26. Cindy wondered how Brad given his low-fat diet could consider pepperoni. 27. Frozen with indecision Brad decided to call the supermarket to request the cheapest brand. 28. Cindy of course wanted to redeem her coupons. 29. To ensure fast delivery was crucial. 30. Lighting a match and holding it near his trembling hand Brad realized that time was almost up. 31. Worrying about toppings had used up too many minutes. 32. Well the robbers would have a good story to tell. 33. With renewed determination Cindy speed-dialed the market and offered “a really big tip” for ten-minute service. 34. As the robbers chomped on pepperoni and argued about payment Brad slipped away. 35. Cindy let’s just say was left to clean up the mess. Setting Off Descriptions Life would be much simpler for the comma-inserter if nobody ever described any- thing. No descriptions would mean no comma problems. However, solving your punc- tuation problems in that way leads to writing that resembles a pay-by-the-word text message — limited in scope, expensive, and not a good idea! A better plan is to find out more about these basic principles behind punctuating descriptive expressions: ߜ If the description follows the word being described, decide whether it’s extra information or essential, identifying material. If the description falls into the “nice to know but I didn’t really need it” (extra) category, surround it with commas. If the description is in the “gotta have it” bin, omit the commas. For example, in the sentence, “The dictionary on the table is dusty,” the description in italics is necessary because it tells which dictionary is dusty. However, in the sentence, “Charlie’s dictionary, which is on the table, is dusty,” the description in italics is set off by commas, because you already know Charlie’s dictionary is the one being discussed. The part about the table is extra information. ߜ For descriptions that precede the word described, place commas only when you have a list of two or more descriptions of the same type and importance. You can you tell when two or more descriptions are equally important; they can be written in different order without changing the meaning of the sentence. For example, in the sentence, “The tan, dusty dictionary has never been opened,” the two descriptions — tan and dusty — can be reversed without changing the mean- ing, so you need a comma. However, in the sentence, “Two dusty dictionaries need some cleaning power now!” the two descriptions aren’t the same type — one is a number, and one is a condition. You can’t say, Dusty two, so you don’t insert commas. 73 Chapter 5: Exercising Comma Sense 10_599321 ch05.qxp 4/3/06 11:22 PM Page 73 ߜ When descriptions containing verb forms introduce a sentence (see the pre- ceding section on introductory elements), they always are set off by commas. An example: Sighing into his handkerchief, Charlie looked for a dust cloth. The description, sighing into his handkerchief, has a verb form (sighing) and thus is set off by a comma from the rest of the sentence. Got the idea? Now try your comma skills on the following sentence. If the italicized words need to be set off, add the commas. If not, go waterskiing. (Just kidding. Leave the sentence alone if no commas are needed.) Q. The ruffled striped blouse belongs to my oldest sister Mary. A. The ruffled, striped blouse belongs to my oldest sister, Mary. The first two descriptions precede the word being described (blouse) and may be interchanged without a problem, so a comma is needed between them. The second description (which, the strictest gram- marians would tell you is really an equivalent term or appositive) follows the word described (my oldest sister). Because you can have only one oldest sister, the name is extra, not essential identifying information, and it’s set off by commas. 36. Oscar’s favorite food which he cooks every Saturday night is hot dogs. 37. The place where he feels most comfortable during the cooking process is his huge brick barbecue. 38. Oscar stores his wheat buns in a large plastic tub. 39. One of the horses that live in Oscar’s barn often sniffs around the horseshoe. 40. Oscar rode his three favorite horses in an important race honoring the Barbecue King and Queen. 41. Oscar will never sell one of his horses because he needs money. 42. Oscar dedicated a song to the filly that was born on his birthday. 43. The jockeys became annoyed by Oscar’s song which he played constantly. 44. The deep horrible secret is that Oscar can’t carry a tune. 45. His guitar a Gibson is missing a few important strings also. 74 Part II: Mastering Mechanics 10_599321 ch05.qxp 4/3/06 11:22 PM Page 74 Calling All Overachievers: Extra Practice with Commas Figure 5-1 shows an employee self-evaluation with some serious problems, a few of which concern commas. (The rest deal with the truly bad idea of being honest with your boss.) Forget about the content errors and concentrate on commas. See if you can find ten commas that appear where they shouldn’t and ten spots that should have commas but don’t. Circle the commas you’re deleting and insert commas where they’re needed. Annual Self-Evaluation: Kristin DeMint Well Ms. Ehrlich that time of year has arrived again. I, must think about my strengths and weaknesses as an employee, of Toe-Ring International. First and most important let me say that I love working for Toe-Ring. When I applied for the job on September 15 2005 I never dreamed how much fun I would have taking two, long lunches a day. Sneaking out the back door, is not my idea of fun. Because no one ever watches what I am doing at Toe-Ring I can leave by the front door without worrying. Also Ms. Ehrlich, I confess that I do almost no work at all. Transferred to the plant in Boise Idaho I immediately claimed a privilege given only to the most experienced most skilled, employees and started to take an extra week of vacation. I have only one more thing to say. May I have a raise? Figure 5-1: Comma problems in an employee self- evaluation. 