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Tag Archives: history

The Shakers of October Posted by on Oct 14, 2021

THE OCTOBER COUNTRY …that country where it is always turning late in the year. That country where the hills are fog and the rivers are mist; where noons go quickly, dusks and twilights linger, and midnights stay. That country composed in the main of cellars, sub-cellars, coal-bins, closets, attics, and pantries faced away from the…

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Changing the Clocks Posted by on Oct 30, 2020

On the first Sunday of every November in the US, we gain an hour of sleep. It marks the end of daylight saving time (DST), and the beginning of standard time. It also forces us to ask the age-old question, “Why do we do this?” With standard time we gain daylight in the mornings and…

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English Idioms Inspired by Blacksmiths Posted by on Feb 20, 2020

With only an estimated 500 – 1000 professional blacksmiths in the US today, chances are excellent that you don’t think about the craft all that often. It is likely, however, that you have heard some of the most common phrases associated with blacksmiths sometime in the last month. In fact, these idioms are so widely…

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Why Would You Want to Break a Leg? Posted by on Aug 1, 2016

I am a thespian, which means that I am an actor. The word derives from the name of the ancient Greek, Thespis, who is said (by Aristotle) to have been the first actor to play a character on stage other than himself. I should add that I am also a stage director, and I have…

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Canada a country of maple syrup and hockey: An intro in English for ESL students Posted by on Oct 2, 2014

I’m going to begin a short series on this Transparent Language blog about Canada, the country American’s fondly refer to as “our neighbor to the north.” Part of what is spurring this series is Canada’s upcoming Thanksgiving holiday (on November 13th this year), but I will write more on that topic in a future post…

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English vocabulary for time, history, and eras. Posted by on Jul 28, 2014

We divide time up in many ways, for example: seconds minutes (60 seconds = 1 minute) hours (60 minutes = 1 hour) days months (28-31 days = 1 month) years (12 months = 1 year) decades (1 decade = 10 years) centuries (1 century = 100 years) This type of vocabulary for talking about…

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