What is a Member?

Maura:	For sure, it’s never a good thing to call someone a wannabe.
Jessie:	Right. And of course there is nothing wrong with wanting to be something, if you want to be a doctor and you’re working to be a doctor that’s great.
Maura:	Right, in that case, probably no one would call you a wannabe.
Jessie:	A wannabe is someone who is just pretending that they’re something they are not.
Maura:	Exactly, that’s a very important distinction. So what about the word itself, wannabe, it’s kind of funny?
Jessie:	Yeah, I think this slang term is actually pretty new.
Maura:	Yeah, it originated sometime in the 1980s, which wasn’t that long ago.

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		What is a Member?

Harp:Now Rita, with all of your experience in the English and ESL world can you give some tips on choosing a location or city to live and study in Canada?
Rita: Sure, I’d be happy to do that. First thing is to find the city that you want to live in. In order to do that, well, you need to do some research. There are three major cities in Canada. We have Vancouver, Toronto, and Montreal. And each of them has their unique personality…
Harp: OK, so it’s important for students to kind of decide their priorities when choosing the city.
Rita: Absolutely, you should definitely do some research about cost of living in each of the cities. You can find all of this information online as well. So look at things like taxes and accommodation, rent, you know how much does the average rent cost, as well. And of course you should always check out safety. How safe is the city you want to live in? And check out the different neighbourhoods as well.
Harp: So Rita, can you give us some advice on choosing a language school?

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		What is a Member?

Maura: So Alethe, that’s an interesting name.
Alethe: Yes, I am Australian however my name is French. My mum’s sister was living in Switzerland when I was born so my name is Swiss French.
Maura: Oh, OK. Yeah, that’s an interesting point because our accents are a little bit different. If you listen to this podcast regularly you usually hear Canadian, North American accents but you do not have a Canadian accent.
Alethe: No, I have no Canadian in me. I was born in Australia, and have always lived in Australia. However I like to take little side kicks everywhere I go.
Maura: So you’re from Australia but you are in Canada. So, how did you end up here?
Alethe: Well, I had a mid-life crisis at 25 and decided I wanted to go and travel the world.

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			What is a Member?

Jessie: So, I know that another example that I would have at work is sometimes, if my boss says something about my work, maybe gives me some criticism, says something I could be doing better, sometimes that kind of hurts my feelings but I know that it’s just work, it’s just my job. So I try to just shrug it off, and, you know, not get upset about it, not care, just shrug it off.
Robin: Forget about it. It’s not a big deal.
Jessie: So, are there any other expressions that we can use to talk about dealing with problems?
Robin: Absolutely. Another expression that we use to deal with problems is to roll with the punches.

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Harp: Yeah, a bug is an insect.
Maura: Yeah it’s a small little insect. Sometimes it has legs and wings and sometimes they fly around like zzzz.
Harp: Exactly. Some examples of bugs are mosquitoes …
Maura: Yup.
Harp: Beetles … or cockroaches …
Maura: Yup, it could also be a fly or a ladybug.
Harp: A ladybug.
Maura: That one even has the word bug in it.
Harp: Yeah, so a ladybug is red with little black dots on it.
Maura: Yeah most people … they don’t mind ladybugs.
Harp: A ladybug is the only bug I like.
Maura: Yeah, sometimes bugs can be annoying.
Harp: Exactly, which brings us to the slang definition of bug.

Podcast/ Lipservice: Culips ESL Podcast, Movie: This Hour has 22 Minutes Cough Etiquette

Maura: Bawk, bawk, bawk, Chicken!
Harp: Yes, our Catchword today is chicken.
Maura: Which for many of you listening out there…I’m sure you are thinking, “I already know the word chicken. It’s an animal.” But we do use it in another way.
Harp: Exactly, there is slang use for chicken.
Maura: Exactly. So you already know the original meaning of the word, which is the animal, but in English sometimes we use chicken to describe a person who is very afraid of something.
Harp: Yeah, someone who is scared of things.

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Maura: You want to use dude with your friends in a casual environment like a party or something like that.
Harp: Yeah, so dude is an old word.
Maura: Yeah, and it has had a lot of different meanings that generally refer to a man.
Harp: Yeah exactly. And dude became popular in the 60s and the 70s in surfer culture and then it made its way into mainstream.
Maura: Yeah, so dude was really first used in a popular way by surfers, I guess maybe in California, somewhere where they surf in the USA.
Harp: Exactly, but we’ll talk about dude in the surfer culture in the Lipservice.

