User Comments - RJ

Posted on: Band Practice

I as am American have to agree (that its horrid that is). Nobody talks that way. Thats "valley girl" or something similar, not American. Talking like that will get you beat up quick where I came from. Phil, dont let them think people actually go around talking like that. It was a joke. An exageration. Right?

Posted on: Fasten that Safety Belt

well 1/3 of ped deaths are drunk and most occur between 6 and 9 pm. Avoid these, oh yea and maybe cross dressing would help since more men are killed than women. Now your odds are good. My plan is to watch where Im going. I hate rules. I wear seatbelts because I am convinced it is a good idea, not because the govt said so. If stupid gets you killed, its natural selection. Thin the herd I say, the govt should stay out of it. :-)

Posted on: Fasten that Safety Belt

Well I did look up the traffic deaths when this lesson came out and we see more than double total deaths per year in China than the US and eight times as many per million miles driven. The US usually has about 50,000 deaths and has dropped to 38,000 recently - China is running over 100,000 with less cars and less miles driven. I looked for pedestrian deaths and found it to be 21,000 according to this

http://www.bikeradar.com/news/article/big-rise-in-chinese-e-bike-fatalites-24766

another tidbit

4,749 pedestrians were reported to have been killed in motor vehicle crashes in the United States in 2003. These deaths accounted for 11 percent of the 42,643 motor vehicle deaths nationwide that year.

Posted on: One-Way Street Scuffle

now wait a minute bodawei, I cant let you get away with that. Not self-explanatory? Walk across the street. Cross the street. Crosswalk seems pretty straightforward to me. I suppose in Oz it would be a "walk across" so I do see your problem :-)

Posted on: One-Way Street Scuffle

"never heard the word 'crosswalk' before" - now thats tough to imagine. Ive heard them called zebra crossings as well - a reference to the painted white stripes on the pavement, but "cross walk" is just so ubiquitous. I never heard burghers - I assume people who live in the "burgs" 'burbs" or boroughs.

Posted on: Slippery Ground

Interesting. Thanks.

Posted on: Slippery Ground

Actually the lesson and the lesson banter are two different things and at two different levels. The banter is pretty much everyday conversational Chinese, rapid fire without written backup text. I know Jen tries to keep it in level, but that is not easy. The way I see it, you should get as much as your experience will let you get from a lesson, and then you go to the explanation to fill in the gaps, so that next time you will know more and do better. As John says in the elem lessons, "dont worry if you didnt get it all, we will explain it to you." The explanation should be in your native tongue. I see no point in having Chinese banter until the Advanced level and even then I question the wisdom of this approach. John does pretty much paraphrase everything Jen says in the intermediate lessons, but in the upper intermediate I am lost completely and get no benefit from the banter. I could if it were in English. I know John (and probably others) disagree with me here, but for me, I think that would work better. Why is it a sin to explain new Chinese to a student in a language in which he can fully understand the explanation? It doesn't have to be yet another lesson. There are plenty more. I know its not going to happen, but those are my thoughts on that. I truly wish we had the option of either approach. One thing you have to remember is that if you have trouble with the banter, that is not the same as having trouble with the lesson, although it feels that way. I read somewhere that there are only about 400 basic syllables in Chinese, hence the need for the different tones, and same sound different character/meanings. In English there are more than 10,000. Its differentiating by ear what is being said that I find very difficult. No matter how many times I play it back. Its still the best game in town and I think they do a great job on the lessons. On that I think we all agree.

Posted on: Fasten that Safety Belt

Paul,

I would have to agree with Mark in All that he said. It surprises me that you are just now adding culture to your list when that is, and always has been, my number one. Its fascinating to find yourself in a truly different world, and to study the arbitrary cultural differences opens wide a window to your own soul. Its a feeling like no other and I love the Chinese people. Yes the pace of modernization is dazzling but I would suspect that the pace of your own trip also added to this impression. I would grab the chance to live there for a few years in a heartbeat and now that she has seen China, so would my wife. Time will tell if that ever happens. I have made 16 trips to China since 2004 and I hope to make at least 16 more. I just feel at home there. Cant totally explain it. The traffic, pollution, and crowds are just not issues for me. Its all part of the larger complex puzzle. I suggest you return and stay in one place for a few weeks next time. Visit Shanghai and stay a while, or visit one of those scenic spots you like if that appeals to you more. I like both. Beijing and SH are way different also and I love them both. Foshan and some of the smaller cities, priceless. You cant go wrong. You either love it or you dont I guess. Thats just the way it is.

Posted on: Trick or Treat!

I know which discussions to stay out of.

Posted on: Trick or Treat!

Yes chocolate is a subset of candy. We have "candy bars" which are mostly chocolate bars of some sort. If we say "hard candy" then it is as you envision it, and chocolate would not be included. Lollies, hmmm, couldnt pay me to say that.

Oh, and Xmas is in the middle of summer? Next you will tell me that water goes down the drain counter clockwise in Australia. Cant you guys get anything right?