User Comments - pearltowerpete
pearltowerpete
Posted on: Napkins
April 24, 2009 at 9:15 AMHi mylovedvd
面纸 is facial tissue, e.g. Kleenex. I don't hear this all that often. As Xuchen and skedzinger suggested, there are some regional variations.
餐巾纸 and 纸巾 are both acceptable for "napkin."
Posted on: What do Foreigners Like?
April 24, 2009 at 7:57 AMHi reigau
That is definitely boy talk. But thank you for explaining it so carefully and diligently.
Hi chanelle
Matt_c is actually the resident expert on language of a saltier nature. You might say he wrote the book on it. Maybe he will favor us with a tidbit or two...
Posted on: Good Morning!
April 24, 2009 at 3:13 AMHi yorkiepaul2000
It's great to hear from you. If you make full use of CPod, your wife is sure to be impressed with your progress.
Good luck!
Posted on: Napkins
April 24, 2009 at 1:18 AMHi jo1972
These next few months will go by in no time at all.
When you come, please stop by our office in Shanghai!
Posted on: Rise and Shine!
April 23, 2009 at 5:50 AMHi jevious
People living outside their home country, particularly when they are ethnically different (and immediately recognizeable) tend to be very sensitive to how the local people talk about them, both to their faces and behind their backs.
Many of my Chinese friends are surprised by foreigners' dislike of terms like 老外, which they swear high and low are not negative. I think we can at least agree that the term is not neutral. The way it is used very much reinforces the idea of "us vs. them."
The same goes for 佬， which my friends have said is negative. Think of 乡巴佬，鬼佬, etc.
But I do know that it is used domestically as well.
天上九头鸟，地下湖北佬.
"Just as there are nine-headed 【i.e. crafty or slick】 birds in the sky, there are Hubei guys on Earth.”
No one would argue that the word is neutral here.
Posted on: Boston
April 23, 2009 at 3:13 AMHi pchenery
Five-time Boston Marathoner! Wow. How many marathons have you done in total?
Yes, we have talked about doing a marathon lesson. They're not extremely popular in China yet, but I think the outlook is good.
Posted on: Watching the Sun Go Down -- 登乐游原
April 23, 2009 at 3:06 AMHi bodawei,
but I guess when you love what you do!!!
Exactly. It doesn't feel like work.
Hi thinkbuddha
I agree- the fact that nothing lasts makes us cherish it even more.
Hi anneolga,
Thanks for introducing us to M. Cheng, who sounds like a phenomenal intellect.
Posted on: Rise and Shine!
April 23, 2009 at 2:48 AMHi jevious
No hard feelings. This is a learning center, after all. These forums have seen their share of passionate debate, and I'm sure we will see some more in the future.
I understand many Chinese people's extreme sensitivity regarding this period of time.
我顺便说一下，
“不论你是不是英国佬”
您说自己用"英国佬"来骂当时的英国帝国主义者。但这个说法听起来稍微disingenuous.
First, I'm an American, and second 我不是那个年代的人。 最好说"不论你是不是英国人"吧。最诚恳的抱歉还是不要用到任何一个hot-button word.
Anyway, let's “bury the hatchet." Glad to have you in the community.
Posted on: Boston
April 23, 2009 at 2:24 AMHi luobinzhenmei
Massachussets is often called 麻州 as benjizhuhai mentions. It's a bit tricky to find equivalent names of administrative units into English, but you generally see 州 translated as "prefecture." 省 is "province"-- compare with 江苏省 Jiangsu province, for example.
The standard translation for MIT is 麻省理工. But the plot thickens, because Caltech, another renowned engineering school, is 加州理工. I really can't figure out why this is so.
Posted on: How Far Away are You From Understanding 离？
April 25, 2009 at 1:30 AMHi all,
Courtesy of Connie:
我工作的地方离我家很近。
Wǒ gōngzuò de dìfang lí wǒjiā hěn jìn.
