Nico Nico Douga July 8, 2009 Intermediate to Advanced.

Quick IN THE NEWS English

There are ~ in China.
It's the most serious unrest in Xinjiang in a year. The clashes occurred in Ürümqi (pronounced "Urunchi"), the capital of Xinjang. The northwestern region of China is experiencing a growing rebellion by the Uighur ethnic group. The Muslim Turkish speaking minority denounces what it calls political and religious oppression from Beijing. It's a tense climate full of conflicting reports.
According to militants several thousand Uighur demonstrators took to the streets for a peaceful protest against the recent death of two workers in a Chinese factory.
They claim the police violently repressed the gathering by shooting into the crowd.
The government on the other hand says an undetermined number of people convened illegally to the center of Ürümqi to riot, loot and create general havoc. Shopkeepers were forced to shut their stores until police intervened to restore order.
The Chinese government says hundreds were arrested.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHvI1pDNadY

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Today we'll be talking about 予約！
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予約できますか？
Can I make a reservation?

予約をしたいのですが。
I'd like to make a reservation.
I'd like to make a reservation, please.

９月１日にシングルルームを予約したいのですが。
I'd like to make a reservation for a single room for September 1.

電話で予約できますか？
Can I make a reservation over the phone?
Do you take phone reservations?

インターネットで予約できますか？
Can I make a reservation on the internet?
Can I make a reservation over the internet?
Do you take internet reservations?
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More sentences using "reserve" and "reservation"
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I reserved a table.
I reserved a table for two.
I reserved a table for two for 6pm at Yamachans.
I reserved a room for two.
X I reserved a room for two at Sept. 1st.
I reserved a room for two for Sept. 1st.
I reserved a double for Sept. 1st.
I reserved a king bed.

I made a reservation.
I made a hotel reservation.
I made an airline reservation.
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Other words for 予約？
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I booked my tickets.
I booked a room.
I booked my flight.
We booked our flights.
I booked a table.
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Be careful about buying "tickets"
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I got 2 tickets to Hong Kong.
I got 2 tickets to the SMAP concert.
I bought 2 tickets to the SMAP concert.

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How do we use schedule? You know how! Let's review!
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X I have a schedule after class.

I'm schedule is fairly open today.
My schedule is fairly open today.

I have a tight schedule..
I've got a pretty relaxed schedule.
I've got a pretty loose schedule.
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How can we say 用事があるんです。
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I'm busy.
I have plans.
I have a family thing I have to do.
I have a family thing.
There's something I have to do.
I have a date.
I have an appointment.
I have a prior commitment.
I have a previous engagement.

ニコニコ動画 July 7, 2009

bad luck english
蚊に食われた。
I was bitten by a mosquito.
I got bitten by a mosquito.
A mosquito bit me.

蜂に刺された。
I got stung by a bee.
I was stung by a bee.
A bee stung.
a bee / a wasp / a hornet
suzumebachi
kumanbachi

犬に噛まれた。
I got bitten by a dog.
I got mauled by a dog.

蛇に噛まれた。
I was bitten by a snake.
I got bitten by a snake.

車に轢かれた。
I got hit by a car.
to run over sb > to hit sb

ひったくりにあった。
I had my purse snatched!
I got my purse snatched!

車上狙いにあった。
I had my car broken into.

They stole my laptop out of my car.

They broke into my car and stole my laptop.

かつあげされた。
I got mugged.

空き巣にあった。
I got robbed.

自転車を盗まれた。
I had my bicycle stolen.


振り込め詐欺にあった。
I was ripped off.
I got ripped off.
That is too expensive.= That is a rip off!

振られた。
I got dumped.
I got ditched. (less common)
Maggie broke up with me.

失恋した。
I had my heart broken.

いじめにあった。
I got bullied.
I was abused.


裏切られた。
I was betrayed.
I was jilted.
Maggie cheated on me.

Nico Nico Douga, July 5, 2009

Nico Nico Douga Class for July 5, 2009

This is Miss Ellie. She competed this year in the World's Ugliest Dog Contest. She won the pedigree category. I pedigree dog is a pure dog. A dog that is not pure is called a mixed breed, a mutt, or a mongrel.

a pure breed=a pedigree=純粋種

a mixed breed=雑種犬

a mutt=〈軽蔑的〉雑種犬、犬っころ

a mongrel=雑種、雑種犬

By request....LOST!

Watch this trailer. I will teach some of the English in a future class!

Cop: James Ford. Assault, wire fraud, identity theft, bank fraud, telemarketing...

