A Question of Time*

Posted on Tuesday - March 13, 2012 by Dr. Lucy Tse


QUESTION:
Vahid from Iran asks: “I have a German friend. When she wants to ask about time instead of saying “What time is it?” she says “What late is it?” I want to know if this is correct or not.

ANSWER:
The most common expression for asking the time is “What time is it?”, followed by “What’s the time?” You can also say, “How late is it?” although you would not use it to ask the time in general, but in situations where you’ve been doing something for a long time, or where you have to be somewhere else at a set time and you are concerned about being late.  (We would not say “What late is it?”)  For example:

A: “We’ve spent six hours on this report.”
B: “How late is it?”

A: “The party to release Jeff’s new CD is at 8:00.”
B: “How late is it? I need plenty of time to get ready for the party.”

In response, you can give the exact time, or use one of these common terms: “about/ish,” “almost,” and “just past.”

For instance, if it is 6:27, you could say:

– “It is 6:27 (six twenty-seven).”
– “It is exactly 6:27.” (if you want to emphasize the precise time)
– “It is about 6:30 (six thirty).” or “It is 6:30-ish.” (if you don’t need to be precise.  In British English and in old-fashioned speech/writings, you may hear “half past six,” but that is not commonly used in American English today.)
– “It is nearly/almost 6:30.”
– “It is just past 6:25.”

We also talked about telling time in ESL Podcast 378, in case you’re interested.  Thanks to Vahid for the question and I hope that helps.

~ Lucy

P.S. *When we use the expression “a question of,” we mean “an issue related to” or “will be decided by.”  For example:
– “Whether I can take a vacation to Asia this summer is a question of money.”
– “We’re not sure who will get the new job.  It’s a question of who has the best leadership skills.”

Posted in Language & Terms | 10 Comments

Podcasts This Week (March 12, 2012)

Posted on Monday - March 12, 2012 by Dr. Lucy Tse

Get the most out of the time you spend improving your English. Get the Learning Guide!

We designed the Learning Guide to help you learn English better and faster. Get more vocabulary, language explanations, sample sentences, comprehension questions, cultural notes, and more.

Get the Learning Guide and support ESL Podcast today by becoming a Basic or Premium Member!

………

ON MONDAY
 ESL Podcast 772 – Types of People at Work

In the Learning Guide: Get a full transcript (written version of every word you hear), vocabulary list and sample sentences, and comprehension questions.
In “What Else Does it Mean,” learn the other meanings of “lay of the land” and “to get in (someone’s) way.”
In the “Culture Note,” learn about “The Office.”
“Some popular American television shows are “adaptations” (slightly changed versions) of British TV shows. One of these is The Office, which is a…” – READ MORE in the Learning Guide
…

ON WEDNESDAY
English Cafe 337
Topics: Famous Authors – Stan and Jan Berenstain and the Berenstain Bears; getting married; to stand for versus to refer to (as); the past simple and the present perfect tenses; especially

In the Learning Guide:  Get a full transcript (written version of every word you hear).
In “What Insiders Know,” you will read about “Marriage Vows.”
“In the U.S., many wedding ceremonies use some “version” (similar to, but not exactly) of the traditional Christian “marriage vow” (the words of love and promise said between the two people getting married).  The traditional vow is usually something like this…” – READ MORE in the Learning Guide
…

ON FRIDAY
ESL Podcast 773 – Dealing With Debt

In the Learning Guide: Get a full transcript (written version of every word you hear), vocabulary list and sample sentences, and comprehension questions.
In “What Else Does it Mean,” learn the other meanings of “behind” and “charge.”
In the “Culture Note,” learn about “Debt Consolidation.”
“Many Americans “live beyond their means” (spend more money than they make; have an expensive lifestyle they cannot pay for) by using credit cards and loans…” – READ MORE in the Learning Guide

Posted in Announcements | 3 Comments

Sometimes the Blind See More

Posted on Thursday - March 8, 2012 by Warren Ediger

People who are blind (can’t see) because they see less, often see more. That may sound like a contradiction (both statements can’t be true), but I believe it’s often true. I’d like to illustrate (show) what I mean with a story about a blind woman, a tall building, and a letter. When you get to the end, I think you’ll understand. And I think you’ll agree.

The woman is Helen Keller, who lived from 1880 until 1968. When she was 19 months old, Keller became very sick and, as a result, became both blind and deaf (couldn’t hear). Her blindness and deafness made it impossible for Keller to communicate with other people and left her isolated (alone). The Miracle Worker, a popular movie and play (story performed by actors in a theater), tells the dramatic (exciting) story of how her teacher, Anne Sullivan, helped her break out of (escape from) her isolation to become a world famous speaker and author.

