Monday, March 08, 2010

Calling chopsticks a car, and confusing "uncle" cultures

Relevant Taiwan conversation until my Trillian froze:

[00:52:58] Flami: I'M GOING TO YELL AT YOU BECAUSE I CAN!
[01:07:12] Corey: you better not, I just bought you a present yesterday! and it wasn't the first one :P so be nice
[01:08:13] Flami: well, I was only doing that because I told Eric that I was going to yell at you just like I was doing to him.
[01:10:07] Corey: I found a better thing, but that one was all in Korean, so I changed
[01:14:23] Flami: I got stuff from Japan today!
[01:14:35] Corey: like what?
[01:15:35] Flami: Japanese crackers, Watering Kiss Mint gum, dark chocolate fudge Clodhoppers (okay, maybe those aren't from Tokyo :P), a peanuts package ("Energy For The Good Life"), spicy sauce in a tube, and a chocolate pie
[01:19:35] Corey: what kind of Chinese spicy stuff do you know about? something I can get in a jar or something I can bring home? Jane doesn't seem to know that much about that. I want to bring something really really hot home for my sister's husband
[01:19:48] Corey: or I guess there's tons of Japanese stuff here, too
[01:22:06] Corey: and Thai and all kinds of crap :P but it seems like most of the really spicy things are just things you go buy "ready to eat," not really sauces to buy
[01:25:27] Flami: hmm... I don't know
[01:25:43] Flami: XO Sauce, but I wouldn't call that extremely spicy
[01:26:18] Corey: we went to Carrefour (like a French version of Wal-Mart that they have here for some reason), and they had a lot of things... but I didn't really know what was actually hot, and she didn't either. there's about 9 billion little shops, some of which must have spicy things....
[01:29:50] Flami: probably... I really don't know much about that, either
[01:31:40] Corey: well you know a lot of Chinese people, so ask some :P
[01:36:38] Corey: oh, I met a Chinese person from Vancouver :P well, from here, but lives in Vancouver now
[01:36:52] Corey: Jane has an aunt and uncle that live there, and the uncle is here
[01:37:27] Corey: and I had that thingy you like today... in the steamer whatever
[01:37:29] Corey: pork ones
[01:37:40] Corey: si long bao? I don't know how to spell it :P
[01:39:46] Flami: YAY! SIU LONG BAO! YAY YAY YAY! :D :D :D
[01:41:36] Corey: with kung pao chicken, and some soup stuff made of rice and corn, and a beef burrito (what the hell are burritos doing here?? it seemed like a Chinese thing though, so I think that's just English menu weirdness :P it was easier to have Jane's aunt translate the Chinese menu than try to read the English one they brought for me
[01:42:10] Corey: I tried to explain that that was Mexican food, and this very Chinese restaurant probably doesn't have that, so it looked funny, but I don't think she really understood :P
[01:44:18] Corey: she says she understands me more than it probably looks, but she doesn't always know how to reply well
[01:44:34] Flami: beef burrito?! that does seem out of place
[01:44:58] Corey: well... it kind of was a burrito, but it was a fried thing, cut into slices, and had a lot of cucumber and stuff inside
[01:45:17] Corey: probably not a tortilla though, but something flat and similar
[01:45:45] Flami: I don't think I've had that before
[01:52:06] Corey: they had pork ones, too. I ordered pork, but they said they only had beef today, so beef it was. I actually didn't really want that at all, but she thought I did since I was talking about it :P it was all right, though
[01:54:24] Flami: haha, oh well... at least you didn't have too much fried food and stuff like I did tonight - fried wonton, yam fries, and more
[01:54:43] Corey: dinner smells very fried :P (almost dinner time)
[01:55:13] Flami: oh well, I guess I spoke too soon maybe :P
[01:56:20] Flami: but man, there were at least 10 fried items at dinner... we didn't see the healthy side of the room till later
[01:57:33] Corey: I'm not really even hungry... I had bubble tea, and it feels like I'm totally full from that... I finished it like two hours ago, but it was too much. I'm not sure why since it's a small one
[01:58:27] Flami: I think I'll be totally full from this dinner to last me till tomorrow - good thing, since I no longer have any leftover pizza because the fridge door seemed to be ajar all day
