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A misunderstanding

In the story, the jester (the King's funnyman) has misunderstood a word and that is the point of the joke. Which word has he misunderstood.?* Do you know the word he was thinking of?**

To download audio file, right click here

condiments - things that you put on food at the table to make it taste better, e.g., salt, pepper, sauce, etc.

* He misunderstood the word condiments.
**He was thinking of the word compliments, which means words of praise.

Posted by Terry Fredrickson at 06:17 AM

Fair, or not?

Well, what do you think? Were the man's civil rights violated?

civil rights – the rights that each person has in a society, whatever their race, sex or religion
violated – not respected according to the law

To download audio file, right click here

No dragons in prison

MADISON,WISCONSIN: A convicted murderer serving life in prison in Wisconsin has lost his legal battle to play Dungeons & Dragons behind bars.

Kevin T. Singer filed a lawsuit against Wisconsin’s Waupun prison after a policy was initiated in 2004 to eradicate all Dungeons and Dragons game materials among concerns that playing it promotes gang activity.

The 33-year-old convict is a devoted player of the fantasy role-playing game. He argued that his civil rights were being violated.

A federal appeals court ruled on Monday that the prison policy was reasonable. AP

convicted – having been proven in a court of law to have committed a crime
murderer – a person who has illegally and deliberately killed a person
behind bars – in prison, i.e., living behind the metal bars of a prison
file a lawsuit – to make a formal complaint to a court of law
initiate – to start something
eradicate – to get rid of completely
concerns – worries
devoted – extremely loyal
fantasy – a pleasant but unreal situation that you enjoy thinking about
appeals court – a court that hears and decides requests that a decision of a lower court be changed

Posted by Terry Fredrickson at 06:18 AM

Worthwhile contest

Maybe Thailand should have a similar contest. Read the story to see what you think.

To download audio file, right click here

Mother gets reward

MEXICO CITY: A Mexican woman who needs to collect seven signatures every two weeks to obtain medicine for her sick son has won a government competition for the most useless bureaucratic procedure.

Cecilia Velazquez received a cheque for 300,000 pesos (760,000 baht) from President Felipe Calderon after winning the competition to identify the worst red tape in the notoriously bureaucratic country.

‘‘The process takes at least four days each time, from delivering the prescription to administering the medicine,’’ Mrs Velazquez said.

The competition, overseen by the Public Services Ministry, had 20,000 entries from angry people. AFP

signature – your name written by yourself, always in the same way
bureaucratic procedures – the official and accepted ways of doing things as required by government departments or other large organisations
identify – to find out
red tape – time-consuming and often unnecessary bureaucratic procedures
notoriously – famous in a bad way
prescription – a piece of paper on which a doctors write the details of the medicine or drugs that someone needs
administer – to give (a medicine) to someone
oversee – to watch or organise a job or an activity to make certain it is being done correctly

Posted by Terry Fredrickson at 06:16 AM

Outrage

There's a lot of vocabualry for such as short story.

outrage – extreme anger

To download audio file, right click here

Saudis want camels

SYDNEY: Australia’s feral camels roaming the Outback have been offered safe haven in Saudi Arabia.

An internet campaign has generated outrage at Australia’s proposed slaughter of 1 million animals. Camel owners in Saudi Arabia have been urged to provide sanctuary for the wild herd.

Camels imported from India were set free in the Outback in the 1900s when vehicles were introduced. Now they compete for food and water with farm animals and people. dpa

feral – existing in a wild state, especially describing an animal that was previously kept by people
roam – moving around or travelling without a specific route
haven – a safe place; a sanctuary
campaign – a planned group activities which are intended to achieve a particular aim
generate – to cause
slaughter – to kill
urge – to try to persuade someone to do something
sanctuary – a safe place; a haven
herd – a group of animals of the same kind living or travelling together

Posted by Terry Fredrickson at 06:08 AM

Work experience

The two young boys in this story got some experience they weren't expecting.

To download audio file, right click here

Born lifesavers

ADELAIDE: Two eight-year-old boys in a young lifeguards training programme rescued a man who was struggling in the ocean off Australia’s east coast.

Jake Satherley told ABC radio that he and friend Spencer Jeams saw a middle-aged man having trouble on Sunday off Northcliffe beach, in Queensland state.

‘‘We saw him put his hand up and saying, ‘help, help’ so we went over to him and pulled him on our board,’’ Jake said.

