Beginners.
Are you musical? Which instrument do you play? There are so many to choose from: piano, flute, vioin, guitar, trumpet, drums and percussion instruments. I could go on and on. It can be fun to play an instrument, especially if you practice enough to become good at it. I started to play the violin last year. There are many pieces of music that I love which have main violin parts. Two of my favorites are Vivaldi's Four Seasons and Howard Shore's Lord of the Rings. I can lose myself in the music. I take a class once every two weeks. My teacher told me that it is important to practice every day. I try to, and when I do, I can see that I am improving. However, if I go for a week without practicing, my playing certainly does not improve. And if you play the violin badly, it sounds terrible. I suppose it is like all hobbies; you get better and better with practice. The hard work does pay off. My children are taking piano and guitar lessons, and we hope that next year, at Christmas time, we can all play carrols together. Perhaps we could play for my podcast listeners too.
Grammar notes.
Related vocabulary: woodwind instruments, stringed instruments, percussion instruments, concert, piece of music, composer, to practice (reg. verb), hobby.
Questions: Are you musical? Is she sporty? Are they flexible? Are we ready? Is it necessary?
Future: We hope that next year we can (will be able to) play together. They think that, in three years, they can (will be able to) buy a house. *Will be able to is grammatically accurate, but 'can' is commonly used.
To go for (time) without: If I go for a week without practicing, my playing sounds terrible. We went for a month without milk. She had gone for several months without paying her bills.
Advanced.
When it comes to being musical, my family is just starting out. My children are signed up to take their first piano and guitar lessons, and I have been playing the violin for only a year. But, I suppose, it is never to late to start, especially if you are willing to put the time and the practice in. The violin is quite a complex instrument. Not only do you have to position your fingers correctly to create the notes, but the bow has to move just right to create the right tone. If you are uptight or badly positioned, it can sound horrendous. So, needless to say, practicing is one of our family's routines. Any time, after the kids come home from school, you can hear sounds of guitar, violin, or mini organ echoing through the house. And, believe me, it often doesn't sound good. Even the dog will move away to another room to get away from the racket. But, it is all good. With practice comes progress; progress leads to skill, and skill should sound good at some point or other. I'm trying to encourage my busy husband to take up an instrument also. He tried the violin when he was in Kindergarten, but after several months, his parents couldn't stand the squeaks and grinds any more, so he was obliged to stop. The poor guy, he could have become a great violinist. Mind you, being a parent myself, I know the value of some ear plugs. At this stage, I think I will be using them quite a lot.
Grammar notes.
Related vocabulary: notes, bow, echo, squeaks, grinds, progress, skill, to stand (to not stand) something, to be willing, ear plugs.
Exs: I can't stand pork. She couldn't stand the noise. My parents can't stand their neighbors (neighbours).
'Racket' = colloquial British for bad noise.
Beginners.
Announcement: "The cold weather is back." Why would I say that in the middle of Winter? Surely, it has been cold since the beginning of the season? Well, not exactly. We had a break for about two weeks, when it stopped snowing and warmed up. How wonderful! I love the snow, but I do love to see the green grass again, and feel the warm sun on my skin. Yesterday, however, the real Winter weather returned. The air is moving down again from the North. It is icy. A tiny amount of snow fell during the day. Everything was cold and quiet again outside. Well, we went to bed, thinking nothing more about the weather. When we woke up it was freezing in the house. Our heater had broken down. Before the kids woke up, I built a fire in the fireplace, and my husband brought in an electric heater from the garage. That helped to warm the rooms so I could get the children off to school comfortably. I even turned the oven on for a short while to heat up the kitchen. It was, actually, a bit exciting, like we were camping. When things like that happen, it makes you appreciate electricity and how it makes life easy.
Grammar notes.
Useful vocabulary: announcement, not exactly, to warm up, tiny, freezing, to brake down, fireplace.
Verbs: to brake (brake, broke, broken), to wake up (wake, woke, woken).
* Would: Why would you say that? ( can mean "Why are you saying that?" or "Why did you say that?" ) Why would he spend all of the money in one store? I would run if I could. Would you pass me the salt, please?
