User Comments - Tal

Posted on: Learning the Lei Feng Song

Just how dumb do you think the Chinese censors are dude? (Nice ideas though, you should try working them up into a book of your own!)

Posted on: Learning the Lei Feng Song

Well said pete. Frankly I'm always (a little) offended by the presumption of folk who suggest that ChinesePod hosts should comment on such issues. Most such folk have almost certainly never been to China, have no true understanding of how totally non-U it is for Chinese people with any kind of 'public profile' to endanger their livelihood, reputation, future career, (and of course maybe even their health and freedom) by acceding to such suggestions. Such 'suggestions' are just in rather bad taste imho.

"surely, the tragedy of tian an men will be engraved in chinese history." Not a chance stanimal, a huge section of the population has no idea of it, or if they do they do not know it as it is reported in the west. This will appal you (and many others) of course, but along with your distaste, take a few moments to offer up a silent homage to the literally countless similar incidents from western history of (possibly) justifiable uprisings which were quashed and then forgotten and are now wept over by no one. Oh and don't bother trying to tell me I'm just trying to make two wrongs make a right (that's so last week) because my point is simply that this is what humans do, this is the way history works, this is what people are like. Wanna cry for the moon? Go ahead, but don't go asking others (who don't have the privilege you have to speak your mind) to put themselves at risk.

Posted on: Toilet Types

@patguo

lol - if you find the language interesting or stimulating in any way then that is one of the positives!

Bear in mind also that a thread like this is perhaps not giving an entirely representative picture of what life here is like. I've been in the country for several years now, and I think I can count on one hand (oh OK, 2) the number of times I have used a squat toilet (for the aforesaid #2). As a foreigner with a decent sized income of course I have chosen accommodations with a sitter. (As China becomes richer and more westernized, these are more and more common. Anyone who's anyone would have one in their home, so to speak.)

As for what Chinese people put in their mouths... err, are we talking man's best friend here? Once again, just because its something that has been highlighted here recently doesn't mean you're going to have to fess up to this every day.

Life here actually is like life anywhere. There are nice things and not nice things. Like life anywhere if you want to get some happiness and joy out of your existence then you focus on the nice things, and choose not to dwell on the not nice things.

Posted on: Toilet Types

"Climbing the Great Wall in Beijing, we got to the top, I went into the men's room and it look like the squatter has not been clean for a century."

Ahh, so that's why they say: 不到长城非好汉！  Bù dào cháng chéng fēi hǎo hàn! (If you haven't been to the Great Wall, you're no hero!)

Posted on: Toilet Types

baba, your pic of the old guy squatting on the 马桶 fully clothed (thankfully!) looks ever so slightly Photoshopped, but what really went through my head when I saw it was how bizarre/amusing your list of enquiries to Google must be.

Oh those Romans look like they're having fun, (especially the guy sqatting on the floor. What's he up to?) The pic also shows just how advanced Roman toilets were, that they installed not only tracks for an early form of 地铁, but also one of those fairground 'crazy mirrors', (the whole image is therefore a reflection in the mirror.) I'm sure I read somewhere that Roman toilets didn't have toilet paper (just like China there) but a 'communal sponge' which would be passed from person to person as and when they needed it. Lovely.

Oh yeah, toilet paper. Almost always necessary to take your own, folks, even if only to dry your hands (or feet!)

Posted on: 金字塔销售

As anyone with experience of love's bitter sweetness knows, the line is thinly drawn 'tween joy and sorrow.

(人老赚经验，只是难回头 - Experience is a comb which nature gives to men when they are bald!)

sophie, I am ** years of age. I am English. I want to learn at an Advanced level, but I can't because I'm not clever enough.

I LOVE CHINESEPOD!!!!!!!

Posted on: Gone Fishing

老哥儿，谢谢！我喜欢做我的一点点！（那肯定是Chinglish, 是不是？）

Posted on: Gone Fishing

In this instance the zhe 着 is a particle placed after the verb to indicate an action or state that is continuing.

e.g. 门开着，灯亮着，可是房间里没有人。Mén kāizhe, dēng liàngzhe, kěshì fángjiān li méiyǒu rén. The door was open and the light was on but there was no one in the room.

Posted on: Which Finger?

lol  -  baba mate, you're nuts, you know that? ;-)

Well done though. Maybe now you've gotta explain that for our Chinese friends!

Posted on: Weather, Man

Yes, but it's an older lesson. Clearly comes from the time CPod was still 'finding its feet'!