User Comments - sballa
sballa
Posted on: Noodles without Cilantro
March 19, 2008 at 1:30 PMThanks Amber. I may indeed use that phrase tonight, as we are heading to Chinatown Express, a "crummy but good" place here in DC. Auntie 68. Thanks for all of that! 白饭 can be an important food for some in the family, although everyone is getting more "adventurous" in their eating (some faster, some slower)! And thanks for helping us, through your language insights, in our preparations (only a few months away now)! Steve
Posted on: Mobile Repairmen and AZERDocMom
March 19, 2008 at 11:22 AMDear Amber, What do you do if you need the repairmen, like, how do you call them in? Z-man
Posted on: Noodles without Cilantro
March 18, 2008 at 7:43 PMCan someone be so kind and check if I am saying something right? I would like to order a bowl of noodle soup with vegetables. Wǒ xiǎng diǎn yī wǎn qīngcài lāmiàn tāng. I'm just not sure if I have the order (vegetable-noodle-soup) correct. Cheers, Steve
Posted on: Making Copies
March 13, 2008 at 12:53 AMThat's a great post! Light bulb going on for me. I never realized that I was, in practice, changing the tones on the words you list, calkins. But then I tried to say those words using the first tone (yī), and it was clear that that is not how it is done (or how I actually say it). Cool!
Posted on: Making Copies
March 12, 2008 at 6:41 PMHow is yīgòng pronounced? I'm asking because the first syllable sounds like a second tone to me, even though it is listed as the first. Thanks! Steve
Posted on: May I take your photo?
March 12, 2008 at 2:01 PMHi all. Is 照相机 (zhàoxiàngjī) still used in Chinese as the main word for camera? I guess what I'm asking is the extent to which the spread of digital cameras has brought 数码相机 (shùmǎxiàngjī) into everyday speech. In English, we still tend to talk about our "cameras" and only specify "digital camera" when we are shopping for one. Is this also the case in Chinese? Cheers, Steve
Posted on: Buying a Newspaper
March 6, 2008 at 4:50 PMHi all. So what if you want to tell someone that you have good/bad news? Is 报 the word to use? Wǒ yǒu hěn hǎo de bào. Would that be anywhere close to correct? Steve
Posted on: Long Distance and Cultural Mysteries
March 3, 2008 at 4:31 PMHi all. Does anyone have experience with using webcams when communicating between China and other countries? My family will be moving to China this summer, and I am wondering if it makes sense to hook both us and our extended families back in the States up with webcams. If it does, then I'd love to hear recommendations about what to look for when buying webcams. Cheers, Steve
Posted on: Help with Housework
March 3, 2008 at 12:18 PMHi all. What would be the equivalent phrase in Chinese of telling your kid to clean his/her room? And how about, "put your (dirty) clothes in the hamper/dirty clothes basket"? Cheers, Steve
Posted on: Noodles without Cilantro
March 19, 2008 at 2:24 PMAuntie68, And who knows how long the rules will last! We have one who has ditched most of the rules, and another who continues to cling to pretty much the exact set of rules you laid out (much to Desi's chagrin!). Steve