Quotes

If you study to remember, you will forget, but, If you study to understand, you will remember.

***

He who asks a question is a fool for a minute; he who does not remains a fool forever.

***

Teachers open the door, but you must enter by yourself

***

Poor is the pupil who does not surpass his master.

Leonardo da Vinci

شعر

How Many Friends?

The old man turned to me and asked
"How many friends have you?"
Why 10 or 20 friends have I,
And named off just a few...

He rose quite slow with effort
And sadly shook his head
"A lucky child you are
To have so many friends," he said

But think of what you're saying
There is so much you do not know
A friend is just not someone
To whom you say "Hello"

A friends a tender shoulder
On which to softly cry
A well to pour your troubles down
And raise your spirits high

A friend is a hand to pull you up
From darkness and despair...
When all your other "so called" friends
Have helped to put you there

A true friend is an ally
Who can't be moved or bought
A voice to keep your name alive
When others have forgot

But most of all a friend is a heart
A strong and sturdy wall
For from the hearts of friends
There comes the greatest love of all!!!

So think of what I've spoken
For every word is true
And answer once again my child
How many friends have you???

And then he stood and faced me
Awaiting my reply
Softly I answered
"If lucky...... one have "I"

"You!!!!"

london slang

absobloodylutely/absofuckinglutely - an exclamation as to resound a definite yes.

ace - excellent, great. A rather out of vogue term, probably still used by kids.

Adam and Eve - Rhyming Slang for 'believe', e.g. "Would you Adam and Eve it mate!".

afters - short for the term 'after hours' meaning drinking in a pub after official closing time. Also see 'lock-in'.

aggro - short for aggravation or violence, e.g. "He was steaming drunk and well up for some aggro".

Alan Whicker(s) - Rhyming Slang for 'knickers'.

all over the gaff/shop - general term to describe someone or something that has no direction or that is in a mess.

allright/awright - a greeting literally meaning "is everything all fine?". Usually used in the form "awright mate!".

Annabel Giles - Modern Rhyming Slang for 'piles' (haemorrhoids).

Tips on Studying a Foreign Language

Tips on Studying a Foreign Language

Learning another language is not easy, but most people can learn a second language IF they are willing to put in the necessary time. Here are some practical suggestions for studying effectively, overcoming anxiety, and learning the grammar and skills necessary for success in foreign language classes.

1. STUDY EVERY DAY! A foreign language course is different from any other course you take. Language learning is cumulative: you cannot put it off until the weekend. Study 1 or 2 hours for every class hour if you want an A or B.
2. DISTRIBUTE YOUR STUDY TIME in 15- to 30-minute periods throughout the day. Focus on a different task each time: vocabulary now, grammar next, etc. Get an overview during the first half hour: spend 10 minutes reviewing dialog, 10 minutes learning new vocabulary, 10 minutes learning new grammar...so you'll at least have looked at it all. Approximately 80% of your study time should be spent in recitation or practice, including practice in the language lab.
3. ATTEND AND PARTICIPATE IN EVERY CLASS--even if you are not well prepared. Class time is your best opportunity to practice. Learn the grammar and vocabulary outside of class in order to make the most of class time. Spend a few minutes "warming up" before each class by speaking or reading the language.
4. MAKE YOURSELF COMFORTABLE IN THE CLASSROOM. Get to know your classmates, so you will feel you are among friends. Visit your instructor during office hours to get acquainted: explain your goals and fears about the course to your instructor.
5. LEARN GRAMMAR IF YOU DON'T ALREADY KNOW IT. Grammar is the skeleton of a language, its basic structure: you must learn it. Review a simplified English grammar text. Compare new grammatical structures in your foreign language to their English equivalents.
6. PRACTICE FOR TESTS by doing what you will have to do on the test. If the test will require you to write, then study by writing--including spelling and accents. If you will be asked to listen, then practice listening. Ask for practice questions; make up your own test questions. Invent variations on patterns and forms. Over-learn: study beyond the point of recognition to mastery.
7. DEVELOP A GOOD ATTITUDE. Have a clear personal reason for taking the class. Set personal goals for what you want to learn. Leave perfectionism at the door; give yourself permission to make mistakes and learn from them.
8. GET HELP IF YOU NEED IT. Talk with your teacher. Form study groups among class members. Use tutoring services. Don't wait!

