2008年1月 7日
Mr Ueda and any more
Hi Team,
Welcome to the first post of 2008. I hope you all had a good holiday. About the 'anymore' question - I have a feeling that there is a slight difference in meaning between 'anymore' and 'any more'. My Practical English Usage says that 'anymore' is usually written as two words in British English, but I think the two forms actually have different meanings. For me, 'any more' means, for example, 'the amount we have done is enough, and I don't want to do any more than this', whereas 'anymore' means 'I no longer want to do it.' I haven't really thought about it because I have been busy today, but that is my first reaction. What do you think? (I may be wrong about this because I haven't checked it yet, so feel free to say if you disagree.)
On Saturday, I had another one of my bike adventures. I was planning to work, but the weather was so lovely, I ended up going to the mountain on my trials bike. I had a lot of fun, but as I was coming back, the engine suddenly died on me. It sounded like it had run out of petrol, so I put some more in (I usually carry extra in my bag), but it wouldn't start. I tried to get it going for about 20 minutes, but in the end, I had to give up. I was in a flat place, so it wasn't dangerous, but the problem was that I was the opposite side of the mountain from my car. I could have left the bike, walked back to the car (only about 1km), and then brought the car around to pick up the bike, but there were a lot of people on the mountain that day, and I was worried about somebody stealing it (trials bikes have no lock or key). I decided to push it down the mountain and then ask someone if I could leave it at their house while I went to fetch my car. As I was pushing it along the road, a guy who I had met on the mountain came past on his bike. I didn't know him, but he stopped and asked if he could help. I told him the problem, and he offered to take me on the back of his bike to get my car. I said that was kind of him, but there was still the problem of my bike getting stolen. In the end, he lent me his bike, and waited with my bike while I went to get my car. Isn't it amazing how kind and helpful people are! He had never met me before, but he trusted me with his bike and then waited for me for about 30 minutes even though it was getting very cold. His name was Mr Ueda, and he said that he lives in Seto as well, so I hope I will see him again. Does anyone else have any stories about the kindness of strangers?
By the way, I have just started using a new computer, and I haven't got the software I need to upload sound files yet, so I'm afraid there is no recording today.
Look forward to hearing your stories.
David
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Hi David,
You met very kind and helpful person when you were in trouble, so you were very lucky!
I think it is a auspicious start of new year for you.
Hi Everyone,
My holiday have finished, and I had to get down to reality...
I have a story about the kindness of stranger.
When I was a college student, I lived a dormitory in a mountain.
One winter afternoon, I was waiting a bus at a bus stop to go to a town.
(There were only me.)
It was heavy snow on that day, so the bus was late.
I was shaking with the cold, but the bus was taking a long time to get there.
Then courtesy bus of a hotel near my dormitory came along.
The bus stopped at the bus stop where I was waiting, and the door of the bus opened.
The driver said to me "Get into my bus. The bus you are waiting does not come because of snow.".
I got into the bus. There was not passenger except me.
He asked me "Where do you want to go?", and I said "I want to go to the town.".
He said "I'm on the way to go to meet our hotel's guests at the station, and the town is on the way to the station, so I will drive you to there.".
I arrived at the town safely.
He was very kind person!
Hi Maki, Tomo, Anne, Lily,
"anymore"の話題に入りたかったけれど、私には何がなんだかチンプンカンプン…＾＾；
今年も私の英語の道のりは険しそうです。
でもがんばってみなさんを追いかけます！！
See you soon,
Amica
- Amica
- 2008年1月 7日 23:32
Hi David,
Wow, incredible! You met a wonderful guy! Like Maki says, it's very good to know there are such nice people in Japan. Japanese people are not so bad, aren't they? Or bikers always help each other like that? My husband's sister and her husband are bikers(They ride Harley motorbikes), and they said that if you go for a ride on your bike, you'll get a lot of new friends easily. It sounds like bikers are very nice and friendly.
Anyway, I hope there are a lot more kind and helpful people like that guy in Japan.
Anne, I didn't know that 'anymore' has a meaning of 'at the present', and Lily, I didn't know how to use 'anymore' like this, 'All he does anymore is sit around and watch TV.' Like David said, you learn something new every day, thank you!
