Author Topic: Quotes from work (Read 188993 times)

Jonathon · « **Reply #1000 on:** July 28, 2011, 10:05:08 AM »

It doesn't really make sense, but it sounds like the efforts could be completed without the other's efforts.

Porter · « **Reply #1001 on:** July 28, 2011, 01:05:59 PM »

Well, I agree that your interpretation doesn't make sense.

Jonathon · « **Reply #1002 on:** July 28, 2011, 03:57:42 PM »

Maybe I'm just doing a crappy job of explaining it. Or maybe it's because I'm one of those people who think that "everybody doesn't like ice cream" is not the same as "not everybody likes ice cream".

Porter · « **Reply #1003 on:** July 28, 2011, 04:18:53 PM »

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Or maybe it's because I'm one of those people who think that "everybody doesn't like ice cream" is not the same as "not everybody likes ice cream".

I can certainly see how those can be parsed to mean different things. Not so with the quote from work.

Jonathon · « **Reply #1004 on:** August 03, 2011, 01:57:29 PM »

Overheard just now: "I have no less than at least ten cowlicks."

BlackBlade · « **Reply #1005 on:** August 03, 2011, 02:29:54 PM »

Quote from: Jonathon on August 03, 2011, 01:57:29 PM

Overheard just now: "I have no less than at least ten cowlicks."

I don't even know what that's supposed to mean.

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As an aside I just received an email with the signature at the bottom "Money cannot buy happiness, but it’s more comfortable to cry in a Mercedes than it is on a bicycle."

Leaving the moral issues aside, there is a very famous quote echoed in China that has become current as a sort of symbol for the rising generations spoiled nature and self centeredness. Essentially a TV show hostess who since saying this has gone on to even more fame and fortune said, "I would rather weep in a BMW than smile on a bicycle."

Is this phrase or another iteration of it more common place and older than I had supposed? Or is it evolving? Developed independently?

Jonathon · « **Reply #1006 on:** August 03, 2011, 02:34:30 PM »

Quote from: BlackBlade on August 03, 2011, 02:29:54 PM

Quote from: Jonathon on August 03, 2011, 01:57:29 PM
Overheard just now: "I have no less than at least ten cowlicks."
I don't even know what that's supposed to mean.

It means the same thing as "I have no less than ten cowlicks" or "I have at least ten cowlicks". I just thought the combination was funny.

BlackBlade · « **Reply #1007 on:** August 03, 2011, 02:41:26 PM »

Quote from: Jonathon on August 03, 2011, 02:34:30 PM

Quote from: BlackBlade on August 03, 2011, 02:29:54 PM
Quote from: Jonathon on August 03, 2011, 01:57:29 PM
Overheard just now: "I have no less than at least ten cowlicks."
I don't even know what that's supposed to mean.

It means the same thing as "I have no less than ten cowlicks" or "I have at least ten cowlicks". I just thought the combination was funny.

I don't even know what the phrase, "I have no less than ten cowlicks" is supposed to mean. Is it not a phrase, is it just a statement of quantity they goofed up?

Jonathon · « **Reply #1008 on:** August 03, 2011, 02:53:44 PM »

The speaker just inserted a superfluous quantifier. I'm not sure what part is unclear. Do you know what a cowlick is? I only ask because for years I thought the word was "callick", because that's how people around here pronounce it.

BlackBlade · « **Reply #1009 on:** August 03, 2011, 02:59:53 PM »

Quote from: Jonathon on August 03, 2011, 02:53:44 PM

The speaker just inserted a superfluous quantifier. I'm not sure what part is unclear. Do you know what a cowlick is?

Yes. It sounds like I was assuming the phrase had some special folksy meaning, when it doesn't. It's no different than somebody saying, "I have no less than at least $10".

Jonathon · « **Reply #1010 on:** August 03, 2011, 03:00:55 PM »

Right. The context was that someone was talking about having gotten a haircut, so there was no special meaning to it.

The Genuine · « **Reply #1011 on:** August 03, 2011, 03:04:51 PM »

Short of shaving it off, is a cowlick the sort of thing you can style around? I figured they were more like fingerprints.

Marianne Dashwood · « **Reply #1012 on:** August 03, 2011, 03:25:23 PM »

BB, I'm really proud of myself for knowing the Chinese saying and thinking of it before you brought it up

I think the English quote is liable to be a passed-around translation of the Chinese saying.

dkw · « **Reply #1013 on:** August 03, 2011, 03:26:47 PM »

Quote from: The Genuine on August 03, 2011, 03:04:51 PM

Short of shaving it off, is a cowlick the sort of thing you can style around? I figured they were more like fingerprints.

A good haircut can camouflage them pretty well.

