And I just got to know

We can be friends (Click here)
Google me? HAHA miao

History and the Tagbox’s all the way at the bottom. Anyone sweet enough to teach me basic html or how to use dreamweeaver? Have a nice day stalkers :)

SUZANA WHO?
Hi there little boys and girls, today we are gonna learn how to poison squirrels. But first, I’d like you to meet my friend Suzana ; Stranger

Sunday, January 29, 2017 @ 10:25 AM

Benny Lewis said my name

Benny Lewis said my name!!!! 4:10 - 4:30. HAHAHA.

Wednesday, January 25, 2017 @ 2:34 PM

Level-up Week 2.2: Mandarin- Indians speaking chinese

While more friends are aware of my efforts to converse in Mandarin, they told me that one Indian girl could speak and write. This was news to me a few days ago and today, I bumped into her in a study room in school. When I met her, there were two other Malay friends with us. Yes, she was fluent and both of us got so excited. WHAT ARE TWO NON-CHINESE GIRLS DOING CONVERSING IN A COMMON LANGUAGE THAT IS NEITHER THEIR NATIVE LANGUAGE?

I greeted another friend "zao an" before I realized not everyone spoke mandarin. Before I could say anything next, he told me that he could speak. With the same reason as the previous friend, their primary schools didn't offer their native language as an option for mother tongue. Thus, they took up Mandarin. Wow. He speaks fast and makes the tones not so obvious. So, I'm gonna try that next.

Singaporeans are really open to each other's culture thus we blend and use slangs and insults in different languages.

Tuesday, January 24, 2017 @ 3:18 AM

Level-up Week 2.1: Mandarin- pretty or no strength?

1) Chinese friend who was learning mandarin.

She told me to ask her her name. I did.

She giggled "Mei Li" and asked me, you know what that means? And then proceeded to tell me that it meant 'pretty'. I silently smiled and purposely remarked "bu shi méi lì meh?"(you mean no strength?) She broke into laughter as it was such an unexpected response. This is my first insult in mandarin.

One challenge is to listen and identify the tone and match it with the word. At times, my friends don't really pronounce the "right tone" so I have to consider the context of it.

2) Taxi uncle.

"Wei shen me ni yao xue hua yu?" (Why you wanna learn Chinese language?) he was interested.

"Wo you san ge yuanyin" (I have three reasons), I breezed through because I couldn't remember the tones of "yuanyin"

Quickly mumbling words have saved me a few times even though it doesn't help my learning. So the huge challenge came when the taxi uncle started story telling. As I could understand the first two phrases, he sped up and I just sat there thinking to myself- waht????? (What)

"Ni qu mangu yin shenme shenme?" I desperately connected the words. By using "shen me" repeatedly when I couldnt understand a part of the sentence has been another live savior.

This 10 minutes class + transportation costed me $13 😱😱. Because he was learning Thai language, he was generous in teaching. I learnt about 10 words today.

Saturday, January 14, 2017 @ 1:56 PM

Level-up Week 1.4: Mandarin- I speak Mandarin, you speak Malay

My Chinese classmate and I came to class an hour early. Instead of doing work, he said "aku.... mahu..." (I...want..) and I instantly recognised that he was learning Bahasa Indonesia! My heart started beating fast with excitement as I responded "Weishenme ni yao xue Ma Lai Yu?"(Why you want to learn Malay?) Then we both bursts into laughter as we were learning each other's Mother tongue. So the strangest thing happened in the next 10 minutes as we conversed in Malay and Mandarin. Wow. In the middle of the conversation, my teacher came into class. There was 30 minutes left before class started so I thought: Why not let him join in? "Ni hui shuo Ma Lai Yu ma?" (You can speak Malay?) I asked. His eyes lighted up as he got a shock. I told him "wo yao jiang hua yu" (I want speak Chinese). He was so proud that I was learning Mandarin and we talked in pure Mandarin. When I encounter words that I wasn't sure of, I would write it down or just ask them "zhe shi de yisi shi shenme?" And as the other classmates were pouring in, everyone tried to tell me a story in Mnadarin and then ask "ni mingbai ma?"(You understand?). As the lesson started, my teacher shared "cheng yu"s (idioms) for wisdom and my learning.

