Word of The Day

Underbid

Function: verb (with object)

Inflected forms:

underbids; underbid; underbidding

Meaning: to offer to do work for less money than (another person or group)
to bid less than (someone else)
E.G.

We were underbid by another company (another company offered to do a job for less money than we did) and we lost the contract.

A Christmas Tale

Hugo Caldas

Due to the fact that I virtually lived from 7 to 12 years of age, aboard a small Piper Cub flown by my father, stories about airmen and aircrafts are particularly fascinating to me. Below, is the report of a Christmas Tale the way I was told. Please note that until WW2 we knew perfectly well who were the good guys and who were the bad guys. Nowadays, unfortunately ... H.C.

That morning of December 24, 1943, Charles Brown, 21 years, was the pilot of the Flying Fortress, Boeing B-17 with the 379th Bomber Group based at Kimbolton, England. His B-17 was called "Ye Olde Pub" and was in terrible and very poor condition, after being repeatedly hit by flak and fighters during a difficult task of bombing a factory in Bremen, Germany. The compass, and the radio, were damaged and the plane completely disoriented, was flying dangerously deeper over the German territory instead of heading home to Kimbolton. Of the ten crew members seven were seriously injured, himself bleeding, a splinter stuck in his left shoulder.

After flying over an enemy air base, Charlie Brown was trying to bring his agonizing bomber back to base. He felt his heart freeze when he looked through the right window and saw a Messerschmitt 109 fighter, armed to the teeth, flying dangerously close to what remained of his Flying Fortress.

The pilot of the German fighter, Franz Stigler was ordered to take off and shoot down what was left of the B-17. When approaching the four-engine, the German pilot could not believe his eyes. He had never seen an aircraft in such a bad state. The tail of the aircraft and the rear section were severely damaged, there was almost nothing left. He could see that the tail gunner was wounded. The striker had his remains scattered all over the fuselage. The nose of the aircraft was crushed, and there were holes everywhere. A complete destruction.

Well armed, Franz flew to the side of the Flying Fortress and stared at Charlie Brown's eyes that terrified fought to keep in the air his destroyed and blood-stained plane. It seemed incredible that so shattered the B-17 remained flying. Brown did everything to reach the coasts of England some 250 miles away.

Realizing that the Americans had not the slightest idea of where they were going, the German pilot began swaying his wings indicating that he, Charlie Brown, should turn 180 degrees. This was done and Franz flew to the side, and escorted the bomber to the North Sea, towards the base in England. Then suddenly he saluted Charlie Brown and returned to the continent.

When Franz landed, he filled in the forms of practice stating there he had overthrown the B-17 at sea. He never told the truth to anyone. On arrival at the Base, Charlie Brown and his crew brought the truth in the report, but received orders not to comment on the incident.

Over 40 years have passed and Charlie Brown could not forget the incident and wanted to find the Luftwaffe pilot who had saved his crew. The episode of the German pilot who refused to attack the opponent injured, still chasing him. Brown remained on the firm intention of finding the pilot that had helped him to reach the remote base. Franz, in turn, never talked about the adventure, even in the post-war meetings.

Fate made them to meet themselves on a gathering of Group 379th in the U.S. in 1989, along with five other crew members of the B-17. Brown wrote numerous letters to German military sources, but had little or no success. Finally, a small note in the journal of the Luftwaffe veterans exhibited a response from Franz Stigler, the 28 air victories ace. He was finally discovered. He was that merciful angel in Germany that fateful December 24, Christmas Eve of 1943.

46 years of waiting, but Charles Brown in 1989, after an exchanging of letters, found the mysterious man of the Me 109. Stigler spoke about details common to the two airmen and left not the slightest doubt about his identity. In his first letter to Brown, Stigler writes:

- "After all these years, I still imagine what happened to the B-17."

- "We all survived by little, said Brown. But why didn't you destroy your helpless prey?"

- "I had no heart to destroy those brave men, Stigler said. I flew alongside them for a long time. They desperately tried to return to base, and I would allow them to do so. I could not have thrown them. "

The war ends and Stigler emigrated to Canada and lived near Vancouver, British Columbia.

