The new year has begun and I’m back making my Chinese vocabulary notes. In this edition: the showdown between Thomas Afu and Laolei, caving in China and the state of Chinese masculinity.
阿福不想让你看到的视频 – The Video Thomas Derksen Doesn’t Want You To See
I’ve been following both Thomas Afu and Laolei for years. Who would have thought that Afu would sue his fellow countryman and loudest criticizer? In this 70-minutes masterpiece, Laolei gives his account of the matter in his typical digressing yet structured manner.
Level indication: HSK 5 (with English-Chinese subtitles)
所以我就在这儿瞎说了一下呢Suǒyǐ wǒ jiù zài zhè’er xiāshuōle yīxià neSo I just talked nonsense here.我最近三个星期没录视频wǒ zuìjìn sān gè xīngqí méi lù shìpín I haven’t recorded a video in the past three weeks我被起诉了wǒ bèi qǐsùleI’ve been sued我的德国同胞wǒ de déguó tóngbāomy fellow German countryman外国男的娶中国老婆那种刻板印象wàiguó nán de qǔ zhōngguó lǎopó nà zhǒng kèbǎn yìnxiàngThe stereotype of foreign men marrying Chinese wives专业化zhuānyè huàprofessionalize 在中国当网红zài zhōngguó dāng wǎng hóngBecome an internet celebrity in China谈政治和社会问题tán zhèngzhì hé shèhuì wèntíDiscuss political and social issues
Laolei finally arrived home safely
Oh and by the way, the same Laolei finally ended his walking journey from China to Germany and shaved of his hair and beard!
Level indication: HSK 5
最遥远的路zuì yáoyuǎn de lù the farthest road也不是说我很郁闷yě bùshì shuō wǒ hěn yùmènIt’s not that I’m depressed拉拉车lā lā chēpull cart头发胡子都剪掉了tóufǎ húzi dōu jiǎn diàoleHair and beard cut off没有那么野蛮了méiyǒu nàme yěmánle Not so barbaric anymore面具miànjù mask我到家了是我自己的事wǒ dàojiāle shì wǒ zìjǐ de shìGoing home is my own business
Caving in China | One brave woman is forging the way
Ever went caving in China? Laura made a career out of it and takes us along on a tour. Interesting portrait by the makers of Fragrant Mandarin.
Level indication: HSK 4/5 (with transcript)
我的认知里面没有说男的必须要做什么Wǒ de rènzhī lǐmiàn méiyǒu shuō nán de bìxū yào zuò shénmeMy knowledge does not say what men must do我完全不会去考虑这个问题wǒ wánquán bù huì qù kǎolǜ zhège wèntí I won’t think about it at all我很好奇她这两年都经历了什么wǒ hěn hàoqí tā zhè liǎng nián dōu jīnglìle shénme I’m curious about what she has been through in the past two years.我第一次探洞的时候wǒ dì yī cì tàn dòng de shíhòuWhen I first went caving我觉得比来比去没有意义wǒ juédé bǐ lái bǐ qù méiyǒu yìyì I think it’s pointless to compare我们人类太愚蠢 了，不应该去给它分什么等级wǒmen rénlèi tài yú chǔn le, bù yìng gāi qù gěi tā fēn shénme děngjí We humans are too stupid to grade it那个真的很治愈 人的nàgè zhēn de hěn zhìyù rén deThat one is really healing
Are Chinese Guys Simps? – Intermediate Chinese – Chinese Audio Podcast
Eileen and her friend Kirk discuss the ‘simp’ or 舔狗 phenomenon in a Chinese context. I have to admit I wasn’t familiar with the term, but I’ve witnessed the thing itself.
Level indication: HSK 5 (with transcript)
过度呵护、追随女性guòdù hēhù, zhuīsuí nǚxìngexcessively care for and follow women获取对方注意和认可嘛huòqǔ duìfāng zhùyì hé rènkě main order to get their attention就是那种对人有一种无条件的爱jiùshì nàzhǒng duì rén yǒu yīzhǒng wútiáojiàn de àithat kind of unconditional love towards humans不管对方怎么对你bùguǎn duìfāng zěnme duì nǐNo matter how the other treats you我想问一下你自己是… 有没有过舔狗的行为？Wǒ xiǎng wèn yīxià nǐ zìjǐ shì… Yǒuméiyǒu guo tiǎngǒu de xíngwéi?I want to ask if you’re… Have you ever had any “licking dog” behaviors我个人来说我是没有当过舔狗Wǒ gèrén láishuō wǒ shì méiyǒu dāng guo tiǎngǒuPersonally, I have never been a “licking dog” (simp)备胎bèitāi (spare tire) in Chinese slang, it often refers to a substitute or backup
person in a romantic relationship.
That’s it for January. It’s kind of a short comeback edition after I paused this format for several months. I’ve also been spending more time reading and writing Chinese recently. I’ll be back next month with more fresh content!
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