When he told the class that my tones were strong and that I could understand him, I replied "Na li na li" and it just got the class laughing crazy.

That day, I could tell stories with assistance of my friends and learnt a billion new slangs and words. With that, I'm so thankful.

Even on my way back home, the last phrase I said to the taxi uncle was "wo yao qu na ge busstop" and in that few seconds left, he taught me how to say "chezhan".

Labels: language

Friday, January 13, 2017 @ 1:56 AM

Closer

Feels like I'm a day closer to the end point.

Thursday, January 12, 2017 @ 12:41 AM

Level-up 1.3: Mandarin- Grammar error

"Jin tian wo yao gen ni jiang yi ge gu shi" (Today I want give tell you one story)
What I said initially was "Jin tian wo yao jiang yi ge gu shi" (wrong grammar)

This was learnt through audio record from WhatsApp. Technology is Amazing. It allows me to practice even when I'm having a fever. Now I just put the fever aside to watch laoshu505000 on YouTube levelling up to get more inspiration and confidence. Another lingo used among teens is "wo pian ni you qian na meh" (I lie you rich take meh). It was used when I asked "zhen de ma?".

Wow, people are really helpful when you're learning their language. When I show interest in this beautiful speech and culture, the knowledge and help keeps on flowing. No excuses man.

Labels: language

@ 12:30 AM

Level-up week 1.2: Mandarin- Henna Design

My class had four straight hours of this lecture so that means more Mandarin practice. Besides, I've drawn pinyin on my hands (&I got warned by a teacher to not use it for exams) to master these words in sentences. "Zhe ge zhi de yisi shi shen me?" while pointing to the word.
And decided to understand the meaning behind my friend's Chinese name. Incredible lesson and picked up new lingo and corrected my tones.

But I did not end there. Perhaps, my words are smoother because I've used these phrases before. So during lunch/dinner, my project group planned to buy yougurt and the person behind the counter was..... *drumroll*.... Chinese! While my friends were selecting their toppings and size, I was mentally putting words in sentences. This marks the first time I conversed with a stranger with a topic that was unplanned. Ofcourse, at the last moment I said something wrong, added a "de" in someplace unnecessary. Who cares!! She was so happy to teach me some words to use and said it was good. Tried the "na li na li" while my friends were laughing cos obviously, it wasn't good enough. Can't wait for tomorrow.

Tuesday, January 10, 2017 @ 12:50 AM

Level Up Week 1.1: Mandarin

Today I made a conscious effort to speak in Mandarin to everyone around me. With that much confidence in me at 8AM, it only lasted till I entered the taxi. In my head was an endless debate on "Should I strike a conversation or should I not?" By the time I had a little confidence, it was nearing school. I was in a fight or flight mode. Thus, the deep sense of desire to practice forced me to merge the fight and flight. Just when I was about to exit the taxi, I spurted, "Xiexie Uncle, zai jian" while my mind went "Zou zou zou zou" as I dashed out and slammed the door. A gush of embarrassment and the lack of acknowledgment left my heart beating fast.

In my first lesson, I managed to remember some phrases that I was familiar to such as "deng yi sia", "Kuai tian la, ni hen man" and sarcastically said to Zack "ah man man lai man man lai". It wasn't even hard as these words were used daily.

Project meeting; I asked "Clarissa Zai na li?". Clarie answered "da dianhua". HUH? Big handphone? At the time, my focus was on recognising tones. So when I went home I discovered that it was "make phone call". How could I have missed the context? SUZANA!!

A few days ago, my cca participated in the open house and there were moments where there was no crowd. Just within the three of us, I pointed to myself "wo hao ren" then to my friend "ta bu hao ren". After laughing, they told me an alternative is "huai ren". So I pointed to the mannequin, testing their mandarin, "zheshi shen me?". "Jia ren". So I learnt a new word "jia"

Woah. Learning and practicing mandarin is widely available in Singapore. Since my entire class is Chinese, I can make as many errors as I want. The adrenaline is kicking in.

Monday, January 9, 2017 @ 1:40 AM

This is meeeee

Strangely, song signing Chinese songs is helping me memorise meaning, tones, vocabulary and sentence structure!! Benny Lewis, thank you for reassuring that language learning is achievable with the right learning tools. Ahhhhhh! So excited to practice with strangers.