READING and WRITING a foreign language are analytical skills. You may be good at these if you are a logical person who attends to detail. Train yourself through practice to notice and remember details such as accents and gender agreement.

READING SKILLS TIPS:

1. First, read the vocabulary list for the assignment. Next, read the questions about the reading. Then read all the way through a new passage two or three times, guessing at meaning from context. Avoid word-by-word translation. It is a waste of time!
2. Isolate new vocabulary and study it separately. DON'T write between the lines! Make flash cards. Carry them with you and recite them several times during the day at odd moments. Overlearn them until they are automatic.
3. Isolate new grammatical forms and study them separately. Write the pattern on a flash card and memorize it. Write out and label a model sentence. When you encounter the form while reading, pause and recite the pattern to recognize the form.

WRITING SKILLS TIPS:

1. Pay attention to detail: notice accents, order of letters, etc. Compare letter-by-letter different forms (singular, plural, gender, etc.). Write out conjugations of verbs, declensions of pro-nouns, etc., and check your endings. Memorize irregular verbs.
2. To master spelling, have a friend dictate 10 words to you. Write them out and immediately have your friend spell them correctly aloud while you look carefully and point at each letter. Repeat until you get all the words right.
3. Write (in your own simple foreign vocabulary words) a story you have just read.

LISTENING and SPEAKING are performance skills. You may do well at these if you are naturally outgoing. Students in foreign language classes often have difficulty hearing and speaking because they are anxious about making mistakes. It's OK to make mistakes! Have fun trying to speak!

LISTENING SKILLS TIPS:

1. Frequent the language lab. Read the exercises in your book first; then listen and read together; then listen without looking at the print. Say aloud/write what you hear.
2. Participate silently in class when others are called on to speak. Focus on the task; don't worry about how you'll do.
3. If you feel nervous, relax yourself physically by taking a couple of slow, deep breaths. When called on, pause, relax, and give yourself time to respond.
4. Listen while a friend dictates to you and write what you hear. Check for accuracy.
5. Practice: join language clubs, watch foreign TV, listen to foreign radio.

SPEAKING SKILLS TIPS:

1. Study out loud! Mimic the sounds of the language. Don't mumble. Although most people feel embarrassed making strange sounds, the language will soon feel more familiar to you.
2. When called on in class, say something, even it it's wrong: you'll learn from it. If you need a moment to think, repeat the question. If you don't know the answer, say in your foreign language, "I don't know" or "help!"
3. Practice with a foreign student who wants your help to learn English or with another class member.

Iranian films bring comedy, music to NY festival

Iranian films bring comedy, music to NY festival

Saturday May 6 12:29 PM ET
Reuters

A witty Iranian film about four men who try to topple a big rock has audiences wondering about political allegory and hidden messages at a time of growing tension between Washington and the Islamic Republic of Iran.

But the director of "Men at Work," Tehran-based Mani Haghighi, says sometimes a story is just a story, so don't hold him responsible for whatever message you might read into it.

The film, which was showing at the Tribeca Film Festival this week, is a comedy about four middle-class, middle-aged men on a ski trip who happen across a pillar of rock by the side of the road above a lake. They decide to push it over, but that turns out to be more difficult than they think

"When I was in Berlin, the radical political opposition there came up to me and said, 'Really good work, that was the Islamic republic and those guys finally toppled it,"' Haghighi told the audience after a New York screening this week.

"Back in Iran, the people from the Ministry of Islamic Guidance came to me and said, 'Really good work, the will of God vs. the weakness of man,"' he said, declining to answer questions about what the message of the film was for him.

Haghighi said it was a cultural characteristic of Iranians to speak in a roundabout fashion, with poetic language that often has layers of meaning.

He said the natural opacity of the Farsi language was often compounded by a desire by artists not to incur censorship that has been a constant factor in Iranian cinema since the 1979 Iranian revolution, and even before that.

"There's this tendency whenever you encounter any kind of cultural artifact to look for hidden layers, which makes it difficult for people like me who are just trying to tell a simple, straight story," Haghighi said.

OMINOUS HEADLINES

Even as a straight story, the film shows a side of Iranian life that is very different from the stereotypical images of Iran often seen in Western media of women in headscarves, poor children or clerics calling for the destruction of America.