Podcast/ Lipservice: Culips ESL Podcast, Video: Dude – Bud Light

Harp: Yeah, and we’re also going to talk about comfort food.
Maura: Yeah, so potlucks and comfort food, but first we’re going to talk about Canadian food.
Harp: Exactly, but that’s kind of weird because what kind of food is Canadian food?
Maura: Yeah, it’s a really hard topic actually. I remember I was in France, maybe five years ago, and someone there asked me “what is a typical Canadian dish?” And honestly Harp, I couldn’t think of anything.
Harp: Yeah, I’ve been in the exact same situation. The answer that I would give would be poutine…

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Robin: What are some common pet peeves?
Maura: Well, a friend of mine really hates when people chew and eat with their mouth open.
Robin: OK.
Maura: …when they are eating but their mouth is open and you can hear what is going on in there and maybe they are talking at the same time.
Robin: That’s definitely one of my pet peeves too.
Maura: Yeah, so some pet peeves are really common and they bother or annoy a lot of people but pet peeves are kind of individual, like some thing that is my pet peeve that really bothers me, maybe is something that doesn’t bother you Robin, right?
Robin: Absolutely, it all depends on the person.

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Harp: Corny.
Jessie: I like it.
Harp: I like it as well.
Jessie: So, does that mean having to do with corn?
Harp: Um, no, not at all.
Jessie: What does it mean?
Harp: Something that is corny is something that is cliché, unoriginal; it’s oldfashioned.
Jessie: OK, so corny is an adjective describing something that’s not very sophisticated, maybe kind of sentimental.
Harp: Yeah, exactly.
Jessie: Not original.

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Harp: Right, so someone who is down-to-earth has all of these qualities and you can find out definitions to each of them on the Lipservice. Should we give some examples of how to use down-to-earth?

Jessie: Right, well, my friend Becky for instance is really down-to-earth. She never shows off or acts like she is better than other people. She is just honest and she always just acts genuine and real.

Harp: OK, that makes sense. She is a down-to-earth person.

Jessie: Right, but my cousin on the other hand…He tells everyone that he is a down-to-earth guy but he spends all his time dreaming about being a movie star. He is always dreaming about being something else.

Harp: So, he is not down-to-earth at all.

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Jessie: So the phrase being caught red-handed is actually an old phrase and was probably first used in Scotland. And it was actually pretty serious because it was about murdering somebody.

Maura: Right, yeah.

Jessie: If you murder somebody you might get blood on your hands. Your hands would be red and if somebody saw you, they would know that you were the murderer.

Maura: Right, if you have the blood on your hands of the person who was killed, then probably you killed that person.

Jessie: Right, but today we can use this in a more light-hearted way too.

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Harp: Yeah, the full expression is to be all talk and no action. So they talk about it but they don’t take any action.

Maura: So this is a more literal expression, you can see the meaning in it.

Harp: Exactly.

Maura: But usually or sometimes we don’t say the full expression we just say that someone is all talk.

Harp: Yeah exactly. Sometimes people say something but they never have the intention of doing it.

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Maura: Let’s give a dialogue example, OK. Hey Harp, how was work today?
Harp: It was good. I had a presentation to give.
Maura: Oh really?
Harp: Yeah, I didn’t have any time to prepare for it so I had to wing it.
Maura: How did it go?
Harp: It went really well. I was on the spot, I improvised and people really enjoyed it.
Maura: Yeah, some people don’t need to prepare in advance.
Harp: I usually do but this time I winged it and it worked.

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Maura: I think that people in other countries know about Vancouver too. Yeah a lot of people might know Vancouver because Vancouver is where we are going to have the Winter Olympics in 2010.
Harp: Yup, the next Olympics are in Vancouver. And we just want to say hi to everyone who is listening to us in Vancouver.
Maura: Yeah, cause we know we have some listeners in Vancouver so we are saying hi from Montreal.
Harp: So if you don’t know, Vancouver is on the west coast of Canada and it’s basically right on the ocean.
Maura: And because it’s on the west coast it has a very different climate to the rest of Canada.
Harp: Yes, it’s one of the few places that isn’t cold.
Maura: And Harp and I like that a lot.