Thursday, January 5, 2017 @ 10:34 PM

Sunday, January 29, 2017 @ 10:25 AM Benny Lewis said my name Benny Lewis said my name!!!! 4:10 - 4:30. HAHAHA. back to top?
Wednesday, January 25, 2017 @ 2:34 PM Level-up Week 2.2: Mandarin- Indians speaking chinese While more friends are aware of my efforts to converse in Mandarin, they told me that one Indian girl could speak and write. This was news to me a few days ago and today, I bumped into her in a study room in school. When I met her, there were two other Malay friends with us. Yes, she was fluent and both of us got so excited. WHAT ARE TWO NON-CHINESE GIRLS DOING CONVERSING IN A COMMON LANGUAGE THAT IS NEITHER THEIR NATIVE LANGUAGE? I greeted another friend "zao an" before I realized not everyone spoke mandarin. Before I could say anything next, he told me that he could speak. With the same reason as the previous friend, their primary schools didn't offer their native language as an option for mother tongue. Thus, they took up Mandarin. Wow. He speaks fast and makes the tones not so obvious. So, I'm gonna try that next. Singaporeans are really open to each other's culture thus we blend and use slangs and insults in different languages. back to top?
Tuesday, January 24, 2017 @ 3:18 AM Level-up Week 2.1: Mandarin- pretty or no strength? 1) Chinese friend who was learning mandarin. She told me to ask her her name. I did. She giggled "Mei Li" and asked me, you know what that means? And then proceeded to tell me that it meant 'pretty'. I silently smiled and purposely remarked "bu shi méi lì meh?"(you mean no strength?) She broke into laughter as it was such an unexpected response. This is my first insult in mandarin. One challenge is to listen and identify the tone and match it with the word. At times, my friends don't really pronounce the "right tone" so I have to consider the context of it. 2) Taxi uncle. "Wei shen me ni yao xue hua yu?" (Why you wanna learn Chinese language?) he was interested. "Wo you san ge yuanyin" (I have three reasons), I breezed through because I couldn't remember the tones of "yuanyin" Quickly mumbling words have saved me a few times even though it doesn't help my learning. So the huge challenge came when the taxi uncle started story telling. As I could understand the first two phrases, he sped up and I just sat there thinking to myself- waht????? (What) "Ni qu mangu yin shenme shenme?" I desperately connected the words. By using "shen me" repeatedly when I couldnt understand a part of the sentence has been another live savior. This 10 minutes class + transportation costed me $13 😱😱. Because he was learning Thai language, he was generous in teaching. I learnt about 10 words today. back to top?
Saturday, January 14, 2017 @ 1:56 PM Level-up Week 1.4: Mandarin- I speak Mandarin, you speak Malay My Chinese classmate and I came to class an hour early. Instead of doing work, he said "aku.... mahu..." (I...want..) and I instantly recognised that he was learning Bahasa Indonesia! My heart started beating fast with excitement as I responded "Weishenme ni yao xue Ma Lai Yu?"(Why you want to learn Malay?) Then we both bursts into laughter as we were learning each other's Mother tongue. So the strangest thing happened in the next 10 minutes as we conversed in Malay and Mandarin. Wow. In the middle of the conversation, my teacher came into class. There was 30 minutes left before class started so I thought: Why not let him join in? "Ni hui shuo Ma Lai Yu ma?" (You can speak Malay?) I asked. His eyes lighted up as he got a shock. I told him "wo yao jiang hua yu" (I want speak Chinese). He was so proud that I was learning Mandarin and we talked in pure Mandarin. When I encounter words that I wasn't sure of, I would write it down or just ask them "zhe shi de yisi shi shenme?" And as the other classmates were pouring in, everyone tried to tell me a story in Mnadarin and then ask "ni mingbai ma?"(You understand?). As the lesson started, my teacher shared "cheng yu"s (idioms) for wisdom and my learning. When he told the class that my tones were strong and that I could understand him, I replied "Na li na li" and it just got the class laughing crazy. That day, I could tell stories with assistance of my friends and learnt a billion new slangs and words. With that, I'm so thankful. Even on my way back home, the last phrase I said to the taxi uncle was "wo yao qu na ge busstop" and in that few seconds left, he taught me how to say "chezhan". Labels: language back to top?
