Install Your Old CD Language discs - those items still lying around

Problem
Do you still have old CD language courses on your bookshelves. Going through my language courses, I found I have CDs with language courses enabling me to hear Indonesian but I never listen to them. My latest laptop has no slot for CDs. If you have bought a lightweight laptop it probably doesn't have a CD slot, although you can buy one to plug in.

Where would your old discs be? Probably inside the cover of books on languages. Or stored in an old shoe box in your store cupboard (Americans say closet).

The hoarders in your family probably have a few discs they don't need, or will loan them so you can copy them.

You could also look for discs in second hand shops or charity shops (in America called thrift stores), the bargain tables of discontinued books in book shops.

If you are using an old language book, you need the discs to hear the prononciation.

Answer
CDs can be transferred onto teeny SD cards which slot into the side of your newer laptop. If you don't know how to transfer your recorded material from the disc to the card, find a nerd and enlist their help.  Or google for the instructions.

Then you will be ready to learn, or, in the modern phrase, good to go.

SIM Cards and SD Cards
A phone has a slot for the larger SIM cards. Your phone has a limited memory so you stick in an supplementary card to hold more pictures and transfer them to other devices, a card which you can buy in various sizes at corresponding prices, a bigger card holding more photos costs more.

The size of discs has got smaller but the slot remains the same. So the new teeny cards come with a holder which fits the larger slots.

To eject your holder, look for the symbol which is like an oblong holder with a finger pulling it out. Clock on that and you will get options for all the devices which are plugged into your laptop.

TIPS
Transfer your discs onto cards.
Use an old laptop with a slot to listen to discs.
Check language course books - especially inside the back cover, to see if there is a downloadable version of the disc on the internet.

Glossary (dictionary)
SD - secure data - extra storage space for photos, videos .
SIM card - the one which has your phone owner details, linking your phone to the company from whom you rent the monthly allowance.
In theory you can change the SIM card to a new phone, for example, hiding your expensive Apple iphone and taking a cheap phone on a trek or to a market, transferring the Sim card from your expensive phone/camera to a cheaper one.
Alternatively, you might wish to swap the new SIM card into your better phone in order to take good photos on holiday.
However, some phones are fixed to prevent this happening so that thieves cannot switch their SIM cards into a stolen phone. So you might have to get the shop where you buy the phone or rent it to change the Sim card as they have the unblocking device or permission.
The best time to get this done is when you are renting the new phone, when they will gladly agree to anything to secure the sale.
 If you then later have to go back to the shop to reverse the SIM card swap, that means another journey, another wait for attention, explaining what you want and why, getting them to agree to spend time on something which is not benefitting their sales person, changing the paperwork.

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.

How to learn languages visually - demo of greeting in Chinese

Problem
I just spent half an hour writing about the greeting in chinese, yet when I come to say it, I cannot remember the first word. I thought I was an aural learner and responded best to sounds and words, text. However, I have decided that pictures work best for me.Let me given you the example.

I want to remember the Chinese (Mandarin) greeting which translates as have you eaten already:
Ser pau la ma.

I shall now remember if visually with three pictures:

SIR! (The bowing man is saying, 'Sir!')

Remember any picture which reminds you of the word sir.

POW!

Remember any picture which reminds you of an explosion.

LA-MA

Choose a picture of a lama.

When you want to say the greeting, think of the first picture and the next ones should pop up.

Author

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, after dinner speaker and teacher of  English and other languages to individuals and businesses.

How To Say Hello In Chinese (Mandarin)

Flag of Singapore.

Problem
I want to know the common Chinese (Mandarin) greeting.

Answer
A Chinese speaking woman just told me this.

CHINESE (MANDARIN) GREETING
The greeting is:

Ser (sir) pau (pow) la ma.
This translates as
eaten
already
(interjection, meaningless word)
Question word such as really / is that so

Translated into an English sentence which reads grammatically and coloauqially:
Have you eaten already?

Yes, I have eaten already.




















BRITISH GREETINGS
It is the equivalent of the English, British, formal,
'How do you do?'
'Very well, thank you.'
You say say that even if you are ill.

AMERICAN ENGLISH
Americans also ask, "How are you doin' ?" But they don't expect a detailed answer.

From my point of view, as a teacher of the English language to Singaporeans and other Chinese and Asian language speakers, the interesting words are la and ma.

JAPANESE QUESTION WORDS
Ma, the question word, I already knew. The Japanese equivalent is deska. I can hear a conversation on a train or in a street at or restaurant or supermarket, with sentences ending in deska and quickly know that the speakers are Japanese.

CHINESE QUESTIONS
Ma, being only one syllable, is harder to notice. If you do hear ma, you have identified Mandarin.

The other interesting thing is the word la. Singlish is famous for sentences which sound English but end with the word la. As the word has no translation in English, it is redundant.

How do you avoid answering the question, and giving the impression to your host that you don't want to be fed, when you are hoping for dinner? I have often been nonplussed when asked, Have you eaten? in English.