Peter Scarlet, executive director of the festival, said he chose several films that show unexpected sides of life in Iran to help Americans understand more about a country that President George W. Bush has dubbed part of an "axis of evil."

"I felt it was important even before the headlines got bigger and blacker and more ominous," Scarlet told Reuters. "Clearly this is a place that Americans or Westerners in general don't know enough about."

Iran and the United States have been involved in diplomatic saber-rattling in recent months over Tehran's nuclear program, which Iran says is purely peaceful but which the United States suspects is aimed at developing nuclear weapons.

Scarlet said "Men at Work" offered a sense of the middle class in Iran unrepresented in most Iranian cinema, while two other films on the program, "Inside Out" and "Siah Bazi: The Joy Makers," were about, respectively, transsexuals and a troupe of political satirists in a traveling theater.

Amir Hamz, the director of "Sounds of Silence" about the underground music scene in Iran, which features hip-hop and rock artists who distribute their music on the Internet, said his aim was to show an unknown side of his country of origin.

"You wouldn't expect it from Iran due to the biased media coverage in the West," said Hamz, who grew up in Germany.

"It annoys me that the media always shows this side of Iran that pretty much matches the current situation with the nuclear plans, but not the contemporary side that there are people just like you and me doing this sort of thing," he said

.

Joke

Penguin

A man was walking along Hietzinger Hauptstrasse near Parkhotel
Schönbrunn when he found a penguin walking along the road.
So he picked it up and took it to the local police station.

He said to the policeman "I found this penguin on Hietzinger
Hauptstrasse, near Parkhotel Schönbrunn. What should I do with it?"

The policeman looked at the man and said "It's obvious what you should
do with it! Take the penguin to Schönbrunn Zoo.

The man said "Of course, I'll take it to the zoo" and he left the police
station with the penguin under his arm.

The next day the policeman was on duty in the city centre when he saw
the man walking along the street with the penguin by his side. The policeman stopped the man and said "I thought I told you to take the penguin to the zoo?"

The man replied "Yes, I took it to the zoo yesterday. Today I'm taking it to see the Opera House."

food idioms

cool as a cucumber

MEANING: calm, not nervous or anxious

EXAMPLE:

He is always as cool as a cucumber and never worries about anything.

couch potato

MEANING: a very lazy person

EXAMPLE:

He is a real couch potato and just sits around watching TV and staying indoors all day.

cream of the crop

MEANING: best of a group, the top choice

EXAMPLE:

The company is well-known as a good place to work and is always able to hire the cream of the crop of university graduates.

cry over spilt milk

MEANING: cry or complain about something that has already happened

EXAMPLE:

Don’t cry over spilt milk. The past is past and you can’t do anything to change it.

cup of tea

MEANING: something one enjoys or does well

EXAMPLE:

Going to art galleries is not my cup of tea so I think that I will stay home this evening and not go with you.

hot potato

MEANING: a question or argument that is controversial and difficult to settle

EXAMPLE:

The issue of building the nuclear power plant is a real hot potato for the local town

 council.

out to lunch

MEANING: crazy, mad

EXAMPLE:

She is totally out to lunch and you should never believe what she tells you.

piece of cake

MEANING: a task that is easily accomplished

EXAMPLE:

It was a piece of cake. I had everything done before lunch this morning.

Johnson is so conceited.

Yes, on his last birthday he sent a telegram of congratulation to his mother.

خیلی	so
از خود راضی	Conceited
گذشته	last
جشن تولد	Birthday
فرستادن	To send (sent, sent)
تبریک	Congratulation

سال نو مبارک

Happy New Year

poems about new year

Happiness Depends on More than Years

 
Happiness depends on more than years.
All one's moments gather to a wave
Passing in a rolling swell of tears,
Passions too immense to name or save.
Yet New Year's is a crest on which to sing,
Now poised between the future and the past.
Each awaits what course the fates may bring,
Winds that never touch the things that last.
Years turn and turn with an hypnotic grace
Even as the depths of life lie still.
Although above one cannot silence face,
Remember that below the divers will.

---

New Years Are a Chance for a Beginning

New years are a chance for a beginning
Even when there hasn't been an end.
Wheels turn in an interminable bend,
Yet, marked in one spot, seem to wobble spinning.
Each year we hope to do a little better
Although we know that really nothing's changed.
Reason thinks that everything's arranged,
So we must dream if we would fate unfetter. 