Maki, I'll be waiting for your comment tomorrow too;-) 何てプレッシャーじゃないからね～(笑)
Amica, the bus driver you met was very kind! I love to hear nice stories like that. ほんと、Maki の言う通り、世の中捨てたものじゃないかも＾＾ I'm thinking about the kindness of strangers now, but I can't think of any stories at the moment.. 悲しいな～。。
My son's school will start tomorrow(It's already 'today', though.), so my normal life is almost there!
Speak to you soon,
Tomo
- Tomo
- 2008年1月 8日 00:20
Hi Maki,
I couldn't find a difference in the dictionary either, but I think there is one. Think about this example: suppose A goes to the gym once a week, but really wants to go 3 or 4 times. B asks A, "Why don't you go more times?" A replies, "I can't go any more because of work." (in other words, once a week is the maximum amount of times I can go.) If A said, "I can't go to the gym anymore because of work", it would mean "I can no longer go at all."
What do you think? Does this example make sense? I will check with some friends in NZ to see what they think.
Bye for now,
David
- David
- 2008年1月 8日 17:52
Hi David and Everyone,
David - When I read your explanation about 'anymore' and 'any more' yesterday, I was like 'I kind of understand'(何となく分かる気がする), but today's example makes sense, and it's easy to understand. I think there is a difference.
Everyone - My son's school has started(school lunch haven't started yet, though), and I thought my normal life was almost there, but I'm afraid my youngest daughter seems to have got staphylodermatitis(とびひ). Have you heard of it? It's a kind of 皮膚炎, and small children often get it in summer. とびひ is not so serious dermatitis, but it is highly infectious one. It is called 'tobihi' because it spreads like jump fire(飛火). If you get it, you'll get a lot of pus-filled blister, and it will spread over your body so quickly. You can't take a bath(You can take a shower, though.) and can't share a towel with others because you can pass it. You need to disinfect, put medicine and cover all your blister rash with clean gauze pads every day, and it takes several weeks to heal. (It's difficult to explain about sickness!) Anyway, I'm going to take my daughter to hospital tomorrow.
See you soon,
Tomo
PS I still can't think of any stories about the kindness of strangers, sorry. I'm looking forward to hearing your stories!
- Tomo
- 2008年1月 8日 22:42
Hi David and everyone,
About anymore and any more:
At the David's explanation, it seems to be easy to understand for me to add the word "times".→I can't go any more (times)~.
"Anymore" is adverb meaning, whereas "any more" is adverb meaning, and adjective meaning( and adjective plus noun meaning) . Does this make sense?
It's difficult!
See you soon,
Anne
- Anne
- 2008年1月 8日 23:24
Hi David,
Thank you for your explanation! Yes! That makes sense. Now I understand what you meant. I also think there is differences between them. A's first reply is that "I can't go any more times because~." Right? I saw an ALT, who is from USA, in my town today and asked about "anymore". She said that she usually uses "any more" for both meanings, but that made sense. And she also said that she would check it out. Now a small question sprung to mind...I wonder how I can use them (anymore and any more) for each situation in a conversation?
Hi Tomo,
I'm so sorry to hear about your daughter. 名前は聞いたことがありますが・・・痛いのかな？I hope she will get well soon.
今日も参加です！適度のプレッシャーthanks! 笑 When I reread my commnets, I found some misspellings and mistakes. I have to write more carefully.;-)
Hi Amica,
Thank you for your nice story! やっぱり親切な人っていっぱいいるんだ！
It's time to sleep! Good night.
Maki
- Maki
- 2008年1月 8日 23:28
Hi all,
Maki, thanks for worrying about my daughter. I took her to hospital today. The doctor said that it was not staphylodermatitis(とびひ) but herpes zoster(帯状疱疹・たいじょうほうしん) and the cause was chickenpox virus. According to the doctor, if you've had chickenpox, the virus remains in your body after you get all better, and you can get herpes zoster when your resistance is down. It occurs mostly in adults and elders, but in rare cases, it occurs in small children like my daughter. The zoster come out along nerves and it's painful, so next 3 weeks, it's going to be hard on my daughter. しばらく安静にと言われても、4歳児には難しいです～。。
See you soon,(I hope!)
Tomo
- Tomo
- 2008年1月 9日 20:52
Hi David and Everyone,
It has been snowing since this afternoon and also it is very cold here. Yes, it's winter in Hokkaido!