Sawyer: Is this going someplace?

Cop: You're a blight, a stain, a scavenger. You're a con man who preys on the weak and the needy. Tell me something, James. How do you live with yourself?

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Cop2: This belonged to her childhood sweetheart, who she got killed a couple of years ago when she was on the run. The one thing that Kate does care about...

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Sawyer: You run, I con.

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Vocabulary:

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1) assault: 暴行

2) wire fraud: 有線通信不正行為

3) identity theft: なりすまし犯罪

4) bank fraud: 銀行詐欺

5) telemarketing: テレマーケティング

6) Is this going someplace? = Do you have a point?

7) a blight: 損傷の原因、破滅のもと

8) a stain: 染み、汚点

9) a scavenger: 街路清掃人、ごみあさりをする人

10) a con man: 詐欺師、ペテン師

11) to prey on the weak: 弱者にしわ寄せする

12) How do you live with yourself? = How do you sleep at night? = Don't you feel terrible for all the things you have done? = 後悔していない？

13) a childhood sweetheart: 幼なじみの恋人

14) to be on the run: 逃走中です

Coming soon.

By request....LOST!

Watch this trailer. I will teach some of the English in a future class!

Nico Nico Douga July 2, 2009

The other day I taught Nico Nico Douga Students these expressions:

"I'm broke." = I have no money.

And the even stronger versions: "I'm dead broke." and "I'm flat broke."

Today we'll study a CNN video about the queen and her money problems.

TIM EWART, ITN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The queen was at Culloden in Scotland, site of the last major battle on British soil more than 250 years ago. There's a battle looming now over the royal purse. The queen is facing an unseemly scrap over how much of our money she should receive. Next year, she's going to ask for more. 

The queen cost the taxpayer 41.5 million pounds last year, an increase of 1.5 million pounds. It amounts to 69 pence for each man, woman and child in the country, up from 66 pence the year before. 

Much of the controversy will revolve around the royal family's travel costs, revealed today. Trips by the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall to South America and the far east cost 1.3 million pounds. The Duke of Gloucester, the queen's cousin, went to a coronation in the South Pacific. The bill, 150,000. And Prince Andrew chartered a plane to an economic summit in Egypt, costing 55,000 pounds. 

ROBERT JOBSON, ROYAL COMMENTATOR: Prince Andrew going to Egypt, 55,000 pounds? When the cost of a first-class ticket -- and a first- class ticket, not an economy ticket -- is extremely -- it's just a matter of a few thousand pounds. So I think in these current economic times, it's difficult to justify. 

EWART: travel is covered by an annual grant, but running the royal household comes from the civil list. It's been frozen, at just under 8 million pounds a year, for 20 years. And the palace say a private fund used to top it up will run out in three years. So, should the civil list be increased? 

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Vocabulary:

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1. a site: noun, location.
2. major: adjective, big
3. soil: noun, land
4. looming: adjective, coming soon, impending, 迫り来る
5. a purse: noun, budget
6. unseemly: adjective, inappropriate, improper, unbecoming, embarrassing, 不適切な、ふさわしくない
7. a scrap: noun, a fight, argument
8. controversy: noun, anything that people have very strong and often opposing opinions about. Example of controversial (形容詞) subjects in the USA are: abortion, the death penalty, and gun control.
   
9. to revolve around st=to be about st.
10. the far east: east of the U.K., like China and Japan
11. a coronation: The ceremony held to crowning a sovereign or the sovereign's consort., 戴冠式、即位式、即位
12. to charter a plane: to hire a private plane
13. a summit: a big meeting of high level leaders, サミット（会談）、先進国首脳会議
14. to justify st: to give acceptable reasons for one's actions, 〔不当だと批判された人・行為・考え方・意見などを〕正当だと説明する［証明する・納得させる］、弁明する、正当化する
15. to cover st: to pay for st, to be included by a budget, insurance, policy, etc.
16. annual: yearly
17. to run out: to be used up

Video for June 30, 2009

The following is a transcript of the above with my notes. This is used for education purposes.

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POLITAN: Say what you will about Michael Jackson, but one thing is certain. He was larger than life. His music changed the entire industry and his moonwalk revolutionized dance.

No matter how much controversy surrounded his life and now his death, we`ll always have the indisputable numbers: four decades, 13 number one hits, 13 Grammies, the highest-selling album of all time. Michael Jackson was a legend.

