Monday, April 27, 2009

Music Monday: Disney Nature "Earth"


Tim Allen composed and performed the music in this Disney Nature video.






'Mandy the movie guy' does interviews for movies on T.V. and radio. Mandy moved from the Philippines in 1988. He attended university in America before he started his career. Mandy interviewed the writers/directors of Disney Nature "Earth", Alastair Fothergill and Mark Linfield. They talked about why they chose to make this movie and some of the difficulties in working on this documentary.

Disney Nature "Earth" is in the first week at the movie theatres. "Earth" opened on Earth Day, April 22, 2009. The Disney film is about three mother animals, a polar bear, a hunchback whale and an elephant. Their babies represent the next generation - a generation which will need our protection. I enjoy nature documentaries and I hope to see "Earth" soon.







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Friday, April 24, 2009

Film Festivals 2: A Narration


A narration tells a fictional or factual story. It uses time order. Time words and expressions help develop the story. By using some, but not too many time words, the reader can follow the story easier. In this student generated story, you can see a variety of time words and expressions. Also, like any story, there are three parts, the beginning, middle and end. Be sure, your beginning doesn't tell too much of the story.


The rabbit was running freely in the pasture. It was listening to the birds singing and enjoying the beautiful environment. However, the rabbit didn't realize a calamity was coming! A girl, who had a knife, saw it and chased after it. The rabbit ran very fast to avoid being caught by her. Suddenly, a boy jumped down from a tree and crushed the rabbit.

After that, the boy took the rabbit and went into the house. The girl followed him. When they were inside, the girl cut the rabbit into two pieces while the boy was holding it. The idol was inside the rabbit. The idol had magical powers that could change things to some other things like insects to jewels and cages to pie. He ate jam to get power to make magical things.

When the boy and girl knew the idol could let wasps become jewels, they decided to catch the idol and limit his actions. The girl made a lot of apple jam and put it in a big container. Then they took the container out of the house. The idol followed her outside and ate the apple jam. While he was eating, many wasps and flies were flying around him. The idol made the insects become a lot of jewels, feathers and ink. The boy was happy and took those jewels into their house.

The boy and girl decided to bring all the boxes of ink and feathers to town. They sold them at the store to buy more jam. While they were going to the store, the idol changed things to a crown and a gun at their home. Meanwhile, the rabbit came back to their house and changed into a tiger. It
caught the idol. At that time, the children returned home and opened the door.

The children wanted to protect the idol. They took the gun and killed the tiger. After this, the tiger changed into a rabbit. The boy tried to catch the rabbit to kill it, but suddenly a lot of centipedes came out from all the boxes of jewels. The centipedes covered the children. Eventually, the children were not able to defend themselves against the centipedes. Now the rabbit, which had the idol, could regain its freedom and run on the grass.


In conclusion, we should always rely on real things instead of imaginary things. When you achieve something without trying, the probability of losing it quickly is high.



The story teaches us the fact that nothing can be constructed on the basis of a destruction. As it seems, the main figures in this story, the children, were convinced that with little effort they could have much much more. But in the end, they are entrapped in their plan to have
unbelievable wealth and power. It also shows that during childhood and adolescence, people tend to think magically and are more interested in accessing big goals with little effort. But in my view, the story was told in an unpleasant style and creates, especially with the disturbing music,a sense of fear and anxious feelings.

To see the first draft of this story go to the comments section of the post, Festival 2. This story was written about the short animation film, "Rabbit". To check out this award winning film by Run Wrake, press
here.


Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Talk Show Tuesday: Oprah


A lot of people tuned in to watch The Oprah Winfrey Show last week. Oprah's topic was Twitter and her guest was the movie and T.V. star, Ashton Kutcher. Why Kutcher? He just got 1 million people to follow him by asking people to join his Twitter site, twitter.com/aplusk. Kutcher had a public competition with the News station, CNN. This T.V. station also reached 1 million, but Kutcher got there about a half an hour earlier. He became the first to have 1 million members!

