Thinking in a Linear, Coherent Fashion...
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Hehehe I agree .... life experiences and nurturing makes a differenceOriginally posted by elindra:Maybe we ate more potatoes instead of rice
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Well, I guess I'm just coming close to postal after having spent the past six years being stifled and suppressed and what-not.
Being grouchy...
But seriously, when basic English is bad in a country that boasts humans as its only resource, it's frightening... -
Some comments coming from your colleagues do sound nasty. Being told to talk or act in a different way is like being unfairly censured... when really, you've done nothing wrong at all! (In fact, you're being linguistically correct
) I guess it takes all kinds to make this world and it isn't easy getting along with everyone. 
Originally posted by Rhonda:Well, I guess I'm just coming close to postal after having spent the past six years being stifled and suppressed and what-not. Being grouchy... -
is that suppressed or oppressed, Rhonda?Originally posted by Rhonda:Well, I guess I'm just coming close to postal after having spent the past six years being stifled and suppressed and what-not. Being grouchy... -
Now thats not fair, its not a local concept only recent did it became popular... I was the one who asked what tiramisu is... Now i make sure I know more about its italian origins and its derivationOriginally posted by Rhonda:
No kidding!!!! Is the person a local? Do they even step out of their house?!
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I was stunned cause I've read about it long before it even landed on our shores. And then there are those TV shows, movies, newspapers, internet...Originally posted by DriftingGuy:Now thats not fair, its not a local concept only recent did it became popular... I was the one who asked what tiramisu is... Now i make sure I know more about its italian origins and its derivation
Sorry, I didn't know it was you so it wasn't a personal attack. And the tiramisu thing is just used as an example.
I guess we should all start to cultivate a reading habit and widen our exposure. -
I don't think that linearity or coherence is as much a function of vocabulary or knowledge, as much as it is of processing.
Plenty of people are in so much of a rush to go off on their own tangents that they overlook the significance of the things that you are telling them. I usually just let them ramble on until they're done, and then I point out all of the problems with their conclusions. After they're a few sizes smaller, I tell them that they'd have been better off if they'd just STFU and listen to what I was telling them in the first place. -
Gedanken, that was basically what I TRIED to do with a senior colleague recently. But she just went on and on like some mother hen, clucking away and the Physiotherapist was there giggling away at us until I threw my hands up in despair and said, 'AAaaargh! I cannot believe I'm having this conversation! My word, you've drawn me into an argument that sounds like I'm some naggy 50-yr old grandma and I no longer want to be a part of this silly conversation!' That drew laughter all round because that colleague is known for going off on tangent, clucking away non-stop.
Oh gosh, I'm surrounded by mother-hens and Empress Dowagers in the workplace, folks!!! HELP!!! -
hehehehehe!!!Originally posted by Gedanken:is that suppressed or oppressed, Rhonda?
Well, I guess this makes you a good pal of mine, Ged, cause it shows you've been listening when I went on my rampages! hehehhee!!!
You know how bad it can get? One night duty, I was on my feet from 9pm till 3am straight, no break, doing procedures, helping my patient... and when I finally sank down into a seat at 3am and sighed, 'I am sooooo tired!', my senior colleague said,
'You have NO RIGHT to complain about being tired!'
'EXCUSE ME??!!'
'Yes, you're so much younger! I hate it when young folks complain about being tired. I mean, what responsibilities do you have? I'm older than you and I didn't complain!'
'So, being younger means I cannot be tired? What sort of logic is this?'
And as usual, you never talk back to the Empress Dowagers in the workplace, even if they're being unreasonable because it brings on a shouting frenzy from them.
So far, I'm one of the two renegades in the workplace who dare to stand up to their ridiculous mood swings and crazy 'imperial edicts'. They used to taunt me and give me endless grief but they've found new targets now and besides, what can you do with someone who says, 'Yeah, I agree! So?' when you insult them right to their faces? -
Was not talking about you but someone I know personally in real life. But just an example. No offenseOriginally posted by DriftingGuy:Now thats not fair, its not a local concept only recent did it became popular... I was the one who asked what tiramisu is... Now i make sure I know more about its italian origins and its derivation -
Well, actually I brought it up as two separate issues. I was getting irritated having to face so many colleagues who couldn't focus on the issues at hand without turning subjective and whilst I was complaining about it, I thought of another pet grouse, bad basic English.Originally posted by Gedanken:I don't think that linearity or coherence is as much a function of vocabulary or knowledge, as much as it is of processing.
