Tag: t_val@Eng

[21]口语水准:benchmarked As a non-native speaker #self-record

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This blogpost is about oral not writing proficiency, and an informal comparison with English speakers from Asia.

95% of those peers who are born in SEAsia, India or other Asia countries … do not speak better than I do, perhaps better in some aspects, but no better overall.

Their accent is comparable to (if not stronger than) mine, as judged by Americans. Accent is probably the most important element in most situations, but purists would say vocab is more fundamental.

Their vocab is seldom richer than mine (even if they were taught English from birth), as I have steadily increased my vocab (primarily in writing but also speaking). Around 2018, I noticed that my oral vocab has reached a similar standard as many Singapore hotline staff.

Due to aging, our memory and therefore our vocab could decline, across your oral languages. It’s good to push ourselves to use a wider, updated vocab, perhaps with younger people.

Beside 1) vocab and 2) accent, I guess my next big improvement is 3) slower articulation. This feature is typical of fluent and confident speakers, not so common among non-native speakers (后来学英语的人).

I wanted to but couldn’t say the same about the Europeans (as I said about Asians). They may have a better learning environment and they probably start learning English earlier. I think majority of Western Europeans do not write (and read) English everyday as much as SGrns do. Presumably, their vocab is less /developed/.

Basically, only those growing up in the 5 native speaking nations speak more fluent English than I do.

— 2024 sugg: self-record in phones every month
My Aug 2024 Genepai presentation revealed that I can learn a lot (and gain motivation) about my /articulation/. It is relatively easy to self-record, as part of blogg

— exceptions .. are important to study, and is a /cornerstone/ (reference point) of this blogpost on my oral_English_proficiency

There are always talented individuals. Some of them learn English only in their teenage but learn it very well, such as my sister. Among the China students in NUS/NTU, some girls (and a few guys) are pretty good. Ignoring the fact that my interaction with them was rather brief, I would say that this small subset have high motivation, strong talent, and probably become more fluent than me, in oral and writing.

This exceptional subset tend to gravitate towards non-technical professions. There are too many such professions, so I would not name them.

Some Malaysians and some SGrns (including our 3 prime ministers) actually grow up speaking English as their first langauge. Many but not all of them have good vocab, and light accent. They tend to speak better than I do. Remember Caroline of PropNex?

[24]effectively bilingual #

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EffBL stands for … (In this bpost) Effectively Bilingual (people, skill) in -> English + Chinese, esp. Mandarin. This combo is relevant in my own community and in my countries.

Looko .. This post goes beyond my small world.

Q3: Beside Sgp and HK, which cities and which industries require a large number of effectively bilingual professionals in Chinese+English? Not the U.S. or China. In fact, over there I (like other EffBL) have a disadvantage compared to those “native speakers” posessing a richer vocab.

— yardsticks of EffBL ..
listening/reading, including vocab, is essential and a universal yardstick. Beyond that, there’s no universal yardstick. Some EffBL individuals as defined in one “system” may show a basic standard in compositions or public speaking.

Street vocab .. usage of colloquial phrases.

— 1GCA [first-generation Chinese Americans] vs Chinese in Sgp, HK etc

I feel oral standard (esp. accent) is no higher among the 1GCA than Singaporeans on average.

For second-generation, I think the Chinese Americans are as effective as native speakers, and higher than the average Singaporeans simply due to exposure.

— I consider myself EffBL. I won’t grade myself but my obvious weakness is oral English. I improve when I practice asking questions in public. (The unexpected strength is my writing….)

My EffBL is not a real advantage in U.S. and China…. See Q3. In Sgp, I feel more at home due to EffBL. the social support network is also bilingual. Some _important_ /resources/ are available in Chinese only, They are _important_ to my wife and my son.

 

##advtg@Eng: blogg]Chinese #portable

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Context — introspective and therapeutic blogging; blogging on family, relationships, pff, career…

For years, I have wondered
Q1: why am I subconsciously cautious about /relying/ on Chinese phrases in my blogging [2], even though Chinese phrases are increasingly important o my blogging.

After so many years, today I just noticed the #1 biggest [1] hidden barrier — technical dependency. Ascii-based blogging (without text effects) is the quickest, simplest, most transparent, most reliable, easist in set-up. Available on any device including linux,,,

Conclusion .. in my lifetime, Ascii blogging will remain the most reliable and my default.

— Chinese IME at offices, hotels … I hit progressively fewer (but not zero) issues nowadays, after the technology reached maturity, 20 years after Windows added it!

