Vince Grippi: Make no mistake, we don’t like them

My son’s car died the other day. Wouldn’t start. Not a peep.

We took out the battery. Had it tested. It was fine.

Still no go. Checked the starter. Seemed OK, but it had to be the culprit. I was sure of it. I had seen it before. No doubt in my mind.

We dropped the car at the mechanic and waited for the $200 call.

Uh, I was wrong. The floor mat had wedged under the clutch. The little button or trigger or widget that allows you turn the engine over wouldn’t engage. Move the mat, car turns over. A simple easy fix.

My bad.

Luckily, we have a mechanic we trust. He fixed it. Didn’t charge a dime.

But I was so sure it was the starter. Positive. One hundred percent.

I was wrong.

Everyone makes mistakes. As my dad used to say – a lot – there’s only been one perfect person on this planet … and he was crucified.

Nobody wants to be crucified, and nobody wants to make mistakes either.

But the latter happens.

Here at the ol’ S-R we are under orders to clean up our act. To eliminate mistakes. To get things right. Every time.

We’re trying. Hard. There’s a new protocol we have to follow.

Basically it boils down to check, check again and check once more.

Still, there’s only one way to eliminate every mistake and I’ll get to that later. Before we go there, however, look at the last name attached to this column.

How many different ways do you think I’ve seen it spelled in print? There’s Grippe, that’s real common. Then there’s Griffey, that became big in the Northwest a few years back. How about Grippie, or Grippy, or Griffin, or Groppi? Seen them all.

My personal favorite is Gripe. Still get mail from one organization addressed to Vince Gripe. Sort of fits, don’t you think?

Dad clipped every linescore my name was in throughout high school and college and all the above (mis)spellings appeared at least once.

So believe me when I say I understand the frustration that comes with a mistake.

And how bad a kid feels.

You have no idea how many mornings I’ve awakened at 4:30 knowing for sure I misspelled a name in a story. How often I lie in bed listening for the sound of the thump on the steps so I could check. How I knew, I knew, I had screwed up and some dad or mom was going to clip the mistake, put it in a scrapbook, and the kid’s life would be ruined.

And how often I was worried over nothing.

Still it’s become harder over the years to get high school kids’ names right. Why? Because the spellings keep getting – how do I put this nicely? – more exotic.

The same first name is spelled myriad ways – on the same team. Is it Katie or Kati? Is it Michelle or Michele? Is it Kory or Corey or Cory?

Then there’s the problem of not having a source to seek out. In the fall or winter, if you’re writing about a Greater Spokane League athlete, you can go to the program and double check the name, the class, sometimes even the height and weight.

But in the spring? Good luck if the kid plays a sport other than baseball.

So what do you do? Like I said before, there is only one way to ensure names are never misspelled in the sports section: Don’t run them.

That’s not an option. We want to recognize the kids. You want them recognized. And we will continue to do it.

And we will strive to get every name right. If we don’t, please don’t crucify us.

But feel free to Gripe.