Twitter is a free social network service on the Internet. Twitter just turned three years old on March 21st and has been growing like crazy. At the beginning of 2009, Twitter had 6 million followers and by the end of February, it had 10 million*. It has hit mainstream! I joined it, but at first I snubbed it. I didn't understand. How could people spend their time sending and reading one or two sentence messages? It's suppose to be at the moment and answer the question, "What are you doing?" But it's not that simple.

It's about sharing thoughts and ideas. Join famous people's sites like Ashton Kutcher or Oprah. Join up with ordinary people who share one of your interests such as photography or just living in Toronto. Look up professionals or companies related to your work. Join news sites, blog sites, music sites...... Don't forget your relatives and friends. They can join your site.

First, view Ashton Kutcher talking about wanting to get 1 million followers. Then the second video shows The Oprah Winfrey Show. Oprah talks about Twitter and being a a new user of Twitter.
Also, she interviews Ashton Kutcher.





My Twitter site for Real Canadian English is at the side of this page. Some of my entries or posts have links. If you press on the underlined words, you will go to more information.

To truly understand Twitter, you need to join and use Twitter for awhile. You need a user name and a password. The URL is http://twitter.com Not everyone likes it. If you do join, you might find these tips useful. Press here.


*source:comScore media Metrix, 2009



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Monday, April 20, 2009

Music Monday: Susan Boyle


Whose Susan Boyle?
About a week ago, she was an unknown woman who lived in a village in Scotland. Then she came to the auditions for a popular British television show, Britains Got Talent, 2009. Susan was interviewed before the show. This is what she said.

My name is Susan Boyle. I'm nearly 48. Presently unemployed, but still looking. I'm going to sing on Britains Got Talent...I live alone with my cat, Pebbles.....Never been married. Never been kissed....Shame.

She's been singing since she was 12 and always wanted to perform in front of a large audience.

When you watch Ms. Boyle on T.V., be sure to observe the audience and judges body language before, during and after her performance. To go to Susan"s Boyle's performance, press here.
Then come back. There's more.



Thank you Susan Boyle! You have warmed hearts and put a smile on so many faces. In the last week, millions of people from around the world have been wowed by her song. Here's a couple of sincere responses from ordinary people.






I'd like to leave you with one more video. This time you will see a family watching Susan's performance.(Sorry, it was disabled today.) It was the same in our house. Sharing the moment is a really positive experience. My son and husband shared it with me. Then I enjoyed sharing the video with my daughter and watching her reaction. Some people have said they cried. Others said the performance gave them goosebumps.

The song is "I Dream a Dream" from the musical, Les Miserables. The lyrics or the words for the song are under this last video. Susan said she would like to be as successful as the famous singer, Elaine Page. Here's Page's version. Which do you prefer? You can listen and follow the words if you like.


I dreamed a dream in time gone by
When hope was high
And life worth living
I dreamed that love would never die
I dreamed that God would be forgiving.

Then I was young and unafraid
And dreams were made and used
And wasted
There was no ransom to be paid
No song unsung
No wine untasted.

But the tigers come at night
With their voices soft as thunder
As they tear your hope apart
As they turn your dream to shame.

And still
I dream he'll come to me
That we will live the years together
But there are dreams that cannot be
And there are storms
We cannot weather...

I had a dream my life would be
So different form this hell I'm living
so different now from what it seemed
Now life has killed
The dream I dreamed.



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Thursday, April 16, 2009

Film Festivals 2

"Rabbit" is a short animation film by Run Wrake. "Rabbit" has been shown at film festivals all over the world including Ireland, Portugal, Brazil, Australia and Japan. One of the film's first screenings was at Trafalgar Square in London, England as part of the London Festival. The next summer, in 2006, it was shown on the giant 50 foot open-air-screen in Hyde Park, New York City. "Rabbit " was shown before the main feature film. Run Wrake's film has received many animation and short film awards.

"Rabbit" feels like a 1950's school reader. According to Photoshoppix, Wrake found some old stickers in a junk shop and used them in this film. He started with about 200 stickers and it took him about a year to make this short animation film.

This animation film is not meant for children. While colourful children's illustrations are used, "Rabbit" has a serious tone. The boy and girl in the story have a major flaw and there is a clear moral or lesson for the viewers.

For English language learners, you may like the unusual setting. It's a bit like a picture dictionary. You'll see what I mean by watching it. Rabbit is a strange artistic film.





