Real English Nine: Sales/Consumption Tax

The sales tax will go up to 8% next Tuesday.

Are you going to make any last-minute big purchases over the weekend?

The other day, Mr. T said to me:

"Last weekend, I went shopping and bought a lot because I wanted to stock up on toiletries and stuff before the consumption tax goes up to 8%.  For example, I bought 6 packs of toilet paper, 18 rolls a pack.  That should last me about a year!"

I replied:

"My wife uses one roll of toilet paper a day, so we need quite a few packs to last us a year!  I am thinking about buying  some small things which I use everyday, like toothpaste, soap, gargling mouthwash, and razors, and also some big things like a rice cooker and video camera.  But I haven't decided yet.  It depends..."

To change the subject a little, I bought some carp streamers for Boy's Day and set them up on my 2nd-floor balcony last Friday.  Now, they are blowing in the wind!!  

Many people who walk by my house stop and make a comment like "Nice! They are big and colorful!"

But one of my friends, a doctor, said to me, 

"You are maybe the first person in Japan to put them up this year!   Too early!!  You are clueless about Japanese culture!"

I am confused... 

My wife gave me permission to put them outside on the 21st and said, 

"I googled it, and it says that you can put them up from the Spring Equinox Day which is March 21st. "

Please tell me, who is correct, the doctor or my wife?

Real English Eight-a selfie

Did you see Ellen DeGeneres' star-studded selfie from the Oscars?

It set a record with 2.7 million retweets.  

(I have three questions for all you trivia buffs. 

One, do you know which tweet held the record before?

Two, do you know the maker of the phone Ellen used to take this selfie?

Three, can you name all of the actors and actresses in this selfie?)

I have only taken a few selfies in my life.

I am not very good at it.

On the other hand, by brother is very good at taking selfies and takes them often.

As the proverb goes, "Practice makes perfect!"

And my father told me he took his first selfie over the winter vacation.  It wasn't bad for a rookie!

Have you ever taken a selfie?

If yes, do you take them often?

If you don't know the meaning of "selfie," 

please refer to the following definition from Wikipedia:

'A selfie is a type of self-portrait photograph, typically taken with a hand-held digital camera or camera phone. Selfies are often associated with social networking. They are often casual, are typically taken either with a camera held at arm's length or in a mirror, and typically include either only the photographer or the photographer and as many people as can be in focus. Selfies taken that involve multiple people are known as "group selfies".'

Real English Seven-unless

On Thursday, Kyoko called me in the morning. She never calls me in the day time unless there is a problem, so when I saw her number on the screen of my i-phone, I thought "What happened now?" and answered the phone.

Me:  Hi. What's wrong?
Kyoko: I can't see the mountains because of that PM2.5!  And I checked the Nishinomiya City Home Page...it said that the government issued a pollution warning and advised everyone to 'refrain from going out unless you have to'.  What do you think that means?
Me:  That means that if you don't have to go out, you shouldn't.  Or in other words, you should go out only if you have to.
Kyoko:  Got it.  How was it outside when you left this morning?
Me: It was still dark so I don't know
Kyoko:  How is Osaka now?
Me:  It is kinda hazy...
Kyoko:  What do you think? Do you think I can go out today?  Or should I just bag it?
Me:  I don't think it will be a problem if you go out for 30 minutes or so.
Kyoko:  I don't know...But, if possible, I want to go out for a little in the afternoon, so I will wait and see if it clears up.
Me:  Good idea! By the way, do you know what 'PM' stands for?
Kyoko:  No.
Me: Do you want to know?  Do you want me to teach you?
Kyoko: Yes, please!
Me: 'P' stands for 'Particle'. and 'M' stands for 'Matter.' So, 'Particle matter.'
Kyoko:  Thanks so much for teaching me that! What does the '2.5' mean?
Me: I don't know. Google it! 
Kyoko:  Have a good day!
Me: You too!

Real English Six-allergic to

I got a text from my neighbor the other night.

Here is our text correspondence:

10:45 pm Thursday

Neighbor: I just came back from a business trip to Kanazawa.  I got you a souvenir. Are you home now? Can I bring it over?

