SPRING IS HERE

Well, nearly here! Only a couple of weeks left.

But the birds don't know that... they're out there in force singing away to their heart's content.... and ours (many of them have already returned from their winter migration).

And the flowers don't know that. They've forced their way through to emerge as beautiful as ever and splash the bare landscape with their gorgeous colours.

And in the park I saw two snow white swans gliding gracefully across the mirror surface of the lake, obviously courting. Isn't life wonderful!

Yes, I know there's misery everywhere, and people are fighting and killing each other all over the world, and men and women are tortured and kids are exploited and animals are treated badly and made to suffer. This world is full of injustice, but it does have its positive side, or at least I like to think it does.

Otherwise, what would be the point of trying to do good. Oh, yes, thousands of people are out there doing good. Volunteers, medical people, missionaries, teachers. I even venture to suggest that some, not many though, politicians are trying to do good. Ordinary people, such as yourself, or humble me; in our ordinary lives and within our ordinary families and communities, surely we're all trying to do good. And that is beautiful. There's beauty everywhere, if only we stopped and looked and learnt to appreciate it. Gilbert and Sullivan expressed it so poetically in "The Mikado" when Katisha begins her song:

There is beauty in the bellow of the blast,

There is grandeur in the growling of the gale,

There is eloquent outpouring

when the lion is a-roaring,

and the tiger is a-lashing of his tail!

Gosh! That brings back memories, of school days, and operettas, and Nanki-Poo, and Jaqueline. Sweet Jaqueline. I wonder what's become of her and her sensational voice.

Youtube has a large selection of performances, including one with Groucho Marx! The first line is the title of the song. Do listen to it, it's really good. As for the words, you can get them at:

http://math.boisestate.edu/gas/mikado/webopera/mk212.html

I raise my glass to beauty.... in spite of all the horrors that surround us. For beauty is love..... and love is beauty.

.

WELCOME BACK TO THE NEW ACADEMIC COURSE

Well, summer came and whispered sweet things in my ear,
as it flew south across the border.
But now that autumn's chill begins and winter's near
I start to feel a little colder ...
and a little older!

Welcome back. I hope you've all had an enjoyable summer holiday (those of you who live in the northern hemisphere, that is!). Summer went by all too fast for me - which explains my little poem above - and I do feel a little colder; must be old age creeping up on me. Anyway, I managed to write a couple of stories and compose a couple of songs, one of which is my previous posting.

So, glad to have you all back and I hope you'll continue to enjoy popping in from time to time. Do post a comment now and then.

Joe.

HELLO AGAIN & THANKS

Another week has gone by. We're now one week closer to August and to the month's holiday that's waiting to be enjoyed. I don't know about you, but I NEED A REST. I'm not sure yet about what I'll do or how I'll spend my holidays, but I do know that I'm going to rest,REST, REST!

This has definitely been one of the most exhausting academic years I can remember, though I must confess it has also been one of the most rewarding. Working on this blog, and on the others, has really been fulfilling. It has been especially satisfying to see the number of visits increase week by week, with visitors coming from as far away as Mexico, the States or India (you can check out the statistics yourselves by clicking on the small graph at the bottom left hand corner of the page) Thank you all; you really make it worth while. Do post a comment, however; you're thoughts will be greatly appreciated.

I thought the following song would be especially appropriate. Cliff Richard singing about a Summer Holiday in the film "The Young Ones". Lyrics below the video. Enjoy.


LYRICS - Summer Holiday by Tony Temple/Dell Clyde - Sung by CLIFF RICHARD

We're all going on a summer holiday. / No more working for a week or two. / Fun and laughter on a summer holiday. / No more worries for me or you. / For a week or two.
Were going where the sun shines brightly. / Were going where the sea is blue. / We've seen it in the movies. / Now let's see if its true.
Everybody has a summer holiday, / Doing things they always wanted to.
So we're going on a summer holiday, / To make our dreams come true, / For me and you.

END-OF-COURSE CONCERT

WHAT BAD LUCK! The evening chosen for the concert turned out to be the evening of the BIG MATCH.

Spain was playing against Russia for a place in the finals of the European Footbal Cup at the precise time that our concert was starting. There was no way we could change the dates, so we played to a reduced audience - to which, of course, we shall be eternally grateful!

I hope you like the pics (click on them to enlarge). I'll post the video just as soon as it's ready.

