Tag Archives: American culture
The Blue Strawberry Turkey Posted by Gary Locke on Nov 19, 2020
Holiday traditions always include food. For Thanksgiving, which is celebrated on the last Thursday in November, the traditional main course is roast turkey. Well, I have a recipe for roast stuffed turkey which I have made for decades. My family and friends agree with me that the results are fantastic. It is, however, a very…
American News Sources Posted by Gary Locke on Nov 5, 2020
With everything that’s happening in the United States and the rest of the world, nothing matters more than dependable news sources. We have learned to expect misinformation and alternative facts on our social media platforms. But what about newspapers, television, radio, and magazines? Who do Americans trust to provide them with unbiased reporting? I wish…
English Vocab for the Fall Season Posted by Gary Locke on Sep 24, 2020
Are you a leaf-peeper? Do you enjoy sweater weather? Longing for a crisp feel to the air? If you answered “Yes” to all three questions then you’re in luck. It’s autumn! To be honest, I’m really a summer kind of guy. Give me lots of daylight, green grass, and the lazy pace of an afternoon…
Writing the Date in American English Posted by Gary Locke on Sep 17, 2020
One of the things that distinguish the United States from almost every other country is also one of the most basic. We write the date differently. In the U.S., the date is written mm/dd/yyyy, or sometimes mm/dd/yy. For most of the world, this is backward (or, more accurately, sideways.) Why we do this has been…
Sixteen Tons Posted by Gary Locke on Sep 3, 2020
Songs that tell the stories of workers and laborers seem to have always been a part of American culture. Popular hits include Dolly Parton’s Nine to Five and Billy Joel’s Allentown, to name just two. Bruce Springsteen has made a career out of songs of the American worker. But in the history of American music…
Earning Brownie Points Posted by Gary Locke on Aug 28, 2020
The other day I heard a radio ad in which someone said that he had, “…earned quite a few brownie points” with his girlfriend after sending her a bouquet of flowers. Even if you’ve never heard the expression before, you probably can understand the meaning of the term just from the context of the sentence…
The Curious Case of the Edible Heirloom Posted by Gary Locke on Aug 21, 2020
I ate an heirloom last night. Actually, I ate quite a few heirlooms, and I would have liked to have eaten more. No, I did not somehow eat some of my grandmother’s jewelry, or my father’s old watch. I ate some tomatoes. But they were unusual, somewhat rare, and not perfectly beautiful. We now have…