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Y’all ever have one of those moments where you’re just cruisin’ through life, spelling words like a champion, and then BAM—you hit a wall? A completely normal, everyday word suddenly looks like you typed it in hieroglyphics. You write it, rewrite it, stare at it, say it out loud, maybe even Google it, but the more you try, the more convinced you become that you’ve never seen that word in your life.

I like to call this the Great Spelling Crisis—a rare but devastating moment when your brain simply gives up and walks off the job.

The Usual Suspects

For me, it’s words like necessary (does it have one C? Two? Why does it feel like it needs another S?), embarrass (I am, in fact, embarrassed every time I try to spell it), and definitely (or is it defiantly? Or definatly? Who knows anymore?). It’s always the simple words that get you!

Then there’s the cruel irony of technology not helping one bit. Autocorrect is just sitting there, judging you, offering suggestions that somehow make the word look even worse than before. And if you type it into Google, you get that passive-aggressive “Did you mean…?” like, YES GOOGLE, I DID MEAN THAT, but now I don’t even trust myself anymore.

The Overthinking Spiral

The worst part is the more you look at the word, the less it looks right. You start second-guessing yourself, sounding it out like a first-grader in a spelling bee: Neh-sess-sah-ree? Emb-er-ass? Then, in sheer desperation, you write it in all caps as if yelling at the letters will make them behave.

And if you’re really desperate? You avoid the word altogether. That’s right—I will absolutely change an entire sentence just to avoid spelling one tricky word. Why struggle with “necessary” when I can just say “really important”? Work smarter, not harder.

The Humbling Moment of Acceptance

Eventually, you either:

1. Give up and let spellcheck win.

2. Ask someone nearby and hope they don’t judge you.

3. Throw your phone/laptop/notepad across the room and accept that you will never spell “restaurant” correctly on the first try.

And if anyone ever dares to call you out on it? Just say, “I know how to spell it, I just had a moment.” Because, honey, we ALL have these moments. Some of us just have them more often than others.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to go double-check if I spelled “definitely” right. Again.

XOXO, Jani

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