It’s my pleasure, Marlane! Thanks for taking the time to leave me your thoughts. I also admit to using ‘seems’ a lot in my writing. My tendency to use words like ‘seems’, ‘appears’, and ‘suggests’ has less to do with redundancy and more with my academic background. As a social scientist and philosopher, I’ve had countless professors stress the need to be cautious in one’s own writing. Essentially, as academics, we must prevent ourselves from offering claims that are ‘too strong’ or not yet ‘fully substantiated’. Using phrases like ‘would seem to suggest’ and ‘appears to show’ is one way to remain diligent in this regard. Sometimes, however, respecting this rule too rigidly leads to dull and boring writing that’s simply unpleasurable to read. This is one of the considerations I’m trying to keep at the top of my mind these days as I continue to share my thoughts online. Cheers :)