Live and Learn English with Jean Lee

More and more medical research and studies have shown the medicinal properties and benefits of herbs and healthy diet. As of this new year of 2024, let us stay healthy by looking into a variety of herbs one by one, their nutrition facts, and healthy diet so that we are able to lead a life with more confidence and constantly get ourselves back on track with aplomb even if we happen to deviate from the optimal state of health.   # 24. CHERRY Cherries are small, round, red (or dark purple) stone fruits which are typically in season in the July. There are myriads of varieties of cherries but they normally fall into one of two categories: sweet or sour. Sweet cherries are usually eaten as they come, while sour cherries are more likely to be used in cooking or juiced. The most familiar varieties include the black stone cherry, the morello and the Spanish cherry. All cherries have a stone which must be removed before eating or cooking.   Here are the health benefits of ch...

  Celebration of multicultural and multilingual heritage is becoming more important than ever in America today. As I pointed out through my presentation at the 1st Multilingual Education conference at TX A & M University, ESL educators need to respect and encourage their multilingual students' native languages and cultures so they would become self-empowered, fledging learners who use the full range of their language capabilities as a strong scaffold in the long journey of language acquisition. Here's my thoughts on TRANSLANGUAGE in the form of an acrostic poem.                       TRANSLANGUAGE                            by Jean Lee   T ossed into the world of different cultures R ebuilding your life with a new language A gitated by letting your originality go N ot ready to acculturate to your new home yet? S cared of being sidelined i...

  Do you believe storing food in the fridge or freezer will make it safe to eat for good? We all know that such belief is no more than a myth. We need to stay alert when it comes to the shelf life of each and every food we take in, because quite a lot of foods lose their freshness way faster than we could ever expect. Why don’t we fill in the blanks of the following sentences to express that “something is no longer safe to eat” and stay on the safe side?        1.   Check the expiration date and smell the milk before you chug it. It’s been a while since I put that carton of milk in the fridge. Guess it must be sp________ by now.       2.   You could use unsalted nuts as your daily nutritious snack, but make sure they are not ________id.       3.   Just use up cilantro leaves and parsley before they get wil_____.       4.   Will it be safe to eat this Colby Jack cheese if mo_________...

Every answer today is a familiar two-word phrase or name with the initials G- P-.   Ex. Quarry that's the source of road material --> G RAVEL P IT   1. What you step on to make a car go faster   2. Annual auto race with a French name   3. Family doctor   4. Large animal that China has lent to American zoos   5. Small animal used in science experiments   6. Writing material that you might draw a chart on   7. Noted political opinion survey   8. Actor who co-starred with Ingrid Bergman in Hitchcock's "Spellbound"   9. Movement represented by a rainbow flag   10. Item used to pluck strings on a musical instrument   Answer Keys     1.   G as P edal     2.   G rand P rix     3.   G eneral P ractitioner     4.   G iant P anda     5.   G uinea P ig     6.   G raph P aper     7.   G allop P oll     8.   G regory P ...

Are you good at finding famous US cities and the postal  abbreviation the U.S. States?  I amgoing to give you some four-letter words. In each case, the first two letters are the first two letters of a well-known U.S. city, The last two letters are that city's state postal abbreviation.   Ex. SAGA   -- Sa vannah, Georgia       1.    GAIN     2.    DECO     3.    LINE     4.    JAMS     5.    LIAR     6.    BIND     7.    POOR     8.    POME     9.    PONY     10.  LOCA   Answer Keys 1.   Ga ry, Indiana 2.   De nver, Colorado 3.   Li ncoln, Nebraska 4.   Ja ckson, Mississippi 5.   Li ttle Rock, Arkansas 6.   Bi smarck, No rth Dakota 7.   Po rtland, Or egon 8.   Po rtland, Ma ine 9. ...

It is natural to become physically weaker as one ages. However, it is possible to stay younger and healthier than your physical age by what you eat at your table every day. More and more medical research and studies have shown the medicinal properties and benefits of herbs and healthy diet. As of this new year of 2024, let us stay healthy by looking into a variety of herbs one by one, their nutrition facts, and healthy diet so that we are able to lead a life with more confidence and constantly get ourselves back on track with aplomb even if we happen to deviate from the optimal state of health.   # 23. Buckwheat Do you enjoy cold buckwheat noodle during summertime? Buckwheat is a highly nutritious whole grain that is considered to be a superfood. The important health benefits of buckwheat include improving heart health, promoting weight loss, and helping manage diabetes.   -       Buckwheat is a good source of protein, 1. fi_______, and ene...

A Way with Words (aired on NPR September 1 st , 2024) Today, I am sharing two fun expressions that were explored on NPR.        1.   John in Omaha, Nebraska, wonders about a phrase “be there or be square”   that is a playful invitation that encourages someone to attend an event or risk being left out or feeling uncool. In other words, “to be present at an event or activity, or to be excluded if you don't attend.” The practice of calling a straitlaced person square goes back at least to the 1500s. The use of square meaning “uncool” or “annoying” dates to around the 1930s. The rhyming phrase be there or be square is surprisingly modern, going back to the 1960s. This is part of a complete episode.       2.   Have you heard of the expression “ bushwhacking ”?     We spoke with a listener about the German word querfeldein, or literally “diagonally into the field,” which he used to describe an informal route he and his w...