月別アーカイブ: 2015年10月

西新スクール

Nishijin School.JPG

Jaimie’s Blog – Nishijin School
西新スクール
 

Hello everyone. Hope you are all enjoying this fantastic autumn weather, long may it last!
皆様こんにちは。この素晴らしい秋のお天気を楽しんでいらっしゃれば何よりです。長く続けばいいですね!

I’d like to take the opportunity to introduce you to our school in Nishijin since not all of you may have heard about it yet. We are always thinking of ways to improve our services to you and one of the things that we haven’t had up till now was the chance to offer you our lessons every day.
ご存知でない方もいらっしゃるかもしれませんので、この場を借りて、西新スクールの紹介をさせていただきたいと思います。皆様のためにサービス向上に常に努めておりますが、1つ懸案になっていたのは、どの曜日にもレッスンを受けていただける態勢づくりです。
 
I had been running my own school for 5 years prior to opening Kensington from a spare room in my house and it was getting to the point where I couldn’t take any more students, so between us Tim and I decided to rebrand my place as the second Kensington.
ケンジントン英会話がオープンする5年前から、自宅の空き部屋を使って自分のスクールを続けてきましたが、生徒様が増え、受け入れに限界が出てきました。そこでティムと話し合って、ケンジントンの2校目としてリニューアルすることに決めました。

It is located on Meiji Dori in Imagawa right next to Imagawa Bashi bus stop and 5 minutes’ walk from Nishijin subway station. You can’t miss it now because there is a huge flashing neon sign outside courtesy of the very generous owner of the building.
スクールは今川にあります。明治通り沿い、今川橋バス停のすぐ前で、地下鉄西新駅から歩いて5分です。ビルのオーナーさんの格別なご厚意で、今特大のネオンサインを置かせてもらっているので、すぐに分かります。

We are open on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays, please check out the site for the details.
スクールのレッスン日は月・火・木・金です。詳しくはホームページをご覧下さい。

http://www.kensington-nishijin.com/

The lessons are the same as you will get in Akasaka and the atmosphere is just as good although the space is slightly more cramped.
Make sure you check the schedules carefully please, they aren’t the same!
レッスンは赤坂スクールで受けられるものと同じです。雰囲気も同じようにいい感じですが、赤坂よりはちょっと手狭ですね。
スケジュールは赤坂のものとは別になりますので、ご注意下さい。

Please remember that you can take any of your lessons during the month at any of our schools, we just opened up another branch in Yakuin last month.
月4回のレッスンは、どのスクールでも受けることができます。先月薬院スクールもオープンしました。

So if you happen to be in the area or you live or work nearby please feel free to drop in anytime and if you have anymore questions don’t hesitate to ask us.
もしお近くにお越しの際は、またはお近くにお住まい・お勤めでしたら、いつでもお立ち寄り下さいね。何か質問がありましたら、お気軽にお尋ね下さい。

Look forward to seeing you there soon.
スクールで近々お目にかかれるのを楽しみにしています。

Jaimie
ジェイミー

Riri in the mirror

 Sunday morning

 Riri in the mirror

 

It happened a couple of days ago. When I got up, the clock beside my bed said 7:53. That’s seven lousy minutes before my favorite Sunday morning TV show begins. I rushed downstairs in my pajamas. Everyone was still log asleep and the house was awfully quiet.

After using the rest room, I washed my face to wash away the sleep and did what everyone does; I looked into the mirror. And…oh no! I can’t believe I’m about to write this. Anyway, after a quick wash of my face, wiped it with a towel and took a quick look into the mirror. I wasn’t there! That’s right. I didn’t see myself in the mirror! I must be dreaming…  I said to myself. I wasn’t dreaming. I was wide awake standing in front of the bathroom mirror. I wiped the foggy stuff off the mirror, touched the sink, the faucet…everything was real. I waved my hands, made a face, shook my head… There was no girl waving back to me or imitating my moves in the mirror. Confused, I looked around the room. I wanted to scream but I didn’t want to alarm the family.