My friend says that when the phrase is used merely as a greeting, it will be the conversation opener and out of context (presumably said fast at the bus stop or doorway, not as you sit down to eat).

Now you know the phrase:
'Sir pow la ma,' - you can identify it and use it. That sentence will be used frequently, which will remind you.

My new friend suggested watching Chinese films (with subtitles). You can listen for phrases you already know and learn new ones.

USEFUL WEBSITES FOR LEARNING LANGUAGES
Free courses:
duolingo.com

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.
I have many other posts on Chinese, and learning languages, as well as Singapore and other destinations. Please bookmark and share links to your favourite posts.

Orchard Hotel, Orchard Road grand clock

The grand clock in the lobby of Orchard Hotel .

Why has the president disappeared? How do you keep track of travel contacts?

Problem
You go to a club or organization and last year;s contacts have moved on. Why?

Toastmasters attempts to give the previous president status with the letters for Immediate Past President, IPP.  The IPP can usually be relied on as a backup to give the opening address to the meetings when the President is away on business trips or holidays or family birthday parties.

I was discussing this with a senior, experience, long-standing member of TCS, toastmasters club of Singapore. He asked, "Does the president have real power? Or is a senior person from the old days the one who always has to be consulted first? Maybe the president feels they have no power, no authority."

That explains it. The President will resign early if he or she has all their aims and hopes and plans thwarted.

At a meeting, discussions can go on for hours when the veto people refuse to give way. Eventually, or at a pre-arranged time (five minutes for each item on the agenda), the President has to End the discussion.

He/she might say, either,
'We have heard arguments for both sides, the committee will now vote' or
'We won't spend any more time on this, I am appointing you three to form a cub-committee and reach a decision within a fortnight. So and so is head of the committee and has the casting vote. He/she will report back what you have done at the next meeting,' or
'What we tried before didn't work. So we'll  give the new system a try and see if it works.,' or
"Since you can't agree, I am making the decision. We will do ..."

If the president resigns suddenly, before the end of the term of office, possibly:
The backup committee is leaving too much to the President
The President has not been allowed to make decisions.
The President does not know how to make decisions.
The President does not or will not delegate.
The back up committee needs to be changed so the President has support.
A system needs to be set up so that a committee member absent for three meetings in a row must either appoint an assistant as backup, or their role will be taken over by another who has more time.

We had a committee member whose husband died and another who lost their grandmother. After weeks of deliberation I found what I thought was the polite wording. Could you devise a variation on this?

'Dear (name)
We all missed seeing you and are concerned for your well-being.
We would love you to come back to a meeting so we can offer you our friendship and support and help you to get away from your cares with a change of scene.

'We want you to be able to come back without the burden of having to take on responsibility.
We propose to temporarily appoint (name) to take over your role until you feel well enough and have the time free to resume the role.
The role will still be open to you this session or next when you feel ready for it because you were so good at it in the past.

'We hope as soon as you are feeling a bit better you will come along, even if it's only for the first half of the meeting, or just the break, or just the second half, as we would love to see you again and want you to know that we all care about you.'

I wrote this to one of our committee members. She wrote that she was very pleased to hear from me and thanked me for my concern. She came back and resumed her role.

The important thing is to provide support for all the committee members and be sure they are all supporting the President.

Keeping Track
I keep in touch with a lot of organizations.I end up with assorted cards and don't know who is or was who when.  I have started writing the year on the back of business cards. That way I can keep track of the most recent president and committee. if I am emailed that so and so has been voted in as president for a second term, I can add the new date and if possible write to congratulate them and be sure I am still on their mailing list.

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer.
See my previous posts on visiting Hong Kong, Kindertransport monuments in Europe, and Titanic exhibitions in Ireland and elsewhere.

Hong Kong In The Typhoon: what my friend did; lessons you can learn; and the Kinderstransport statue

My friend and I watched the news of the typhoon travelling the world, from
 Hong Kong,
which is quite small, so a typhoon is likely to affect travellers, especially if the airport is shut

The Philippines,
Manila is on the north island of Luzon (hit by about twenty typhoons a year) but two northern towns include one with rice terraces, and the 2018 problem is north of these two so unlikely to affect your holidays or business trip.

North Carolina in the USA. The USA is huge, but 90% of Americans don't have passports and many drive, so if you live on the East Coast you are like to have driven through North Carolina.

Problem
My friend went home to her husband in the Hong Kong drama. She sent me text updates. How was she doing?

Answer
She lives at the top of a building. She said the whole buildings swayed for hours in the (howling) wind.

Her IKEA bookcase tipped the books out. She now has all the books in box on the floor.

If you were on the ground floor with flood waters likely to come in, you would remove items from the floor and put them higher. However, with an earthquake or winds shaking your buildings, you want items off shelves so they don't fly around and injure you or fall and break.

What you learn from one disaster is not necessarily applicable to another. You have to learn from other's mistakes.

She said,  "Could I run? No. The whole building was swaying."