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Robin: OK, so for example if someone can build a house or can fix things, repair things around the house they can be a very handy person?
Jessie: Exactly. For example, if someone knows how to fix a toilet if it stops working, you would say they are a very handy person.
Robin: OK, so they are handy because we need to use the toilet and if they can fix it so it’s working, they are handy.
Jessie: Right, so usually when we fix things around the house, little jobs that you are using your hands. So in my mind that makes sense why you are calling the person handy.
Robin: OK, so someone who is very good with their hands and very useful, we can actually call them a handyman.

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Jessie: Well, to bite off more than you can chew is to commit to doing something that you can’t actually do. It’s too much for you to actually do.
Maura: Right! So you get involved in something, but it’s more difficult than you realized and maybe too difficult for you.
Jessie: Right! Or maybe you take more responsibility than you can actually handle.
Maura: Right! So, if you imagine that you bite a piece of food and it’s a very, very big piece, it will be difficult to chew the food.
Jessie: Right! So, when we’re talking about this as an idiom, you can imagine that you’re agreeing to do something, but then you can’t actually do it. Just like you’re biting the food, but you can’t actually chew it.
Maura: Right, because it’s too much or too difficult.
Jessie: Exactly! So, for instance, if I agreed to arm wrestle Arnold Schwarzenegger, I would be biting off more than I can chew.
Maura: I think you would definitely be biting off more than you can chew because Arnold Schwarzenegger is pretty strong.
Jessie: Yeah, he’s probably a lot stronger than me.
Maura: And a lot stronger than me, too.

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Maura: We use the expression no matter what when we’re talking about doing something, some kind of action. When we say we will do something no matter what, it means that we will do the action even if it’s difficult. We will do it.
Harp: Yeah, it’s like saying that it isn’t important what happens. You will complete the action. So, it shows a strong feeling about the action. So even if something is difficult, or if you have to try really hard different ways, it’s still the same result.
Maura: Let’s give an example.
Harp: Hey, are you going to the party? Did your parents say you could go, or are you grounded?
Maura: I’m going to the party no matter what.
Harp: All right! See you there

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Maura: Today we are going to talk about summertime and Labour Day.
Jessie: Right! That makes sense because it is almost the end of summer.
Maura: Right! So, what is Labour Day?
Jessie: Well, Labour Day is a holiday in Canada and the US. It happens on the first Monday of September.
Maura: Exactly! So, it is a holiday in Canada and the US. And what do people normally do on Labour Day?
Jessie: Well, despite the name Labour Day—people actually do not do labour, they relax. They have a break from labour, or work.
Maura: Right, so they treat Labour Day as a regular holiday: people relax, they go to the beach, travel with family.
Jessie: Lots of people barbecue, eat outside.
Maura: Yeah, sometimes they have fireworks. So, the Labour Day is a fun day.

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Maura: Today’s expression is to put your foot in your mouth. It’s a long one.
Harp: Yeah, I like this one as well. So, this is to put your foot in your mouth.
Maura: Right. So the meaning of this expression is to embarrass yourself by something you that you say.
Harp: And this can also make others uncomfortable or embarrassed too.
Maura: Right! So you say something stupid or strange and it creates an uncomfortable situation.
Harp: Yeah. If you imagine trying to actually put your foot in your mouth, it would be embarrassing, and make you look stupid.
Maura: Yeah, I think for most people it would be a very difficult thing to do, to put your foot in your mouth.
Harp: Exactly!
Maura: So, the result is really the same. In both cases, whether you say something stupid or you try to put your foot in your mouth, you are embarrassed and you look stupid.

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Maura: OK, so let’s give an example for this definition.
Harp: OK.
Maura: A friend of mine was actually arrested by the police recently, Harp.
Harp: Really?
Maura: Yeah, for robbing a bank.
Harp: Wow, I didn’t know that you hung around those sorts of people.
Maura: Well, actually I don’t. My friend didn’t do it. So after a couple hours the police saw that it wasn’t my friend that did it, so then my friend was off the hook.
Harp: OK, so, your friend was no longer blamed for robbing the bank.

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Moheb: Well, my name is Moheb and I’m new here to Canada. I’m actually originally from Egypt, from Alexandria, but I moved to the United States when I was a kid, and I lived in a few different places. I lived in Oklahoma and Ohio and I went to school in New York, which I really loved and I spent some time in Michigan and California. I have hopped around.
Maura: Yeah, for sure. So how old were you when you came to the U.S.?
Moheb: I was just 6 years old.
Maura: Ok, so do you remember it at all?
Moheb: You know, being 6 years old, I knew how to speak Arabic…

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Robin: You pester them, you bother them, you annoy them. And often times after you push someone’s buttons, they get upset.
Harp: Exactly.
Robin: They get upset. And there’s another expression that we use when we get very upset, when someone has pushed our buttons and we can’t tolerate it any longer. What is that expression?
Harp: This expression is to have enough or to have had enough.
Robin: Absolutely to have had enough. I have had enough, I can’t take it any longer. I’m mad and you have pushed my buttons.

