User Comments - xiaohu
xiaohu
Posted on: #30
January 2, 2008 at 8:49 AMlujiaojie: Shouldn't the title be: "蒂法妮的早餐"?
Posted on: Tone Rule: Two Third Tones
January 2, 2008 at 8:08 AMOh by the way, in the expressions used in the lesson, 我想找你...Jenny said, wó xiǎng zháo nǐ . I know that in normal speech we would often just alternate the tones, wo2 xiang3 zhao2 ni3, but isn't the proper way to say it according to the rules that ALL the 3rd tones except for the last one change to 2nd tone? Shouldn't the most correct way to say it be, "wó xiáng zháo nǐ "? (Three 2nd tones and one 3rd tone?) By the way in regards to me earlier comment...does anyone out there have any advice on making the change of tones easier? I know in the lesson Ken said to get into the "music of the language" and "memorize the chunks as opposed to, that's a 3rd tone, that's a fourth tone", but again, after 5 years with the language and achieving a pretty decent level of fluency I still struggle with the tone changes. I know there is no magic formula but does anyone out there have any advice on a way to make it easier and flow more naturally? Because still to this day I have to formuate and plan out my sentences taking into account the changes of 3rd tone into 2nd, and it's a rare instance when I can just speak off the cuff and get the tone changes correct. Does anyone out there have some ideas to offer up on that?
Posted on: 土飞机上天
December 28, 2007 at 1:23 AMYeah, everything seemed to download for me fine as well. Grancher: What was the problem you were having? (boy it's been a while since I've heard Leguan's voice...whatever happend to him anyway? I'm gonna have to dust off that old lesson about Chinese regional dialects, one of my favorites and Leguan's Beifanghua is spot on!)
Posted on: Tone Rule: Two Third Tones
December 28, 2007 at 1:01 AMTruly the MOST difficult aspect of the Chinese language...Tone Sanhi...the change of third tone...I wish it didn't exist BUT you have to get used to it. Even after 5 years in the language I still have trouble with it...anyone out there with advice on how to make it easier?
Posted on: Hold the MSG
December 18, 2007 at 12:25 AMXiao Dai: It's not as bad as the mistake I made once...I (was trying to) ask the Chinese girl I went out with if we would mind if we ordered our 小火锅 with no...um let's just put it this way...Month...精！ 啊呀！ 好恶心！！！ You always hear about these mistakes a novice in the language would make that are extremely embarassing, I had gone a couple years without inadvertantly saying anything stupid or offensive, the the first mistake I had to make was a WHOPPER!
Posted on: Beauty Ideals and Ayi
December 17, 2007 at 8:26 AMVenusjin: 我有一个问题想问你： 在你写的故事里， 你的拼音说， “倒”这个字是第四声， （“字贴倒（dao4)了。。。Dànshì zhège púrén bù xiǎoxīn bǎ "fú" zì tiē dàole”. ）， 不过我的老师还有字典都说在这个地方， “倒” 就是第三声。 第三声的，“倒”的意思呢，不是 "To place upside down" 吗？ 拼音是不是该说，bǎ "fú" zì tiē dǎo le？
Posted on: Beauty Ideals and Ayi
December 17, 2007 at 7:52 AMActually when I first began my journey down this road, my first teacher told me the story of 福倒 and I found it absolutely fascinating! When I moved into 洛杉矶的华人地区 whenever I would see the upside down 福 on my neighbors door it would immediately bring a (somewhat unexplainable) sense of comfort! In a lot of ways that's how I feel about the Chinese culture, maybe it's the communist culture (which in alot of ways instills a sense of the importance of community), but whatever it is, for some strange reason I feel like I belong among the Chinese. And yeah, 福倒 is hanging on my door!
Posted on: Automated Phone Recordings
December 17, 2007 at 12:43 AMLiayi: I don't think the English, "screw you" really has a sexual connotation, it's just a way to curse at someone or something when you're upset.
Posted on: Most Frequently Asked Question in China
December 16, 2007 at 10:28 PMHi Amber, You didn't include the very first way I learned to ask this question, 你是哪儿的人？ In fact it's really the only way I say it.
Posted on: Ordering Chinese Take-out
January 2, 2008 at 9:04 AMheruilin: I LOVE those, two of my very favorite dishes! I also like: 重庆辣子鸡丁 （辣子肥肠和辣子虾 也很不错） - 重庆小火锅 - 过桥米线 - 小锅米线 - 太安鱼 Are all great Sichuan style dishes. By the way, is anyone here a fan of Hunan food (湖南菜）? I think if offers a great alternative to 四川菜， if you're in the mood for spicy but looking for something a little different give 湖南菜 a shot.