The building is the Empire State Building, perhaps the best-known building in New York City. This 102-story (floor or level) skyscraper (very tall building) was completed in 1931. For 40 years it was the tallest building in the world. It’s a landmark (easily seen and recognized), popular tourist destination (place to visit), and cultural icon – it’s easily recognized and represents New York and the U.S. to many people around the world. The Statue of Liberty is another cultural icon in New York City.

In 1932, a doctor, Dr. John Finley, saw a picture of Helen Keller standing at the top of the Empire State Building. He was struck by (it seemed unusual) the thought of a blind person visiting the top of the building, so he wrote her and asked what she “saw” from there. Keller answered his question in a letter that illustrates (shows) what I wrote earlier – even though she couldn’t see what we see from the top of the Empire State Building, she saw more.

She wrote that it was a thrilling experience to be “whizzed (taken quickly) in a ‘lift‘ (elevator) a quarter of a mile heavenward (up, toward heaven) and to see New York spread out like a marvelous tapestry (a picture made up of many different parts) beneath us.” She didn’t think about the building itself. She said she thought about the “passionate (showing strong feelings) skill (ability)” and “fearless idealism (dreams and beliefs)” that created the building. In her mind she saw so many skilled workers that they couldn’t be counted and heard the noisy sounds of construction. She thought about the many “frail (not strong)” human hands that worked together to lift the tall building to its “dominating (taller than other buildings) height.”

Keller called the completed building “a victory of imagination.” The Empire State Building, she wrote, gives people courage (be brave in a difficult situation) and helps them dream about even greater accomplishments. As she stood at the top, she says she felt as if she were standing among the sun and the stars. “The solar system (our sun and its planets) circled above my head!” she wrote. “Why, I thought, the sun and the stars are suburbs (an area around the center of a city) of New York, and I never knew it! … All sense (feeling) of depression and hard times vanished (disappeared).”

Truly (certainly), Helen Keller saw more, even though she saw less. You can find her complete letter at the Letters of Note web site.

~ Warren Ediger – creator of Successful English, a web site where you’ll find clear explanations and practical suggestions for better English.

P.S. If you want to hear more about Helen Keller, listen to English Cafe 189.

Photo of the Empire State Building courtesy of the Wikipedia Commons. 

 

Posted in Life in the United States | 21 Comments

Not a Lin-stant Success

Posted on Tuesday - March 6, 2012 by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

If you have been following (paying attention to) American sports at all in the past two months, you have probably heard of a 23-year-old basketball player for the New York Nicks named Jeremy Lin. Lin has become what we might call a household name (someone that everyone knows about) practically (almost) overnight (in a single day; very quickly).  Who is Jeremy Lin, and why has he become so famous?

Lin was born in Los Angeles to Taiwanese immigrant parents, but was raised (grew up) in Palo Alto, California, near San Francisco. He was a star basketball player in high school, and led (was the leader of) his team to the California state championship. But while he was an excellent student and a very good player, he was not considered by most college basketball scouts (people who look for and evaluate athletes) to be a great player. He was recruited by (asked to come to) Harvard, which is not exactly (not at all) known for great athletes. Even at Harvard, he was not very successful as a basketball player. But he got good grades, and became the leader of a Christian group on campus (at the college). He kept (continued) working, kept learning, kept improving.

After graduating from college in 2010, he was (again) not very successful in his attempt to be a basketball player. He failed several times over the next two years with different NBA (National Basketball Association) teams, each time being told he just wasn’t good enough. It looked like he would not be able to make it (be successful) in basketball, despite all of his hard work. Finally, he was given a chance to play in the starting lineup (the players who begin the game, usually the team’s best players) for the New York Knicks team in early last month.

Then it happened: Lin became a star.

Lin scored more than 20 points and had more than seven assists (when a player helps another player score a point) in this first five games, the first player in the history of the NBA to do that. He scored more than 130 points in his first five games, more than any player in the past 35 years. Suddenly, he was being talked about by every basketball fan in the country. Sports Illustrated, America’s most popular sports magazine, put him on their cover (front page) two weeks in a row (consecutively; one after the other). Every newspaper, news magazine, and television station has had stories about his amazing success. And Lin continues to win.