— printing .. I had hit multiple issues when printing out Chinese text, even when the screen display was fine! Even if hardware support keeps improving, this worry still lingers.

— blogg on smartphones .. Singapore smartphones generally have reliable Chinese support, but in many countries (esp. U.S.), Chinese-made phones may not be so easily available. The cheapest or best phones may not have (decent) Chinese support.

–[1] a #2 hidden barrier, I also worry about the scenario where I seek counselling or I have a written discussion with someone in English, or I present my input in a group discussion.

If a Chinese phrase is central to my writing, then I would have to translate it, crossing the /chasm/.

— case study: 摆烂 .. (躺平, 内卷 to a lesser extent) . I spent an hour researching on the precise meanings, origins/connotations. This Chinese phrase has rich meanings, but limited resonance/awareness outside the internet-age Chinese community. In contrast, many English expressions are easily understood by people unfamiliar with the English language.

Q: How much will I use this and related Chinese phrases in my blog?
A: I think “involution” as defined by myself might be the first exception to my rule (Q1). Bai3lan4 or Tan3ping2 might be the second exception. These Chinese phrases are highly relevant to my family, with RICH meanings.

— other advantages of English over Chinese and other languages

  • Rich vocab .. expressive, often due to long history. Note English expressions often consist of 2 or 3 words, and far outnumber /documented/ idioms + phrasal verbs
  • English is slightly easier (esp. compared to Chinese) for many beginners, due to plenty of learning resources and accumulated best-practices in teaching/learning. This makes (a simplified version of) the language more accessible to the less educated
  • There are more English-speaking countries than Francophone countries or Latino countries.

When American innovators create an online product or service [games], it appeals to the global audience, but when Chinese (or Japanese) innovators do that, they become successful only in home country. This is partly due to the openness of the American culture and English language.

 

blogg→ evaluations →more satisfactionS since2018

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k_rmSelf_vs_xpSelf    k_divorce  k_X_focusing_illusion

Since 2018 I have blogged about these these topics below, and then described the same sentiment to grandpa, some counsellors and a few friends:

  • blessed
  • more satisfied with my current “position”
  • more lucky than my cohort .. carefree ezlife; stealth overtake; not left behind on any front;
  • my English, SG/US 出路, NUS+UChicago branding, wellness, devTill70, stable marriage
  • see bpost “why  I feel lucky about current job”
  • …

Q: why am I more satisfied than my cohort?

One answer: I guess my enhanced sense of satisfaction is directly related to my blogging[including emails, conversations]. As stated in quick self-evaluation@life: CSASS, satisfaction is usually based on an evaluation by the rmSelf. Nowadyas (Since 2017) I evaluate mostly positive /elements/ of my life. Therefore, my satisfaction with my life gets /crystalized/[2] , refined and elevated repeatedly — 量变成质变.

I guess blogging also gives the xpSelf [U-index or hedonimeter] more pleasure, thanks to the uplift of the Focusing_effect, but this effect can also intensity pains.

— divorce .. My blogging on divorce makes me more appreciative, more protective of my marriage. I take it as a bedrock of my good life, and not something to be taken for granted.

— a sweeping life-evaluation is expensive (in terms of time and System2 resources) and rarely comprehensive and in-depth

Analog: Insurance road shows are popular in Singapore exactly because most passersby have not done any comprehensive evaluation of their pff.

Pop psychology esp. the self-help industry [online/newspaper/magazines/talks/workshops, ]  often involves probing, introspective questions, self-questionnaires (and journaling). However, most people are way too busy to dwell on those long-winded, often academic questions. My blogs feature dozens of sweeping evaluations including but not limited to those under t_soulSearch, t_histZoom, t_sharpQ. In 2018 I asked R.Xia some reflective question and he didn’t respond. Later in Mar 2022 I mentioned that in an email to him. Few individuals would evaluate their lives as often as I do.  It’s rare to meet a person like me who spends so much time “evaluating”. There’s no point analyzing but I guess there are some categories — (semi-)retirees, writers/sociologists, students (instructed in school), graduating seniors

minor eg: I found a phrase in a marriage book “Tenacity to work through conflicts”. It invites the question “Are we tenacious?”, part of a sweeping introspective evaluation. The phrase (and the question) requires (sys2) slow thinking, but most people are too busy (in haste) or too lazy, so they either brush it aside or substitute a simpler word like “willpower” or “work hard”, so as to avoid an in-depth evaluation.

