不/没
bù / méi
不 is a door you closed; 没 is a footprint that was never made
The picture 不 is you pulling a door shut. 没 is looking back down the road and finding no footprints. 不 is about intent; 没 is about traces.
Where the picture shows up in 不/没
-
a door kept shut (habit, will)
我不喝酒。
wǒ bù hē jiǔ
I don't drink.
-
no footprints on the road behind
我昨天没喝酒。
wǒ zuótiān méi hē jiǔ
I didn't drink yesterday.
If the didn't is about the past, it is always 没. 不喝了 would mean I'm giving it up from now on.
-
a door shut ahead too
明天我不去了。
míngtiān wǒ bú qù le
I'm not going tomorrow after all.
The future has no ground for footprints yet, so 没 cannot be used there.
-
a stretch of road not yet walked
我还没吃饭呢。
wǒ hái méi chī fàn ne
I haven't eaten yet.
还没…呢 puts the weight on not yet.
-
before 是 it is always 不
他不是我们公司的人。
tā bú shì wǒmen gōngsī de rén
He isn't from our company.
The mirror rule: before 有 it is always 没. 不有 does not exist.