Mayonnaise Jar

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 cups of coffee.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with tennis balls.

He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the tennis balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar.

Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with an unanimous "yes".

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

"Now," said the professor as the laughter subsided, "I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The tennis balls are the important things-your family and friends, your health, and your favourite passions-and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car. The sand is everything else-the small stuff. 

"If you put the sand into the jar first," he continued, "there is no room for the pebbles or the tennis balls. The same goes for life: if you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you”.

“Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness.

Take care of the tennis balls first-the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand."

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented. The professor smiled and said, "I'm glad you asked."

The coffee just shows you that no matter how full your life may seem there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend. 

Author unknown 

“Experiment” and photographs: Maria Teresa Relva 

I wish all my students a very successful school year! 

Speak English

ENGLISH is easy

Many words in English are easy to understand

                       

Sport

Handball   

Volleyball

Basketball

Football

Windsurf

Skate

Golf 

Tennis

Mister

Offside

Transport

Airport

Passport

Stop

Bus

Taxi

Trailer

Food/Drink

Fast food

Hot dog

Hamburger

Sandwich  

Ketchup

Snack

Bar   

Whisky
Gin

Pub

Soda

Clothes

Jeans

T-shirt

Pullover

Music

Rock

Hit   

DJ

CD

DVD                            

Fan

Poster

Performance

Leader

Flash 

Slogan

Computers

Internet

E-mail

Pen   

Hardware  

Software

Link

Mouse

Site

Photograph

Telephone

Places

Restaurant

Shopping Centre

Hotel

Outlet        

Snack bar

WC

Zoo

Expressions

know-how

no problem

Design

Piercing

Ok

weekend    

Full time

Part time

Made in

Stop

Top 10                

Portuguese                                             English

Natural                                                   Natural

Total                                                      Total

General                                                  General

Cidade                                                    City

Velocidade                                            Velocity

Simplicidade                                         Simplicity

Nação                                                    Nation

Sensação                                                Sensation

Observação                                            Observation

Showcase 1

This showcase is a homage to Neil Armstrong (1930-2012)

NASA´s Mars Rover, that extraordinary accomplishment, is also mentioned.

There are some older magazines with news related to space and souvenirs from Kennedy Space Center, in Florida.

The other showcase is about London. There ia a tea towel of Queen Elizabeth II, who celebrates 60 years of reign in 2012 and a reference to the Olympic Games that took place in London. Two outstanding athletes are the focus of the news: Michael Phelps and Usain Bolt.

There are some postcards and keyrings from London, too.

Common mistakes

The misuse of the apostrophe leads to many mistakes

TICKETS is the correct word (no apostrophe in the plural)

Nothing lasts forever... except for that horrible tatoo

“Ich bin ein Berliner”

In 1963, West Berlin and East were separated by the Berlin Wall. President Kennedy had the most overwhelming reception of his career at Berlin City Hall on 26 June, when he delivered one of his most inspired and inspiring talks:

“Two thousand years ago the proudest boast was Civis Romanus Sum. Today in the world of freedom, the proudest boast is Ich bin ein Berliner.There are many people in the world who really don´t understand, or say they don´t, what is the great issue between the free world and the communist world. Let them come to Berlin… Freedom has many difficulties and democracy is not perfect, but we have never had to put a wall up to keep our people in… We…look forward to that day when this city will be joined as one-and this country, and this great continent of Europe- in a peaceful and hopeful globe. When that day finally comes, as it will, the people of West Berlin can take sober satisfaction in the fact that they were in the front lines for almost two decades.

All free men, wherever they may live, are citizens of Berlin, and, therefore, as a free man, I take pride in the words Ich bin ein Berliner". 

This photo was taken in East Berlin (near the Wall) in 1981. Photos were not permitted. 

After the Berlin wall was dismantled (1989), we can find a piece of it in the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston or in Portland, Maine.

John F. Kennedy Library and Museum in Boston (MA) in 2000.

A piece of the Berlin Wall in Portland, Maine in 2000.

Nowadays you can buy in Berlin many souvenirs on the political issues of the 60´s.

REGRESSO À ESCOLA

" Não há segunda oportunidade para uma primeira boa impressão”… 

Setembro é regresso à escola! O primeiro dia de aulas é sempre um acontecimento muito importante tanto para alunos como para professores, independentemente da escola ser a mesma ou nova. Nessa data, existe uma emoção particular, consequência da natural expectativa de todos, alunos, professores e famílias. 

Em especial, a adaptação a uma nova turma pode levar tempo e motivar alguma ansiedade. Enquanto que há crianças a enfrentar essa mudança de forma natural e até desejando o início da escola, outras sentir-se-ão deslocadas, necessitando de apoios escolares e familiares mais atentos. Os professores experimentam também sentimentos parecidos: uma turma simpática e pronta a aprender motiva-os bastante; mais do que outras, nas quais os alunos tentam pôr à prova até onde podem chegar no mau comportamento. 

