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When you list things out, do you like to put a comma before the word "and" or "or"?

I always learned that that comma was optional, but I always put the comma there. Grapes, lemons, tomatoes, and fish. Grapes, lemons, tomatoes and fish.

Public Comments

1. Hey, Arnold.
2. I put it as well.
3. Yes. You do not technically have to do it anymore, but I still do.
4. Hey Arnold. The comma before the word 'and' (or serial comma, as it is called) is not strictly necessary in sentences like yours, but I like to use it because if often clarifies the sentence. For instance, if you take this example: "She met George, an officer and a gentleman." Here, it looks like she met one person called George who was both an officer and a gentleman. But in this example: "She met George, an officer, and a gentleman." This could be construed to mean that she met three people: 1. George, 2. an officer, and 3. a gentleman. Or she could have met two people, i.e. George who was an officer, and someone else who was a gentleman. So that serial comma could make a difference in these cases.
5. No, I prefer to leave it out.