Easy English Blog

This blog is for learners of English.

I Talk You Talk Press staff blog about many different topics – life, study, language, work, travel, books, music, film, culture, cooking, and many more, all in easy English!

[Easy English Blog] Breakfast

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slice of loaf bread with dog face

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What do you have for breakfast? I notice that most people have the same thing for breakfast every day.  I have coffee and toast. I put Vegemite on my toast. Most people don’t know about Vegemite. It seems to be unique to Australia and New Zealand. There is a similar product called Marmite. It came from England I think. If you grow up eating Vegemite, you like it. But most people think it tastes awful.

If you eat toast for breakfast maybe you put margarine and jam, or butter and honey, or margarine and peanut butter, or margarine and Vegemite on it. People like different things, but maybe everyone has the same experience when they drop their toast on the floor. The toast always lands upside down! It always lands jam side down!

Patricia @ I Talk You Talk Press

[Easy English Blog] Christmas presents for pets

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adorable animal blur breed

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Do you have a pet? Do you buy it presents? In my family, we have always had dogs. We treat the dogs like members of the family. At Christmas, we give each other Christmas presents, so of course, we give our dogs Christmas presents too.

There are many kinds of Christmas presents for pets available. We usually buy toys or dog chews or treats for our dogs. We wrap them up in wrapping paper. The dogs love ripping the wrapping paper off the presents!

One dog we had was always very careful when he took the wrapping paper off his presents. It seemed like he knew there was something special inside, and didn’t want to damage it. He took a long time to unwrap his presents. Another dog we had ripped the paper off as fast as he could! He just wanted to get the present as quickly as possible!

I often buy presents in Japan for our dog. I’m sure she doesn’t understand the difference between and English present and a Japanese present, but I like to get her something different. I wonder what I can buy this year…

Heather @ I Talk You Talk Press

[Easy English Blog] 500 yen saving

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Every year, I save 500 yen coins. 500 yen is around $4 – $5 dollars. When I get a 500 yen coin in my change at a shop, I don’t spend it. I put it in a special case for 500 yen coins. I have been doing this every year for around five years. My goal is to fill the case. The case can hold 100 coins. Once, I managed to fill the case, but usually I can’t. I usually manage around half or a third.

I start in January and continue until I go home for Christmas. I used the money I have saved to buy travel insurance and my train fare to the airport. It is a big help, because I spend a lot of money at Christmas.

This year, I have filled just over half of the case. I didn’t reach my goal, but I’m happy anway. I will try harder next year!

Heather@ I Talk You Talk Press

[Easy English Blog] Flu jab

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addiction aid bottle capsule

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Do you get a flu jab? A flu jab is an injection to protect against influenza. I started getting a flu jab around six years ago. The first year I had it, I felt very strange afterwards. I was really dizzy and I felt sick. I also had double vision!

From the second year, I have been fine. One thing I have noticed is that I catch fewer colds during the year. I used to catch around three or four colds a year. When I was a child, I caught around five or six colds a year.

Now, I only catch one cold a year, usually in autumn. Is this because of the flu jab, or because my body is changing as I get older? I don’t know, but I’m glad that I don’t get so many colds anymore.

I started to get a flu jab every year because I caught influenza seven years ago. I caught it over Christmas. It was really bad timing. I couldn’t enjoy Christmas with my family because I felt so ill. I never want to experience that again!

I had my flu jab for this year a week or so ago. It wasn’t so painful, but my arm was itchy for a few days after. I hope it protects me from colds and influenza this year too.

Heather @ I Talk You Talk Press

[Easy English Blog] Computer problems

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green and beige cord

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I have no luck with computers. I bought one eight years ago, and that broke after only one day. I got a replacement, and that broke after three months. Then I bought another computer four years ago, and that broke after six months.

Last year, I  bought a new computer, and it broke three times in the first year. It was still under warranty, so I didn’t have to pay for the repairs. Now, my computer is acting strange again. Sometimes, when I switch it on, the background changes and all my files disappear! All my documents, photos – everything goes! The first time this happened, I panicked. I rebooted the computer, and thankfully, everything came back.

It seems like the computer resets itself to a default setting sometimes. I don’t know why it does this. I need a reliable computer because I use a computer every day for work. I feel like I can’t trust this computer. Every morning, I wonder, “Will it be OK today?” I don’t like this feeling. But I don’t want to buy a new one because this one is only one and a half years old, and computers are expensive.

So I make sure I back up my data every day, and I have a spare computer, just in case. It is small and difficult to work on, but I can use it in emergencies.

Why can’t I get along with computers? Maybe they don’t like me…

Heather @ I Talk You Talk Press

 

[Easy English Blog] News

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How often do you read, watch or listen to the news? I read online newspapers every day. But I wonder if this is good or not. Of course, it is important to know what is happening in the world. We need to know about the situation in other countries and in our own countries. Many things happen which affect us directly or indirectly.