— [2] Visible signs of crystallization — a vocabulary, in English and sometimes in Chinese. They serve as visible signs of enhanced satisfaction. My blog (also emails) is a fertile field to cultivate this vocabulary.

I used some of the phrases when discussing with counsellors, family and friends (esp. email). Each time someone responds, even in non-verbal form like a nod, to such a phrase, the phrase becomes more entrenched in my “system”. (However, some phrases get outdated and phased out.). Here are a few examples, half-ranked:

  • zqbx, burn or rot, ROTI
  • no-to-exclub/brank/successC, not left behind, stealth overtaking
  • carefree ezlife, successE
  • harmony, rather than passive acceptance
  • traction and vision
  • healthy longevity and the 3 common excuses
  • LetGo, mellow-up
  • breakaway, wrongPriority,
  • buffers and alternatives .. risk/stress protection .. important to my security and satisfaction
  • livelihood, FullerWealth, brbr
  • accept 碌碌无为 kids, non-academic kids, mediocre kids .. important to my zzcl(知足常乐)
  • — other phrases that contribute to my sense of life satisfaction
  • ctbz[寸土必争],

##lifelong struggles@@ Am battle-tested: diet++

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k_Promethean_struggle

When I describe to friends diet restrictions (mine or otherwise), we often feel “This self-discipline is achievable perhaps for a year, but not for a lifetime”. It is a Promethean struggle and demands a /herculean/ self-discipline.

Today I decided to challenge this perception. I think there is lots of evidence that I (you too) have fought many lifelong battles and they didn’t tire me down.

— resist the brainwash, cosmic-ray of self-pity in the context of peer-benchmark
wrong priorities
OC-effective
— eg@Promethean: yoga
On the other hand, my forward-bend daily practice in Sec 1 was clearly unsustainable, torturous
— eg@Promethean: chin-up .. see separate blogpost
— eg: coding drill .. a harder struggle for my peers than for me
— eg: English listening, speaking, writing … felt like a lifelong battle until middle of my NUS years
review English vocab .. not a battle for me, but for other peple such as millions of English learners
==== less specific, milder (but lifelong) struggles
— eg: take the stairs once a while when everyone is taking the elevator/escalator
— eg@Promethean: brushing/flossing teeth, esp. with fixed retainer
— eg: math .. a struggle for my kids, and most students until they can opt out like in high school

##(naturalSelection) Adapt2environment||nature #dhost

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yoga^BMI: opamp response to signals was written in the same week and offers a different perspective on some common topics.

To make this blogpost less vague, I will try to focus on the title theme. Adaptation is key to the natural selection framework and system. Successful species (are not defined-as but) tend to be those who adapt to their “environment” [i.e. forces, nature, obstacles, limitations,,,].
* Sometimes these individuals need to understand, accept and follow the environment
* Sometimes these individuals need to influence the (small) environment

eg: Engineering science provides vivid illustrations — winter driving; covid19 vaccines; anti-rust coating (my gate).
eg: Singapore, among many small nations, has to adapt to the (internal and external) environments.
eg: Malaysia Chinese have to adapt. Asian Americans have to adapt.
However, this blogpost is about common challenges in life. In this context, the concept of “enviroment we must adapt to” is vague, so here are some examples:

eg: The OC-effective mantra emphasizes the importance of the team as the real environment to work within, but I tend to perceive the self as the most important “nature” I must adapt to. The self is hard to understand, hard to control, hard to predict.

eg: kids .. are a major “force” that I’m learning to cope with. Requires lots of adaptation, trial-n-error.

eg: OPE (Other people’s envy), exclub, FOMO .. is a powerful “force” but it’s mostly learned response to a previously neutral stimulus, a form of enculturation. It’s impossible to stay insulated, so yes everyone must adapt to this force

eg: AMB? It requires adaptation + continuous learning

— Our own wellness .. is a the most important goal of adaptation. It doesn’t receive enough sunshine, presumably because most of those below 50 have not suffered “enough” ill-health. In contrast, look at Kenneth’s desparation ..

My body flexibility is an obvious physical limitation I need to accept and adapt to.

