Hi everyone,

Hope everyone had a great and relaxing weekend.

As I mentioned on Saturday, we have a translation of TCS’s song Bên Đời Quanh Hiu by chị Trâm Đặng in Seattle, Washington State (not Washington DC). Chị Trâm is teaching ESL at a community college is Seattle. The translation is a very beautiful piece of English writing. Here is the unedited version of the translation. Feel free to share your thoughts, questions, or comments.

Bên Đời Quạnh Hiu

Which roads have lured me into dreams?
Once I dreamed of my departure
Tears fell, but not at the least sad
Then I woke suddenly, oh the sun has come up!

Thanks a million, Trâm, for sharing the translation. Please keep sharing more with our brothers and sisters here.

Have a wonderful day!

Hoanh

Hi everyone,

I have just obtained from a friend a good translation of the song Bên Đời Quạnh Hiu by Trinh Công Sơn. Before posting that translation, I would like to put it here as a challenge for you heroes and heroines to see how your translation will compare with the copy I have on my hand.

Here it is:

Bên Đời Quạnh Hiu

Trịnh Công Sơn

Một lần chợt nghe quê quán tôi xưa
Giọng người gọi tôi nghe tiếng rất nhu mì
Lòng thật bình yên mà sao buồn thế
Giật mình nhìn tôi ngồi hát bao giờ

Rồi một lần kia khăn gói đi xa
Tưởng rằng được quên thương nhớ nơi quê nhà
Lòng thật bình yên mà sao buồn thế
Giật mình nhìn tôi ngồi khóc bao giờ

Đường nào quạnh hiu tôi đã đi qua
Đường về tình tôi có nắng rất la đà
Đường thật lặng yên lòng không gì nhớ
Giật mình nhìn quanh ồ phố xa lạ

Đường nào dìu tôi đi đến cơn say
Một lần nằm mơ tôi thấy tôi qua đời
Dù thật lệ rơi lòng không buồn mấy
Giật mình tỉnh ra ồ nắng lên rồi!

Have a great weekend.

Hoanh

Hi everyone,

Everyone should be clear that each day we have some suggestion for you on what to do with English, be it a discussion subject or a challenge to write or translate something. But these are suggestions only, not to be taken too seriously. You can write anything you like in this DCD section. A suggestion is not meant to prevent you from writing things you would like to write.

Another thing to keep in mind is that if your writing has some corrections later on, be happy that you are in the right place. If your writing has no correction every time, this section may not be for you 🙂

TODAY’S DISCUSSION

1. Lately on the newspaper, there has been constant news on Truong Sa and Hoang Sa. Are you concerned about this issue at all, other than pop music? If yes, many dotchuoinoners (new word) would love to hear what you say about Truong Sa and Hoang Sa. Go ahead and shoot!

2. Today we have a message asking everyone: “What is the meaning of your city?” Do you know the meaning of your city, to put it succinctly in one short sentence, or even one word only?

TODAY’s CHALLENGE

This song Turn! Turn! Turn! that anh Hiển posts today has beautiful lyrics, you may want to translate it into Vietnamese.

That’s it for today. Have a great day!

Hoanh

Hi everyone,

I am happy to see that everyone is more comfortable writing English. And I am very impressed with all of you. You all have very solid grammar and composition, some minor mistakes here and there notwithstanding. That’s the way to go, sisters and brothers. Keep writing. After a while you will find it easy.

And as you guys are more comfortable writing, we can think about more interesting things for ĐCN, such as a new category for “poetry and essay in English.” Keep writing. And if have written a good poem or essay in English, send it to me for posting on ĐCN.

For today discussion, could each person write a piece on your experience and feeling on English study.

When did you start learning English? How did you feel about English at first?

Then when did you start to really love English?

How do you feel about English as a language? Beautiful? Sounds pleasant to ear? Sounds romantic?

How does English help you open your horizons, such as American music and singers, American culture, British culture, Australian culture?

How do you think English may help Vietnam as a nation?

How do you think English teaching may be improved?

And whatever else you would like to write about.

You guys are doing wonderfully. I love it.

Have a great day!

Hoanh

Hi everyone.

For today’s challenge I have here a poem I wrote 10 years ago, called Huế. It was published in Illuminations, an annual international poetry publication.

It would be great if you ladies and gentlemen, English talents out there, translate Huế into Vietnamese. This is my poem. So please make my day 🙂

.

Huế

This imperial city

where kings and princesses
looked past mountains and seas
searching for a landing patch for the migratory Lạc flock

where you have sung for me
the murmurs of a mother on the Huong river
the day she got word of her son’s death on the battlefield

where the souls of kings and warriors
still vibrate the lotus flowers on the tranquil moat

has been torn and beaten and crushed
time and time again

so that when I look at you in the eyes
though the sky may be blue and bright and transparent
I only see a white stork flying in the sunset.