 

lousy ひどい、質の悪い

log asleep 死んだように眠って

wide awake すっかり目が覚めて

foggy 霧がかかった、くもった

imitate …をまねる

confused 混乱して、うろたえて

alarm …を警戒させる、はっとさせる

レベルチェック&カウンセリング

レベルチェック&カウンセリング

ご自分の今のレベルを知りたい方・英語力アップに役立つ学習アドバイスをご希望の生徒様を対象に、レベルチェックとカウンセリングを実施致します。(無料)

所要時間:約20分
レベルチェック(テスト・評価):約10分
カウンセリング(学習プランニングを含む):約10分

・今の長所・弱点をより的確に把握していただけます。
・長所を伸ばし、弱点を補強する、おすすめの学習方法をアドバイス致します。
・ご要望に応じて、お1人お1人に合った学習プランをご提案致します。

11/14 (土) Tim
14:00 – 14:20
14:20 – 14:40
15:00 – 15:20
15:20 – 15:40

11/21 (土) Jaimie
11:00 – 11:20
11:20 – 11:40
12:00 – 12:20
12:20 – 12:40

日時・お席に限りがございますので、キャンセルはご遠慮ください。
ご希望の方は、ご予約をお願い致します。
ご質問などございましたら、スタッフ・Tim・Jaimieまでお気軽にお尋ね下さい。

TOEIC単語リスト・場所関連の重要単語カード No.2

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TOEIC単語リスト・場所関連の重要単語カード No.2

This is the second part of words necessary for beginner and lower intermediate students associated with places.

今回は、初級者、および初級者に近い中級者の方が覚えておくべき、場所関連の重要単語の第2部をお届けします。

leave                    去る、離れる

local                     地元の、各駅停車の

location                位置、場所

lot                        (土地の)一区画、地区

move                    引っ越す

outside                 外側の、外部の

park                     (動)駐車する/公園

place                    場所/(動)置く

playground           遊び場、運動場

port                      港

stadium                競技場、スタジアム

stair                     (階段の)一段、階段

step                     歩み、一歩

theatre                 劇場

visitor                   客、訪問者

Flashcards are available for Kensington  Eikaiwa students.

ケンジントン英会話の生徒様は、フラッシュカードもご利用になれます。

At the Movies

At the Movies

Mom and dad didn’t watch the cartoon movie with us, this time. They watched some movie called Hero or something. Don’t know whether they liked it or not, because they didn’t say anything about it. They never say much to each other, anyway.

On the way home, I asked whether anyone had ever seen a cartoon character stepping off the screen to interact with the audience in the theater. “NO!” said Riku, mom and dad almost in unison. “I think I’ve just seen one today,” I said. They didn’t say anything. Everyone in the car didn’t have anything decent to say and we all rode in silence for some while. The silence gave me a chance to think back about what had happened in that theater. If cartoon characters can climb down the screen and punish rowdy kids in the theater, then they can be made to do other useful stuff like cleaning schools and streets or baby sit small kids you know, playing with them and giving them snacks and milk… and Riku and I definitely need help with tidying up our bedroom every day. And like dad said, cartoons do not make unreasonable demands like people. They won’t leave the kids unattended to go out for a 15-minute smoking break. And they won’t ever help themselves on the treats in the refrigerator.

Well, life has unlimited possibilities I guess, if you know where to look and how to dream about them.

interact 交流する、接触する

decent 適切な、妥当な

tidy up …を整頓する、きれいにする

unreasonable remands 理不尽な要求

TOEIC単語リスト・場所関連の重要単語カード No.1

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TOEIC単語リスト・場所関連の重要単語カード No.1

We continue with the words necessary for beginner and lower intermediate students with vocabulary associated with places. This is the first part of words and the second will be published soon.

初級者、および初級者に近い中級者の方が覚えておくべき重要単語を扱ってきておりますが、今回は場所関連の単語集です。今回が第1部で、第2部も間もなくお届け致します。

address             住所/(動)話しかける

agency              代理店、特約店

amusement       楽しみ、娯楽

area                  地域、区域

arrive              (ある場所に)着く、到着する

bakery             パン屋

closet              押入れ、戸棚

direction          指導、方向

district             地区、区域

exit                 出口、退出

field                野原、競技場

front               前方、前面

garage            車庫

The vocabulary above is available in flashcard form for our Kensington Eikaiwa students.