Wellness includes mental wellbeing, but I try to avoid the over-generalized term “happiness”.

eg: mosquitos .. many adaptations. One of them is wearing socks to prevent overscratch

— self-assessment of adaptation ..  Adaptation is always trial-n-error .. repeated failures. Successes are rare, and progress slow. Personal success is largely determined by how well we adapt and change our habits/perceptions. For decades, I saw myself as non-adaptive. That’s largely because my closest allies continually pointed out I was too individualistic, paying insufficient attention to conventions and customs. Now in my late 40s, I see myself as better adapted than average:

  • domain: formal education + lifelong learning .. role models for most. The obstacles include memory capacity, setbacks, competition,
  • domain: interviews + GTD on-the-job… I have gravitated towards the environments where I can easily adapt to. I avoid aggressive environments like GS or Macq.
  • domain: family relationships + a few good friends.. the obstacles are personality differences, communication preferences, and lack of time to hear each other
  • domain: wellness .. the limitations are mostly biological
  • domain: pff .. the “forces” include brainwash; limited earning capacity; property inflation (biggest obstacles to many Chinese);
  • domain: immigration journey… I was unsatisfied [“left behind on a slow track” by those in N.A./Europe] in SG, so I adapted and tried Canadian process. In 2006 I hit a plateau and adapted to try the U.S. U.S. realities forced me to change our plan and gradually returned to SG (“for good”) . Realities of q3sg forced me to adapt again, and re-enter U.S.

(I list my successful “adapting” mostly to illustrate what “things” I adapt to.)

A few “adaptation” blockbusters:
* [adapting to exams++] Chinese compo was my weakness in primary school.
* [adapting to English environment] English was my huge handicap when I came to SG.
* [adapting to IV] C++ was a tough nut to crack ever since my first encounters in college. Now am seen as a pro.
* [adapting to immigration obstacles] Was left behind. Now I have an enviable immigration status.
* [adapting to brainwash, exclulb..] I felt inferior about brank. Now I have found the WSC harbour .

the cool, posh, well-connected power elites #G.Maxwell

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghislaine_Maxwell is linked to father https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Maxwell and partner https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeffrey_Epstein, two fraudsters.

Q: how reliable, how accurate is the wikipedia content? Legal case details there in should be reliable.

Even though G.Maxwell is more of a socialite, somehow these individuals remind me of the (all-male) high-flyers in and outside my /circle/:

  • the MDs, the CTOs, the executives
  • the bbcy enterpreneurs or executives
  • the start-up legends
  • ##[20] Stealth-overtake since1998 described others types of enviable high-flyers
  • ^^ 95% of the time, I have precious little knowledge, insight about these mere /acquaintances/

Look at G.Maxwell’s photo on wikipedia… posh, graceful, sophisticated and highly educated, gentle, well-spoken, upper-class, almost manipulative. (In contrast, my wife is simple, unsophisticated, not highly educated, and lower-middleclass.)

The fact that she is associated with two fraudsters didn’t bother me, because so many people and the mass media held her in high regard, given her education and business success.

I have always seen myself as a socially awkward nerd, a /minion/ on the slow track, out of limelight, without ambition and (after q3SG episode) without a promising future.

From my (low) /standpoint/viewpoint/perspective/, I have always admired the grace, the interpersonal/networking skills, the business skills of those high-flyers.

Well, I have zero understanding of the darker sides of those “advantages”. Essentially these individuals tend to have too much power [clout, prestige, position, credentials,,,]. Using this power, these smooth operators seek even more power and wealth, hungrier than before.

On the other side of the coin, the power corrupts them. A pure and simple heart is rare among the power elite of politics and business. (Pat.Liew) I think the iBank MgD are similar. If you aren’t hungry for power, then quit this game.

(Talking about “power… In the same vein, every Chinese communist party official is viewed as corrupt. They had too much power and not enough counterbalance for that power such as indepdent judiciary, free media, or opposition parties. )

After q3SG my self-image has remained, but my evaluation thereof has improved.

— communication skill, As XA.S mentioned in the 2000s, this skill is widely seen as more important, more valuable, more strategic than IV skills, GTD skills..

Posh .. is largely based on oral English. I remember a tall middle-aged shop owner/manager in Paragon, with a Singaporean posh accent. I guess he is proud of his location in Paragon. I can’t imagine (but there are) power elites having limited English proficiency. The elite status is mostly about appearance.

选CompSci: me]92^B.Zhao]94

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Q: why in early 1992 I concluded that it was impractical to take CSci A-levels but Benny (among other China students, collectively known as “China students”) was able to take that course in 1994?

