Can I ask you a question?

Hey everyone, today we're going to have a quick lesson about cultural miscommunications. These often occur when you use a sentence in a language that has an added meaning or connotation.

A few weeks ago I asked a class of students, "Does anyone have any questions?" and one of my students said "Can I ask you a question?". Now this sent up a red warning flag! Another sentence that does this is "We need to talk".

She didn't need to ask this question, I had just offered to answer any questions so she should have simply gone directly to her question.

For native English speakers when someone asks you "Can I ask you a question?" we take it as a WARNING that the next question will be something personal or it will be an uncomfortable question.

Usually we simply ask the question directly or we will see if the person has time to answer our question by saying "Do you have a minute?".

A: Does anyone have any questions?

B: Can I ask you a question?

A: Uh... yeah... ok, shoot.

B: What halloween party should I go to?

A: Umm...?

In this case A is confused because he offered to answer questions, so by asking "Can I ask you a question?" he expected a more serious question to be asked. She should have said:

A: Does anyone have any questions?

B: Can I ask you a question unrelated to English?

A: Sure.

B: What halloween party should I go to?

A: Umm... how about the one at Tadg's?

In this case, A is curious about the topic but it doesn't sound so serious. If you want to ask a question about a different topic than what is being discussed ask "Can I ask you an unrelated question?".

Here's the kind of usage we expect from "Can I ask you a question?":

Al: So how's it going?

Betty: Not bad, can I ask you a question?

Al: Uhm, ok. 

Betty: What would you do if I was pregnant?

Al: What!? You're pregnant?!?!

Betty: No, not yet but what would you do if I got pregnant?

Al: Uhh... well, I don't know... I guess I'd...

Have a nice cloudy day,

Phil

What's the occasion?

Hey everyone, do you guys know the subtext of this question? It is used when someone suddenly changes their look or behavior to be nicer or better than usual.

Ted: Hey Betty, you look sharp! What's the occasion? Got a hot date?

Betty: Oh, hey Ted. Yeah, I got a date with Rob tonight!

It is also often used with the word special:

Andy comes home to find the place spotlessly clean...

Andy: Helen, what's the special occasion? Why's the house so clean?

Helen: Andy, I told you! My parents are coming to visit this weekend!

You can also use this expression to ask why someone is throwing a party.

Gary: I'm having a little get together tonight, do you wanna come?

Jim: What's the occasion?

Gary: My wife's out of town so I'm having a guys poker night.

Jim: Sounds fun, count me in!

Have a nice week,

Phil

butter, batter, better, bitter tongue twister~!

Hey everyone, I was teaching the definition of batter today and it reminded me of a famous nursery rhyme called Betty Botter. You can find information about it here. 

Here is the tongue twister:

Betty Botter bought some butter,

"But," she said, "this butter's bitter;

If I put it in my batter,

It will make my batter bitter;

But a bit of better butter,

Better than the bitter butter

Will but make my bitter batter better."

So she bought a bit of better butter,

Better than the bitter butter,

and made her bitter batter better.

Betty Botter bought a bit of butter.

The butter Betty Botter bought was a bit bitter

And made her batter bitter.

But a bit of better butter

Makes better batter.

So Betty Botter bought a bit of better butter,

Making Betty Botter's bitter batter better.

 

 

Here is a video from youtube, unfortunately I couldn't find a version I liked in North American English.

 

 

Have a nice weekend,

Phil

A repost of an interesting post from bakadesuyo.com

Hey guys, I came across a great post on bakadesuyo.com a nice blog that talks about all kinds of pyschological studies. This one goes over many common sayings and ideas that people believe are true...


Check it out here or click through to the original~!


Which old sayings are true and which are false?


"Men think about sex every seven seconds"

Nope. More like an average of every 158 seconds.

"Nice guys finish last"

It depends. Over the long run, being a nice guy can lead to happiness, success and good relationships. On the other hand, they aren't as likely to end up in prestigious positions or to be chosen as leaders when times are tough. Rude people have higher credit scores and jerks make more money. And it can be hell on your love life: young women and women who most enjoy sex prefer bad boys.

"The light that burns twice as bright burns half as long"

Probably.

"Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise"

Morning people are more proactive and happier. On the other hand, night owls are smarter. And male night owls do better with the ladies.

"When you smile the whole world smiles with you"

Smiling makes others more likely to smile.

"Money can't buy happiness"

As a general rule, money does not increase happiness much after our basic needs are met. However, money can increase happiness if we spend it the right way and especially if we spend it on other people. More money can make you less happy.

"Sleep on it"

Yes, sleeping on it improves decision-making.

"Sex sells"

Not in movies.

