#1050 Potato Pals, TESOL Certificate, Facebook Reunion, See-saw

Show 1050 Thursday 4 June 2009
Watch today’s show at YouTube or BlipTV.

Hi, I’m Sarah, welcome to The Daily English Show.

Firstly, thank you very much to the people who have commented on the videos for my Japanese vlog experiment. I really appreciate it.

Today I’d like to recommend a video for kids. Well it’s supposed to be for kids but I think adults might enjoy it too. I sometimes use a bit of kids material in adults classes – just to have a bit of fun and to have a break from the more serious material. And also because you find vocabulary that you don’t necessarily find in the adult material. So they can learn words that can be useful when talking to kids in English.

For example, this video is about playing at the park – which is something that children love doing … so if you meet a child that speaks English, this could be a good conversation topic. But if you’re too busy studying business English you might not know important words like see-saw or jungle gym or tag.

Here’s what they do at the park in this story:

slide on the slide
swing on the swings
ride on the see-saw
climb on the jungle gym
play tag
jump rope
play in the sandbox
make friends

By the way, if you’re talking to a New Zealand child, you should say skip instead of jump rope and sandpit instead of sandbox.

The Acadia Report
Acadia University, Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada

Today I’d like to tell you about the teaching English course at Acadia University.
It’s called a TESOL certificate. TESOL stands for: Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages

I’ve got quite a few emails and comments from people saying they’re thinking about teaching English and should they bother getting a certificate. And my advice is, yes.

Of course it is possible to get a job without a qualification like that, but I don’t think that’s the point. The value in doing it is what you learn. Before I came to Japan I did a certificate in language teaching at AUT in Auckland, New Zealand and I’m really glad I did because I learnt a lot. At the same time I also did a language teaching paper at Auckland University and a linguistics paper – and I found them both really useful.

So Acadia offers a course and you can do an intensive four-week course or a longer part-time one. I think a lot of schools and universities offer both styles like that. The one I did was part-time – it took about half a year and there was a two-hour class twice a week. And quite a few assignments during that time, as well as teaching experience.

STICK NEWS



Kia ora in Stick News today a woman in England was reunited with her son after 27 years thanks to Facebook.

In 1982 a father picked up his three-year-old son from his ex-wife’s house in England.
He was supposed to bring the boy back at the end of the weekend – but he never came back. Instead the man took the boy to Hungary.
The mother said that over the years she tried everything, but couldn’t find out what had happened to her son.
According to the Daily Mail the woman, who is now 62, had almost given up hope of ever seeing her son again.
Then her younger sister tried searching his name online and lo and behold the son’s Facebook profile popped up.
Mother and son then exchanged emails and last week they were reunited.

And that was Stick News for Thursday 4th June.
Kia ora.

Word of the Day

Today’s word is see-saw.

This is a see-saw.


photo by: Gabriel Pollard

And see-saw is also a verb … for when things go like this.

to keep changing from one situation, opinion, emotion, etc. to another and back again

For example: Share prices see-sawed all day.

conversations with sarah
#664 Do you use Facebook?

Step 1: Repeat Jane’s lines.
Step 2: Read Jane’s lines and talk to Sarah.

Jane Do you use Facebook?

Sarah Ah, yeah, I have an account. But I’ve only logged in about once in the past year.

Jane You don’t like it?

Sarah I just think that … I can’t keep up with email so I think if I start using Facebook as well that will be another thing for me to fail at.

Jane But Facebook’s awesome. Everyone’s on it.

Sarah Yeah. Maybe I should use it. Actually I’m planning to start using it again, sometime soon.

Jane Well, I sent you a request, so add me as a friend if you ever log in.

Sarah OK I will.



filming notes

The ending photos were taken on Thursday 4th June 2009 in Kutchan between 6 and 7am ... on my morning walk :)

links

today's news
today's STICK NEWS pictures

Potato Pals - YouTube
Potato Pals - blog
Potato Pals - Oxford University Press
Interview with Patrick Jackson (Potato Pals author)

music

show start
artist: Kevin MacLeod
track: Future Cha Cha
from: Brooklyn, NY, United States
artist site

The Acadia Report start
artist: DJ iPep's
album: Home Mix 2007
track: Concerto
from: EVREUX, France
album at Jamendo
artist at Jamendo
artist site

WOD start
artist: DJ iPep's
album: Home Mix 2007
track: Game Toy
from: EVREUX, France
album at Jamendo
artist at Jamendo
artist site

cws start
artist: Kevin MacLeod
track: The Jazz Woman
from: Brooklyn, NY, United States
artist site

qa start
artist: ioeo
album: triptracks
track: triptrack2
from: Saint Raphael, France
album at Jamendo
artist at Jamendo
artist site

qa bgm
artist: Cliffhanger
album: Comb your hair
track: Up against some hard fellows
from: Sweden
artist at Jamendo
album at Jamendo

Did you notice a mistake in this script? Please leave us a comment and tell us! We really appreciate people pointing out our mistakes.Thank you.

Have you translated this script - or part of it - into your language for English practice and published it on your blog? Please leave a comment and a link so other people can read your translation. Thank you.

