What a marvel it was, last month,to see that most unexpected of sights falling from the skies above Beijing -snow!
I've only been here in China for a little over ayear now, so for me, at least, a dusting of snow in this ancient capital is stilla rarity.
It reminded me of my younger years back home in theNorth of England, though thankfully the white stuff here seems to clear away alittle quicker. I remember snowfalls of my youth icing over and sticking aroundfor days or even weeks, gradually turning to gray from the exhaust fumes ofpassing trucks and buses.
There were no such discolored drifts, however, onrecent visit I was fortunate enough to have to Chongli, which is set to hostmost of the skiing events for China's 2022 Winter Olympics.
I couldn't help but be astonished by the pristinecondition of the slopes at the area's ski resorts, which was made all the moreamazing by the fact that many of the surrounding hills were almost completelydevoid of snow.
"Such ingenuity!" I thought, whenever Iwasn't almost toppling over (it having been more than a decade since I last strappeda pair of skis to my feet).
But as I slowly built up strength in the muscles I'dforgotten I had, the technological feat of constructing such ski slopes out oflargely artificial snowflakes impressed me even more.
And it got me thinking about that word ‑ snowflake ‑which has taken on a whole new meaning in recent years.
Merriam Webster has it listed under its "WordsWe're Watching" ‑ those utterances that are increasing in usage but havenot yet met the criteria for entry.
Snowflake, as the dictionary maker notes, hasmorphed from a word with a "hushed and lovely literal meaning" tosomething new and "decidedly less pleasant".
In addition to its literal meaning, it use as a disparagingterm for a person who is seen as overly sensitive and fragile has taken hold sincethe lead-up to the recent US elections.
Often flung by those on the right side of thepolitical spectrum at those on the left, it became a favorite of far-right"news" site Brietbart, whose executive chairman Steve Bannon is nowDonald Trump's chief strategist.
Prior to that, it had been used in some quarters todescribe millennials, for supposedly being too self-involved and convinced oftheir own status to deal with regular adult life.
That usage derives from a line in the 1999 filmFight Club (and the book that preceded it) where the character played by BradPitt informs his underlings:"you are not a beautiful or unique snowflake,you are the same decaying organic matter as everything else."
It never ceases to amaze me how even a word whichis beautiful, or seemingly innocuous, can become something altogether moresinister when malevolent minds are at play.
But I guess it just goes to show how anything canbecome corrupted, if it falls into the wrong hands.
超级喜欢里面的背景音乐
Is there anyone who knows the bgm of the article?
很喜欢这里的文章不出门就能了解其他国家,其他人的想法,和背景音乐。
👍
小建议,文本的拼写有些词连起来,看着困难。
中国日报 回复 @黑土白水: 好的,小编会注意的
好喜欢背景音乐
已经被日报君圈粉了
中国日报 回复 @听友67835621:
有点难
中国日报 回复 @听友72144715: 加油坚持听就不难了,也有一些轻松的小故事不难
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