"Home cooking tastes better"

Comfort food does comfort us and grandmom's cookies do taste better than other cookies.

"Smart people lack common sense"

Possibly.

"Stocks are riskier than bonds"

Only sometimes.

"Think positive"

Only works for some people.

"If momma ain't happy, ain't nobody happy"

There's some truth to it.

"Women talk on the phone more than men"

Women make fewer phone calls but their calls last longer.

"Gaydar"

Yes.

"Attractive women make men stupid"

True. In fact, just thinking about attractive women makes men dumb.

"Flattery will get you nowhere"

Wrong.

"I need my beauty sleep"

Confirmed.

"I don't like the look of his face"

People are able to tell who is kind, trustworthy, a criminal, a psychopath and a Nobel Peace Prize winner at above chance levels just by faces. You can tell a lot about someone by their face.

"Surprise me"

On second thought, don't.

"Porn causes rape"

Actually, it reduces it: "It has been found everywhere it was scientifically investigated that as pornography has increased in availability, sex crimes have either decreased or not increased."

"Long distance relationships never work"

They're more stable.

"We need to get tough on crime"

Harsh prison conditions increase recidivism.

"I'll sleep when I'm dead"

Cheat yourself on sleep and you'll suffer the consequences, even if you don't notice.

"Kids who sit at the front of the class do better"

They do.

"Fast talking salesman"

Fast-talkers can be more persuasive.

"Blinded by jealousy"

Real.

"Play hard to get"

It works.

"Blondes have more fun"

They do make more money.

"Advertising would be better if the models weren't so thin"

Actually, there's no way to win here.

"It's funny because it's true"

If the truth resonates with the listener, yes.

"All _____ people look alike"

For all of us, whenever people are a different race it's harder to tell them apart.

"You can tell a lot about a man by his handshake"

Absolutely. "Results showed that HGS was correlated with SHRs, aggressive behavior, age at first sexual intercourse, and promiscuity in males but not in females. HGS appears to be an honest signal for genetic quality in males."

"Happy wife, happy life"

When the husband is happier than the wife, couples are more likely to divorce.

"You can tell a lot about the author by what they write"

True.

"Giving is better than receiving"

Yes.

"My generation didn't behave like that when we were young"

Wrong. Even grandmom had premarital sex.

"It's the booze talking"

No, actually, that's you talking.

"Spanking is bad for kids"

Kids who were spanked behave better as teenagers.

"Having children makes you more like your parents"

Yes.

"The music you like says a lot about you"

True.

"Men want sex more than women"

Yes.

"Count your blessings"

Absolutely. It's one of the most scientifically validated ways to increase happiness.

"When I'm turned on, I'm like a totally different person"

It's true, and you'll do things you didn't think you ever would.

"Cleanliness is next to godliness"

When your desk is messy it's harder to focus.

"The woman in red"

Women wearing red are seen as more attractive.

"Older and wiser"

Yes, older people are wiser.

"Women find men who are attached more attractive"

True.

"Pricing something at $1.99 instead of $2 doesn't fool anyone"

Yes, it does.

"My soulmate"

Our real life partners rarely resemble our ideal partners and who you end up with is more a function of who is around you than what you want.

"I love all my kids the same"

No, you don't.

"The enemy of my enemy is my friend"

True.

"Crazy in love"

There is a connection between love and delusion.

"Life speeds up as you get older"

Yes. Subjectively, once you're 20, your life is half over. "Basically, if you're older than about 30, you're almost dead."

"TGIF!"

Your mood is pretty much the same on Friday as Monday.

"Stress kills"

Those who work the hardest, live the longest.

"A dog is a man's best friend"

Maybe.

"The love of money is the root of all evil"

Loving money does make people unhappy.

"Power reveals people's true colors"

Not exactly.

"Artists are more likely to be crazy"

Yes.

"Opposites attract"

More often than not, no, they don't.

"Be yourself"

Close. Be your best self.

"The good die young"

No, they live longer.

"You only use 10% of your brain"

False but the idea is so prevalent even 6% of neuroscientists agreed with it.

"Clothes make the man/Dress for success"

Definitely.

"Six degrees of separation"

Pretty much true.

"We regret most the things we didn't do"

Absolutely.

"Women marry men like their father/Men marry women like their mother"

There's some truth to it. Looking at photos, research subjects were able to tell (at a rate above chance) who was married to whom by looking for a resemblance between the bride and the groom's mother, or between the groom and bride's father. Interestingly, women are more likely to be attracted to men who look like dad - only if they had a good relationship with their father.

"Mid-life crisis"

It may be a total myth.

