Gestern erzählte ich Christine von meinem freien Tag letzte Woche. (Franz war auf Geschäftsreise in London.)

Das Wetter war traumhaft, also schnappte ich mir mein Fahrrad und radelte zur nächsten Eisdiele. Dort gönnte ich mir zwei Kugeln Vanilleeis.

Beim Erzählen merkte ich, dass mir einige Vokabeln fehlten. Die deutschen Begriffe sind kurz und knackig, also versuchte ich zu übersetzen. Aber das klappte einfach nicht.

Christine brachte mir also einiges bei.

So lernte ich, dass „Ich habe mir etwas gegönnt“, „I treated myself to something“ heißt. Da wäre ich nie allein darauf gekommen.

Und die Eisdiele heißt „ice cream parlour“ und eine Kugel Eis „a scoop of ice cream.“ (Ich hätte „A ball of ice“ gesagt!) „Ice“ ist allerdings gefrorenes Wasser und nicht Speiseeis – wer hätte das gedacht? „Ice cream“ wird in einem „Cone“ oder einer „Tub“ serviert. Und die Dame oder der Herr hinter der Theke fragt: „Which flavour(s) would you like?“

Ach, wie schön. Wieder etwas Neues gelernt. Das macht mir richtig Spaß. Und ich gebe nicht auf! Ich bin immer noch total motiviert, endlich flüssig Englisch sprechen zu können.

Mal sehen, was die nächste Woche bringt. Ich bin gespannt!

Bis bald,

Greta

PS Christine liebt Vanilleeis. I prefer strawberry. 🙂

Today’s National Lost Sock Memorial Day!

Do you know where the other half of your favourite pair of socks might be?

We might never know why they disappear, but we can still celebrate their memory.

Here are some ideas:

• Get creative. Use your mismatched socks for fun projects like making puppets or stress balls.
• Give your socks a voice. Add googly eyes and share a picture on social media with #LostSockMemorialDay.
• Wear mismatched socks. It’s a fun way to remember the missing ones. (This is my favourite!)
• Have a treasure hunt. See if you can find some lost socks with your children or neighbours’ children.

No matter how you choose to celebrate, National Lost Sock Memorial Day reminds us that even small things deserve to be remembered.

Who knows, maybe someday the sock gnomes will return our lost treasures. 😂

PS: A tip from one of my sons … Buy several pairs of socks of the same style and colour to make sure you always have a matching pair, even if some get lost.

PPS:  What other cool things can we do with our odd socks?

Ever stumble over words that sound the same but mean totally different things?

Today’s tricky pair: biannual and biennial.  

Both start with “bi,” which means “two”—and that’s where things get a little crazy.

• Biannual means “twice a year”. Imagine increasing your fees biannually—now how does that sound to you?

• Biennial means “every two years”. The famous Venice Art Biennale is held biennially. So you have two years to save up for that gondola ride and that perfect artsy beret (optional, but highly recommended).

Confused? It happens to the best of us. 

So, why use big words that might leave people scratching their heads?  

Stick to “twice a year” or “every two years”, and everyone will understand perfectly.

 Clear communication is the way to go!

No more word mix-up madness!

One day, the frogs in the forest decided to hold a competition.

The winner? The first frog to climb the tall tower—a tower much taller than any tree in the forest. It seemed an impossible task.

Twelve frogs started the race. Their friends cheered them on. “Go! Go! Go! You can do it,” they shouted.

But as the frogs got closer, their friends were scared. “The tower is much too high! You can’t climb it! Come back down!” they yelled.

One by one, the frogs listened to their friends. They stopped climbing. All except one frog. This frog kept jumping tirelessly up the tower.

“Stop!” the other frogs shouted. “Can’t you see how tall the tower is? You’ll never make it.” But the frog didn’t listen. It kept going.

And do you know what? That frog was the only one to reach the top!

The other frogs were surprised. “How did you do it?” they asked. “Didn’t you hear us warning you?“

When the winner didn’t answer, it suddenly became clear. It couldn’t hear the other frogs! It was deaf.

What the story teaches us

• Don’t listen to others who try to talk you out of your dreams.
• Look at your problems differently. Maybe they’re actually secret weapons.
• Believe in yourself. You got this.
• Stay positive. Don’t let negativity slow you down.
• Be you. Your unique path is the best one.

Ever feel like some people can chat with anyone, while you struggle to keep a conversation going? 

Don’t worry, it’s a skill anyone can learn! The secret? Being genuinely interested in others!

Think about it … Wouldn’t you rather talk to someone who wants to hear about your day, than someone who only talks about themselves? 

Author Frank Crane said it best: “The key to being a good conversationalist is probably a genuine unselfish interest in others. That, and practice”.

So, how do you show you care? Here are three tips:

• Ask questions! What do you like to do for fun? Where are you from? People love to talk about themselves, so give them a chance!
• Listen carefully! Don’t just wait for your turn to speak. Pay attention and show you’re interested in what the other person has to say.
• Be curious! Don’t be afraid to ask follow-up questions. It shows you’re engaged and want to learn more.

Conversation is a two-way street! By being a good listener and showing a genuine interest in others, you’ll be a conversation champ in no time!

P.S.: Practice makes progress! Talk to different people, ask questions—and don’t be afraid to make mistakes. You’ll get better with every conversation!

Now go out there and chat away.

You mishear a word or a phrase and make up a new one. 

That’s what we call an eggcorn. 

The new word or phrase might even sound better than the original.

Let’s take “for all intents and purposes” (im Grunde), for example.

You might hear people say, “for all intensive purposes”.

Both phrases can be understood. But it’s the first one that is correct.

Here are some other funny eggcorns you might hear:

• old wise tale instead of old wives’ tale (das Ammenmärchen)
• escape goat instead of scapegoat (der Sündenbock)
• nip it in the butt instead of nip it in the bud (im Keim ersticken)
• mute point instead of moot point (ein strittiger Punkt)
• eardrop instead of eavesdrop (jmdm belauschen)
• wet your appetite instead of whet your appetite (deinen Appetit anregen)

So, next time you catch yourself using a funny new word or phrase, remember, you might just be creating an eggcorn!

Have you ever created one without even realising it at first?  

Language is always changing. New words and phrases appear all the time. 

Keep learning and having fun with English!