It's the No. 1 rule of journalism: no one ever makes an exclamation. They don't comment, note, sigh, yell, or any of the other 18 million ways you're taught in elementary school that someone can say something without just saying "sally said."
So as a friend and I were driving through the parking garage at the mammoth-sized Towson Town Center (the closest suburb to Baltimore with the largest mall I've ever been in. Bellvue Square would fit in the luxury wing of this place), I was taken aback at the signs directing me:
"Lots more parking ahead!"
Normally, I would've made some cynical remark at how the world should use its words, not its punctuation, to make a statement. But for some reason, this sign made me stop and exclaim for myself, "what a wonderful place for an exclamation mark!"
How many times have I driven around a parking garage and by the end of it just wanted to drive off the edge of the damn thing and go home? I hate the claustrophobia, the frantic nature of the place, the feeling that at any moment some Hollywood action/thriller moment will hit and the whole thing will collapse on top of my tiny car. The use of this simple yet powerful punctuation gave me hope; more parking, and a pleasant experience, was just ahead of me.
So maybe, just this once, I can accept that a well-placed exclamation mark sometimes really does the trick. Just don't tell my students I said so...
For more insight, check out this Slate article about their overuse in e-mails.
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