An Ernie Error
Its hard to believe.
A missing apostrophe on a tribute statue for Ernie Banks, famed Cubs ballplayer, sounds about right for Wrigleyville. Although I’m no grammar freak (read: I am a grammar freak), it’s still bizarre to me how sculptor Lou Cella could have missed that kind of error.
Then again, I remembered a Chicago story from a few years ago where a man with some local pride sued a tattoo artist for accidentally writing “Chi-tonw” on his chest. It was an honest mistake, the artist claimed. And in protest of the suit, which they deemed ludicrous, several of the artist’s “professional colleagues” got their own “Chi-tonw” tattoos.
Sometimes, we miss the details when we’re looking for the big picture. In the tattoo situation, the man inspected the sketch that had been made on his own chest before the needle ever touched him. How many other people looked at this statue before it went on display without saying a thing?
A testament to human oversight and human error is occasion more for laughter than reprimand. So if the relentlessly optimistic short-stop/first-baseman isn’t that concerned - and it’s safe to assume that Banks is probably not in tears plotting his revenge - perhaps we shouldn’t be either.