Part of the reason for Lin’s popularity is his underdog story. An underdog is someone who is not expected to win, who doesn’t appear likely to win. There have been very few Asian American professional athletes in the U.S. Plus (in addition), Lin had failed so often in the past, no one thought he would succeed. But through hard work and, he says, his prayers, he did succeed.

In some ways, Lin has shattered (broken) the false stereotype (popular or typical beliefs about a group of people) that one’s race or ethnicity is important in athletic success. And he has shown that hard work and persistence (not quitting) can pay off (bring you success).

His name also contributed somewhat to his success, in an odd (strange) way. Because there are so many words in English that begin with an “in” sound, and Jeremy’s last name is “Lin,” American reporters have put his name in front of these words to form puns, which are words that have two different meanings, or that sound like other words, and are used to make a joke. For example, his success has been called “Lin-sanity” (from insanity, meaning craziness). He is a “Lin-credible” (incredible = amazing) player. His success was not “Lin-stant” (instant = immediate; right away). And so on.

What does the future hold for (what will happen to) Jeremy Lin? It’s impossible to say. In interviews, he says he would like to devote his life (spend his time) after his basketball career to being a pastor (a Christian religious leader) and helping those in need (who need help). But for now, he will shoot hoops (play basketball), win games, and continue to be “Lin-sanely” (insanely = amazingly) popular.

~Jeff

Photo credit: Jeremy Lin, Wikepedia CC

 

Posted in Life in the United States, News and Current Events | 19 Comments

Podcasts This Week (March 5, 2012)

Posted on Monday - March 5, 2012 by Dr. Lucy Tse

You don’t have to do it alone. ESL Podcast is here to help you improve your English. We designed the Learning Guide to help you learn English better and faster. Get more vocabulary, language explanations, sample sentences, comprehension questions, cultural notes, and more.

Get the Learning Guide and support ESL Podcast today by becoming a Basic or Premium Member!

………

ON MONDAY
ESL Podcast 770 – Joining a Tour

In the Learning Guide: Get a full transcript (written version of every word you hear), vocabulary list and sample sentences, and comprehension questions.
In “What Else Does it Mean,” learn the other meanings of “to take in” and “rave.”
In the “Culture Note,” learn about “Popular Family Vacation Destinations.”
“U.S. News and World Report, a national newspaper, has created a list of the 15 best family vacation “destinations” (places to go) in the United States. Here are some…” – READ MORE in the Learning Guide
…

ON WEDNESDAY
English Cafe 336
Topics: Ask an American – Self-publishing; intrinsic versus native versus innate versus congenital; recently versus currently; soccer

In the Learning Guide:  Get a full transcript (written version of every word you hear).
In “What Insiders Know,” you will read about “Self-Published Bestsellers.”
“Most self-published books never find a large audience. They tend to be written for a “niche” (a small group of people with specific characteristics) audience. However, some “classics” (books that are very well known and respected) with a very large audience were actually self-published…” – READ MORE in the Learning Guide
…

ON FRIDAY
ESL Podcast 771 – Commuting by Train

In the Learning Guide: Get a full transcript (written version of every word you hear), vocabulary list and sample sentences, and comprehension questions.
In “What Else Does it Mean,” learn the other meanings of “platform” and “underway.”
In the “Culture Note,” learn about “Commercial Rail Systems in the United States.”
“There are many commuter “rail” (with trains or train-like vehicles that travel on metal tracks attached to the ground) systems in the United States. The “commuter rail systems” travel between major cities…” – READ MORE in the Learning Guide

Posted in Announcements | 6 Comments

Leading Economic Indicators: Longer Skirts, Empty Tunnels, and Uglier Waitresses

Posted on Tuesday - February 28, 2012 by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

Is the economy getting better or worse? Many Americans are still trying to figure out (determine) the answer to that question. We don’t know if our economy is recovering (getting better) yet from one of the worst economic downturns (recessions; declines) in the past 50 years. What happens in the next few months could help determine who our next president will be (a good economy favors (is a good thing for) President Obama, a bad economy is good for his opponent (person running against him)).

An indicator is a measure of change, whether something is getting bigger or smaller, better or worse. A leading indicator is usually something that changes before the larger thing you’re interested in changes. For example, if you are interested in whether it will rain or not today, a leading indicator might be a lot of dark clouds in the morning. (The opposite of a leading indicator is a lagging indicator, which changes after the main thing has changed.)  For the economy, there are also leading indicators, such as the price of stocks (partial ownership in a company). Stock prices typically go up before the rest of the economy improves.