Plenty of people are in so much of a rush to go off on their own tangents that they overlook the significance of the things that you are telling them. I usually just let them ramble on until they're done, and then I point out all of the problems with their conclusions. After they're a few sizes smaller, I tell them that they'd have been better off if they'd just STFU and listen to what I was telling them in the first place. -
You're obviously not a boxing fan, Rhonda!Originally posted by Rhonda:Gedanken, that was basically what I TRIED to do with a senior colleague recently. But she just went on and on like some mother hen, clucking away and the Physiotherapist was there giggling away at us until I threw my hands up in despair and said, 'AAaaargh! I cannot believe I'm having this conversation! My word, you've drawn me into an argument that sounds like I'm some naggy 50-yr old grandma and I no longer want to be a part of this silly conversation!' That drew laughter all round because that colleague is known for going off on tangent, clucking away non-stop.
Oh gosh, I'm surrounded by mother-hens and Empress Dowagers in the workplace, folks!!! HELP!!!
It's a fairly straightforward strategy: you let them come in punching and swinging, but you just dance around them and let them waste their energy. Once they're all done and tired out, you can knock them over with a feather. Besides, it's so much more fun to let them put their own heads all the way through the noose before you tighten it. -
Oh Gedanken, you've obviously never had to work alongside a whole coop of mother hens before! I tell you, they don't shut up until they're asleep!Originally posted by Gedanken:You're obviously not a boxing fan, Rhonda!
It's a fairly straightforward strategy: you let them come in punching and swinging, but you just dance around them and let them waste their energy. Once they're all done and tired out, you can knock them over with a feather. Besides, it's so much more fun to let them put their own heads all the way through the noose before you tighten it. -
Rhonda, perish the thought!!! I can't imagine how Ged will behave if he has to work alongside a whole coop of mother hens!!!!Originally posted by Rhonda:Oh Gedanken, you've obviously never had to work alongside a whole coop of mother hens before! I tell you, they don't shut up until they're asleep!
Nightmare!!! -
Hey, nursing's got nothing on welfare - you'll be astounded at the number of self-important do-gooders there.
I just tune out and run on low power while going "uh huh" repeatedly. I've usually got a couple of things on the go at any given time, so it's a good time to start working out how I'm going to take care of my other tasks.
I still do keep one ear open, though, and sooner and later the halfwit will present a single, fatal flaw in his or her argument. I wait till they're done, point out the flaw and trash their whole argument. I hadn't noticed it before, but my colleagues told me that when I pick up on that point, I stop blinking - that's when they know they're in for a show.
During my postgrad, we had a guest lecturer come in and present his views on psychology. He was a sociologist, and his stepson had been put into a remedial class because some misguided teacher had read a report about parents from single-parent families were slow on the uptake (he hadn't married the kid's mother at the time). Later, they tested the kid and found that he had a high IQ, so they sent him from the remedial class to the advanced class. On the basis of that, he argued that psych is crap.
Anyway, this guy had an axe to grind, and my classmates, being the polite people they were, tried to argue the point that psych isn't so bad, but this guy was running rings around them - he was a sociology professor, after all.
Anyway, I finally had enough and it was late in the day, so I took my feet off my table, sat up and said, "It was a teacher and not a psychologist who misinterpreted a psychological report that he was not qualified to interpret and act upon. Us psychologists are obliged to interpret the information accurately. However, for the rest of the world, teachers included, it's a case of leading a horse to water, whereupon the horse has two options: drink or turn around and piss in it. What's it going to be?".
The dickhead's jaw dropped to the floor, and our lecturer who invited him jumped in and called the class off. I grabbed my gear, headed straight for the pub and had me a good drink. -
well, there are primary schools and there are primary schools.Originally posted by elindra:errr that is like primary school english as well
To be honest, my English was more crap before i took an interest in reading. So people never improved their vocab beyond "cheem' -
I believe that people are entitled to think, say, do whatever they want and habour whatever opinions they have. If I don't agree, I just switch off, as I am also entitled the same rights!Originally posted by Rhonda:Gedanken, that was basically what I TRIED to do with a senior colleague recently. But she just went on and on like some mother hen, clucking away and the Physiotherapist was there giggling away at us until I threw my hands up in despair and said, 'AAaaargh! I cannot believe I'm having this conversation! My word, you've drawn me into an argument that sounds like I'm some naggy 50-yr old grandma and I no longer want to be a part of this silly conversation!' That drew laughter all round because that colleague is known for going off on tangent, clucking away non-stop.
Oh gosh, I'm surrounded by mother-hens and Empress Dowagers in the workplace, folks!!! HELP!!!
Screen-saver mood: ON! -
I better talk less here before I get exposed for my lack of knowledge and poor grasp of the English language...
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Your post clearly demonstrate that you can't be guilty of that. At least you didn't say, "I better shuddup b4 ppl say i stoopid and can not speak england."Originally posted by EricDraven:I better talk less here before I get exposed for my lack of knowledge and poor grasp of the English language...
Cheers! -
Your post clearly demonstrate that you can't be guilty of that. At least you didn't say, "I better shuddup b4 ppl say i stoopid and can not speak england."Originally posted by EricDraven:I better talk less here before I get exposed for my lack of knowledge and poor grasp of the English language...
