Well, well, well ...and mine, too!

Discuss any questions in English. Practise your writing skills.

Модератор: zymbronia

Mary May
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#1

Сообщение Mary May »

There was a thread on efl.ru started by Nina and called something like "My <language? linguistic?> plans for 2018: who else wants to share?". It happened to be the last one I read there late on Feb 26 or even in the small hours of Feb 27, which appeared to be the very last hours of the forum's existance. And it was "the thread" - the one where the further disaster was triggered.

I found myself there (I mean, browsing that very thread and reading about other people's ambitious plans) after 2 months of the year had passed with me having done practically nothing with my English, despite all the good intentions one almost inevitably tend to cherish every December (NY resolutions - ha-ha!). "Would it help if I wrote my plans down? Say, tomorrow?" I wondered. With that in mind, I went to bed going over what to put on the list. And the next day happened what happened.
Ironically, one of the the latest posts in the thread said "If you want to make gods laugh tell them about your plans".
So, I won't. Let the gods be deprived of the pleasure.

I do know what it is believed to help you succeed in your planning - all these ABC tips as "make your goal achievable/measurable/as specific as possible" etc. I will do nothing of that. What I am writing in this post, is the mere statement of intent - no details, no strict regulations, no deadlines, no timing at all. At that very moment at least - never say never!
My aim is, no matter how vaguely it might sound, just to stop my English from slipping down to the "one step above my students" level, which, to my surprise, some people find quite acceptable. For me, it's absolutely not, as I strongly believe that the one who dares to teach others needs a little bit wider perspective. My worries might seem a little precautionary yet, taking into account my students' level, but as far as they are improving while I am NOT, to put it mildly... you continue.

So, to start with, I'm going to write something here more or less regularly. And I really need someone's help and feedback. My greatest concern is lexis (collocations and proper choice of words included). I'm quite bad in punctuation, articles, prepositions, register. Not long ago I diagnosed myself with dyslexia - so, spelling might be an issue too (I don't use any tools here).

To ease the burden for good Samaritans (if there any), I'll try to write something short and meaningful, something that can be of any use - maybe, not ideas, but information worth sharing. This post is an exception to the rule as it is just the declaration of intent - remember?
Perhaps, it's not the best timing for me to start the tread - when many of those who could possibly help are involved in the "daily challenge" with 98 days to go through. Nevertheless, I do hope that not all of the teachers and other proficient users are involved so deeply not to notice anything else. On the bright side, it may also become a challenge to make me go on - not to be buried deeply under 98 more threads.
Thank you for reading.
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well well well, September, Katee
zymbronia
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#2

Сообщение zymbronia »

Mary May пишет: 11 мар 2018, 16:16 Let the gods be deprived of the pleasure.
Like I wrote in that thread, I prefer planning to non-planning. Let me accomplish 30% of my plans, but I will do at least something. Without planning I don't do almost nothing. In my childhood I made plans and I accomplished them to up to 70%, not the percentage of accomplishments is much lower, but still I need them, and that thread somehow stimulated. Of course I didn't start to do what I planned to do at once and I procrastinated. Now Chinara's thread, and Mikka's thread and our speaking club help me to do and fulfil some points of my plan. I planned to listen to ten audio books a year, to read about ten books, to do writing each weak, and tests for preparing to FCE, CAE or CPE. Maybe on my own I wouldn't do much of those, but now thanking to those people and their threads I can see light in the end of the tonnel -- I do at least something in hope that I will accomplish at least this 30% of my plans :)
Mary May пишет: 11 мар 2018, 16:16 I do know what it is believed to help you succeed in your planning - all these ABC tips as "make your goal achievable/measurable/as specific as possible" etc. I will do nothing of that. What I am writing in this post, is the mere statement of intent - no details, no strict regulations, no deadlines, no timing at all. At that very moment at least - never say never!
Due to the reason I mentioned above, for me it is better to state and specify some milestones (at least for myself) so that I can see how much I have done. Without those milestones, it is difficult.
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acapnotic
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#3

Сообщение acapnotic »

Btw, the shutdown of the old forum proved the truth of the proverb about plans and gods. Of course, it doesn't mean you shouldn't make plans, only that you shouldn't be surprised if you fail to fullfill them. I was surpised that a couple of forum members didn't understand it.
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#4

Сообщение Mary May »

acapnotic пишет: 20 мар 2018, 13:18 Btw, the shutdown of the old forum proved the truth of the proverb about plans and gods.
That's exactly what I meant.
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#5

Сообщение Mary May »

zymbronia пишет: 20 мар 2018, 07:23 ... for me it is better to state and specify some milestones (at least for myself) so that I can see how much I have done. Without those milestones, it is difficult.
Can't agree more! But can't follow the helpful advice :(
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#6

Сообщение Mary May »

Sorry to admit, this post is in total disagreement with what I myself stated here just two weeks ago: neither is it meaningful (here: =useful to anyone else but me), nor comes in a due time (as I wished I would write more often than once in a fortnight). Instead, it's just a bla-bla-blaing for its own sake.