LIFTS OUT OF BOUNDS
You don't take the lifts in an emergency. If the electrics go, you could be stuck with shut doors, or stuck between floors. Even if you get out in the end, it's no fun. Worry. Will they come to help you? No food or toilets for hours.

READING & ENTERTAINMENT
No entertainment, either. Wasted time. I am reminded of Oscar Wilde's ironic remark. "I always travel with my diary, so I have something sensational to read on the train."

I always have a language course in my pocket. Stuck somewhere for eight hours? I can be eight hours through a one lesson a week course in another language. At least it takes your mind off worrying.

FOOD STOCKS
She said they did not eat breakfast until after lunch time. Yes, that's the advantage of staying home rather than running onto the street or taken transport off. You have food and toilets. Phones. First aid. TV and radio for entertainment and information, news of what is to come, or if it's over and safe to venture out.

So her husband could go off to work. She could cook breakfast and tidy up the mess. From his point of view, having her home was an advantage. Who is looking after who in your marriage? Do you want your family with you as a team.

SENDING FAMILY AWAY - KINDERTRANSPORT
Would you want to send your family off to a safer place? If you travel to Europe you will see the memorials to the children on the Kindertransport just before WWII, children sent to safety by their parents.

Kindertransport statue to see at Liverpool Street station, London, England. Credits below.

TITANIC
I remember the couple on the Titanic, the co-owner of Macy's in New York and his wife. They  had been together all their lives and wanted to be together until the end. Others want their spouse and children to survive them and carry on the family line and remember them and perhaps arrange memorials. I think about the Titanic's passengers when I am in New York and look at the Guggenheim or Macy's, also in Canada, and in Ireland which now has a huge titanic exhibition in the dockyard where Titanic was built.

STAYING BEHIND AND PLANNING
Install shutters or protection for windows, or protect with curtains and blinds and heavy duty plywood. In Singapore front doors and back doors have ironwork covers designed to let you open your front door and let in the breeze.

Emergency Supplies
Food and Drink for three days
Medicine

PRECAUTIONS & CLEAR-UP
If rain or flood water has filled pots and bowls outside or inside, empty the water to stop the breeding of mosquitoes.

Useful websites
BBC hits on hurricane preparedness:
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-45521927

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.

Description	English: Kindertransport monument at Liverpool Street Station. A project established by the Association of Jewish Refugees, it pays tribute to those Britons who aided the rescue of 10,000 Jewish children from the Nazi persecution which led onto the holocaust.
Date	26 March 2011
Source	Own work -      http:lifeinmagapixels.com
Author	Wjh31

Why and how to make your own conference or meeting badge

Problem
MISSING NAME
I've turned up at meetings where the hosts are all given badges but not the guests. Equally useless is a badge with the word guest on it.
I've had my name wrongly spelled.
My name has been missed off the guest list and badge list or both.

MISSING PR
My name is given but nothing interesting and relevant about me.

The one-sided badge keeps reversing to show a blank back.

I don't wear the badge because I don't want the thick pin to tear a hole in my new silk or cotton blouse.
The badge attached to crochet or lace hangs diagonally so it can't be read and looks untidy.

The typing is far too small for anybody to read.
The bad handwriting ruins the smart effect I am trying to create in my photo of myself at the event.

Answers
If you ave ever saved a lanyard from an event deliberately or accidentally, don't throw it away. That's a waste of resources and you could make good use of your lanyard.

I got out some badges and looked at them. My name was hand-written in black felt tip pen, most untidy. I decided to print my name on white paper.

I selected the largest of the size of type which would still fit the badge width.

My name with a capital initial letter and the rest in lower case, was more elegant and easy to read close-up. However, from a distance the name all in capital letters was larger.

Afterwards I went back to the lanyards. The brightly-coloured ribbons with names of events in black on contrasting day-glo green and yellow were amusing and a discussion point. I did get some negative reactions to ribbons which did not relate to the current event type. "Why are you wearing a lanyard from a writing conference to a wine event? Why are you wearing a tourist board name at a writers' conference?' However, I solved that problem with a plain black ribon which went with every event and outfit and looked neatest.😊

I realised that I had left off my academic qualifications, BA Hons, as well as my Toastmasters titles in initials: ALB, ACG (Advanced Leader Bronze, Advanced Communicator Gold). Adding those made the badge more cluttered, but was useful. I decided to carry both a simpler badge and one with the letters added, and use what seemed useful on the night.

I then questioned what I wanted to talk about to people who stopped to speak to me. That should appear on the badge. What did I care about more, not upsetting the event organizers, attempting to fit in with the atmosphere and theme of the event, or promoting some other aspect of myself.

There are several ways of going about this.
1 Sneak in with no badge, adding your own badge later if none is given to you at reception.
2 Wear whatever badge you like, don't draw attention to it, but change it if challenged.
2 Ask permission (with the alternative badge in your pocket).
3 Or work on the principle that nobody wants to give permission, but maybe they don't want to make a fuss nor upset you so they won't object.

Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.