Cheers! -
Actually, Eric, you've surprised me on several occasions with how witty you can be in your posts.Originally posted by EricDraven:I better talk less here before I get exposed for my lack of knowledge and poor grasp of the English language... 
And btw, I was criticising those with bad basic English. Eg. "I loves my girl" or "What does you think?" or "Who knewed that?"... get my drift? I'm not advocating 'cheem' English... just good, basic, grammatically correct English.
Hey, my mastery of English isn't immaculate either and leaves much to be desired too! -
I'm equally guilty about my grammar as much as my lack of vocabulary...Originally posted by Rhonda:Actually, Eric, you've surprised me on several occasions with how witty you can be in your posts.
And btw, I was criticising those with bad basic English. Eg. "I loves my girl" or "What does you think?" or "Who knewed that?"... get my drift? I'm not advocating 'cheem' English... just good, basic, grammatically correct English.
Hey, my mastery of English isn't immaculate either and leaves much to be desired too!
Anyway, I think as hard as it is, let's all try to be tolerant of each other's faults. Some people are just not as trained as others in some ways...
Having said that, I'm guilty of laughing over other people's poor language skills too. Sometimes, I really couldn't understand what some people in the forum are talking about...
Oh well, and sometimes, I declared everyone who's on the same sardine-packed bus as me (everyone except me) to be retards! Get so frustrated by public transport sometimes!
At the end of the day though, I hope everyone will be happy and World Peace!
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Talking about lines...
The other days I was going to go and pitching my tents
then i realise all the red ants scramble at the foot of the trees
and some even climbing onto my pant
Thankfully its not dark and I still saw the ants
But really, its very nice to camp at the beach
jus sits there on the hammock
swings in the breezes
but yeah my point being
this line that you tie above your hammock
got to be tight see.. if you want your flysheet to be waterproof....
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in real life conversation
i am incredibly prone to lateral connections
which eventually drives my ex-boss mad and some of my colleagues as well
as they will go on the tangent with me
and end up somewhere obscure and become very frustrated
I also enjoy putting inexplicably bad grammar...
"YES BOSS YOU NEED SOME ASSIST???"
"..... It's assistance... (painful)"
"YA YA! I want to be your ASSISTANCE" (Beaming helpful smile)
.. in my humble opinion
it is one of the best ways to irritate the hell out of people
you can't otherwise offend.
But then again, that's because promotion/career opportunities in the teensy firm I used to work in was close to zero.... so...
no loss. -
Talking about lines...
The other days I was going to go and pitching my tents
then i realise all the red ants scramble at the foot of the trees
and some even climbing onto my pant
Thankfully its not dark and I still saw the ants
But really, its very nice to camp at the beach
jus sits there on the hammock
swings in the breezes
but yeah my point being
this line that you tie above your hammock
got to be tight see.. if you want your flysheet to be waterproof....
- - - - - - - --- - - --
in real life conversation
i am incredibly prone to lateral connections
which eventually drives my ex-boss mad and some of my colleagues as well
as they will go on the tangent with me
and end up somewhere obscure and become very frustrated
I also enjoy putting inexplicably bad grammar...
"YES BOSS YOU NEED SOME ASSIST???"
"..... It's assistance... (painful)"
"YA YA! I want to be your ASSISTANCE" (Beaming helpful smile)
.. in my humble opinion
it is one of the best ways to irritate the hell out of people
you can't otherwise offend.
But then again, that's because promotion/career opportunities in the teensy firm I used to work in was close to zero.... so...
no loss.
But ya... sometimes being linear can be quite tiring on the mind leh. Don't think I am good at it.... =beams= but I am incredibly impressed by people who can! -
Would all of you like to know what sparked this thread?
I was thinking about how they wanted to improve the professionalism in my field and then I started to dwell on the glaring shortfalls in our one and only resource - humans.
First, I thought about our Asian neighbours and how they are slowly catching up with us in terms of mastery of the English language. Then I looked at my workplace and realised the level of English being used there was really atrocious. Then it got me thinking too about the standard of English you encounter in the forums.
Next, I got extremely bothered by how subjective most of my colleagues could be. If you try to follow their trend of thought, you'll often see how it deviates and goes helter-skelter before they start to lose focus.
If we do want to remain competitive, we cannot let these things slide. It's not within my jurisdiction to bring into effect any change, but I just wish to highlight certain issues that really need to be addressed. Otherwise, in no time at all, we will seriously lose our current competitive advantage.
I don't often think on a macro level but there are certain things that you just cannot ignore. I know a few of you are insinuating that I'm intolerant and perhaps, discriminatory and all that but do look around and realise that if the bad language persists, it really won't be able to take us far. I feel sad that in this country where we're given much opportunities (eg. education), a lot of people choose to waste it.