Hee...belleza's Go Soo moments sound like my Jang Hyuk moments. I am going to be high on life come January 6. ;-)

Thanks hjkomo! I never get tired of seeing him fling himself over that table. Or doing thumb pushups. Or, you know, just breathing. Whatever. :-D

@ samsooki

Sleep deprivation, I suspect.

Asian romanization is fun. You can also call Kim Yun-a, Gim Yuhn Ah. Man if all the Kims switch to Gims, classmates.com is hosed. :(

@ Samsooki

sleep deprivation... + coffee ? o_O
:P

There is the revised standard of romanization of 2002(?) where ㅜ is spelled "u", and ㅓ is spelled "eo"...but it does not apply to names.

I, for one, think the standard is screwy & non-intuitive with respect to those two vowels especially because I've grown up spelling it completely differently. I mean, don't you see uhn & uhngwhen you see something spelled "-un" & "-ung", not oohn & oohng with a long u? (same thing with "u" following by "k" - darn you romanization standard!)

Decades-old habits are hard to break. ;)

Interesting talk about Korean romanization. First time I realized those confusing multi-standard? discrepancies? was when talking about Lee Seo Jin with my Korean colleagues, They were calling him Ye Seo Jin and I had to ask "Who's that?" "Oh, it's Lee Seo Jin, we don't pronounce L". ??? How strange was that to me, back then...

Then, in Japan, while watching TV with my sister, イ･ビョンホン was being discussed. Me? once again "Who are they talking about?" " You know, that Korean star..." Then Lee Byung Hun's face was on screen and I was able to put two together. It can get even more confusing since his name can be spelled イ･ビョンファン as well! Well, with Japanese obasans, there's no way they can get confused, though... They know their hotties by heart...

I was going to bake some cranberry breads this morning. I'd better get going. Whoops! Haven't eaten my breakfast yet. I'd better fix myself a plate.

Oh, I indulged myself last night staying up and watching Iris 10 and 11! It's a bit unnerving/unsettling... If it gets any worse, I wouldn't know what to do. Why a human being has to go though such inhumane experience? Yet, I want to know what's going to happen next... Can I watch it today as well? Hummm... My work load is telling me no... Should skip cranberry bread part and gain some time?

"Oh, it’s Lee Seo Jin, we don’t pronounce L”. "

Oh i know! Where did the "Lee" romanization come from, if the "L" is not supposed to be pronounced?

@ 565 celestialorigin

It gets worse. Much worse. IN THE BEST WAY. :-D

I'm very patiently waiting for 19 and 20 to be subbed; no rush, because it's gotten so good now that I don't want it to end. IRIS has turned me into THAT person; you know, the one who yells at the people onscreen as if they can hear me? And it's not just IRIS now, it's every drama I watch.

For instance, I just told Han Ji-wan she's too stupid to live. I mean, really. Let me ask y'all a VERY SPOILERISH WISFC question. samsooki, kb, other lurking fellas, you're exempt from answering (unless you just want to, no judgment here :-D ).

***

Let's say you come home and find Go Soo in your bedroom wearing a wifebeater, tight jeans, and a do-rag on his head whilst doing manual labor, thus becoming all sweaty. Do you:

A) Get all pissed off and try to make him leave, or...

B) LOCK THE DAMN DOOR!!!

Nuff said.

@566 -

That IS a good point. Who was that first person who decided that Lee needed to have an L in front?

Then again, it would look weird if were Eeeee Seo Jin. How many e's do you need to spell Eeeee Seo Jin, and would it depend on how you felt about him?

"Then again, it would look weird if were Eeeee Seo Jin."

How about Yi Seo Jin, or Yi Suh Gin? Ys are prettier than Ls IMO.

"A) Get all pissed off and try to make him leave, or…
B) LOCK THE DAMN DOOR!!!"

But see, this is a trick question: do I have Parkinson's Disease or not? :D (Han Ye Seul's Shake N' Bake is FASCINATING. Forget about acting, it's just counterinuitive for normal folk to constantly shift their shoulders and put their head on a swivel as they're explaining stuff. It's not even a wiggle; it's a wobble. Does she have ADD?)

But, yeah, even if I were The Ghost of Bora, Dead Bora would lock the door. (well, hey, phantoms also drool over hot men. Says so in Twilight!) Silly Go Soo. Your body belongs to me! :D

Interesting discussion about romanization. I remember when I was writing history papers...while I could mostly do the pinying/Wade-Giles, there were other systems of romanization for Chinese---and what a headache it was. Though I'm not saying only one system is right...just it takes longer if your used to seeing something spelled one way.

@565, 566
I don't get it either. Not even that how the heck did Yi become Rhee? Is there even an Rh sound? I always have to catch myself with the whole Lee/Yi pronunciation b/c sometimes my Korean friends don't get the name if I say Lee. Or instead of Go Soo...it's Ko Soo...

@langdon813
I wouldn't be able to lock the door fast enough :)

@566 belleza

Is it because of the Hanja? For example, Lee Hyori's Chinese name is 李孝利, which would make her last name "Li" or "Lee" in Chinese.

