1.Barbara: Liz! How are you? I'm so glad you're back. We all missed you!
2.Liz: Oh, thanks. I can't believe that the six months have been and gone!
3.Barbara: So, you must be super-fluent in English now, right? It sounds like the language course in York was really thorough.
4.Liz: My English really is so much better! Well, when you live around it everyday, it has to get better, right? The people in York are so friendly and chatty. And the city is amazing.
5.Barbara: We have to go to our favorite coffee shop, so you can tell me all about it. And don't forget your photos!
6.Liz: That's a great idea. But gosh, I have so much to tell; I don't know where to start!
Click here to download The Golden Whisper for free!
Click the link for the Android app
They walk sideways on their ten, bony legs. They are hard, and seem unfriendly. They run away from humans. Some people have them as pets, but I wouldn't! Their world is water, rivers, oceans, where they live with other cold-blooded animals. They are experts at hiding. And if you catch one, watch out! Your fingers will be pinched if you're not careful. You've probably guessed that I'm talking about the crab. It's a wild, sea creature, though some of them live in rivers. And it is unusual, compared with(1) most animals. It doesn't have any fur or feathers, and it doesn't seem to show emotion. It even wears its skeleton on the outside! One thing that it really does have is a good taste. It was that delicious flavor that prompted (2) my family and some friends to go to Birch Bay. The place is 100 miles north of Seattle, and about 35 miles south of Canada. It is a beautiful, wide bay, that is surrounded by forest. Our friends had a boat, crabbing pots, and all the equipment needed to trap our dinner. The sea must be healthy in that area, because after waiting for just a few hours, we had 30 crabs, far too much for us! We cleaned and boiled them right next to the beach, and then had a feast! The sun went down as we ate, and the most amazing colors developed on the horizon and through the sky. It was really a magical time. Those hard, but delicious creatures had lead us to a beautiful part of the country. We took so many photos of the sunset and its changing colors, and we sat after our meal, and enjoyed the gentle lap(3) of the waves on the shore.
1. 'Compared with..' is an essential tool to use in English conversation and writing. It allows you to create interesting, intermediate sentences. It points to differences, whereas saying 'compared to' points to similarities.
a. Life can be compared to a journey.
b. Ludovico Enaudi, as a composer, can be compared to Vivaldi in many ways.
c. My life in London was very different compared with my life in Wenatchee.
d. Compared with our school funds from last year, this year's funds are really low.
2. 'To prompt' is to encourage or remind. It can be used in many ways.
a. The wonderful weather prompted us to go for a hike.
b. The taste of crab prompted us to go fishing in Birch Bay.
c. During the play, the drama teacher prompted Deborah when she forgot her lines.
d. The rise in the price of milk prompted demonstrations in the capital city today.
3. 'Lap' is a noun and a verb. Your lap is the top of both thighs when you are sitting down, where someone or perhaps a pet can sit. 'To lap' is a gentle forward and backward motion, like a wave on the edge of the shore, or the tongue of an animal when it drinks.
a. We sat at the edge of the river and watched the water lap on the shore.
b. I gave my cat some milk and she lapped it up!
c. Her granddaughter sat on her lap and told her about her day at school.
d. My dog jumped up onto my lap and got me covered in mud!
Click here to download The Golden Whisper for free!
Click the link for the Android app
Marie Tussaud was a French woman who became famous for her wax models. She was born in Strasbourg in 1761, and developed her hobby by watching the doctor who her mother worked for. He taught her the difficult art of wax modeling. When she was older, she travelled around Great Britain, showing many of her creations, and eventually settled in London, opening up her famous wax museum. There are actually many Madame Tussauds. One that I went to this summer was in San Francisco. It was the first time that we had been to that city, and as (1)we were there for only a couple of days, we wanted to see all the main tourist attractions. We had a great time in the museum, and really laughed a lot. I was surprised when I learned that you are allowed to touch the wax models. When we learned that, there was no stopping us(2). We hugged them, kissed them, pulled faces near them, and copied their poses. When I spotted Leonardo di Caprio, I had to pose with him. He is one of my favorite actors. I pretended that he and I were walking on the red carpet to see the premier of his latest film. When I looked at the photos we had taken, the wax models looked more real than we did (3)! The figures are so perfectly made. I couldn't decide which one of us looked more real, me or di Caprio!
1. '..as we were there for only a couple of days, we wanted...' as here is used the same way as 'because' or 'seeing as though'. It is good to practice producing such long sentences with as.
a. We got off the bus, and as we already had the tickets, we went straight into the theatre.
b. Maybe you can explain our car problem to the mechanic, as you know more about cars than I do.
