One of the major industries in my hometown was the factory of the New York Air Brake Co., known to nearly everyone as “the Brake Shop.” An enterprising bartender opened up a bar nearby for Brake Shop employees to stop off at on their way home – and he named it “the Break Shop.”
This one drives me absolutely batshit! A restaurant we used to frequent in Idaho has a sign over their doorway stating “We’re glad your here.” I often threatened to bring a sharpie to add the apostrophe and e.
it’s terrible, but most of my japanese kids who can barely string together more than two or three sentences still know the difference between
(there, their, they’re)
(its, it’s)
(then, than)
(your, you’re)
the only one they still struggle with is which and witch, and of course 'wich (as in damnit woman, go make me a san’wich )
You’re all correct about standard orthography, but, eh, why get so worked up over it? It doesn’t particularly bother me if someone happens to employ a variant spelling; it neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg, as they say.