Let`s take a minute to remember his legacy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(VIDEO TRIBUTE TO MICHAEL JACKSON`S LEGACY)



MICHAEL JACKSON, POP STAR: I love you. I really do. You have to know that. I love you so much. Really. From the bottom of my heart.



(END VIDEO CLIP)

POLITAN: I want to thank all my guests for joining me tonight. I`m Vinnie Politan, filling in for Jane Velez-Mitchell. She will be back Monday. Thanks for watching ISSUES on HLN.

END

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Vocabulary:

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1. say what you will: expression, you can say many things but you must admit the following.

Ex: Say what you will about me, but don't talk bad about Maggie!

2. one thing is certain: expression, at least the following is true and you must accept it as fact

(This expression is used to stress a fact or even an opinion.)

Ex: I don't know where I'm going for vacation, but one thing is certain. I'm not staying here!

3. larger than life: this expression is used to describe anyone who is very impressive, imposing or intimidating in some way. It can also be used with someone who has a very big personality or glamorous lifestyle. You'll often see this expression used with people who are famous. You can also use it about people who have big personalities or are eccentric in some way.

Ex: My grandfather was a kind of Godfather character in his town. Everyone in town knew him and respected him. He was larger than life.

4. to revolutionize st: verb, to change something completely, to bring about radical change.

Ex: The internet completely revolutionized the way we communicate with one another.

5. controversy: noun, anything that people have very strong and often opposing opinions about. Example of controversial (形容詞) subjects in the USA are: abortion, the death penalty, and gun control.

6. indisputable: adjective, used to describe something that cannot be disagreed or contested or argued with...

Ex: Elvis is the indisputable King of Rock 'n Roll!

Similar words:

unarguable
inarguably
undoubtedly

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Talking about Michael Jackson....

Michael’s nickname was Wacko Jacko.

a wacko=a crazy person (negative, could be dangerous)

wacky=harmless adjective for crazy, nuance is “funny”
That guys is so wacky! I love him! He has a pretty wacky sense of humor.

wacked=adjective, weird/crazy, off the wall, not normal
He has a wacked sense of humor.

to wack sb:
a) this is MAFIA LINGO for “to kill”
Ex: He was wacked by the mob.

b) to hit/slap
Ex: I wacked him upside the head with the rolled up magazine.

NEW LINGO/SLANG:
wack: adjective/crazy/good
Ex: That new song is wack!

to take a dose of st = to take a certain amount of medicine
to overdose=to take too much of st, usually medicine

Ex: He overdosed on pills. / He o.d.’d on drugs.

prescription medicine, prescription painkillers

ニコニコ動画 June 29, 2009

Yes, I am back from vacation!
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First what are some good
questions to ask me?
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First how about this question?
→ How about Indonesia?
→ How about your trip?
→ How about your vacation?

NO! All of those questions are weird. The “How about”question always comes after a first question or to offer someone something.

For example:
A: How are you?
B: Fine. How about you?
A: Good! How about work? How is work?
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Do you know these questions?
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How was your vacation?

Did you have a good time?

Where did you go?

How long were you there?

How was the weather?

How was the food?

How were the people?

Where did you stay?

How was the hotel/room?
What was the highlight of your trip?

<----> What was the low point of your trip?
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Today we are going to learn the many used of the word“ready” and other related words.
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ready:
用意できている
用意できて
用意できた
覚悟ができた
準備ができている
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Translate the following.
Use the word “ready”.
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1. 準備できてるの？

2. お茶が入りましたよ。

3. 朝食が出来た？

4. 風呂は沸いてますか？

5. 用意万端整った。

6. 話す気になったら、いつでも来いよ。

7. 試験 の準備はできていますか？

8. お母さんになる準備はできてますか？

9. そろそろ帰ろうか？

10. お客様、ご注文(の用意)はできてますか。

11. そちらがよければこっちはいつでもOK!
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Answers to the above:
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1. Are you ready?

2. Tea is ready.

3. Is breakfast ready?

4, Is the bath ready?

5. Everything is ready.

6. Come see me when you’re ready to talk.

7. Are you ready for the test.
("Test" is more common and casual than "exam".)


8. Are you ready to be a mother.
(In this case, "be" is more natural than "become".)
9. Ready to go (home)?

10. Are you ready to order, Sir/Mam?
or
Are we ready to order?

(Waiters and waitresses like to say WE to be friendly.)

11. Ready when you are! or
Ready whenever you are!

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Related words:
to prepare for st
to get ready for st
〜のために準備する
〜のために用意する