#1043 Four Line Poems, HB Studios, Noah’s Ark, Maim, Hikoi

Show 1043 Thursday 28 May
Watch today’s show at YouTube or BlipTV.

Hi, I’m Sarah, welcome to The Daily English Show.

The video I recommend to study today is a music video for a song by Alex Valentine. The song’s called Hurricane and the video’s a whole lot of images of four line poems. The poems have been written using part of a game called Boggle which I used to have when I was a child actually – I used to enjoy playing it.

I think it’s a very cool video and I like the poems.

Here a few of the poems:

KNOW
TRUE
LOVE
ONCE

LOOK
THEN
LOOK
ANEW

PUBS
SELL
SHIT
WINE

GUNS
MAIM
WHEN
USED

OGLE
THEN
FIND
ZERO

WILL
DEBT
RUIN
LIFE

TURN
FURY
INTO
LOVE

The Acadia Report
Acadia University, Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada

In the Acadia Report today I’d like to introduce a video about a game developer called HB Studios. The company is in Lunenburg in Nova Scotia. And I’ve been there which you might know if you’ve been watching The Daily English Show for a while. When we were at Acadia University we went on a trip with the English language students to Lunenburg to go on a boat trip and it was amazing. It was such a beautiful day. You can go and check out the video we made if you haven’t seen it already.

Anyway, back to the video about HB Studios – they interview some Acadia graduates who are working there and they talk about what they like about their jobs and what they learnt at university and advice for people who are thinking about getting into the industry.

For example, one of them says: I think the most valuable thing that I learnt at Acadia and in the school of computer science was how to learn and how to keep up with constantly changing technologies in the IT sector.



Acadia Grads Power HB Studios - Transcript

We started with nine people, ah, and now we’re 130, so there’s, there’s been some, some periods during that time where we’ve really grown extremely fast. The culture of our company is, ah, is a … a dynamic, ah, creative, um, vibrant culture. Um, I think a lot of that is established by the environment we’re in and industry itself, um, which is an extremely, ah, fast-paced, ah, creative industry.

I’ve worked on a couple of titles. My first one was Madden 07 for the Wii. And that was a Wii launch title, so we got to work with the hardware before people had … the general public had played with it. It was a really interesting and difficult project.

The thing I enjoy most is that it’s, it’s always changing and there’s always new things to learn. With a short development cycle, you’re always working on different projects and there’s always different areas to work on.

My favourite thing about working with HB is that, ah, there is a great sense of community here. Being in, ah, such a small town as Lunenburg, ah, we tend to, um, spend a lot of time together. Not just at work, but outside of work as well.

Our staff will invariably socialise with each other. And that’s actually been enormously beneficial for us in the quality of the work we do because when people are friendly and used to spending a lot of time with each other, um, that really has benefited us during, during crunch time. It just … it really helps with the creativity.

I guess I enjoy the toys. It’s always fun to get all this stuff, all this stuff I’ve got around my desk. Like, ah, right now I don’t have quite as much as I did a few months ago, when I had, like, the PlayStation 3 sitting next to the Xbox and the Wii. Any given time I was programming for any given subset of them.

I think the most valuable thing, ah, that I learned at Acadia and in the school of computer science was how to learn, ah, and how to keep up with, um, constantly changing technologies in the, ah, in the IT sector.

The advice I would give to a current computer science student would be to gain as much experience as possible.

A great piece of advice that’s pretty simple to … and straightforward would be to, ah, pay attention in maths class. Cause, ah, a lot of that stuff is going to come back. Stuff like polynomial algebria. Matrix algebra is huge for, um, doing stuff like 3d graphics … everything is linear and matrix algebra. Now you can actually, thanks to the internet and Microsoft’s got their own visual studio express program. So you can get your hands on a compiler and all the SDKs necessary to make a, ah, Windows game, like, at the same level as what we’re doing here. It’s all available on the internet for free. And there’s all these knowledge bases like MSDN, ah, just to give an example, that’s available on the internet. So you don’t actually have to wait to you get to university to try it out and see if this is something that might interest you.

STICK NEWS



Kia ora in Stick News today a new tourist attraction has opened in Hong Kong. The company that runs it says it’s the world’s only full-size replica of Noah’s Ark.

According to the bible, Noah’s Ark was a large vessel built by Noah, at God's command, that saved Noah, his family, and a representation of the world's animals from a great flood.
A big boat called Noah’s Ark has just been built in Hong Kong. The boat is 137 meters long and is a tourist attraction.
CNN reported that one of the attractions was lying in a coffin.
According to the official press release: The facility is full of happiness and positive messages … it will lift people's horizons with new knowledge and let them rethink life and experience love.

And that was Stick News for Thursday the 28th of May.
Kia ora.

Word of the Day

Today’s word is maim.

One of the poems in today’s video is:

GUNS
MAIM
WHEN
USED

So what does maim mean?

maim v. to injure sb seriously, causing permanent damage to their body

conversations with sarah
#659 What are you listening to?

Step 1: Repeat Kim’s lines.
Step 2: Read Kim’s lines and talk to Sarah.

Kim What are you listening to?

Sarah Oh, I was listening to a podcast.

