陳 – Chen2 – Old, Stale, Display, (a surname)

Walde pulls out a movie version of The Water Margin for us to watch tonight. Remember I’ve mentioned this before? One other really great kung fu movie, Hero Tattoo with Nine Dragons is also based on The Water Margin. I ask him who’s in it, he starts naming like every kung fu actor ever. It turns out that just about all of the 108 heroes and villains in The Water Margin is represented in this movie. I ask him the most important question: Is 陳觀泰 – Chen2 Guan1 Tai4 – Chen Kuan Tai in it, and does he play the same guy that he plays in Hero Tattoo? Walde says he doesn’t think so.

We watch it anyway. In the beginning of the movie, which is really not moving along, they spend a solid 15 minutes introducing all the characters. They’ll show them, and show the name of the actor and the name of the character they’re playing, luckily in Chinese and English. They’re going through them all, and towards the end they show CHEN KUAN TAI as SHI JIN, and they even make a point of showing all his tattoos! Yeah!

The movie is playing, and playing, and playing, there’s tons and tons of dialog and complicated plots by half of the 108 heroes and villains against the other half, making use of their incomprehensible web of relationships and past history. But no Chen Kuan Tai. But then again, we haven’t seen lots of the people named in the beginning, so we’re not that worried.

This goes on for two hours. The movie really drags. More dialog. More plots. People get captured and are freed, adultery is committed, alliances form and are broken, and friends turn on each other. Elaborate plans and created and carried out. Finally, the end comes. You can tell it’s getting near the end because everybody gets together for a big fight. All the characters named in the beginning, as well as even more that were introduced during the two hours, and a few who turn up out of nowhere appear… But still no Chen Kuan Tai!

The big fight runs its course and I guess the good guys win. But we’re now confused and starting to get angry. Is there some twist ending? Chen Kaun Tai is going to run out and beat everybody up? Or was he back at the mountain stronghold checking the mail and feeding the cats the whole time? They’re going to go back now and tell him what happened?

No!!!!

THE END
A Shaw Brothers Production.
Shaw Brothers must be superb quality film.

“WHAT?!?!? CAN THEY DO THAT?” I yell. “They just did”, Walde says.

龜 – Gui1 – Turtle

烏龜 – Wu1 Gui1 – Black Turtle — Tortoise

What’s the difference between turtle and tortoise? This is what the San Diego Zoo says: A tortoise lives only on land. A turtle lives near water. Is that also the difference between 龜 and 烏龜? Not so sure. It could also be that 龜 is a general turtle and 烏龜 is one that lives on land.

By the way, for some reason it’s really bad to call somebody a 烏龜. I’m not sure what the connotation is though.

Useless, huh? Maybe I’ll do an easier word tomorrow. But it’s a cool looking character, anyway.

翅 – Chi4 – Wing

雞翅膀 – Ji1 Chi4 Bang3 – Chicken Wing Upper Arm — Chicken Wings.

One time, we asked Sharena what her favorite animal was. She said “Cheetah… and Chicken!” Cheetah I expected a kid to say. But why Chicken, I asked her?

“Because their wings are so yummy!”

爆 – Bao4 – Explode

爆米花 – Bao4 Mi3 Hua1 – Explode Rice Flower — Popcorn

If you can figure out the insanely cute navigation, you can learn lots more at English Land.

吧 – Ba5 – (imperative, agreement, emphasis, uncertainty)

This is a word you put at the end of a sentence to change its meaning. It has several different meanings, though. These are the examples from 中文.com, which I thought were really good, plus one of my own:

走吧 – Zou3 Ba5 – Go (imperative) — Let’s Go.

好吧 – Hao3 Ba5 – Good (agreement) — OK Then.

好吃吧! – Hao3 Chi1 Ba5! – Tastes Good (emphasis) — Good!

他不來吧 – Ta1 Bu4 Lai2 Ba5 – He Not Coming (uncertainty) — He’s not coming?

These meanings are very simliar, except for the last one. In the first three cases, you’re emphasizing something. I guess in the last case you’re sort of emphasizing your uncertainty, thereby turning a statement into a question.