７月１日 日曜日にさざれ石公園に行きました。 岐阜県と滋賀県の境にある伊吹山の東山裾にあります。 旧春日村（現在揖斐川町） 君が代に歌われているさざれ石です。
Pets
Posted by: MichikoNakamura Sat, 24 Nov 2007 21:50:47 GMT
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Read this opening conversation:
Kid: Mommy, can we have a puppy?
Mom: Go ask your father.
Kid: Dad, may we please have a puppy?
Dad: No, our house is too small and we don't have enough room.
Kid: Please, please? Just a small one.
Dad: Who's going to take care of it?
Kid: I will.
Dad: If you don't we'll have to give it to uncle Brian.
Kid: O.K. I promise I'll take good care of it.
Dad: All right, let's go to the pet store.
In America, small children often beg their parents for a pet. Parents and children often disagree about pets. Especially who's going to take care of them. Read these example conversations:
Michael: Who's going to take care of it?
Michiko: I will.
Michael: Who's going to feed it?
Michiko: Johnny and I will.
Michael: Who's going to clean up the mess?
Michiko: Mom and I will.
When you go to a pet store, you can tell the clerk one of these sentences:
"I'm looking for a puppy"
or
"I'm looking for a bird"
The clerk will tell you what they have. Then you can say:
"May we see them?"
The clerk might want more details of what you want. In this case the father wanted a small house dog with short fur. What is the opposite of house dog? We just say: "My dog lives outside."
If you don't know what kind of dog you have it's called a mutt or a poi dog in Hawaii. If your animal is purebred it's called a pedigree. They usually have pedigree papers that confirm their ancestry. Read this next conversation:
Jolene: What a beautiful dog! Is she a pedigree?
Jessica: Yes, she is but we don't have her papers because they were destroyed in a fire.
Jolene: That's too bad, you could make a lot of money breeding her.
Jessica: The vet said she's too small to have babies. She was the runt of the litter you know.
Read these example sentences:
"Is your dog a pedigree?"
"She was the runt of the litter"
The runt of the litter means that the animal was the smallest and weakest of the family. When you are looking for a dog you can ask if it's a pedigree or you can ask if it's the runt of the letter.
Here are some other questions you can ask:
"How big will this dog grow?"
"Will it eat a lot?"
or
"Is it a boy or girl?"
Usually the pet shop clerk will have some kind of information about the dog. Let's read this next conversation:
Frank: Is that dog housebroken?
Man: No, of course not. That's your job.
Frank: Oh. How do you train them?
Man: Every time they make a mess, you should spank him and say "No!"
Frank: Could I send him to obedience school?
Man: Hmm, I don't think they teach those kinds of things there.
If your dog knows where to go to the bathroom, then we say they are "housebroken." For example:
"Is that dog housebroken?"
Now, let's read this next conversation:
Dad: Well, we've bought you a new pet. Are you happy?
Kid: Yes, thank you so much daddy.
Dad: What are you going to name him?
Kid: I think I'll name him Taffy.
Dad: Why did you choose that name?
Kid: He's just a taffy color.
Dad: How about if we name him after Uncle Peter?
Kid: No way, he doesn't match that name. I like Taffy better.
Dad: All right, I'll leave it up to you.
Everyone has their name because of some reason. In the conversation above, the daughter wanted to name her dog "taffy" because the color of the dog was taffy. You may be curious to know the reason for choosing a name. Now read this next conversation:
Dad: Look at our new dog. His name is Taffy.
Mom: Oh, he's really cute!
Dad: Let's give him some dog food. He might be hungry.
Girl: How many times a day should I feed him?
Dad: I think once a day is best. If he eats more than that, he'll get fat.
Mom: I'll give him some water. Remember Rona, you have to change his water everyday.
Rona: I know, I'll remember.
Mom: Rona, I made a list of things you have to take care of. Listen carefully all right?
Rona: O.K.
In this conversation, the mother gave her daughter some instructions. She said:
"I made a list of things you have to take care of"
These kind of instructions are called commands. Read these example sentences:
"Take him for a walk"
"Change his water"
"Clean up his mess"
"Give him his heartworm pills"
"Feed him once"
Read this next conversation:
Johnny: Hi Rona! That's a cute puppy.
