Heidi Klum And Seal Still Together…For Now!

via radaronline.com

Heidi Klum and Seal are still together, according to several published sources, but are going through a very rocky time in their marriage.

On Saturday it was reported that Heidi was preparing to file for divorce, and the petition was expected to be filed in Los Angeles within days.

But other sources are saying “not so fast!” The couple was together Saturday afternoon at their home in L.A.’s Brentwood neighborhood, and are hoping they can iron out their differences.

The Project Runway host and the soulful singer have been married six years and have made an annual event out of renewing their vows. They are parents to four children.

Cheftonio's Blog: Chinese New Year Facts and Trivia

via cheftonio.blogspot.com

"Kung Hei Fat Choi" is the cantonese way of greeting people during Chinese New Year. This means -- Congratulations and be prosperous. It doesn't mean "Happy New Year"
"Kiong Hee Huat Chai" is the Fookien version.
"Gong Xi Fa Cai" is the Mandarin version.
Happy New Year in Fookien is "Sin Ni Kuai Lok"
Mandarin - "Xin Nian Kuai Le"

"Tikoy" is also a cantonese word -- as we know and as we all call it - in fact "Tikoy" is "Glutinous Rice Cake" in english.
"Ti-ke" is how to say it in Fookien.
"Nian Gao" is what they call it in Mainland China.
More TIKOY trivia:
-It is not true that eating "Tikoy" with molds (Amag, in Filipino) is better! This is how the "OLD" Chinese people fooled people into buying their old stocks of "Tikoy" just so it would not go to waste. This trivia is from an educated man in his 60's that I know.

-It is okay to eat "Tikoy" directly EVEN without cooking it. In fact, that is the original way of eating it.

-There is no such thing as a "Sugar Free" "Tikoy" because as we all know, rice = sugar. It might not literally contain sugar but, rice has glucose. In short,

"Tikoy" is NOT OKAY to be eaten by diabetics.

-In Hong Kong, you would pay triple - quadruple for haircut services as Chinese New Year draws nearer. Explanation: Getting a hair-cut in the first lunar month puts a curse on maternal uncles. Therefore, people get a hair-cut before the New Year's Eve.

"Ang Pao" (Fookien) or "Hong Bao" (Mandarin) Trivia:
Per custom, the amount of money in the red packets should be of even numbers, as odd numbers are associated with cash given during funerals (帛金 : Bai Jin). The number 8 is considered lucky (for its homophone for "wealth").

Odd and even numbers are determined by the first digit, rather than the last. Thirty and fifty, for example, are odd numbers, and are thus appropriate as funeral cash gifts. However, it is common and quite acceptable to have cash gifts in a red packet using a single bank note – with ten or fifty yuan bills used frequently.

Good luck and Bad luck (c/o wikipedia)
Good luck

Opening windows and/or doors is considered to bring in the good luck of the new year.
Switching on the lights for the night is considered good luck to 'scare away' ghosts and spirits of misfortune that may compromise the luck and fortune of the new year.
Sweets are eaten to ensure the consumer a "sweet" year.
It is important to have the house completely clean from top to bottom before New Year's Day for good luck in the coming year. (however, as explained below, cleaning the house on or after New Year's Day is frowned upon)
Some believe that what happens on the first day of the new year reflects the rest of the year to come. Chinese people will often gamble at the beginning of the year, hoping to get luck and prosperity.
Wearing a new pair of slippers that is bought before the new year, because it means to step on the people who gossip about you.
The night before the new year, bathe yourself in pomelo leaves and some say that you will be healthy for the rest of the new year.
Changing different things in the house such as blankets, clothes, mattress covers etc. is also a well respected tradition in terms of cleaning the house in preparation for the new year.