MORE RIDDLES & THE FEAST OF SANT JOAN

It turned out that "INVINCIBILITY" was not the word Mike had been thinking of. HIS word was "INVISIBILITY". So in fact there are at least TWO words that contain 5 "i's" and a "y", and no other vowels. Can you think of any more?

SANT JOAN - This is, without a shadow of doubt, my favourite Spanish festivity. The shortest night of the year becomes, in fact, the longest one, since very few people actually go to bed before the dawn. Indeed, it's quite common to see thousands of party-goers in Barcelona congregating on the beaches, after celebrating all night - with fireworks, cava and the traditional "Coca de Sant Joan" - to watch the sun rising on the horizon over the mediterranean sea. ABSOLUTELY MAGNIFICENT

ANSWERS

Ok, you guys and gals, you've had more than enough time to find the answers to the riddles; so, here we go:

1. Five eyes and a why - INVINCIBILITY (5 "I"'s AND A "Y")

2. Five vowels joined together in one word - This is what "askoxford.com" says

"We know of only one word in anything like standard use which has five consecutive vowels, and that is Rousseauian 'pertaining to Rousseau or his views on religion, politics, education, etc.' Apart from this, and the large vowel clusters in queueing, there are only the Greek-derived words of the pharmacopoeia type.

3. What did the big chimney say to the little chimney? - "You smoke too much!"

*******************

While we're on the subject, here are some more pearls of the English language:

- OOLOOPOOLOO - A palindrome (A word that reads the same in both directions). This one refers to a dialect spoken in Australia. I'm not sure you can call it "English", though!

- EDUCATION - A word containing all five vowels.

- ABSTEMIOUS - A word containing all five vowels IN THE RIGHT ORDER!

For more gems like these, check out this link:
http://www.askoxford.com/asktheexperts/faq/aboutwords/fivevowels?view=uk

ALSO, CHECK OUT "RIDDLES" - left-hand column - and ENJOY.

5 EYES and a WHY - answer

Well, for those who couldn't find the answer, perhaps this will help:
i--i--i-i-i-y (5 "i"s and a "y"!).

Am I right, Mike?

And now, an English word containing 5 vowels, all joined together! This one's also from Mike. Thanks Mike.

La Patum

The following is a message sent by Sergi. I thought it might be of interest. Thanks Sergi. Keep it up.
Hello Joe,This week is "la patum”.The main and more spectacular activity is today (21/5) about 12:00. The people make an spectacular dancing in a small square (the people make a concentric circles and they dancing without electric light the only light is from some people that carry a fireworks).It’s spectacular and exciting.You can fine all the thinks about this typical and traditional festivity in this web: http://www.lapatum.cat/

Here's another link for this famous Catalan feast. This one's in English.
http://www.bergueda.com/lapatum/festa.asp#

QUESTIONS

Asking questions is a natural part of any conversation, whether it's social or business. What shampoo do you use? Have you met the new manager? When's the meeting? etc. However, it really is surprising to see students at ALL LEVELS continuing to make mistakes in this area. So, let's just look at a few rules.

IN GENERAL, a question starts with a question word (when we want information) or an auxilliary verb (when we want confirmation, i.e. yes or no).

QUESTION WORDS - WHAT, WHERE, WHEN, WHO, WHICH, WHY, WHOSE, HOW.
Very often, these question words are accompanied by other words that complete the information we require. For example: WHAT COLOUR, HOW MUCH, HOW MANY, WHICH ONE, HOW OFTEN, WHOSE CAR,ETC..
AUXILLIARY VERBS - AM, IS, ARE, WAS, WERE, HAVE, HAS, HAD, DO, DOES, DID, plus the MODALS: CAN, COULD, MAY, MIGHT, WILL, WOULD, SHALL, SHOULD, MUST, (and a few more complicated verbs, like ought to and need, which can act as auxilliary verbs). Here are some examples: ARE YOU....? IS THE NEW MANAGER...? CAN WE GO...? DID THE MEETING...? MUST WE...?

The BASIC order of a question is as follows:

For questions requesting information -
QUESTION WORD (INCLUDING ANY ADDITIONAL INFORMATION REQUIRED) - AUXILLIARY VERB - SUBJECT - MAIN VERB - COMPLEMENT.
EXAMPLES: Why do you work there? Where did you put the document? How much does it cost?