Happy New Year

Happy New Year

Happiness Depends on More than Years

Happiness depends on more than years.
All one's moments gather to a wave
Passing in a rolling swell of tears,
Passions too immense to name or save.
Yet New Year's is a crest on which to sing,
Now poised between the future and the past.
Each awaits what course the fates may bring,
Winds that never touch the things that last.
Years turn and turn with an hypnotic grace
Even as the depths of life lie still.
Although above one cannot silence face,
Remember that below the divers will.

Quotations about Learning

One thousand days to learn; ten thousand days to refine.
_Japanese Proverb_

"Prosperity is a great teacher; adversity a greater."
_William Hazlitt_

"The brighter you are, the more you have to learn."
_Don Herlod_

American Idioms

American  Idioms

Call it a day  

"Let's call it a day and go home," Teddy said. Because the person he's addressing doesn't understand the expression, it's up to me to explain that when we call it a day, we stop whatever we are doing, regardless of the time. "After twenty years as a postman, Mr Burr called it a day and retired."

Go Dutch

It takes at least two people to go Dutch for the simple reason that when we go Dutch we share the cost of something, each person paying his or her own expenses. "Hans invited Gretchen to join him for lunch. Knowing he hasn't much money, Gretchen has insisted that they go Dutch."

American Idioms

American  Idioms

Call it a day  

"Let's call it a day and go home," Teddy said. Because the person he's addressing doesn't understand the expression, it's up to me to explain that when we call it a day, we stop whatever we are doing, regardless of the time. "After twenty years as a postman, Mr Burr called it a day and retired."

Go Dutch

It takes at least two people to go Dutch for the simple reason that when we go Dutch we share the cost of something, each person paying his or her own expenses. "Hans invited Gretchen to join him for lunch. Knowing he hasn't much money, Gretchen has insisted that they go Dutch."

Conversation

Rosa	Have you had your exam results yet?
Maggie	No, not yet. I'm expecting mine tomorrow.
Rosa	I had mine this morning. Was I relieved when I opened the envelope!
Maggie	So it was good news.
Rosa	Yes, I passed in all subjects. But I only just scraped through in sociology.
Maggie	Whether you just scraped through or got full marks doesn't matter. You passed. That's the main thing.

Scrape through - Succeed with difficulty in passing an exam

Happy Valentine's Day

Your Name

I wrote your name in the sky,
but the wind blew it away.
I wrote your name in the sand,
but the waves washed it away.
I wrote your name in my heart,
and forever it will stay.

- Jessica Blade -

---

I Asked God

I asked God for a flower, he gave me a bouquet
I asked God for a minute, he gave me a day
I asked God for true love, he gave me that too
I asked for an angel and he gave me you.

- John Raine -

---

if I’d wish to be anything

If I could wish to be anything
I’d wish to be your tear
to be conceived by your heart,
born in your eye
live on your cheek
and die on your lips

- stephanie mcfarlane-

واقعا متاسفم برای این شخص

سلام به خوانندگان عزیز این وبلاگ

به تازگی متوجه شدم شخصی پیدا شده که با  اسم این وبلاگ در وبلاگهای دیگه نظر میگذاره و توهین میکنه. من دقیقا میدونم اون شخص بی ادب کیه.متاسفانه به جای اینکه سعی کنه خوب و صحیح به کار وبلاگ نویسی آموزشی بپردازه و با همکاران وبلاگنویسش در ارتباط باشه . وقتی میبینه همکارش در سطح بالاتری از خودشه , بازدید کننده ی زیادی داره به جای یک همکاری و رقابت سالم با اسم اون وبلاگ موفق در وبلاگهای دیگه توهین میکنه, نظرات بدی رو میگذاره اونم به اسم این وبلاگ-واقعا متاسفم برای این شخص

The History of Saint Valentine's Day

The History of Saint Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day started in the time of the Roman Empire.  In ancient Rome, February 14th was a holiday to honour Juno.  Juno was the Queen of the Roman Gods and Goddesses.  The Romans also knew her as the Goddess of women and marriage.  The following day, February 15th, began the Feast of Lupercalia.