Some people have come up with (invented) other indicators of the health of the economy which are less scientific but still may be true. I wrote about some of these a few years ago here, but I found a few more recently I thought I would mention to you. The classic (the best or most typical) example of this is the length of women’s skirts, sometimes called the Hemline Index (a hemline is the bottom of the dress), invented by economist George Taylor back in 1926. When the economy is bad, Taylor observed (reported; said), women wear longer dresses, and when it is good, shorter ones. The reason may be that when the economy is about to get worse, people are anxious and fearful, causing them to dress more conservatively.

Here are a couple of other odd (unusual; strange) economic indicators people have invented:

  • Second Street Tunnel Index – If you travel down Second Street in downtown Los Angeles, you will go through a tunnel (long hole in a hill or mountain for cars or trains) that is very popular for making television commercials (ads) for cars. When there are a lot of production (movie- or commercial-making) companies that want to use the tunnel for filming (making the commercial), the economy is getting better. (This index or indicator was invented by the Los Angeles Times newspaper.)
  • Hot Waitress Index – One writer claims (says is true) that when the economy is getting worse, there are more beautiful, “hot” (sexually attractive) women working as waitresses in restaurants and bars. His theory (of course, it’s a man!) is that when the economy is doing well, attractive women who may not have a lot of other skills or education can more easily get jobs in sales, since companies that sell things like to have attractive women working for them. This may including selling houses or condos, beer, cars, even drugs to doctors (some say drug companies often hire attractive young women to sell to doctors, who are still mostly men). When the economy is poor, these beautiful but perhaps untalented (without other skills or abilities) women work in more demanding (diffiult) jobs like waitressing, where their beauty is still a benefit.
  • Big Mac Index – The Economist magazine tracks (follows; watches) the price of McDonald’s Big Mac hamburgers (available in 120 countries) to compare the relative purchasing (buying) power of different currencies (types of money, like the dollar, the euro, the yen, the yuan, etc.).

Do you know of any economic indicators like these? Do you think the world’s economy is getting better or worse?

~Jeff

Photo credit: Pencil skirt, Wikipedia CC

 

Posted in News and Current Events | 28 Comments

Podcasts This Week (February 27, 2012)

Posted on Monday - February 27, 2012 by Dr. Lucy Tse

ESL Podcast relies on the support of its listeners. If you enjoy our podcasts, please consider supporting ESL Podcast by becoming a Basic or Premium Member.

By becoming a member, you’ll get the Learning Guide.  We designed the Learning Guide to help you learn English better and faster. Get more vocabulary, language explanations, sample sentences, comprehension questions, cultural notes, and more.

Get the Learning Guide and support ESL Podcast today by becoming a Basic or Premium Member!

………

ON MONDAY
ESL Podcast 768 – Negotiating Price

 In the Learning Guide: Get a full transcript (written version of every word you hear), vocabulary list and sample sentences, and comprehension questions.
In “What Else Does it Mean,” learn the other meanings of “bid” and “to trim.”
In the “Culture Note,” learn about “How the Government Awards Contracts.”
“The “federal” (related to the national government) government often hires “private” (not part of the government) companies to complete work.  Federal “agencies” (parts of government; departments) must…” – READ MORE in the Learning Guide

…

ON WEDNESDAY
English Cafe 335
Topics: Spy trials of the 40s/50s – Alger Hiss & Julius and Ethel Rosenberg; Johnny Appleseed; feeling versus emotion; expression versus term; drop dead

In the Learning Guide:  Get a full transcript (written version of every word you hear).
In “What Insiders Know,” you will read about “Mission: Impossible.”
“Most people are familiar with the Mission: Impossible movies released in recent years “starring” (with the lead actor) Tom Cruise.  However, Mission: Impossible had its beginnings on the ‘small screen’”… – READ MORE in the Learning Guide
…

ON FRIDAY
ESL Podcast 769 – Trying Unusual Foods

In the Learning Guide: Get a full transcript (written version of every word you hear), vocabulary list and sample sentences, and comprehension questions.
In “What Else Does it Mean,” learn the other meanings of “bite” and “foul.”
In the “Culture Note,” learn about “Unusual American Foods.”
…”[T]here are some unusual American foods that were developed in the United States and/or are eaten in only certain parts of the country…” – READ MORE in the Learning Guide

Posted in Announcements | 3 Comments

It’s About Time

Posted on Thursday - February 23, 2012 by Warren Ediger

“C’mon (come on), it’s time to go. We’re gonna (going to) be late.”
“Just a second (wait a short time), I can’t find my keys.”

