User Comments - pearltowerpete

Posted on: Watch Out!

Hi urcto

Of course you're welcome to join our community! We look forward to your comments on the message boards.

If you are interested in learning English, you may also want to check out our sister site.

Posted on: Remembering that Day on the Creek -- 如梦令: 常记溪亭日暮

Hi user2048

Thanks for your enthusiasm! Li Qingzhao and her husband were avid collectors of antiques.

Hi zhenlijiang

I'm surprised and disappointed that you can't see tudou in Japan. The video is a little girl belting out the poem. I like the cognitive dissonance between her innocent little face and the boozy adventure she's talking about.

Posted on: Reporting a Loss

Hi kdombros

Actually, the word I suggested is 大组, large groups. This would take race out of the picture, and allow us to talk about the Tibetan Group, the Han group, etc.

My earlier comment is not really clear-- I don't favor the term "race" in English. My point is that the term 民族 doesn't mean much in Chinese, really. Look at a "Han" from Guangdong and one from Liaoning. Their stature and facial features are notably different. The idea of the "Han nationality" is basically propaganda.

And what does 中华民族 mean?

中华民族到了最危险的时候，
每个人被迫着发出最后的吼声。

I know a lot of Tibetans and Taiwanese (among others) who would take exception to being lumped into the 中华民族.

Posted on: Watch Out!

Hi baha17

注意 emphasizes that you are focusing your attention on something-- 注意听课！ "Pay attention in class!"

“小心” is more of a reminder. For example, 小心点儿，别摔倒！ Be careful, don't fall!

‘注意’ is usually used to make sure people do something. ‘小心’ is usually used to make sure someone doesn't do something.

小心着凉（别着凉）-- careful, don't catch cold.
注意安静（要安静）-- Keep quiet.

小心中毒（别中毒） -- Be careful, don't get poisoned!
注意卫生（要卫生）-- Pay attention to hygiene.

Thanks, Jiaojie, providing examples and explanation.

Posted on: Reporting a Loss

Hi kdombros, changye, kimiik and jimijames

Thanks for an interesting (if off-topic) discussion of the linguistics of race and nationality.

I think it would be more accurate for the PRC to refer to its 民族 （nationalities) as 种族 (races). But maybe it would be best to simply refer to the different races as 大组.

It reminds me of historian A.J.P. Taylor's remark  (from memory, as my copy of the book is back in America) that a nation is a "group of people with a shared misconception about their origins, and a shared mistrust of their neighbors."

Posted on: Reporting a Loss

Hi garfaldo

Good observation. Both 裡and 裏 are acceptable forms of 里. Wenlin says that 裡 is the full form and 裏 is a variation, according to the Big5 standard. I am currently reading a book published recently in Hong Kong that uses 裏.

Interestingly, the default in Google pinyin for traditional characters is 里面, which shows that the boundaries may be getting blurry.

Posted on: Remembering that Day on the Creek -- 如梦令: 常记溪亭日暮

Hi questyn

Thanks for your contribution to the discussion, and for taking the time to translate your remarks.

Hi Bill,

I like the concept you described:

the poets try to describe what we experience without the interference of either rhythm or grammar.

As it is a distilled, even electrified kind of language, poetry is particularly suited to this kind of communication.

Posted on: Remembering that Day on the Creek -- 如梦令: 常记溪亭日暮

Hi urcto

Thanks for sharing that poem with us. English poetry also includes a variety of formats and styles-- quatrains, sonnets, free verse, even haiku. Expanding the definition further, some lyrics by, for example, Bob Dylan and Cole Porter are fine poems.

These works can all be considered "poems."  The same is true of poetry in Chinese or other languages.

By the way, if you want to learn English, please explore our sister site.

Hi squall001

If the eight shows in this series were all that ChinesePod had to offer, I would agree with you. But there are more than a thousand episodes on daily life issues.

This program is for poddies who want a bit more cultural and historical depth. The listeners have discussed this point at great length.

假如CPod只提供这些lessons的话，我会同意您的观点。但除了这几个单元之外，此网站也有一千多个lessons. 绝大多数都特别生活化。

再说，我们都知道中文多音字很多,中文深奥莫测，等等。我这个节目的宗旨是“介绍诗歌" 而不是“使用诗歌教汉语。”

总之，学外语，光了解语法规定一定不够，还得研究文化和历史。我认识n个中国人，英文好的很，但很难跟他们沟通。问题不在于他们英文不够好，而在于除了“Forrest Gump" 和“Prison Break," 他们对美国文化简直是一无所知。希望我们能以这些podcasts让听众进一步了解博大精深的中国文化。

Posted on: Reporting a Loss

Hi shanghaichanges

Glad to hear it! Don't be put off if your first few upper intermediate lessons are frustratingly difficult. You'll get the hang of them in no time flat.

Hi first_tone

Bringing your ID everytime you want to do anything is a good idea. I just got a Shanghai library card and needed to show my passport. It makes sense, though-- what else am I going to show? My student ID?

Hi bababardwan

I've never heard of foreigners getting 身份证. But who knows, a couple of die-hard Western commies came over during the Mao era and they may have gotten one.

There has been talk lately of expanding the permanent residence visas for foreigners who have real expertise.

Posted on: 醋的妙用

Hi kimiik

Don't be afraid of vinegar! Fangaili's mother mentioned the benefits of drinking it, and the ancient Romans would've agreed. There's good evidence that they drank diluted vinegar on long marches when they couldn't get wine.