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Chat with Gloria, Ying Lan, and Vance

April 4, 1999

Connecting to efi.virtualscholar.com:9998

Ying-Lan: @64,64 !It's Ying-Lan

Ying-Lan: Hi Vance

Vance: Hi Ying Lan.

Ying-Lan: ^How long have you been here? Are you waiting a long time?

Vance: I've been here for half an hour. Maggi was here earlier but she lost her connection.

Ying-Lan: ^I don't remember what time does the class start?

Vance: How are you?

Vance: About half an hour ago.

Ying-Lan: ^I got it.

Vance: I'm here for another hour or so.

Ying-Lan: Thanks.

Vance: Glad you could come.

Ying-Lan: ^Sorry for being late.

Ying-Lan: ^Is it Easter?

Vance: I see you've been trying to use the eclass.

Vance: Yeah, my wife and son are home from school today.

Ying-Lan: ^Eclass? you mean the Egroup...

Vance: Yes. I call it the eclass.

Ying-Lan: ^Yeap, I think I have to write something to practice my English.

Vance: Yeah. Do you want your emails corrected?

Ying-Lan: ^It is a little difficult to express something in English.

Ying-Lan: ^You will correct it?

Vance: Sure. We could do it now.

Ying-Lan: ^But I did not save the original one.

Ying-Lan: ^Have you found the mistakes of the last one?

Vance: It is a long time without your email.

It is a long time without your email.

It is a long time without your email.

Yeah. I'm trying to copy parts of it and paste it here, but can't so far.

(Here, I copied from Ying Lan's email and pasted it to the dialog line, but couldn't see it copy, so I repeat the process. I learned by surprise that each copy appeared in my bubble when I pressed enter)

Vance: No, it came in. I'll start over

Vance: It is a long time without your email.

(Here, I clicked by mistake on a door on the Palace graphic and disappeared inside)

Requested file auditorium.gif

Ying-Lan: ^It is a long time witout your email.

Vance: Sorry, I entered the door

Received file auditorium.gif

Vance: Yeah, that's how you started. You can say, it's been a long time ...

Ying-Lan: ^You have corrected the sentence.

Ying-Lan: ^The sentence is wrong...

Ying-Lan: ^I could not say ... it is a long time without your emial.

Vance: Only slightly wrong. No, here we'd use the present perfect, it's been.

Vance: meaning it has been

Vance: hi new friend.

Vance: That's a nice name.

Ying-Lan: ^It has been a long time without your email.

Ying-Lan: Hi new friend!

Vance: bye new friend ...

Vance: How's going on?

(We had been joined by an avatar labeled "new friend " who kept running in and out of doors)

Ying-Lan: ^He just entered another door.

Ying-Lan: he is gone.

Vance: This is what you said next. So you could say, What's going on.

Vance: or how's it going?

Ying-Lan: Let me look at the email.

Vance: Do you want me to email it to you?

Vance: Hi new friend. Have you had a look around?

Ying-Lan: ^It is better to say "What's going on?'

New Friend: I would like know wherer classroom is.

Vance: Yeah. What's going on? How's it going? Either of those.

Ying-Lan: ^o.k. Vance, please email the corrected one.

Vance: Hi. This is the classroom.

Ying-Lan: ^What's differenc?

Vance: We meet out here because all the students come here.

Ying-Lan: How's going on and what's going on

Vance: No difference YL. They are both ways to say How are you.

Ying-Lan: How are you? new friend

Vance: So NF, are you a new student here?

Vance: NF, are you a student here?

Vance: Or do you want to be a student here?

Ying-Lan: ^Vance, did you think that's a good way to talk to another guy in eclass?

New Friend: No I am not yet

Vance: Do you mean saying How's it going? Yeah, that's a fine way to greet classmates.

Vance: NF, are you still with us?

Ying-Lan: ^I mean my email... Let's talk.

Vance: Yes, it's a GREAT way to try to get conversations going in the eclass.

Ying-Lan: ^New Friend is another room now.

Vance: YOU are WAY AHEAD of the other students in this class.

Vance: You are doing the things that we think will help everyone learn English.

Ying-Lan: ^I don't understand "You are way ahead .."

Vance: It means, you are advanced from the other students.

Vance: We have an eclass. There are 22 students in the eclass. They are all silent. You are trying to talk to them. They don't answer.

Vance: You are "way ahead" of them.

Ying-Lan: ^Two of them answered .

Vance: Oh, so they answered you. They should write to the list. But that's good. Who answered and what did they say?

Ying-Lan: ^Did you not receive them?

Ying-Lan: Hi Jing,

it was great to receive word from you as I am new to this group......hope we

can get on line to chat....Martha

^Hi Jing,

it was great to receive word from you as I am new to this group..

Vance: Ah, Martha is the mystery student then.

Ying-Lan: Hi Ying-Lan

I don't write some weeks because I'm preparing my vocations that will be start in this monday, so I will be without computer for two weeks and I need relax because I'm stressed and when I

Vance: Who wrote that?

Vance: Martha still?

