Live and Learn English with Jean Lee

A Prayer for the New Year of 2020 By Jean Lee I pray that no one feels pushed around or left out in their lives;         I hope there’ll certainly be the moments they feel their passion respected. I pray that I’m willingly spare a minute or two to hear my friends and give them high-fives;      I hope they remember we are always connected. I pray the crispy air at dawn fills me with brand new hopes for another given day;     I hope I’ll still pat on my back even if the time is not as meaningful or fruitful as expected. I pray I always look inside of me and give any pain some leeway;     I hope every little scab will not be neglected, but rather be protected. I pray day-to-day smiles and laughter will strongly pave the way for bigger bunch of happiness;    I hope daily navigation in life will bring me and my friends unshattere...

Is Christmas your favorite time of the year? With all big words or expressions pushed aside, let us just read some quotes about Christmas this week. Quotes about Christmas   “Christmas gift suggestions:   To your enemy, forgiveness.   To an opponent,    tolerance.    To a friend, your heart.    To a customer, service.   To all, charity.    To every child, a good example.    To yourself, respect.”   ….Oren Arnold   “I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year.” …. Charles Dickens from “Christmas Carol”   “Christmas isn’t a season. It’s a feeling.” …..Edna Ferber   “Maybe Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store. Maybe Christmas…perhaps…means a little bit more.” ….Theodor Seuss Geisel from “How the Grinch Stole Christmas”      “Just remember the true spirit of Christmas lies in your heart.” … The Polar Express...

This week presents the NPR (National Public Radio)’s Sunday Word Puzzle (that was aired on December 8 th , 2019) on my ESL blog. Every answer is a word, name or phrase in which the only consonants are B and L, repeated as often as necessary. All the other letters are vowels. Ex. Tell a secret --> BLAB 1. Holy book à _________________ 2. Reason why you couldn't have committed the crime à ______________________ 3. Record company à ___________________ 4. "The Hobbit" hero ___ Baggins 5. Tower of _________________ 6. Talk rapidly and foolishly à _________________ 7. Move up and down, as a doll's head à _________________ 8. Air-filled sphere sometimes made by soap à _______________ 9. Legally obligated à ______________ 10. Spanish explorer who discovered by Pacific in 1513 à _________________ 11. Woodcutter who foiled 40 thieves (two words) à ______________ 12. Victim of written defamation à ___________...

This week, let us talk about Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is a day to celebrate the good harvest and other blessings of the past year. Americans generally believe their Thanksgiving is modeled on a 1621 harvest feast shared by the English colonists (i.e., Pilgrims) of Plymouth and the Wampanoag people. The American holiday is particularly rich in legend and symbolism and the traditional fare of the Thanksgiving meal typically including turkey, bread stuffing, potatoes, cranberries and pumpkin pie. Here’s some trivia questions about Thanksgiving in America. Ready to solve? (source from St. Joseph Indian School)         1.    Which state is the top turkey-producing state in America? _________________        2.    _____________ % of all cranberries consumed in the U.S. per year are eaten on Thanksgiving.        3.    The ____________________ of the turkey is used in a good luc...

Let’s solve the NPR Sunday Word Puzzle! (on the air November 17 th , 2019)   Every answer today is a word or name that ends in the letters -LLO. Ex. Standard greeting --> HELLO 1. Dessert that jiggles: ____________________ 2. Winemaker Ernest or Julio: __________________ 3. 1960s-'70s U.S. space program: ________________ 4. Brand of scouring pad: ________________ 5. Largest city in the Texas Panhandle: _____________ 6. Abbott's partner in old comedy: ________________ 7. Animal with a leathery shell much seen in Texas and the Southwest: ________________________ 8. Italian sculptor of the Renaissance; also one of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: ______________________ 9. Kind of mushroom: ________________ 10. Island in New Brunswick, Canada where F.D.R. had a summer home: _____________________ 11. Highly caffeinated, citrus-flavored soft drink: __________________ Answer Keys 1. Jello 2. Gallo ...

Word Jumble with Names of Muscles!   How many muscle groups in your body can you name? Let us reassemble the following letters to make the names of our muscles. The first letter of each word is Capitalized.      1.    eloDisidt : ________________            2.    mAnliodsba : _______________      3.    Oesquilub : _______________      4.    trsgiamHsn : _______________      5.    Romdihbso : ____________________      6.    dcruoAtd : ________________            7.    pscireT : _______________           8.    udairpecQs : _______________            9.    Tsarezpiu : _________________ 10. pseiBpc : __________________ Answer Keys ...

Are you expecting grim grinning ghosts to come out to socialize tonight? With the Halloween mood fully ripe, let us go over some interesting idiomatic expressions containing spooky words. 😉        1.   witch hunt: a situation where accusations are made freely, especially against someone or something that is not popular with the majority    2.   ghost town: a once-flourishing town wholly or nearly deserted usually as a result of the exhaustion of some natural resource    3.   skeleton staff: the minimum staff needed by a company during a time where most staff do not normally work, such as a holiday, weekend, etc    4.   skeleton(s) in one’s closet / skeleton(s) in the cupboard: shameful or embarrassing secret    5.   to jinx something: to bring bad luck    6.   the witching hour: midnight    7.   boogeyman: an imaginary evil character ...

This week, let me share some interesting English expressions related to love and marriage.          1.    to get hitched : to get married     2.    sham marriage : a legal marriage that happens primarily or solely for practical purposes, rather than love     3.    to get cold feet : suddenly become too frightened to do something you had planned to do, especially something important such as getting married     4.    cupboard love : insincere or superficial love motivated by selfish interest/   a show of love inspired by some selfish or greedy motive (Theidioms.com)     5.    smitten with… : in love with…/ infatuated with ….     6.    to let one’s heart rule his/her head : to act according to what you feel (=based on one’s emotions) rather than what is sensible     7.    to fix someone up with … ...