Bad luck

Buying a pair of shoes is considered bad luck amongst some Chinese. The character for "shoe" (鞋) is a homophone for the character 諧/谐, which means "rough" in Cantonese; in Mandarin it is also a homophone for the character for "evil" (邪).
Getting a hair-cut in the first lunar month puts a curse on maternal uncles. Therefore, people get a hair-cut before the New Year's Eve.
Washing your hair is also considered to be washing away one's own luck (although modern hygienic concerns take precedence over this tradition)
Sweeping the floor is usually forbidden on the first day, as it will sweep away the good fortune and luck for the new year.
Saying words like "finished" and "gone" is inauspicious on the New Year, so sometimes people would avoid these words by saying "I have completed eating my meal" rather than say "I have finished my meal."
Talking about death is inappropriate for the first few days of Chinese New Year, as it is considered inauspicious.
Buying (or reading) books is bad luck because the character for "book" (書/书) is a homonym to the character for "lose" (輸/输).
Avoid clothes in black and white, as black is a symbol of bad luck, and white is a traditional Chinese funeral colour.
Foul language is inappropriate during the Chinese New Year.
Offering anything in fours, as the number four (四), pronounced sì, can sound like "death" (死), pronounced sĭ, in Chinese. Pronunciations given here are for Mandarin, but the two words are also homophones in Cantonese. See tetraphobia.
Also you should never buy a clock for someone or for yourself because, a clock in Chinese tradition means your life is limited or "the end" which is also forbidden
Avoid medicine and medicine related activities (at least on the first day) as it will give a bad fortune on your health and lessen the luck you can obtain from New Years

Kung Hei Fat Choi or Kiong Hee Huat Tsai?

A Chinese-Filipino finally puts the dilemma to rest

MANILA, Philippines - This Chinese New Year, you no doubt wonder which greeting is correct: Kung Hei Fat Choi or Kiong Hee Huat Tsai?

Both greetings refer to the same set of 4 Chinese characters that literally means “Congratulations and wishing you prosperity!”

Which one is the more approriate term when you are in the Philippines? (Actually, one term doesn't even mean "Happy New Year.")

“Kung Hei Fat Choi” has obviously been the more popular one, commonly said and printed on banners, advertisements and different forms of media. But this greeting is Cantonese.

Considering that majority of the Chinese Filipinos here in the Philippines speak the Hokkien dialect, I recommend that we say the greeting in Hokkien, which is pronounced and spelled as "Kiong Hee Huat Tsai."

Lost in translation

Tsinoys will appreciate to hear the greeting in the dialect they understand.

Cantonese is one of the 9 other groups of dialects in China and is most commonly spoken in Hong Kong, Guangdong, and Macau.

Hokkien is the dialect spoken in Fujian province where most of the Chinese-Filipinos come from.

If you happen to be in China and if you want to say the greeting in Mandarin, China's official language (and spoken by the most number of people in the world), pronounce the greeting as "Kong Xi Fa Tsai" (written and spelled formally as "Gong Xi Fa Cai").

I suspect that a Hong Kong or Cantonese restaurant started to popularize the Cantonese greeting here, which is weird because there is a very scant population of Tsinoys from Guangdong or Hong Kong.

Quite disappointingly, the Cantonese greeting has been mercilessly repeated and spread in print ads and gigantic banners in commercial banks, restaurants, department stores and shopping malls supposedly owned by Hokkien-speaking Tsinoys who should know the difference.  

I remember a jingle from a TV commercial of a fast food chain years ago that goes: “Kung Hei Fat Choi ay nandito na….” This is ironic, because the fast food chain is owned by a Chinese-Filipino who hails from Fujian.

Well, Tsinoys do not understand and speak “Kung Hei Fat Choi.” It’s like saying “Maayong buntag” (Good morning) to a Tagalog who doesn’t understand and speak Bisaya.

Spread the word
 
So, let's start banishing "Kung Hei Fat Choi" from our vocabulary and start to pratice saying the greeting in Hokkien, "Kiong Hee Huat Tsai," which is widely understood by Tsinoys here.

Spread the word, “Kiong Hee Huat Tsai!”          

If you want to greet your friend “Happy New Year” in Mandarin, say it as “Xin Nien Kwai Le” (formally written as “Xin Nian Kuai Le”). In Hokkien, say it as “Sin Ni khòai lok.”

Also, don't also be confused with the lion and dragon dance, which are sometimes interchanged.

The four-legged dancing creature is a lion, which is maneuvered by two dancers (one moves the head while the other moves the tail).

It has wiggling ears and blinking eyes and is the one that also goes around the streets and reaches for the angpao or red envelope hung at the door. It is usually led by a masked man with a fan.

On the other hand, a dragon has a longer body that is maneuvered by more dancers. It is a guided by a man that holds a dragon ball.

Point out the difference when people say "There’s the dragon!" while the dancing creature turns out to be a lion.

Those are just some cultural nuances to take note of. To Filipinos and Filipino-Chinese alike, "Kiong Hee Huat Tsai!"

via abs-cbnnews.com