Ying-Lan: ^ I back, I will continue to correspond with my friends.

So best regards,

Denilson

Vance: Denilson seems like a cool guy.

Ying-Lan: ^I think so.

Ying-Lan: ^He write good English.

Ying-Lan: ^He writes Good English.

Vance: Do you think so? His English has a lot of mistakes, but he USES it, which is very important.

Ying-Lan: ^Really?

Vance: He is like you. He is not afraid to make mistakes.

Ying-Lan: ^I could not judge which one is wrong.

Vance: And he communicates well despite a few mistakes.

Ying-Lan: ^Vance, you are kidding.

Vance: Well, for example, he says, "I back". Can you find a mistake there.

Ying-Lan: ^I will come back.

Ying-Lan: ^I will be back next week.

Vance: Yeah, or I will be back, or I will write back. It doesn't matter. We get the ide

Vance: the idea ..

Vance: He has a web page and I offered to help him correct it. Have you seen it?

Ying-Lan: ^What do you do on Easter? Only painting egg and trying to let egg stands up.

Ying-Lan: ^I have been his web site. but only took a look at it,

Vance: Yesterday my wife and son painted eggs and before she went to bed my wife hid them so my son could look for them when he woke up.

Vance: He is too old to believe in the Easter bunny, but he likes to hunt for the eggs.

Ying-Lan: ^Is it a traditional game of Easter... to look for the colourful eggo.

Vance: Children believe that the "Easter bunny" comes and hides the eggs and leaves baskets full of goodies for the kids.

Ying-Lan: ^OH...

Vance: Do Christians do anything special in Taiwan at Easter?

Ying-Lan: ^I am not a Christian. I really do not know about the Easter.

Ying-Lan: ^I just knew it is a important hoilday for Western peopel .

Vance: Do people celebrate Christmas there? Like, in the stores?

Ying-Lan: ^We celeberate Christmas, but only for fun.

Vance: My family and I aren't religious, so we don't go to church, but a lot of people do that on Easter.

Vance: People in the UAE enjoy Christmas for fun too. It's a big shopping event, and we open gifts on Christmas morning. Do you do that?

gloria: @64,64 !It's gloria

Vance: Hi Gloria.

gloria: hi!

gloria: happy Easter for every one!

Ying-Lan: @64,64 !It's Ying-Lan

Vance: We were just talking about Easter. Did you celebrate Easter today Gloria?

Ying-Lan: ^The line was cut by my isp.

gloria: I was watching the Holy Mass live from Rome

Ying-Lan: ^People makes money from Christmas. There were a lot of advertismet of Department store during December.

Vance: Is Easter an important holiday in Paraguay?

Ying-Lan: ^advertisements

Ying-Lan: ^Hi, Gloria.

Ying-Lan: ^What's going on?

gloria: well, since most people in here are catholic it surely is

Ying-Lan: ^I feel the line is busy now.

Vance: Yeah, what's going on in Paraguay?

Vance: Oh, Gloria, can I put what you wrote about the situation in Paraguay on your webheads web page?

gloria: everything seems normal after a hard week

Ying-Lan: ^It would be great.

gloria: yes sure

Vance: I thought I should ask first.

Ying-Lan: ^hard week? why is it a hard week?

gloria: thanks Vance!

Ying-Lan: ^Too hot to live?

Ying-Lan: ^We have no break at Easter in Taiwan. But Michaec said he has four days.

gloria: well Ying lang, there were a conflict around here the week before last week

Ying-Lan: ^conflict?

Ying-Lan: ^War?

Ying-Lan: ^Someone slammed something?

Ying-Lan: ^I am sorry for that.

Vance: The vice-president was assassinated, and the president had to leave the country

Ying-Lan: ^I have not read newspaper everyday.

Ying-Lan: ^Are you all right? gloria.

gloria: yes that was what happened

Ying-Lan: ^Will the conflict change your life?

Vance: Who is the new president?

gloria: I was worried for the entire week but now IŽm ok

Ying-Lan: ^Do you poll your president by people?

gloria: The president is Luis Gonzalez Macchi

Vance: Is he the one who had to leave?

Ying-Lan: ^Leave? refugee?

gloria: no, no he is the new one

Vance: Was the president who escaped elected? Was he popular with the people?

Ying-Lan: ^Decomarcy?

gloria: the other (who had to leave the country) is Raul Cubas Grau

Ying-Lan: ^Why should the failer leave?

Vance: You said in your email he had to face impeachment.

gloria: He was elected. Elections took place last may

Vance: And the new president, is he a military leader?

gloria: Yes, but before that he quit

Ying-Lan: quit

gloria: no , none of those are militar, they are civilians

Vance: Do you mean he quit the military to become president?

Vance: Oh, do you mean that Cubas quit and then left?

gloria: right

gloria: he is now in Brazil

Vance: Did he quit because he was not a good president?

gloria: The conflict arised was because of him, because he was not a good president

Vance: So is this a good change?

Vance: Is it a "change for the better"?

gloria: we hope so

gloria: I need more words to explain to you what happened in my country

Vance: Maybe you can do that and we can post it on your web page.