Friday, January 13, 2017 @ 1:56 AM Closer Feels like I'm a day closer to the end point. back to top?
Thursday, January 12, 2017 @ 12:41 AM Level-up 1.3: Mandarin- Grammar error "Jin tian wo yao gen ni jiang yi ge gu shi" (Today I want give tell you one story) What I said initially was "Jin tian wo yao jiang yi ge gu shi" (wrong grammar) This was learnt through audio record from WhatsApp. Technology is Amazing. It allows me to practice even when I'm having a fever. Now I just put the fever aside to watch laoshu505000 on YouTube levelling up to get more inspiration and confidence. Another lingo used among teens is "wo pian ni you qian na meh" (I lie you rich take meh). It was used when I asked "zhen de ma?". Wow, people are really helpful when you're learning their language. When I show interest in this beautiful speech and culture, the knowledge and help keeps on flowing. No excuses man. Labels: language back to top?
@ 12:30 AM Level-up week 1.2: Mandarin- Henna Design My class had four straight hours of this lecture so that means more Mandarin practice. Besides, I've drawn pinyin on my hands (&I got warned by a teacher to not use it for exams) to master these words in sentences. "Zhe ge zhi de yisi shi shen me?" while pointing to the word. And decided to understand the meaning behind my friend's Chinese name. Incredible lesson and picked up new lingo and corrected my tones. But I did not end there. Perhaps, my words are smoother because I've used these phrases before. So during lunch/dinner, my project group planned to buy yougurt and the person behind the counter was..... drumroll.... Chinese! While my friends were selecting their toppings and size, I was mentally putting words in sentences. This marks the first time I conversed with a stranger with a topic that was unplanned. Ofcourse, at the last moment I said something wrong, added a "de" in someplace unnecessary. Who cares!! She was so happy to teach me some words to use and said it was good. Tried the "na li na li" while my friends were laughing cos obviously, it wasn't good enough. Can't wait for tomorrow. back to top?
Tuesday, January 10, 2017 @ 12:50 AM Level Up Week 1.1: Mandarin Today I made a conscious effort to speak in Mandarin to everyone around me. With that much confidence in me at 8AM, it only lasted till I entered the taxi. In my head was an endless debate on "Should I strike a conversation or should I not?" By the time I had a little confidence, it was nearing school. I was in a fight or flight mode. Thus, the deep sense of desire to practice forced me to merge the fight and flight. Just when I was about to exit the taxi, I spurted, "Xiexie Uncle, zai jian" while my mind went "Zou zou zou zou" as I dashed out and slammed the door. A gush of embarrassment and the lack of acknowledgment left my heart beating fast. In my first lesson, I managed to remember some phrases that I was familiar to such as "deng yi sia", "Kuai tian la, ni hen man" and sarcastically said to Zack "ah man man lai man man lai". It wasn't even hard as these words were used daily. Project meeting; I asked "Clarissa Zai na li?". Clarie answered "da dianhua". HUH? Big handphone? At the time, my focus was on recognising tones. So when I went home I discovered that it was "make phone call". How could I have missed the context? SUZANA!! A few days ago, my cca participated in the open house and there were moments where there was no crowd. Just within the three of us, I pointed to myself "wo hao ren" then to my friend "ta bu hao ren". After laughing, they told me an alternative is "huai ren". So I pointed to the mannequin, testing their mandarin, "zheshi shen me?". "Jia ren". So I learnt a new word "jia" Woah. Learning and practicing mandarin is widely available in Singapore. Since my entire class is Chinese, I can make as many errors as I want. The adrenaline is kicking in. back to top?
Monday, January 9, 2017 @ 1:40 AM This is meeeee Strangely, song signing Chinese songs is helping me memorise meaning, tones, vocabulary and sentence structure!! Benny Lewis, thank you for reassuring that language learning is achievable with the right learning tools. Ahhhhhh! So excited to practice with strangers. back to top?
Thursday, January 5, 2017 @ 10:34 PM Why are there endless shelves filled with "Self-help" books but not "Help Others"? back to top?

Why are there endless shelves filled with "Self-help" books but not "Help Others"?