User Comments - agentchuck
agentchuck
Posted on: Elevator Emergency
May 28, 2008 at 9:38 PMI think I've found the problem with the elevator in this lesson: It's an escalator.
What's the word for escalator in Chinese?
Posted on: Mobile Repairman
May 7, 2008 at 4:06 PMDear Amber, But in this case, isn't the question asking if he has the ability to repair microwaves? In English you could ask, "Can you repair microwaves" or "Do you repair microwaves". He only "advertised" fridges, washing machines and TV's. Or would it be considered insulting to phrase things this way.
Posted on: Mobile Repairman
May 6, 2008 at 3:07 PMI'm curious about two things... First, the lady asks, 微波炉修吗 (weibolu xiu ma)？ It's translated as 'Can you fix a microwave?' But there is no '能‘ (neng)... Would the feeling of the question be the same if she asked, "微波炉能修吗？” or maybe it should be "你能修微波炉吗？“ The other question is when the guy says, "还是买个新的吧。” Do you always need the 个？ Assuming that you do, can you leave off the 一 for any measure word? Thanks!
Posted on: Yoga
April 30, 2008 at 2:22 AM当然大男人能练瑜伽！我真喜欢练瑜伽。我最喜欢的名堂是热瑜伽。(at this point my Chinese breaks down...) :^) Unfortunately, I took a bit of a hiatus from it so although I still have good balance, my flexibility is taking its time to return. How do they translate the poses into Mandarin? Do they transliterate the words? Downward dog -> 下面狗？ I'd like to see how they could put Adho Mukha Svanasana into Chinese syllables, though...
Posted on: Days of the week
April 23, 2008 at 3:14 PMYeah, I find shang4 上 and xia4 下 a little confusing too. I remember qian 前 and hou 后 through brute force， but I don't understand when to use mian 面 vs bian 边。 Mian in particular seems to be used in a lot of different ways, so maybe bian is just the special case?
Posted on: Fruit Salad
April 21, 2008 at 4:54 PMI have a couple of comments about this lesson... @zeoblade: I disagree with you on this one. There have been some interesting articles published lately which make a strong link between geneology and metabolism. There is some interesting research into why the Russian Blue bull can essentially sit on his can all day and just make muscle, whereas other breeds get fat. I agree that lifestyle is very important for everyone and you shouldn't make excuses for yourself, though. You have to play the cards you're dealt, but not everyone gets the same cards. Regarding the lesson, I found it a little funny that the emphasis in 好吃 （hao3chi1） is on chi1 and not on hao3. In English you would tend to emphasize the 'good', I think. Is this a normal way to add stress in Chinese?
Posted on: What is a Chengyu?
April 16, 2008 at 2:41 PMMy girlfriend likes to often tell me that I am, "不可救药“. Which apparently means that I am beyond redemption. There is another one that she says after she gives me a long explanation about something in Chinese and I don't understand her... Something about playing a piano in front of a cow? These Chinese idioms are really cool. I do feel they are similar to a lot of the idioms we have in English. A lot of them have similar sorts of back stories. Like, "Don't look a gift horse in the mouth," or being "Hoist with [your] own petard." They also remind me of a Star Trek: TNG episode where Picard was stranded out on a planet with a guy that could only speak in idioms. So, if you study Chengyu enough, then finally it will be 'Timba, his eyes open.'
Posted on: #44
April 11, 2008 at 3:43 PMAh, ok. I think I've got it now. Yeah, that was a pretty crazy scene.
Posted on: #44
April 10, 2008 at 3:51 PMMan, it's really weird. I don't know what this is, but I feel that I recognize it just from the background noise and music. Dave you really cracked me up when you let out the rage! "You call me intellectually angry and I will THROW you through that window." Definitely an Oscar worthy performance. You had me on the edge of my seat.
Posted on: Tool Delivery
July 31, 2008 at 2:36 PMSo, would a Robertson head screwdriver be a 四字螺丝刀？
How about air tools? Like an impact wrench or an air compressor?