User Comments - aimeeb

Posted on: New Year's Song

The description for the "New Year's Special" Course starts out by saying

"May all acquaintance be forgot... in Chinese!"

(if you go to the "Courses" section of the library, it's the top choice at the moment)

Just wanted to give a head's up that it's "Should old acquaintance be forgot..." - the song is asking whether you should forget your old acquiantances, not ALL of your acquaintances.

Just thought that the native Chinese speakers on the Chinesepod team might want to know, or might get a chuckle from this :).

Posted on: Dropping Marriage Hints

I wonder if the "Pete" referenced in the dialogue is the former Chinesepod staff member of the same name...

Posted on: Rich and Poor

It is possible to "rent a condo" in this way: an individual owner buys a condo, which is a single unit in a building (where the building services are provided by the building owner/condo association). The unit is then his to do what he wants with it, and he may choose to rent it out to someone else rather than live in it himself.

In Chicago (and I assume other US cities), some renters seek out condos for rent instead of apartments, for several reasons: 1. condos are often higher quality and better-maintained, and 2. it's often easier to deal with an individual renting their condo out than to deal with a large apartment leasing company, or a landlord who owns many properties.

Of course, renting a condo often comes with a higher price tag than renting an apartment.

Posted on: The Price of Marriage

This is a great question - maybe there's a chinese history buff around here who can offer some insight? Now I'm really curious!

Posted on: A Classic Grand Slam Matchup

In the grammar section, I'm a little confused about this sentence as an example for 而:

小尤看了一下照片，“黑猫”两个字非常醒目，而照片上的那个人......
Xiao You took a look at the photograph. The words "black cat" were very clearly visible, and the person in the photograph...1 (Xiao You took a look at the photograph. The words "black cat" were very clearly visible, and the person in the photograph...)     

Should it be "...BUT the person in the photograph" instead of "...AND the person in the photograph," if the two clauses are supposed to be opposite?   

Also, how is the person "opposite" from the words "black cat"?  I have no idea what's going on in this sentence.  Is this some sort of cultural reference that I'm completely missing?                                                   

Posted on: A Classic Grand Slam Matchup

I wish I had had this kind of Chinese volcabulary at the Beijing olympics in 2008. I had a general grounds pass for tennis (aka a cheap ticket to see the sideshow matches, NOT the big center court ones), and my jaw dropped when Nadal and his partner walked out onto the court where I had randomly parked myself, to play doubles! Nadal playing doubles isn't as great as seeing Nadal v. Federer of course... but was awesome nonetheless!

I learned Nadal's Chinese name pretty quickly with all of the Chinese people exclaiming 啊，纳达尔 ！

As a huge tennis fan (and someone who just started tackling upper intermediate lessons) I was so excited to see this lesson - thank you Chinesepod!

Posted on: For the Love of Pale Skin

在美国我经常用tanning products， 因为我的皮肤是很白。

可是我在中国的时候，不用了，因为中国人对我说，“你的皮肤很漂亮！”

I miss feeling naturally pretty in China! The difference between cultures in perceptions of beauty is so interesting to me.

Posted on: Fast Cars and Shallow Women

"I have a yurt and two horses back home...."!

This made me laugh out loud at work. Awesome, thanks for sharing that story!

Posted on: The Typhoon

I love that this lesson uses both 把 and 被 - great grammar practice!  Also, I just wanted to thank you guys for adding the grammar section to ChinesePod lessons.  It really helps me focus my study during each lesson!

Posted on: Manly Beards or Pretty Boys?

I usually think of guys with beards as trying to cover up for a lack of defined chin.  It gives the face more of a shape.

My half-Chinese boyfriend refers to guys in their 20's with well-trimmed, well-shaped beards as "tools."  But I think he might just be jealous of their beard-growing ability.  Being half-Chinese, his is rather patchy when he tried to grow one.