The Big Bang Theory’s wedding episode succeeded where Publix failed

Most of us strive for perfection. Some of us do it too hard, and it can affect our well-being.

On the other hand, there are people who just don’t know any better, or worse, don’t care.

I don’t watch TV nearly as much as I used to, especially newer shows, shows not on network TV, etc. One day, I’ll be asking you for advice on being a cord-cutter.
(Unless any of you in the Philadelphia area are experts on watching by streaming over the internet. But how do you get the internet without Comcast in a high-rise when Comcast is the only option?)

Anyway, I was writing a blog when Sheldon and Amy got married on The Big Bang Theory but watched it on demand over the weekend.
I’ll quote this website to catch you up.

“Leonard is getting emotional helping his buddy get ready. Leonard is happy for Sheldon and that he will be officially and legally Amy’s problem. Ahh. Sheldon adds that he will always be Leonard’s problem.”

Then, Mary Cooper comes in and asks for a moment with her son, Sheldon.

After that, Sheldon describes to Amy,

“how her comments about imperfection in his bow tie makes him want to add the imperfections of the real world into his string theory calculations. Amy then calls his work super asymmetry and he likes that.”

Obviously, the importance of perfection depends what you’re doing.
None of us will be perfect in life, or in any particular part of it. That’s what makes us human. We can and should strive to improve in areas we particularly need it.
Which is why regular readers know I get angry when I see fellow journalists messing up or unwilling to fix their mistakes — especially former colleagues who know better.

That said, look at the Publix bakery. Publix is a big Florida supermarket and expanded into other southeastern states, where fed-up Floridians went when they became former Floridians.
The Miami Herald reports Publix decided “to censor a high school student’s graduation cake” when a South Carolina mom “said she ordered a Publix cake online for her son, Jacob, 18, last weekend to celebrate his summa cum laude designation. She intended the frosting to read: ‘Congrats Jacob! Summa Cum Laude class of 2018.’”
Wow! Ordering a cake online!
Come to think of it, The Herald reports that was the problem!
Mom had gone out of her way when ordering the cake to make sure everything would go right and Publix would accomplish just a tiny fraction of what her son did – reading, baking and spelling.
But…

“A computerized Publix algorithm that trolls cake inscription requests for naughty words didn’t like the Latin word ‘cum’ — pronounced coom — which means ‘with.’
“The centuries-old phrase translates to ‘with the highest distinction’ or ‘praise.’ So the cake maker followed the computer’s instruction — despite (proud Mom’s) explanation of the Latin phrase in the ‘special instructions’ column of the order form — and instead decorated the cake with ‘Congrats Jacob! Summa — Laude class of 2018.’
“The Latin preposition for ‘with’ was replaced by dashes.”

Instead, she “went on Facebook to tell everyone how embarrassing it was to have to explain to her son and 70-year-old mom the other meaning of that preposition when used as English slang.”

Brilliant Jacob may not be as brilliant as credited, or it may say a lot about his graduating class, if he looked at the actual word by itself and had no idea it may have an alternative meaning.
Come to think of it (I couldn’t resist using that phrase a second time and I’m able to), The Washington Post reported Jacob attended a Christian-based home-school program and earned a 4.89 grade point average.
Last night, Stephen Colbert went off on Publix on “The Late Show” and was able to present “another graduation treat made for Jacob — cupcakes with the offending (to Publix) word as decorative frosting,” as The Herald put it.
Blame CBS, not me, if you see a commercial.

I’ll bet he didn’t have to travel to Times Square — a few blocks south of the Ed Sullivan Theater — to have them made, either.
According to The Post, Mom called Publix and the assistant manager offered to remake the cake.
“No,” the paper reported she said. “You only graduate once.”
But she may have ended up smiling financially.
Publix refunded $70 for the cake and gave her a store gift card.
Just don’t try it with Publix, yourself.
The Post wrote it “replicated her experience and got the same result.”

So the tie Sheldon wore at his wedding in The Big Bang Theory may not have been tied perfectly. That’s not a big deal in the scheme of things. Besides, by the time anyone important (besides Mark Hamill) would see him close-up, there would’ve been plenty of time and movement for the perfect tie to become imperfect. So he gets away with it while dressed better than most of the guys on the show, most of the time, anyway. (And it would probably have been corrected for pictures.)
But as Jacob’s mom said, “You only graduate once,” and she said she explained the situation to the Publix assistant manager because she didn’t want this to happen to anyone else in the future.
Unfortunately,

“as The Washington Post test revealed, that particular ‘c’ word remains profane by Publix standards.”

So nothing was learned. Try putting it on your next license plate instead.
P.S. I have another reward for reading all the way!
In an exclusive, unaired clip from The Big Bang Theory Season 11 finale, the happy couple gets one last wedding present from the late theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ssb-4ostzwg
Hawking died in March. I posted a Facebook article with thoughts then.

Also, I’ll give you these two articles on how the scientist was so misguided on that topic.

And from the same day:
Stephen Hawking reaffirms support of Israel boycott: Hawking sends letter to President’s Conference organizers saying he faced pressure to withdraw from Palestinian academics (Jerusalem Post, May 8, 2013)
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P.S. Just wanted to make sure no connection between words in Summa Cum Laude and The Big Bang Theory was implied.