Kim What was it about?

Sarah They were talking about this hikoi that happened in Auckland.

Kim What’s a hikoi?

Sarah It’s a kind of protest march.

Kim What’s the difference between a hikoi and a protest march?

Sarah Mm, good question. I think they’re the same thing. Just if it’s organized by Māori then they call it a hikoi. They had some funny chants, like: Move aside, Rodney Hide.

Kim Who’s Rodney Hide?

Sarah Oh, he’s a politician.

links

today's news
today's STICK NEWS pictures


music

show start
artist: Kevin MacLeod
track: Future Cha Cha
from: Brooklyn, NY, United States
artist site

The Acadia Report start
artist: DJ iPep's
album: Home Mix 2007
track: Concerto
from: EVREUX, France
album at Jamendo
artist at Jamendo
artist site

WOD start
artist: DJ iPep's
album: Home Mix 2007
track: Game Toy
from: EVREUX, France
album at Jamendo
artist at Jamendo
artist site

cws start
artist: Kevin MacLeod
track: The Jazz Woman
from: Brooklyn, NY, United States
artist site

qa start
artist: ioeo
album: triptracks
track: triptrack2
from: Saint Raphael, France
album at Jamendo
artist at Jamendo
artist site

qa bgm
artist: Cliffhanger
album: Comb your hair
track: Up against some hard fellows
from: Sweden
artist at Jamendo
album at Jamendo

Did you notice a mistake in this script? Please leave us a comment and tell us! We really appreciate people pointing out our mistakes.Thank you.

Have you translated this script - or part of it - into your language for English practice and published it on your blog? Please leave a comment and a link so other people can read your translation. Thank you.

#1036 Flame War, Snowball Formal, Man Bans Whole Town, Prove, Bone

Show 1036 Thursday 23 April
Watch today’s show at YouTube or BlipTV.

Hi, I’m Sarah, welcome to The Daily English Show.
Today I recommend a video called: We Didn’t Start The Flame War.



It’s by College Humor and it’s to the tune of We Didn’t Start the Fire by Billy Joel.

I really like this video. I think it’s really well done. They’ve made a song out of the typical ridiculous things that some people say on the internet. The stupid comments that people make and the typical complaints they make. There’s a lot of really offensive language in it, but I think they somehow pull it off because they’re really just showing how ridiculous all these comments are.

Do you know what a flame war is?
I think it’s basically just people typing stupid insults at each other.

But you can read a few more in-depth definitions on Urban Dictionary.

And Wikipedia says: Flaming is a hostile and insulting interaction between internet users.

There’s a lot of slang in this song, so there could be quite a few words that you don’t know.

For example peeps, which means: people.

This is the chorus of the song:

We didn’t start the Flame War
Peeps were hating on it
Before I left my comment

To hate on something is slang for to criticize, insult or attack something.
I’ve only ever seen it written online, but maybe it’s used offline too.

Anyway, basically the chorus means something like: I didn’t start the argument, people were already arguing before I left a comment.

The Acadia Report
Acadia University, Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada

Every year at Acadia University, there’s an event called the Snowball Formal. And there’s a video of this year’s event on the Acadia channel.



So what’s a formal?
You probably know the adjective formal. But what does the noun mean.

It says here: North American, an occasion on which evening dress is worn.

So it’s an event where you dress up in suits and dresses basically and you can’t wear casual clothes like tracksuits or jeans.

It’s like a prom, which is also American English – but I think a prom is usually at high school.
In New Zealand, at the high school I went to anyway, we called it a ball. And I also went to one in my first year of university– it was just for the people who lived in my hall – and we called that a ball too.

STICK NEWS



Kia ora in Stick News today a man in New Zealand has banned an entire town from staying at his motel.

Shane (* should be "Steve") Donnelly is an Australian man who owns a motel in Palmerston North, New Zealand.
Shane said that over a six-month period three groups of people from Wainuiomata caused trouble at the motel.
Their bad behaviour included: spitting on the pavement, flirting with girls and swearing,
So he has decided to ban everyone from Wainuiomata.

And that was Stick News for Thursday the 23rd of April.
Kia ora.

TDES Niseko Snow Report
in Hirafu

with Keita Nakamura
* Keita was a guest on Show 1033

What do you like about Niseko?

Many things. And they have four seasons, so I can’t say one things, but … that’s the thing I like, the four seasons. Lots of snows and nature and … um, international culture. But still … a lot of thing is moving here, so that’s interesting.

What are the snow conditions like in Niseko compared to other mountains in Hokkaido?

There are so many places you can have powder, but, ah, you have to hike up and … yeah you have to hike up. But this ski resort is really easy to get fresh powder all day. Easy.

Word of the Day

Today’s word is prove.

v. to use facts, evidence, etc. to show that sth is true

This is from today’s video: if ur gonna call bullshit post a link to prove it.
(From 1:18)

Someone had said the photo that they are commenting on, was stolen from another website. And this person is saying: If you’re going to accuse someone of doing something, then you should post a link to prove it – to show that what you’re saying is true.

conversations with sarah
#654 What does bone mean?