6:15 am Friday

Me: Sorry for the late reply! I didn't see your mail until just now! I went to sleep at 10:30 last night...

I will pick it up on my way home from work tonight.  Is that cool?

8:30 am Friday

Neighbor:  That's not necessary.  My wife said that she will bring it over to your house and give it to your wife when she goes out this afternoon.  Hope you enjoy it!

When I got home, one whole crab was waiting for me!!!

I was surprised, and I remembered that he said, 

"Kanazawa is famous for crab!", a few weeks ago when we were out.

I was ecstatic, because I love crab!! 

I know simple boiled crab is best, but I also like crab cakes because they are easy to eat!

There is only one problem with crab...and that is...my wife is allergic to crab!

That's too bad for her!  

And she really missed out on the fun, because it was delicious and I ate it all by myself!

Speaking of allergies, my nose hurts!!!

I have hay fever, and according to the news reports and my nose, the hay fever season has already arrived...

Real English Five: root for

It snowed again today, much more than the last time.  My train in the morning was delayed a few minutes, but nothing major.

Except for the news about the snow, the other big news this morning was about the figure skater Yuzuru Hanyu.  In case you didn't already hear, he set a world-record score of 101.45 points in the short program.  His performance was magnificent!  If he can hold the lead in tonight's free skate, he can take home the gold!

Speaking of the Olympics, there other day I had the following conversation with a friend of mine at the gym.

Gym Friend: Did you watch the Olympics last night?

Me:  No, it is past my bed time so I can't watch most of the events live.  But I check the results on the net, or newspaper, or watch the highlights on TV the next day.

Gym Friend:  Yeah, I know what you mean.  It's tough to watch the games live because of the time difference...  Anyway, let me ask you a question.

Me: Sure. Shoot.

Gym Friend: I was wondering....who do you root for?  America or Japan?   I mean, I know you are American, but you have been in Japan a long time, and your wife is Japanese, and kid is half-Japanese....so...

Me:  I root for both, America and Japan.  If an American athlete is participating in an event, then I root for him or her.  And if a Japanese athlete is in an event, then I root for that person.

Gym Friend:  What happens if a Japanese athlete and an American athlete are in the same event, in the finals, for example?  Who do you root for then?

Me:  Both! It is a win win situation for me!

Gym Friend:  That's not fair!!

Me:  Life's not fair. Get used to it!

Important expression to remember:  I am rooting for you.

Real English Four: unreal

An unprecedented snow storm hit the East Coast last week.

Here is the email correspondence between my father and I last week.

Dad:  It has been snowing all night.  As of now, we have gotten about 10 inches.  Power has been out for over 12 hours.  According to the latest news reports, over 715,000 households are without power.  The plows haven't been down our street yet, so we are snowed in.  We stocked up on food before the storm, so don't worry! Also, have some wood, so the fireplace and the "hot packs" you gave us in Japan are keeping us warm.  This winter, with all the snow and freezing cold, has been unreal!!  Keep ya posted...

My reply:  The snow storm which hit Osaka the other day was nothing compared to that!  The snow stuck, but only a few cm around here.  It was big news because on the same day there were "entrance exams" for university and also the Bullet Train was stopped for hours, causing delays.  My biggest worry was my wet socks and sneaks...they got soaked when I walked in the slush to the station.  I need to buy a pair of snow boots!  Power back on yet? Streets plowed yet?  Still have wood, or all out?  Anyway, hang in!!  

p.s. for your amusement,  here are some photos of the snow here. jealous?

Real English Three: a million

A picture is worth a million words!

And each one of the photos below fits the bill!

"a million" is used in many expressions.

Do you understand these?

1.  Thanks a million!

2.  I never said that in a million years!

3.  Not in a million years!

4.  You are one in a million!

5.  You look like a million bucks!

Question of the day

One of the seven guys below makes millions.  

Which one?

Real English Two: spent

More on shopping.

On the 3rd of January, because my parents volunteered to babysit "Spike," my wife and I went toy shopping.  Of course for Taiga! :)

First, we went to Hankyu Department Store in Nishinomiya Gardens.  By coincidence, a huge "Children Toys Fair" was being held that day, so the timing was good!

