Michelle Kwan is engaged (per People magazine)

MFarone · Sep 12, 2012

Olympia said:
I feel ridiculously like a proud aunt whose niece has found the right guy. Even a mathematician in the family! Definitely worthy of Our Michelle.

The nice thing is how much he seems to have done on his own steam already. This is not a chap who sits around. Michelle's choice also shows what she values in life. Someone at her level of fame and achievement would meet a lot of glamorous people, and she's chosen someone who is a real worker bee.

Great post!! I am so happy for Michelle. Seems she's found a soulmate. Clay is a lucky man. I also feel like a delighted "Auntie" in this as I'm sure many of her fans do!

Victura · Sep 12, 2012

Bluebonnet said:
Not really. People in HongKong, Taiwan (By the way, Taiwan uses Mandarin.), Singapore, and most Chinese communities around the world use traditional way in writing. The grammers are the same but the words are very complicated. The mainland of China including GuangDong province use simplified Chinese in writing. People in any areas can read and understand eachothers in vast majority cases but might not know how to write in the other way.

Actually, Singapore and Malaysia predominantly use simplified. In Singapore at least, there is sometimes both simplified and traditional on signs (as well as English, Malay, and Tamil, and many announcements (in the subway, for example) are repeated in all 4 languages), but simplified is what is taught in schools nowadays. At any rate, simplified is just as its name implies, a simplified version based on traditional, so most people who use one can read the other. Taiwan also has its own dialect, Taiwanese.

In any case, Olympia is not wrong in saying that written Chinese is the same in Mandarin and Cantonese, especially since simplified and traditional are essentially the same thing, and there are many words which were not simplified and are the same in both forms. There are certainly people who speak Cantonese and write in simplified, just as there are people who speak Mandarin and write in traditional, even though it might be more common the other way around. The difference between traditional and simplified is certainly more easily understandable/transferable than between some Chinese dialects (and there are hundreds of them), and Cantonese and Mandarin are especially different. (As a fluent Mandarin speaker who grew up hearing my parents speak dialects from Shanghai, Sichuan, as well as Cantonese, I can understand a lot of the first two, but still can't understand most of Cantonese.) I'd be curious to know how fluent Pell is in Chinese though, especially written. Most of the American-born Chinese I know who can speak fluently are not necessarily very literate, simply because it takes years of memorization and usage to become literate at an adult level.

Anyway, sorry to go off on a bit of a tangent. All this is to say that I'm happy that Michelle has become engaged to someone who seems to be very accomplished in his own right. It would certainly be interesting if one or both of them decided to run for office one day! I do hope we'll get to see pictures of the happy couple after they walk down the aisle. Congratulations to them both!

demarinis5 · Sep 12, 2012

E News Video on Michelle's Engagement. The ring is stunning.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPCu...e_gdata&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

Tinymavy15 · Sep 12, 2012

demarinis5 said:
E News Video on Michelle's Engagement. The ring is stunning.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPCu...e_gdata&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

indeed. so so happy for her, wish them the best happiness and of course that she continues her vibrant studies and career.

Krislite · Sep 12, 2012

Congrats to Michelle and Clay!

I only hope she doesn't change her name to "Michelle Pell." She will always be Michelle Kwan!

Mathman · Sep 12, 2012

Krislite said:
Congrats to Michelle and Clay! I only hope she doesn't change her name to "Michelle Pell." She will always be Michelle Kwan!

If she has a daughter and names her after her mother, the child will be "Estelle Pell."

And now, for all you art lovers and Kwan enthusiasts out there, a trivia question. What does this painting, from the Manoogian collection at the National Art Gallery, have to do with Michelle's beau?

http://freelargephotos.com/000763_l.jpg

Mathman · Sep 12, 2012

This was posted on FSU and on the MK forum.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPCu...e_gdata&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

Olympia · Sep 12, 2012

Victura said:
Actually, Singapore and Malaysia predominantly use simplified. In Singapore at least, there is sometimes both simplified and traditional on signs (as well as English, Malay, and Tamil, and many announcements (in the subway, for example) are repeated in all 4 languages), but simplified is what is taught in schools nowadays. At any rate, simplified is just as its name implies, a simplified version based on traditional, so most people who use one can read the other. Taiwan also has its own dialect, Taiwanese.

In any case, Olympia is not wrong in saying that written Chinese is the same in Mandarin and Cantonese, especially since simplified and traditional are essentially the same thing, and there are many words which were not simplified and are the same in both forms. There are certainly people who speak Cantonese and write in simplified, just as there are people who speak Mandarin and write in traditional, even though it might be more common the other way around. The difference between traditional and simplified is certainly more easily understandable/transferable than between some Chinese dialects (and there are hundreds of them), and Cantonese and Mandarin are especially different. (As a fluent Mandarin speaker who grew up hearing my parents speak dialects from Shanghai, Sichuan, as well as Cantonese, I can understand a lot of the first two, but still can't understand most of Cantonese.) I'd be curious to know how fluent Pell is in Chinese though, especially written. Most of the American-born Chinese I know who can speak fluently are not necessarily very literate, simply because it takes years of memorization and usage to become literate at an adult level.

Anyway, sorry to go off on a bit of a tangent. All this is to say that I'm happy that Michelle has become engaged to someone who seems to be very accomplished in his own right. It would certainly be interesting if one or both of them decided to run for office one day! I do hope we'll get to see pictures of the happy couple after they walk down the aisle. Congratulations to them both!

Victura, thanks so much for the insights. This is the kind of tangent I love reading! I've heard about the challenges of learning written Chinese. It would indeed be interesting to know how far Pell's expertise in the language extends.

I too hope we get to see wedding pictures.