Step 1: Repeat Mari’s lines.
Step 2: Read Mari’s lines and talk to Sarah.

Mari What does bone mean?

Sarah Bone means to have sex.

Mari Like make love?

Sarah Yeah, except that bone isn’t very romantic.

Mari When do you use that word?

Sarah Well, I never use it. But … I guess it would be teenage boys. Maybe writing comments on the internet like in that song.

We Didn’t Start The Flame War - Lyrics/Transcript

Jeff Rubin is typing a message
Jeff Rubin @ 3:31pm says:
posted that pic
Streeter Seidell @3:31pm says
people like it?
Jeff Rubin is typing a message
Jeff Rubin @ 3:31pm says:
Check out the comments

First post!
fucking gay
Second post!
go away!
stupid picture
Simpsons did it
south park did it too.
ROFL copter ! ! !
Really Stupid
I dunno, I kinda like it
I hate Mindy (http://www.ihatemindy.com/4c7e234)
I hate Cindy (http://www.ihatecindy.com/4c7e234)
I hate fags and jews
Who’s the girl in that pic?
I want her to show her tits
So gross, I wonder why girls don’t come to this site!
This picture FTW I’d bone the girl in it
I’d bone your mom
u bone your palm
oh snap, epic Pwnage!
We didn’t start the flame war
Peeps were hatin’ on it
‘fore I left my comment
We didn’t start the flame war
Let the whole wide world know
I’m a big old asshole
Saw this on another site.
Photoshop’d, Am I right?
hard to see, but I agree
dugg down cuz it sucks!
How’d this garbage make it to the front page?
users from their site came and dugg it up
Stolen from XKCD
Buried for inaccuracy
if ur gonna call bullshit post a link to prove it
Ron Paul 2012!!!
he can’t win, don’t jizz yourself
He’s got a chance
Yeah, in France - bet you’d vote for Palin!
We didn’t start the Flame War
Peeps were hatin’ on it
‘fore I left my comment
We didn’t start the flame war
Let the whole wide world know
I’m a big old asshole
Who wants a free iPod? Just follow this link
God, Spammers in this thread are such massive dickheads
Oh my god, watch my vid - crazy funny fat kid
Eat my ass you fucking troll
what an asshole!
Rick roll’d!
Gay-ay-ay
You guys know who I hate? people who are mixed race
also mexicans red heads, and asians
why r u guys so racist
why r u guys so racist
double post, my bad
this kid’s a noob fag
what’s your problem douchebag?
ur the ass, fucking fag!
your a fag!
You’re a BITCH!
All of you can suck my dick! 8==0
We didn’t start the Flame War
Peeps were hatin’ on it
‘fore I left my comment
We didn’t start the flame war
Let the whole wide world know
I’m a big old asshole
asshole
asshole
asshole
asshole
asshole

Nanoob? On Mar 15,2009
Gaaaaay!

filming notes

The ending shot was filmed on 23rd April 2009 at 7:50am in Kutchan, Hokkaido, Japan.
Keita's interview was filmed on 29th March 2009 at Powderlife Cafe in Hirafu.

links

today's news
today's STICK NEWS pictures

music

show start
artist: Boom Tschak
album: Indietronic CCBit.
track: More Chocolate, Please
from: Former Yugoslavia
MySpace

The Acadia Report start
artist: DJ iPep's
album: Home Mix 2007
track: Concerto
from: EVREUX, France
album at Jamendo
artist at Jamendo
artist site

nsr start
artist: Zeropage
album: Ambient Pills Update
track: Is It Real?
from: Switzerland
album at Jamendo
artist at Jamendo
artist site

WOD start
artist: DJ iPep's
album: Home Mix 2007
track: Game Toy
from: EVREUX, France
album at Jamendo
artist at Jamendo
artist site

cws start
artist: Wolfgang S.
album: Indietronic CCBit.
track: Dynamite
from: Belgrade, Serbia, Former Yugoslavia
artist site
MySpace

qa start
artist: ioeo
album: triptracks
track: triptrack2
from: Saint Raphael, France
album at Jamendo
artist at Jamendo
artist site

qa bgm
artist: Jay P. Baker
album: The Last Riddle In Time
track: They Are We Now
from: the US
artist at Jamendo
album at Jamendo

Have you translated this script - or part of it - into your language for English practice and published it on your blog? Please leave a comment and a link so other people can read your translation. Thank you.

#1029 Susan Boyle, Without A Doubt, Obamas' Dog, Tosh

Show 1029 Thursday 16 April
Watch today’s show at YouTube or BlipTV.

Hi, I’m Sarah, welcome to The Daily English Show.

The video we’re studying today is the famous clip of Susan Boyle singing on the TV show Britain’s Got Talent.

As you probably know, the judges were pretty impressed by her performance.
These are some of the adjectives they used:

stunning
incredible
amazing
brilliant
extraordinary

One of the expressions you can hear in the clip is: without a doubt.

Without a doubt is an idiom which is used to emphasize the point that you’re making.

It’s often used with superlatives, if something is the best, biggest, longest, worst ….

Without a doubt that was the worst movie I’ve ever seen.

