It wasn't until the 19th century that the phrase "dot your i's and cross your t's" began to be used beyond literal writing, expanding to a more general sense as an indication of precision or meticulousness.

Wilson may consider herself a stickler when it comes to details of county government, but there are plenty of other sticklers possessing much narrower focus. An entire Web page on www.oneword.com, for example, contains a long discussion on, yes, the dot. One writer goes so far as to use the dot as an indicator of her life's journey.

"I used to dot my i's with hearts when I was eight," writes Emily, (an Internet handle). "When I turned nine I abandoned the hearts and started with smiley faces and peace signs. It was the cool thing to do. Then at 13 it was all about x's and skulls.

"Now I dot my i's with dots."

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