Please help me to read this English sentence:

[Koir]

Originally Posted by YuriTokoro

Hi, Koir.
What about my second observation?

It is also correct. "Its" can also mean "people" when the word is used separately from identifiable individuals.

Thanks! Now I think I understand what you meant.
This sentence means like this?
“Many people here help each other and that’s why this forum was made, and as we all know JapanForum is working very well.”

That is correct, Yuri.

I see. These words sound the same, don’t they?
There are many Japanese words which have same pronunciation and different kanji. Many people make mistakes when they write kanji all the time.

Indeed they do, Yuri. Proper kanji writing appears to be a very tricky skill to learn as well.

So, the sentence means like this?
“Many people in JapanForum help each other and that’s why this forum was made, and as we all know we are doing very well here.”

Also correct, Yuri. Good work!

There is no need to apologize.
Asking questions is very educational.


You too, Koir.

Yes it is, and also the best way to learn.

[YuriTokoro]

Originally Posted by Koir

It is also correct. "Its" can also mean "people" when the word is used separately from identifiable individuals.

That is correct, Yuri.

Koir, thanks!

Indeed they do, Yuri. Proper kanji writing appears to be a very tricky skill to learn as well.

Yes. It's very tricky. If you forget a single short line, the kanji might mean different.

If you want, and if you tell me your real first name, I'd like to write your first name with kanji.

[YuriTokoro]

Hi.
Could you correct my English?


"Is this peculiar to Japan?"

One of my Japanese friends whose husband is American once said that when American people go to visit the home of an acquaintance, they don’t bring a calling present.
If you are American, tell me whether or not this is true.
If you are not American, do you bring a hospitality gift? I want to know if this is a custom peculiar to Japan.
I usually bring sweets or fruits which costs about 2000 or 3000 yen. This depends on our relationships.
When you have guests in your house, you need to have bought some sweets to serve your guests. If you haven’t had time to buy anything, you can serve the gift the guests offered, saying “I’m sorry; this is that you have brought.” (“Omotase de sumimasen.)
Do you have any customs when you visit an acquaintance?

Thank you!

[Koir]

Originally Posted by YuriTokoro

Hi.
Could you correct my English?


"Is this peculiar to Japan?"

One of my Japanese friends (whose husband is American) once said that when American people go to visit the home of an acquaintance, they don’t bring a calling present.
If you are American, tell me if this is true.
If you are not American, do you bring a hospitality gift? I want to know if this is a custom peculiar to Japan.
I usually bring sweets or fruits which costs about 2000 or 3000 yen. This depends on our relationships.
When you have guests in your house, you need to provide some sweets to serve your guests. If you haven’t had time to buy anything, you can serve the gift the guests offered, saying “I’m sorry; this is what you have brought.” (“Omotase de sumimasen.)
Do you have any customs when you visit an acquaintance?

Thank you!

Being from Canada, I can say bringing a gift is dependent on the situation. If it's a party with other guests, most of the time bringing something like food or dessert is preferable to ensure everyone has enough to eat. Other times, bringing gifts when you visit an acquaintance isn't a common practice.

I don't visit acquaintance that much in their homes...mostly because my acquaintances are quite far away. Perhaps another person who does have acquaintances closer to them can provide more insight.

Revisions: Putting "whose husband is American" in parentheses was done because while it was useful additional information to add credence to the person's view, having it as part of the sentence made for awkward and slower reading.

"Whether or not" was shortened to "if" to preserve the original presentation of the sentence concept. As originally written, it would work if spoken aloud in an informal setting.

Hope that helps, Yuri.

[Klint]

Well, like Koir said, most of the time when people here meet up for things like cookouts, football games, and even movies, it's better to bring food and drinks with you. I guess this is often seen as a way to relieve the host from having to supply everyone with food on their own. It's really just a social convention that most people will choose to follow though. Therefore, it's not entirely necessary to bring anything at all, especially if you're going by yourself or don't plan on staying too long.

In my experience, the only real gift giving is done around the more obvious, major events (Christmas, Birthdays, Valentines Day...) although it's typical for one to receive gifts during other important stages of their life as well (graduation, buying their first home, getting married, having kids, getting promoted, retiring, etc...).

I hope this has been helpful.

[YuriTokoro]

Originally Posted by Koir

Being from Canada, I can say bringing a gift is dependent on the situation. If it's a party with other guests, most of the time bringing something like food or dessert is preferable to ensure everyone has enough to eat. Other times, bringing gifts when you visit an acquaintance isn't a common practice.

Koir, hi. Thanks as always.
Bringing gifts is not common there. I see.

I don't visit acquaintance that much in their homes...mostly because my acquaintances are quite far away. Perhaps another person who does have acquaintances closer to them can provide more insight.

What would you do when you visit one of your friends’ house?
You seem to have more friends than Japanese people have. You would call a person “your friend” after you visit the person’s home personally, wouldn’t you?
I believe Japanese people need longer time to make friends than you do. So most of the people I know are my acquaintances.

Revisions: Putting "whose husband is American" in parentheses was done because while it was useful additional information to add credence to the person's view, having it as part of the sentence made for awkward and slower reading.

Thank you! Yes, that’s easy to read. I didn’t know if you use parentheses.
I’m still not sure if I can use them because I’ve never seen them in English books.

"Whether or not" was shortened to "if" to preserve the original presentation of the sentence concept. As originally written, it would work if spoken aloud in an informal setting.

