Tag Archives: American culture
Setting the Dinner Table Posted by Gary Locke on Aug 13, 2020
One of the things that I miss the most during the pandemic is dinner with friends. There are few things in life that I enjoy more than a formal or semi-formal dinner party. Spending a long afternoon or evening seated among friends, leisurely eating a delicious meal, sipping wine, and talking about whatever is on…
American Jobs Posted by Gary Locke on Aug 6, 2020
You will often hear on television a reference to the American labor force, but do you know what that actually means? The American labor force is the grand total of people who are either employed or actually seeking work. To be counted as part of the American labor force you must be at least 16…
Black, with a Capital B Posted by Gary Locke on Jun 11, 2020
We appear to be undergoing a significant cultural moment. For the first time in 50 years, real and fundamental changes in how people think about race relations are taking place. This isn’t just happening in the United States, although the moment most profoundly affects our nation. The worldwide reaction has also been significant and is…
Tune In to Broadcasting Vocabulary Posted by Gary Locke on May 28, 2020
A long time ago, I was a disc jockey. In fact, I was a broadcaster on two different continents. It was an odd job because I could spend hours on the air playing music, reading news, announcing the time as it passed by on my shift, reading the occasional advertisement – never really being sure…
Missing the Daily Routine Posted by Gary Locke on Apr 16, 2020
There’s a great English idiom, “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” It conveys a feeling that life goes on even as we all have to adjust to the inevitable surprises that come our way. But this time is very different, isn’t it? We all find ourselves facing a very new routine…
English Words of Support Posted by Gary Locke on Apr 2, 2020
For the last several weeks I have been hearing a common phrase on television and radio, in teleconferences, and among friends – “We’re all in this together.” This is meant to encourage people to feel better about the situation we’re all in. It’s a way of saying that, as difficult as this may be, you…
English Words in the News: Coronavirus Edition Posted by Gary Locke on Mar 19, 2020
How’s your week going? The world, it seems, is having a singular experience. That is to say, we’ve never seen anything like this before. Before anyone argues that the so-called Spanish Flu epidemic of 1918, or the events surrounding 9/11, were similar, let me stop you right there. The world is far more interconnected than…