Advanced.
I had a flash back this morning. I remembered my father's house in Scotland, and how he chooses to heat it. It is a two hundred year old building that used to house monks. The kitchen, as in many old farm houses, is central to the house. Though there are fireplaces in each room, the kitchen fireplace is active most of the day, and highly useful. Dad's routine in the morning is to get a fire going, using scrunched up newspapers, small bits of wood, and then logs. The heat quickly fills up the kitchen dining area. Then, the water tank, which is located somewhere above the fireplace on the second floor, heats up and provides plenty of warm water. Of course, my father and his wife have electrical heating and all the modern amenities, but they choose to have fire as a main heat source. Their previous house, in the South of England was the same, but two hundred years older. They renovated it, putting in radiators which were heated by the fireplace. It all worked really well. The reason I thought about this is because our electrical heating system broke down last night, and we don't have a backup. The house was very chilly this morning, so I lit a fire, turned on the oven, and got my children off to school quickly. How we take our amenities for granted! The ease of flicking a switch at a whim can make us lazy. Let's hope that the workmen get here soon...
Grammar notes.
Useful vocabulary: a flash back, to house, central, fireplace, routine, to scrunch up, water tank, amenities, a heat/ light source, to renovate, a backup, chilly.
Verbs: To backup. We only have gas in our house, and no other backup. Why didn't you back me up in the argument?
To get .... going/ on. Let's get a fire going/on. She will get the dinner going/on as soon as she's ready. (Both colloquial British).
Beginners.
Are you scared of anything? Spiders, perhaps? Monster masks? Being high up on a cliff's edge? Most people are scared of something. I'm sure that if you think long enough, you will be able to name something that spooks you or gives you the 'creeps'. I know some people who do not like to be in small spaces or places where there are too many people. That is called claustrophobia. I thought of this word today because some workmen came to my house to work in the crawl space. The crawl space is an area under the house. It is so low that you cannot stand up in it. Often it is unfinished, so there is just hard earth on the floor, and the walls are unpainted, just concrete. Water pipes and electric cables can be found in a crawl space, so it is a useful place to have if you need to fix one of them. I felt really sorry for the three men who worked under our house; they did a fantastic job, but they had to do it on their backs. When they came out, they were really dirty and exhausted. They must be so happy when their work is finished.
Grammar notes.
Useful vocabulary: unfinished, unpainted, incomplete, exhausted, crawl, scare, spook, the creeps.
* 's Exs: Mary's car is being repaired. The children's bedroom is a mess. The people's voice has been heard. The Jones's have invited us to dinner.
Advanced.
Last Summer, I had the opportunity to go to Scotland with my two oldest boys for a family reunion. My father had rented a Landmark Trust property which happened to be a castle. My brother flew in from New Zealand, relatives came up from London, and we all met up at this remotely located, beachside, crumbly looking castle. Wow! What a place it was! It had a spiral, stone staircase, creaky wooden floors, and even turrets at the top. It had been built in the fifteen hundreds, but recently renovated to be very liveable. No phones, no television. Surrounded by a misty forest and overlooking the beach, you can imagine, it was the ideal place to catch up with eachother and to have adventures. One of the games that we loved to play was 'Sardines'. It is similar to hide and seek, but only one person hides and everybody else has to seek. As people find the hider, they stay quietly with him until only one person is left. Now, if any of our group happened to be claustrophobic, that person would have had a problem. The castle had false panels that led into secret rooms, nooks and crannies gallore, and even a real, small dungeon. We squeezed our way in together, trying not to giggle as our numbers grew. At times it was hard to breathe in those tight, dark places. It was no problem for the spiders whose webs were often left on our hair. I could go on, but I don't want to give you the creeps.....
Grammar notes.
Useful vocabulary: spiral, staircase, false panels, nooks and crannies, tight, overlooking, remote, turrets, reunion, opportunity.
Subjunctive: If anyone is claustrophobic, he won't appreciate the small plane. If was claustrophobic, he wouldn't have appreciated the small plane.
Beginners.