75 Chapter 5: Exercising Comma Sense 10_599321 ch05.qxp 4/3/06 11:22 PM Page 75 76 Part II: Mastering Mechanics Answers to Comma Problems a Rob planned to serve a tasteful selection of pitted dates, chocolate-covered mushrooms, anchovies, and pickled radishes. Each item on Rob’s list, including the last one before the and, is separated from the next by a comma. No comma comes before the first item, pitted dates. b Rob’s guest list is heavily tilted toward women he would like to date, such as Helen Ogilbee, supermodel; Natasha Nakovee, swimsuit model; Blair Berry, automotive salesperson; and Hannah Umbridge, former Miss Autoclave. Did you remember the semicolons? The commas within each item of Rob’s dream-date list make it impossible to distinguish between one dream date and another with a simple comma. Semicolons do the trick. c After everyone arrives, Rob plans an evening of bobbing for cabbages, pinning the tail on the landlord, and playing double solitaire. Fun guy, huh? I can’t imagine why he has so much trouble getting dates. I hope you didn’t have any trouble separating these thrilling activities with commas. d Rob will consider his party a success if he can get three phone numbers, arrange at least one future date, and avoid police interference. Fortunately, Rob’s standards of success are fairly low. So is the standard for a correctly punctuated list. All you have to do is plop a comma between each item. e Rob didn’t meet his goals because the police arrived at 10:00, 11:00, and 11:30 p.m.; no one gave out any phone numbers; and everyone thought his name was Bob. Even with low stan- dards, Rob is in trouble. You’re in trouble too if you forgot to use a semicolon to distinguish one item from another. Why? The first item on the list has commas in it, so a plain comma isn’t enough to separate the list items. f Ladies and Gentlemen, I present the Fifth Annual Elbox Championships. Even though Ladies and Gentlemen doesn’t name the members of the audience, they’re still being addressed, so a comma sets off the expression from the rest of the sentence. g I know, Mort, that you are an undefeated Elbox competitor. Would you tell our audience about the sport? Here you see the benefit of the direct-address comma. Without it, the reader thinks I know Mort is the beginning of the sentence and then lapses into confusion. Mort is cut away with two commas, and the reader understands that I know that you are . . . is the real meaning. h Elboxing is about 5,000 years old, Chester. It originated in ancient Egypt. You’re talking to Chester, so his name needs to be set off with a comma. i Really? Man, I can’t believe you knew that! Before you start yelling at me, I know that Man is sometimes simply an exclamation of feeling, not a true address. But it can be, and in this sen- tence, it is. Hence the comma slices it away from the rest of the sentence. j Yes, the sport grew out of the natural movement of the elbow when someone tried to inter- fere with a diner’s portion by “elbowing,” Chester. No one’s hitting Chester’s funny bone. Instead, Chester is being addressed directly, so you need the comma. k Excuse me a moment. The reigning champion has decided to pay us a visit. Miss William, could you tell us how you feel about the upcoming match? Here the person being addressed is Miss William. l Certainly, Sir. I am confident that my new training routine will pay off. The very polite Miss William from the previous exercise talks to Sir in this sentence, so that term is set off by a comma. 10_599321 ch05.qxp 4/3/06 11:22 PM Page 76 m What type of exercises did you do, Placida? I may call you “Placida,” right? Placida is being addressed, so the name requires a comma. Also, as reigning champ, she requires a bowl of jelly beans with the green ones removed. It’s in her contract. n Sure! I arm-wrestled for eight hours a day, Mort, and then swam a mile or so for the aerobic benefit. The direct address term Mort is in the middle of the sentence, so two commas are needed to cut it away from the main idea. o We wish her the best of luck, don’t we, folks? In this sentence, folks are being addressed, so the term must be set off by a comma. p An article in The New York Times of 12 November 2006 reports that rutabagas have very few calories. Or, An article in The New York Times of 12 November, 2006, reports that rutabagas have very few calories. Surprise! Two answers are possible. The more modern solution calls for no commas. The very traditional, “I learned English when quill pens were the rage” style calls for commas between the month and year and the year and the rest of the sentence. q Evelyn is partial to the rutabagas sold by Clearview Nurseries, 17 Fort Benn Parkway, Kalama, Florida 05789, although they are quite expensive, and its rates are going up in September 2007. Each line of the address is separated from the next by a comma. A comma also follows the address. The last date doesn’t need a comma, but you may place one between the month and the year if you wish to follow the older, traditional style. r Her last will and testament is dated April 8, 1990, and specifies that rutabaga roses be placed on her grave. Traditional month-day-year style dates take commas between the day and the year and also after the year within a sentence. s Her attorney, Hubert Wilberforce, may be contacted at 78 Crescent Square, London, Connecticut 86689, for more information. The lines of Hubert’s address are separated by commas, and the whole