节目资讯
刊物:空中英语教室
日期:2013-02-23
难易度:Low
关键字:minimum, knitting, go downhill, responsibility, confession, priority
In our article today, Jo confesses that she packs too much.
Even though she tries to only bring the minimum with her when she travels,
she seems to end up always packing a chess set, more jeans and more shirts, DVDs
in case she gets bored.
And it doesn't work out the way she plans.
Her packing just starts to go downhill.
Well, let's continue and see what happens to Jo in the rest of the article.
Packing in Practice.
They say practice makes perfect, and I've had a lot of practice since Germany.
That trip - my first abroad - was a difficult but valuable lesson.
When I'm packing for a trip now, I remember how I felt then.
I assume all my bags will be my responsibility.
If I want to take something, am I willing to carry it everywhere?
Usually the extras aren't worth the effort.
There's nothing like stairs and crowded spaces to set your packing priorities
straight!
It sounds like Jo has learned her lesson in packing with all of the practice she
has had now.
And at the beginning she says:
They say practice makes perfect, and I've had a lot of practice since Germany.
Now at the very beginning of that sentence it says "they say." They say.
What... what do they say, Gabe?
Well, they say practice makes perfect.
And who is "they"?
Who are we talking about?
Well, this is just a way to say that lots of people say something; they say.
They say practice makes perfect.
And it's true.
Lots of people say that.
That's why you've heard this phrase before, practice makes perfect.
If you're practicing something, it's going to become even better.
That's why you're listening to Studio Classroom every day because practice makes
perfect.
Is that right?
That is right.
So if you practice your English, it will get better and better.
And hopefully it will become perfect if you practice it enough.
Now Nathanael, what's something else that you can practice?
Well, I like acting a lot, and you need to practice or rehearse for a play.
The more that you practice, hopefully the better everything will become.
I don't know if it will get absolutely perfect, but practice is very worthwhile,
very valuable.
All right. So practice makes perfect.
Another word that Nathanael used was "rehearse." There are different words for
practice.
But let's continue with our article.
Jo says, "That trip - my first abroad - was a difficult but valuable lesson." It
was a valuable lesson.
She says, "When I'm packing for a trip now, I remember how I felt then." And
then what did she say, Carolyn?
She says, "I assume all my bags will be my responsibility." Oh.
Well, she assumes, so she thinks that all of her bags will be her
responsibility.
And "responsibility" is one of our key words today.
If you are responsible, what does that mean, Nathanael?
Well, if you're responsible, you know something should be under your control or
at least that you should take care of it.
So she knows that whatever she packs, she's going to have to take care of, she's
going to have to move from place to place.
Right. So she has that responsibility for her luggage.
What is something else that you might have a responsibility to, Gabe?
Hmm, a responsibility to...
Well, in my family, of course, I am the firstborn son, so I have a
responsibility to make sure that my parents are OK.
Well, that is, of course, what some cultures feel.
I have a responsibility to be a good son and to be a good brother to my
siblings.
That's a responsibility that I have.
What's a responsibility that you have?
Of course, you might have a different responsibility at work than you do in your
family or at home or with your friends.
And as Carolyn and Nathanael just said, they used the word as an adjective, to
be responsible for something.
Well, Carolyn, what does Jo say next?
She says: If I want to take something, am I willing to carry it everywhere?
So she's questioning herself:
Do I really need this item? Do I really need knitting needles? Do I really need
a chess set?
Do I want to take it everywhere with me?
Well, it's a good question to ask when you are packing.
And now let's join Steve and Ken in the Information Cloud.
I've never met a seasoned traveler who said "With every trip I make, I try to
take more and more stuff." No, it's just the opposite.
They learn to pack less stuff.
Because they know less luggage means fewer headaches and a happier travel
experience.
So Steve, how do you pack light?
Well, first, Ken, I put everything I want to take on my trip and I lay it out on
my bed.