And on the show one of the judges said: Without a doubt, that was the biggest surprise I’ve had in three years on this show.

Another judge used the expression: a wake-up call.

You probably know a wake-up call is a phone call you get in a hotel to wake you up. But it’s also an idiom which means: an event that warns someone that they need to deal with an urgent or dangerous problem.

For example: His health scare was a wake-up call for him. He knew he had to start taking care of himself or he would die.

I think the way the judge used the expression was slightly odd, but anyway it was clear what she meant.

She said: I am so thrilled because I know that everybody was against you. I honestly think that we were all being very cynical, and I think that's the biggest wake-up call ever.

So I think what she was saying was that it was a good reminder to everybody that you just because someone isn’t particularly attractive, doesn’t mean they aren’t talented.

UPDATE: Use of "wake-up call" in recent news article here.

The Acadia Report
Acadia University, Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada

Today I’d like to introduce a video from an event that was held to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the first woman to graduate from Acadia University. She was also the second woman to graduate from a university in the Commonwealth. I don’t know who the first person was. Google failed me on that.

This was also the first time that the new president spoke at an event representing Acadia University and he mentioned that 56% of the students at Acadia are women.

There’s a script for that video on The Daily English Show blog so go and check that out.

I like this quote from the woman in the video. She says: I believe our next drive and effort has to be to hold what we’ve earned and to move on from token participation to push for true equality in all walks of life.



0:22
I am proud of the early commitment that Acadia extended to education for women and which we celebrate today. When you think, as President Ivany said, the significance of that year, giving the first degree to a woman from Acadia. I believe our next drive and effort has to be to hold what we’ve earned and to move on from token participation to push for true equality in all walks of life. We have to be like Clara Bell Marshall. She didn’t get that walk across that stage and get her degree, without a lot of effort, the marks … and building the support to get it. We must, must move forward. I hope those young women that are at Acadia today, in the 56% , are going to be in that drive to make the difference. I do think it’s important for everyone to recognise these kind of historical events, because they did shape, big time, what … the future of women in this country. Now Acadia family, the bigger Acadia family, has always played a major role in my life. And the personal friendships that I made at Acadia and … have enriched my life and continue with me today.

1:49
It is a real pleasure and an honour to, ah, be with you today. I wanted to be here, ah, in many ways, ah, as my first public, ah, event, ah, representing Acadia University. Um, and I consider it, ah, an honour to, ah, to do so. Just as I, I would thank, you know, Clara Bell Marshall if I could today, for what she did today and that that spirit is still alive. I also want to thank each and every one of you. Because you did a version of that as well. And I’ve heard some stories as I’ve talked to people today, right?, about, you know, early on, still breaking new ground for women at Acadia. And the reason why the institution is as strong as it is today, is very much the product of the work that you and others, ah, have put forward.
I think for each and every one of you, if you think of your mothers or daughters or sisters, ah, aunts and nieces, the other women that have been important in your lives and reflect upon what her experience must have been like, as that, that first woman, ah, through the institution … and again to draw the link to what makes institutions last this long in our society in general. What makes Acadia University special is that, I can tell you today that about 56% of our student body today are women. It’s a long, long …
Acadia’s commitment to a personalized education that touched everyone in this room, their commitment to using the institution to help you get where you were trying to go, or discover where you wanted to go … And to be concerned about the development of you as a human being, not just as a student, not just academically, but on many other dimentions as well. Acadia’s been, been a wonderful university, ah, in this country long before I was born. It will be a wonderful university in this country, long after I’m gone. And, ah, and we have to treat it respectfully and give it our greatest care during the time that we’re there and I give you my personal pledge today that I will do that, so thank you.

STICK NEWS



Kia ora in Stick News today the Obamas' new dog has arrived at the White House.

On the 4th of November 2008, Barack Obama told the world that his family was getting a puppy.
Now, the dog has arrived at the White House.
It’s name is Bo and it’s a Portuguese water dog.

And that was Stick News for Thursday the 16th of April.
Kia ora.

TDES Niseko Snow Report
in Kutchan

This is looking at the mountain in the afternoon from the road near my apartment.
And this is a bit later the same day from in front of the gym.

Word of the Day

Today’s word is: tosh.

n. (old-fashioned, BrE, slang) nonsense

After Susan Boyle performed, everyone was clearly shocked that she was so good. And the first two judges said they were shocked and surprised. But the last judge, Simon, said: Susan, I knew the minute you walked out on that stage we were going to hear something extraordinary. And I was right.

He was clearly joking, which is why everyone laughed. And one of the guys on stage looked at the camera and said: What a load of tosh.

conversations with sarah
#650 What’s the dream?



Step 1: Repeat the judge’s lines.
Step 2: Read the judge’s lines and talk to Susan.

Judge All right, what’s your name, darling?

Susan My name is Susan Boyle.

Judge OK, ah, Susan, where you from?

Susan I’m from Blackburn, near Bathgate, West Lothian.

Judge That’s a big town?

Susan It’s a, sort of, collection of … It’s a collection of, ah … villages. I had to think there.

Judge And how old are you Susan?

Susan I am 47. And that’s just one side of me.

Judge OK. What’s the dream?

