DAILY PHOTO: Zebra of Amboseli
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BOOKS: “Chinese Grammar Wiki BOOK: Intermediate” ed. by John Pasden, et. al.
Chinese Grammar Wiki BOOK: Intermediate by John PasdenMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Publisher Site – AllSet
I’ve found this series helpful in offering a basic guide to grammar for learning Mandarin through Simplified Characters and pinyin. It provides plenty of examples and is not dense with explanation and elaboration but rather focuses on the core principles as well as demonstrations of common pitfalls. It covers the B1 grammar points which is a designation used by, but not original to, the series. (As far as I can tell, it’s a European standard that has been applied across languages to organize the concepts one should be able to express at a given level of language learning.
This is the second book of the series that I’ve worked through (the third if one counts the “Just the Basics” level which is a subset of the Beginner level book,) and I intend to continue on to the “Upper Intermediate” guide.
This may not be the series you want if you’re a linguist looking for nuanced insight into Chinese grammar, but it’s excellent for your average language learner. [It also seems to be quite affordable compared to many competing grammar books and series.]
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“I shall go back again to the bleak shore” by Edna St. Vincent Millay [w/ Audio]
I shall go back again to the bleak shore
And build a little shanty on the sand,
In such a way that the extremest band
Of brittle seaweed will escape my door
But by a yard or two; and nevermore
Shall I return to take you by the hand;
I shall be gone to what I understand,
And happier than I ever was before.
The love that stood a moment in your eyes,
The words that lay a moment on your tongue,
Are one with all that in a moment dies,
A little under-said and over-sung.
But I shall find the sullen rocks and skies
Unchanged from what they were when I was young.
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PROMPT: Camping
Many a time, and I hope to do more. I highly recommend the experience. Nothing like sleeping close to the Earth to realize that there exists no patch of ground on the planet as flat and rock-free as one’s mattress.
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Pillbox Bunker [Tanka]
pillbox bunker from
a war a lifetime ago
sits in a field.
what the farmer must think
as he plants around it.
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BOOKS: “Sightseeing” by Rattawut Lapcharoensap
Sightseeing by Rattawut LapcharoensapMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Publisher Site – Atlantic
This collection of seven short stories offers insight into Thailand and its culture, but the stories are also gripping and clever. It’s a rare thing for stories to so engage with issues such as poverty, class, the refugee experience, the human experience, and foreignness and to still be highly entertaining.
Farangs is about the interaction of Thais and foreigners in the form of a love triangle featuring a Thai protagonist, a Western girl, and the girl’s erstwhile (also foreign) boyfriend.
At the Cafe Lovely is about two brothers, the older of whom takes the younger brother to a “cafe” that is more of a bar with built-in brothel. The story shows the seedy side of Bangkok, but also the bond between brothers.
Draft Day is about two friends, one from a wealthy family and the other not, who have to go to the draft lottery to determine whether they will have to serve in the military or not. This story is potent observation on social justice.
Sightseeing is about a mother and son’s last trip before the mother loses her vision.
Priscilla and the Cambodians is about a Cambodian girl who, in a rough-and-tumble manner, befriends two geeky Thai boys. The story explores the woes of being poor outsiders in a world that cares neither for the poor, nor for outsiders.
Don’t Let Me Die in this Place is about an old American man who moves in with his son and the son’s Thai wife and their children in Bangkok after the man has suffered a stroke and is in recovery. It’s about the old man’s struggle to adapt to a very different life while at the same time coping with not being able to take care of himself.
Cockfighter is the longest and also probably the most visceral of the stories. It centers on a teenaged girl whose father is the titular “Cockfighter” and whose mother makes hand-sewn bras. It’s an intensely psychological work of fiction with some hilarious moments, as well.
I’d highly recommend this collection for all readers of short fiction. I chose it as my travel literature for Thailand (I read a work [or works] of literature from all countries I visit,) but I don’t think one has to have a particular interest in Thailand to find the stories fascinating and profound.
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DAILY PHOTO: Old Stone Wall Under Cloudy Skies
Image
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“A Minor Bird” by Robert Frost [w/ Audio]
I have wished a bird would fly away,
And not sing by my house all day;
Have clapped my hands at him from the door
When it seemed as if I could bear no more.
The fault must partly have been in me.
The bird was not to blame for his key.
And of course there must be something wrong
In wanting to silence any song.
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PROMPT: Productive
Uhh… when I’m being most productive, which is to say when I’m producing something in an efficient manner. (Not sure if it’s a trick question.) Obviously, if I’ve felt the need to check my phone, social media, etc. it’s not a highly productive time because I’m not engaged with what I’m producing. Also, I have lots of time when I’m intensely engaged with an activity, but I’m not producing anything, and so that isn’t being productive per se — though it may be highly beneficial and essential to well-being. (Although, my dictionary / thesaurus have definitions of “productive” that equate it with “constructive” which changes everything. Though it also equates “intelligence,” “erudition,” and “wisdom,” which is a highly suspect understanding of wisdom.)
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DAILY PHOTO: Chapel on the Green
Tiger Riding for Beginners 