This is a retrospective about survival[3] in competitive exams, self-assessment of SWOT[2], self-confidence, risk mgmt,,

[t=runway is a key factor]

I remember A-level CSci exam was not all about programming or logic, but required lots of English writing. After a few weeks studying CSci in HJC, I think the teachers took the initiative to ask me whether I wanted to continue or switch. Anyway, I saw the real_risk (described below), so immediately I abandoned CSci and took up Chinese.

For the same reason, I avoided Chemistry, even though I was very strong in Shiyan for 3 years. I knew right away that English would be a killer.

— A: due to English, I was facing a real_risk of hitting a B or C in CSci in HJC’s first exam to be held around early 1992.

This threat[2] was probably lower for the China students because they had more time to prepare and improve their English required for their first CSci exam in NUS/NTU.

[t] With math/physics, I didn’t face the real_risk because the first exam content was already familiar to me. Any new content would come in a year later. The new content turned out to be “lighter” (less in-depth) than taught in China.

— A[t]: The make-or-break of the exam is easily underestimated. It was a serious threat[2].

A first B in HJC would be a threat to my A-level confidence. In contrast, Benny would have 4 years to work on a recovery.

English writing was my Achilles’ heel [2]. “Interest” was utterly unimportant. English_proficiency4exam was the one and only criteria when choosing subjects in 1992. I would not say the same in 1994. In 1992, the consequence of failing A-levels was going back to China and losing 2 years.

[3] In China, I was a top 5% student in a top 1% school in Beijing. I felt like an NBA player. Going back (losing 2 years) would bring me down to the NBA minor league. No such risk for the China students.

[t] Interest (in any course of study) would not be enough to overcome the challenges of English writing, which was a brick wall that I had to chip away at for years. No quick fix. No power drill. No silver bullet. The China students had longer runway.

Economics was an interesting (and popular) subject in HJC but it demanded far more English. 20 years after HJC I’m interested in Econmics and I can write about it, but it took a lot of gradual improvement esp. in English writing.

— A: Benny had no “easy/safe” choice that I had. Each semester, he must take 7 courses in NUS. None of them is as easy/safe as math and physics.

The case of physics… In contrast to CSci, Chemistry or Econs, my English writing was good enough for A-level physics (and obviously math). Over the first few weeks in 1992 I could sense that I had perfect understanding of the words used in the physics textbooks, and I could rememer the words, so in exams, I could basically use those same words. Physics and math are far less English-heavy. I believed that given my perfect understanding, I could score much higher than even the decent exam takers, even if I couldn’t write well.

No such competitive confidence with A-level CSci. However, in 1994, after my English proficiency improved many times, I had exam-confidence in many technical subjects beyond CSci.

[19]ComfyPosition]cohort #priorities

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k_tectonic .. k_X_FOMO_v_livelihood

I have spent too much time trying to make the title more identifiable. The precise meaning of “comfortable position in my cohort” is crucial to this blogpost. Without a precise meaning, this blogpost will gradually but inevitably lose its relevance among multiple similar analyses like

Comfortable position means “well within the green zone and in no danger of drop-out.” Note green zone can be minority or majority. We instinctively know, to varying degrees, where we stand among our chosen peer group. On some games I feel unlikely to improve my relative standing, so I need to reconcile with these “amber zones”. They include:
* kids academics
* double income, white-collar wife
* brank — OC-effective leadership .. I didn’t say “income”. Consider the Siddeshes in my circle.

On other “games”, I feel confident to maintain my comfortable position relative to peers:

  1. — half-ranked by surprise, beyond the big5 topics like sg citizenship, wellness, cashflow (brbr, Fuller wealth, retirement planning, ffree). It’s important to de-emphasize these big, common factors so they don’t /overshadow/ the smaller, more “interesting” factors
  2. stable marriage, valuable support from grandparents
  3. top college insider insight — relaxed attitude towards and some insight into it
  4. lower fear of job loss, lower work stress .. thanks to contract
  5. HDB home ownership — low maintenance
  6. English proficiency … a growing fountainhead of wellbeing, (stress)protection, a foundation stone for self-care. Writing/oral communication, vocab
  7. coding IV — as benchmarked against my age group on Wall St
  8. QQ IV — coreJava and c++ are both fairly stable and low-churn over a 30Y horizon.
  9. mobility across multiple job markets, work-till-70, life-long learning, access to age-friendly job markets
  10. my primary lang@FT_job has robust demand

The list is similar to [21] G9 short-term factors4ezlife #escape pod

— Q: How did I achieve this comfortable position, this carefree, relatively complete life? (Note “complete” is measured against personal yardsticks.)

