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The theme of the day is "idioms" -  expressions that have a special meaning.  We cannot translate idioms word for word. 

Last week was Valentine's Day. People talk a lot about love on Valentine's Day. Let's read a Valentine's Day love story that has a lot of idioms.   

Latonya and Diana will read the story together and then they will take a close  look at each of the idioms.

           A Valentine's Day Love                                 Story 💕

Bob and Julie went on a blind date on Valentine’s Day. 

It was love at first sight. 

They really didn’t have much in common. 

But love is blind and they really hit it off. 

Yup! 

They fell in love.

 After they dated for two months, Bob popped the question.

 Julie knew that Bob was Mr. Right and she said “Yes!”.

 In June they tied the knot.

 That’s right!  Bob and Julie got hitched just two months after they met. 

And…they lived happily ever after.

Did you enjoy the story, dear listener? Did you learn some new idioms? Let us know at [email protected]. 

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The verb “to be” Present Tense

·         I am (contraction: I’m)

·         You are (you’re)

·         We (you and I)  are (we’re)

·         They (the children) are (they’re)

·         He (my father) is (he’s)

·         She (Latonya/Diana/the girl) is (she’s)

·         It (the time, the weather, an object) is (it’s)

Listen for the verb “to be” and the contractions in our conversation!

First slow:

Diana: Hi Latonya! How are you?

Latonya: I am fine. How are you?

D: I am tired this morning. I want to sleep.

L: I’m sorry that you are tired. I’m not tired.

D: I’m glad that you’re not tired. How is your mom this morning?

L: She’s hungry this morning.  She wants to eat. How is your son today?

D: He is very busy. He needs to work today.

L: Is he at work right now?

D: Yes, he is at work right now.

L: Where are your grandchildren? Are they at home?

D: No, they are not at home. They’re not at home. They’re at school. Where is your cat Eve, Latonya? 

L: She is sitting on the bed.

D: Is she hungry?

L:  No, she is not hungry. She’s not hungry or sleepy.

D: Is Eve happy?

L: Yes, she’s happy.

D: That is good! That’s very good!

L: What day of the week is it today, Diana? Is it Thursday today?

D: No, it’s not Thursday today.  It’s Wednesday today.  What time is it, please?

L: It’s 11 o’clock .

D: It’s 11 o’clock and it’s Wednesday! It’s very late. I’m late for my class!

L: Yes, you’re late! You need to go right now!

D: Yes, I need to go. I’m sorry!  

L: That’s OK. Bye!

Now listen again as we talk a little faster. 

Are slow English episodes helpful to you, dear listener? 

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We use "to make" a lot in English . It is one of ten most used verbs, so let's practice using "to make".

Present tense :                                        I, you, we, they make     
he, she, it makes   

Past:   I, we, you, they, he, she, it made

Do you make cookies often?
Do you make a mess in the kitchen when you cook?
Did you make that hat?
Do you make a grocery list?
What did you make for breakfast this morning?
I made dinner for my family last night.
Did you make an appointment with your dentist?

We use make when we create a product - cookies, a mess, a hat, a grocery list, breakfast, an appointment.

We also use "make " for:

  plans: - She made plans to go to Mexico.

  suggestions - She made a good suggestion about where I can look for a job.
 
   earning money - Beyonce makes a lot of money.

  earning money to pay for for food, rent, a car -  She makes a living cleaning houses.

  deciding - She made up her mind to study medicine.

  be understandable to a person - That idea makes sense to me.

  talk about where an object was produced/created: My phone was made in China.

Here is Latonya and Diana's conversation. Listen for the ways they use "make" and "made".

Latonya: Hi Diana! Are you busy?

Diana: Well, I’m making dinner right now…or I’m trying to make dinner anyway.

Latonya: Oh! I need to make something for dinner, too,  but I can’t make up my mind what to make. What are you making? 

Diana: I’m making a chicken casserole. But the recipe doesn’t make sense. And I made a big mistake. I added too much pepper. I think I made a mess in my kitchen for nothing.

Latonya: Can I make a suggestion?

Diana:  Sure!  I need a suggestion or maybe two!

Latonya: I’ll make a reservation for all of us at that new restaurant downtown. 

Diana: Great idea! I sold my old bike today and made $75. It will pay for our dinner. Make the reservation!  We’ll meet you there!  You made my day, Latonya!

Well, dear listener, we hope we made your day!

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It's 2024! It's a new year! The day of the week today is Friday. The date is January  12, 2024.

At the start (beginning)  of a new year many people make resolutions. Resolutions are promises people make to themselves about what they will do and what they won't do in the new year.  Resolutions are goals. Sometimes we make resolutions to do some things that we have procrastinated  (put off/ delayed doing)  about in the past.

New Year's resolutions are a perfect opportunity to practice talking about the future. There are two ways to talk about the future in English. The easiest way to talk about the future is to put  "will " before the verb.

Example: I will buy a new phone tomorrow. Talking about the future using "will" is a piece of cake (as easy as eating a piece of cake) because "will" doesn't change when the subject changes: I/you/we/they/he/she/it will  buy a new phone.

To talk about things we will not do, we add a not after the "will".  "I will not eat after 8:00 in the evening."  The contraction for "will  not" is "won't". "I won't eat after 8:00 in the evening."

How about you, dear listener? Do you have a New Year's resolution about something you will or won't do in 2024?

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It's a cold, rainy day. It's a perfect day for a walk! Diana invites Latonya to go for a walk today. They want to stay warm and dry on their walk. Latonya and Diana discuss what they will wear - what they will put on. They decide they will wear layers - maybe two shirts and a vest (a jacket or sweater without sleeves). Latonya likes to wear a warm pair of pants made of thick, warm fabric when it's cold outside.