2. 'There was no stopping us/ there's no stopping us' is obvious in meaning, and is used to express enthusiasm or determination.
a. We wanted to hike, but it had rained for two weeks. When the sun finally came out, we put our boots on and headed out. There was no stopping us!
b. The business owner was so angry about the rise in taxes, that he went to the local government building to complain. There was no stopping him!
3. 'The wax models looked more real than we did!' I chose this sentence in order to practice the end auxiliary 'did'. This type of sentence sounds very natural. Remember, that we don't use 'did' with the verb 'to be'.
a. He ate more cake than everyone else did!
b. He is definitely taller than you are.
c. She is more generous than you are, but she has less money than you do.
d. She studies less than you do but still gets good grades.
e. They saw the movie before we did.
Download my free ebook, 'The Golden Whisper'
Click the link for the Android app
A museum that is close to my house is the Cashmere Museum and Pioneer Village. Cashmere is a little town that is just eight miles away. It is a very small, country town surrounded by hills, and is known for(1) two things: a candy factory, and the museum. As my aunt was visiting from Spain, and is very interested in history, I thought that it would be nice to take her and my mother there for a day out. The museum had a lot of Indian artifacts and photos, and by Indian, I mean Native American Indian. There was an impressive amount of tools, baskets, and ceremonial instruments. This area is rich in Native American history. Outside of the museum building, however, was a collection of original pioneer houses. They were wooden cabins, and had been collected from a forty mile radius(2). They were arranged in a square, and together formed a perfect little village. There was a school, a few shops, a jail, a saloon, a church, and a couple of private houses. They had all been built around the 1880's. Everything inside the cabins revealed the progress of history. There was a printing cabin, with an original printing press. This reminded me that printed news, at that time, was quite a new thing. The cabins revealed to me how sophisticated our lives are now; back then(3), they were very basic. The homes usually had just one or two rooms, with the beds quite close to the oven, so they could stay warm in the winter. The photos that you can see on this link show a how the pioneers of this area lived, just before the Industrial revolution reached the U.S.
1. '...is known for' means 'has the reputation for', 'does something regularly' or 'has done something memorable'.
a. Rosa Parks is known for initiating the civil rights movement in the U.S.
b. Paul Klee is known for experimenting with color in his art.
c. Mrs Brown is known for her fabulous pies.
2. 'Radius' is a mathematical term meaning the line from the center of a circle to the perimeter.
a. To calculate the area of a circle, you need to know the radius.
b. The police searched a radius of two miles outside of the city.
3. '..back then..' refers to a point in time that has already been mentioned. It is mainly used to refer to the distant past.
a. When my father was a boy, the Second World War was taking place. Back then he lived on a Canadian island.
b. The pioneers came to Wenatchee in the 1800's. Back then, they didn't have electricity.
Download my free ebook, 'The Golden Whisper'
Click the link for the Android app
Did you know that there are over 30 different varieties of pumpkins? They are grown on every continent apart from Antarctica, and they are used for cooking, for livestock(1), and for decoration. They have been around for a very long time. The oldest recorded evidence of pumpkins dates back 7000 years to Mexico. Although it grows like a vegetable, it is actually a fruit. And what a pretty fruit it is! A friend of ours has recently opened a special pumpkin patch(2), that is a few acres in size. It is called Annie's Fun Farm, and is open to the public for family entertainment. Paths lined with pumpkins have been made, as well as an area to throw apples with giant elastic ropes. There's an inflatable castle, a corn maze(3), and rides on a tractor and trailer. It is a perfect place to take family or friends to have some fun, and to choose that special collection of pumpkins, if that's what you like to do. I filled up a little shopping cart with pumpkins of different shapes, sizes, and colors, to put next to my front door. I also walked through the corn maze. Believe it or not, I got a little scared by the rustle of leaves behind me! What a big baby! But that is actually what the public likes: a little fun, a little scare, and a car load of pumpkins to take home.
1. 'Livestock' means animals that are raised for profit. They are usually farm animals, but can also be horses and similar animals that can be sold as workers instead of for their meat.
a. The farmer has a lot of corn and also livestock.
b. In New Zealand, sheep and deer are bred as livestock.
2. 'Patch' in this podcast means an area of land where the pumpkins grow exclusively. Patch is also used to mean a square piece of material that covers a hole in clothes, or the cover for a blind eye. It can also be used figuratively meaning 'to cover' or 'to repair'.
a. The pirate wore a patch over one eye.
b. Last year we had a huge cabbage patch in our vegetable garden.
c. My grandmother sewed a patch onto my jeans.
d. After arguing for years, we have finally patched up our relationships.