Actually, G5 Shields@family_livelihood is a more thorough, more rigorous analysis that’s relevant to this question.

locus@control: carefree high ground mostly due2effort also answers this question, from a different angle.

To further explain my well-protected carefree and ffree that’s uncommon in my age group, I decided to ask two questions below.

Q: how are my chosen priorities “different”, excluding the common, basic ones (like job security, stable family, kids)
A: here are some priorities that my peers don’t give enough attention

  1. career longevity till 80’s — instead of brank, salary bracket (exclub)
  2. healthy longevity — I still need to give more sunshine to my flexibility
  3. current nonwork income — instead of windfall appreciation. Instrumental to my early ffree.

A: here are some priorities of my peers that I don’t care much:

  1. luxury IMO — top schools for their kids
  2. luxury IMO — (usually big) home in a top school district
  3. brank

Q: my strengths?
A: top 3 strengths unranked:

  • brbr;
  • lifelong xx for IV
  • wellness, vitality

Beyond the strengths, here are some advantages:

  • healthcare + retirement provisions I have set up for my family in Singapore;
  • SG citizenship
  • stable marriage
  • property portfolio — including inheritance

— ffree — the poster boy of my comfortable position

Singapore is a success story in many ways. Its position in GDP ranking is the tip of an iceberg. Likewise, My fledgling ffree is the tip of an iceberg. My Fuller wealth rests on a foundation composed of my strengths and my guiding principles (priorities, habits) listed above.

The ffree draws disproportionate attention but is actually less reliable, less important than the G5 Shields@family_livelihood

Humble — My successE is not glorious, but it is rare, commendable, worthwhile. Look at the success of MMM, ERE author and other FIRE legends.

praises/Proud@My English proficiency

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— praises on my oral English proficiency .. Over the years, many people (who had not seen my writing yet) say “You speak very good English.” Almost never flattery. When I mention that I still struggle from time to time, some of them would add “Of course English is your second language, so you would be more comfortable in Chinese. It’s natural to struggle in a second language.”  — This fact should NOT diminish my sense of achievement, self-esteem and pride.

Those praises together are a remarkable achievement even though the yardstick seems to be a lower yardstick — a yardstick for foreigners. The important thing is, I am able to use English effectively. Whether I’m more effective than a native speaker is insignificant. This is not a contest. Effective usage is the only yardstick, and accent is a small factor.

I could give the same sincere praise to my sister, some of my Indian colleagues and some European guys. They are very articulate.

— (historical zoom) Q: How critical was English during the early 2007 adaptation/adjustment [actually a struggle] to living in USA?

Luckily, in early 2007 my English proved adequate, thanks to the formal education in SG and on-the-job training in SG, and my years of self-practice in emails, in-depth discussions with non-Chinese friends.

From early 2007, I had no difficulty reading (any tough material) and .. listening [my traditional weakness]!

I was already a fairly fluent speaker in 2007. No one said I had a strong accent like half the subcontinent coworkers, whose /oral/ English was good enough for an offshore worksite. My Singapore/Malaysia/Hongkong accent was mild in contrast to millions of immigrants speaking English “dialects” of Eastern Europe, middle east, central Asia, S.E.Asia,,,,

In each ethnic group, some 5 to 20% [1] of the immigrants speak decent English, usually due to education, but conceivably due to everyday practice (without education) or untrained talent — consider my sister and my wife.

[1] Among the Mexican immigrants, that percentage is lower because proportionally many of them came in without a work visa or student visa.

Q: how did my wife cope with English?
A….

I have hitherto left out proficiency in writing. Not an “everyday” proficiency, more of an advanced skill. Challenging for most immigrants. Even native speakers (esp. the less educated) struggle with many non-trivial tasks. Writing is a trained skill like painting, piano, public speaking, …. Training takes years and generally, I learning English over the prior decades since 1991. Now in 2022, I consider myself “well-trained” as a writer, when benchmarked to the average native SPEAKER.

— One of my first milestones — After my farewell letter to Catcha colleagues, a short, young Indian girl colleague turned to me and and praised my writing. She was not technical but an editor of online content. She doesn’t know me well and I didn’t ask her opinion on my letter.

— Then I crossed a second milestone — Kyle said my English is better than a lot of Americans.

My discussions with Kyle was often conceptually complex … so vocab is important. I explained that I’m an intellectual type, like my dad.