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Jessie: The reason we say mum’s the word when we say don’t tell anyone my secret is because if you close your mouth and you’re keeping a secret, imagine how you would sound if you were trying to talk while you’re closing your mouth,
Maura: Mmmm mum mmm.
Jessie: Right. If your lips are closed you can’t make any words, all you can make is a kind of mmmum sound.
Maura: Right ,exactly. So you can’t tell the secret because your mouth is closed.
Jessie: And they think that the first time that was ever used was in a Shakespeare play.
Maura: Oh really?
Jessie: Yeah they said, “Seal up your lips and give no words but mum.”

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Harp: And for other more special anniversaries people celebrate with parties, with their family and friends.
Robin: Right, but this is only for big anniversaries, like 25 years, maybe 30, 40 or 50 years. Usually big parties come after the couple has been married a long time.
Harp: Yes, sometimes it is the children of the couple who plan a big party for the parents’ wedding anniversary. You know I actually did this for my parents’ 25th Anniversary.
Robin: Did you?
Harp: Yeah I planned a party with my 2 sisters.
Robin: Really? Were there a lot of people?
Harp: Yeah, there were actually about 60 people.

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Jessie: Well, I’m a little bit sick.
Maura: Yeah, I can hear it in your voice, you’re not feeling well, eh?
Jessie: Yeah, my nose is kind of stuffed up, feels like it’s blocked, I’m coughing a lot.
Maura: Yeah, I understand, I was actually sick last week.
Jessie: Yeah, you’re feeling better now?
Maura: Yeah, my throat hurt a lot and I was tired, but I’m feeling better.
Jessie: That’s good.
Maura: OK, let’s look at today’s expression.
Jessie: Well, it is kind of a coincidence, ‘cause the first expression that we are going to look at today is coming down with something.
Maura: Yeah, to come down with something.
Jessie: If you are coming down with something that means you are starting to get sick.

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Maura: So, to hit it off can be used with just friends but it can also be used in a romantic kind of way.
Jessie: Yeah, if you were going on a blind date, meeting someone for the first time that one of your friends set you up with and they asked you how it went later, you might say, “Oh, we really hit it off.”
Maura: Right, which means that it was the first date but you really liked each other right away.
Jessie: Right.
Maura: Or maybe you could say, “We didn’t hit it off.”
Jessie: Yes, if you didn’t like each other you could say you didn’t hit it off.

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Jessie: So the expression There are plenty of fish in the sea means that there are other options available. So, just like if you were going fishing and you caught a fish but at the last minute he got away, someone might say, “Well, don’t worry. There are plenty of fish in the sea.” So that means you can easily catch another fish.
Harp: Exactly. So now, you can use this expression in different ways, but the most common one is used in reference to relationships.
Jessie: Right, so a boyfriend or a girlfriend. So it’s almost like saying that you are catching a boyfriend like you are catching a fish. So if you break up with your boyfriend, it’s like the fish got away.

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Maura: So she is really asking if we can give some other examples of words that are spelled with the letter P as the first letter – but we don’t pronounce the P. She is asking for more of these words that start with a P that we don’t pronounce.
Harp: Did everyone out there know this already? That when we say the word psychology, we do not pronounce the p at the beginning. Psychology is the science and study of the mind and human behaviour.
Maura: Of course if you’re listening, you only hear the s sound but when we write the word psychology it actually starts with the letter p which is not pronounced.
Harp: So to answer Anais’s question, there are not very many words where we do not pronounce the p. But there are a few words.

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Maura: Maybe you go to someone’s house for dinner and they make pizza and you really don’t like onions and they put onions on the pizza. They ask if you like the pizza and you say, “Yeah, it’s delicious” because you don’t like onions but you don’t want to tell them that. You don’t want to be rude or impolite.
Harp: Yeah, exactly, that’s a little white lie. So a little white lie is usually to protect someone’s feelings, I would say.
Maura: Right, you want to be polite, you don’t want to be rude. So what is the other one? Brutal honesty. So brutal honesty is when you tell the complete truth and it can be rude or impolite.

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