What’s on your mind?

[rm5]

Same for me. I find (with the possible exception of this thread specifically) that very few people in online communities are thoughtful individuals. In contrast, those who I am around in-person are very thoughtful, and it seems share a lot of my beliefs about things. Of course we choose who we are around, so that's probably why, but I think getting rid of social media has taken away a lot of anxiety for me.

I think a lot of it also coincides with my increasing dislike of technology, instead wanting to keep everything simple. I also believe that many online platforms demand that everything is perfect, and that just isn't true. You can't have a perfect world. In fact, the "solutions" people pose often involve spending large sums of money, or otherwise being somewhat irresponsible.

By getting to know people in-person, you also see them through everything and have a very different emotional response. Some of my best friends have gotten very upset at times, as we all do. And I know what they need in response to that - namely being left alone for a while. That sort of thing simply doesn't exist online, because the interaction is fabricated through a computer. Also, getting to know people in real life is so much more emotionally complex. When a real life friend is unhappy, it worries me in a very different way because the consequences (to both of us) are immediate.

 

[boswald]

PT is helping me a lot more than it used to. I've been in and out of the office for years, but this is the first time I feel like I'm actually getting help. My lower back is getting short-term relief, but it's lasting longer. The exercises are simple but effective and I get free massages in between sessions! Totally relieved I chose to go where I did. Also, down to 232! That's just 32 pounds to go!

 

[boswald]

Today is our 18-year anniversary! We're having a wonderful steak dinner tonight. We also went to a local coffee shop for breakfast and she's detailing my car (I didn't ask her to). So far, today is a great day! Also, a little bit of pain because I made the mistake of lifting a heavy bag of softener salt, but you'll have that. It won't carry itself in!

 

[Apple fanboy]

Today is our 18-year anniversary! We're having a wonderful steak dinner tonight. We also went to a local coffee shop for breakfast and she's detailing my car (I didn't ask her to). So far, today is a great day! Also, a little bit of pain because I made the mistake of lifting a heavy bag of softener salt, but you'll have that. It won't carry itself in!

18 years. Congratulations. We will be 28 this year.
Mrs AFB definitely has never detailed either my car or hers. Those are definitely my jobs!

That’s the thing about being married. You find out which jobs are whose and which you take turns at.

 

[boswald]

18 years. Congratulations. We will be 28 this year.
Mrs AFB definitely has never detailed either my car or hers. Those are definitely my jobs!

That’s the thing about being married. You find out which jobs are whose and which you take turns at.

Yes, I realize that and I understand it's all about compromise. But she offered it to me as a gift since the professional detailers are so expensive. It's not a flawless job but she did wonderful. I'm very happy.

Thank you for the kind words. After my last terrible relationship I didn't think I'd find another woman, let alone one that would share her life with me for this long. It's been a rollercoaster, that's for sure! My ex even tried to get back with me when she found out I was in another relationship!

 

[Apple fanboy]

Yes, I realize that and I understand it's all about compromise. But she offered it to me as a gift since the professional detailers are so expensive. It's not a flawless job but she did wonderful. I'm very happy.

Thank you for the kind words. After my last terrible relationship I didn't think I'd find another woman, let alone one that would share her life with me for this long. It's been a rollercoaster, that's for sure! My ex even tried to get back with me when she found out I was in another relationship!

My wife doesn’t like cleaning the house let alone the cars so I do both. But she likes to take charge with the shopping and cooking.

 

[WriteNow]

It is similar in French where you use "vous" for you normally and "tu" informally with close friends and family.

She says she is addressed informally—using the familiar "Du"—as a customer.

I studied both French and German a bit when I was young. I remember the talk of informal/formal you. The stories about how people could get fired for using the informal you in Germany. And the cheerful promise that we'd likely slip up if we ever visited Germany and use du when we shouldn't, causing us no end of embarrassment and consternation.

This is why I never made it to Germany. I knew I'd never forgive myself if I made this fatal error, even once. And I'd have to have "Used the wrong you" inscribed upon my gravestone one day. (Actually, it was a vacation budget of $0 that's kept me from visiting Europe.)