我们公司离我家也很近。
Wǒmen gōngsī lí wǒjiā yě hěn jìn.
公司离你家近不近？非常近。有多近？
Gōngsī lí nǐ jiā jìn bù jìn？Fēicháng jìn. Yǒu duō jìn？
公司离家近很重要，很方便。
gōngsī líjiā jìn hěn zhòngyào，hěn fāngbiàn.
钱多，事少，离家近。
Qián duō，shì shǎo，líjiā jìn.
公司离我家很远。
Gōngsī lí wǒjiā hěn yuǎn.
公司离我家不远。
Gōngsī lí wǒjiā bù yuǎn.
我好像离你越来越远了。
Wǒ hǎoxiàng lí nǐ yuèláiyuè yuǎn le.
你离你的家人越来越远了。
Nǐ lí nǐ de jiārén yuèláiyuè yuǎn le.
虽然你离他们很远，但是你的心离他们很近。
Suīrán nǐ lí tāmen hěn yuǎn，dànshì nǐ de xīn lí tāmen hěn jìn.
离五一只有三天了。
Lí Wǔ-Yī zhǐyǒu sān tiān le.
离自由很近。
Lí zìyóu hěn jìn.
离夏天越来越近了。
Lí xiàtiān yuèláiyuè jìn le.
离世界末日越来越近了。只有四年了。
Lí shìjiè mòrì yuèláiyuè jìn le. Zhǐ yǒu sì nián le.
现在离下班还有多久？大概六个小时吧。
Xiànzài lí xiàbān háiyǒu duōjiǔ？Dàgài liù ge xiǎoshí ba.
离飞机起飞还有多久？离飞机起飞只有十分钟了。
Lí fēijī qǐfēi háiyǒu duōjiǔ？Lí fēijī qǐfēi zhǐyǒu shí fēnzhōng le.
很丢脸。飞机就飞了。吃了大亏。
Hěn diūliǎn. Fēijī jiù fēi le. Chī le dà kuī.
离和要求、标准等等一起用。
Lí hé yāoqiú, biāozhǔn děngdeng yīqǐ yòng.
你的中文非常好。离我想要的还差得很远呢。
Nǐ de Zhōngwén fēicháng hǎo. Lí wǒ xiǎngyào de hái chà dehěn yuǎn ne.
你对自己的要求很高。
Nǐ duì zìjǐ de yāoqiú hěn gāo.
你觉得你离好男人的标准还差多远？
Nǐ juéde nǐ lí hǎonán rén de biāozhǔn hái chà duōyuǎn？
我的工资离买房子还差得远。
Wǒ de gōngzī lí mǎi fángzi hái chà de yuǎn.
虽然现在我们越来越有钱了，但是中国离富裕还有一段距离。
Suīrán xiànzài wǒmen yuèláiyuè yǒuqián le，dànshì Zhōngguó lí fùyù hái yǒu yī duàn jùlí.
公司离我家有十公里。
Gōngsī lí wǒjiā yǒu shí gōnglǐ.
公司离我家走路半小时。
Gōngsī lí wǒjiā zǒulù bàn xiǎoshí.
公司离我家坐地铁十分钟。
Gōngsī lí wǒ jiā zuò dìtiě shí fēnzhōng.
离毕业只有一个月了。
Lí bìyè zhǐ yǒu yī ge yuè le.
现在离下班我希望只有一个小时。
Xiànzài lí xiàbān wǒ xīwàng zhǐyǒu yī ge xiǎoshí.
Chinesepod离最好的还有一段距离。
Chinesepod lí zuì hǎo de hái yǒu yī duàn jùlí.
所以我们要加油，我们要继续努力，而且没有最好，只有更好。
Suǒyǐ wǒmen yào jiāyóu，wǒmen yào jìxù nǔlì，érqiě méiyǒu zuì hǎo，zhǐyǒu gèng hǎo.
我们要对自己的要求高一点。
Wǒmen yào duì zìjǐ de yāoqiú gāo yīdiǎn.