User Comments - zhangdawei
zhangdawei
Posted on: Zombies: Deader than Ever
May 07, 2009, 03:23 PMduh!
@Thinkbuddha
I just deleted my post to say pretty much what you just wrote. That book Serpent and the Rainbow is crazy.
Posted on: Excuses for Being Late
May 07, 2009, 05:04 AM@ Chris:
It only seems logical that the dialogue is realistic. Who wouldn't give an excuse for being late?
But I try to pay extra attention when a Chinese friend tells me somthing about the culture that I may not experience myself because a) I am never in that situation or b) because I am treated differently as a foreigner.
You're right that my friend is middle aged but he has been working in China for a long time. There might be a different reason why he holds a view would be at odds with most other people's.
Posted on: Excuses for Being Late
May 05, 2009, 04:02 PMI don't mean to sound critical but I was told by a friend ( Chinese man who teaches advanced studies in American literature) that this conversation is not Chinese. He said it is very western. In his eyes, it would be extremely odd for a worker to give an excuse for being late. Instead he would quitely get back to work and hope no incident would come as a result for being late.
Furthermore, the boss would not threaten the workers by telling them that their salaries would be fined but rather set an example by : 杀鸡给猴看.
I'm really curious about what Chinese poddies have to say about this.
I would also add, that see the I point in creating an interesting context in order to teach some vocabulary and important grammar points like 了.
Posted on: Renting a Bike
May 05, 2009, 03:38 AMNo, I am also 大伟 like you. My Chinese surname is 张. Years ago my Chinese surname was 吴. I changed it because many Chinese people found the name funny for at least three reasons.
Posted on: Are You Happy, Content, or Delighted?
May 05, 2009, 03:32 AMI was walking past a construction site near my work yesterday and noticed this sign:
高高兴兴上班
Is there an element here of expressing good fortune in the same way people write "double happiness" at wedding parties?
Posted on: Renting a Bike
May 04, 2009, 05:40 AMIt seems ele. lessons are pretty easy for me but I wanted to listen to the ele. lesson for the sake of vocabulary enhancement. I didn't find any new words but I caught the little joke that the female speaker makes at the end.
The humor found in some if not many of the lessons is a big reason why I like chinese pod. There is nothing more satisfying to me than gaining knowledge and finding an little joke as well.
Posted on: Gone Fishing
April 23, 2009, 06:03 AMOn the stream for the lesson about business cards, there were some poddies writing about aggrovating homophones and how it is hard to distinguish meaning when words sound the same.. While listening to this lesson I was wrongly taking 鱼饵 for 鱼儿 as if the word 'bait' has the particle for child. (i.e. Fish we want to catch eat baby fish on our hooks.) This is totally wrong of course. But I often find while studying Chinese, my invented meaning helps me remember the real meaning. Of course this way of thinking ceases to apply once I try to read and write. But I think that by having so many similar sounding words, Chinese is actually not so hard to get a basic handle on.
Posted on: What do Foreigners Like?
April 23, 2009, 04:38 AMThe thing that I find interesting about the term 老外 is not the translation but how it is used. I find that Chinese use it with other Chinese people to announce the presence of a foreigner. No one has ever called me laowai to my face. I think the way it is used shows the difference between western and Chinese culture because if people shouted out "foreigner" in my country the way Chinese people do it, then it would surely not be a sign of endearment towards them.
So this could be a point of culture shock for a new arrival to China.
Personally, I like to respond to people shouting out lao wai by saying 哪里哪里？ It gets a laugh and mildly surprises some people.
Posted on: Guided Plan Gets Better! Plus: Poetry is Pending
January 21, 2009, 06:02 AMI want to add one more thing.
By focusing on theme and not style & history, we can learn much more about Chinese values, beliefs, and ideas.
Posted on: Buying a Guard Dog
March 26, 2015, 06:49 AMThe phrase about dogs that you might be looking for at around the 16 minute mark is:
"A barking dog seldom bites"