Exclamation points in emails!

[Anonymous]

I am a parent of a 10 year old boy in an area school. I get along well with parents, but I wouldn’t say I am close friends with anyone. I work full time so I’m not often at pick up. However, I certainly try to be pleasant. And given that my son’s class does a lot of activities together (baseball, birthday parties, etc), we parents do end up communicating a lot by email to work out logistics.

Anywho…, I find every single email from a parent, be it to discuss a homework assignment, to arrange rides to places, to ask any question whatsoever, will contain no fewer than 3 exclamation points. It will always start: Hello XXX! It will always end: Thanks! And somewhere in the middle will be another sentence warranting the use of the said punctuation (of the variety: It’s all set!) Most of the time, there will be three or four exclamation points for EACH of these phrases (Thanks a lot!!!...I’ll see you there!!!)

Now, I don’t mind a little emphasis now and then. But it does strike me as rather curious. Maybe I’m the only one (in which case I’m wondering…what do you think this means?)

[Anonymous]

The exclamation points are there to convey a friendlier tone. Apparently the strategy is not working.

[Anonymous]

Some of us get excited about our children's fun plans!!!

As opposed to boring work correspondence, for example.

Thanks for pointing this out!!!

[Anonymous]

I am probably one of the emailers that bothers you, and for that I apologize. I'm neither a simpleton who needs to hip-hip-hooray over every little activity, nor a grammar & punctuation idiot.

I'm actually just a busy mom who knows that an email from me usually means I'm asking you for something - a donation, a contribution of your precious time, some items for a bake sale/yard sale/fund-raiser. I feel guilty about bothering you. Thus, instead of dwelling on the details of yet another something I want from you (including the extra minutes during your busy day that you're spending reading my message) I'm trying to create a sense of excitement about whatever end goal I'm after to improve the school activities or after-school activities for your child. I'm sorry that it's not working. I apologize for bugging you, it isn't my intention. There are many days I'd love nothing better than to let someone else be the group organizer. I hope you won't hold it against me personally.

[Anonymous]

I am someone that would completely aggrevate you! I send emails with exclamation points all the time in emails -probably in the wrong context, primary reason being messages get so mistinterpreted and misconstrued in emails that I think it's safe to air on the side of friendly than rude.

Sorry!!! had to do it!!

[Anonymous]

I have received a few emails from fellow parents that were so perfunctory ... I found them quite rude. Perhaps something between "Little Josh can't wait to attend the party!!!" and "Josh will be there." would be nice.

[Anonymous]

Clearly you can't please everyone, although you can kill yourself trying.

[Anonymous]

I use them to convey a friendlier tone.

[Anonymous]

Don't you remember the Seinfeld episode when Elaine got annoyed with her boyfriend for leaving a note that said (something along the lines of): "so and so had her baby."? Elaine got annoyed b/c she thought the messsage warranted exclamation points. So funny. I'm laughing just thinking about it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Anonymous]

OP here. Yes, I can see it seems friendlier to sprinkle exclamation points here and there. I just realized I haven't gotten a note from a parent without them. Anyway, obviously, I have few problems if punctuation is bothering me. And it really isn't, I just was wondering: (1) is this something peculiar to my son's school (apparently not) and (2) is there a reason we have gotten into the habit of using them?

But now I know!!! Thanks!!!

[Anonymous]

Glad to help!!!!!

[Anonymous]

Sometimes DCUM is pretty mean. It makes me strangely happy to see how this worked out.

[Anonymous]

I don't mind the exclamation points -- but I don't think I use them too much. I tend to be more of a "dasher"-- than a "comma user" -- I must make the grammar nazi crazy!!! What I cannot stand are the sideways smiley faces people use like or -- good God it took me a long time to figure those out. Why would an adult use that in an email to another adult? Those things make me nuts --

[Anonymous]

oh - pp here - I see dcum formatted my smiley faces - after it took me 10 minutes to type out the colon+dash+parentheses thingy -- I think I'm going to vomit now!!!!

[Anonymous]

Hello,

I believe you have too much time on your hands if this is the crap that bothers you. I hope that you will get a life and stop judging how people use punctuation.

Thank you,

Can not believe I wasted the time to respond, but at least I did not annoy you with and exclamation point or smiley face