Well, I can't believe that it is that time of year again. How sad. It is time to take down all of the Christmas decorations and to put them away in boxes. Usually, people do that a few days after Christmas, around the first week in January. But, I love decorations. Some of my friends laugh at me because we have five Christmas trees. Nearly everywhere you go in our house, you can find a tree. But now, even I realize* that it is time to put away the trees, the ornaments, the lights, and the extra bits and pieces that I have all over the house. Outside is different, though. The lights that I have put on the pine trees have to stay for a while. My reason, well, Winter is dark, and sometimes gloomy. So, why not have some pretty lights outside to make the neighborhood look cheerful throughout the Winter? For now, though, it is time to get out the packing boxes, fill them up, and put them in storage where they can sit quietly for another year.
Grammar notes.
Useful expressions: Though = however/ but. Very useful addition to a sentence. Inside/ outside, gloomy, storage, packing boxes.
Realize = realise in British english.
Advanced.
The thought of putting away something beautiful and not seeing it for a whole year isn't really appealing to me, especially when the days are short and often gloomy. If I were a disciplined person who followed tradition, there would be no Christmas decorations in the house because they would have been put away straight after New Year's Day. What can I say? I have a penchant for anything that smacks of Noel. Yes it is true, once I kept the decorations up until April. Yes, it is also true that we have not one Christmas tree but five. And yes, once, when I was teaching High School, I kept a miniature Christmas tree up in my classroom until June....say no more; I obviously have a problem. Anyway, this year, one of my resolutions is to put my family's concerns about my sanity to rest, and get the decorations put away before February. I have scattered evidence of my new way of thinking all over the house: storage boxes. No, they are not filled yet, but their presence shows my willingness to get on with the job. Us addicts need to take baby steps. I will get there eventually. I'm sure that ninety nine percent of the stuff will be packed and stored away within a couple of weeks. The one percent? Um.....perhaps I'll indulge myself with a tiny trinket still in the house until, say, July......
Grammar notes.
Subjunctive: If I were a disciplined person, I would have..... Exs: If I were President, I would improve education. If he was more considerate, he would probably have more friends. If they weren't so expensive, we could buy them for the children for Christmas.
Vocabulary: trinket, eventually, addict, willingness, sanity, concern, miniature, concern, to appeal, penchant.
Beginners.
Today was a very special day here in the U.S. Do you know what the special occasion was? It was the inauguration of the 44th President, Barack Hussein Obama. It is a time of excitement. Everybody wants to see changes. We all wonder what Obama will do. Will he change the politics in Washington? Will the economy improve? Who knows? Time will tell. The inaugural ceremony is an important tradition. It is a huge celebration; a time to welcome the new President and to say goodbye to the previous one. Do you think that George W. Bush is sad to leave the Oval office and to retire? Perhaps. I think that it must be a relief to retire after being in such an important position for eight years. Phew! It makes me feel tired just thinking about it!
Grammar notes.
Useful vocabulary: inauguration, ceremony, celebration, to retire, the President, politics.
Questions: Do you know what the special occasion was? Exs: Do they know what the problem with the car was? Why don't you tell me what the problem is?
Do you think that he is sad? Do you think I look fat in this dress? Don't you think (that) it is time to go? * the word 'that' is optional.
Advanced.
Yesterday and today were auspicious and significant days for U.S. history. Yesterday was Martin Luther King day. It is a national holiday to celebrate that great civil rights leader who forged a deeper, more equitable national conscience about civil justice. And today was the inauguration of Barack Obama. What a tremendous ceremony and celebration it was. Talk about expectation and hope becoming almost physical as the event took place. High hopes have been placed on the shoulders of the new President. But, does he represent more than racial progress in this country? One would hope so. The economy needs to turn around before too many become unemployed. Is this achievable in one term of office? Obama said throughout his presidential campaign that it would take years to correct the underlying errors of government that have led to this financial crisis. This seems to be the main concern; it is uppermost on people's minds. The health service and national security are also huge issues that will be dealt with. I cannot even begin to imagine how taxing and exhausting the job of President must be, especially if you are a person of conscience. How could you detatch yourself sufficiently from work to remain sane, yet remain in-touch and sensitive enough to be an effective change maker? There is no doubt that Obama faces huge challenges, but hopefully he has the strength of character needed to meet those challenges honestly.