Rona: His name is Taffy. I got him yesterday.
Johnny: Can I pet him? Does he bite?
Rona: No, he doesn't.
Johnny: Does he have any fleas?
Rona: Of course not. He's clean!
When you first come across a new animal, you shouldn't try to pet them right away. You should make your hand into a fist and let the dog smell your hand. You should also ask the owner if it's safe to pet the animal.
Read these example sentences:
"Can I pet him?"
"Is it OK to pet him?"
"Does he bite?"
One common question that people will ask is if your dog has fleas. Fleas are the tiny little insects that jump and are hard to kill. Ticks are those big round insects that cling to an animals skin.
Now what happens if you lose your animal? You could check around your neighborhood or call the humane society. Read this next conversation:
Rona: I can't find Taffy Dad.
Dad: Why don't you check around the neighborhood?
Rona: O.K.
Man: Hi Rona, how are you?
Rona: Not so good. My dog is missing. Have you seen him?
Man: No, I haven't. Where did you last see him?
Rona: I saw him in the yard this morning.
Man: Well, I'll keep my eyes out for him.
Rona: Thanks, I appreciate it.
It's common for dogs or cats to stray from their homes. You could look around your neighborhood and talk to people.
Here are some example sentences you could use. Read these example sentences:
"My dog is missing"
"I've lost my dog"
"I can't find my dog"
In the conversation above, the girl asked the people in neighborhood about her dog.
If you are looking for something, you can say one of these sentences:
"I'll keep my eyes out for him"
"I'll keep my eyes peeled"
Now if you want to call the humane society, your conversation might sound a little bit different. The humane society is the place where they keep stray animals. You can report a wild animal or a domestic animal. Read this conversation:
Michael: Hello, Humane society, may I help you?
Michiko: Yes, I'd like to report a missing dog.
Michael: Did it have a license?
Michiko: Yes, the number is 35Y87.
Michael: All right, can you describe it to me?
Michiko: Yes, he's a two month old male and he's a brownish, golden color.
When you call the humane society, tell them the purpose. For example:
"I'd like to report a missing dog"
If you were to find a dog or some kind of animal you could say:
"I found a stray cat"
or
"I found a lost dog"
The last topic on pets will be about taking your animal to a veterinarian. A veterinarian is an animal doctor or vet. If your animal looks or acts strangely, you might want to take it to the vet. If you think something is wrong with your animal you could say these sentences. Read this example sentence:
"My dog is acting funny"
"My cat is behaving strangely"
Personality
Posted by: MichikoNakamura Sat, 24 Nov 2007 21:35:18 GMT
Read this opening conversation between two friends:
Michael: Tell me more about why you married Jim.
Michiko: Well, we just hit it off the first time we met.
Michael: That's amazing.
Michiko: Yeah. His weaknesses are my strengths and vice versa.
When you first meet someone, there might be an instance where you can talk to someone very easily. We call this "hitting it off." Read this example sentence:
"We just hit it off the first time we met"
Some personalities complement each other because they're so opposite. Here are some examples of what we say when two people have complementary personalities:
"a perfect pair"
"a match made in heaven"
or
"opposites attract"
Read these example sentences:
"His weaknesses are my strengths and vice versa"
Now let's read this next conversation between two friends:
Michael: I can't stand Derek!
Michiko: Why? What did he do to you?
Michael: Oh, we just have personality clashes all the time.
Michiko: Maybe you need to sit down and talk about what's irritating you.
Michael: You're right. I'll try that.
A clash means that something or someone doesn't get along. Here's another example of how to use the word clash. Read these example sentences:
"Those two colors you're wearing clash together"
"Joe and I have personality clashes"
Everyone has different personality traits. For example:
"ambitious" "reliable"
Read these example sentences:
"He is an ambitious person"
"Being a reliable person is a good character trait"
Here are some that are negative characteristics:
"gullible" "selfish"
Read these example sentences:
"He is a very gullible person"
"It's not good to be selfish"
Here are also some neutral qualities:
"shy" "innocent"
"funny" "proud"
Let's read this next conversation is between two parents talking about their children.
