User Comments - pearltowerpete

Posted on: Tomb Sweeping Festival -- 清明

Hi all

I'm very sorry that some of your comments have disappeared. It's no secret that we've made some technical adjustments over the last 24 hours.

I know how much thought you all put into your posts here. We will do our best to recover your comments.

Thank you for your patience.

Posted on: Tomb Sweeping Festival -- 清明

Hi paulinurus

Thanks for your remarks on the poem. I'm not sure about the shepherd boy-- it seems to me that he's just a local lad who happens to know the way to the nearest watering hole.

Sometimes the significant thing is that the details are not significant. I'm thinking back on bill's comments on William Carlos Williams in an earlier discussion.

As for the selection of poems, I suppose there is a fair bit of bloodshed and suffering in the poems I've presented so far. But there have also been plenty of upbeat or at least bittersweet pieces.

Drinking in Chinese poetry is not always about drowning your sorrows. And poetry about death and loss often has a lot to teach us about enjoying life while we can.

Posted on: 进口鸡翅

Hi michellekc7

你说的非常有道理。快餐是全靠大规模农业的，很浪费水和石油资源。于是，肥育场给大自然带来很大的损害。 目前，做快餐生意的人可以享受偏低的油价，但总有一天形式要改变的。笔者认为人们最好食用有机，“本土化”的食品， 也不要吃怪里怪气的快餐。

Posted on: 进口鸡翅

Don't worry, bababardwan, we haven't seen the end of the intrepid Lao Wang.

Hi all,

Please note the line 你最近在哪儿发财呢? I have translated this literally as \"Where have you been getting rich?\"

But it means \"How have you been lately?\" and is often used ironically among friends (especially those who aren't getting rich, in my experience ;-)

Posted on: Tomb Sweeping Festival -- 清明

Hi bill,

\"Iceberg poem.\" I like that.

And calkins is right about the break in service yesterday afternoon. Very sorry for the inconvenience it caused you.

Posted on: How Many Zeroes?

Hi azzote,

This is a school lesson, just not Saved by the Gong.

Poddies may be interested to know that 撕票 means "to kill a hostage." This would be more relevant in the lottery lesson, but, hey, whatever!

Posted on: How Many Zeroes?

Hi kbergman,

D'oh! I have corrected it in the post above. Thanks for catching that.

Posted on: Sympathy for the Farmers -- 悯农

Hi imdaniu

Thanks for the links. And a Chinese cow goes 哞哞 mōu mōu.

As for "poddies," I guess it's similar to how "kids" used to refer just to young goats. The times, they are a-changin'.

Posted on: Gone Fishing

Hi guikeli

我刚跟jiaojie 和connie 谈了一下fly-fishing. 她们两不仅没听说过这个做法，而且觉得很奇怪。中国人比较现实，会用蚯蚓或虫子来作为鱼饵， 而不太会 go fly-fishing.

不过，fly-fishing 是很值得研究的一个技术，超难掌握吧。

Posted on: Tomb Sweeping Festival -- 清明

Hi tommaz

Great examples. There is a chapter in Steven Pinker's book The Language Instinct all about this stuff. It's fascinating.

Hi user11443

Your comments about tomb-sweeping during the season of renewal reminds me of last week's poem about Grass. Death is a part of life, and it's around us all the time.