The boys are part of the under-14 lifeguard training programme at Northcliffe Life Saving Club. AP

lifeguard – a person on a beach or at a swimming pool whose job is to make certain that the swimmers are safe
rescue – to help someone or something out of a dangerous, harmful or unpleasant situation
struggle – to experience difficulty and make a very great effort in order to do something

Posted by Terry Fredrickson at 05:52 AM

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Posted by Terry Fredrickson at 06:17 AM February 08, 2010 Fair, or not? Well, what do you think? Were the man's civil rights violated? civil rights – the rights that each person has in a society, whatever their race, sex or religion violated – not respected according to the law To download audio file, right click here No dragons in prison MADISON,WISCONSIN: A convicted murderer serving life in prison in Wisconsin has lost his legal battle to play Dungeons & Dragons behind bars. Kevin T. Singer filed a lawsuit against Wisconsin’s Waupun prison after a policy was initiated in 2004 to eradicate all Dungeons and Dragons game materials among concerns that playing it promotes gang activity. The 33-year-old convict is a devoted player of the fantasy role-playing game. He argued that his civil rights were being violated. A federal appeals court ruled on Monday that the prison policy was reasonable. AP convicted – having been proven in a court of law to have committed a crime murderer – a person who has illegally and deliberately killed a person behind bars – in prison, i.e., living behind the metal bars of a prison file a lawsuit – to make a formal complaint to a court of law initiate – to start something eradicate – to get rid of completely concerns – worries devoted – extremely loyal fantasy – a pleasant but unreal situation that you enjoy thinking about appeals court – a court that hears and decides requests that a decision of a lower court be changed Posted by Terry Fredrickson at 06:18 AM February 06, 2010 Worthwhile contest Maybe Thailand should have a similar contest. Read the story to see what you think. To download audio file, right click here Mother gets reward MEXICO CITY: A Mexican woman who needs to collect seven signatures every two weeks to obtain medicine for her sick son has won a government competition for the most useless bureaucratic procedure. Cecilia Velazquez received a cheque for 300,000 pesos (760,000 baht) from President Felipe Calderon after winning the competition to identify the worst red tape in the notoriously bureaucratic country. ‘‘The process takes at least four days each time, from delivering the prescription to administering the medicine,’’ Mrs Velazquez said. The competition, overseen by the Public Services Ministry, had 20,000 entries from angry people. AFP signature – your name written by yourself, always in the same way bureaucratic procedures – the official and accepted ways of doing things as required by government departments or other large organisations identify – to find out red tape – time-consuming and often unnecessary bureaucratic procedures notoriously – famous in a bad way prescription – a piece of paper on which a doctors write the details of the medicine or drugs that someone needs administer – to give (a medicine) to someone oversee – to watch or organise a job or an activity to make certain it is being done correctly Posted by Terry Fredrickson at 06:16 AM February 05, 2010 Outrage There's a lot of vocabualry for such as short story. outrage – extreme anger To download audio file, right click here Saudis want camels SYDNEY: Australia’s feral camels roaming the Outback have been offered safe haven in Saudi Arabia. An internet campaign has generated outrage at Australia’s proposed slaughter of 1 million animals. Camel owners in Saudi Arabia have been urged to provide sanctuary for the wild herd. Camels imported from India were set free in the Outback in the 1900s when vehicles were introduced. Now they compete for food and water with farm animals and people. dpa feral – existing in a wild state, especially describing an animal that was previously kept by people roam – moving around or travelling without a specific route haven – a safe place; a sanctuary campaign – a planned group activities which are intended to achieve a particular aim generate – to cause slaughter – to kill urge – to try to persuade someone to do something sanctuary – a safe place; a haven herd – a group of animals of the same kind living or travelling together Posted by Terry Fredrickson at 06:08 AM February 04, 2010 Work experience The two young boys in this story got some experience they weren't expecting. To download audio file, right click here Born lifesavers ADELAIDE: Two eight-year-old boys in a young lifeguards training programme rescued a man who was struggling in the ocean off Australia’s east coast. Jake Satherley told ABC radio that he and friend Spencer Jeams saw a middle-aged man having trouble on Sunday off Northcliffe beach, in Queensland state. ‘‘We saw him put his hand up and saying, ‘help, help’ so we went over to him and pulled him on our board,’’ Jake said. The boys are part of the under-14 lifeguard training programme at Northcliffe Life Saving Club. AP lifeguard – a person on a beach or at a swimming pool whose job is to make certain that the swimmers are safe rescue – to help someone or something out of a dangerous, harmful or unpleasant situation struggle** – to experience difficulty and make a very great effort in order to do something Posted by Terry Fredrickson at 05:52 AM
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February 09, 2010

A misunderstanding

To download audio file, right click here

February 08, 2010

Fair, or not?

To download audio file, right click here

No dragons in prison

February 06, 2010

Worthwhile contest

To download audio file, right click here

Mother gets reward

February 05, 2010

Outrage

To download audio file, right click here

Saudis want camels

February 04, 2010

Work experience

To download audio file, right click here

Born lifesavers