Here is our conversation:

Me:  It is mobbed!  I didn't expect it to be this crowded!

Kyoko: Me neither.  

Me:  Well, let's look around separately, and then meet back here in about 30 minutes.

Kyoko: OK. Then we can discuss what we want to buy.

Me:  Sounds like a plan!

One hour later...

Kyoko:  That was a long "30 minutes"...

Me:  Sorry. I got caught up in this toy shopping. Are you angry?

Kyoko: No, not at all. I know you! You are often late!  Plus, I saw you talking to the clerk about those wooden blocks.  You had that "serious look" on your face, so I knew it was going to take a long time.

Me: Thanks for your understanding.  So what do you want to get?

Kyoko: I want to get that fish-shaped xylophone.  Of course it is made in Japan!   How about you? Which blocks did you decide on?

Me:  I can't decide...

Kyoko:  Still?!  

Me: Well, I think the medium-size blocks with the wagon are the best. They are hand-made and the wood is cedar from Tottori. Did you smell them? They smell good!

Kyoko:  Yeah, I smelled them. Good choice!  Anything else?

Me: Yeah, that thingamajig over there with the beads and mirror.

Kyoko:  I know which one you mean.  Another good choice! You are on a roll!

Me:  You wanna pay and get outta here?

Kyoko:  Yes! I am spent!  

Me:  Me too! We spent a lot of time and energy on toys today! 

Kyoko:  You forgot something! 

Me: What?

Kyoko:  We also spent a lot of money!!

Me:  Oh yeah! I forgot about that...

Ms. K sent me the below photos.  She is in Canada taking a graphic design course.

Real English One- drive a hard bargain

I'd like to wish everyone a very late "Happy New Year!"
Sorry to keep you waiting!

It has been 27 days since I last wrote a blog.
The other day, Mr. O said to me, 
"Glenn, I check the blog every week. 
But for the past few weeks, you haven't written anything. 
What's up?"

I replied, "I sincerely apologize.  I have writer's block." 

He then added, 
"No worries! It happens to the best of us.  
But if you want to keep your resolution, you better get on it!"

So, I said, "You got that right!"

The first blog of the year is very unlike me because it is about shopping.  As you all know, I hate shopping!
On December 29th, I made two big purchases.
First, I bought a refrigerator.
Then, I bought a washer and drier.  
I bought them both at the same place, "YC."

Kyoko thought it would only take us about 2 hours to buy both..she was wrong!
It took much longer than she expected, about 4 hours in all.  There are two reasons it took so long. 
The first reason is we didn't look into the fridge at all before we went.  We were clueless!
(This is actually my fault.  I told Kyoko at the last minute that I planned to buy a fridge too, so she didn't have much time to look on the net.)
On the other hand, because she did a lot of research for the washer and drier, she  knew exactly which one she wanted even before we arrived at YC.  
The second reason is we simply couldn't decide...

Anyway,  in addition to shopping, we had a dinner reservation for two at The Cosmopolitan at 6pm.  
After looking at refrigerators for 2 hours, it was already 5:30pm and there was no way we were going to make it, so she called up the restaurant and said, 
"Hi. We have a reservation for two at 6pm.  The name is under Gross.  
Unfortunately, we are running late so we won't be able to make it at 6.  
If possible, we would like to go at 8pm....I am very sorry..."
Luckily for us, the staff said, 
"It's your lucky day! There is one table still available at 8pm, so it is not a problem.  
We'll be waiting for you."
She said, "Thank you so much!  We are looking forward to it!"

Before we could go to dinner, I really wanted to close the deal!
At the same time,  I wanted to get as much of a discount as I could.
After a lot of talking(negotiating) back and forth, finally the staff said, 
"You drive a hard bargain!!  I can't believe I am going to do this,  but if you agree to pay in cash, today, you can have both the fridge and the washer and drier for XXX,XXXyen."
I said, "You got a deal! Thanks a lot and Happy New Year!"

For your study, please note the below expressions using "drive"
-drive someone crazy/mad/insane
-drive someone up a wall