TDH

Thank you. Have a great day!

Hoanh

Hi everyone,

1. Let’s continue our interesting discussion on our daily quotes. Pickup a quote we post today or any quote posted previously on ĐCN and talk about it.

2. What is your plan for summer vacation? What do you plan to do for three months.

TODAY’s CHALLENGE

Today chi Hue has 4 Diana Ross songs posted. Please translate anyone of them into English.

That’s it. Have a wonderful day.

Hoanh

Hi everyone,

Thank you for a new wave of fresh, good writings. That has got me excited. Continue to work that way, brothers and sisters.

For our challenges today, we have two quotes translated by chị Kiêm Yến and chị Đông Vy:

“If you are patient in one moment of anger, you will avoid one hundred days of sorrow.”
Chinese Proverb

“The poorest man is not without a cent, but without a dream.”
Anonymous

And of course, we still have 25 quotes posted by chị Huỳnh Huệ in Hãy Nhớ. We can continue using these.

Pick any quote you like and say whatever your would like to say about the quote.

That’s it. Have fun. You guys are doing very well.

Hoành

Michael Jackson, one of the greatest artists of all times, with a tragic life, and probably a very lonely and painful soul, is gone.

People the world over mourn his passing.

How does it affect you? How do you feel about Michael Jackson’s music, dance, life, death?

Have a nice weekend.

Hoành

Hi Everyone,

Today chị Huệ posted 25 quotes in one posting. So let’s use some of these quotes for our discussion. Please tell what you feel about any of the following quotes.

Difficulties are meant to rouse, not discourage.
(William Ellery Channing)

Out of your vulnerabilities will come your strength.
( Sigmund Freud)

When all else is lost, the future still remains. (Christian Nevell Boyee)

Perhaps our eyes need to be washed by our tears once in a while , so that we can see Life with a clearer view again. (Alex Tan)

That’s it. Have a great day.

Hoanh

Dear CACC,

Here is the news.

Tài xế taxi hất cảnh sát lên capô suốt 5 km

Tại ngã tư Bùi Thị Xuân – Trần Nhân Tông (Hà Nội), bị yêu cầu xuất trình giấy tờ vì phạm luật, tài xế taxi bất ngờ lao thẳng, hất một cảnh sát lên capô. Sau màn lạng lách, vượt đèn đỏ dài 5km, tài xế mới chịu giảm ga.

Theo thượng tá Hoàng Thuyết, Phó phòng Cảnh sát 113 Công an Hà Nội, sáng 21/6, một taxi dừng xe sai quy định tại ngã tư Bùi Thị Xuân – Trần Nhân Tông. Thượng sĩ Trương Tuấn Anh (26 tuổi) yêu cầu lái xe xuống xe xuất trình giấy tờ. Thay vì chấp hành, tài xế đã nhấn ga đâm thẳng khiến cảnh sát này phải nhảy lên bám vào nắp capô.

“Thấy mọi người la hét, tôi nhìn lên thấy trên capô taxi một cảnh sát đang lắc lư và cố níu chiếc cần gạt nước để khỏi bị hất xuống đất. Chiếc xe lạng lách vượt đèn đỏ khiến các phương tiện dạt vào lề đường”, chị Dung, phố Trần Nhân Tông kể

Chiếc taxi đã vượt qua phố Trần Nhân Tông, Hàn Thuyên, Phan Huy Chú, Trần Quang Khải, Trần Nhật Duật… Đến bãi Phúc Xá (sau khi chạy được gần 5km) lái xe mới chịu giảm ga để cảnh sát này nhảy xuống rồi phóng mất hút. Sau chặng đường dài nằm trên capô, thượng sĩ Tuấn Anh bị xây xước nhẹ.

Công an Hà Nội đã xác định được danh tính lái xe và đang truy bắt.

.

Would you like to say something about this? The news article says, “Thay vì chấp hành, tài xế đã nhấn ga đâm thẳng khiến cảnh sát này phải nhảy lên bám vào nắp capô,” but the title of the article says, “Tài xế taxi hất cảnh sát lên capô.” How do you think about that?
.

TODAY’s CHALLENGE

1. Chị Huệ has 5 songs by superstar Barbara Streisand today, to be translated into Vietnamese.

2. Please translate the above news article into English.

Have a great day, everyone!

Hoành

Hi everyone,

The teacher that I remember most is my teacher in primary school in Nha Trang. That was a catholic nun in the parish school in Hà Dừa parish, Thành, 12 km West of Nha Trang. Her name sounded like Séraphin. But I am not sure how it spelled. (Séraphin is a French word for high-ranked angle, but that is a masculine term). I guess I liked her because I was her favorite student, doing well in class, not making troubles, winning inter-school competitions. And all the kids agreed that she was much nicer than the other nun, who were more ready to scold and spank you (usually with a stick on your buttocks). I have always wanted to visit her (probably in their convent in Bình Cang, between Nha Trang and Thành) but have never got a chance yet.

