"As usual" versus "As always" versus "As per usual"
I have a dialogue:
-What are you both doing now?
-It's 6 pm, so we do English lessons as always.
But I don't want to use "as always" here as it gives the answer a passive aggressive tone. I want it to look very casual, but I'm not sure what's the difference between "As per usual" and "As usual"?
Please advise.
Solution 1:
'As always' does not necessarily imply passive-aggression, although it may do when spoken in a sarcastic tone. This is also true of 'as per usual' which is very British, informal, and conversational, and of 'as always'.