It’s already well underway in much of the world, but traditionally celebrations continue for a full two weeks, so…
The Telegraph [warning: autoplay] has a list of appropriate greetings:
1. 新年好 / 新年好 (Xīnnián hǎo) ‘New Year goodness!’
In Mandarin: /sshin-nyen haoww/
In Cantonese: /sen-nin haow/
2. 恭喜发财 / 恭喜發財 (Gōngxǐ fācái) ‘Happiness and prosperity!’
In Mandarin: /gong-sshee faa-tseye/
In Cantonese: Kunghei fatchoy /gong-hey faa-chwhy/
3. 步步高升 / 步步高陞 (Bùbù gāoshēng) A steady rise to high places! — “on the up and up”
In Mandarin: /boo-boo gaoww-shnng /
In Cantonese: /boh-boh goh-sshin /
Kat Chow, at NPR, has a wonderful essay on “My Menu For Lunar New Year: Guilt, Confusion, With A Side Of Angst“. It’s Saturday, you can spare the five minutes to read the whole thing.
Despite the obvious jokes, Donald Trump is not a Fire Rooster, but a Fire Dog. CNN checked in with “feted Hong Kong fortune teller Priscilla Lam”:
The characteristic of a fire dog is over confidence and a tendency to act quickly without thinking things through. The astrological sign on the day of President Trump’s birth is earth. The element of metal in the latter half of the year will destabilize the earth.
Since he was born in the year of fire, the spring and summer — when the weather is hot — will be good for Trump. It’s also his honeymoon period as US President. But the cooler months of autumn and winter will see him run into difficulties. There will be protests…
(She predicts Putin’s gonna have a great year, though!)
Saturday Morning Open Thread: Happy Year of the Fire RoosterPost + Comments (84)