User Comments - laodie

Posted on: Measure Word Fundamentals: 个，只，条，张

Jenny,

  My mother always laughed at me when she asked me why I used a "ten dollar word" when a "two dollar word" would do. I would never answer her as she was making the point that my speech is a little pretentious (拿腔作势).It is hard to argue with your own mother.

  What I said was it sounds more literate (有文化修养的),not that is sounds more literary (书面的).

 Please forgive my poor Chinese, I have enough trouble expressing myself clearly in English.

Posted on: Measure Word Fundamentals: 个，只，条，张

Some previously presented material might also be useful:

• Elementary - Common Measure Words
• Qing Wen - All About Measure Words
• Qing Wen - Measure Words for Counting People

I have the impression that using the proper measure word rather than always using the more generic 个 (ge4) is considered a more literate style of speaking.

Posted on: Juiced!

Malaysia is one of the larger producers of durian and eating them is very popular. Most durian is eaten on the side of the road, near where they are grown. The fruit pods are quite heavy and they fall from the tree when ripe. Knowledgable consumers say the best durian are the ones that fell from the tree within the last few hours,  so they go to the source looking for "fresh" durian. I think the smell is a big factor in eating durian on the roadside. Hotels in Malaysia will not allow the durian fruit inside their rooms and will impose large fines on those who bring it inside. The reason for the fine is the cost of "special" cleaning required to remove the smell.

Posted on: Lao Wang's Office 9: Wang Plans Revenge

Late to the party, but I have a couple of observations. From our first introduction to 周俊, he has always acted as if he had significant 关系. I don't think there has been any explaination of where Zhou came from or how he got hired. The author of this series has an interesting sense of humor, or is Zhou1Jun4's name (which could be translated as "All around Hero") just a coincidence? Who is our hero's relationship with and does it trump any a 老油条 like Mr. Wang might have?

Posted on: Lao Wang's Office 8: Trimming the Fat at the Office

Late to the party, but I have a couple of observations. From our first introduction to 周俊, he has always acted as if he had significant 关系. I don't think there has been any explaination of where Zhou came from or how he got hired. The author of this series has an interesting sense of humor, or is Zhou1Jun4's name (which could be translated as "All around Hero") just a coincidence? Who is our hero's relationship with and does it trump any a 老油条 like Mr. Wang might have?

Posted on: Drinking Alone Under the Moon 月下独酌

Pete,

  Is the reference to 云汉 in the last line not an allusion to Chinese cosmology and the story of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl? The idea of setting a date to meet would seem to evoke the idea of the Magpie Bridge and the lovers annual meeting. 

Posted on: Drinking Alone Under the Moon 月下独酌

Sorry for the formating mess, I don't have the hang of this yet.

Posted on: Drinking Alone Under the Moon 月下独酌

So, are we talking radical in the classic sense, i.e. as used to clasify characters in a traditional dictionary? If so then:

花间一壶酒，独

酌无相亲。

月，对影成三人。

既不解饮，影徒随我身。

月将影，行乐须及春。

月徘徊，我舞影零乱。

时同交欢，醉后各分散。

期邈云汉。

Three 酉 you3s

Five 月 yue4s

Posted on: Food Regions of China

The Eight Great Traditions provide such a wide variety of tastes there has to be something for just about everyone to like.

I am partial to 川菜 chuan1cai4. 渔香茄子 yu2xiang1 qie2zi is my favorite dish as long as it is 麻辣 ma2la4. Add a bowl of rice and I am a happy man.

Sometime in the next year I am going to retire. One of my plans is to eat my way across China, experiencing the best of what the Eight Great Traditions have to offer (though I'll probably pass on the Civet Cat in Guangdong).

Posted on: Counterfeit Money and Driving in China

The raised printing on chinese bills is from the same process used to print US currency. The process is called intaglio ( 凹版, ao1 ban3). Use Google to get an explaination. Newer bills all have intaglio features. For example, the ten yuan bill has 12 marks shaped like hocky sticks to the right of Mao's portrait. The 100 yuan bill has circular dots, almost like the bing on a Mah Jhong pai. All of the bills have raised printing on collar of Mao's jacket. Most taxi drivers can feel these features in the dark. They only have to turn on the light for older bills.

I always save the 发票 fa1piao3 from the taxi. The one time I received a counterfeit 50 yuan note from a driver, the concierge at my hotel called the company and got my bill replaced. Of course, the hotel has some clout with the taxi companies. It did not hurt that the company involved was 大众 da4 zhong4. I've always thought of them as the best taxi company in Shanghai.