The ALT e-mailed me about "anymore, any more", but there is no new view in it.
Stories about the kindness of strangers...
Only one I remember is that a stranger picked up my mother and me by car while we were walking to a station during a snowstorm. But it was a loooooooong time ago. Maybe about 30 years ago!
いい時代だった？！
Tomo, I'm very sorry to hear your daughter again. I hear that herpes zoster is very painful. 安静かぁ・・・難しいよね。お大事に！
Bye for now,
Maki
- Maki
- 2008年1月 9日 23:11
Hi Tomo,
How is your daughter?
I have heard 帯状疱疹.
(確か雅子さまがそうだったような…)
I wish her a speedy recovery.
Hi Everyone,
I have another story about the kindness of strangers.
(少し本題と外れるかもしれませんが…)
About 15 years ago, I and my friend took a night train.
We rode in a women-only train car, and we could borrow blankets in there, so we borrowed them.
After a while, a women (maybe she was fifties) got into there, and she tried to borrow the blanket, but the conductor said to her "I'm sorry, we have given all the blankets passengers.".
At that time I and my friend had a same thinking, and I gave to her a blanket I borrowed.
She was surprised, and she got it with thanks.
I and my friend shared a blanket my friend borrowed, and we fell into a deep sleep.
When we awoke, the blanket I gave to her was covering our knees, and she had already gotten off.
And there were 2 juices and a snippet of paper on the table of my seat.
The paper was a letter from her.
"Thanks for giving your blanket. I was given unexpected kindness from younger in the course of my trip, so it made me happy!"
We thought what we did was not special, and she was very kindness than us.
The letter made us happy!
Good night,
Amica
- 匿名
- 2008年1月10日 00:11
Hi Amica,
Thank you for sharing your story! It is nice one that both you (and your friend) and the woman
made happy each other.
Maki
- Maki
- 2008年1月10日 22:53
Hi David and everyone,
David-Your story made me feel'日本人も捨てたもんじゃない’.
Tomo-How is your daughter's condition? I hope she will be better soon.安静は難しいですね～。
Amica-Thank you for sharing your stories. Kindness we got and did makes us feel happy!!
Maki-You keep posting! It's nice ！
My story about the kindness of strangers:
One day I got a phone call from someone whom I don't know saying" Your son fell off the bicycle and got injured." So I rushed to the place(near from my house), and he was waiting for me with salesman;he just passed by when my son fell down. The he was so kind to take us to the hospital. When I said to my thanks to him, what he said was " 困った時はお互い様ですよ”。It's really nice word and beautiful Japanese, isn't it?
Actually my son stitched 5 or 6 on(in?) his knee.
It's the story about the kindness we've got 19 years ago .
See you soon,
Anne
- Anne
- 2008年1月11日 00:21
少し訂正；
The he was so kind~ →Then he was so kind~
Anne
- 匿名
- 2008年1月11日 00:25
Hi David, Tomo and everyone,
I was looking for an explanation about とびひ,because my son got this dermatitis. I went to doctor. At first, the doctor said zona zoster, the second time she said とびひ.
Anyway, thank you very much for information.
See you,
Mary
- Mary
- 2008年4月16日 20:47
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- pyiqjbxa dfgpi
- 2008年8月 8日 13:27
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- pyiqjbxa dfgpi
- 2008年8月 8日 13:28
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- pyiqjbxa dfgpi
- 2008年8月 8日 13:29
Hi David and Everyone,
How was your week-end? I had another lazy days
during it....David, it is very happy to know that there are such kind and helpful people. Though I hear that a lot of depressing news these days, 世の中捨てたものじゃないですね！（英語で書けない。。。（＾＾；））
Tomo, Anne and Lily,
Thank you so much for your help! 本当にみんなのHelp速さに脱帽です！小説の流れから行くと、Anneの説明してくれた"at the present"でも、Lilyが説明してくれた否定的なニュアンスでもわかる感じです。一人で辞書を調べていても、ますます？？？？になってしまって・・・Thanks a lot!!
David,
I'm soryy, but I don't understand what you mean yet. I couldn't find any differences between "anymore" and "any more" in some dictionaries. I will think of that again.
Tomo,
お褒めにあずかり恐縮です！（＾＾）ｖとりあえず、三日坊主はクリア！(笑)
Good night!
Maki