英语博客(A cup of English):013 Do you have gas?

Do you have gas? Beginners. What kind of a question is that? Are you talking about my body or my car? Well, actually, I am talking about your car. Gas, or petrol, as it is called in England, is a big subject at the moment. Driving a car has become re

英语博客：A check-up at the dentist.

A check-up at the dentist. Summer time is check-up time for the kids. When school is out, it's convenient to take them to their various appointments with doctors or dentists. Now, believe it or not, dental check-ups are quite exciting for my kids. I

英语博客：The City Mouse and the Country Mouse.

The City Mouse and the Country Mouse (part 1). Once upon a time, a country mouse named Oliver lived in a hole under the root of a big, old oak tree. Oliver loved the sound of squirrels chattering during the day and crickets chirping at night. He love

英语博客：Rikki-tikki-tavi part 2.

Rikki-tikki-tavi part 2. Who is Nag? I am Nag. My family has ruled this garden for thousands of years. Look at me and be afraid. Rikki-tikki was scared for only a minute. He knew that as a mongoose, he was supposed to fight snakes. Nag knew it too. L

英语博客：George and the Dragon.

图片1 Saint George and the Dragon (part 1). This is the tale of Saint George and the dragon.Iit has been told for over 15 centuries. It takes place during a time called the Dark Ages, when kings ruled the land, wizzards cast spells, and monsters ro

英语博客：Saint George and the Dragon part 2.

图片1 Saint George and the Dragon (part 2). I am Princess Sabra, she said. Come with me. They tiptoed through what was once a deep, green forest. Sabra explained why the kingdom lived in such fear. A fearful dragon had lived in the kigdom for many

英语博客：A growing garden.

One thing that I do in the morning, is to drive my children to school. It doesn't take very long, perhaps five minutes. Parents can pull up into a parking area that is near the school playing field to drop their kids off. Something caught my eye, the

英语博客：A stowaway praying mantis.

图片1 Those of you who listen to my podcast on a regular basis, know that one of my hobbies is gardening. Whenever I have a free moment, I'm out there planting, weeding, or sowing seeds. It is September now, and the season for growing is just about

英语博客：The colors of Galloway.

One of the places we stayed this summer was Whithorn, Scotland, where my father lives. It is one of many picturesque towns in Galloway. Whithorn happens to be very famous; it is considered possibly Scotland's first town. It is the starting point of C

英语博客：Friendly or scary?

As I drive around town, I find myself saying the occasional oooo!, ahhh!, or oh?! Do you know why? There are Halloween decorations all over the place, and they make a real impression. There seem to be two approaches to decorating for Halloween: frien

英语博客：A Smallwood's tradition.

Every year, either in the summer, or around October, we make a trip to Smallwood's Farm. It is a family-run farm with a petting zoo. All of the produce grown on the farm is sold directly to the public. Through the years, it has grown from a small att

英语博客：Oksana, Daniel, and Russel.

My good friend Nataliya called me a few days ago, and invited me to a concert at a local church. There is a very good Russian pianist, Oksana Ezhokina, you might have heard of her. I vaguely remembered the name. She has performed a few times in Wenat

英语博客：A stack for winter.

We used to have a large pine tree in our front garden. It was a very tall, old one. It was planted about thirty years ago, but last year, we decided to cut it down. I wouldn't normally agree to chop down a tree, but this one was yucky. Half of one si

英语博客：An eye for light.

As we move into the middle of November, the countryside seems to be changing every day. The colorful leaves that decorate the whole valley are beginning to fall, and preparations are being made for the long, cold winter. I am trying to go for walks a

英语博客：Bilingual night.

One of the things that I had on the calendar this month was the bilingual night at my children's school. It is held a few times a year, to inform parents about progress being made with the school's dual language program. Tonight was the first meeting

英语博客：Gingerbread houses.

Aren't holiday traditions great! I'm always fascinated by the many ways that people of different cultures celebrate special times. We use symbols, songs, colors, food, actions, religious rituals, and get togethers to express our humanity. And we all

英语博客：Do I make you nervous?

I have recently been conducting interviews with people in town who have businesses. Why? Because I am beginning to build a website of interviews and dialogues. I hope to launch it before Christmas;....let's see if I can get it ready in time. It sound

英语博客：Messing about on the water.

During the weekend, I took my two youngest children to the park. My youngest son had insisted for the best part of half a day, that we go fishing. It's not exactly the right season for catching a fish, but for 'messing about on the water' it is just

英语博客：A feather nest.

It's time that I bought a new camera. I need a digital that has a decent zoom. I realized that the other day when I was outside, trying to get a good shot of two birds who were nesting. I had been busy throwing the ball to our dogs, when I saw a flas

英语博客：Perfume in the air.

Something has been happening recently that pleases me a lot. My newly planted roses have been flowering. For some reason I didn't expect them to make such a show this year, with them being new. My entryway project has continued, and I ended up planti