Mathman, I know that painting, but I don't know how it connects to Pell. Let us know!

Mathman · Sep 12, 2012

"The Jolly Flatboatmen" was sold to the Manoogian collection for six million dollars by Senator Pell's family, which had owned it for 100 years. At the time it was the highest amount ever brought by an American painting.

Olympia · Sep 12, 2012

Aha!

I've always loved that painting. It brings such an important part of American history to life. Just imagine: Abraham Lincoln worked as a flatboatman for awhile, down the Mississippi.

Bluebonnet · Sep 12, 2012

Victura said:
but simplified is what is taught in schools nowadays.

Good to know about this! Thanks! I know here in North America, there are Chinese schools where they teach simplified Chinese. Also, there are Chinese schools where they teach traditional Chinese. :biggrin:

skateluvr · Sep 13, 2012

Not to rain on the parade, but they do not talk lovey, dovey. MK thinks marriage is like a good pair team? LOL. So naive. Remember, its been a cloistered world from her tighter than tight family, to the top echelons and rich skating folk, to academia. They met only last year, and I wonder if kids are foremost on her and maybe his mind. Strange we never saw MK dating stories. Maybe MK ubers at the forum know more. I have a sense of this pairing from what they have said. Expect some surprise revelations further down the line of years from Michelle. I just have this feeling.....:think: anyway, is there a ring pic in people mag? Such a serious young man. She is truly a DC girl now! Expect a pearl choker and conservative clothes!

brightphoton · Sep 13, 2012

It was a very business-like statement from Michelle, true, but ...

1) Michelle has always been very strict with PR and is all business, so it's to be expected
2) She's 32 and he's 40. How lovey dovey can be you be at that age? It would look silly for a woman her age to giggle like a schoolgirl over her wedding dress and romantic dates, etc. And fertility wise, neither of these people are spring chicken, so their courtship needs to be accelerated if they want to get a baby out before Down syndrome & co. become too likely.

There is a ring pic in the People mag. It's an oval-cut diamond. Kwan says she likes it because ice rinks are also oval.

Tonichelle · Sep 13, 2012

a friend of mine went from 1st date to wedding date in about 4 months... 1 year is actually fairly common, and not an indicator of how long the marriage will last. Who are we - as complete outsiders - to know, much less judge?

And yes I will personally pick up anyone off the floor who just fainted from seeing me stick up for everyon's "Kween".

Krislite · Sep 13, 2012

brightphoton said:
It was a very business-like statement from Michelle, true, but ...

1) Michelle has always been very strict with PR and is all business, so it's to be expected
2) She's 32 and he's 40. How lovey dovey can be you be at that age? It would look silly for a woman her age to giggle like a schoolgirl over her wedding dress and romantic dates, etc. And fertility wise, neither of these people are spring chicken, so their courtship needs to be accelerated if they want to get a baby out before Down syndrome & co. become too likely.

There is a ring pic in the People mag. It's an oval-cut diamond. Kwan says she likes it because ice rinks are also oval.

I believe Clay Pell is 30--actually younger than Michelle by about 2 years.

Bluebonnet · Sep 13, 2012

skateluvr said:
Strange we never saw MK dating stories.

Because Michelle likes to keep her private life private. Never talks about them doesn't mean never has them. I'm sure Michelle has seen many, many handsome young men. If she wanted to pick them, she'd have easily found one. But I think handsomeness was never very important in finding a life long partner in Michelle's mind. Her boyfriend in her college years wasn't a handsome guy either. But if she loves someone and don't mind whether he has the conventional handsomeness or not, who are any people to judge them? He is not the most handsome guy but he is a nice looking guy who seems to have a strong shoulder for her. I'm sure Mr. Pell has outstanding charming qualities in his characters, besides his long list of amazing accomplishments and talents, which have won the heart of the Kween. Wish them all the happiness in the world!!!

Olympia · Sep 13, 2012

Tonichelle said:
a friend of mine went from 1st date to wedding date in about 4 months... 1 year is actually fairly common, and not an indicator of how long the marriage will last. Who are we - as complete outsiders - to know, much less judge?

And yes I will personally pick up anyone off the floor who just fainted from seeing me stick up for everyon's "Kween".

>swoon<

In my recollections, Michelle never appears spontaneous when she speaks; she's always very guarded. I don't know what it is, but for someone so smart, Michelle tends to sound stilted and almost awkward on camera. So this seems pretty much like the usual style from her, and I don't assume it reflects any coolness of feelings on her part. Even when they were kids, Tara outshone her in terms of how she connected with an interviewer. I get the same vibe from Gabby Douglas, the gymnast, whom I otherwise love. What an expressive face Gabby has, but her speech is almost canned. Same with Michelle.

I can't think of any reason she'd be pretending to be in love. There's no need for a marriage of convenience for any purpose nowadays. One of Michelle's mentors, the formidable Condoleezza Rice, has never married, and she managed to make something of a mark for herself in public life, yes?

fairly4 · Sep 13, 2012

Congratulations to the Happy Couple, best wishes for their future,

Mathman · Sep 13, 2012

skateluvr said:
...is there a ring pic in people mag?

You can see the ring in the video in post 47. :yes:

christinaskater · Sep 13, 2012

I'm so happy for Michelle and Clay!

Michelle is the greatest figure skater ever and I only wish her the best in life!

Michelle Kwan is engaged (per People magazine)

MFarone

Victura

demarinis5

Gold for the Winter Prince!

Tinymavy15

Sinnerman for the win

Krislite

Mathman

Mathman

Olympia

Mathman

Olympia

Bluebonnet

skateluvr

brightphoton

Tonichelle

Idita-Rock-n-Roll

Krislite

Bluebonnet

Olympia

fairly4

Mathman

christinaskater

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