For questions requesting confirmation - AUXILLIARY VERB - SUBJECT - MAIN VERB - COMPLEMENT.
EXAMPLES: Do you work here? Did you put the document in the desk? Does it cost much?
NOTICE THAT when you use do, does and did, or any of the modal verbs (can, could, etc.) the main verb is in the infinitive) MORE ON THIS IN MY NEXT ARTICLE.

EXCEPTIONS 1:
The verb "To be" is a curious verb. It can work alone, as the only verb in a sentence, AND it can work as an auxiliary verb, accompanying other verbs.
EXAMPLES:Are you a doctor? Where is the car? (You will notice that no verb is placed after the subjects "you" and "the car", and the verbs "are" and "is" go where auxilliary verbs usually go, i.e before the subject.)
Are you drinking beer? What are you drinking? (Here, the order is the usual one because there is an additional verb - "drinking")

EXCEPTIONS 2:
WHO and other question words, when they request information about the subject. Who wants an ice-cream? Which one is mine?
This is a little more complicated, so I will deal with it separately in my next article.
As with all other aspects of the language, the more you practise the better your English will become. GOOD LUCK and GOOD PRACTICE!

USEFUL LINKS FOR QUESTIONS:
http://www.curso-ingles.com/gramatica-inglesa/question.php
http://www.curso-ingles.com/ejercicios-ingles/questions.php
http://www.mailxmail.com/curso/idiomas/verbosingles/capitulo7.htm
http://a4esl.org/q/f/z/zz87mca.htm
http://www.englishclub.com/grammar/verbs-questions_structure.htm
http://www.spotlight-online.de/CoCoCMS/generator/viewDocument.php?doc=2972&archive=1 http://www.learnenglish.de/grammar/questiontext.htm
http://www.english4today.com/englishgrammar/grammarfaq/
THIS LAST ONE DEALS WITH FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT ENGLISH.

AND HERE'S A SONG - "THE MOODY BLUES" ASKING A VERY IMPORTANT QUESTION:
Video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrPGV452X6s&feature=related
Lyrics: http://www.allspirit.co.uk/question.html

MORE SONGS

Here's a song I'm sure you'll all like. Needless to say it's one of my favourites. The first line is pure poetry: Lay a whisper on my pillow...!"
Enjoy...
Video:
Lay a whisper on my pillow - Leave the winter on the ground - I wake up lonely, there's an air of silence - In the bedroom and all around - Touch me now, I close my eyes And dream away...
It must have been love, but it's over now - It must have been good, but I lost it somehow
It must have been love, but it's over now - From the moment we touched till the time had run out.
Make believing we're together - That I'm sheltered by your heart - But in and outside I turn to water - Like a teardrop in your palm - And it's a hard winter's day I dream away...
It must have been love, but it's over now - It was all that I wanted, now I'm living without
It must have been love, but it's over now - It's where the water flows, it's where the wind blows
It must have been love, but it's over now - It must have been good, but I lost it somehow
It must have been love, but it's over now - From the moment we touched till the time had run out

ENGLISH and SONGS (and the Second Conditional!)

Listening to songs in English is an excellent way of consolidating structures and improving both pronunciation and intonation. It also helps you acquire new vocabulary. However, you must choose your songs carefully because in many cases the lyrics (words) are just too poetic and can be difficult to understand.

Let me illustrate how useful this technique can be with a song that was popular in the sixties.
[It's from the West End musical, Pickwick, based on Charles Dickens' The Pickwick Papers. In the context of the stage musical, the song is sung by Samuel Pickwick when he is mistaken for an election candidate and called on by the crowd to give his manifesto.-Source Wikipedia]

The song 's title is "If I ruled the world". It's a very good example of the Second Conditional and is a really good opportunity to practise this relatively difficult grammatical structure (If I had a car I would drive to Rome)
Video:
Lyrics: http://www.lyricsdepot.com/tony-bennett/if-i-ruled-the-world.html

Now, compare it with "If I ruled the world" by Nas (Different song, much more difficult, rap style)
Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMn2cCBwH18
Lyrics: http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/nas/ifiruledtheworld.html

By the way, the first version is by Tony Bennett. Sir Harry Secombe's version is far better, but I can't find it anywhere. HELP!

