User Comments - JasonSch

Posted on: A New Jug for the Water Cooler

shanghai_rocks comment above reminded me of a Chinese palindrome (can you call it that?) I once heard:

上海自来水来自海上 (shànghǎi zìláishuǐ láizì hǎishàng)

Shanghai tap water comes from (on) the ocean.

Posted on: Shanghai Expo Pavilions

加油 ames! It's a big step, but I think the more you work through them, you'll start to see a lot of repeated patterns and structures.

As for my 2 分, I think it helps to start studying sentences and pieces of language at around this point, as opposed to single words or phrases. (if, of course, you aren't doing that anyway.) New words seem to stick better for me when I remember them in context and in association with other words.

Posted on: Fog or Smog?

No prob. Yeah, it's all about the 了 here. You can think of it as marking a change of state: from bad to better, or 'the 好 has 多了ed' if that makes any sense. :)

And thanks Changye for a more a more succinct grammatical explanation!

Posted on: Lao Wang's Office 4: Communication in the Office

No problem! Must have been mistranslated. (要做出一个 would be closer to 'have to make an') I'll see about having it fixed soon.

Posted on: Fog or Smog?

好多了 is an expression that means that something is, 'much better now'.

For example,

A: 你的肚子还疼吗？Does your stomach still hurt?

B: (现在)好多了 It's a lot better (now).

好多 as in, 'very many', isn't followed by a 了. (太, however, is: 太...了)

Posted on: Shanghai Expo Pavilions

And the first thing he said? ‘侬好!' That made me smile.

Posted on: Lessons, Customized Courses and Jobs

Excellent quote! I'm a big fan of Bruce Lee. The Tao of Jeet Kune Do was the the first book I read by a Chinese author and one of the things that got me interested in the East.

Posted on: Lessons, Customized Courses and Jobs

what makes them think Chinese grammar is so difficult.

I do think Chinese grammar is easier than many other languages'. (Japanese! which I've studied as well) It's more sneaky though. It seems easy, and I think initially it is, but it can get a lot trickier with complex structures and formal writing. The flexibility of spoken Chinese diminishes quite a bit when you start putting it all down on paper.

Posted on: Lao Wang's Office 4: Communication in the Office

It should be 'Today I made a very important decision'.

Posted on: Food Flavors, Shanghai Style

I have to say, I do love my food! I especially like spicy food and that's why Sichuan, as well as Hunan, food makes the top of my list in China. I even like 麻! It's almost addictive. :)