节目资讯
刊物:空中英语教室
日期:2013-08-17
难易度:Medium
关键字:bracelet, impersonal, patch, entertaining, seashell
Today we are continuing with the second day of our article Tips for Souvenir
Shopping.
And Jo has given us two more tips today.
The first one was to get personal, to really think about the person that you
want to buy a souvenir for.
Her second tip, though, was to get impersonal, to buy a general gift that a
large group of people would enjoy, like food.
Well, we still have some more tips from Jo.
Let's read in the next part of our article.
Tips for Souvenir Shopping.
Make an exception.
I do collect one useless thing: flag patches.
I like to buy one for every country I visit.
Collecting the same thing from each place you visit is fun, and big collections
are impressive.
But pick something small and interesting.
The last tip?
Enjoy the hunt!
Shopping for souvenirs should be an entertaining part of your travel adventure,
not a chore!
No, you don't want to make anything during your vacation or travels a chore.
Well, let's go back up to the top here in this section.
Our next tip is "Make an exception." OK.
So Jo says: I do collect one useless thing: flag patches.
Well, why is this an exception, Carolyn, a useless thing?
Well, because her previous tip told us to buy something that is useful.
Buy something that you're going to use and that maybe you can get compliments on
from other people as you use it in your daily life.
But here she does make an exception.
So this is going against her other tips.
She buys a useless thing - flag patches.
And "patch" is one of the words from our Word Bank.
Now Gabe, what is a patch?
Well, a patch is something flat that usually you can use to sew on to your
clothes or maybe your backpack or something like that.
And a flag patch is... well, it's a patch in the shape of a country's flag.
The shape and the color, and it just looks like a country's flag.
And she maybe sews it on something.
Well, I'm not exactly sure what she does with it, but she does collect these
patches.
She does collect flag patches.
And when I think about collecting patches, I often think of girl scouts or boy
scouts who work very hard to earn patches that they then sew on to their clothes
and wear very proudly.
Well, it's very true.
You might have to earn these patches as well.
Well, Jo says, "I like to buy one for every country I visit," so.
She likes to buy a flag... flag patch from every country that she visits.
She probably has a lot of different flag patches by now.
I'm sure she does because she has visited many different countries.
And she continues with an explanation why she makes this exception.
Collecting the same thing from each place you visit is fun, and big collections
are impressive.
It's true. And it can be fun.
Do you have something that you like to collect from everywhere you go?
And if you have a big collection, that could be something to show off to your
friends or other people.
It can be very impressive.
It can be very impressive.
And even if it's not a collection of things that you buy when you visit another
place like a souvenir, maybe you have a very impressive stamp collection or card
collection.
I know lots of people who like to collect baseball cards.
That's true.
Many people love collecting baseball cards.
But Jo says pick something small and interesting.
All right, so not something that is too big that will weigh you down on your
trip.
Well, what is the last tip here, Carolyn?
Well, we do have one more, and Jo writes: The last tip?
So she's asking the question: What is the last one?
She says: Enjoy the hunt.
You should enjoy this hunt.
Now that's kind of an interesting way to phrase it.
Is she going hunting, Gabe?
No. You're... you're right, Carolyn.
Usually when I think of this word "hunt," I think of maybe taking a gun and
going out to hunt for some animals.
But... I've never done that before, and that's not what Jo is talking about.
That is right.
That is not what Jo is talking about.
Here she's talking about looking for something or searching for it.
So she is hunting in a sense that she is looking for something very seriously.
She wants to find it.
But you should enjoy it.
And she says that shopping for souvenirs should be an entertaining part of your
travel adventure, not a chore.
It's true.
Well, let's take a look at that word "entertaining." If something is
entertaining to you, that means it is fun.
That means it's something that you enjoy.
It is entertaining.
Carolyn, what is entertaining to you?
Well, when I think of this word, I think of things like going to the movies.
Movies are very entertaining.
