Archive for December, 2018
End of the year vocab Posted by carol on Dec 31, 2018
Good evening, dear readers! How was everybody’s Christmas? And what about you plans for New Year’s Eve? With all of these December festivities, how about we cover some end-of-the-year related words so you can practice while you celebrate? december Christmas is celebrated on December 25th january People say that January 1rst is international hangover day!…
Top English Blog Posts of 2018 Posted by Gary Locke on Dec 27, 2018
We have arrived at the end of another year. It is traditional to look back and reflect on what was on our minds over the preceding 12 months and to see which blogs got your attention. After all, we write these pieces for you, to help you understand our language and the culture in which…
An Appalachian Christmas Posted by Gary Locke on Dec 20, 2018
One of the most distinctive and interesting cultural regions of the United States is Appalachia. It stretches southwest from the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia to the Smoky Mountains which border Tennessee and North Carolina. This snow-capped, evergreen-filled area is the living embodiment of an American Christmas card. Because Appalachia is overwhelmingly Christian in its…
Baby, It’s Cold Outside Posted by Gary Locke on Dec 13, 2018
Who knew that a Christmas song nearly 75 years old could be controversial? And yet, in this era of political correctness, when what we say and how we say it is more carefully scrutinized than ever, we have had a minor uproar in the US over a song our grandparents loved. The song is “Baby…
Should English Idioms be Modernized? Posted by Gary Locke on Dec 6, 2018
PETA, the animal rights organization, has proposed that we should reimagine some common English phrases to be more respectful of other species. They argue that phrases such as “I killed two birds with one stone” are as cruel as any hate speech. Similarly, a British researcher believes that, eventually, meat-based metaphors and sayings will be…