Recordo-me do meu primeiro dia de aulas como aluna. Não conseguia esconder o meu nervosismo por estar num ambiente tão diferente do de casa, onde permaneci até aos seis anos, como era habitual naquela época. E lembro-me ainda da minha preocupação em corresponder às expectativas, como por exemplo, ter os cadernos sempre apresentáveis.

Mais tarde, como mãe, senti a falta dos meus filhos, quando aos três anos começaram a frequentar o jardim infantil, o que constituiu, simbolicamente, os seus primeiros atos de independência. Segui, permanentemente, uma regra de ouro para os fazer sentir seguros, procurando nunca depreciar a imagem dos seus professores e, ao não dizer mal daqueles que eles gostavam menos, desvalorizava as suas queixas, apesar de averiguar, com cuidado, o que se passava, ouvindo também a opinião de outros encarregados de educação. 

Hoje em dia, como professora, sinto, muitas vezes, certa nostalgia por não encontrar na escola colegas com quem mantive relações de amizade, devido a transferências ou, pior, por não colocação. 

Depois, as semanas imediatas antes do início das aulas são de preparação intensa para o ano letivo. Surge então, quase de forma espontânea, a dúvida repetida, anualmente, sobre o que poderá motivar os alunos a aprender inglês? No entanto e para além desta questão, os anos de experiência demonstram a seguinte evidência: a relação de empatia entre o professor e a turma tem grande relevância e é essencial que a primeira aula corra da melhor forma, pois como diz o ditado: “não há segunda oportunidade para uma primeira boa impressão”… 

Hoje em dia, no começo de cada ano letivo, além da renovação deste conjunto de reflexões, constato ainda com preocupação, que devido aos muitos baixos índices de natalidade em Portugal, sente-se, cada vez mais, a falta de alunos nas escolas e já não apenas no interior do país. Está talvez aí a razão principal para o aumento de professores desempregados. 

Shakespeare´s birthplace

The house where William Shakespeare (1564-1616) was born and brought up is in Stratford-Upon-Avon. It is now a memorial to the poet and attracts visitors from all over the world.

I visited it in 1981, after graduating in English Language and Literature in Lisbon, and kept the admission ticket as a souvenir.

The old house belonged to his father and the ownership of the property passed to William Shakespeare and then successively to his elder daughter Susanna and to his only granddaughter, Lady Barnard. On her death in 1670 she bequeathed it to her cousin, Thomas Hart, whose descendants continued to own the property until 1806, when it was sold to Thomas Court.

Following the death of Court´s widow the interest in the site increased when an American entrepreneur, P. T. Barnum proposed to buy the home in 1846 and send it to the USA, where it would be kept over wheels to be in perpetual digression.

The idea was so frightening that a Commitee was formed and raised the necessary money to buy it one year later. 

The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust also owns Anne Hathaway´s Cottage, where Shakespeare´s wife lived; Mary Arden´s House, where Shakespeare´s mother lived, New Place and Hall´s Croft, Shakespeare´s daughter´s home.

References:

Bryson, Bill. Shakespeare. Bertrand Editora, 2008

Fox, Levi. Pocket Guide to the Shakespearian Properties

www.shakespeare.org.uk/visit-the-houses.html

Neil Armstrong

"Looking back, we were really very privileged to live in that thin slice of history where we changed how man looks at himself and what he might become and where he might go,"

Neil Armstrong.

Neil Armstrong, was born in Ohio, on August 5, 1930. He was interested in flying even as a young boy, earning his pilot's license at age 16. Armstrong studied aeronautical engineering and earned degrees from Purdue University and University of Southern California. He served in the Navy, and flew 78 combat missions during the Korean War.

Armstrong took two trips into space. He made his first journey in 1966 as commander of the Gemini 8 mission, which nearly ended in disaster after a thruster rocket malfunctioned and caused it to spin wildly out of control.

During his next space trip in July 1969, Armstrong and fellow astronauts Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins made a 250,000-mile journey to the moon, which took them four days to reach. About six and a half hours after landing, Neil Armstrong became the first person to set foot on the moon, on July 20, 1969. Then he expressed the now-famous phrase: "That's one small step for (a) man, one giant leap for mankind."

Armstrong was on the moon's surface for two hours and 32 minutes. He and Aldrin, who followed him, planted an American flag, collected moon rocks and started scientific experiments before returning to the main spacecraft.

All three returned home to a hero's welcome, and none ever returned to space.

Afterwards, Armstrong worked for NASA, coordinating and managing the administration's research and technology work.

In 1971, he resigned from NASA and taught engineering at the University of Cincinnati for nearly a decade.

Armstrong largely avoided the public spotlight and chose to lead a quiet, private life with his wife and children.

"Neil was among the greatest of American heroes -- not just of his time, but of all time," said President Barack Obama. "When he and his fellow crew members lifted off aboard Apollo 11 in 1969, they carried with them the aspirations of an entire nation. They set out to show the world that the American spirit can see beyond what seems unimaginable -- that with enough drive and ingenuity, anything is possible." 