ケンジントン英会話の生徒様は、今回扱った単語のフラッシュカードもご利用になれます。

At the Movies

At the Movies

In the back of the theater, kids were being rowdy especially Norimitsu and his buddies. I could hear them laughing like the hyenas in the movie Lion king. Then… you won’t believe what happened next. The lead cartoon character in the movie, suddenly stopped, looked around the theater and gestured to the kids at the back to be quiet. The kids at the back didn’t pay any attention. They just kept up the racket.

A few minutes later, the cartoon climbed down the screen. He looked pretty mad. He walked towards the back of the theater and SMACK, SMACK!  He whacked Norimitsu and another kid in the head and climbed right back on the screen and resumed playing his part in the scene. It got really quiet in the theater! The cartoon character appeared to be pleased with the results of his efforts. He played his part more cheerfully than before.

I saw Norimitsu, the chubby obnoxious fifth grader and his annoying buddies exiting the theater really fast when the movie ended.

The strange thing is that I didn’t hear anyone talking about a cartoon climbing down the movie screen. I wonder whether those boys saw what punished them. My guess is that they thought that they were whacked on the head by a theater staff or a frustrated father, who took matters in his hands.

rowdy 騒ぎ立てる

buddies 仲間達

obnoxious 感じの悪い

frustrated 不満を抱く、イライラしている

take matters in his hands 自ら事にあたる、自分で何とかする

景気後退時において使用頻度の高い、ビジネス英語表現 その2

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Top Business English Words from the Recession pt.

景気後退時において使用頻度の高い、ビジネス英語表現 その2

This is the second part of business English words that dominated the headlines during and after the Lehman shock. An essential read for upper intermediate and  advanced Business English speakers. (From the Cambridge Dictionaries online.)

今回は、リーマンショック中・ショック後に新聞の見出しやニュース記事を賑わせた、ビジネス英語表現の第2部です。ビジネス英会話の上級に近い中級者・上級者の方は必読です。(出典:ケンブリッジ・ディクショナリー・オンライン)

toxic debt

有毒債務

debt that has little chance of being paid back or of being paid back with interest, or an asset of which this is true

(元本の)返済、もしくは利子や価値のある資産を含めた返済の可能性がほとんどない債務

The trading of toxic debt was one of the major causes of the financial crisis.

有毒負債の取引は、財政危機の主な要因の1つだった。

double-dip recession

W型の不況

a period of time during which economic activity goes down, increases a little, and then goes down again

経済活動が落ち込み、やや高まった後、再び落ち込む時期

The Tankan survey suggest that Japan is entering a double-dip recession.

日銀短観調査が、日本の景気に二番底が生じつつあることを示唆している。

bad bank

バッドバンク

a bank that takes bad assets (= assets that have lost their value) and bad loans (= debts that are unlikely to be paid back) from other banks or organizations and deals with them in order to help with economic problems

経済問題の解決を支援する目的で、不良資産(=価値を失った資産)や不良債権(=債務不履行の可能性が高い負債)を、他行や他の金融機関から買い取り、処理する銀行

The Treasury is creating a bad bank that will take on the toxic assets that have damaged the global banking system.

財務省は、国際銀行システムに損害を与えている有毒債務を引き受ける、バッドバンクを設立する。

stagflation

スタグフレーション

a situation in which prices keep rising but economic activity does not increase

物価は上昇し続けるが、経済活動は上向かない状況

Japan could fall into “stagflation”–a combination of stalled growth and rising prices–if Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s pro-growth push fails, Morgan Stanley says in its new economic outlook.

もし安倍晋三首相の成長戦略が失敗すれば、日本が「スタグフレーション」—経済成長の停滞と物価上昇が同時に起こる状況—に陥ることもありえると、モルガン・スタンレーが最近の経済見通しレポートで述べている。

At the Movies

At the Movies

 The movie place was really crowded. We lined up to get the tickets and popcorn. There was a heap of kids; many of them from my school. The fourth, fifth and sixth grade girls were wearing shiny sneakers, cute skirts and T-shirts. The boys on the other hand, didn’t look fashionable at all. Most of them showed up in their usual goofy T-shirts and gray or black long- but not long- short- but not- short pants. A mean chubby fifth grader named Norimitsu wearing a T-shirt with ketchup stains on it was there, too. I can’t stand that kid! He always has something to say. And he says it really loudly.

