Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Language/2009 July 2

I'm kind of curious as to what the writing at :File:Tee Shirt Slogan Sir Donald Tsang @ Demon Protest July-01-2009.jpg means. I found out the three individual characters (I think), but I have no real idea what they mean in combination. Thanks for any help... AnonMoos (talk) 06:08, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

:勿當奴 -- "do not be a slave". It's a pun because 當奴 is a Cantonese transliteration for "Donald", as in Donald Tsang. --PalaceGuard008 (Talk) 23:21, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

::Ok, thanks... AnonMoos (talk) 19:58, 3 July 2009 (UTC)

I'm a retired wikipedian (I'm too perfectionistic, but I shall someday return once I get therapy for handling trolls better without getting flamebaited) and I [http://orlando.craigslist.org/m4w/1249058105.html met] a woman who lived in China until 3 years ago, and came here for her schooling. I can write Hangul very well, and some Hanja, but never practiced written Chinese. I do not want a "[http://translate.google.com/translate_t#en|zh-CN|translation google sounding translation]", nor something too real. I am meeting her this weekend and want to give her a self-written message in her own language, and something which a first date might say. I am not asking for a love letter, but just a short two sentences of a messsge she might receive in China. I am not doing this to be a romantic Romeo, but just to be thoughtful. I would like to know what to write her, and what it means. Nothing over the top, but just something friendly and thoughtful that might remind her of her own culture. I might include a small, miniature rock fountain as a gift along with the message, or some colorful informal arrangement of flowers. The most important thing I want to know is what the message means, and if it's appropriate. I write Hangul very well, and I shall have no problem writing my short two sentence or three sentence letter in written Chinese. 74.5.237.2 (talk) 15:33, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

:Not only are you asking the Reference Desk to help you smooth-talk a girl, but you want us to do it in Chinese? Tempshill (talk) 23:21, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

::And I will bet that a number of the Ref Desk's regulars are more than capable of doing it, too! // BL \\ (talk) 23:42, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

:I'm up for it! What would a Chinese woman like to hear from someone she's just met? Perhaps: 我想告诉你我很高兴认识你。我希望我们快当朋友。万事如意。Translation: I want to tell you that I'm very happy to meet you. I hope we will soon be friends. The last four characters are an idiom - "10,000 things as you wish". Steewi (talk) 00:43, 3 July 2009 (UTC)

::Thank you so very much. I send my wikilove to all three of you! 74.5.237.2 (talk) 09:13, 3 July 2009 (UTC)

::: I would change the second line from "我希望我们快当朋友。" to "我希望我們會很快成爲朋友" to convey the intended meaning. "快-verb" by itself often means "almost" rather than "will... quickly". --PalaceGuard008 (Talk) 07:14, 6 July 2009 (UTC)

I would skip the rock garden and flower arrangement, both of which are more Korean-Japanese than Chinese. Perhaps a gift of tea (loose leaf) would be better. DOR (HK) (talk) 02:49, 7 July 2009 (UTC)

You are such a saddo--Quest09 (talk) 10:45, 8 July 2009 (UTC)

This is a brand of baking products, and I've always wondered just what a "clabber girl" is. Clabber is apparently a food made from milk (something like cottage cheese). So, was a clabber girl someone who made this food, delivered it, or ate it ? (I'm thinking someone who made it, similar to a "milk maid".) And, did this company formerly sell clabber ? Any other explanation for this brand name is also welcome. StuRat (talk) 11:14, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

:To paraphrase Brian Griffin, "I don't know what a Clabber Girl is, all I know is that I want her dead." +Angr 14:32, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

:I was going to write an answer, but it would have been quite similar to what [http://stepjammer.blogspot.com/2008/11/what-is-clabber-girl-anyway.html this person] has already said, so I'll just direct you there. (See also [http://specials.tribstar.com/hulman/BUILDING/BUILDING4.HTML here] and, especially, [http://www.flickr.com/photos/pagedooley/2259691499/ here].) The "Clabber Girl" is just the girl in the picture on the label, like the "St. Pauli Girl" on the beer label and other similar iconic females. Deor (talk) 15:25, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

::Thanks. So, I was close. They didn't actually sell clabber, but rather sold a product to replace it (as a leavening agent for baking). StuRat (talk) 17:18, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

{{resolved}}StuRat (talk) 23:55, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

When we write 'A/B' whether it means 'A or B' , 'A and B', or 'A and/or B' 122.169.91.37 (talk) 14:26, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

:I think it means "and/or." Bus stop (talk) 14:29, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

::I'd say it usually means "or" and/or "and/or", but it could vary depending on context. +Angr 14:29, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

:::More possibilities are given at Slash (punctuation)#In English text. Algebraist 14:36, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

Okay but does “and/or” mean “and and or”, “and or or”, and/or “and and/or or” in this context? — CharlotteWebb 09:25, 3 July 2009 (UTC)

:You just wanted to write that sentence. --jpgordon^{::==( o )} 19:55, 4 July 2009 (UTC)

::Infinite regress? ~AH1^(TCU) 00:12, 6 July 2009 (UTC)

• [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJeM62gZX8c this one] —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.23.140.167 (talk) 16:38, 2 July 2009 (UTC)

:The young girl is repeating the word Tzpri(tsuppri). Tsuppari is a Sumo technique which is a series of hand thrusts as they do in the Pritz/Pretz commercial. And by repeating the word, it is supposed to be heard as Pritz. Oda Mari (talk) 18:46, 2 July 2009 (UTC)