- "He almost broke my ribs, so strong was the hug, said Brown."

Thenceforward the two visited each other frequently and appeared together on military events in the United States and Canada. In the Air Force Ball in Miami in 1995, the two received several honors.

Our heroes are weary:

Franz Stigler passed away on March 22, 2008, with 92 years of age. Cel Charles Brown died last November 23rd at the age of 86.

The above story had happened because Franz Stigler declined to fire his weapons that day on December 24, 1943. It was a memorable act of gallantry in wartimes.

hucaldas@gmail.com
hugocaldas.blogspot.com

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"Put your hand on a hot stove for a minute, and it seems like an hour. Sit with a pretty girl for an hour, and it seems like a minute. THAT'S relativity."
Albert Einstein

LAUGHTER'S THE BEST MEDICINE

Never Ever Trust A Women With Money

When John found out he was going to inherit a fortune when his sickly father died, he decided he needed a woman to enjoy it with. So one evening he went to a singles bar where he spotted the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. Her natural beauty took his breath away.

“I may look like just an ordinary man,” he said as he walked up to her “but in just a week or two, my father will die, and I’ll inherit 20 million dollars.”

Impressed, the woman went home with him that evening and, three days later, she became his stepmother.

Teaching Tips & Ideas

Longest Words



1. The longest word in standard English dictionaries is pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis at 45 letters long.

2. The longest English word that does not contain the letter 'e' is floccinaucinihilipilification at 29 letters.

3. Cabbaged and fabaceae, each 8 letters long, are the longest words that can be played on a musical instrument.

4. Aegilops, 8 letters long, is the longest word with its letters arranged in alphabetical order.

5. Spoonfed, 9 letters long, is the longest word with its letters arranged in reverse alphabetical order.

6. CIMICIC and CIMICID, each 7 letters long, are the longest words that are exclusively made up of Roman numerals when written in upper case. Among words consisting of only Roman numeral letters, the "highest scoring" are MIMIC (2,102) and IMMIX (2,012).

7. Overnumerousnesses, 18 letters long, is the longest word that consists of only letters that lack ascenders, descenders and dots in lower case.

8. Lighttight and hillypilly, each 10 letters long, are the longest words consisting only of letters with ascenders, descenders and dots in lower case.

9. Tittifill, 9 letters long, is the longest word consisting only of letters with ascenders or dots in lower case.

10. Honorificabilitudinitatibus, 27 letters long, is the longest word consisting strictly of alternating consonants and vowels.

11. Dermatoglyphics, misconjugatedly and uncopyrightable , each 15 letters long, are the longest words in which no letter appears more than once.

12. Unprosperousness, 16 letters long, is the longest word in which each letter occurs at least twice.

13. Esophagographers, 16 letter long, is the longest word in which each of its letters occurs twice.

14. Diescret - discreet is the longest homophonic anagram (2 similarly pronounced words that are spelled differently but sound the same and are composed of the same letters).

15. Redivider is the longest common palindromic word ( a word reading the same backwards and forwards).

16. The longest words that are reverse images of each other are stressed and desserts .

IMAGE OF THE DAY

Mommy, Is God Black or White?

One day Little Johnny walks up to his Mom and says,

- “Mommy, is God Black or White?”

She replies,

- “Well, Honey, God is both Black and White.”

Then he says,

- “Mommy, is God a boy or a girl?”

- “God is both a boy and a girl, Honey,” she replies.

- “Mommy, is God gay or straight?” he inquires again. Getting a little irritated, the mother replies,

- “Well, Honey, God is both gay and straight.”

After thinking for a moment, Johnny looks up and asks,

- “Mommy, is God Michael Jackson?”