I made the conscious decsion with German that I'd always default to sie when given the choice (most of the time) when we did daily oral exercises (my teacher was big on having us practcie by asking us questions that we'd answer. She did not care if we used du for her, but I was careful not to.) Ditto for written exercises. It was my hope that when (back then, when I was young and full of Optimism For The Future, it was when) I made it to Germany, I'd avoid slipups.

Off topic, but I remember about that time my mother annoyed with how store clerks would address people by first name once they knew it.

Back to you. English had a singular second person pronoun (thou), which has become archaic. I'm not sure if it was considered informal, although I'd assume that would have been the case.

 

[boppin]

I studied both French and German a bit when I was young. I remember the talk of informal/formal you. The stories about how people could get fired for using the informal you in Germany.

Well, it’s probably not all that bad. As a rule, you can tell whether someone has mastered the language or not. You can certainly grasp the meaning of what is being said, even if the sentence isn't entirely correct.

After all, most English and American people have an accent when they speak German anyway. In that respect, no one here is likely to hold it against them.

Don't worry about mixing up the informal "du" and the formal "Sie." Nobody here is going to tear your head off for that.

Wit, unker, git: The lost medieval pronouns of English intimacy

Tales of love and adventure from 1,000 years ago reveal a dazzling range of now-extinct English pronouns. They capture something unique about how people once thought about "two-ness".

www.bbc.com

https://de.quora.com/Warum-gibt-es-im-Deutschen-mehrere-Artikel-und-im-Englischen-nur-the

Dana from Wanted Adventure got confused between the German words Rollladen and Rouladen. The last word means the food. Which isn't originally a German word, it has French origin. From French rouler which means rolled.

It's also very interesting to hear about the hole in the wall which isn't called door. Comes from old Northern Germanic language and developed over time to window. The German word for it comes from Latin fenestra who was Germanized to Fenster. Absolutely logical.

Here is an article for English native speakers

Deutschlernen: »Ihr werdet das Wort Eichhörnchen aussprechen müssen«

Deutschlernen mit Wurst-Idiomen: Die US-Amerikanerin Samantha Sanborn dekodiert die Redewendungen der deutschen Sprache.

www.spiegel.de

Don't read the text just watch the video. Samantha Sanborn explains some differences between German and English idioms. Completely understandable.

 

[WriteNow]

Well, it’s probably not all that bad.

It's possible my German teacher overstated the situation. Plus, of course, this was over 30 years ago...

you can tell whether someone has mastered the language or not.

My mother studied German for a period. The main professor was very good. My mother knew someone who was native German who knew this professor. This German said that the professor's German was excellent, but she was able to catch a couple of small mistakes. Apparently some idiom issue that only native speakers would likely know.

 

[boppin]

Plus, of course, this was over 30 years ago...

Apparently some idiom issue that only native speakers would likely know.

Thirty years ago?

Well, then nothing surprises me anymore. Are you coming from the US or UK?

Yeah, sure. You can't know every single word or idiom in another language—unless, of course, you grew up bilingual, like a good friend of mine. He didn't learn German until he was six; before that, it was Spanish. It’s actually quite funny and interesting: when he came back to visit Germany after several years, he mixed Spanish with German, but people still understood him.

 

[WriteNow]

Are you coming from the US or UK?

I'm in the US.

 

[boppin]

I'm in the US.

Another interesting point is that the questions regarding place and identity are swapped in English. I can't recall the specific term for it—"who" versus "where." In German, it’s exactly the other way around.

In English is: "Where is my key?" In German: "wo ist mein Schlüssel?"

In English: "Who is this?" In German: "Wer ist das?"

Is there an explanation for this? I never found one.

Formal Vs informal you.

Formal German: "Hallo Herr Mustermann, haben Sie das Auto bereits repariert?" Informal: "Hallo Max, hast du das Auto bereits repariert?"

Max Mustermann is equal to your John Doe. I learned that from Columbo.

 

[diggy33]

Haven't been on a motorcycle ride of any significance since last summer. Took a group ride up to Gettysburg, PA today to go to the Harley dealership there. Great ride, weather was perfect, but man am I sore now!! Need to get back in to riding shape

 

[boswald]

Went to the movies with my girlfriend today, and we decided to watch Evil Dead 2. I was impressed that she wanted to see it, and shocked she liked it. I warned her beforehand that it's not a "chick movie" and more of a Horror-Comedy, and she didn't seem to mind. Also, the endorsement from Stephen King sold it a little bit. Anyway, we were practically all alone in the theater so we had the entire room to talk amongst ourselves. We wouldn't have done that if others were there, but she did ask me a few questions about it as it went along. Overall, a great time. Next up, Army of Darkness!

