User Comments - AuntySue
AuntySue
Posted on: Good Morning!
May 17, 2008, 10:47 PMOh, I see you have been given the answer while I was typing :-)
Posted on: Good Morning!
May 17, 2008, 10:43 PMWelcome, nesevis! There is no difference at all between nǐhăo and nǐ hăo, it's pronounced the same and it has the same meaning, "hello". Remember too that in Chinese there are no spaces at all within a sentence, so it would always be seen as 你好. If you dissect 你好 into a meaning for each of its characters, sure, you find "you" and "good", but nobody really feels as if that is the meaning, it just means hi. I hope someone else can help you with writing accented letters for pinyin, because I never bothered to learn, too lazy. I just use the numbers for the tones, e.g. ni3hao3, because I find that very quick to type for my own notes. Some people find that easy, but many say my way is too difficult.
Posted on: Cell Phones
May 17, 2008, 09:14 PMYes, the translation section is how I've always wanted it to be too. See, we do get everything here if we wait long enough, and this one will have a strong effect on how useful-out-there the student's learned language is. There are many subtle components of pronunciation and listening comprehension, and some can only be heard at a somewhat normal speaking speed. Now everybody's get'n 'em. Thanks.
Posted on: Knitting a Scarf
May 17, 2008, 06:35 AMOh dear, it doesn't look very vegetarian, does it. :-) But seriously, that's great, thanks for throwing me a character, there's so many to make mistakes with. I will need to cling to the ayi part too, because without it, Cantonese people call me arsehole （啊苏 ah-sou）. I think it's hilarious and cute, but they'd be mortified when they discovered what that means in Aussie. Two days ago I received my repaired computer back (minus podcasts), and there's no more problems with my relocating ADSL service either, so I'm off and rattling again at the new house, two months later. Phew. Bowen454, why do you suggest that your teachers would approve? Are you doing a knitting course? Ooh, that would be fun!
Posted on: The Doggy Bag
May 17, 2008, 01:05 AMMy parrot always welcomes me home too, shouting while I walk to the door to make sure that I can find my way back in the dangerous darkness. Then she wants cuddles, and speaks a few words to me in English before reluctantly going back to sleep. We've just returned from the vet. It seems Taffy has a painful cancerous growth which is becoming huge rapidly, and it cannot be operated on. We will have to enjoy these welcome-homes and wake-up delight moments as much as possible in the few months she has left. And from now on, yes, Taffy always gets to eat from my doggy bag! Treasure every time you can share with those you love, of any species, because you never know what's around the corner.
Posted on: The Doggy Bag
May 16, 2008, 11:53 AMHaha, no don't worry auntie68, our doggie bags aren't for feeding our doggies either, we just say that because it makes us feel better about it. It sounds a bit poor and petty to take your leftovers home to eat later, but to feed them to your dog (which probably doesn't exist), oh yes, how thoughtful. You keep face with that one. But really, if the food is good enough to go to all that trouble to take some home, why would you let the dog eat it? No way. :-)
Posted on: The Doggy Bag
May 16, 2008, 09:50 AMAt my local Chinese cafe I casually asked for a "birdie bag" and they accepted it as a normal request. Maybe it was because on the previous visit my companion galah had occupied the chair beside me and shared my meal. :-)
Posted on: Saved by the Gong: Geology
May 16, 2008, 09:31 AMAussies will remember the Thredbo landslide a few years ago, where people were trapped under rubble in sub-zero temperatures and had diminishing chance of survival over time as rescuers worked frantically, sadly finding body after body. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1997_Thredbo_landslide After several days it was conceded that the chance of finding a survivor at that stage was "infinitesimally small". The next day, Stuart Diver's voice was heard and he was pulled from the rubble suffering hypothermia but not too badly injured, and the whole country cheered through their tears. The news today talks of a few late survivor discoveries in China, especially children, who have miraculously survived under horrible circumstances and against all our fears for them. I do hope those unexpected finds of survivors continue! Not that I'm superstitious or anything, but, well, just in case, maybe we need another lesson to balance this one. An encouraging tale of miraculous survival against all odds!
Posted on: The Doggy Bag
May 15, 2008, 08:59 AMToo right, mate! "to go" ... "huh? to go to where?" I wonder if I went to the USA and asked for take-away they'd understand me or not.
Posted on: Good Morning!
May 18, 2008, 12:35 AMHi gefei. You'd do better asking that question in a media level classroom or general conversation area, don't you think? Then people who want the answer might see it, too. People reading here are mostly newcomers encountering a Chinese lesson for the first time. In case anyone's wondering about the media word above, no he's not in the media business. :-) We have levels starting with Newbie, Elementary...etc, going up to "Media" as the name for the top level of difficulty. Everyone can use as many levels as they like at once, you don't have to graduate or anything.