the_mystic_dude  +  69494 Sun, 23 Jan 05 06:07 PM Hi! Please help me, I need to write a fan mail to a celebrity. This was one of my sentences in my letter: ... You always play your role with passion, commitment, and love. It is therefore sometimes hard for me to believe that the situations which you are portraying so awesomely and realistically are in fact not really taking place. ... My questions are: 1) Can a "situation" "take place"? (happen and occur didn't sound good somehow) 2) Can one "portray" a "situation"? and for another sentence: 3) What is the plural of "appendicitis"? Thanks so much for your help! Walt the_mystic_dude Joined on Tue, Dec 23 2003 New Member 18 Plurals

	nona the brit  +  69715 Mon, 24 Jan 05 04:53 PM 1) Yes it sounds ok 2) Again, it sounds ok in this context, for an actor/actress 3)There is no plural for appendicitis, well, just appendicitis. I can't imagine a plural situation...multiple patients/sufferers yes, but not the actual disease. nona the brit Joined on Wed, Sep 22 2004 England Veteran Member 11,713 The name says it all. Plurals

	the_mystic_dude  +  69758 Mon, 24 Jan 05 08:43 PM Great! Thanks a lot for your help! You know, I'm a native speaker but sometimes I just can't think of the simplest things. Especially where letter-writing is concerned. I just wasn't sure if one can "portray a situation" or if the only correct form is to portray "a character." Well, about the appendicitis thing, my sentence goes somehow like this. ....... you're not only a great actress, but you could also make use of the skills you learned in the hospital outside the ER, as in diagnosing appendicitis(es). Clearly for any other words there should be the plural here, like "as in helping PEOPLE" or "as in diagnosing problemS" Any ideas? Thanks! Walt the_mystic_dude Plurals

	nona the brit  +  69786 Mon, 24 Jan 05 11:12 PM No, it would be just plain old appendicitis. Bit of a strange thing to say though, if you don't mind me commenting... fan mail is one thing, but don't go getting weird on her! The last thing you want to do is set off a 'stalker alert!' nona the brit

	the_mystic_dude  +  69951 Tue, 25 Jan 05 02:15 PM lol thanks a lot. I'll leave appendicitis then. No I don't mind your commenting, thanks, but you should know that she has talked about the whole appendicitis story quite often already on television, and my sentence (which is a bit different to what i posted) is supposed to be humorous, not stalkerish. I'm sure she'll understand it. Thank you so much for your help, what could I have done without you. I'll be printing and sending the letter tomorrow. I'm so glad somebody could help me with my three questions, I didn't want to send her a letter with grammatical mistakes. thx again, Walt the_mystic_dude