Who is your favorite primary-school teacher? Tell us about him/her.
.

TODAY’s CHALLENGE

Please translation the following excerpt into Vietnamese.

Chúng ta phải đối diện với một cuộc đời đầy khó khăn và thử thách, đòi hỏi mồ hôi, nghị lực, và chiến đấu. Nhưng không sao, mình có tin vui cho các bạn, kể cả các bạn không thích đổ mồ hôi, hao nghi lực, hay phải chiến đấu: Bản chất kinh tế của đời sống tạo ra qui luật căn bản là những việc càng khó khăn thì càng mang lại nhiều phần thưởng. Việc càng dễ dàng thì càng nhiều người vào làm, mà càng nhiều người cạnh tranh lao động, thì giá lao động, hay phần thưởng lao động, càng thấp. Ví dụ: Làm nhân công may trên dây chuyền của hãng may thì dễ hơn làm bác sĩ—ít tốn thời giờ học ở trường, và không phải học các môn khó khăn như bác sĩ. Vì vậy, nhiều người có thể làm hãng may hơn làm bác sĩ. Giá lao động may, do đó, thấp hơn giá lao động bác sĩ. Tương tự như vậy, bán hàng rong cũng ít lời hơn là mở tiệm phở, vì hàng rong đòi hỏi ít kiến thức và vốn liếng hơn.

Thank you everyone. Have a great day!

Hoanh

Hi everyone,

Do you have a good sense of humor?  If yes, write a funny caption for this picture.

Under the picture is my attempt at a funny caption (and I am not known for being humorous, so if you don’t feel it funny, too bad!)

“Hmm… it’s coming a little too fast for a sharp picture”

Now your turn. Shoot!

TODAY’S CHALLENGE

A short quote to challenge your translation skill.  Could you translate this into Vietnamese?
“Death is more universal than life; everyone dies but not everyone lives.”
– A. Sachs

All right.  Have a nice weekend everyone.

Hoành

Hi everyone,

Below are some pictures of Kim Lien crossing tunnel in Hanoi one day after opening:

Từ chiều qua đến sáng nay, suốt chiều dài hơn 500m tường hầm phía đường Đại Cồ Việt xuôi về Kim Liên nhan nhản những nét chữ, hình họa…

Bút sáp là chất liệu chủ yếu.

Một công nhân đang dọn vệ sinh trong đường hầm cho biết, ban ngày thường có 2-3 công nhân đi nhặt rác quanh đường hầm. Những nét vẽ bậy trên tường chủ yếu được thực hiện vào tối và đêm.

Vì tường được sơn chống thấm nên rất khó tẩy rửa. Để xóa những vết vẽ đòi hỏi phải cạo đi và sơn lại.

.
What do you think about that? What do you want to say about that???
.

TODAY’S CHALLENGE

Chị Huệ has several Neil Diamond songs for everyone to translate into Vietnamese.

Have a great day!

Hoanh

Hi everyone,

Below are two quotes on creativity we have posted recently on ĐCN:

“The world is but a canvas to our imaginations.”
Henry Thoreau

“Microsoft is a company that manages imagination.”
Bill Gates

What do you think about them? How do you gain new ideas, new thinking? Do you have any knowledge or experience to share with other brothers/sisters on creativity?

Have you ever done anything new, like writing a story, writing a song, writing poem, doing a social project, designing and building a house from zero, designing your áo dài, designing your website, making a new toy, etc.? If yes, could you tell everyone how you got the ideas for that work?
.

TODAY’S CHALLENGE

Chị Loan has the California Dreaming song today. Below are the lyrics for the song. You may want to translate it into English, and post it early to help other brothers and sisters listen to the song with more understanding.

California Dreaming

~ The Mamas and The Papas

All the leaves are brown
And the sky is gray
I’ve been for a walk
On a winter’s day

I’d be safe and warm
If I was in L.A.
California dreamin’
On such a winter’s day

Stopped into a church
I passed along the way
Oh, I got down on my knees
And I pretend to pray

You know the preacher likes the cold
He knows I’m gonna stay
California dreamin’
On such a winter’s day

All the leaves are brown
And the sky is gray
I’ve been for a walk
On a winter’s day

If I didnt tell her
I could leave today
California dreamin’
On such a winter’s day

(California dreamin’)
On such a winter’s day
(California dreamin’)
On such a winter’s day

All right, that’t is for today. Thanks everyone.

Have a wonderful day!

Hoanh