Thanks for

[Taka]

So?

So I didn't think it was as unnatural as you seem to think.

Taka, you appear not to have read my posts. I wrote, among other things:


I have not said that any of the things you asked about is incorrect or unacceptable, merely that I think that there are more natural ways of saying them.

Yes, I have. I have read them, really. I appreciate your comments.

OK. So it's a matter of personal preferences.

I take your opinion as that of a professional teacher. It must be worth listening to, I think.

Thanks.

 

[Jenniferhu]

OK. So it's a matter of personal preferences.

Well, I think you made a point here, Taka. My recent time with this forum told me that there might not be always one exclusive criterion for anything said or written in English, whether published or not. When you asked something you thought in the black and white department, it was very much likely that you'd end up in a gray area somewhere between two completely different answers you got from two native English experts. That's the way language is used, because we, even from one nation, think and talk differently as individuals shaped by different experiences and life styles. So personal preferences may be more important than we think they are in terms of language use.

 

[BobSmith]

Well, I think you made a point here, Taka. ... end up in a gray area somewhere between two completely different answers you got from two native English experts. ... So personal preferences may be more important than we think they are in terms of language use.

This is way off the mark. With the exception of my crude examples, there has only been one opinion regarding this question. The OP has asked a question, gotten several versions of the same answer, then decides the answer is [strike]wrong[/strike] a matter of personal preference. That's fine; the OP can do that.

[AmE - not a teacher]

And for the record, I suspect the OP's question isn't even one about English usage. It doesn't make sense to thank someone for something they might do tomorrow. In each example in this thread, I naturally re-wrote the sentence to be in present tense. Of course there will be exceptions, but as a rule:

Thank you for coming here tomorrow.

sounds very odd. I can only hear it as

Thank you for [strike]coming[/strike] promising to come here tomorrow.

 

[Jenniferhu]

BobSmith, I value your comment and I thank you for that. But I believe I made you misunderstand me. Sorry for that. I did NOT point it to this particular case, which has a very distinct line between right or wrong, but to some other cases unnamed. I just made my point based on my past personal observations and experiences here and elsewhere that you took for something wrong and unreasonable. And obviously for that reason, dear 5jj downgraded my account to a "house arrest" level and that made it very inconvenient for me to use this forum. Now how's that for being unfair?

5jj, I know you'll see this before you let anyone see it. That's probably a great idea as I've said --and will be saying-- so many (eight now, isn't it?) things considered wrong and misleading. I should be placed under custody for that matter. I'm going to say things that sound pretty offensive but I implore you to read through it before you make your decision.

I want to believe you are doing this to me for everyone else's good. But remember this, not all learners are smart like you and not all of them can say right things all the time. That's because they are learning, learning by voicing their thoughts, by hearing different opinions from all sides. They may be misleading and they may waste your time to correct them in the way you or other teachers think is right, but that's a good and essential way for them to learn. You think I'm here just to be a troublemaker? If you do, you're very wrong, and I'd say you do not like your work here at all. Maybe it's part of who you are, but I see you as someone who loves the idea of tyranny, someone who is too impatient to be a teacher, someone who regards moderating this forum entirely as a troublesome chore and not a delight at all. Oh, I know too well what it feels to be in custody like this, because I live in China!

I may have violated more forum rules by writing this (politics for one) and that could lead to a ban from this forum altogether. Now I don't really care! I don't care if BobSmith gets to see my message or not. I don't deny the fact that this forum provides more reliability and cleanliness thanks to your efforts. But who in the world wants to be in a place where sensorship is carried so far, the speaker would tremble at a possibility that anything he said may be considered as a violation to the rules? I know that too well, because I live in China.

So, 5jj, this is goodbye if you don't free my account and I promise I won't return in a new ID. I will find another English community more suitable for me. You still have my respect for your work here. Whatever you do, you must have a reason, and I can't blame you for that.

Jennifer

 

[Taka]

then decides the answer is [strike]wrong[/strike] a matter of personal preference.

Just because I received these messages from him/her:

Others may feel differently, but I feel that it is normally more natural to thank someone for the offer than to thank them for the unperformed deed.

I have not said that any of the things you asked about is incorrect or unacceptable, merely that I think that there are more natural ways of saying them.

So tell me Bob.

Are you not particularly happy with 'I am grateful/thankful that you will ...' either?

 

[BobSmith]

Just because I received these messages from him/her

I see. But, there is a difference between "I feel that it is normally more natural" and "a matter of personal preference". The former is a polite way of saying "this is the rule, I may be wrong, but this is what I believe". The latter is a way of saying "there is no rule, it is up to the individual to decide.

Are you not particularly happy with 'I am grateful/thankful that you will ...' either?

Please see my last reply:
"It doesn't make sense to thank someone for something they might do tomorrow."

 

[5jj]

I think at this is probably a good time to close this thread, as no fresh ideas have come in. We all run the risk of repeating ourselves in slightly different words.