afterglowefx Wrote:

Tzadeck Wrote:Look, it's neither true that 俺 is a curse word to be avoided at all costs, nor that you must cut 私 and 僕 from your vocab if you don't want to be a big girl.

Given that 95% of one's interactions are going to be with familiar faces I'd think intermediate speakers would find it far more preferable to come across as slightly rough to people they don't know 5% of the time than to come across as reserved or effeminate in front of the people they do know 95% of the time. While there is certainly a place for 私・僕 given a certain level of fluency, using 私 (and to a lesser extent, 僕) with one's peers and, God forbid, girlfriend, is cringe-worthy.

I think we just disagree dude. I've lived in Japan for seven years and my instinct on this is way way different than yours. The fact that I've always lived in Kansai might be part of that, as I've only been in Gunma briefly. Some of what you're saying seems absurd in the context of Kyoto and Osaka. And Tokyo too.

I'm am sure, however, that most working adults are in semi-polite to polite situations considerably more often than 5% of the time. Especially since the vast majority of Japan's population lives in major cities. Of course, there are careers that allow for tougher language and fewer polite situations.

Oops

I generally always use boku. Sometimes if I'm with my closer friends I will use Ore.