Bill Gates

A Brilliant Mind

Amazing Stories

One day when I was home alone a parcel was left at the door I opened it and there was a box. Inside there were puzzle pieces. I didn't think much of it and left it at that. Later that night when I was in bed I heard noises outside my window. Scared, I decided to solve that strange puzzle to keep my mind off of the spooky noises. As I was putting it together I realized that the puzzle was of my bed room, scared and yet curious I continued to solve the puzzle. Until I noticed that I was in the puzzle solving a puzzle and that there was a tall dark man outside my window holding a knife!! Totally freaked and dazed I looked slowly up at my window and there he was the man from the puzzle looking at me!! I screamed as loud as I could and ran into the lounge and tried to tell mum what had happened. She completely ignored me like I was invisible or something. That was when I realized she COULDN'T see me. Horrified I ran outside only to feel a sharp pain right in my back I turned expecting the man from the puzzle. As soon as our eyes met.........I woke up!

I know everyone hates that ending but I cant think of anything else!

Galileo

A Great Mind

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"We sing in a church, why can we not dance there?"

George Bernard Shaw - Irish Playwright, Critic, Political Activist.

Isaac Newton

An Extraordinary Mind

LAUGHTER'S THE BEST MEDICINE

Does Any One Like Women ?

A guy came into a bar one day and said to the barman, "Give me six double vodkas."

The barman says, "Wow! You must have had one hell of a day."

"Yes, I've just found out my older brother is gay."

The next day the same guy came into the bar and asked for the same drinks. When the bartender asked what the problem was today, the answer came back, "I've just found out that my younger brother is gay too!"

On the third day the guy came into the bar and ordered another six double vodkas.

The bartender says, "Geez! Doesn't anybody in your family like women?".

"Yeah, my wife..."

Bush

Never Mind

WORD OF THE DAY

yo-yo

Function: verb
Inflected forms:
yo–yos; yo–yoed; yo–yoing

Meaning:
to move repeatedly and quickly up and down or from a higher level to a lower level

e.g. Her weight has yo-yoed in recent years. She has lost weight and then gained weight again quickly

IMAGE OF THE DAY

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"Go to Heaven for the climate, Hell for the company."
Mark Twain - (Samuel Langhorne Clemens, was an American author and humorist)

ADVICE TO YOUNG READERS

You may know that Jacqueline Kennedy was the first lady married to President John Kennedy, but did you know that she was a book editor too? Before she passed away in 1994, Ms. Kennedy shared her best advices to young readers. Here are some of the points that she made.

“Read for escape, read for adventure, read for romance, but read the great writers. The great writers will always be easier and more enjoyable than any others, for these writers can stir your imagination best and open your world to the new experiences that books hold in store. The best writers will also help you develop your own language skills. Poetry is important, too. Rhythm is what should seize you when you read poetry.”

“If you wanted to paint, for instance, you would go look at paintings. Great painters learned to paint by copying others. If you read, you may want to write. You, too, may want to try to express your feelings by writing about them.”

“Once you can express yourself, you can tell the world what you want from it or how you would like to change it. All the changes in the world, for good or evil, were first brought about by words.”

LAUGHTER'S THE BEST MEDICINE

Blonde Job

An ambitious young blonde woman, in need of money, decided to hire herself out as a handyman-type. She began, door to door, canvassing a wealthy neighborhood for work. She went to the front door of the first house and asked the owner if he had any jobs for her to do.

- “Well, you can paint my porch. How much will you charge?” The blonde said,

- “How about 50 dollars?”

The man agreed and told her that the paint and ladders that she might need were in the garage. A short time later, the blonde came to the door to collect her money.

- “You’re finished already?” he asked.

- “Yes,” the blonde answered, “and I had paint left over, so I gave it two coats.” Impressed, the man reached in his pocket for the $50.

- “And by the way,” the blonde added, “that’s not a Porch, it’s a Ferrari.”

Teaching Tips & Ideas

HAD BETTER - "É melhor que, é preferível que.

Affirmative and Negative forms

I had better - I had better not
you had better - you had better not
he had better - he had better not
she had better - she had better not
it had better - it had better not
we had better - we had better not
you had better - you had better not
they had better - they had better not

"Had better" is most commonly used to make recommendations.
It can also be used to express desperate hope as well as warn people.

Examples:

You had better take your umbrella with you today. (recommendation)
That bus had better get here soon! (desperate hope)
You had better watch the way you talk to me in the future! (warning)
She had better stop daydreaming and be more realistic.
Hadn't you better go and see a specialist?
We'd better get that loan lest the lack of cash becomes a drawback to our plans.
He'd better cut her dead for, she stood him up three times in a row.
You'd better do your task from cover to cover immediately.
I'd better go now or I'll be late for class.