Don’t you say “whether or not”?
If you say it, when do you say it? Is it too portentous?

Thanks!

[YuriTokoro]

Originally Posted by Klint

Well, like Koir said, most of the time when people here meet up for things like cookouts, football games, and even movies, it's better to bring food and drinks with you. I guess this is often seen as a way to relieve the host from having to supply everyone with food on their own. It's really just a social convention that most people will choose to follow though. Therefore, it's not entirely necessary to bring anything at all, especially if you're going by yourself or don't plan on staying too long.

In my experience, the only real gift giving is done around the more obvious, major events (Christmas, Birthdays, Valentines Day...) although it's typical for one to receive gifts during other important stages of their life as well (graduation, buying their first home, getting married, having kids, getting promoted, retiring, etc...).

I hope this has been helpful.

Hi, Klint.
Thank you for helping!
So, you don’t bring a calling present when you visit an acquaintance’s (or a friend’s) house to chat with the person alone, do you?

Now, I have a question.
Do you visit your friends’ house to chat with the person alone?
What about the women in your country?

P.S. May I write what you have written here in my blog?

[Koir]

Originally Posted by YuriTokoro

What would you do when you visit one of your friends’ house?

Drawing on my past experiences (and keeping in mind the concept of some distance travelled), I would do my best to be a good guest and enjoy the hospitality they would provide. No sense of entitlement, no unreasonable demands would be made of them to cater to other things only I would appreciate.

You seem to have more friends than Japanese people have. You would call a person “your friend” after you visit the person’s home personally, wouldn’t you?

Indeed I would, because seeing how they live and what they prefer to place in their surroundings can be and is a glimpse into their true selves when they are alone. Such openness must be received properly, and a closer friendship would result from it.

I believe Japanese people need longer time to make friends than you do. So most of the people I know are my acquaintances.

I see now, Yuri.

Thank you! Yes, that’s easy to read. I didn’t know if you use parentheses.
I’m still not sure if I can use them because I’ve never seen them in English books.

It's a good idea to limit how they are used. Too much of them and the flow of reading is interrupted with concepts better used in further sentences in a composition.

Don’t you say “whether or not”?
If you say it, when do you say it? Is it too pretentious?

Yes, I do use that clause when talking to others. You can talk faster than you can write generally, so having longer sentences is not usually a problem. When writing, the focus is on grammatical correctness and a smoother reading experience. In such situations using shorter words is preferable unless the concepts absolutely need longer words or phrases to be fully understood.

Thanks!

Hope that helps, Yuri!

[Klint]

Originally Posted by YuriTokoro

Hi, Klint.
Thank you for helping!
So, you don’t bring a calling present when you visit an acquaintance’s (or a friend’s) house to chat with the person alone, do you?

Well, it wouldn't be unusual every once in a while, just as long as it's small enough that it doesn't make them feel obligated to get you something in return. In situations where you havn't seen a friend in a while, and your close to them, I'd say it's okay to get them something a little more expensive.

Originally Posted by YuriTokoro

Now, I have a question.
Do you visit your friends’ house to chat with the person alone?

Sure! Though if it's planned ahead of time, it will usually involve other things like cooking, ordering take-out, playing video games, watching tv/movies, etc.

Originally Posted by YuriTokoro

What about the women in your country?

Well, as a female-female friendship I would assume it's about the same as when two guys hang out at each other's houses. It's just that some things, like video game playing, aren't as popular for women here.

With couples who are dating, I wouldn't say stopping by each other's houses to chat is as common as the guy taking the girl out somewhere to do something.

I wouldn't call myself an expert on the subject though.
In fact I think I've been trapped in my room for too long, and typing this makes me realize I need to get out a little more.

Originally Posted by YuriTokoro

P.S. May I write what you have written here in my blog?

Of course.

[Columbine]

Originally Posted by YuriTokoro

Hi.
Could you correct my English?


"Is this peculiar to Japan?"

One of my Japanese friends whose husband is American once said that when American people go to visit the home of an acquaintance, they don’t bring a calling present.
If you are American, tell me whether or not this is true.
If you are not American, do you bring a hospitality gift? I want to know if this is a custom peculiar to Japan.
I usually bring sweets or fruits which costs about 2000 or 3000 yen. This depends on our relationships.
When you have guests in your house, you need to have bought some sweets to serve your guests. If you haven’t had time to buy anything, you can serve the gift the guests offered, saying “I’m sorry; this is that you have brought.” (“Omotase de sumimasen.)
Do you have any customs when you visit an acquaintance?

Thank you!

For me, it depends on the circumstances. If I had never been to their house before, I might take something, especially if I was invited for a sit-down dinner. A bottle of wine or flowers, or some chocolates. It's not compulsory though.

If it were just a casual visit with a friend, I might take some DVD's with me we could watch or if i'd done some baking, some of that in a tupperware box. Often I don't bring anything, but then it's more normal to return an invitation with an invitation. So I might not bring anything, but then they would visit my house another day instead.

If it's a party, I would offer to bring something when I accepted the invitation. Obviously if it were a birthday party, i'd bring a card and a gift relative to how well I knew them.

If I have a guest visiting, it's generally polite to offer them a drink, and if they stay longer, something to eat. Like if a friend of relative pops around, i'll always offer tea and a biscuit. If it's later in the evening, I'll offer other things.