Greetings
By Samuel
Picture by Zhu Lijun



The first culture shock for me came along with the simplest English sentence I ever learned-How are you doing? I knew perfectly well that it was used as a greeting but didn't realize it could be a problem until one day my new foreign teacher showed me this clash.

I met him on campus one afternoon. He smiled at me from the distance and said "How are you doing, Samuel?" I hesitated a few seconds, groping for an answer, not sure whether to come up with "good" or "so-so" or whatever else. I tried my best to figure out how I was doing and finally said, "it is just ok." Then I went on to tell him how I got quite upset about not getting my favorite pork for lunch at the school canteen but felt much better after a good afternoon nap. My teacher's eyebrows creased a bit, apparently a little embarrassed, but he kept smiling courteously before we were back on our ways.

Later I learnt that when English speakers say, "How are you doing?" they only expect a short reply but don't really care exactly how you are doing. So you would make both parties in the conversation uncomfortable by pondering for more than three seconds or trying to elaborate on it.However, foreigners who have stayed here for some time have now learned to use "Hi" more often, saving all the trouble caused by "How are you doing?"

 

一起去旅行
By Suky

"五一"放长假了,又是旅游的好时机!辛苦了半年的你是否已经迫不及待地想放飞自己的心情,那么就赶快行动起来,和Suky一起去旅行吧!

1. Is there anywhere I can buy a cheaper ticket?
我在哪儿能够买到更便宜的机票?
"五一"的机票价格上涨,不是一般的小资们可以接受的.这时多问几家,找到最便宜的机票就显得很重要啦.和这个句子在一起用的还有"Are there any direct flights?"(有没有直飞的班机?)咱不能光图便宜,转来转去,本来要去南京的结果先跑晋江再去上海,折腾不折腾啊?所以先要问清楚

2. I urgently need a single room for tomorrow night, do you have any vacancies?
我急需一个单人房要明晚住,请问你们还有空房吗?
当然,订房的用户就是上帝,你可以提出一些具体的要求比如"I'd like a suite with an ocean view, please."(我想要一套可以看海景的房间) .

3. Where do I change trains to get to Times Square?
我在哪儿换车到时代广场呢?
"要到...该走(坐)哪一条路线"可说Which line(s) should I take to (go to/get to)? 表达"在A站从B线换C线,坐到第三站"是You change from Line B to Line C at Station A,and it's the third stop.这句厉害吧,真乃乘坐公车经典句子啊,大家一定要试试!

4.Can I trust this driver? It seems he's intentionally taking the long way here.
我能信任这个司机吗?他好像故意在绕远路.
intentionally相当于purposely,即"故意地"."这就是到...的最近(快)的路吗?"的说法是Is this the shortest(fastest)way to...?"这是合法的司机吗?"是Is this driver legitimate? "这是有照出租车吗?"则是Is it a licensed taxi?

 

Ask the Chef
By the Chef

Chef's Profile: This chef is not just any chef, not only does he know everything there is to know about cooking, but also he is an absolute guru in Engish writing. Therefore, if you ever feel hungry or stuck in your English writing, you should go ask the Chef!

Last week's assignment:
A thank-you note to your colleague because she/he helped you with a project.

Mable wrote:
Dear Jenny,
I am very glad to tell you that my project has been (1)proved succeeded and will be (2)put into practice before long. However, the project (3)won't get on well without your help. (4)As you know, I am weak in charting. It's very kind of you to make the chart for me. That's very important for me and my project. So you played an important role in accomplishing the project. Herein thank you again for your help.
Yours sincerely, Mable

Chef commented:
(1)用"has been proved successful" 感觉会更好一些.你在这儿用了一个很地道的英语句型,值得表扬.Successful是句子的补语, 实际上它是句子主要想表达的意思.如He has been confirmed guilty.The dog was found dead behind the door.
(2)教你一个新单词,叫implement (贯彻,执行),这句话写成 "will be put into implementation before long." "Will be implemented soon."
(3)这儿最好用完成时的虚拟语气,表示过去可能发生的状态.
(4)接下来的4句话有些乱.

Chef revised:
Dear Jenny,
I am very glad to inform you that my project has been proved successful and will be implemented soon. However, this project would have never gone well without your help with the charting, in which, as you know, I can't do very well. You played a very important role in my project and helped me greatly with its completion, but also taught me a lot. Thank you very much again! Yours sincerely,
Mable

This week's assignment:
You are working with your colleague on a very important project but you found he hasn't been paying enough attention. Write him a short email and kindly remind him how important this project is and hence, you would like more of his enthusiastic input.

编者按:
请将你的作业发送到thecommonchef@yahoo.com.另外,为了感谢广大读者的参与,the Chef将慷慨地向参加本栏目投稿并被采用的同学们送出电影票.

 

Classic English

Unless one is wealthy, there is no use in being a charming fellow. Romance is the privilege of the rich, not the profession of the unemployed. The poor should be practical and prosaic, it is better to have a permanent income than to be fascinating... - Oscar Wilde in The Model Millionaire