Jonathon · « **Reply #1014 on:** August 03, 2011, 04:05:24 PM »

Quote from: Marianne Dashwood on August 03, 2011, 03:25:23 PM

BB, I'm really proud of myself for knowing the Chinese saying and thinking of it before you brought it up

I think the English quote is liable to be a passed-around translation of the Chinese saying.

Huh?

BlackBlade · « **Reply #1015 on:** August 03, 2011, 04:15:15 PM »

Quote from: Marianne Dashwood on August 03, 2011, 03:25:23 PM

BB, I'm really proud of myself for knowing the Chinese saying and thinking of it before you brought it up

I think the English quote is liable to be a passed-around translation of the Chinese saying.

I'm quite pleased you were in the loop on it.

I learned it in Beijing last summer, it's still a pretty hot topic for gossip there these days. Another interesting anecdote a teacher related to me is that on a dating game show they have a panel of girls select from a group of eligible bachelors. This one very handsome guy on the show was doing very well and seemed to be the clear favorite of most of the girls until he was asked what car he drove to work. He indicated he rode a bike and immediately all the girls went cold and he left the show without any offers for dates. Upon being interviewed it was revealed that he is in fact very well to do and that while he could afford many many cars, and that he owns a nice one, it stays in the garage. He chooses to bike to work because his office is very close to his home, and he felt it was better for the environment to avoid driving if possible.

There was an explosion of discussions online after that episode of the show aired. One might think all those girls have egg on their face but in reality it's a disturbing trend in China where not only are there more and more males and fewer and fewer females, the females that are available expect specfic indicators of wealth before they will even consider dating a man. Not that that is unique to China, but it's still unpleasant to watch happen.

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Quote

Huh?

Jonathon: She's responding to the second part of my original post I made in response to yours. The part about it being more comfortable to cry in a Mercedez than on a bicycle, and the China stuff.

Jonathon · « **Reply #1016 on:** August 03, 2011, 04:27:59 PM »

Ah, gotcha.

<–tired brain

Jonathon · « **Reply #1017 on:** August 04, 2011, 10:28:43 AM »

Urgh. This is some of the deadest, most lifeless prose I've read in a while, but it's already typeset, so there's no chance of rewriting it now.

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This volume is filled with gripping and fascinating stories of members of the LDS Church in West Germany and Austria during World War II. Learn about the conditions the German Saints faced during World War II. They did not have access to the many conveniences American Saints took for granted—including their local Church leaders, clean places to meet, cars, and temples. Germany was one of the war fronts where homes were destroyed and friends and families were killed. Unlike American soldiers returning to their homes, nearly half of the German Saints had no home to which to return. Hundreds of them served in the German military, while thousands more stayed home and endeavored to keep their families and the Church alive. Their stories of joy and suffering are presented in this book. Readers will be touched at the faith and dedication shown by these Saints—young and old, military and civilian.

BlackBlade · « **Reply #1018 on:** August 04, 2011, 10:44:24 AM »

"German Saints in WWII: We had it worse in every way."

Take that!

Jonathon · « **Reply #1019 on:** August 10, 2011, 11:57:45 AM »

Worst opening sentence I've read in a while:

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In order to survive for any length of time, and to perform the tasks needed to ensure future survival, humans need a regular supply of food and water.

Porter · « **Reply #1020 on:** August 10, 2011, 12:27:33 PM »

I sometimes think I'm incapable of recognizing bad writing. My reaction to that sentence is to nod my head and say "Yup. That makes sense.".

Jonathon · « **Reply #1021 on:** August 10, 2011, 12:30:39 PM »

It's an opening to an article about the symbolism of feasting in the ancient Near East. The problem isn't that it doesn't make sense, but that it's so blindingly obvious that nobody needs to be told that. Humans need food and water to survive? No *@#$, Sherlock.

The article is about the symbolism of feasting in the ancient Near East. Establishing some background is the norm in scholarly papers, but this is a little ridiculous.

BlackBlade · « **Reply #1022 on:** August 10, 2011, 01:24:09 PM »

Would it have been better if he perhaps contrasted the difficulty (if any) in procuring food and water, whereas today in many cultures we take it for granted that those things are available?

Tante Shvester · « **Reply #1023 on:** August 10, 2011, 01:46:46 PM »

In generations past, obtaining food and water involved arduous and sometimes dangerous treks to the grocery store and to the sink, but in today's society, Peapod.com will deliver food and bottled water to your door.

Jonathon · « **Reply #1024 on:** August 10, 2011, 01:58:01 PM »

Quote from: BlackBlade on August 10, 2011, 01:24:09 PM

Would have been better if he perhaps contrasted the difficulty (if any) in procuring food and water, whereas today in many cultures we take it for granted that those things are available?

I don't think so. It's totally irrelevant to the article.