Now tell the story. Press "comments" below this post and help tell the story. Each person should write two or three sentences of the story. The first person will start the story and each person will continue the story. If the story finishes, the next person will start the story again.

Remember, you will continue the story from where the last person stopped. Replay the video if you need help. I look forward to reading the story:)

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Talk Show Tuesday: Ellen Degeneres


Watching television is a great way to learn English. It trains your ear to listen to the faster paced English. It keeps vocabulary alive. Real conversations teach social conventions, slang and pronunciation.

Choose a talk show you enjoy.

Take a look on television and watch about three different talk shows. You can find them in the T.V. guide. Take a look at each and choose your favourite. That's the one you can watch regularly. Two or three times a week is good if you have the time.


But I don't understand?!

Give it some time. After about five or six times, you will get comfortable with your talk host. You'll start to understand her routine, her body language and her personality. Some students like to tape shows and watch them again.

I wish I could hear all the words.

No, you won't understand every word, but do you need to hear every word? I often half listen to people on T.V. and don't worry what I miss. Pick up clues from the body language as well. Be satisfied with parts of conversations. If you can laugh at the following talk show, then you enjoyed it and you were socially engaged in English.

I'm not learning.

Yes, you are. Communicating is not just words. It's understanding behaviour, predicting what will happen next and reading cultural clues. People are generally very social and polite on talk shows, so talk show hosts can be good role models.

Also, the guests are sometimes famous Americans. So the next time someone talks about that person, you won't be lost. You will know who they are, what they look like and little bit about them. Culture adds a lot of vocabulary to the English language.

Most important, talk show hosts find topics of interest and talk about current events. Some are able to find the unusual to perk our interests. Ellen Degeneres has a lot of fun with her Hawaii chairs. You'll enjoy it too.






Now, that makes me laugh! Ellen can be really funny:)

According to TV.com, the five most popular talk shows are:
  1. The Tyra Banks Show
  2. The Oprah Winfrey Show
  3. The Tonight Show with Jay Leno
  4. Friday Night with Jonathan Ross
  5. The Ellen Degeneres Show

The American list should help you get started, but there are lots more. In Canada, you can catch some talk shows on CBC. Add a comment if you have found a talk show you enjoy. Others will appreciate your help. Do you know any of the top five talk shows?




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Monday, April 13, 2009

Speaking: The Weather

Canadians are always talking about the weather? Why?
  • We have four seasons about three months each. March 20th was the first day of spring!
  • The change from one season to the next can be gradual or abrupt. It's never the same each year. This spring, we had a few warm days, but now its cooler again.
  • We have a lot of extreme conditions. Too hot. Too cold. Too much snow....
  • The precipitation changes year to year. This year, we shovelled a lot of snow! Last summer, it rained a lot.
  • The weather can change from morning to afternoon, day to day and week to week.

Small talk: Weather is a great opener
for small talk or short two or three minute conversations. Here's some common questions to ask about the weather.

  • What's the weather like? or What's it like out?
  • Is it hot/cold enough for you?
  • Is it going to rain/snow today?
  • Is it going to warm up today/ this week?
  • What's the forecast for this week/ the next few days?
  • What's the temperature?
  • Isn't it beautiful?

Now it's April, and it's colder than usual for April. Yet, it's not unusual to see snow in late March or early April. Take a look at April 7th in Toronto.




So, when will spring arrive in Toronto? I hope earlier than in 2008. That year, it seemed like it was never going to stop snowing and I remember skiing in late March. Follow the change from winter to spring in 2008. At least, spring started a bit earlier this year.




One thing for certain. Spring means rain. Here's some vocabulary and expressions for rainy conditions.
  • There is a light drizzle: very light rain
  • There are showers: light rain
  • It's pouring: heavy rain
  • It's raining cats and dogs: heavy rain
  • There is thunder and lightening: usually during a storm, you see light and hear noises in the sky


But remember, April showers bring May flowers!




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Thursday, April 9, 2009

How To Flirt With Men

Watch this 'computer program' with a boyfriend and girlfriend who are computer people. The couple move around like dolls or puppets and the narrator uses a mechanical voice. There are five questions and you are to choose the correct answer a, b or c. The questions are about appearance, eye contact, body language, conversation and touch. It's meant to be entertaining and not to be taken seriously.

