英语博客：A surprise package.

My morning routine has ups and downs*. First thing in the morning, I find myself rushing around like a frantic woman, trying to get my children up out of bed, and off to school. I'm usually still in my pajamas (pyjamas)* when I drop the kids off, and

英语博客：An unusual way to advertise.

Do you ever watch the programs (programmes) on television that show the funniest international advertisements? They generally come out about Christmas time, and provide an hour of side-splitting* entertainment. Advertising is to be scrutinized*. Even

英语博客：Student of the month.

What kind of characteristics or behavior can get you the title of Student of the Month? What would you imagine them to be? Intelligent? Avid* reader? High scorer? Or, are there other qualities that can get you noticed by teachers and rewarded. It loo

英语博客(A cup of English):096 A new harvest.

Beginners. One of the things I really enjoy is gardening. I have a patch of vegetable garden in one of the corners of our back yard. It has four raised beds. Two of these are wide wooden boxes which my husband put together. In these I put a mixture o

英语博客(A cup of English):094 Father's Day.

Beginners. Father's Day is celebrated here in the United States on the twenty first of June. It is a day when special attention is given to fathers. Shops are filled with cards of all sorts, thanking the fathers and grandfathers for being great peopl

英语博客：Labels of the past.

have probably learned from my podcasts, that the region where I live is agricultural. It is rural, the communities are small, and its post native american indian roots lie in the apple tree. I realised the other day how I take the apple tree for gran

英语博客：Smoke to the north.

The view from the back of our house faces north, looking at the hills on either side of the Columbia river. They are brown this time of year, after a hot and dry summer. For a few days, the view was hard to see because there was smoke to the north(1)

英语博客：NBC Olympic frustration.

Oh, I'm frustrated. I haven't seen the opening ceremony of the London 2012 Olympics. I've been searching on the internet, but all I can find are a few highlights(1). NBC, here in the U.S. refused to show a live stream (2) of the event. They had their

英语博客：Back in business.

We're back in business! In fact, I'm back in business. This is an English expression, an idiom(1). And what does it mean? It means that things are working again as they should. I decided to call this podcast 'Back in business' because I am beginning

英语博客：Fire to the West.

Do you remember a few episodes ago, a podcast called Smoke to the North? We learned how to say that something is going on in a particular direction. Well, recently, we have had very bad fires to the West which are still burning. The photo on the blog

英语博客：Fashion dictates.

Mum, please don't buy me any clothes. I just want to go shopping for clothes with Dad. This request was made by my almost thirteen year old, and echoed(1) by my fourteen year old. It was totally unexpected. In fact, I have never heard anything like t

英语博客：Analysis Time - Wolf Debate.

Farmers, ranchers(1) and county officials(2) from Eastern Washington said a plan to manage(3) wolves as they are re-established in the state has good ideas but doesn't go far enough to cover their potential losses(4) or protect their property. Wolves

英语博客：An Elizabethan Collar.

Do you ever check your bills? It's a good practice(1), but sometimes seems unnecessary. If you do, however, you might find the occasional odd charge, or you might have a question about something on the bill that you don't recognize. That is exactly w

英语博客：Analysis Time - Science For The Young

Nationwide(1), metal theft has become a serious problem since about 2005, according to(2) a 2010 report on metal theft by the U.S. Department of Justice. That's when metal prices rose substantially(3). In 2002, for example, copper prices hit a record

英语博客：Playing with whales

Mum, can you put in your password? is a question that I hear almost on a daily basis. My kids are into apps in a big way(1). We are slowly getting sucked(2) into the app market. I allow my daughter to play on my iPhone every now and then(3). That's f

英语博客：Analysis Time - New Gun Laws

Facing powerful opposition to new gun laws, President Barack Obama is considering(1) 19 steps that he could take through executive action(2). The steps could include punishing(3) people who lie on gun sale background checks(4), getting more complete

英语博客：Lilly.

We have a new addition to our house. It's a furry, playful little thing that, at the moment, is fast asleep(1). Lilly is her name, but I'm not sure if it suits(2) her. Most of the time 'mini monster' would suit her, as she hides around the corners, w

英语博客：Analysis time, - Quiet Books.

This following paragraph was taken from a home magazine that focuses on storage and using spaces well in the home. It might seem, in this age of electronic books and computer tablets, that a library is an outdated (1)room to include in a home. But, i

英语博客：Start the year with light.

One of the great consolations(1) of the end of the year is a New Year's Eve party. We don't always go to a party on New Year's Eve. Sometimes we prefer to stay at home, by the fire, with good food and drink, family and maybe a few friends, and welcom

英语博客：Basic Pronunciation Practice.

Excuse me, am I close to the college? Yes, it's just around the corner. Which department do you need? I need to go to the Science department. Ok, that's on the fourth floor. Go through the main entrance, and on your left you'll find the stairs. Thank