Grammar notes.
Useful vocabulary: auspicious, significant, equitable, conscience, achievable, underlying errors, uppermost, issue, sensitive, in-touch, exhausting.
Beginners.
Some people say that the weather is changing all over the world. Do you believe that? What do you think? I'm not sure if it is true, but sometimes the local weather does something unusual. Here in Wenatchee, the weather is normally very regular: very hot Summers, very cold, snowy Winters, and short warm Springs and Autumns. No shocks, no surprises. Well, this year has been a little different. A couple of weeks ago, a warm wind blew up from Hawaii. It blew all night. For twenty-four hours, all you could hear was the woosh of the wind and 'drip, drip, drip' of melting snow. The grass and bushes are green again, and we have had no new snow. Instead, a thick fog has appeared. For some days it has been so thick that the traffic has had to move very slowly. It is quite a change for this town; everybody is talking about it. My dog is happy because she can go for walks without getting icy paws. It is a relief for local pets, but you drivers be careful!
Grammar notes.
Questions: Do you believe that/ this? Exs: Can you believe it? Don't you believe me?
Verbs: This year has been very different. Exs: This year has been the best so far for the corn harvest. She has been ill for three months. All the castles in France have been renovated.
To have to. Exs: I have to study more. I had to clean the kitchen last night. You will have to wait. They had to practice for the concert all year. We have had to fix the floor several times.
Useful vocab and expressions: people say that, normally, a couple of, instead, it's a relief, be careful!
Advanced.
Having lived in London, I am quite used to fog. Please don't think that it is always foggy, though. There are plenty of days when the air is perfectly clear and sunny. Also, because it rains often in England, the air after the rain is quite clear. Because England was a large producer of coal, it was burned in every city. The mixture of smoke and fog would make what is called 'smog' or 'pea soup'. In 1956, however, a Clean Air Act was passed which prohibited the burning of coal in public areas. Consequently, London's air is much cleaner. Also the buildings have been cleaned of the dark residue that had been left by the coal smoke. I have been to some countries where there is still smog in certain cities: Los Angeles has bad smog, and so does Mexico City. Fog, on the other hand, is not a health threat. It is simply another type of precipitation. Actually, I think that it is a beautiful phenomena. It certainly conjures up ideas of mystery and romance. Perhaps that is why so many great writers and poets have come from England.....
Grammar notes.
Verbs: Having + past participle. Exs: Having lived in Dubai, she has a great understanding of Arabic culture. Having found the fossil, they preceeded to clean and examine it.
Useful expressions: consequently, a phenomena, another type/kind of, to conjure up, coal, smog, precipitation, fog/ foggy.
Beginners.
The U.S. is definitely a shopping culture. There are so many things to buy, and so many advertisements on television that it is hard to not buy. Unfortunately, my children see the advertisements on television, and think that they need all of the toys. "You have plenty of toys," I say to them all the time. They have toys in their bedrooms, in the lounge, and even in the kitchen. But still they think that they need more toys. For Christmas, Domini, my daughter, got a huge, mechanical dog called Biscuit. She had begged me for it. Well, perhaps it wasn't a good idea. The toy is amazing, though. It makes all kinds of noises; it sits and lies down, moves its paws and tail, and even pants. However, Biscuit's magic must have disappeared because the kids don't play with it at all. They did for two or three days. Now it is in a corner with other unwanted toys. Perhaps I should wrap it up and save it for another child's birthday.
Grammar notes.
Useful expressions: It is hard to (not) .... exs. It is hard to say "no"; it is hard to not laugh; it is hard to drive at night; it is hard to not get angry.
Perhaps it wasn't the best idea. More exs. Perhaps, it was for the best. Perhaps it wasn't the right time. Perhaps it was a mistake.
Verbs: To beg (reg); to buy (buy, bought, bought); to wrap (reg); to save (reg).
