my tryst with writing 'i's in place of 'I's

Musing over a piece of code, I was trying hard to digest its logical rational. I catch the glimpse of my Project Manager gliding across my cubicle. I flash a smile and wave the usual greeting. He stops suddenly.

"Hey hi, i read your mail". I nod back in approbation. "Hey, what is your schooling background?"

I am very surprised!!

Managers in the IT industry seldom enquire about a software engineer's schooling background. The only time they do so is during recruitment. A certain benchmark is required to be eligible to sit for an organizations’' recruitment process. Otherwise, anybody is least bothered about what type of school one went to.

Before i could speak a word, he recollects that i was convent educated. Hmmm.. seems he has done some background checking on me. So, i muster a heavy 'yes'.

He points out to a mail i have been writing to two different managers in my organization and suggests politely "you should follow the e-mail writing etiquette". I am still in a trance as i wonder what the hell went wrong with my mail communications and how on Earth is it related to my schooling!!

I open the copy of my saved mail and start pondering over it. Both of us are in awe!
He is thunder stuck as i am not able to discern my mistake. Then he subtly points out:"look at your I's". My sentences have a mixture of 'I's and 'i's.

I am an ardent reader of TOI editorial articles. This certain article of Jahanavi Shandilya made sense to me and i decided to reform my writing style. I decided to use 'i' in place of 'I' in all my writing (except of course when the sentence starts with an i).

My Manager cares about me and he was brave enough to give me a feedback. Perhaps he missed the article that took center stage in the Editorial page of TOI!!

I am now in a fix . Will i continue using 'i' or shall i revert to using the 'I'?

This puts me in a position to be a trend setter in my circle but i may draw flak till more people get aware about the topic and start appreciating the rational behind using 'i' in place of 'I'.

Till then it is me attaching the piece of article to whoever questioning my usage of 'i's. And there starts a crusade!!

PS - please read the article by Jahanavi Shandilya , TOI "http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1785256.cms" to understand my rational of using 'i's in place of 'I's.