3. 'Maze' is a noun that means a labyrinth or a complicated area.
a. It is common in the Autumn to find places of entertainment with mazes made of corn.
b. Some traditional English gardens have mazes made of very tall hedges.
Download my free ebook, 'The Golden Whisper'
Click the link for the Android app
One of the benefits of growing your own flowers is picking them and bringing them into the house. Bouquets, after all(1), are expensive in the shops. They bring color, and light, and cheer to an entryway or a kitchen table, but I hate to pay ten dollars for something that I can grow for just pennies. It's not just the cost, however. My biggest thrill in gardening is growing plants from seeds. There is something magical about seeing a little piece of nothing sprout, and then eventually produce a flower. So, with scissors in my hand, and a vase full of water, I walk around my back yard and snip(2) here and snip there until the vase is full. But now it's October, and the summer blooms are coming to an end(3). However, you can extend the season a little by doing two things: you cut off the dead heads, and you fertilize. It's a little trick that I learned from my mother who is also a gardening fanatic. This way, you can double the amount of flowers that you get in one season. It's really worth the effort. In fact, a couple of years ago, my garden produced so many flowers while I was on holiday, that my relatives came regularly to gather the flowers for bouquets for their own homes.
1. 'After all' is powerful idiom that means many things: nevertheless, considering the evidence, ultimately. It points to the most important part of a sentence.
a. The train was an hour late, but we arrived on time after all (like nevertheless)
b. I painted each room and rearranged the furniture; after all, it's my house!(ultimately)
c. Heathrow is always packed with people, after all it is one of the busiest airports in the world. (considering the evidence)
2. 'Snip' is both a noun and a verb, and mean a quick, small cut of scissors.
a. I will go to the hair dressers, but I only need a few snips.
b. The instructions for cooking the noodles say," Snip one corner of the plastic packet, and cook in the microwave on high for two minutes."
3. 'To come to an end' is a longer way of saying 'to finish'. It implies that the finishing is taking some time.
a. The long summer days are coming to an end. The days are slowly getting shorter and shorter.
b. The days of the museum are finally coming to an end, after being open for 50 years. (it will close in a few weeks/months)
Download my free ebook, 'The Golden Whisper'
Click the link for the Android app
The hills of Wenatchee are an unusual color for this time of year. They are usually a sandy brown, due to the dry climate. The brief green of the spring quickly changes into tan(1) as the sun gets hotter and hotter, and the rain stops. The hills are a popular place for hikers and bikers. We walked up one of the many trails a few weeks ago, and experienced a very different hike than normal. The whole area, reaching up to the top of the highest hill, was black. The fires that we had this summer completely consumed the grass, and left nothing but ash. And that's not to mention(2) the houses that also burned. It was a disaster. But now, as the cooler weather is here, there is a stream of(3) people walking at the weekends. As we headed up to a summit, we came across a sign that read, "Keep on the trails; give the plants a chance." What that meant was that we should not walk off the path because plants are beginning to grow again. And sure enough, as I looked around, here and there I saw green shoots(4), and even some plants that are ready to flower. There is a purple lupine that normally flowers in the early spring that is emerging again. The fire must have stimulated the deep bulbs, and now, in October, they are ready to bloom! Nature has been tricked. As I looked around, I realized that although the fires had been overpowering, they were only superficial.All the potential under the earth was still there; the unseen was unaffected. Life was coming again from the ashes. And now, in a short time, the hills will be covered again in purple lupines.
1. 'Tan' is both a color and two verbs. 'To tan oneself' means to spend time in the sun to brown your skin, and it also means to treat an animal skin in order to turn it into leather.
a. I try to avoid the sun; however, I do look good with a tan.
b. The people on the beach are all tanning themselves.
2. 'Not to mention' is a phrase we use that introduces extra information into a sentence. The information is usually important or significant. It is similar to saying 'also', but more emphatic.
a. His popularity as a singer has grown, not to mention the sales of his records.
b. He was stressed out by the wedding arrangements, not to mention the expense!
3. 'A stream' or 'a constant stream' is a useful expression that describes a consistent amount of something, often people.
a. There was a stream of people all day at the book signing.
b. I had a stream of phone calls this morning, and I couldn't get anything else done!
4. 'Shoots' are the first signs of a plant growing, the new, upright leaves that come out of the ground, as if they are being shot out of a gun.
a. When I plant mangetout, I cover them with a net because the birds like to eat the shoots.
b. When cows eat grass, it stimulates the growth of new shoots.
Download my free ebook, 'The Golden Whisper'
Click the link for the Android app
