User Comments - calkins

Posted on: You First

niva, a while back (maybe a year?) Cpod starting going back through its archive and redoing very old lessons that aren't at the same quality standards as the more recent lessons.

I assume this is one of those lessons.  But I could be wrong, because I just looked at After You and it was published just over a year ago.  They are very similar and both are Newbies.

____________________

I've also heard that you can say 你请 nǐ qǐng for "you first" (literally "you please"), for instance when letting someone exit an elevator first.  Would 你先 nǐ xiān be better in this situation?

Posted on: Health Check

Speaking of calling people fat, my Taiwanese friend told me that she ran into an old college friend who she hadn't seen in 10 years. 

He came up to her and started talking.  She couldn't remember who he was and apologized for not knowing him.  He said his name and then she remembered they went to school together. 

Her response was "Wow, you've gotten so fat since school that I didn't recognize you."

He just laughed and said "Yeah, I'm married and have kids now."

I was blown away that she said this so casually, and more blown away that he took it so lightly.  Maybe because he's a man, but does it really not bother Chinese when other Chinese say they're fat?

Posted on: Health Check

RJ,

I can't say what the health check is like on the Mainland, but I recently had one in Taiwan.  I suspect they're similar.  It was pretty quick and painless, but because you have to go to the hospital twice (2nd time to pick up your results), it is a nuisance like Matt said.

Here's what the check in Taiwan entailed:

- Weight and height
- Eye exam
- Blood pressure
- Blood sample for HIV
- Chest x-ray
- Full-body cavity search

Just threw that last one in for fun!

Posted on: 中国崛起

davidtzau, I agree with you that minorities and immigrants in America have great opportunities.  The US is made up of immigrants, and was built by them.

I was thinking more along the lines that many Americans are "blissfully ignorant" in terms of the rest of the world's histories, cultures, and social ills.

Take for example Rwanda, Darfur, Chechnya, Bosnia, famines, wars, and many other world attrocities of the past 10 to 15 years...many many Americans are clueless to most of these.  And I think they want to be clueless and believe that the rest of the world is just like America.   

Don't get me wrong, I love America and am proud to be an American.  I just think we tend to look at the rest of the world through rose-colored glasses.

I also agree with you zhenlijiang, that there are many wealthy countries with people who are ignorant to the rest of the world.  I just think it's more prevalent in the US (and Canada perhaps?), more so than in Europe, Asia, etc....maybe because of geographical location and diversity of surrounding countries.  And I do hope that Barack, with his knowledge and experience with the rest of the world, will be able to educate Americans better.

Posted on: 中国崛起

"Chinese people might be much more proud of their country than you thought......?"

Changye, I think that is very true, at least I can say from the average American's view.

I've had numerous conversations with other Americans about China, and Chinese people in general.  Typically, they seem to think that Chinese people are unhappy, with no freedoms, and that the Chinese government "keeps them down."

I don't think those assumptions could be further from the truth. 

Again, just speaking from an American's point of view, but those assumptions are created from ignorance and lack of understanding of China and its culture.  I guess until recent years, part of that was the fault of China's isolationism, but most of it is due to the average American living in his or her little bubble that never wants to float past the borders of the US.  For such a wealthy and well-educated country, it's a bit sad that so many Americans are ignorant about the rest of the world's people.

Posted on: Sign Here, Please

Hi vpoford.  For the exercises, you need to type a 5 for neutral tone:

dong1xi5

Posted on: New Clothes

miantiao, thanks for the tips on 随便。 I will be very careful using this in the future.  I'll have to think about previous conversations now...I hope I haven't offended anyone!

Posted on: Sign Here, Please

robertoelrojo, I also agree with what you say, "professional people can also sound alive."  I think Ken sounds very much alive, even after producing hundreds of lessons.

Ken is who he is...at this point in his life, I don't think his presentation skills are going to change much, whether people think they're good or bad.  I'd be willing to guess that most poddies (especially women) find Ken's style endearing.

We're all entitled to our own opinion...mine is that Ken got to where he is because he does a lot of things well.  Nobody's perfect, but there's something to be said for where his skills have gotten him in his professional and teaching career.

Posted on: Sign Here, Please

robertoelrojo, you're right...

"...part of the attraction of ChinesePod is that it feels alive and actual"

And that's one of the many reasons that Ken is such an incredible teacher.  His "AHs" and "UMs" make him sound real, not like a boring teacher reading a dialogue like a robot.  "Bueller...Bueller....Bueller...."

My suggestion would be to ignore the ahs and ums and focus more on the content...either that or speed up your learning and move on to intermediate lessons :)

Posted on: Sign Here, Please

Hi bababardwan, I can answer your question about 明天。 It can be taken as a literal meaning..."bright tomorrow".  It's the positive side of Chinese, basically saying that the future is bright, tomorrow is a better day, etc.

Changye can probably add some good etymology, but I believe that's the original basis for using 明 with 天，年, etc.