Advanced.
Do you ever regret having bought something? In retrospect, I have a mental history of objects that I acquired at some stage, usually with enthusiasm, only to wish later that I had never bought them. Yard sale finds are definite objects of guilt. When I first discovered the practice of yard saling, it became an indulgence, and soon the bric-a-brac, or "junk" as my husband calls it, started piling up at home. "Oh, but this is sooo useful," I would say, after spending a few dollars on a wobbly coffee table. "I just need to fix the legs and give it a lick of paint..." The fate of the coffee table was, of course, to be resold in my own yard sale a year later. It wasn't always the case, though. A few items have been put to good use...I actually can't remember which ones at this moment, but I'm sure there are some somewhere in the house. The latest 'oops' of comercialism in this family was the buying of Biscuit, the giant, mechanical dog. It does everything apart from making the tea and driving the kids to school, and of course it is fluffy. My older kids told me that it's a bit scary, sort of crazy and robotic. Either way, it is sitting in a lonely corner with the other unwanted toys that cost too much. Do you think that I could accidentally, on purpose, make it disappear? Maybe Ebay is the solution....
Grammar notes.
Verbs: to regret (reg); to acquire (reg); to discover (reg); to become (become, became, become); to give (give, gave, given); to cost (cost, cost, cost).
Useful expressions: To regret having done something. Exs. I regret having trusted him. She regretted visiting the cemetery at night.
At some stage = once, once upon a time, at a time in the past or future.
The practice of... exs. They devote themselves to the practice of prayer. They are famous for their practice of mud slinging.
A few items = a few things.
It's slightly/ a bit/ a little scary/ dark/ noisy/ rusty etc.
Beginners.
Snow keeps us busy. It needs to be moved and removed. If it is not moved, life becomes difficult. Cars, trucks and buses have difficulty driving along the streets and up the hills if there is too much snow. Around our house the snow builds up higher and higher. A few nights ago it snowed all night. It was silent, beautiful, and non-stop. When we woke up in the morning, we were quite surprised at the height of the white stuff. We felt surrounded. After my children went to school, I got out the snow blower to clear the driveway. Usually my husband does that. But, it really needed to be done. I carefully read the instructions and started up the motor. It was noisy, but fast and effective. The whole thing took me about one hour. When I had almost finished, I saw something infront of me. It was a deer. It was very close and looked quite calm. It was a female. It walked past and looked at me. Then it went on its way. What a beautiful surprise on a snowy day.
Grammar notes.
Regular verbs: to remove, to build (up), to snow, to clear, to finish, to look.
Irregular verbs: to have, to become, to wake up, to feel, to do, to take, to go.
Useful vocabulary: busy, difficult, up hill, higher, a few, snow blower, driveway, fast and effective.
Advanced.
Because the snowy Winter lasts for about four months here, animals who normally live in the surrounding mountains come down into town to find food. Food is scarce up in the hills for animals like the deer. It is plentiful for them, however, in the town. Hedges, bushes and other plants provide all the meals they need for the Winter, plus they have sheltered, wind-free gardens to bed down in. Us gardeners are generally not too happy about our prized plants being gobbled by these night time eaters, but, that's just how it is. Generations of deer have come and gone through this town. They are so plentiful that they actually become a nuissance. As we drive through the snowy neighborhoods, we have to keep a careful watch for deer families crossing the roads. Often, a little one will be found bounding along a side walk or hesitating right in the middle of the road. The other day, while I was snow blowing our driveway, a doe calmly walked right past me. She completely took me by surprise. She looked as comfortable in the neighborhood as I feel. Off she went, without even checking over her shoulder to see if I was following or could cause a threat. She knew better. I was the one caught off guard. Another magical occurance that comes with the season.
Grammar notes.
Useful vocabulary: snowy, normally, surrounding, scarce, plentiful, sheltered, a nuissance, a doe, a buck.
Verb expressions: to bed down (reg), to be scarce (irreg), to gobble (reg), to keep watch (reg), to bound along (reg), to take by surprise (irreg), to know better (irreg).