"Had better" is often simply pronounced as "better" in spoken English.


USE & WEAR

To Use:

e.g. He uses compasses to describe a circle. She uses nuts to give her cake a better flavour.

To Wear:

e.g. The so-called Wash 'n Wear garments are made of a special fabric that needs little or no ironing.

See those double examples:

e.g. That lad has two handkerchiefs.
One he uses to wipe his nose, the other he wears in his outer pocket.

WORD OF THE DAY

Q.T.

Idiom: on the Q.T.
Status: informal
Meaning: in a secret or quiet way

e.g.

All the arrangements were made on the q.t. She told me about it on the q.t. This information is private, so keep it on the q.t. (don't tell anyone about it)

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Day is a harvest festival. Traditionally, it is a time to give thanks for the harvest and express gratitude in general. It is primarily a North American holiday which has generally become a national secular holiday with religious origins.

The dates and whereabouts of the first Thanksgiving celebration are a topic of modest contention. Though the earliest attested Thanksgiving celebration was on September 8, 1565 in what is now Saint Augustine, Florida, the traditional "first Thanksgiving" is venerated as having occurred at the site of Plymouth Plantation, in 1621.

Today, Thanksgiving is celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November in the United States. Thanksgiving dinner is held on this day, usually as a gathering of family members.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

You know, they said this day would never come. They said our sights were set too high. They said this country was too divided; too disillusioned to ever come together around a common purpose.

President Elect Barack Hussein Obama II

LAUGHTER'S THE BEST MEDICINE

Bush's Postage Stamp

George W Bush wanted a special postage stamp issued, with his picture on it. He so instructed his Postmaster General, stressing that it should be of international quality.

The stamps were duly released, as he began hearing complaints that the stamps were not sticking properly, and become furious.

He called the chief of the Secret Service and ordered him to investigate the matter.

The chief checked the matter out at several post offices, and then reported on the problem to Bush. He said,

- "Sir, the stamp is really of international quality. The problem is, our citizens are spitting on the wrong side!"

WORD OF THE DAY

YOU-KNOW-WHO

Function: noun (noncount)

Status: informal

Meaning:

You-know-who is used in speech to refer to someone who is not named but is known to both the hearer and speaker.

e.g. We’re planning to throw a party for you-know-who.

DO YOU THINK YOU CAN READ ENGLISH?

Try this tongue-twister!

Mr. See and Mr. Soar were old friends. See owned a saw and Soar owned a seesaw. Now See's saw sawed Soar's seesaw before Soar saw See, which made Soar sore. Had Soar seen See's saw before See saw Soar's seesaw, then See's saw would not have sawed Soar's seesaw. But See saw Soar and Soar's seesaw before Soar saw See's saw, so See's saw sawed Soar's seesaw. It was a shame to let See see Soar so sore just because See's saw sawed Soar’s seesaw.

Teaching Tips & Ideas

SEVERE LINGUISTICS DIFFICULTIES – TH – Sounds – Silent Letters


Many students use to substitute an “S sound”, a “D sound” or a “Z sound” for the TH sound. Though there are all kinds of exercises for the TH sounds, here’s my favorite. “Three –Thousand –Three – Hundred –Thirty –Three -Trees”. If every student can say this sentence correctly, we feel that they have more or less mastered TH sounds and are able to go to other subjects.


Another common error is the pronunciation of silent letters: The L in Walk, Talk, Chalk, the T in Listen, and Castle, the B in Climb and Lamb are frequent but the silent letter which is most usually pronounced is the W in the word ANSWER. Here’s what I believe to be the cure for that sort of error. The drill is a conversation between two people and it should be read first by the teacher then by the class - divided into two groups - then, by two students then by individuals. If repeated a great many times it will sound kind of stupid but on the other hand it is quite presumable that the “W sound” will be gone forever. H.C.