 All the kids were there to see the same movie Riku and I wanted to see, because they all poured into the same theater room.

 Someone snapped off the lights in the theater, the large screen flashed to life and the pre-show commercials and other messages rolled on the big screen.

  I like movies but I really hate the darkness in the movie theaters. I wish we could watch the movies with lights full blast on, just like when we watch TV at home.

 Five or so minutes later, (and after a serious warning message to anyone who intends to record the movie that was about to be shown), the movie started. It was a movie version of a popular TV cartoon series. Movie makers don’t make anything for kids other than cartoons, these days. My dad told me that a movie with real actors in it is criminally and stinking expensive to make. (Those are the real adjectives he used.) “Worse than that, he said, people are depressingly difficult to deal with. Cartoon characters don’t argue with the movie makers and they don’t ever take long smoke and coffee breaks. They don’t ask for luxury facilities to be available at shooting locations even at remote locations. ” I can imagine that it could be worse if you’re making a movie for kids because you got to have a pile of kid actors and actresses in it. To my understanding, kids are much tougher to deal with than adults. Want proof? Ask my teacher and or my mom. It appears kids are going to watch cartoon movies until my mom and her friends stop watching Korean TV dramas. Oh, and until my dad and my friends’ dads start coming home before bedtime_ a long time.

line up 列に並ぶ

goofy 間抜けな

chubby ぽっちゃりした

criminally and stinking expensive 犯罪行為に等しいほどべらぼうに高い

remote locations 辺鄙な場所

景気後退時において使用頻度の高い、ビジネス英語表現 その1

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Top Business English Words from the Recession pt.1

景気後退時において使用頻度の高い、ビジネス英語表現 その1

The Lehman shock may have occurred more than 6 years ago, but the world is very much still living its effects. Here is the first part of some business English words that dominated the headlines during that time. This is especially useful for advanced or upper intermediate Business English students that read newspapers or watch business news. (From the Cambridge Dictionaries online.)

リーマンショックは6年以上前に起こったことかもしれませんが、世界は依然としてその影響のただ中にあります。ここでは、当時ニュースの見出しやトップ記事に躍ったビジネス英語表現を取り上げ、今回はその第1部です。ビジネス英語を学んでいる上級者、および上級者に近い中級者の方で、新聞を読んだりビジネスニュースをご覧になっている方にとっては、特に有用です。(出典:ケンブリッジ・ディクショナリー・オンライン)

credit crunch

信用危機

economic conditions that make financial organizations less willing to lend money, often causing serious economic problems

金融機関が貸し渋りをするようになり、しばしば深刻な経済問題を引き起こす状態

After the Lehman shock the world went through a major credit crunch.

リーマンショック後、世界規模で深刻な信用収縮が起こった。

austerity measures

緊縮政策

official action by a government to reduce the amount of money it spends, or the amount of money that people in a country spend

政府の歳出額や国民の支出額を減らす、政府による公的な措置

The Greek government  imposed severe  economic austerity measures during the Euro crisis.

ギリシャ政府はユーロ危機の間、厳しい金融引き締め政策を課した。

bailout

(財政的な)救済(措置)

a loan or other financial support that is given to a person, company, or country to help them when they are in financial difficulties

財政問題を抱える個人・会社・国を救済する目的で行われる、 貸し付けその他の財政支援

The bailout of troubled banks post-Lehman was a politically unpopular but ultimately necessary measure.

リーマンショック後の、経営難に陥った銀行への緊急援助は、政治的には不評だったが、最終的に必要な措置だった。

too big to fail

大き過ぎて潰せない

describing a bank that is so important to the economy of a country that the government will give it public money to prevent it from failing. This happened with many big banks between 2008-2009

国の経済にとり非常に重要なため、政府が公的資金を注入して、経営破綻を防ぐことにした銀行を言い表したもの。2008年から2009年にかけて、多くの大手銀行が対象となった

UK taxpayers funded too big to fail banks with billions of pounds, which makes the latest round of public spending cuts very hard to take.

イギリスでは、大き過ぎて潰せない銀行に、何十億ポンドもの納税者からの資金を注入し、それによって、最も新しい一連の歳出削減策の実行が非常に難しくなっている。