While we're at it, What would Trini do if he had a hammer? and what would Topol do if he were a rich man? Answers below!
Video - Trini: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oyTO5vcFWuw&feature=related
Lyrics - Trini: http://www.oldielyrics.com/lyrics/trini_lopez/if_i_had_a_hammer.html
Video - Topol: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBHZFYpQ6nc
Lyrics - Topol: http://www.stlyrics.com/lyrics/fiddlerontheroof/ifiwerearichman.htm

If you found this method useful let me know by e-mail or by posting a comment below. I would then include some more songs.
Enjoy!

EASTER

When I was a child, a long time ago, an Easter tradition at home was the Egg Painting Competition.

My mother would boil some eggs. When the hard-boiled eggs were completely cold, my brother, my four sisters and I, and occasionally some friends, would get down to the seemingly impossible task of converting the dull, inanimate shells into miniature masterpieces. We used food colouring, mainly, which we carefully applied with cotton wool and brushes.

Our creations usually consisted of heads: bald heads, funny heads, sad faces, animal heads, etc. We did, however, produce the odd ship or farmhouse.

When the paint was dry, we would rub the egg with oil to make it shine and protect the paint.

On Easter Sunday, during lunch, the eggs were judged by our parents and relatives and the winner of the painting competition was allowed to keep the winning example. This was followed by the "egg tapping" game. The rest of the eggs were shared out and each player hit another player's egg with his/her own egg. The winner was the holder of the last intact egg. The losers got to eat their eggs while the winner of the game was also allowed to keep his/her egg.

I don't think I ever won a single egg painting competition.... but I did manage to eat dozens of colourful eggs!

CHESS

I wouldn't say chess is my passion, but it's definitely one of my main interests. I try and play three or four tournaments a year, especially during the summer. The picture is from the one-day Castelldefells tournament. I came second in my category. The youngish looking man in an orange T-shirt is my son Michael. He's much better than me and came third overall!

For those interested in this game here are the English names for the pieces:
Pawn = Peón
Rook = Torre
Knight = Caballo
Bishop = Alfíl
Queen = Dama
King = Rey

To check is Dar jaque.
Check mate is jaque mate.
Resign is abandonar
Offer a draw is ofrecer tablas.
To draw is hacer tablas.

From time to time I shall include short articles with some more vocabulary.

Interesting chess links:
This one's my son Michael's. It contains a number of recommended chess sites - http://mikerahal.blogspot.com/
The Catalan Federation -
http://www.escacs.cat/

SPEAKING (First Certificate Exam and Higher)

At these levels, examiners are not really interested in descriptions, they really want to hear opinions. The more varied the better.

You can of course play safe and use the standard "In my opinion" or "I think", etc.

But, how about being a little bit more daring and stun you listener with "If I were to hazard a guess, I'd say that...", or "From a purely personal point of view, I'd say that...".
Try "It's quite evident that..." or "It seems perfectly obvious that..." when the answer is quite clear.
When in doubt, you could venture :"I could be wrong, of course, but I'd say that...".
When absolutely certain of what you are looking at: "Well, I'd be prepared to bet my last farthing that..."

NOTE:
Speaking, contrary to popular belief, is not an intellectual activity. It's entirely Physical. It requires coordination between brain and vocal chords. Your brain sends a message to your vocal chords and they, in turn, perform the action. As in all other physical exercises, perfection requires practice. It's not enough to "KNOW" what you have to say, you ACTUALLY HAVE TO SAY IT...... AND SAY IT WELL!
Which means Plenty of REPETITION - Listen... and then Repeat.
REPEAT to improve your pronunciation.
REPEAT to improve intonation (Rythm and stress).
REPEAT to improve fluency.

GOLDEN RULE - REPETITION is the key to GOOD SPEAKING

The more = Cuanto más

To play safe = Ir sobreseguro

Daring = Osado, aventuroso

To stun = Abrumar

To hazard a guess = Aventurar (una Opinión), Atreverse (a dar una opinión)

Purely = puramente

To venture = Aventurar (una opinión)

To bet = Apostar

Farthing = Moneda de más baja denominación.

Brain = Cerebro

Chords = Cuerdas

Actually = De hecho

Today I had a fantastic opportunity to update and improve this blog. Raul, one of my PEC students, who is an expert in webpage design, spent over an hour explaining to me the secrets of this obscure but very necessary art. Thanks, Raul.

THANK YOU for visiting my blog

You're welcome to post a comment before you leave.