Technology brings people together! :oD

I was already happy with MSN and Skype, really. I have both installed on my mobile phone and laptop. 

MSN is fun since most of my friends from Brazil and other countries are there on a daily basis, so if I feel like chatting to them a little, I can! If I need to ask somebody something, it´s all about picking a name, typing and clicking ´send´... 

In a nutshell, it´s handy, instant, user-friendly, cool and a bit addictive too... I blame that orange color flashing and that sound that indicates you´ve got a message! :oP

But then, technology kept going and we´ve got Facebook! There are some other social networks out there; Facebook seems to be the best/most popular so far.

It was through Facebook that I kept in touch with a friend of mine from Australia. We met each other a decade ago - a while, right? 

As a decade equals 10 years (!!!), we don´t quite remember the details anymore! hehe

What matters to me is that Facebook brought us together. I´ve been following her pictures and updates, she´s been following mine. And one day, there was this message to me saying she was coming over for a visit! 

I introduce you to Ayako, the most beautiful Japanese girl I´ve ever known! :o)

Don´t forget the definitions according to dictionaries, readers:

- a decade = 10 years (plural: decades);

- a century = 100 years (plural: centuries);

- a millennium = 1000 years (plural = millenniums or millennia).

According to MY definition after hours on end catching up and squeezing sweet Ayako... 

... a decade ago = yesterday!!! 

XXOO

*** Happy 2011 ***

Cute Mary, from the film "Mary and Max", is here to illustrate that I really wanted to type something today... This is going to be my very last post in 2010! :oD

I remember that the beginning of this blog creation was a little tough. I wasn´t very familiar with the blog tools, I wasn´t the most knowledgeable blogger, that´s for sure... Many posts "disappeared" in the cyberspace due to a wrong click and then, of course, I had to rewrite everything all over again...
The blog work began in February 2010, but the first post came only on 1st May! Yes, you got it right: it took me 3 months to work on it, make it the way I wanted, learn something about it and so on.
I´ve made some changes here, as you can see. Now we have a new layout, a different picture... As I´m more experienced and more familiarized with the whole thing, it took me  j-u-s-t  1 day to modify it! hehe
The present color reminds me of glamorous Tiffany! ;o)

Today´s post starts with a Fun English Moment: a comic strip that I got from a friend´s Facebook page... You all know I´m a huge fan of Calvin and Hobbes... (Thank you kindly, Má!) 

And I end it with the postcard I bought in Australia which is part of that collection called ´Eternity´.
I wish everyone endless joy because I´m convinced that when we live in a joyful way, when we ARE joyful, things get to be easier and more beautiful in life. :o)

Have a wonderful celebration tonight and see you in 2011! Cheers!!! :ox

To fall for something (informal)

To begin with, the verb "to fall" can be confusing when students need its past form. FELL, the past form of FALL, gets to be a problem because of the verb "to feel", believe it or not...

So, a quick review before we move on to the next part: fall - fell- fallen BUT feel- felt- felt. Okay? ;o)

I must confess that there´s no way of talking about the verb "to fall" without mentioning "to fall in love with someone". Such a beautiful verb, right? Please use it correctly not to spoil your love declaration: to fall IN love WITH sb. It also exists "to fall FOR sb", a shorter form that means the same: to start to love someone.

(and that´s a cute picture taken in Paris at the Palace of Versailles back in 2008 - très jolie!)

Finally, here I am to teach you the use of "to fall for something". In my view, the nicest! (the romantic people should forgive me for saying so...). It means to be tricked into believing something that is not true, to be deceived by a trick, a lie...

Calvin & Hobbes are going to be my assistants in order to give you a nice example - one that fits like a glove as it´s Christmas Eve!!!

(Source: "There´s treasure everywhere", by Bill Watterson)

Merry Christmas, everyone! My warmest hugs!!!

Times like these...

I felt like posting this song tonight. I really like the moment when he sings "It´s times like these you learn to live again" and "It´s times like these you learn to love again". Two important things to be learnt repeatedly...
xoxo

I am a one way motorway
I’m a road that drives away
Then follows you back home
I am a street light shining
I’m a wild light blinding bright
Burning off alone
It’s times like these you learn to live again
It’s times like these you give and give again
It’s times like these you learn to love again
It’s times like these time and time again
I am a new day rising
I’m a brand new sky
To hang the stars upon tonight
I am a little divided
Do I stay or run away
And leave it all behind? 

Xmas

Time flies. It´s already the end of the year once again! When I started seeing Xmas decorations all over, panettones (an Italian word) in supermarkets, my students talking about their forthcoming social gatherings at the companies they work for/own, I clicked: "Gee, the year 2010 is over!" :oO
A retrospective always springs to mind in this period. I try to remember (I said ´try´ because I´m usually quite forgetful...) the things I did in 2010, what I conquered, what made me happy, what surprised me, what I learnt, what I taught, who/what touched my heart, who/what inspired me, the places I visited, the books I read, the people I met, the dreams that came true, what changed me somehow, well, this sort of thing.
Xmas is a time that calls for reflection naturally. Xmas reminds me of how important my family is to me.
A picture: Mrs. Claus back in 2008. She was busy in Mexico in 2009. ;o)
A mini Xmas gift to my readers: a naughty comic strip. Calvin and Hobbes, of course! :oP

(Source: "There´s treasure everywhere" - a Calvin and Hobbes Collection by Bill Watterson)

* Yellow *

I´m going through a ´yellow´ moment, but I don´t know why... Maybe it has something to do with my birthday dress, maybe not... Or perhaps it has to do with the fact that yellow is the color of the sun and only God knows how much I love the sun! It´s also the color of gold!!! :oD

The folklore says that yellow undies (women´s underwear) bring you wealth and good luck if you wear it on New Year´s Eve. Or is it on New Year´s Day??? In doubt, how about wearing yellow on both days so that you make sure you get some extra luck. ;o) 

Apparently, the tradition applies to women only (sorry, guys...) and bras don´t count, according to a lingerie website... I´m not 100% sure about that, so all men can have a say here... 

Whatever the reason, today´s post is about words that are related to yellow and I do hope you learn something new. ;-)

- yolk: the middle part of an egg;

- to yellow (verb): to make or become yellow, often because it´s old. Eg: The photos yellowed with age.

- yellow alert: a situation of danger, but less serious than ´red alert´;

- yellow card: held up by a referee to indicate that the player has broken the rules.

And this is me in yellow! :oP

October

Many of you know I like the month of October slightly more than the other months... no offence. 

I mean, I like December because of Xmas and January because of New Year´s day, it´s true, but I´d say October is simply full of special occasions, at least to me: it´s my brother´s birthday, my parents´ wedding anniversary and children´s day ON October 12th. Then, it´s teacher´s day just a few days after, ON October 15th - a cardinal sin to forget such an important day! Some very dear friends of mine celebrate their b´days IN October too... If you´re the kind of person who pays attention to star signs - the signs of the zodiac - you should know that Libra (NOT "Balance"!!!) comes first and Scorpio (NOT "Scorpion"!!!) comes next. I don´t really give importance to this, especially considering Scorpio´s reputation... Finally, there´s my b´day ON October 29th and Halloween ON October 31st!!!

A remark: note the use of IN (we say ´IN October´...) x ON (we say ´ON October 29th´).

I was happy to find out there´s a cute song called "October", sung by U2. Is there a song that talks about the month you like the most???