Live and Learn English with Jean Lee

  Halloween has brought me and my family many different kinds of feelings and vibes that fill the chilly air in the States. Sometimes, it was fun taking my little one around the town for collecting candies and enjoying creative spooky decorations on the porch of every single house. Some other times, it felt bothersome to keep opening and closing the door for trick-or-treaters all night long. What had made me feel about Halloween boiled down to some kind of an annual occasion that allowed us to have as many unhealthy sweets as we could snarf down with a good excuse for one night, watching a rehash of cheesy spooky movies. Simple, fun, silly, lighthearted, and relaxing.   The aforementioned list of feelings that I had about Halloween has changed into the inexpressible state of mind since October 29 th in 2022. Watching and following the horrible breaking news of an accident that took 159 lives from my home country, Korea, my mind became frozen, and since then, the fear has ...

Every answer is the six-letter name of a well-known U.S. city, in which I've changed the first and last letters. You name the cities.   Ex. JURORS   -->   AURORA, Colo. and Ill. 1.   B ALLA D     2.   M OST O F     3.   C UNEA L     4.   K OPEK S     5.   S IERR A     6.   R ELEN T     7.   N UNCI O     8.   N UGEN T     9.   F UR HA T    10.   R USTI C     Answer Keys 1.   D ALLA S (in Texas) 2.   B OSTO N (in Massachusetts) 3.   J UNEA U (in Alaska) 4.   T OPEK A (in Kansas) 5.   P IERR E (in South Dakota) 6.   H ELEN A (in Montana) 7.   M UNCI E (in Indiana) 8.   E UGEN E (in Oregon) 9.   D URHA M (in North Carolina) 10.      A USTI N (in Texas)

WORKSHEET #40 Let’s practice some expressions from the episode #40 of Dr. Jedidiah’s Diary!     Since there are no expressions picked or highlighted from the episode #40, let me share the piece of poem written by Dr. Jedidiah’s secretary at his clinic.   Hope and Pray for You in Heaven by Helen Leigh   The days you left behind   have felt like the most unfamiliar grind. When I hit quiet trails,   I hear my breathing becoming sad exhales.   The empty hollow filled with sorrow   makes it harder to hope for tomorrow. Here I go again with another stride   slowly but tenaciously with you inside.   A hundred-mile-long walk is not lonely   as you are watching over me closely. Miles and miles apart between Heaven and Earth in existence,   but walking these miles would truly shorten the distance.   I know that I’d cry now and then,   but I promise I’d head out again. When it ra...

WORKSHEET #39 Let’s practice some expressions from the episode #39 of Dr. Jedidiah’s Diary!    1.    The bird in the trail caught my eyes. Its black plu_____________ is striking against its deep red bill, which was the one-of-a-kind artwork. (*meaning “birds’ feathers)   2.    Hollywood is notorious for its lurid parties that would remind us of the scandalous Italian bun_______ bun_____ parties hosted with young women, allegedly including sexual acts and prostitution. The phrase became widely known in 2010 when prosecutors investigated the events, leading to a series of high-profile trials. (*meaning “the case is about underage prostitution and a lot of the talk, as we've reported before, has centered around what Berlusconi called "Bunga Bunga" parties”)   3.    The movie is dogged by wobbly reasoning and dramaturgical _______tude, but at least one actor tries to spice it up. (*meaning “a state of physical or mental wearin...

  Every answer is an anagram of something you would or might find in a hotel room. (Ex. MAP + L  -->  LAMP)   1. RICH + A   2. HORSE +W   3. ANKLET + B   4. RANGES + H   5. OOMPAH + S   6. SEDERS + R   7. CREAKY + D   8. STREAMS + T   9. RIPPLES + S   10. NOVELTIES + I      Answer Keys    1.   CHAIR    2.   SHOWER    3.   BLANKET    4.   HANGERS    5.   SHAMPOO    6.   DRESSER    7.   KEY CARD    8.   MATTRESS    9.   SLIPPERS      10.    TELEVISION  

WORKSHEET #38 Let’s practice some expressions from the episode #38 of Dr. Jedidiah’s Diary!         1.    The leader of the party has tried to jaw______________ his party members into reach ing an agreement. (*meaning “to talk to them forcefully and persuasively, either to try to influence or pressure them into a certain action, or to give them a long lecture or reprimand”)       2.    “The public we_________ is the ultimate goal of our community” says the mayor. (*meaning “well-being, prosperity, or happiness”)       3.    When she had to say goodbye to her beau, she cried a river inside as all of her p___________-up feelings of sorrow overflowing. (*meaning “closely confined or held back”)       4.    It was not Brian’s decision to keep _________________ about (*meaning “to refrain from disclosing information about something”) his boss’s involvement in the br...

WORKSHEET #37 Let’s practice some expressions from the episode #37 of Dr. Jedidiah’s Diary!     1.    Ken does not want anybody to find out about his bitter past. He wants to keep his own sorrow and pain under the ______________ till the last day of his life. (*meaning “to keep ….. a secret”)       2.    In 20/20 ________________, I realize that it was a terrible idea to fall for his words. I was too naïve. (*meaning “choices that seemed difficult in the past now seem clear after the person know what happened as a result of those choices. This expression comes from the way people describe good vision. A person with normal, good vision has twenty-twenty sight. Hindsight is an understanding of a past event”)       3.    Matt con_______________ in his best buddy about his secret love outside his marriage. (*meaning “to tell someone about something very private or secret”)       4.  ...

WORKSHEET #36 Let’s practice some expressions from the episode #36 of Dr. Jedidiah’s Diary!    1.    Usually he was brevi________ _______ , but he went into great detail when describing his favorite books. (*meaning “of a person, speech, or style of writing) using very few words; concise”)       2.    The soi-d________________ righteous people, who fight for justice, called prosecutors are no more than a cesspool of corruption. (*meaning “calling oneself thus; self-styled; so-called or pretended”)       3.    People in this residential area are frequently disturbed by the racing cars in the wee hours that flo______________ the city ordinance of noise. (*meaning “to openly disregard a law or regulations”)       4.    My heart breaks witnessing the sufferings and pain of people in GAZA. Parents who lost their children have been letting out a __________ every night and day. (*mea...

WORKSHEET #35 Let’s practice some expressions from the episode #35 of Dr. Jedidiah’s Diary!           1.    As an educator, I am always thrilled and pleased to get children’s ______less questions in class. They are truly pure and simple! (* meaning “without skill/ finess/ effort/ pure and simple”)       2.    I told my friend to so________ up before she confessed how she felt inside about him. Drunk-dial one’s ex is never a good idea. (*meaning “to become less drunk”)         3.    The profiler had to identify and analyze the serial killer’s Modus O________________ when the criminal took the victims’ lives. (*meaning “Latin phrase meaning "mode of operating" or "method of operating". It refers to a person's habitual way of doing something”)       4.    His attempts to dwarf his archrival designer’s kit___________ style by his new classic designs didn’t...