Susan I … I’m trying to be a professional singer.

Judge And why hasn’t it worked out so far, Susan?

Susan Well, I’ve never been given the chance before. But here’s hoping it’ll change.

Judge OK, and who would you like to be as successful as?

Susan Elaine Paige, someone like that.

Judge What are you going to sign tonight?

Susan I’m going to sing I Dreamed A Dream from Les Misérables.

Judge OK. Big song.

Full transcript from this video.
(All videos on YouTube apart from the official video have embedding disabled).

Hello, there.
Hello, how you doing?
I’m good. How are you?
My name is Susan Boyle, I’m nearly 48, currently unemployed, but still looking and I’m going to sing for you on Britain’s Got Talent today.
A little nervous?
Yeah, sure (?) eh.
Yeah, well, that's, that’s not surprising.
I’ve got fighting (?)
I’ve never been married. Never been kissed. Oh, shame. But it’s not an advert.
Have you done this for many a year?
Since I was twelve.
Since you were twelve.
I’ve always wanted to perform in front of a large audience. I’m going to make that audience rock.

All right, what’s your name, darling?
My name is Susan Boyle.
OK, ah, Susan, where you from?
I’m from Blackburn, near Bathgate, West Lothian.
That’s a big town?
It’s a, sort of, collection of … It’s a collection of, ah … villages. I had to think there.
And how old are you Susan?
I am 47. And that’s just one side of me.
OK. What’s the dream?
I … I’m trying to be a professional singer.
And why hasn’t it worked out so far, Susan?
Well, I’ve never been given the chance before. But here’s hoping it’ll change.
OK, and who would you like to be as successful as?
Elaine Page, somebody like that.
Elaine Page.
What are you going to sign tonight?
I’m going to sing I Dreamed A Dream from Les Miserables.
OK. Big song.

Yeah? Yeah.

Oi!
Hello?
Hey, come back here!
Stay there! Stay there! Stay there!
Thank you very much, ah, Susan. Piers.

Without a doubt, that was the biggest surprise I’ve had in three years on this show. When you stood there with that cheeky grin and said I, I want to be like Elaine Page, everyone was laughing at you. No one is laughing now. That was stunning. An incredible performance. Amazing! I’m reeling from shock. I don’t know about you two. But … I can’t believe it.

I am so thrilled because I know that everybody was against you. I honestly think that we were all being very cynical, and I think that's the biggest wake-up call ever. And I just want to say that it was a complete privilege listening to that. It was … brilliant.

Susan, I knew the minute you walked out …
Oh, Simon!
… on that stage we were going to hear something extraordinary. And I was right.

What a lot of tosh.

Susan, you are a little tiger, aren’t you?
I don’t know about that.
You are.
I don’t know about that.
OK, moment of truth. Piers, yes or no?

The biggest yes I have ever given anybody.
Yes, definitely.
Susan Boyle, you can go back to the village with your head held high – it’s three yeses.

Launcher

links

today's news
today's STICK NEWS pictures

music

show start
artist: Boom Tschak
album: Indietronic CCBit.
track: More Chocolate, Please
from: Former Yugoslavia
MySpace

The Acadia Report start
artist: DJ iPep's
album: Home Mix 2007
track: Concerto
from: EVREUX, France
album at Jamendo
artist at Jamendo
artist site

nsr start
artist: Zeropage
album: Ambient Pills Update
track: Is It Real?
from: Switzerland
album at Jamendo
artist at Jamendo
artist site

WOD start
artist: DJ iPep's
album: Home Mix 2007
track: Game Toy
from: EVREUX, France
album at Jamendo
artist at Jamendo
artist site

cws start
artist: Wolfgang S.
album: Indietronic CCBit.
track: Dynamite
from: Belgrade, Serbia, Former Yugoslavia
artist site
MySpace

qa start
artist: ioeo
album: triptracks
track: triptrack2
from: Saint Raphael, France
album at Jamendo
artist at Jamendo
artist site

qa bgm
artist: Josta
album: Altrove (part 1)
track: BabaLoop
from: Torino, Italy
artist at Jamendo
album at Jamendo
artist site

Have you translated this script - or part of it - into your language for English practice and published it on your blog? Please leave a comment and a link so other people can read your translation. Thank you.

#1022 Tim Minchin, Acadia's New President, Dumping Kiwifruit, Matrimonial, Condescending

Show 1022 Thursday 9 April
Watch today’s show at YouTube or BlipTV.

Hi, I’m Sarah, welcome to The Daily English Show.

The video I recommend today is a poem by a guy called Tim who is an Australian musician, actor, comedian and writer.



It’s pretty clever I think. It has a lot of difficult words so it might be hard to understand. But you could just watch it and try and understand the general point, or you could study some of the words in it and add some interesting new words to your vocabulary like:
irrefutable matrimonial empirical condescending vacuous

The poet is telling a story. He has gone to dinner at a friend’s house and there’s him and his wife and a couple who are friends of theirs and a girl he has never met before, called Storm.

And they’re all talking and drinking and eating. And after a while Storm starts to annoy him because … basically their way of thinking is different. He values science and she is not so interested in science. She’s more interested in things like horoscopes and natural remedies.