"Women are more romantic than men"

False. Studies show that, in general, men are actually more romantic than women. Men also say "I love you" first, have more positive recollections of their first kiss, and are more likely to end a relationship because it lacked "magic." Saying "I love you" means the most to men and women at different times.

"Stand up straight"

The military makes soldiers stand up straight for a reason; there's an implicit connection between posture and power that has been demonstrated time and time again. Want to increase confidence? Make yourself tougher? Write a better self-evaluation? Impress others? Stand up straight.

"Don't give in to peer pressure"

Wrong. More often than not kids are pressured into good things, not bad things. Kids who felt more peer pressure got better grades and had better relationships. Kids who were more independent had lower GPA's and were more likely to smoke, drink and shoplift.

ねちょっと聞いて。

Phil: Guess what?

Students: What?

Phil : I'm gonna write 6-7 lessons this month!

So "ねちょっと聞いて" literally means "Hey, listen a bit" but in English we say "Guess What?".

The answer is always "What?" after which the person usually tells you his big news.

For example:

A: Guess what?

B: What?

A: I'm getting married~!

B: Wow, congratulations!

But sometimes people say:

A: Guess what?

B: What?

A: Go on guess!

B: Umm, You're new girlfriend is an alien?

A: No, come on make a serious guess!

B: Huh, I don't know. I give up.

A: I won a trip to Italy!

B: Wow, great!

So the next time someone asks you "Guess what?" remember to reply "What?"!

Have a great weekend,

Phil

You shouldn't judge a book by it's cover...

Hey everyone~! Have you heard this saying before??? We use this often when talking about people but it can also be used to talk about places, books(of course) and things.

Don't judge a book by it's cover

or

You shouldn't judge a book by it's cover

means that you SHOULDN'T JUDGE people/things based on their APPEARANCE. A book might have an amazing cover but when you read it, it's as boring as dirt. Or the cover might be old and ugly but the story is incredibly interesting~! Also, a handsome man might be horrible person and ugly/scary looking people might be super kind! It's not what is on the outside that counts but what's on the inside.

For example:

A: I went on a date with Sally last night.

B: With Sally? She's not your type. How was it?

A: You know what they say "Don't judge a book by it's cover" even though she looks kind of plain we had a lot of fun! It was a terrific date!

or

A: I don't like the looks of my sisters new boyfriend.

B: You shouldn't judge a book by it's cover. You haven't even met him yet!

I hope that is clear enough for everyone. If you have any questions just ask and I'll be writing more lessons next month!

See you in July,

Phil

P.S. Remember it's what's on the inside that counts!

Happy Halloween!

Hey everyone, I just want to wish you all a

Happy Halloween~!

Today, I am going to have a quick culture lesson about popular western horror movie characters.

Classic Movie Monsters

Frankenstein

Actually, the monster had NO NAME! The name of the doctor who made the monster was Dr. Frankenstein~! But in popular culture the doctor and the monster got mixed up so everyone calls the monster Frankenstein...

The Mummy

This is from the classic monster movies in black and white where an Egyptian mummy returns to life and starts killing the people who disturbed it's rest. Because of the famous mummy's curse.

Dracula

The most famous vampire story which has been made into many many movies since the black and white film Nosferatu.

The Wolfman

The original werewolf movie monster. A werewolf is a human being who becomes a wolf when there is a full moon.

The Swamp Thing

This is a kind of fish like monster man who lives in a swamp.

The Blob

This is a big jelly like blob that eats everyone and just keeps growing bigger and bigger...

Modern Movie Monsters

These days we don't really have many monsters most of them are killers that are in some way superhuman but let's start with the monsters~!

Alien(s)

The 1970s science-fiction/horror movie starring Sigourney Weaver. The most famous scene in this series is when the baby alien explodes out of someones chest...

Predator

This is an alien who comes to Earth to hunt human beings. The first movie starred Arnold Schwartznegger and the second Daniel Glover. It is not really a horror movie but more of an action/sci-fi movie.

And now onto the famous killers~!

Freddy Krueger

This is the star of the Nightmare on Elm Street movies who was played by Robert Englund. It is a story about a man killed by the adults on Elm St. who then returns in their kid's dreams and starts killing them one by one. He has a special metal glove with long knives as claws. As a kid, he was my favorite horror movie character!

Jason Voorhees

This is Jason the star of the series Friday the 13th where a killer wearing a hockey mask kills people camping in the woods and people at summer camp.

Michael Myers

This is the killer in a white rubber mask that goes around killing people with a big kitchen knife on Halloween. He is the star of the Halloween series of horror movies.

Alright I hope you enjoyed this Halloween lesson, have fun Trick-or-treating~!

Phil