a few words of gratitude

[Yuri P]

Why are you getting overly sarcastic as if trying to hint,

Does it really matter? If mirock has such links, it would be great if he shared them with you. Actually you should have thanked me for the advice.

Be nicer to people, please.

Yes, for example, don't say "you scribbled" when talking about their posts. And of course don't address them as "incredibly boring guy". Right?

Practice what you preach if you want me to take you seriously.

[slavyan]

Yuri P

Ok, man, I'm not dyed-in-the-wool arguer) Let's bury the fucking hatchet. I want you to forget this fervid dispute over whose approach to learn English is better. Yep, I am feeling slightly guilty of being too isistent on my point of view but still if you hadn't written the post making me feel uneasy in the first place I'd've probably never entered the fight.

Sometimes everybody of us got contemplating moments in life and one of such moments in my life was all about pondering on some ways of getting english learnt in a much quicker way. For instance, I can easily express my thoughts via English while talking because it all boils down to pattern recognition but i got hard time putting my ideas on paper.

 I was thinking over it for quite a long time and bam I figured out I had to build up my english writing skills by listening a lot and then writing a content of a story I was listening through.To my regret, it is tremendously difficult to find someone to share this particular strategy with.....

[slavyan]

difficult to find someone to share this particular strategy with.....

What I mean though is that I've almost lost any hope for finding someone who would be ready to invest much of their spare time into refining writing skills. Americans just get confused and rush away when I am telling that I am going to be writing for a few hours and expec them to do the same for me)). Perhaps, it is quite boring to them to spend their precious time on writing as long as they mustn't write an essay or smth like that))

[Yuri P]

I want you to forget this fervid dispute over whose approach to learn English is better.

Where did we have such a dispute? The last one I remember was between me and Inego. Are you and he the same person? As for our argument on this thread, I don't think we should forget anything. It is part of the reality we live in. I must admit though that I should not have blamed both of you for the words said by mirock.

What I mean though is that I've almost lost any hope for finding someone who would be ready to invest much of their spare time into refining writing skills. Americans just get confused and rush away when I am telling that I am going to be writing for a few hours and expec them to do the same for me)).

Actually what you suggest is all about writing. Because if your partner wanted to read, he could find a lot of authentic texts instead of reading your more or less broken and unnatural English. I don't mean compared to mine, of course, so don't take it personally. Just generally speaking. Writing in English is nothing special for Americans, so why expect them to be enthusiastic about it? People who enjoy writing are rare.

Even rarer are those who enjoy it so much that they are ready to overcome all the difficulties of writing in a foreign language. It is really difficult. So the negative result of your search seems only logical.

Add to this that many of us just don't have much to say. I can't imagine myself talking for hours. Maybe writing essays is a more realistic plan than finding the kind of partner you are looking for. Yes, I know that it's boring.

[Inego]

Yuri P, if this excellent English you speak is a result of the analytical approach to learning languages you defended in that dispute with me, I take off my hat. Just wow. How long time did it take to get you there?

[Yuri P]

How long time did it take to get you there?

I don't really know because I have stopped and started again many times and usually the learning periods were much shorter, like learning for a month and then forgetting about English for the rest of the year. It all adds up to a few years, I guess, but I have absolutely no idea how many.

My English is not so good as it may seem sometimes because when I write I look up words and collocations in a dictionary or on the Internet. Leave me without them and I will drop to a lower level. And I certainly don't speak it well, since I have never spent time on developing this skill. I think I would manage to make myself understood if I had to, but I would probably be ashamed to call it "speak English".

[Inego]

By the style of your "written speech" I judge that you don't check up the grammar and / or dictionary that often since your style seems very fluent.

[Yuri P]

It can be fluent at times, but far from always. How about you? Can you estimate how much time you have spent on English?

[Inego]

I think I have been reading texts in English almost every day during the course of over ten years, but I am still very far from having grasped this language. Maybe it is due to the fact I have been learning other languages in the meantime.

[Yuri P]

but I am still very far from having grasped this language.

What do you mean by having grasped the language? Using it as easily as your native one? I wonder if it is even possible if you don't live in an English speaking country. We are not forced to use it.

[slavyan]

he could find a lot of authentic texts instead of reading your more or less broken and unnatural English.

he could find a lot of authentic texts instead of reading your more or less broken and unnatural English.

Sure thing, I am not going to be insisting that my English is fluent or even close to that) but I have always tried to use phrases or expresions from authentic texts needless to mention I have been really immersing myself into English by listening to science podcasts and watching american or british movies for 2-3 hours per day over the last 1,5 -2 years.

My ability to speak English is far beyond what I had been dreaming before I actually came to the usa and met americans who were eager to learn Russian. What else to say? living with an american family for a whole year was a great experience . Although, there's no point in denying that my writing sucks occasionally)))

[slavyan]

shit, why i can't edit my posts right now

been dreaming before - been dreaming of 

[Inego]

but I am still very far from having grasped this language.

What do you mean by having grasped the language? Using it as easily as your native one? I wonder if it is even possible if you don't live in an English speaking country. We are not forced to use it.

Yes, I meant exactly that.
What you say is true, but anyway, you must agree that it is possible to come very very close to this level, so close that natives can sometimes confuse you with one of them. Actually, this goal is not that interesting. A high level of language knowledge is an outstanding achievent by itself. There are many other languages to learn!

[slavyan]

Inego

What languages are you familiar with except English? I assume to get  any foreign language enhanced significantly you gotta put so many efforts and plenty of time into it. How are you learning them?

[slavyan]

.

sometimes confuse you with one of them

what you are saying is beyond my wildest dreams

[Inego]

Inego
What languages are you familiar with except English? I assume to get  any foreign language enhanced significantly you gotta put so many efforts and plenty of time into it. How are you learning them?

"Familiar with" — what an exact word you have used for the meaning!
I am familiar with German, French, Chinese, Turkish, Latvian and Spanish. I discovered (what a discovery! ) that the degree of "familiarity" of a language is in strictly linear dependence from the time you "invest" into "learning" it, and I "learn" languages by reading books (mostly parallel texts, be they available) and watching news and other videos on YouTube. I also used to read books adopted by Frank's method but find them far inferior to simple parallel reading.

[Yuri P]

slavyan
OK, so all you need is to improve your writing? Well, then you have a topic to write about: "My year with an American family" or something like that. I think it could be interesting to read. For Americans too.

[Inego]

slavyan
Well, then you have a topic to write about: "My year with an American family" or something like that. I think it could be interesting to read. For Americans too.

Absolutely! I would read it with interest, too!
How did the Americans take your English, what was their attitude towards your using of it, its level and so forth?

[slavyan]

ok, do i have to launch the new thread completely dedicated to writing about my being in the usa or we can actually carry on talking about it right here?

[slavyan]

How did the Americans take your English

well, at first they said my level of it was ok but then I realised they simply did whatever they could to actually support me undestanding that I was facing numerous problems there) they always encouraged me saying that my english was getting better each day) however, they were comprehending that their country and way of thinking were kinda alien to me)