She says:

But the human body is a mystery! Science just falls in a hole When it tries to explain the nature of the soul

I think this is funny because it’s a fairly common situation – a group of people having drinks together … and someone who is prone to ranting gets all worked up about someone else because they have different opinions from them. And everyone else in the room is just wishing they’d shut up.

These two personalities in the poem clash really badly because they have different ways of thinking about the world and science.

The Acadia Report
Acadia University, Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada

In the Acadia Report today, Acadia University has a new president.
When The Daily English Show visited Acadia University, we interviewed the president – that was show number 530. Now there is a new president. He started on the first of April.

His name is Ray Ivany and he’s originally from Sydney, Nova Scotia and he is Acadia’s 15th President.

This is what he’s been quoted as saying: “I am deeply honoured to have been chosen as Acadia’s 15th President,” said Ivany. “My visits to campus during the selection process confirmed my long-held belief that Acadia is more than simply the sum of its parts. Its combination of rich history and tradition, outstanding faculty and staff, spirited and inspired students, and dedicated and loyal alumni make it a truly unique institution that offers students an exceptional university experience.

STICK NEWS



Kia ora in Stick News today kiwifruit growers in New Zealand will destroy a million trays of kiwifruit.

Apparently the global demand for kiwifruit has slumped.
So New Zealand kiwifruit growers have been told to destroy a million trays of the fruit.
The kiwifruit will be destroyed during May and June.

And that was Stick News for Thursday the 9th of April.
Kia ora.

TDES Niseko Snow Report
at studio tdes

with Robert Hargrove

What’s your home mountain?

My home mountain’s Whistler back home.

How does Whistler compare to Niseko?

Whistler … the snow’s not as good on a regular basis. But we do get a couple of really nice snow days in Whistler every season. And the mountain is, there’s two mountains, they’re a lot bigger and there’s a lot more, more terrain options than there is here. But, as far as snow goes, Niseko’s got it beat.

Are you planning to come back?

Yeah, I was asked to come back next season, so I’ll be back.

Word of the Day

Today’s word is matrimonial.

adj. (formal or technical) connected with marriage or with being married

This is how the word is used in the poem. I like this part.

And across the room, my wife Widens her eyes Silently begs me, “Be nice” A matrimonial warning Not worth ignoring

conversations with sarah
#645 What does condescending mean?

Step 1: Repeat Kanao’s lines.
Step 2: Read Kanao’s lines and talk to Sarah.

Kanao What does condescending mean?

Sarah Ah, condescension is a nasty thing. If someone is being condescending, then they are acting like they think they’re better or more important or intelligent than other people.

Kanao Like arrogance?

Sarah Yeah, like arrogance. And you can use those words together too, like, “Ugh, he’s such an arrogant, condescending prick”.

links

today's news
today's STICK NEWS pictures

Tim Minchin - official site
Tim Minchin - Wikipedia
Tim Minchin - YouTube channel

music

show start
artist: Boom Tschak
album: Indietronic CCBit.
track: More Chocolate, Please
from: Former Yugoslavia
MySpace

The Acadia Report start
artist: DJ iPep's
album: Home Mix 2007
track: Concerto
from: EVREUX, France
album at Jamendo
artist at Jamendo
artist site

nsr start
artist: Zeropage
album: Ambient Pills Update
track: Is It Real?
from: Switzerland
album at Jamendo
artist at Jamendo
artist site

WOD start
artist: DJ iPep's
album: Home Mix 2007
track: Game Toy
from: EVREUX, France
album at Jamendo
artist at Jamendo
artist site

cws start
artist: Wolfgang S.
album: Indietronic CCBit.
track: Dynamite
from: Belgrade, Serbia, Former Yugoslavia
artist site
MySpace

qa start
artist: ioeo
album: triptracks
track: triptrack2
from: Saint Raphael, France
album at Jamendo
artist at Jamendo
artist site

qa bgm
artist: Hugo 'Droopy' Contini
album: Strikes Back !
track: Jackie's Idea
artist at Jamendo
album at Jamendo
MySpace

Have you translated this script - or part of it - into your language for English practice and published it on your blog? Please leave a comment and a link so other people can read your translation. Thank you.

#1015 Busy Beavers, Metalsmith, Same-sex Marriage, Hydro

Show 1015 Thursday 2 April
Watch today’s show at YouTube or BlipTV.

Hi, I’m Sarah, welcome to The Daily English Show.

The video I recommend today is called In, On, Under.
You can watch it on this YouTube channel.

We Are Busy Beavers, as it says in their profile, is: a method of learning English through songs and videos. And you can find out more about them on their site.

The songs are really catchy and have useful language in them too. I think listening to catchy, repetitive songs like this is an excellent way to learn because the language really sticks in your head.

Another one of the Busy Beaver songs that I love is called The Clothing Song.

The Acadia Report
Acadia University, Wolfville, Nova Scotia, Canada

Today I’d like to introduce another video from the Wolfville Farmers’ Market channel on YouTube. It’s a video about an artist, or maybe she’s called a metalsmith.