Or maybe you go to watch a play.
Those are also very entertaining.
I usually think of performances.
I do, too.
And sometimes I also think of little kids.
I think that kids can be very entertaining sometimes when they're running around
and playing.
There are many different things that are entertaining in life.
What entertains you, or what do you think is enjoyable and fun?
Well, I think that treasure hunts can also be entertaining.
We just learned about the word "hunt." Carolyn, do you ever go on treasure
hunts?
Well, I don't usually go on treasure hunts because I don't know of any treasure
that I am looking for.
It's true.
Niether do I.
But there is another kind of hunt like a scavenger hunt.
Have you ever been on a scavenger hunt where you have to go and look for
different things that are all planned out?
Oh, I have done that, and that is very fun.
And many times it's a competition to see who can find all of the things the
fastest.
Well, we do want to make sure that you enjoy this hunt, that you enjoy looking
for your souvenirs and that it is not a chore.
Now I think Steve and Ken have something they want to tell us about that word in
the Info Cloud.
Then we'll watch a review skit, and join Michelle in the Language Lab.
Hi, friends.
What exactly is a chore?
If your mom wants you to go to the grocery store to pick up some milk, is that a
chore?
I wouldn't call that a chore.
Going to the grocery store is an errand, which is a short trip you take to
accomplish something.
Going to the post office, going to the bank and buying groceries are all
considered errands, not chores.
OK.
A good way to remember the difference is chores are tasks done inside the home
while errands are accomplished outside the home, hence the expression household
chores.
And that's the narrow definition of chore.
But you know, Steve, sometimes a task that is not a chore by that definition is
still called a chore.
That's right, Ken.
Sometimes a difficult or unpleasant task can be called a chore even if it's not
a kind of housework.
For example, I could say solving our company's computer virus problem was quite
a chore, or filing my taxes was a real chore.
Very unpleasant, indeed.
(Chinese).
Hey, today let's shop for souvenirs.
I want T-shirts, mugs, keychains.
I don't want any of those things.
You don't?
No. Those things aren't cool.
They're not?
No! And with a little bit of effort, I think I could find something better,
something unique.
You can?
Yes. And so can you.
Really! How?
Well, first, you can pick and choose.
Pick and choose?
Yes. Think: Do I really want this?
If it'll weigh me down or clutter my room, then I don't want it.
Good thinking.
Second, buy things that you can use, not things that just collect dust.
Uh, like what?
Like clothes or jewelry.
I bet you get lots of compliments.
Well, I like that.
And get personal.
Think about your family and your friends - who are they?
And what do they like?
Yes. And get impersonal.
Huh?
Well, buy tasty snacks for your co-workers to share.
Oh, yeah. They love snacks.
Most people do.
And remember, it's OK to make exceptions.
Exceptions?
You can always buy something small and interesting.
I like to collect patches.
Patches?
Good idea.
And remember to have fun.
I always do.
Let's go shopping!
Great.
Did you bring any money?
OK.
(Chinese).
And let's get back to our lesson.
Well, we've learned about tips for souvenir shopping in this lesson with Jo.
And we've learned some very good tips.
You want to buy something that is useful for people.
You want to buy things that are personal for some people, and of course some
things you could just take back to your office and share with your friends
there.
Well, do you like to collect anything when you go traveling?
Carolyn?
Well, I actually usually collect a special item of clothing from each place I
visit, so.
When I went to Indonesia, I bought a batik, which is a traditional clothing
there.
And when I was in Japan, I bought a yukata, which is also a traditional style of
clothing.
That is cool, collecting different kinds of clothing.
Well, I brought a bunch of playing cards here today because I love to play cards
with other people.
And I... I have these cards that my sister bought me from Williamsburg,
Virginia,
and of course some cards from Greece and... and from the Grand Canyon and many
different places.
We can play cards later.
But for now, it's time for us to say goodbye.
And we'll see you next time right here on Studio Classroom.
See you then.