User Comments - bodawei
bodawei
Posted on: Letting go with 放
March 23, 2009 at 5:33 AM@changye
In my experience the Chinese don't bother much with euphemisms - I walk into a toilet in the middle of Shanghai and the person at 'reception' (taking the money) asks: 大便还是小便？ I stare round-eyed at the impertinence of the question until I realise that there is a differential price.
Although, in fancy hotels and restaurants there is a growing preference for euphemisms.
Posted on: Pregnancy Series 4: Fetal Attraction
March 23, 2009 at 4:43 AMTo see how the 好好胎教的孩子 end up listen to This American Life #209 'Didn't Ask to be Born', 23 March 2009. [http://feeds.thisamericanlife.org/~r/talpodcast/~5/j1JAfTwl4d8/209.mp3]
Posted on: Pregnancy Series 4: Fetal Attraction
March 23, 2009 at 4:25 AM我对这个会话悲伤不已，多半孩子们。
I feel sad for all concerned, but mostly the children.
To the parents: 'childhood has its own way of seeing, thinking and feeling, and nothing is more foolish than to try to substitute ours for theirs'. Rousseau
Posted on: Letting go with 放
March 22, 2009 at 5:53 AM放下屠刀 (butcher's knife)，立地成佛 (the buddha) - the implications of letting go can be quite profound.
Posted on: Lao Wang's Office 9: Wang Plans Revenge
March 21, 2009 at 1:10 PM＠ ｂａｂａｂａｒｄｗａｎ
Ｔｈａｎｋｓ ｆｏｒ ｔｈｅ Ａｕｓｔｅｎ Ｔａｙｓｈｕｓ ｖｉｄｅｏ － ｇｏｏｄ ｖａｌｕｅ． Ｙｏｕ ｈａｖｅ ａ ｃｌａｓｓｉｃ ｌｉｂｒａｒｙ． Ｈｅ ｗａｓ ｏｎ ｔｈｅ ＡＢＣ ｒｅｃｅｎｔｌｙ ａｎｄ ｔｈｅｙ ｈａｄ ｔｏ ｅｘｐｌａｉｎ ｗｈａｔ ｈｅ ｗａｓ ｏｎｃｅ ｗｅｌｌ ｋｎｏｗｎ ｆｏｒ． Ｒｅｍａｒｋａｂｌｙ ｈａｒｄ ｔｏ ｅｘｐｌａｉｎ ｗｉｔｈｏｕｔ ｈｅａｒｉｎｇ ｉｔ． Ｄｉｄ Ｉ ｓｅｅ Ｍｒ Ｖｉｎｃｅ Ｓｏｒｒｅｎｔｏ ｄｏｉｎｇ ａ ｃａｍｅｏ？
Ｉ ｔｈｏｕｇｈｔ ｈｕｍｐ ｗａｓ Ｓｔｒａｌｙｉａｎ ｂｕｔ Ｂｉｌｌ ａｂｏｖｅ ｃｌａｉｍｓ ｉｔ ｔｏｏ． Ｗｅ＇ｖｅ ｓｔｉｌｌ ｇｏｔ Ｍｔ． Ｉｓａ．
Posted on: Lao Wang's Office 9: Wang Plans Revenge
March 21, 2009 at 12:25 PMＤｅａｒ Ｐｅｔｅ
Ｉ ｄｉｄｎ＇ｔ ｍｅａｎ ｔｏ ｉｎｃｉｔｅ Ｐｏｄｄｉｅ－ｗｒａｔｈ ｗｉｔｈ ｍｙ ｃｏｍｍｅｎｔｓ ａｂｏｕｔ ＇ｂｕｓｔｉｎｇ ｍｙ ｈｕｍｐ＇， ｓｏｒｒｙ． Ｔｈｅ ｔｈａｎｋｌｅｓｓ ｔａｓｋ ｏｆ ｔｒａｎｓｌａｔｉｏｎ！ Ｉ＇ｍ ｉｎｃｌｉｎｅｄ ｔｏ ｓａｙ ＇ｋｅｅｐ ｕｐ ｔｈｅ ｇｏｏｄ ｗｏｒｋ＇ ａｎｄ ｌｅａｖｅ ｉｔ ａｔ ｔｈａｔ， ｂｕｔ ｔｈｅ ｅｘｐｅｒｉｅｎｃｅ ｍａｋｅｓ ｍｅ ｗｏｎｄｅｒ － ｃｏｕｌｄ ｙｏｕ ＦＯＯＴＮＯＴＥ ｃｏｌｌｏｑｕｉａｌｉｓｍｓ ｗｉｔｈ ａ Ｐｌａｉｎ Ｅｎｇｌｉｓｈ ｍｅａｎｉｎｇ？ Ｂｙ ｇｏｉｎｇ ｔｏ ＥＰｏｄ ｙｏｕｒ ｓｔｕｄｅｎｔｓ ｍｉｇｈｔ ｌｅａｒｎ ｔｏ ｓｐｅａｋ ｌｉｋｅ Ｇａｒｒｉｓｏｎ Ｋｅｉｌｏｒ （ｎｏｔｈｉｎｇ ｗｒｏｎｇ ｗｉｔｈ ｔｈａｔ） ｂｕｔ ｍｉｓｓ ｏｕｔ ｏｎ ｔｈｅ ｒｉｃｈ ｔｅｘｔｕｒｅ ｏｆ ｃｏｎｔｅｍｐｏｒａｒｙ Ｅｎｇｌｉｓｈ ｓｐｏｋｅｎ ｂｙ ＣＰｏｄ ｕｓｅｒｓ．
Posted on: Lao Wang's Office 9: Wang Plans Revenge
March 20, 2009 at 7:39 AMThanks Pete, weifengboy and Uncle Changye,
Pete - that translation of 卖命 - my Oxford Concise gives me 'do a killing job for somebody or some clique' (which puzzles me) and my electronic dictionary has the 'to die for' meaning OR the metaphor in question. As one Chinese friend says when I query a dictionary definition - 'yes, but who wrote the dictionary?' So yes weifengboy - it helps to consult a native speaker. Changye - thanks for the research about the word in search of a translation. All these words are more colourful than the English (is Greek a bit dull?.) I thought China Daily had given up and was using 太空人, no?
Posted on: Dog Meat and Animal Rights
March 20, 2009 at 7:20 AM@user45715
'Eating dog meat is practiced by a small minority of chinese mostly in the south.'
Do you have any evidence for this remarkable observation? Do you have any reliable information at all about eating dogmeat in China? (Serious question.)
Posted on: Lao Wang's Office 9: Wang Plans Revenge
March 20, 2009 at 6:35 AMAaah.. for those using these translations to learn English, beware. The translator uses colourful American expressions that can be either meaningless to other English speakers or even slightly embarrassing.
Todays case is 'busting my hump' - in Australia we might say 'busted a gut'. It means I worked very, very hard. A host of metaphors come to mind. But 'hump' in Australian english is a verb. Say no more.
Posted on: Pregnancy Series 4: Fetal Attraction
March 23, 2009 at 5:55 AMHi Pete
You can see that I was deprived of antenatal education. My appreciation of the 三字经, 百家姓 and 千字文 is sadly underdeveloped. An old man I met in BJ tried to explain all three over a meal and it all went over my head (but I enjoyed the 饺子). Thanks for the tutorial. Is it too late for me? is it best learnt in the womb?