2013年1月24日 星期四

Chinglish by Michael Chugani

2013-01-24

Ihave received a ton of e-mails in response to last week's column about my "yeet hei", which gave me a painful mouth ulcer after I hurt my mouth while chewing peanuts. I want to use today's column to thank all of you for your interesting suggestions on how to overcome "yeet hei". My column appears in Headline Daily and The Standard. Readers from both newspapers e-mailed me with advice on what I should do to get rid of "yeet hei". As I explained last week, there is no exact word or expression for "yeet hei". It is a Chinese expression that means "heatiness" or heat element inside your body, which is supposed to cause mouth ulcers. Fried foods and fruits such as lychees are supposed to give people "yeet hei".

        A ton is a weight measurement equal to 2,240 pounds (1,016.05 kg). In North America, a ton equals 2,000 pounds (907.19 kg). But a ton is also a slang word that means a lot or a large amount. A ton of e-mails means a lot of e-mails. I never eat curries or spicy foods and rarely eat fried foods yet I often get mouth ulcers. Most of my ulcers come when the blisters (small bubbles) that appear after I hurt my mouth while eating burst.

        Some readers suggested I drink beer, but I only like wine! Most readers suggested I drink a kind of herbal tea (leung cha or "cool" tea) called 24 tastes. But it tastes very bitter. One reader suggested I boil a sweet dried fruit called "luo han guo" (siraitia grosvenorii) in water to drink. Many readers said I should gargle with salt water, which I often do. Some said I should eat kiwi fruit or watermelons. Yet others said I should drink chrysanthemum tea, take vitamin B2, or put fresh aloe vera on the ulcer. Thank you all for being so caring, which means showing kindness and concern for others.

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        我收到大量(ton)電郵,回應我上星期在專欄提及自己「熱氣」("yeet hei"),以致我吃花生刮傷口腔後,長了非常痛的口瘡。我希望借今天的專欄向所有提供戰勝(overcome)熱氣("yeet hei")良方的讀者致謝。我的專欄在《頭條日報》和《英文虎報》刊出,兩份報章的讀者均有來郵,告訴我該如何清熱氣("yeet hei")。

        我上星期也說過,「熱氣」("yeet hei")一詞沒有準確的英文說法,它能引發口瘡。煎炸食物及荔枝一類的水果也會導致熱氣("yeet hei")。

        噸(ton)是重量單位,等同2,240磅或1,016.05公斤。在北美,一噸(a ton)等同二千磅或907.19公斤。但a ton也是俚語,解作很多或大量。A ton of e-mails即是大量電郵。我從不吃咖喱或辛辣食物,也很少吃煎炸食物,但我仍然不時長口瘡。通常都是當我吃東西時刮傷口腔,那水泡(blisters)爆破後,便會長出口瘡。

        有些讀者提議我喝啤酒,但我只喜歡紅酒!大部份讀者建議我喝俗稱廿四味的涼茶,但它實在苦得很。有一位讀者建議我用水煲一種甜的乾果,叫「羅漢果」。許多讀者叫我用鹽水漱口,我常常也這樣做。有些人叫我吃奇異果和西瓜,也有些叫我喝菊花茶,吃維他命B2,或在口瘡上放新鮮蘆薈。很感激各位這麼caring,意即仁慈對待與關心他人。

        mickchug@gmail.com

        中譯:七刻

        Michael Chugani 褚簡寧