Here’s The Drill:


A – Will you come to the movies, Sir? What is your answer, Sir?
B – Yes, I will come to the movies, Sir! That’s my answer, Sir!
A – There’s “Singin’ in the Rain” on screen and, Sir!
B – Sandwiches and Popcorn and ice cold Coke, Sir ? Yes, I will come
to the movies, Sir!
A – Is this your final answer, Sir?
B - Yes, this is my answer, Sir! My very final answer, Sir!

Logic and the English language

Have you ever wondered why foreigners have trouble with the English Language? Let’s face it English is a stupid language.

There is no egg in the eggplant
No ham in the hamburger
And neither pine nor apple in the pineapple.
English muffins were not invented in England.
French fries were not invented in France.

We sometimes take English for granted, but if we examine its paradoxes we find that:

Quicksand takes you down slowly
Boxing rings are square
And a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig
If writers write, how come fingers don’t fing?
If the plural of tooth is teeth Shouldn’t the plural of phone booth be phone beeth?
If the teacher taught, why didn’t the preacher praught?

If a vegetarian eats vegetables what the heck does a humanitarian eat?

Why do people recite at a play yet play at a recital?

Park on driveways and drive on parkways.

You have to marvel at the unique lunacy of a language where a house can burn up as it burns down?

And in which you fill in a form by filling it out?
And a bell is only heard once it goes?

English was invented by people, not computers and it reflects the creativity of the human race.
Which of course isn’t a race at all.

That is why

When the stars are out they are visible but when the lights are out they are invisible.

And why it is that when I wind up my watch it starts.

But when I wind up this observation it ends.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"The secret of creativity is knowing how to hide your sources." Albert Einstein

LAUGHTER'S THE BEST MEDICINE

One Sunny Day In 2009

One sunny day in 2009, an old man approached the White House from across Pennsylvania Ave, where he’d been sitting on a park bench. He spoke to the US Marine standing guard and said,

- “I would like to go in and meet with President Bush.”

The Marine looked at the man and said,

- “Sir, Mr. Bush is no longer president and no longer resides here.”

The old man said,

- “Okay” and walked away.

The following day, the same man approached the White House and said to the same Marine,

- “I would like to go in and meet with President Bush.”

The Marine again told the man,

- “Sir, as I said yesterday, Mr. Bush is no longer president and no longer resides here.”

The man thanked him and, again just walked away

The third day, the same man approached the White House and spoke to the very same US Marine, saying,

- “I would like to go in and meet with President Bush.”

The Marine, understandably agitated at this point, looked at the man and said,

- “Sir, this is the third day in a row you have been here asking to speak to Mr. Bush. I’ve told you already that Mr. Bush is no longer the president and no longer resides here. Don’t you understand?”

The old man looked at the Marine and said,

- “Oh, I understand. I just love hearing it.”

The Marine snapped to attention, saluted, and said,

- “See you tomorrow, Sir.”

' MEMBER???

WORD OF THE DAY

LEVELHEADED

Function: Adjective

Comparative and superlative forms: more levelheaded: most levelheaded

Meaning:
Having or showing an ability to think clearly and to make good decisions

e.g. She is levelheaded about her chances for success as an actress.
He provided a levelheaded assessment of the problem.

Derived form:
levelheadedness noun (noncount)

IMAGE OF THE DAY

'This guy misplaced his heart?!

Basic Rules of Flying

Planing to be a pilot? Here are some basic rules that should always be followed while flying.

1. Always try to keep the number of landings you make equal to the number of take offs you've made.

2. Every takeoff is optional. Every landing is mandatory.

3. Flying isn't dangerous. Crashing is what's dangerous.

4. It s always better to be down here wishing you were up there than up there wishing you were down here.

5. There are three simple rules for making a smooth landing. Unfortunately no one knows what they are.

6. The propeller is just a big fan in front of the plane used to keep the pilot cool. When it stops, you can actually watch the pilot start sweating.

7. When in doubt, hold on to your altitude. No one has ever collided with the sky.

8. A good landing is one from which you can walk away. A great landing is one after which they can use the plane again.

9. Learn from the mistakes of others. You won't live long enough to make all of them yourself.

10. You know you ve landed with the wheels up if it takes full power to taxi to the ramp.

11. The probability of survival is inversely proportional to the angle of arrival. Large angle of arrival, small probability of survival and vice versa.