thing is followed by a comma. No comma ever appears between the state and the ZIP code. t Instead of flowers, Evelyn wrote that friends and loved ones should contribute to the United Rutabaga Society, 990 Pacific Street Northwest, Agonis, Oregon 98989. Did the Northwest throw you? I made it part of the street line, so it doesn’t need to be set off by a comma from Pacific Street. If you interpreted the location as Northwest Agonis, no problem. In that case the comma follows Street. (Neither Agonis nor Northwest Agonis exists, so I don’t care which you choose. In real life, of course, you have to use the proper address.) u In desperate need of a pizza fix, Brad turned to his cellphone. The introductory expression here merits a comma because it’s fairly long. Length doesn’t always determine whether you need a comma, but in general the longer the introduction, the more likely you’ll need a comma. v Cindy, on the other hand, checked the phone number in the pizza directory she had thoughtfully stashed in her purse. The expression inside the commas makes a comment on the rest of the sentence, contrasting it with the actions of Brad. As an interrupter, it must be separated by commas from the rest of the sentence. w Yes, pizza was an excellent idea. Yes and no, when they show up at the beginning of a sen- tence, take commas if they comment on the main idea. x The toppings, unfortunately, proved to be a problem. The unfortunately is short and closely tied to the meaning of the sentence. However, setting the word off with commas emphasizes the emotional, judgmental tone. I’ve gone with the commas, as you see, but I can accept a case for omitting them. 77 Chapter 5: Exercising Comma Sense 10_599321 ch05.qxp 4/3/06 11:22 PM Page 77 78 Part II: Mastering Mechanics y Restlessly Brad pondered the pepperoni question as the robbers searched for him. The introductory word restlessly is short and clear. No comma is necessary. A Cindy wondered how Brad, given his low-fat diet, could consider pepperoni. The expression given his low-fat diet interrupts the flow of the sentence and calls for commas. B Frozen with indecision, Brad decided to call the supermarket to request the cheapest brand. Introductory expressions with verb forms always take commas. C Cindy, of course, wanted to redeem her coupons. The of course interrupts the flow of the sen- tence and comments on the main idea. Hence the commas. D To ensure fast delivery was crucial. Did I catch you here? This sentence doesn’t have an intro- ductory expression. To ensure fast delivery is the subject of the sentence, not an extra comment. E Lighting a match and holding it near his trembling hand, Brad realized that time was almost up. Introductory expressions containing verbs always take commas. This introductory expres- sion has two verbs, lighting and holding. F Worrying about toppings had used up too many minutes. This sentence has no introductory expression, so no comma is needed. The verb form (Worrying about toppings) is the subject of the sentence, not an introduction to another idea. G Well, the robbers would have a good story to tell. Words such as well, indeed, clearly, and so forth take commas when they occur at the beginning of the sentence and aren’t part of the main idea. H With renewed determination, Cindy speed-dialed the market and offered “a really big tip” for ten-minute service. I admit that this one’s a judgment call. If you didn’t place a comma after determination, I won’t prosecute you for comma fraud. Neither will I scream if you, like me, inserted one. This sentence falls into a gray area. With a comma, the introductory expression stands out a little more. Your call. I As the robbers chomped on pepperoni and argued about payment, Brad slipped away. This introductory expression has a subject and a verb and clearly needs a comma. J Cindy, let’s just say, was left to clean up the mess. This sentence is another that couldn’t pos- sibly make sense without the commas. Cindy isn’t attached to the interrupter, let’s just say, but absent the commas, the reader runs all those words together. Penalty box! You have to add the commas. K Oscar’s favorite food, which he cooks every Saturday night, is hot dogs. After you find out that the food is Oscar’s favorite, you have enough identification. The information about Oscar’s datefree Saturday nights is extra and thus set off by commas. Descriptions beginning with which are usually extra. L The place where he feels most comfortable during the cooking process is his huge brick barbecue. The term place is quite general, so the description is an essential identifier. The two descriptions preceding barbecue aren’t of the same type. One gives size and the other composi- tion. You can’t easily reverse them (a brick huge barbecue sounds funny), so don’t insert a comma. M Oscar stores his wheat buns in a large plastic tub. The paired descriptions (his and wheat, large and plastic) aren’t of the same type. His is a possessive, and you should never set off a possessive with a comma. (They get very annoyed. Don’t ask!) Large indicates size and plastic, composition. 10_599321 ch05.qxp 4/3/06 11:22 PM Page 78 . you tell our audience about the sport? Here you see the benefit of the direct-address comma. Without it, the reader thinks I know Mort is the beginning of the sentence and then lapses into confusion always determine whether you need a comma, but in general the longer the introduction, the more likely you’ll need a comma. v Cindy, on the other hand, checked the phone number in the pizza directory. surround it with commas. If the description is in the “gotta have it” bin, omit the commas. For example, in the sentence, The dictionary on the table is dusty,” the description in italics is