“Just a second” is a common time phrase. It’s also the title of an interesting new children’s book by Steve Jenkins. The book’s full title is Just a Second: A Different Way to Look at Time.

The second is interesting, Jenkins writes, because it “doesn’t relate to (isn’t connected to) any cycle (something that continues to happen) in nature – it’s a human invention (created by humans), and the shortest interval (unit or period) of time most of us use in our daily lives. The Babylonians came up with the idea of the second about 4,000 years ago, but they had no way to measure such a short interval of time.”

Maybe the Babylonians couldn’t come up with (think of) a way to measure a second, but Jenkins has. He’s done it by filling this fun little book with examples of things that happen in one second. Here are some of them:

In one second, “a meteor (rock from space) entering Earth’s atmosphere (air around the earth) can travel 44 miles (71 kilometers), a human can blink (shut and open eyes) seven times, a humpback whale‘s song travels 5,085 feet (1,500 meters) through water, and light travels 186,000 miles (300,000 kilometers).”

In one second, “a hummingbird beats (move together and apart) its wings 50 times, a bumblebee beats its wings 200 times, a midge, a kind of gnat (very small flying insect), beats its wings 1,000 times, a woodpecker hammers (hits hard) a tree trunk with its beak (hard pointed nose) 20 times, and a rattlesnake shakes its tail in warning (sign of danger) 60 times.”

In one second, “a cheetah sprinting (running a short distance) flat out (as fast as possible) and a sailfish swimming at top (highest; fastest) speed both travel 100 feet (30 meters), a dragonfly cruises (flies casually) 50 feet, a very fast human can run 39 feet (12 meters), and a black mamba snake slithers (slides over a surface by moving back and forth) a frightening 24 feet (7 meters).”

In one second, “the Apollo 10 spacecraft traveled almost seven miles (11 kilometers) during reentry (when it came back into Earth’s atmosphere) – the fastest humans have traveled in a man-made vehicle.” In one second, “Earth advances (goes forward) 18.5 miles (30 kilometers) in its orbit (circular path) around the sun, while four babies are born, and two people die.”

Sometimes time flies (goes very quickly). But time can also move very slowly. A science blog called It’s Okay to Be Smart recently featured (included or showed) an infographic (information picture) about geologic time – the history of the development of the earth. It’s what we might call very slow time.

The infographic includes more than three eras (very long periods of history) of earth history, about 4.6-billion years. If you want to compare that to Jenkins’ book, that’s more than 145,000,000,000,000,000 seconds (if my math is correct)!

What happened during this long period of time? Some scientists believe that at first there was only one continent (large mass of land surrounded by ocean), called Pangea. Later Pangea split (broke or divided) into two parts, north and south. Eventually (after a long time) those two parts split again into the seven continents we have today. And that took only 250-million years – a relatively (compared to the total) short time.

By the way, the title of this blog post contains a little time joke. The blog is about time, so it’s a good description, a good title. But we also use “it’s about time” another way. If someone is late coming to an appointment or finishing a project, when they finally arrive or finish, we sometimes say (and not too happily), “It’s about time!”

And now, it’s about (almost) time for me to stop.

If you’re interested, you can read more about Just a second at the New York Times or Brain Pickings web sites.

~ Warren Ediger, creator of Succesful English, where you’ll find clear explanations and practical suggestions for better English.

The hourglass photo is courtesy of Wikipedia Commons. 

Posted in Life in the United States | 21 Comments

Podcasts This Week (February 20, 2012)

Posted on Monday - February 20, 2012 by Dr. Lucy Tse

Do you want to understand every word you hear? Get the Learning Guide and you’ll see a transcript of every word spoken on the podcasts.

We designed the Learning Guide to help you learn English better and faster. In addition to a complete transcript, get more vocabulary, language explanations, sample sentences, comprehension questions, cultural notes, and much more.

Get the Learning Guide and support ESL Podcast today by becoming a Basic or Premium Member!

………

ON MONDAY
ESL Podcast 766 – Describing Shapes and Sizes

In the Learning Guide: Get a full transcript (written version of every word you hear), vocabulary list and sample sentences, and comprehension questions.