12. Good judgment comes from experience. Unfortunately, the experience usually comes from bad judgment.

14. There are old pilots and there are bold pilots. There are, however, no old, bold pilots.

15. In the ongoing battle between objects made of aluminum going hundreds of miles per hour and the ground going zero miles per hour, the ground has yet to lose.

LAUGHTER'S THE BEST MEDICINE

WAR TIMES JOKES

A squad of American soldiers was patrolling the Iraqi border, when they came across a badly mangled Iraqi soldier in a ditch struggling to breathe.

A short distance up the road, they found a badly mangled American soldier in a ditch on the other side of the road, struggling to breathe. They ran to him, cradled his bruised head and asked him what had happened.

"Well," he whispered, "I was walking down this road, armed to the teeth when I came across this heavily armed Iraqi border guard. I looked him right in the eye and shouted, "Saddam Hussein is a moronic, deceitful, lying piece of trash!"

He looked me right in the eye and shouted back, "George Bush is a moronic, deceitful, lying piece of shit!" We were standing there shaking hands when this truck came and hit us."

QUOTE OF THE DAY

I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

(Martin Luther King on the steps at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, DC, on August 28, 1963.)

Happen to Know?

The Three R's

The three R's, as in the letter "R" is a phrase sometimes used to describe the foundations of a basic skills oriented education program within schools: reading, writing and arithmetic. The phrase "the three Rs" is used because each word has a strong "R" phoneme at the beginning, and, obviously, due to the spellings of each word.

It is widely believed that Sir William Curtis, an alderman who became Lord Mayor of London, once presented a toast to the three Rs "reading, riting, and rithmetic" thereby betraying his illiteracy. In any event, the term was picked up by others and so used from the early 1800s on.

IMAGE OF THE DAY

CONGRATULATIONS MR. PRESIDENT

Why turkey for Thanksgiving?

Although juicy and tender butterball turkeys are the main cuisine of today's Thanksgiving celebrations, these birds were NOT the most popular centerpieces on the first Thanksgiving tables.

In 1621 when the Plymouth colonists and Wampanoag Indians celebrated the first Thanksgiving, they were gobbling up many more foods than just turkey. Since lobster, goose, duck, seal, eel, and cod were plentiful during this time, these foods were most likely the main courses of this first feast. Deer meat and wild fowl are the only two items that historians know for sure were menu of this autumn celebration.

So how did the turkey become the main mascot of modern-day Thanksgiving if we don't know for certain that turkeys were at this first feast?

One story tells of how Queen Elizabeth of 16th century England was chowing down on roast goose during a harvest festival. When news was delivered to her that the Spanish Armada had sunk on it's way to attack her beloved England, the queen was so pleased that she order a second goose to celebrate the great news. Thus, the goose became the favorite bird at harvest time in England. When the Pilgrims arrived in America from England, roasted turkey replaced roasted goose as the main cuisine because wild turkeys were more abundant and easier to find than geese.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

It’s not that I’m afraid to die, I just don’t want to be there when it happens.
(Woody Allen)

WORD OF THE DAY

CONFECTION

Function: noun (count)

Plural: confections

Meaning:

a very sweet food
e.g.
an assortment of delicious cakes and other confections

Note: Confection is often followed by of.
e.g.
a confection of cream, chocolate, and nuts

Note: Confection is sometimes used figuratively.
e.g.
a delightful literary confection

Teaching Tips & Ideas

Prepositions

NEAR - Perto de. Indica proximidade. Empregado
antes do Particípio Presente equivale a “a ponto de”.
e.g.: - You were near falling into the pool.
He lives near the church.

OF - De. Caso genitivo. Posse.
e.g.: - A glass of water.
A couple of pigeons.
The pages of the book.
The privileges of the Royal Family.

OFF - Longe de. Fora. Indica separação. Distância etc.
e.g.: - Take off your hat.
She fell off the bike.
The stream is two miles off.