[01:58:53] Corey: bjar it next time
[02:00:20] Flami: no such thing
[02:03:47] Corey: well, crap
[02:04:00] Corey: I feel like I'm going to puke if I try to eat anything, and Jane isn't here to explain
[02:04:51] Flami: just how much stuff is on the dinner table?
[02:05:19] Corey: uh... wo shiang shur, kashur wo bu hoy? (I want to eat, but I can't).. not sure if that works
[02:05:27] Corey: oh yay, Jane is on MSN now, finally
[02:07:30] Flami: oh good, maybe she can tell you how to say that... I recognize three words out of that
[02:14:06] Corey: well, you don't speak Mandarin, do you? plus I don't know how to spell anything right :P that's just sounds :P
[02:22:52] Flami: I hear some of it at church... and I know wo is "I" ... shiang sounds like a nasal version of the Cantonese word for "want"... and shur is "eat," by context - I probably have heard that at church, too
[02:27:26] Corey: shiang is want... and it's not nasal :P Jane says it's really shiang yao.. or just yao, but my lessons said shiang, so that's the one I know how to work with :P
[02:28:18] Flami: that sounds like "want to have" from my understanding of Cantonese, but whatever works - and she would know
[02:28:50] Corey: that's probably about right
[02:30:51] Corey: in other Chinese news, Jane's mom tried to teach me "get out of the car," but I thought she was saying "shoes," and I was confused
[02:41:25] Flami: yeah, that would be confusing - what a mental image!
[02:45:10] Corey: the two words are close, I don't remember how to say them right :P
[02:47:43] Flami: understandable
[02:48:14] Corey: I think I called chopsticks a car once, too
[02:49:48] Corey: they both end in tzu, and I can't remember the first part very well (the most important part :P)
[02:50:28] Corey: I still can't tell you how to say chopsticks, and they've tried to teach me that one about a million times :P if anyone says it, I know it, but I can't repeat it well. I finally figured out how to say bubble tea, though
[02:51:00] Corey: oh, and did I tell you that assuming I come back here, I have a job now?
[02:53:02] Flami: hey, my sister-in-law also got a job this week - good work!
[02:53:49] Flami: you said that if you did well in a demo, you could have a job or something, so this works
[02:58:25] Corey: well, the demo with kids went well, I guess.. they never actually told me that, but since they offered me the job immediately afterward, I think it's safe to say that it was good enough
[03:07:31] Flami: that's good... my sister-in-law is doing full-time freelance work
[03:07:38] Flami: contract work
[03:09:43] Corey: oh, and I forgot to tell you earlier, Jane's niece calls me "Corey su su" (Uncle Corey), and it sounds like that's going to be more than just a fun title here pretty soon
[03:19:00] Flami: sounds good
[03:19:35] Corey: oh yeah?
[03:20:39] Flami: well, unless either of you rejected a proposal outright
[03:21:31] Corey: huh?
[03:21:36] Corey: I don't think you got what I was saying
[03:21:44] Corey: right now, they call me "uncle" even though I'm not one
[03:21:58] Corey: news from home says that's not going to be the case anymore
[03:22:15] Flami: yeah, I know about that Chinese cultural thing VERY well
[03:22:51] Flami: well, if she calls you that and it's not going to be a fun title, it might be a serious one - like marriage!
[03:23:11] Corey: news FROM HOME... about being an uncle!!! this isn't that difficult! :P
[03:23:47] Flami: and if you're saying what I think you're saying, then... WHY IS EVERYONE GETTING PREGNANT?!
[03:32:03] Corey: because they want to, I guess!
[03:32:03] Corey: apparently, that will happen around Halloween
[03:32:04] Corey: well, the baby
[03:32:21] Flami: baby?
[03:32:31] Flami: oh yes, the baby...
[03:32:55] Flami: ha, so will my friend's pregnancy




You are McDonalds



You are a positive, friendly, and welcoming person. You are someone who can always be counted on.

You are loyal and true to your friends. And in return, your friends are very loyal to you.



You are a steady and reliable person. You are always up for some fun, but you take care of your responsibilities first.

You are a bit old-fashioned, and you don't change much over the years. That's a good thing, because people love you the way you are!

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