Anyway in this video she’s making some earrings out of metal and she’s explaining what she’s doing and the tools that she’s using. It’s really interesting to see her work. And this is one example of the kind of arts and crafts you can see at the Wolfville Farmer’s Market.



My favourite tool is this hammer. I love this hammer. It’s got … you know, it’s all funny shaped and … I’ve had it a long time. This hammer is probably, I don’t know, maybe ten or eleven years old. And my other … my most used tool is this saw frame.
This type of earring has all kinds of, ah, hammer marks in it, so what I do is I keep my hammer in one spot and then move the piece. And then I get a little bit of movement in the lines without them being too straight.
And then from there, I’ll take this and … oh, this way … and this one goes …
There’s probably a much faster way of doing it. But doing it hand … There’s a hydraulic press I could use. I could have shapes cut out of steel. And have them hydraulically cut out.
But a good hydraulic press is thousands and thousands of dollars and everything comes out looking exactly the same.
So, then, that’s … Oh that one looks …
Gets a bit tedious sometimes, but it’s also a working meditation. I just get into a … get into a zen and stop when my fingers hurt.

STICK NEWS



Kia ora in Stick News today same-sex marriages will soon be legal in Sweden.

Sweden’s parliament has voted to approve same-sex marriage legislation.
261 members of parliament voted yes, 22 voted no and 16 chose not to vote.
According to Wikipedia, Sweden is the seventh country to open marriage to same sex couples nationwide.

And that was Stick News for Thursday 2nd April.
Kia ora.

TDES Niseko Snow Report
in Hirafu

with Manu Ross
* Manu was a guest on Show 1012

Which mountain do you usually go to in New Zealand?

New Zealand, I go to Mount Ruapehu, in the North Island.

How do the conditions in Niseko compare to New Zealand?

Niseko, you’ve got the snow that would normally fall at about 3000 feet, but because of the Siberian, sort of, warm air coming over, across the water and it just lets it come down and it’s real sort of dry powder, it’s fluffy. When you fall over, it’s like falling over into marshmellows. Mmm, really soft and it’s nice. It’s very nice. New Zealand, a bit more harder, compact, lots of people go there, um, here it’s been quite quiet this season and it was just great for us hill staff.

Word of the Day

Today’s word is hydraulic.

adj. denoting or relating to a liquid moving in a confined space under pressure.

The artist in the video I mentioned today is working with metal with a hammer and she says she could use a machine called a hydraulic press but, she says: a good hydraulic press is thousands and thousands of dollars and everything comes out looking exactly the same.

You may never need to talk about a hydraulic press. But hydro or hydr is a useful prefix to learn.
It means relating to water or a fluid or hydrogen.

For example:

Hydrophobia: fear of water.

Hydrotherapy: the therapeutic use of exercises in a pool.

Hydroponics: the process of growing plants in water or sand, rather than (in) soil.

And hydroslide, you might be able to guess, is a water slide.

That’s a common word in New Zealand – but I’m not sure if it’s used in other countries.

conversations with sarah
#640 No, what does that mean?

Step 1: Repeat Mariko’s lines.
Step 2: Read Mariko’s lines and talk to Sarah.

Sarah Have you heard that expression before?

Mariko A busy beaver?

Sarah Yeah, a busy beaver or as busy as a beaver.

Mariko No. What does it mean?

Sarah It means very busy.

Mariko Where does the expression come from?

Sarah I’m not sure, but I guess it’s because beavers are always busy building dams. There are hundreds of expressions using animals in English.

Mariko What’s another one?

Sarah For example: the bee’s knees, have you heard that one?

Mariko No, what does that mean?

Sarah It means, great or excellent.

Mariko Why are bee’s knees so great?

Sarah I don’t know. Good question. I wonder where that expression came from.

filming notes

The ending shot was filmed on Sunday 29th March in Hirafu, Hokkaido, Japan.

links

today's news
today's STICK NEWS pictures

music

show start
artist: Boom Tschak
album: Indietronic CCBit.
track: More Chocolate, Please
from: Former Yugoslavia
MySpace

The Acadia Report start
artist: DJ iPep's
album: Home Mix 2007
track: Concerto
from: EVREUX, France
album at Jamendo
artist at Jamendo
artist site

nsr start
artist: Zeropage
album: Ambient Pills Update
track: Is It Real?
from: Switzerland
album at Jamendo
artist at Jamendo
artist site

WOD start
artist: DJ iPep's
album: Home Mix 2007
track: Game Toy
from: EVREUX, France
album at Jamendo
artist at Jamendo
artist site

cws start
artist: Wolfgang S.
album: Indietronic CCBit.
track: Dynamite
from: Belgrade, Serbia, Former Yugoslavia
artist site
MySpace

qa start
artist: ioeo
album: triptracks
track: triptrack2
from: Saint Raphael, France
album at Jamendo
artist at Jamendo
artist site

qa bgm
artist: Hugo 'Droopy' Contini
album: Strikes Back !
track: On a Slow Boat To China
artist at Jamendo
album at Jamendo
MySpace


Have you translated this script - or part of it - into your language for English practice and published it on your blog? Please leave a comment and a link so other people can read your translation. Thank you.