Can I Ask You A Favour?

I read his message "Gud evening 6ter" and quickly closed the chat head - the one that pops up on your phone when a message is sent via Facebook messenger.

He obviously meant to say "Good evening Sister", maybe as a friendly gesture but seeing 'sister' spelt as '6ter' almost made my head ache.

I couldn't help but ignore the message.

Like James Authur sang in one of my favourite songs "there are certain things that I adore and certain things that I ignore", for me there are also certain things that I can't stand and messages written with abbreviations especially when unnecessary is one of them.

I say unnecessary because some people simply spell words wrongly in the name of abbreviations/shorthand else how can you explain someone writing 'morning' as 'mawning' or 'friend' as 'fwend' or even 'you' as 'yu'?

I always think to myself 'this isn't even an abbreviation, it is wrong spelling'. I mean what would it take to just spell words correctly?

It's the same way I react when I see people chew food noisily or with their mouth open, it's worse when I have to eat with them on the same table - I lose my appetite and sometimes have to restrain myself from going on my knees in tears, begging them to stop. Does it happen to you?

Yesterday Ada my friend showed me an email sent by a client, he had written his message with abbreviations - it was a formal message and he even copied her bosses.

"Babe why would this man do this na. I'm embarrassed o, I wish I could edit this mail at least for the sake of the people in copy" she said.

"It's why I hate it when people type in shorthand because they get so used to it that they use it in formal messages" I responded.

This is true.

I have worked in Human Resources (HR) and have had to conduct tests/interviews for university students seeking Internship placement, from experience one thing that disqualifies most of them is wrong spelling. 

Some answer their questions with abbreviations and some others simply cannot spell.

You may say that English isn't our language but it is our Lingua Franca and as such has to be used correctly, this is why it is taught in schools.

Its different when you are writing in Pidgin but even that has to be done well.

Some people abbreviate so much that sometimes you develop a headache trying to decipher what they have written.

It is unfair.

I think its best to use abbreviations for informal messages and with your friends, not people who do not know you.

Oh! I just saw another Facebook message "Xup pretty"...hmm.

These are like bullets to me and now I have to run for cover but erm...

'please do me a favour, if you must use abbreviations, do it with informal messages or when chatting with your friends, not in formal messages, examinations or with people who do not know you.'

I hope I have not asked for too much.