Ying-Lan: ^That's fine. gloria.

gloria: ok, IŽll try

Ying-Lan: ^gloria, check the yahoo news , maybe you could find the story what you want.

gloria: I will

Ying-Lan: ^It is a short way to know these vocabulary.

Vance: That's a good idea.

Ying-Lan: ^ Have you watched the "Ally Mcbeal" in USA or

Vance: I have read very little about Paraguay this past week. I did read that the president fled to Brazil. Most people are focused on the Kosovo crisis.

Ying-Lan: ^"Ally Mcbeal" is a TV program.

gloria: I know what is happening in Kosovo. It is hard to believe

Ying-Lan: ^brb

gloria: Most media are focussed in Kosovo

Ying-Lan: I am here

Vance: That's a crazy situation. The Serbs are barbarians. I don't agree with dropping bombs on Belgrade, but I don't know what civilized nations can do to stop armies from killing innocent civilians.

Ying-Lan: ^Neither do I.

Ying-Lan: ^It's a complicated problem there.

Ying-Lan: ^History could not tell me the answer. It is weire.

Ying-Lan: ^It is weird.

gloria: Altough Paraguay is a little country, people in here think if we could do something...

gloria: europens nations and the US have to stop them

Ying-Lan: ^You could not image how mcch they hate each other.

Ying-Lan: ^Human sometimes is stupid.

Vance: But before, all through the Tito years, they were living peacefully together

Ying-Lan: ^It takes a long time...

Ying-Lan: ^I mean war.

Ying-Lan: ^War happened before hundred years ago.

Vance: Even Taiwan is sometimes threatened.

Ying-Lan: .

Ying-Lan: ^What does threaten mean?

Vance: If I say I will hit you, I threaten you.

Vance: It means I do something to make you think I am dangerous to you.

Ying-Lan: ^Some locak Taiwanese had been killed by policital ..

Ying-Lan: ^It happened about twenty years ago.

Vance: It's hard to find a place where you don't feel threatened.

Vance: Do you mean that 20 years ago there were political assassinations in Taiwan?

Ying-Lan: ^We have some social problem from the 228

Ying-Lan: ^maybe 40 years ago.

Vance: How about in Paraguay. Do you feel safe now?

Vance: What is the 228 YL?

Ying-Lan: ^My father told me his teacher and some neighbour had dissappeaed by unknow reasons when he was a student in elementary school. .

Ying-Lan: ^He hated my goverment (KMT) for a long time.

Vance: The KMT is still in power isn't it?

Ying-Lan: ^Until the PTT have grown up in Taiwan. .

Ying-Lan: ^The PTT is another big party now.

gloria: We have problems like every one, but Paraguay is still Known like a peaceful nation in south america

Vance: So do the PTT and KMT resolve disputes peacefully?

Ying-Lan: ^Sometimes.. they slams another one.

Vance: Paraguay was known as a country with a strong dictatership under Stroesser. Maybe strong dictatorships result in weak afteraffects, like in Yugoslavia after Tito.

Vance: And of course, Taiwan under the KMT dictatorship of Chang Kai Check. Is his son the president now?

Ying-Lan: ^People likes to be a good life.

gloria: We havenŽt faced situation like what happened recently in decades

Vance: It will be interesting to read your explanation of what happened.

Ying-Lan: ^His son was another President after him.

Ying-Lan: ^But He passed away ten years ago.

Ying-Lan: ^We elected our new presedient ....

gloria: I still think and also foreign people that had visited my country that we are pacific people

Vance: ten years ago ... do you know who is the leader in Taiwan, Gloria?

Ying-Lan: ^We are so proud of The democracy .

gloria: I dont know how comes the question..

Ying-Lan: ^Our President is Lee ... I am sorry I don't his English name.

Ying-Lan: ^He had been in USA for a long time.

Ying-Lan: ^He studied PHD in USA>

Vance: Well, because I don't know who is the leader of Taiwan, and before talking to you, I didn't know who was the leader of Paraguay. Is it just me, or you too?

Ying-Lan: ^So do I.

Vance: I think it's important to know what happens in other countries.

Vance: Our news services are so limited.

Vance: You have to dig to find out what's going on in other countries.

Ying-Lan: ^Internet ... always is waiting for you ...

gloria: Maybe internet is the answer

Ying-Lan: ^There are too much message on Line.

Vance: Yes. But Internet is not like TV. You don't just watch it. You have to find what you are looking for.

gloria: but also many informations come in english, then you have to learn english first

Ying-Lan: ^Gloria, you got the point. That't why we are here.

Ying-Lan: ^Real player?

Ying-Lan: ^Vance, is there any cable TV in UAE?

gloria: I have to leave now..

Vance: Yes, we get CNN, BBC TV, and Internet news of course.

Ying-Lan: ^That's fine.

Vance: So it was nice talking to you both.

gloria: Vance, I will send you an e-mail

Ying-Lan: ^me too

gloria: bye!

Ying-Lan: bye

Vance: Good. bye.


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Last updated: April 4, 1999