Marking X-es can be a rather off-putting experience if done wrong. I, however, had always prided myself on doing it right, left-down to right-up, then left-up to right-down.
Imagine my surprise to meet a personage of dubitable quality marking his X not only
right-down to left-up, then right-up to left-down – which, for the record, I can live with in some of my best friends, though barely – but right-up to left-down, then right-down to left-up.
The insolence!
I immediately made sure that this malapert drate-poke would not make more contact with me than necessary, and put on the white gloves of the Duke’s Butler.
“Hi.” the fopdoodle said.
“A very good day to you.” I replied, watching it mark its X-es on the delivery form.
I received the filled-out scheme, avoiding any form of eye-contact with this bare-faced zoilist. Like a contumelious cumberworld, it seemed to wait for something. Eventually, it said:
“Thank you. Have a nice day!”
I did not reply. I hastily marked an X on a piece of paper to make sure that I had not been smitten. I delighted in finding the pen going left-down to right-up, then left-up to right-down. Another assault on reason thwarted, I thought, retiring to one of the castle’s restrooms to munch on a pretzel left-down to right-up, then throwing what was left right down.