Still, I hope there might be someone here who would take an effort and give me a piece of advice on my writing (both in this thread and wherever you find me writing in English) - just to contribute to the overall "balance of helpfulness" here on the forum, maybe?

My greatest concerns, as I said, are mainly in the choice of proper words, then (roughly in a descending order) prepositions, articles, and punctuation.
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#7

Сообщение acapnotic »

You are probably taking part in the writing challenge. If so, why bother writing here often?
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#8

Сообщение Mary May »

No, I am not, I just can't. Questions there are often too personal - far beyond my boundaries of privacy. That is, BTW, what I hate about communicative approach - they are so sure that everybody is nothing but happy to talk about themselves, the most thrilling topic to discuss! I'm just helping others over there. You see, I had a strong feeling that we (me and those who take part in the challenge) were in the same boat when I noticed that, like me, they were waiting for someone to give a feedback on what they wrote and almost nobody appeared. So I'm just doing what I can there.
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acapnotic
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#9

Сообщение acapnotic »

Well, I seem to see one mistake: feedback is uncountable. Other than that, I think you need a native speaker to properly assess your writing. It may not sound quite English here or there, but it's not easy for another Russian-speaking person to catch that.
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Mary May
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#10

Сообщение Mary May »

if you could specify where these "here and there" might be... just a hint, please?
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#11

Сообщение acapnotic »

Mary May, I could if I were a native English speaker. :) Or if I had at least been reading a lot lately, but I haven't. So my gut feeling for natural English is very weak now.
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#12

Сообщение Mary May »

Anyway - thank you for your time! Very kind of you.
Последний раз редактировалось Mary May 24 мар 2018, 12:47, всего редактировалось 1 раз.
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#13

Сообщение Kind_Punk »

Mary May пишет: 11 мар 2018, 16:16existance.
e
Mary May пишет: 11 мар 2018, 16:16, which
Comma not needed.

Mary May пишет: 11 мар 2018, 16:16 where the further disaster was triggered.
A bit awkward to me )

Mary May пишет: 11 мар 2018, 16:16 after 2 months of the year had passed
IMHO, "had" is not needed.

Mary May пишет: 11 мар 2018, 16:16 despite all the good intentions one almost inevitably tend to cherish every December
Just did not understand )

Но я не нейтив, может, и нормально все ))
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#14

Сообщение Kind_Punk »

Mary May,

Могу русский покритиковать ) Не будете же вы на английском писать лучше, чем на русском? )
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#15

Сообщение Mary May »

No chance. Even half as good will be OK for me.
You're scaring me. What did I say? Oh, no, please don't answer here - it's the Practise your English thread. Let's try to make it a little as it used to be.
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#16

Сообщение Kind_Punk »

Mary May пишет: 24 мар 2018, 13:03 it's the Practise your English thread.
Oh, my bad ) Didn't notice it.
Mary May пишет: 24 мар 2018, 13:03 You're scaring me. What did I say?
Don't be scared be prepared ) There is nothing criminal in your writing, so to say, it just makes an overall impression of... strangeness, maybe )
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#17

Сообщение ivorfuzzle »

I read somewhere recently that when you make plans it's best to keep them to yourself because when you share them with others the signals that go through your brain when you do that (share your plans with other people, go public with them) are very similar to (essentially the same as) those generated when you accomplish your plans, so in other words, sharing your plans with other people tricks your brain into thinking that you've already accomplished them and thus you end up doing nothing.
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#18

Сообщение Kind_Punk »

ivorfuzzle пишет: 24 мар 2018, 19:45 sharing your plans with other people tricks your brain into thinking that you've already accomplished them
Just another excuse for laziness )
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#19

Сообщение ivorfuzzle »

Kind_Punk пишет: 24 мар 2018, 19:49
ivorfuzzle пишет: 24 мар 2018, 19:45 sharing your plans with other people tricks your brain into thinking that you've already accomplished them
Just another excuse for laziness )
Apparently it's a scientifically established fact, they actually ran experiments to see what happens, it's not something that people tell themselves, it's how people actually behave, they had experimental groups whom they asked to go public with their plans and control groups whom they asked to keep their plans to themselves and the former were overall worse at achieving their goals than the latter and it happened like every time they ran experiments like that.
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well well well, Mary May
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#20

Сообщение Kind_Punk »

ivorfuzzle пишет: 24 мар 2018, 19:52 they actually ran experiments to see what happens
Well, they are not lazy ))
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well well well
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#21

Сообщение Belka_Teacher »

Mary May, I will try to help you. MAKE an effort, not take. Feedback is uncountable - so feedback , not a feedback.
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#22

Сообщение Belka_Teacher »

Kind_Punk, the comma IS needed. It is a non' defining relative clause.
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#23

Сообщение Belka_Teacher »

Kind_Punk, had passed is also more than OK.
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#24

Сообщение Belka_Teacher »

Mary May, And the next day happened what happend - sounds quite Russian, I even cannot find the subject here.
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#25

Сообщение Belka_Teacher »

Mary May, I do know what it is believed - IT is not needed here.
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