@566 belleza @568 samsooki

Is it from how it's written in Chinese 李? My wild guess? or may be I've heard it somewhere and it has lodged somewhere in my brain.

@567 langdon813

LOL. Of course, AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

Oh, it can get better... I'm dying to open Dramacrazy browser and just watch, sigh...

Oh,robotmatsuri got it as well. So is it for real?

Speaking of hanja, how many Korean American people here have Chinese versions of their names? I always found that fascinating that some fams still practice that.

@569 belleza

But see, this is a trick question: do I have Parkinson’s Disease or not?

Why ? Isn't it a straight forward sort of question? Can't I read between lines?

And OMG! What did I say??????????????? I MEANT BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB. I have to wake up really!

Since we're (okay, y'all) are talking about the Korean language (and by the way, please keep it up, it's fascinating), let me ask a question. Why is -ssi used with some Korean names, and -ah with others? Is it a personal choice, a colloquial choice, or is it based on the letter the name ends with? For instance, I get that Kim Sun-ah's name ends with ah, so if you were speaking informally to her, would you just say Sun-ah and leave it at that, since there's already an -ah there? Or would you add -ssi to it?

I'm going to be embarrassed if this is a dumb question, but if you don't ask, you don't know, right? ;-)

^^ Thanks JB! Earlier on, I used to think it pertained to male or female, but then realized pretty quickly that that wasn't right at all. But now it makes perfect sense, when I recollect scenes where co-workers refer to each other by their names + -"sshi", as opposed to say Smile, You, when Hyun-soo yells "Jung-in-ah"!

One of the best OT's ever, this one. :-)

o , that's interesting to know about romanization. Also is it a consideration for 'foreigners' to at least attempt to pronounce it?! Say if you have a Chinese surname of Ng (Wu in Mandarin), it's almost universally pronounced as 'ing' when it doesn't sound like the corresponding Chinese character at all....

When I first told my Korean gf I heart my 'hyun bin'...she did go blank and paused and went....o, u do mean 'HYEON bin'. So I guess I do prefer it to be romanized as closely to how it should be pronounced.

@ 579 momosan

I know, right? hjkomo was after me for weeks to watch CITC and I kept putting it off. I will never doubt her again. ;-)

It's a commitment, though, isn't it? It's so dialogue-heavy and the plot is pretty complicated...you need to be wide awake (or in my case, heavily caffeinated) to keep everything straight. I think watching it more or less straight through was a good thing, for me at least. That, and using rewind button frequently! But once it grabs you, which is almost immediately, you're hooked.

“-kun” and “-yang” are alternatives to “-sshi” and less commonly used, meaning Mr. or Miss.

As popularized in the drama series, Goong, where Prince Shin is called "Shin-goon" or "Shin-kun" if you like JB's romanization.

“-nim” makes all things honorific.

You'll see it everywhere, including this very Open Thread, where in Post 500, JB refers to Mr. X as Mr. X-nim.

JB could have used "goon" or "kun", but then it would have been Mr. X-Goon or Mr. Mr. X, which sounds like an 80's band.

:D

As said above, which words you use, be it banmal or joendaemal, are important social cues.

1. It gives the proper setting for the relationship between the speaker and the listener.

2. It tells the listener (and all third parties listening in) how the speaker feels about him/her.

In Korea, everything is about relationships. The words that are used give respect, give proper space, give clues as to intent and feeling, and generally help strangers and friends alike in how to speak to one another (lesson, if you aren't sure, be polite, hehe).

***

Not to beat this to death, but let's say that we are all hanging out and a stranger comes by, and langdon813 knows this stranger and starts speaking in very polite language, complete with nim's and so on. That clues the rest of us in as well, and so now we know our relationship with langdon813, and so we can extrapolate perhaps, our prospective relationship with the stranger...

re: sweaty half nekkid Go Soo in the bathroom.

I would not lock the door or tell him to get out. Who would remember something like locking the door. Pure estrogen would kick in and the boy would be flat on the floor in 2 seconds stat. The door can open and the Hun army about the invade, I would still not remember to lock that door.

Enuf said: that's why I'm having a love/hate relationship with WISFC (i.e. I hate to be loving it), because I absolutely detest Han Ji-hwan as a character, and the only way for me to love such a character (who embodies characteristics that really rub me the wrong way if I ever met someone like that), is for the character to be played by someone that truly elevates her to a new level and I grow to love and respect that, i.e. Ariel Lin as Xiang-qin in ISWAK or Seo Woo as Beo-jin in Tamra. You've got to own it! And HYS is just kinda there right now.

Han Ye-seul is currently failing miserably in that respect, she's doing fine acting wise, but I am not emotionally connecting with her Ji-hwan (for me, she is still miscast), and was hoping she would get mowed down by that car along with her loser fetish Tae-joon, and Go Soo can go back to moping after Lee Da-hae from the Green Rose days.