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Saw good friends (whom I hadn't seen in absolutely ages, though we chat fairly frequently on the phone and also communicate by text and email) from Bristol yesterday for a coffee and a good chat.

 

[Apple fanboy]

Saw good friends (whom I hadn't seen in absolutely ages, though we chat fairly frequently on the phone and also communicate by text and email) from Bristol yesterday for a coffee and a good chat.

I’m stopping in Bristol on Saturday night. A stopover between Newport and Eastbourne.

 

[boppin]

Very interesting. It is similar in French where you use "vous" for you normally and "tu" informally with close friends and family. Young children are addressed with "tu".

It seems to be that this went from French into German. I found this:

The formal mode of address (using "Sie") emerged in the 17th century out of the era of absolutism. Inspired by the Latin *pluralis majestatis*—in which monarchs were addressed in the plural—people shifted away from the direct "Du" (informal "you") and began using the third-person plural ("Sie") to maintain a respectful distance.

I guess that Italian and French has had the most influence on German language than other one, except the Northern Germanic languages.

I have also heard that the reason for the existence of two forms of address stems from the following background: when someone came to visit, that person was viewed as a representative of their village. If that's true I can't tell, but it's interesting to read that before the age of Absolutism that there was no "Sie" as address in German. So if someone complains that every time "you" is used than we can say they speak the unaltered German several centuries ago.

If I remember correctly. My English teacher told us that formal address in today's English would be "you, Mr. Doe, please clean up the bathroom". Is this correct?

 

[boppin]

Here is another interesting thing between different languages and cultures which can easily lead to misunderstanding and conflict.

While probably most people think that the term "a Black man" refers to a man with dark skin colour, it's completely different in Germany.

When we say that we saw a "Black man" we don't mean a man with dark skin colour, but an "evil man", "scary man" or "unknown man".

So when you would say in German "ein schwarzer Mann", then we wouldn't understand a man with dark skin colour but someone is criminal or something like that. Hope you understand. Thanks a lot!

 

[Macky-Mac]

...If I remember correctly. My English teacher told us that formal address in today's English would be "you, Mr. Doe, please clean up the bathroom". Is this correct?

Mr Boppin, you probably don't need to use the word "you" in that sentence......... it would be; "Mr Boppin, please clean up the bathroom"....tho that will vary by region. (I don't remember ever hearing somebody use both "you" and a name as you did in that sentence)

Spanish, Italian and Portuguese all have formal and informal words for "you", but current usage varies

 

[boppin]

Mr Boppin,

Please don't call me "Mr."!

Well, this was 21 (twenty-one) years ago. That was when we learned Business English.

 

[boppin]

Next time I call police 👮

It's no longer fun what happens in neighborhood.

 

[Madonepro]

Mr Boppin, you probably don't need to use the word "you" in that sentence......... it would be; "Mr Boppin, please clean up the bathroom"....tho that will vary by region. (I don't remember ever hearing somebody use both "you" and a name as you did in that sentence)

Spanish, Italian and Portuguese all have formal and informal words for "you", but current usage varies

In certain parts of the UK 😉 we would likely say 'Mr Boppin, would you mind awfully, being a good chap, and cleaning the bathroom'.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

Spanish, Italian and Portuguese all have formal and informal words for "you", but current usage varies

As do both Russian and French.

Historically, English did too, ("ye", - and, for the informal form of address, pronouns such as "thee", "thou", "thine", etc. were in use), but, in English, it seems that the 'formal' form of address ("you") simply came to be used for both singular and plural forms of address, as well as for both the formal and informal forms.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

I’m stopping in Bristol on Saturday night. A stopover between Newport and Eastbourne.

Enjoy and safe travels.

 

[Scepticalscribe]

I love libraries, and love the very idea of a public space open to everyone that is dedicated to, devoted to, designed for, the encouragement of access to books (for pleasure, knowledge, learning) - in all forms, - audio, digital, and the classic version that comes between covers - and a love of knowledge and learning, - invariably staffed by enthusiastic, helpful, pleasant and knowledgeable people.