Both Latonya and Diana like jackets with hoods so they can cover up their heads when it's rainy or cold (or maybe if their hair is messy ( -; ).  They don't want their hands and fingers to get cold, so they put on gloves or mittens (gloves without fingers).  Because it's wet today, they are both putting on their boots to keep their feet dry. It's fun to splash in the puddles (small pools of water - like rainwater - on the ground) with boots on especially if the boots are waterproof. (Water is repelled and does not go through the boots.)

When it's cold and windy, Diana likes to wear a scarf around her neck. Latonya says that she crochets scarves (1 scarf, 2 scarves) and hats! She probably has lots of warm, beautiful scarves and hats.

They decide that they don't need sunglasses today.

Diana and Latonya are all dressed and ready for their walk. They open the door and go outside. It's cold! It's rainy! It's windy!The wind is blowing the rain in their faces.  Are they comfortable?  Yes, they are! They are cozy ! They're warm as toast! 

It's true! There is no bad weather if you are wearing the right clothes!

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Pets are important members of many households. A household is a group of one or more people who live in the same dwelling (living space). The people in a household may be relatives (family members) or may not be relatives (not family members).

Pets are animals who live in our household.  We love them and we take care of them. We feed them (give them food) and make sure they have a clean,  safe place to live.

There are many different kinds of pets. In the United States dogs are the most popular pet. Sixty-nine million (69,000,000) households have at least one dog. That's a lot of dogs!

Cats are the second most popular pet in the US. Forty-five million (45,000,000 ) households have at least one cat. Some households have both a cat (or cats) and a dog (or dogs).

Some other kinds  of pets are:  fish, birds, small animals (like hamsters, rabbits, mice [1 mouse; 2 mice] and rats). Yes, some people have mice and rats for pets!

Reptiles like snakes, lizards, and turtles are also pets in some households.

Diana doesn't have a pet right now, but Latonya has a pet. She has a pet cat named Eve. Eve is about 10 years old and Latonya says that she looks like a potato.  
Hmmm. What color do you think Eve is? Do you think that Eve is round like a potato?

How about you, dear listener?  Do you have a pet? What is your pet's name? How old is your pet?  If you don't have a pet, do you want a pet? Do you want a pet cat? Do you want a pet mouse? Do you want a pet snake?

Let us know! Send us a message:  [email protected]  

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Talking on the phone in a language that you are still learning isn't easy. But sometimes you need to do it. In this episode a mom calls Dr. Getbetter's office to make an appointment for her son who is sick. He got sick a few days ago and now he is worse. His temperature is 103 degrees and he is coughing all the time. Dr. Getbetter's receptionist answers the phone. 

Listen for the very polite, nice way the mom asks for an appointment: "I would like to make an appointment." Those are magic words! You can use "I would like..." to ask for anything. "I would like a hamburger and fries." or "I would like to talk to my daughter's teacher."

The receptionist asks the mother her son's name and date of birth. Then she asks: "Could you  spell that last name please?"

The receptionist tells Martin's mom that there is an appointment available this afternoon.

We hope Martin gets better soon!


 

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In the fall and winter a lot of people get sick. Latonya and Diana discuss a very common illness that people get this time of year: the common cold.

Cold is the same word we use for something that is at a low temperature. For example: "I'm cold."  "It's cold outside today." "My coffee is cold." Today we are talking about a different use of the word "cold". We are talking about an illness, a "cold".

In English we use the verb "to get" (past - got) a lot. One way we use "to get" is when we talk about conditions that change. For example:  I'm not rich.  Then I win the lottery and now I am rich. I get rich. My condition changes from "not rich" to "rich" and get is the bridge between those two conditions. Here's another example:  I'm not sick.  Then l visit a friend who is sick with a cold and my condition changes from not sick to sick.  I get sick. Again "get" is the bridge between those two conditions.  (Past: Last week I got sick.)

We also say "I catch" (past "caught") a cold. Catch is the verb we usually use to talk about catching an object, like a ball. I throw the ball and my dog catches it. We also use "catch" to mean get sick with a cold.  I am with a person who has cold. They have cold viruses in their body. They are coughing and sneezing the virus into the air and my body catches the virus. I catch their cold.

Some symptoms of a cold are cough, sneezing, stuffy nose, runny nose and low (slight) fever, To help our cold symptoms we can take "over-the- counter" (OTC)  medicines or remedies. OTC medicines don't require a prescription from the doctor.

A cure is a medicine or treatment that can completely take a sickness away. Unfortunately, there is no cure for a cold. The good news is that a cold usually lasts only 7 to 10 days.

Dear listener, do you have a cold? When was the last time you caught a cold? 

Write to us at [email protected]. We will write you  back!

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Latonya and Diana talk about using the busy little verb "to do" in the present tense. (I, you, we, they do;  he, she it  does ). Here are some ways we use "do" as a main verb: 1. to talk about doing chores, like "We do the dishes every day."2. To talk about unspecified activities, I'm not doing anything special today, what are you doing? 3. To talk to about how  people earn money to live : "What do you do?" - Hey! That question has two  "do" s!!!
The second "do" is used as a regular verb and the first "do" is a helper or auxiliary verb.  We use "to do" as a helper with most main verbs in questions and negative statements.
Listen for the "do" or "does" when Latonya and Diana ask each other questions. Do you hear the "do" or "does" in the questions and negative answers? Do you hear the main verb?

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