Dit, dot, et al.

I'm a punctuation geek.


I'm carrying on a decades-old tryst with the semi-colon; the em dash — yes, the em dash — is my constant companion. I'm particularly fond of using bracketed phrases (or single words [although often multiple words]) inside of parenthetical asides. An ellipsis has the power to excite feelings of joy and well-being....

On the other hand, the this modern-day practice of punctuation butchery in the form of emoticons rankles the punctuated spirit of my deepest soul. My question: who gave permission for this?!

Okay, okay. I'll settle down.

And then I discovered these Japanese emoticons, in last Sunday's NYTimes Magazine, and I must admit a certain enchantment with them:

(=_=)
bored

m(__)m
bowing down in apology

(>_<)
ouch!

(9_9)
tired

d(-_-)b
wearing headphones

(^_-)
winking

(;_;)
crying

And here's my contribution to the emoticabulary:

(-_+)
punched in the eye