In “What Else Does it Mean,” learn the other meanings of “conservative” and “odd.”
In the “Culture Note,” learn about “Home Makeover TV Shows.”
“In recent years, “home makeover” (the process of dramatically changing the appearance of a house) shows have become increasingly popular on television. One of the better-known shows…” – READ MORE in the Learning Guide
…

ON WEDNESDAY
English Cafe 334
Topics: Grand Teton National Park; Famous Songs: “She’ll be Coming ‘Round the Mountain”; congratulations versus thanks versus kudos; literally; to take the time

In the Learning Guide:  Get a full transcript (written version of every word you hear).
In “What Insiders Know,” you will read about “Plains Indian Sign Language.”
“It may surprise you to know that in North America, there are “approximately” (not exactly, but close to) 300 “indigenous” languages spoken. The word “indigenous” means…” – READ MORE in the Learning Guide
…

ON FRIDAY
ESL Podcast 767 – Taking Care of Your Teeth

In the Learning Guide: Get a full transcript (written version of every word you hear), vocabulary list and sample sentences, and comprehension questions.
In “What Else Does it Mean,” learn the other meanings of “drill” and “gum.”
In the “Culture Note,” learn about “How to Become a Dentist.”
“According to the “Bureau of Labor Statistics” (part of the U.S. Department of Labor), people who want to become a dentist need to have at least two years of…” – READ MORE in the Learning Guide

Posted in Announcements | 4 Comments

School Music Programs

Posted on Thursday - February 16, 2012 by Dr. Lucy Tse

I recently read an article that got me thinking about my elementary, junior high, and high school days. An article in the Los Angeles Times reported on a rash of (many instances of something happening in a short period of time) thefts of tubas from schools in L.A. The article attributes (gives as the reason for) the thefts to the growth in popularity of banda music in Southern California, a type of traditional Mexican music using brass instruments (musical instruments often made of brass and uses the air from your mouth and body to make music).  Unfortunately, the stolen instruments can be sold for a lot of money on the black market (the illegal buying and selling of things).

I was very sad to read this article because I remember how much the school music program meant to me when I was growing up in Arizona.  In our school district (group of schools under the same administration) in Tucson, there was a school music program in elementary school, junior high, and high school.  Since every state and school district is different, it’s hard to make generalizations about what school music programs are like, so I’ll just talk about my own experience.

Our school music program was not an after-school program, but a part of the regular school day.  For one hour a day (or two or three hours a week in elementary school), students whose parents allowed them to participate in the program met with the music teacher.  Our orchestra (group of musicians playing together) teacher taught us to play our instruments and conducted (led a group of musicians, usually standing in front of the group) us all to play together.  Students could bring their own instruments from home or they could borrow a school instrument for the year.  This way, students whose parents could not or did not want to buy instruments could still participate.

Starting in the fifth grade (age 10), I played the violin, a beautiful instrument in skilled (with ability) hands, but in mine, an instrument of torture. Still (even so; despite this), I enjoyed learning to play and most of all, I enjoyed being with other students out of the traditional classroom.  Our orchestra, like many school orchestras, played concerts for the school and also played in the community at special events, such as holiday festivals and celebrations.  As a group, we also traveled to play in other cities when we could raise (earn; collect) enough money.

Money to pay for the school instruments, our teacher (shared with other schools), and other classroom resources were paid for by the school.  Everything else was paid for by parents or, more often, through fundraising.  It is very common for students in school music, athletic, drama (theater), or other activities to have school fundraisers. We had car washes: We would convince a nearby gas station to let us wash cars for a day or for the weekend on their premises (at their location) to earn money.  We sold candy: We sold candy to other students, our friends, and went door-to-door (from one house to another) to sell to neighbors.  We sold lottery tickets: These were tickets, usually for $1, for a chance to win a prize (something valuable you can win) that someone — a parent or someone in the community — had donated (given without receiving money).  I cannot tell you how many things we did or sold to earn money.  But for me, it was all part of the fun of being part of this group.

To be honest, our school orchestra was never very good.  With the exception of one or two really gifted (talented) students who went on to study music, we just bumbled through (did without any skill) the music.  (Some who are less charitable (kind and giving) would say we murdered (killed)  the music.) But for me, and I imagine for a lot of students, it was good experience and it exposed us (gave us access) to music and instruments we would never have played otherwise.  Sadly, with poor economic times, many schools have or will need to eliminate (remove) their school music programs.  This is especially sad in neighborhoods where buying musical instruments and paying for private music lessons is beyond the means of (more money than can be paid by) the parents.

Are there school music programs where you live, and do students participate in fundraisers for music or other activities?

~ Lucy

Photo Credit: Violin from Wikipedia 

Posted in Life in the United States | 27 Comments