LAUGHTER'S THE BEST MEDICINE

Is It Going To Be Cold Winter?

The Indians asked their Chief in autumn if the winter was going to be cold or not. Not really knowing an answer, the chief replies that the winter was going to be cold and that the members of the village were to collect wood to be prepared.

Being a good leader, he then went to the next phone booth and called the National Weather Service and asked, "Is this winter to be cold?"

The man on the phone responded, "This winter is going to be quite cold indeed."

So the Chief went back to speed up his people to collect even more wood to be prepared. A week later he called the National Weather Service again, "Is it going to be a very cold winter?"

"Yes", the man replied, "it's going to be a very cold winter."

So the Chief goes back to his people and orders them to go and find every scrap of wood they can find. Two weeks later he calls the National Weather Service again: "Are you absolutely sure that the winter is going to be very cold?"

"Absolutely," the man replies, "the Indians are collecting wood like crazy!"

IMAGE OF THE DAY

NO COMMENTS!

HISTORY OF HALLOWEEN

Halloween is celebrated annually. But just how and when did this peculiar custom originate? Is it, as some claim, a kind of demon worship? Or is it just a harmless vestige of some ancient pagan ritual? The word itself, "Halloween," actually has its origins in the Catholic Church. It comes from a contracted corruption of All Hallows Eve. November 1, "All Hollows Day" or "All Saints Day", is a Catholic day of observance in honor of saints. But, in the 5th century BC, in Celtic Ireland, summer officially ended on October 31.

The custom of Halloween was brought to America in the 1840's by Irish immigrants and the Jack-o-Lantern custom probably comes from Irish folklore. Nowadays, Halloween is celebrated as a holiday when young costumed children go from home to home “trick or treating”. It is customary to give them some kind of candy or snack. This is called a “treat”. “Tricks” or jokes can be played on others on Halloween evening. Most tricks are not harmful, but sometimes they can be quite damaging to people as well as to property.

References: Charles Panati, Extraordinary Origins of Everyday Things, 1987; and Dr. Joseph Gahagan, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Personal Letter, 1997.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

"Well done is better than well said."
Benjamin Franklin

WORD OF THE DAY

woozy

Function: adjective

Comparative and superlative forms: woozier; wooziest also more woozy; most woozy

Meaning:

slightly dizzy, sick, or weak

e.g.
She was already feeling woozy after her first drink.
woozy from fatigue

Derived form:
wooziness noun (noncount)

Teaching Tips & Ideas

PREPOSITIONS

BESIDE - Ao lado de. Junto.
e.g. - She always sat beside me.
Our house was located beside the river.


BESIDES - Além de. Indica também “More Than”. “Over and Above”.
e.g. - Besides, I have no desire to go there.
She told me many other things besides.
I have three other books besides this one.


BETWEEN - Entre. Indica que o objeto está entre duas coisas ou duas pessoas.
e.g. - He sat between my father and myself.
Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea.
I shall go to France between May and July.

LAUGHTER'S THE BEST MEDICINE

The Cabbie and the Nun

A cabbie picks up a Nun. She gets into the cab, and notices that the VERY handsome Cab driver won't stop staring at her.

She asks him why he is staring at her.

He replies: - "I have a question to ask you but I don't want to offend you."

She answers, - "My son, you cannot offend me. When you've been a nun as long as I have, you get a chance to see and hear just about everything. I'm sure that there's nothing you could say or ask that I would find offensive."

- "Well, I've always had a fantasy to have a nun kiss me."

She responds,

- "Well, let's see what we can do about that:
First, you have to be single and
Second, you must be a Catholic."

The cab driver is very excited and says,

- "Yes, I'm single and Catholic!"

- "OK" the nun says. "Pull into the next alley."

The nun fulfills his fantasy, with a kiss that would make the world go 'round. But when they get back on the road, the cab driver starts crying.

- "My dear child," says the nun, "why are you crying?"

- "Forgive me but I've sinned. I lied and I must confess, I'm married and I'm Jewish."

The nun says,

- "That's OK. My name is Kevin and I'm going to a Halloween Party."

IMAGE OF THE DAY

... and now the end is near... and so I face the final curtain...