Michael: How's Ryan doing in school now?
Michiko: Well, you know that last year he wasn't doing too well…
Michael: Up huh.
Michiko: But he's worked really hard and has a B average now. I'm really proud of him.
Michael: I'm glad to hear that.
So in this conversation, the parent wasn't bragging. He was just very happy and pleased that his son worked hard and was doing better. Also artists, composers or manual labor workers might tell you, "I take pride in my work."
Read these example sentences:
"I'm proud of my son's accomplishments"
"I take pride in my work"
Let me mention that there are people who have pride and think they are better than others. We sometimes use words such as conceited, vain, over-confident.
Read this example conversation:
Michiko: That guy is so conceited.
Michael: How could you tell?
Michiko: The way he talks and his attitude.
Michael: Somebody had better deflate him.
People who fight a lot are said to : "fight like cats and dogs." Cats and dogs are natural enemies and hate each other and that's how some humans often act. Let's practice this sentence everyone. For example:
"They fight like cats and dogs"
Most jobs require certain kinds of character traits. For example, good salesmen have to be aggressive, outgoing and smooth-talking to attract customers. If you're wondering if someone is right for the job, you can say:
"Do you think Pete is right for the job?"
or
"Do you think Pete's personality fits this job position?"
Now read this short conversation between office workers:
Michiko: The office is different now that Aaron works here.
Michael: Yeah, he's really funny and brings a lot of life here.
People like other people who bring a lot of life into the world. This means the bring a lot of fun, laugher, excitement and so on. Michiko, have you heard the phrase, "he's the life of the party?" For example:
"She's the life of the party"
More important than the outward appearance is what is inside of people. When you get to know them, you find out how they really are. Read these example sentences:
"I know his true personality"
"I got to know her true nature"
In marriage, people find many hidden things about their spouse that they didn't know before. Someone with two personalities or two faces is called Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. You might have a similar personality to someone in your family.
You might say this:
"I take after my Aunt Sue"
or
"Our personalities are similar."
When we learn a character trait through experiences, we can say that we learned through "trial and tribulations." Read this example sentence:
"I learned how to be patient through many trials and tribulations"
Read this next conversation between two roommates:
Michael: I hope that John is responsible.
Brad: The most important thing is that he's easy to live with.
Michael: And that's he's neat.
Brad: He seems like he stays to himself most of the time.
Michael: But do we want to live with a hermit? What about our loud parties?
A person who is easy to live with makes no trouble for his/her roommates. If you are a hard person to live with, people don't like to live with you.
People who like to be by themselves are called " loners." They are kind of shy. For example:
"Is he a loner?"
"Scott usually keeps to himself"
Now read this next conversation:
Michael: We need a fourth for tennis tonight.
Michiko: How about Tim? He's an excellent player.
Michael: That's true but I hate playing with him because he's arrogant and hogs the ball.
Michiko: How about my co-worker Joshua?
Michael: Oh yeah, he's not as good as Tim but he's more of a team player who likes to have fun.
Michiko: Let's call him!
In the conversation, they choose someone who had a good personality. So even in sports, it's important to have a team mate that is patient, likes teamwork, and has certain qualifications for that particular sport. For example:
"a person who believes in teamwork"
"mentally tough"
"aggressive"
"persistent"
"hard working"
"teachable"
So if the coach asks you:
"Are you a hard-working person?"
You can say:
"It's something I'm working on"
or
"People tell me I am."
People who cannot control themselves, often get into bad situations. We might say:
"He has no self-control"
We're going to read a conversation between two friends. It also has a few idioms in it:
Michael: Oh! I can't stand Vanna!
Michiko: Really? Why do you feel that way towards her?
Michael: Well, she does everything by the book and she's very rigid in her thinking.
Michiko: At heart she's a nice person.
Michael: Hmmm, you're right. I know she means well.
In this conversation, they were talking about a woman who did everything by the book. "By the book" describes a legalistic person. They do everything according to the law. For example:
"She does everything by the book"
The next idiom was "at heart." This means essentially or basically. Let's practice. Read this example sentence:
"At heart, she's a nice person"
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