Neil Armstrong died yesterday. He was 82. A statement from his family, announcing his death, ended with a request: “For those who may ask what they can do to honor Neil, we have a simple request. Honor his example of service, accomplishment and modesty, and the next time you walk outside on a clear night and see the moon smiling down at you, think of Neil Armstrong and give him a wink”.

Information selected from:

http://edition.cnn.com/2012/08/25/us/neil-armstrong-obit/index.html?on.cnn=1

http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/newsdesk/2012/08/neil-armstrongs-voice.html

Adventures abroad 5

NEW YORK

The borough of Manhattan is what most people think of when they speak of New York City, one of the most fascinating cities in the world. The other boroughs are: Brooklyn, Queens, The Bronx and Staten Island.

Before the arrival of Europeans, the Indian tribe Algonquian inhabited the island and named it Manhattan, which meant “island of the hills”. The Dutch, the first Europeans to settle there, founded a city for commercial purposes called New Amsterdam, but as a consequence of the English and Dutch rivalries in Europe, the English took New Amsterdam and renamed it New York, after the Duke of York, brother of the English king Charles II, in 1664 (The borough of Queens was named after the wife of Charles II, the Portuguese Princess Catherine of Braganza).

Manhattan is the centre of American art, theatre, publishing, fashion, shopping, advertising, finance, and much more. It is divided into the East Side and the West Side. Fifth Avenue is the dividing line. Both the avenues and streets have numbers: avenues with lower numbers are on the east side and they increase as you move west; streets with lower numbers are in Lower Manhattan and they increase as you move north in the direction of Central Park. Therefore, it is hard to lose oneself in Manhattan.

To enjoy the place you must walk in the crowds but take a taxi to discover why New York is a mosaic of cultures, starting with taxi drivers.

See the beautiful skyscrapers, visit the museums,  go to Broadway and shop (there are real good bargains) or window-shop in Saks, Bergdorf Goodman, Brooks Brothers... The bookshops (Barnes & Noble) are a huge temptation, but you must realize that you can´t bring back home all that weight in gifts… 

                                                                                      Empire State Building

Rockefeller Center

A view of Central Park from the 85th floor of One57, a tower in Midtown Manhattan under construction

Nuno Madeira created a site that makes it possible to visit New York online.


http://www.newyork360.net/

Assumption of Mary

August 15 is a public holiday in Portugal. As a catholic country we commemorate the assumption of Mary into Heaven.

This picture by the Portuguese artist Paula Rego is in the chapel of Belem Palace, the official residence of the President of the Republic, who shared it on facebook.

The biggest religious procession in Madeira Island takes place in Monte every year on 15 August. It is organized to honour Our Lady of Monte, the Patroness of Madeira. 

The Church of Our Lady of Monte  (1818) is located in the picturesque village of Monte, 6 km away from Funchal. It is in this church that the last emperor of Austria, Charles I was buried. He died in Monte, where he lived in exile, in 1922.

It is also near the Church of Monte that the famous wicker basket guides, dressed in traditional white with straw hats, wait for their customers to start the toboggan ride, which Ernest Hemingway described as “the most exhilarating experience of my life”.

Julia Child

Julia Child (1912-2004) was known for her culinary books and television programs.

She married Paul Child when she was 34 and they moved to France when her husband was assigned there as a Foreign Office officer. In Paris she attended the famous Cordon Bleu cooking school and began teaching French cuisine to American women living in Paris. Later, in the USA, she became an author and was a star in numerous television programs about the culinary art.

On the 100 anniversary of her birth, this is how Google presented her. 

Julia Child donated the kitchen from her home, which served as the set for three of her television series, to the National Museum of American History. It included the cabinets, appliances, cookbooks, kitchen table and hundreds of utensils and gadgets. The kitchen was designed by her husband and had high counters because Julia was very tall.

Julie & Julia ( 2009) is a film about the life of Julia Child ( Meryl Streep) in the early years of her culinary career in France and the life of young Julie Powell ( Amy Adams) , a New Yorker , who intended to cook all 524 recipes in Child's cookbook in 365 days, a challenge she described on her blog that would make her a published author.

In the film Julie cooked boeuf bourguignon for an important dinner party. Not just any boeuf bourguignon - Julia Child's boeuf bourguignon


http://www.juliachildfoundation.org/

revista generaciones

High expectations…

Low results

After watching the outstanding show for the Queen´s Jubilee and the spectacular opening ceremony of the London 2012 Olympics my expectations were high for the closing ceremony.

Unfortunately I was very disappointed. There were a few highlights, but most of it was a typical rock show.

 I was delightfully surprised by the homage to Freddy Mercury and the guitar performance by his fellow band member Brian May.

 However I was not rocked by Jessie J´s “I will rock you”.






I enjoyed Waterloo Sunset  by Ray Davies

I think my students loved One Direction