurt is getting bullied. But this time it's not because he's gay, but because he's dating the boy the bully likes. However, Blaine is seriously injured instead of Kurt. I am getting a little tired (okay, a lot tired) of every episode being about bullying.

I also wish that they would use Damian McGinty. It's sad to me that we just see glimpses of him. He's just so cute and likable, and he has a beautiful voice. I wonder if he's thinking, "Okay, I won the Glee Project, but what did I win?"

There were, however some highlights for me:

It was great that Artie got the chance to dance, especially with Mike. I feel bad that Kevin McHale's character is in the wheelchair because he's a great dancer and he can only show that off in dream sequences, which they don't have very often.

I like it when Mercedes is given the chance to show off her great voice, and Mercedes and Sam's duet of "Human Nature" was a big highlight. I'm glad Mercedes is getting more air time, and Sam ain't bad to listen to either (I apologize to all grammar geeks out there, but there are times when no other word cuts it but "ain't").

I really didn’t understand why Santana was wearing that particular outfit during her duel/duet, “Smooth Criminal,” with Sebastian, but the wonderful cello performances by 2Cellos was the best part of the whole episode for me. Being a cellist myself I go crazy for music that highlights the cello. I am so glad I watched the show if just for that. Get a load of their actual music video of the song.



Black or White really was a fun number. I enjoyed the energy. That is one thing I can say about most of Michael's songs, they certainly have energy. I especially loved the morphing of the characters at the end of the song.

Now, if they had only performed my favorite Michael Jackson song, "The Way You Make Me Feel," I could have forgiven the parts of the episode I didn't really care for.

The Woman in Black

The Woman in Black is a ghost story written by Susan Hill. A new film adaptation starring Daniel Radcliffe opened today. I'm not sure if I'm going to see it. We'll see. I don't see many scary movies because it doesn't take much to freak me out. However, I've seen the play and I am curious about it. This is a ghost story, not a slasher, or flesh-eating zombie movie.

The plot is simple. Arthur Kipps, a young solicitor, has been given the job to go to the home of an old woman who has recently died to go through her papers and settle her affairs. The house is at the end of a causeway, and at high tide there is no way to leave or get to the house.

At the old woman's funeral he sees a mysterious woman in black. Then he senses the woman's presence and sees her again while he is alone in the house and cut off from everyone. He also hears terrifying noises out on the causeway. I won't give more of the story away, but suffice it to say, the rest is terrifying.

I've actually seen the play twice. The first time I saw it was at the Utah Shakespeare Festival. My friend saw the play in London and she told me it really scared her, so I was trepidatious before I saw it. I enjoyed the play at the Shakespeare Festival, but I didn't get as frightened as I could have because there were a bunch of high school students in the audience, and they were very vocal during the play. It kept taking me out of the story, making me annoyed every time they said, "there she is!" and "when is she going to appear?" As much as I didn't want to be freaked out, I did want to enjoy the scary elements, and I couldn't do it with the constant commentary.

Then, a little more than a year ago I saw the play in London. The production was in an small, old theatre that had the perfect atmosphere for a ghost story (the theatre is also said to be haunted, but I didn't learn that until after I saw the play). My friend and I couldn't get seats together, so I sat by myself. Even though I had seen the play before and knew what was going to happen, the play was directed differently, so there was still an element of the unknown. The second time was much scarier. I enjoyed it very much.

If I decide to see the movie I'll post about. If I don't see the movie, you probably won't hear anymore about it from me unless it's a huge hit or unless I see the play again.

If you see it, I'd love to hear what you think of it.

The Decoy Bride

Thanks to Ruth from Booktalk & More for great news about a new David Tennant movie, The Decoy Bride.

I can't think of a better way to spend an evening than with David Tennant as a "tweedy English author" who is torn between two brides.

Can't wait! I just don't know how long I'll have to.

More Casting News for Les Miserables, the Movie Musical

There were rumors going around that Taylor Swift was cast as Eponine in the movie version of Les Miserables, the musical. There were also many people upset about that rumor. Scratch that, there were people downright angry. I thought, don't judge until you see it.

However, that's all it turned out to be - a rumor. It's been announced that the part of Eponine will be played by Samantha Barks. She has played Eponine in London, and played her in the 25th anniversary concert. 

It's a great choice. She's good. Take a listen.



I'm so glad they are casting stage actors. It will make a big difference.

And if they do cast a country singer in one of the roles, I won't judge until I see it.

Pic of the Week: Prince Albert Hall

Holmes, Sherlock Holmes

I am going to argue that the best thing on television today is an import from across the pond. It's a small show (only three episodes each in the first and second seasons) called Sherlock.

The premise is very simple: take Sherlock Holmes and John Watson out of 19th century London and drop them into 21st century London with cell phones (or as they call them "mobiles"), texting, and blogs. Sherlock has nicotine patches instead of smoking a pipe. He is not an action hero. Sherlock is an socially awkward genius who itches to find a good mystery and solve it. There may have been one explosion, but this version of Sherlock Holmes is all about solving the mystery. And he still plays the violin.

I've never been a big Sherlock Holmes fan. I've seen a few movies with Basil Rathbone, I saw the first Guy Ritchie movie with Robert Downey, Jr as Sherlock, and I've seen a few plays based on Doyle's books. However, I still haven't read any of the books or short stories (they are in my queue of books to read, but there are so many more ahead of them). 

But then I saw Sherlock. Benedick Cumberbatch's Sherlock is more detached from the world than most Sherlocks I've seen. He seems to only be interested in the case he is trying to solve at the moment, and is the definition of cerebral. Martin Freeman is a wonderful Watson, and plays off of Cumberbatch's Sherlock so well and so seamlessly.

The acting is wonderful. It's subtle, understated, not in-your-face. Each episode is based on one or more of Doyle's books or stories. The direction is clever and imaginative, the cinematography is exquisite, and the scripts are almost flawless.

I have to thank Blogtor Who for making me aware of the series before the first season even aired in Britain. The series was co-created by the head writer of Doctor Who, and, even though I am a big Doctor Who fan, script-wise think Sherlock is better than Doctor Who; and for me, that's saying a lot. Please don't tell anyone.

If you haven't checked out the first season yet, I would recommend that you do. If you're a Sherlock Holmes fan, I'm sure you'll be hooked. And if you're not a Holmes fan, and you just like smart television, you will be a fan of Sherlock very quickly.