The listening quiz is to help you with vocabulary. Check the answers for the quiz.




So, what kind of flirt are you? The ice queen, the desperado or the minx.


Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Wanna be Wednesday 4/8

Super Poop
www.superpoop.com


I want to be a small furry animal with long ears and short fluffy tail. That's right a rabbit, but not just any rabbit. I want to be the Easter Bunny, so I can deliver chocolates and candy eggs to all the young children all over the world. In Canada, the Easter Bunny hides these sweets during the night and the children search for them on Easter morning. Some children find their goodies in a basket and others discover one or two chocolate presents often in the shape of spring symbol like a bunny or an egg.

What is Easter?

Easter is important to Christians because it is a religious date. Here is an introduction to Easter.



Why is Friday a holiday?

It was started by the many Christians in Canada. Good Friday is the day Jesus, the son of God, died. People buy white lilies which represent the flower of hope and life. On Easter Sunday, some also have hot cross buns which are small round bread with a cross on the top representing the cross Jesus died on.

Why is Easter considered a spring holiday too?

It's roots go back to pagan times when people celebrated the goddess of dawn and fertility called Eostur. Spring and fertility is represented in popular Easter images such as chicks, bunnies, lambs and eggs. Also, people decorate with spring flowers like crocuses, tulips, and yellow daffodils.

Another tradition is decorating eggs. I have decorated eggs with my children. First, we would prepare the egg by removing the raw egg. You can make a small whole at each end and then blow hard into the top hole. This pushes the raw egg out the bottom hole and the liquid can be collected in a bowl. We'd save the raw egg for the next meal. Some people hard boil the eggs. Then the eggs are dyed with food colouring in glasses of water. The pastel eggs are often displayed in baskets or hung on a branch.

Easter is Sunday. Happy Easter!



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Friday, April 3, 2009

Spring in Toronto



Toronto Pillow Fight by Reza Vaziri


March 21, 2009, Torontonians met downtown for some fun at Dundas Square near the Eatons Centre. Everyone brought a pillow for a massive pillow fight! There were lots of young people and parents arrived with their children. Some of the participants wore silly costumes to celebrate the free cultural event. At 3:00 p.m., the signal was given and the annual Toronto Pillow Fight began.

The participants had to follow some simple guidelines. Newmindspace helped organize the annual event and here's their suggested rules.

Rules: Please follow these guidelines to ensure a safe and fun pillow fight for everybody!

+ Soft pillows only!
+ Swing lightly, many people will be swinging at once.
+ Do not swing at people without pillows or with cameras.
+ Remove glasses beforehand!
+ Wait until the 3:00 to begin.
+ Pillow fight ends when the sun sets.
+ Do not abandon your pillow at the location.

Cleanup: Please limit your use of feathers. As the pillow fight grows in size, so does the mess. By participating, you are pledging to clean up twice the mess you made :)


Good news for those outside of Toronto: Tomorrow is World Pillow Fight Day!

In Canada, Quebec City and Vancouver have signed up for Saturday, April 4th. Many cities all over the world from New York City, US to Paris, France to Cape Town, Africa will hold massive pillow fights.




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Wednesday, April 1, 2009

Wanna be Wednesday 4/1


superpoop.comsuperpoop.com

I want to be farmer. Then I could train chickens to mother puppies. This farmer decided to give the puppy, Lucy, to the hen after the mother dog died in a tragic accident. The hen kept Lucy warm and looked after the poor little thing. The dog thought it was a chicken and would follow the mother hen everywhere. Lucy had to be given puppy food, but she would peck at it like the mother hen.


Also, I want to be a modern cowboy. I saw this commercial on television. Now that cats are worth more money than cows, cowboys are finding jobs herding cats. I love cats. Watch this video and you'll see the cowboys describe their new work. Press here.


So, maybe you don't believe these two stories? April fools!

The real truth is I want to be a practical joker, so I can try to trick people. It's fun to play practical jokes and on April 1st until noon, people get tricked. Even newspapers have fun on April Fools.