@ langdon813

Do you even need to ask???
B!

@ Samsooki, belleza Taohua, robotmatsuri, celestialorigin

I also believe the "Lee" was taken from the hanja & Chinese pronunciation of the "L".

@ belleza
"How about Yi Seo Jin, or Yi Suh Gin? Ys are prettier than Ls IMO. "

But there's no "Y" sound in the name, either,
and an "I" alone sounds like ah-ee rather than eeee.
As for the last name Seo, all the ones I personally know, spell it Suh.

@ Taohua
"how the heck did Yi become Rhee? Is there even an Rh sound? I always have to catch myself with the whole Lee/Yi pronunciation b/c sometimes my Korean friends don’t get the name if I say Lee. Or instead of Go Soo…it’s Ko Soo…"

I think the "Rhee" comes from the way Koreans pronounce their L's. It's kind of a cross between an "R" and an "L" so "Rh" is the alternative.
Go & Ko is also because it's pronounced somewhere in between hard "G" and an English "K".

@ belleza
"Speaking of hanja, how many Korean American people here have Chinese versions of their names? I always found that fascinating that some fams still practice that."

The meanings of our Korean names are derived from the hanja. My dad and my sister-in-law both have "Soo" in their names, but they're from different hanja characters...and my nephew and nieces have their mother's "Soo" in their Korean names.

@ ockoala

You're more than halfway through the day. Yay!

Three[ish] words:
HYS
Tazza
bullet
;)

@ hjkomo

Btw, I finally know what your user name refers to/means and how to pronounce it properly. ;-)

Tazza - you know, I love gambling movies from HK, and was meaning to watch this, and sexy Han Ye-seul after Fantasy Couple is a total draw for me. Sexy, bitchy, aggresive HYS I don't want to give a bullet to, I want to give her a white fluffy cat and hear her coo "princess" and pet it.

Anyways, I digress, I may pick up Tazza after I finish Robbers, and after ROI. Still stuck on Robbers episode 9, haven't watched a lick of TV in 4 days, it's a world record for me, I think.

I'm happiest doing lawyer work at my desk, so I'm happy again. Sigh......

Btw, I just saw pictures from the 4 of a Kind, All for One (whatever its called) concert in Japan - and there is a picture of the 4 of them toasting champagne on stage. I so called it, those 4 were off to Japan to make easy money and get wasted together. Nice.

RE:IRIS

I spoiled myself for the ending...

...am DED.

@ ockoala

Actually, it's sort of a pun, so there's two ways to say it. ;)

Tazza - It's the OTP and [lack of] chemistry with Jang Hyuk that annoyed me. Why in the world would both men be in love with her... 'tis still a mystery.

@586 ockoala

Btw, I just saw pictures from the 4 of a Kind, All for One (whatever its called) concert in Japan – and there is a picture of the 4 of them toasting champagne on stage.

Link please, I went to Youtube after reading your comment, couldn't find it.

Thank you! XXXOOO

I just saw stills, I don't think anyone has posted a video of the event yet, and curiously enough, I don't seem to have enough curiosity about it to want to watch a video of it. I think its the fatigue talking though.

Here are the pics: http://www.allkpop.com/index.php/full_story/4_of_koreas_top_stars_shine_at_tokyo_dome/

Enjoy, sweetie.

Aw cingdoc, you're as considerate as ever. However, since I've been MIA with my kids this week, I volunteer myself to mommysit them and yell *mine, mine* to anyone else trying to pet them.

Oh. Thanks! Humm, not the most complementing photos... Anyway, now that I'm back on watching Iris, I was far too curious and thanks to you, it's taken care of. Much appreciations! Yeah, somehow, I have no concentration today... can't work.... not good...

javabeans 546, hjkomo 547, 550

my korean class taught me to use the pure korean form when referring to age.

however, my parents (pure native korean speakers) sometimes combine the korean and chinese form, particularly when the person is 40 or older.

for instance, 81 years old... my parents will say "paar sheep han sar" (a combo of the korean and chinese numbering system) instead of "yeoh dun han sar" (pure korean).

whenever i get confused, i just use the chinese numbering system when referring to age. korean folks will sometimes look at me like i'm an idiot, but i get the message across, and that's the whole point of communication, right?

Whoa....wait a minute...
I never "lied" about HGD's ending,
and it's my evil doppelganger who's the LYING LIAR WHO LIES.
Let's keep the facts straight, shall we? ;)

@ Samsooki

Your MIL is so cute.

(first!!)

Wow. 600. Bora can rest in peace that she was sacrificed for something truly meaningful.

In commemoration, here’s Lee Soo Yung’s (of Love to Kill theme song) MV/"wish this was a K-drama because it would be so awesome" “Left Alone” (Parts 1 and 2), starring my future Christmas present Go Soo and a radiant Gong Hyo Jin (just to fan the “what if GHJ was the lead in WISC??” debate -- their chemistry in this MV is movie movie-level awesome)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXgKzT1LXWQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LI9Spwh4xUE