However, most news is negative. We rarely see happy news stories. How does reading, watching or listening to negative stories every day affect us? Does it make us more negative? Does it give us a one-sided perspective of the world? Many good things happen in the world every day, but we rarely hear about them in newspapers or on news sites.

I’m going to try and cut down on the amount of news I consume. Instead of checking the news sites a few times a day, I’m only going to check them once a day. I wonder if this will have an effect on my mood…

Heather @ I Talk You Talk Press

[Easy English Blog] Getting ready for winter

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black and white cold fog forest

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Winter is coming quickly this year. I’m going to start preparing for it now. I have already bought some warm sweaters and warm socks. But the thing I am worried about is my car.

I need to change my car tires from normal tires so snow tires. I also need to buy a new spade to dig the snow. Lasy year, we had so much snow. It took a long time every morning to dig my car out of the snow. My spade is old, so I’m going to buy a new one. I have to buy one early  because they soon sell out. I’m also going to buy de-icer spray. I can spray this on my car windows to melt the ice.

I have snow boots. They are good for walking in the snow, but not so good for walking on ice. Last year I fell over walking down a small slope. The ground was hard and cold and I hurt myself! This year, I will try and avoid places like that, and stay on flat ground. I’m lucky in that I don’t have to go out very early in the mornings. A few years ago, I had to leave my house at 7:00am to get to work. So I had to start clearing snow at 6:00am. The roads were very slippery because it was still early in the morning. This winter, the earliest time I have to leave my house is 9:00am. This will give me more time to clear snow, and hopefully, the roads will be easier to drive on.

We had a very hot summer this year. I hope we have a mild winter.

Have you started preparing for winter?

Heather @ I Talk You Talk Press

[Easy English Blog] White lies

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person s right three fingers

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Do you tell white lies? I think everyone does. A white lie is a small lie which we tell people so we don’t hurt their feelings.

For example, your friend gives you a birthday present. You open the present and you hate it. What do you say? Do you tell your friend you hate it? Or do you say “Thank you! It’s wonderful!” Many people will pretend they like the gift so their friend does not feel bad. That is a white lie.

Or, what do you say if your friend has a new haircut and you think it looks terrible? Do you tell your friend it looks terrible? Or do you say it looks nice?

I told a white lie not so long ago. My friend bought me a doll as a present. I don’t like dolls. Also, I don’t like having many things. But what could I say? My friend was really excited when she gave me the present. She said “I hope you like it!” When I opened the box I thought “Oh no! It’s a doll!” But I said, “Oh, a doll! It’s so pretty! Thank you!” Was I right to say this? Should I have told her the truth? If I had, maybe she would have been very disappointed. I didn’t want to hurt my friend’s feelings, so I told a white lie. Of course, I should be grateful that she bought me a present. It means she was thinking about me. I should accept it with gratitude.

Heather @ I Talk You Talk Press

[Easy English Blog] Fashion

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Do you keep up with the latest fashion trends? Do you read fashion magazines?

Some of my friends and family do. They buy fashion magazines every month, and buy clothes that are “in fashion”. They are always looking for the next fashion trend and thinking about fashion for the next season.

I am not really interested in fashion, so maybe they find it difficult to talk to me about it. I buy clothes that I like, rather than clothes that are in fashion at the moment. I like folk-style clothes, with embroidery and colourful patterns. I also like wearing black.

For me, wearing something I like is more important than wearing something that is in fashion. I also prefer to be comfortable, so when I choose clothes, I always think about comfort.

When I worked in an office, I wore a suit every day. Now that I work alone, I can wear what I like. I usually work in casual and comfortable clothes, unless I am meeting a client. When I am meeting someone, I try to dress smartly.

This is enough for me. I don’t feel like I need to follow fashion trends. I feel comfortable wearing what I like.

Heather @ I Talk You Talk Press

[Easy English Blog]No autumn leaf viewing this year

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nature red forest leaves

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Autumn is my favourite time of year. I love the colours of autumn and I try to go autumn leaf viewing every year.

Unfortunatley I didn’t have time to go this year. This is a shame, because the area where I live has so many beautiful autumn leaf viewing spots. There are many mountain temples in the area, and they are all so beautiful in autumn. One of my favourite temples in Kiyomizu-dera in Yasugi. (There is a famous temple in Kyoto with the same name.) It is in the mountains and has a pagoda. It is surrounded by trees which look beautiful in October and November.

I feel like this season passed by so quickly. I had some free time the other day, so I went for a run. The trees in the park are nearly bare. They only have a few leaves left. I guess I left it too late to visit temples this year. It is almost winter. Now I have to prepare for my trip back to the UK so I’m going to be very busy over the next few weeks. I will have no time to see the last of the autumn leaves. I hope to make more time to see them next year.

How about you? Did you go autumn leaf viewing this year? Where did you go?

Heather @ I Talk You Talk Press