Eshin Direct

Here’s a FOB post for ya. There are two expressions that Chinese people use that I find somewhat amusing. The first is “play” which basically dictates that all activities that are not directly related to work are considered “playing”. So, for example I play at wakeboarding and scuba diving. I play at dancing. I play at jumping out of an aircraft for fun. My friend made the funny observation that he once did the marathon in the UK and his mother, being Chinese, told him he “played” the marathon. Afterall, he choose to do it and no-one forced him to do it. You have to admit that there is a certain logic to that.

Although, I would like to point out to any Chinese readers that “playing” at something is not always the right term. If someone told me I was playing at wakeboarding, it meant that I was most likely a fraud or a fake and I wasn’t doing the real thing, or I wasn’t taking it seriously at all. For my friend that ran the marathon, to say that he plays the marathon more often than not negates the effort, dedication and energy he has put into it, especially if it is not a small feat.

Of course, I have no excuse. I really do play at everything. Even blogging.

The second term that has me bemused is this use of the word “mate” by some Chinese speakers when they are referring to their dearly beloveds as opposed to the slang for a friend. So if I was talking about my friend, I would call him a mate. But I wouldn’t call my girlfriend a mate. Firstly, it’s too distant a reference for my girlfriend who is on a more intimate level. And secondly, the reason why I do feel the need to take issue with this term, is that “mate” used between two partners is a term more often used when referring to animals. The horse’s mate. The dog’s mate. They mate for life. The lion is looking for a mate. And they performing the art of mating.

Although I have a horrible suspicion that in Chinese having sex is probably referred to as playing at sex.

So for any Chinese readers out there who are remotely interested in my blog, do try to find the right word for what you are referring to in English. Choosing the wrong word in English is sometimes as funny or as disasterous as pronouncing one tone wrong in Cantonese, a transgression for which I’ve noticed that you are quite happy to jump down a foreigners throat for.