June 30, 2007

The God of the Gate, again

Here's another installment of my translation of The God of the Gate

 Tang Tai Zong finally came up with a plan.  "Go throughout the country and find the best artist," he decreed.  "Bring him to me.  He can craft images of thse two warriors on my city gate, depicting them with most warlike expressions on their faces.  That should be enough to frighten the demon away."

The master artist came and carefully observed Qin Shu Bao and Yu Chi Gong's appearance.  He began to work on a draft of the images, their bearing, colors and hue, that would appear at the gate.  He worked nonstop, and after 3 days and 3 nights, he finished the job.

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June 27, 2007

Capella University

Capella University is an accredited institution of higher learning, committed to offering the best education to its students.

One of the great things about Capella University is that one need not leave the comforts of home in order to pursue studies.  There are all sorts of programs available at Capella University to students who are seeking to improve their situation.  There are certificate programs, bachelor's degree programs, master's degree courses, and one could even pursue a doctorate degree online through Capella's postgraduate programs.

There are more than 80 specializations available to students.  If you are looking for a quality degree from an accredited university, then contact Capella University and get started today.

Irene Silber
Capella University
612-977-4132
irene.silber@capella.edu
Posted by poetically challenged at 17:40:28 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Accent Reduction

I am often told I have a good accent when speaking Chinese, despite the fact that I didn't start learning till I was an adult.  I am often mistaken over the phone for a native Chinese speaker, in fact.  For me, I think this has come about because I have lived in Singapore for nearly 15 years, and spoken here on a daily basis.  My accent is, in fact, very Singaporean.

Not every language learner is lucky enough to be immersed in the language environment as they learn, though.  That can make it tough to pick up a nice-sounding accent, or to lose a not-so-nice-sounding one.  That's where  accent reduction classes can come in handy.  Executive Language Training has just such classes for learners of English as a second language.  If you are looking to improve your English accent, do get in touch today.


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Posted by poetically challenged at 10:43:49 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Pirated Materials

I was reading through thoughts from Michael Moore about pirated or "leaked" information.  I really found his insights revealing, especially his comment that passing copied material around, say on a CD burned by one friend for another, might end up being good for business.

This reminded me of something I heard of happening in China.  I can't remember which director it was, but I want to say Zhang Yimou (but that doesn't quite sound right)... at any rate, I heard that upon the release of one of his big films, one of the big-name directors in China actually oversaw the release of quality "pirated" DVDs to sell on the streets.  His reasoning?  Well, everyone is going to be buying the pirated discs anyway, so why not make the profit from it himself?  And, further, he was convinced that his film was worth seeing on the big screen, and hoped that by releasing good-quality pirated DVDs, that his viewers would be equally convinced that this was true.

I don't think the second necessarily proved to be the case, but at least the first idea worked out for him.
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June 26, 2007

UK Property Investments

If you've always dreamt of financial security, then investing in a landlords mortgage in the UK might be just the thing to get you all set up to move in the direction you've always hoped for.

A landlords mortgage is an investment in a property which you can purchase, then lease or rent it to a tenant in order to gain a steady income.  There are lots of excellent properties in the UK available, and Endsleigh is the place to go if you'd like to receive some sound advice on how to invest wisely into the property market in the UK.  They are open from 9 am to 9 pm, and are always ready to help you go through the whole process of investing in a landlords mortgage.

Click here to visit Endleigh's website for a quotation.  Call 0800 028 3571 to get in touch with the friendly, reliable staff at Endsleigh, and they can help put you on the road to financial security today.
Posted by poetically challenged at 19:16:42 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

June 23, 2007

The Basement Gallery

I recently came across a place that is due to publish its inaugral issue later this year.  For poets, this is good news.  They are looking for poetry to publish, which means it is a good time to get our work to them for review.  The deadline is still a while away, in November, so you've got plenty of time to get submissions together.

The new publication is called The Basement Gallery.   There isn't a whole lot on the website about expectations, so I'd say just send a variety of writing and let them have at it   (That is what I have done.)
Posted by poetically challenged at 01:48:59 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

June 22, 2007

Free Lifetime Subscription for Auctions

The online auction scene is in a little bit of a frenzy with the upcoming closure of US and Canadian Yahoo auction sites.  It's making for some level of inconvenience for members who had paid a premium for a lifetime membership.

eBid Online Auctions is helping to make life easier for those customers.  From now till Yahoo auctions closes its doors (on June 30, 2007), people who find themselve out of luck over at Yahoo auction sites can do a screen grab of their Yahoo auctions account information and email the file to yahoo_offer@ebid.net along with their new eBid name (given when they register).  They will then be  given a Platinum account membership which allows them zero listing and zero final value fees for life at eBids.  All for free.

Don't miss out.  It's a great way to get ahead of the game. 




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Posted by poetically challenged at 09:26:46 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

June 18, 2007

Innocence

My 2 nephews (6 and 7) are here to spend the summer with me. When we go somewhere with my 2 older godchildren (8 and 4), it is fun to hear the 4 kids singing along with The Beatles CD that I like to listen to in the truck. They have nearly every word to every song on the CD memorized, and sing along with gusto. When tracks 5-8 come up, they are especially enthusiastic. That's (in order) I Want to Hold Your Hand, All My Lovin', Can't Buy Me Love, and A Hard Day's Night.

My godchildren's mother and I get a kick out of listening to the kids sing. We were talking the other day about how the music of The Beatles so nicely represents a more innocent time than the one we seem to live in today. Songs about holding hands, writing letters home, and all that sort of stuff said so much in that era, and influenced music forever after it.

I love The Beatles, and I love a good deal of the music that has come after them (not just in time, but in influence). And I really love hearing my little innocents soaking up the music of a more innocent era past.

Posted by poetically challenged at 09:47:44 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

June 10, 2007

The God of the Gate (cont.)

This is the continued tale of the The God of the Gate (or, my translation of it). 


What they did not think of was that even with the soldiers standing at the gate, Tang Tai Zong would still continue as before with his nightmares.  Only when Qin Shu Bao and Yu Chi Gong guarded the palace gate at night was the mournful cry not heard, nor the spirit of the River God seen.  Only then would Tang Tai Zong sleep peacefully, and in sleeping, begin a gradual recovery.  But it was impossible to expect these two mighty warriors to guard the palace gate every night. 

 

Posted by poetically challenged at 14:59:39 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

June 06, 2007

Some thoughts

I have a pair of interns working with me at the moment, and both are interested in learning Chinese. I've been spending some time teaching them on almost every day for the past week or so. It has been a new experience for me, teaching Chinese.

I've figured something out, doing this. There is nothing to replace teaching someone else the things you've struggled to learn. This is especially true regarding the reinforcement of that foundational knowledge.

I hope these interns decide to stick with it for the whole six weeks they are here. That will take us pretty much through the whole first book of the series I like to use. Then, just for fun, I think I will revisit the second book. There are a total of 8 books, and I haven't finished all of them. Perhaps this is just the motivation I need to kickstart me once again.

If I could just make myself finish the whole series, I would consider my Chinese pretty advanced.

I guess it isn't so much "if I could," though, as it is "if I just would."

 

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