Next I put half of it back.
Good idea.
And don't worry about not bringing something you think you'll need later on.
Even if you're overseas, chances are you'll be able to buy it or borrow it.
OK. The next time you're packing for a trip and you're still not sure whether or
not you've got too much stuff, try this:
Lift your luggage over your head and hold it there for 10 seconds.
If you can't do it, you're over-packed.
Or try carrying your luggage around the block five times without breaking a
sweat.
If you can't do it without sweating, you're over-packed.
(Chinese).
Thanks, guys.
Maybe you can use some of those suggestions the next time you're packing.
Well, the first sentence of the last part of this article says: Usually the
extras aren't worth the effort.
The "extras," maybe she's talking about the extra luggage that she would like to
take along or the extra things she would like to pack.
What is the next sentence, Gabe?
Well, she continues: There's nothing like stairs and crowded spaces to set your
packing priorities straight!
It's true.
These things will help to remind you that maybe you want to start packing
lighter.
There's nothing like stairs and crowded spaces to set your packing priorities
straight.
And I like that phrase: there's nothing like something to something else.
You can use it like this:
There's nothing like moderate exercise to feel healthy.
How else could you use that phrase, Nathanael?
There is nothing like a 24-hour trip to make you feel tired.
I know I always feel tired after I travel halfway around the world.
I agree.
What about you, Carolyn?
How do you use that phrase?
Well, there's nothing like cold weather to make me want a cup of hot chocolate.
Oh, my goodness!
I wrote something similar.
I said there's nothing like hot chocolate to warm you up in the winter.
It's so true.
And it is getting cold outside.
It's still cold outside.
So maybe you want to grab a cup of hot chocolate as we talk about this next
word.
It is the word "priorities" from our More Information.
A priority.
Carolyn, what's your priority?
Well, a priority is something that is very important, and probably the most
important thing.
So if you set your priorities straight, it means you put the important where it
should be.
I like that.
Nathanael, are you good at setting your priorities straight?
Well, sometimes I am, but it's easy to put the wrong thing first or think that
something is more important than it should be.
We also often talk about what the first priority is.
You might say that once we land, our first priority is to pick up our luggage.
That's usually the first thing, the most important thing to do after you've
reached a destination.
All right. Good, I like that.
When you're traveling, make a list of priorities, the things that you need to
do, and try to do those things in order.
What is your top priority?
You can also say "first priority." That's at the top of the list.
So again, as Jo says, there's nothing like stairs and crowded spaces to set your
packing priorities straight.
Well, it seems like she has learned a lot in her packing experiences.
We've learned a lot enjoying her lesson, her story here.
And we have more to learn with Michelle in the Language Lab.
Here we go.
OK.
(Chinese).
And let's get back to our teachers.
In our article today, we've heard a lot from Jo and the experience that she has
had with her packing adventures,
and the lessons that she has learned to just pack the minimum and don't take
your knitting needles and your DVDs with you around the world.
And it makes me wonder with the experience that we've had packing, are you good
at packing?
Nathanael, do you think you are good at packing your luggage?
Well, I do think that I've had a lot of practice packing, and I think that I can
fit things into a suitcase very well.
But sometimes it is difficult to choose what's most important to pack.
That's very true.
Sometimes it's very hard to decide what I want to take and what I want to leave
behind.
And many times I'm trying to stick smaller things into many different pockets in
my suitcases, just trying to make it fit.
Gabe, do you think you're very good at packing?
Well, I have had a lot of practice over the years as you guys have.
And so I've maybe not mastered the art of packing, but I've gotten a little
better.
And I can't say that I'm 100 percent proud of the way that I pack every time.
Almost all of the time I always pack a little too much.
Something that I think I'm going to need or use, but I just don't use it.
Well, that sounds like a very difficult thing to solve.
And that is all we have for today on Studio Classroom.We hope to see you next
time. Goodbye.