On Mon, Feb 26, 2007 at 11:39:08PM EST, A.J.Mechelynck wrote: > cga2000 wrote: > >On Mon, Feb 26, 2007 at 08:47:00PM EST, A.J.Mechelynck wrote: [..] > > > >Avant donc que d'écrire, apprenez à penser. > > > >(Before writing, one must learn to think) .. (rough translation) > > Let's try to recapture the "alexandrine" rhythm: > > Before you start to write, teach yourselves to think.
A marked improvement if I may say so. > > > >But I think I know where you're coming from .. and it reminds me of > >another one of my favorites: > > > >For every problem there is one solution which is simple, neat, and > >wrong. > > > >H.L. Mencken. > > I hark from Brussels, Belgium, if that's what you mean. "I know where you're coming from" has nothing much to do with geography these days. It's more like "I hear you" .. or "I know what you're saying". It's just one of those expressions you keep hearing. I try to avoid them even in informal conversations but somehow it crept into my prose above. I have a feeling that when used in the first person by someone after voicing his opinion on some matter or other such as in, for instance, "do you understand where I'm coming from? " the said individual is trying to add more weight to that view of his by conveying that it evolved as a result of a lengthy and presumably painful learning experience. When used in the second person as I did above it probably adds a touch of empathy .. ie. not only do I rationally understand what you are saying but I am also aware of what led you to think thusly and feel pretty much the same myself about it. Thanks, cga
