Status Updates From Japanese Verbs and Essentia...

Example sentences that show uses for "suru" that involve having form, shape, sound, smell, etc, but turn into an uncomfortable found poem if you leave out a few:

That child has a healthy body, doesn't he?
It made a suspicious noise.
It tastes like strawberries.
It feels a little strange.

But why, book, would I want to turn a "true adjective" into a "quasi adjective"? Feels like a downgrade.

"a woman who looks like she might be someone's wife or mother"

Oh, and what does that look like?

Apparently in Japanese complete strangers will call you [a] "wife" or "mother" if you look like one, but adult men will only be called "uncle" or "grandfather."

Some of these example sentences are unnecessarily ominous:

* I wanted you to eat the vegetables.

* He is about to phone the police.

* Let's push it up to the top of the hill.

* I ate dinner and don't remember what happened afterwards.

This book's whole attitude is like, "Okay, in order to land the plane," and I'm like, "But I don't know anything about planes!!" And it's all, "First select one of seven buttons."

I just have to keep reading and hope it eventually explains why I'm doing all of this.

Excited to learn Japanese only has two irregular verbs.

Less excited about the four levels of formality.

This book describes the "abrupt" level as "speaking 'down' to children, animals, and other social inferiors," which is both upsetting (we don't talk to people like they're dogs!) and hilarious (specifically identifying animals as "social inferiors").

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