The lives of young boys and girls were strictly separate.  However, one of the customs of the young people was name drawing.  On the eve of the festival of Lupercalia the names of Roman girls were written on slips of paper and placed into jars.  Each young man would draw a girl's name from the jar and would then be partners for the duration of the festival with the girl whom he chose.  Sometimes the pairing of the children lasted an entire year, and often, they would fall in love and would later marry.

Under the rule of Emperor Claudius II Rome was involved in many bloody and unpopular campaigns.  Claudius the Cruel was having a difficult time getting soldiers to join his military leagues.  He believed that the reason was that roman men did not want to leave their loves or families.  As a result, Claudius cancelled all marriages and engagements in Rome.  The good Saint Valentine was a priest at Rome in the days of Claudius II.  He and Saint Marius aided the Christian martyrs and secretly married couples, and for this kind deed Saint Valentine was apprehended and dragged before the Prefect of Rome, who condemned him to be beaten to death with clubs and to have his head cut off.  He suffered martyrdom on the 14th day of February, about the year 270.  At that time it was the custom in Rome, a very ancient custom, indeed, to celebrate in the month of February the Lupercalia, feasts in honour of a heathen god.  On these occasions, amidst a variety of pagan ceremonies, the names of young women were placed in a box, from which they were drawn by the men as chance directed.

The pastors of the early Christian Church in Rome endeavoured to do away with the pagan element in these feasts by substituting the names of saints for those of maidens.  And as the Lupercalia began about the middle of February, the pastors appear to have chosen Saint Valentine's Day for the celebration of this new feaSt. So it seems that the custom of young men choosing maidens for valentines, or saints as patrons for the coming year, arose in this way.
 
 

---

St. Valentine's Story

Let me introduce myself.  My name is Valentine.  I lived in Rome during the third century.  That was long, long ago! At that time, Rome was ruled by an emperor named Claudius.  I didn't like Emperor Claudius, and I wasn't the only one! A lot of people shared my feelings.

Claudius wanted to have a big army.  He expected men to volunteer to join.  Many men just did not want to fight in wars.  They did not want to leave their wives and families.  As you might have guessed, not many men signed up.  This made Claudius furious.  So what happened? He had a crazy idea.  He thought that if men were not married, they would not mind joining the army.  So Claudius decided not to allow any more marriages.  Young people thought his new law was cruel.  I thought it was preposterous! I certainly wasn't going to support that law!

Did I mention that I was a priest? One of my favourite activities was to marry couples.  Even after Emperor Claudius passed his law, I kept on performing marriage ceremonies -- secretly, of course.  It was really quite exciting.  Imagine a small candlelit room with only the bride and groom and myself.  We would whisper the words of the ceremony, listening all the while for the steps of soldiers.

One night, we did hear footsteps.  It was scary! Thank goodness the couple I was marrying escaped in time.  I was caught.  (Not quite as light on my feet as I used to be, I guess.) I was thrown in jail and told that my punishment was death.

I tried to stay cheerful.  And do you know what? Wonderful things happened.  Many young people came to the jail to visit me.  They threw flowers and notes up to my window.  They wanted me to know that they, too, believed in love.

One of these young people was the daughter of the prison guard.  Her father allowed her to visit me in the cell.  Sometimes we would sit and talk for hours.  She helped me to keep my spirits up.  She agreed that I did the right thing by ignoring the Emperor and going ahead with the secret marriages.  On the day I was to die, I left my friend a little note thanking her for her friendship and loyalty.  I signed it, "Love from your Valentine."

I believe that note started the custom of exchanging love messages on Valentine's Day.  It was written on the day I died, February 14, 269 A.D.  Now, every year on this day, people remember.  But most importantly, they think about love and friendship.  And when they think of Emperor Claudius, they remember how he tried to stand in the way of love, and they laugh -- because they know that love can't be beaten!

Valentine Traditions

Hundreds of years ago in England, many children dressed up as adults on Valentine's Day.  They went singing from home to home.  One verse they sang was:

Good morning to you, valentine;
Curl your locks as I do mine---
Two before and three behind.
Good morning to you, valentine. 
 
 
 
 In Wales wooden love spoons were carved and given as gifts on February 14th.  Hearts, keys and keyholes were favourite decorations on the spoons.  The decoration meant, "You unlock my heart!"
 
In the Middle Ages, young men and women drew names from a bowl to see who their valentines would be.  They would wear these names on their sleeves for one week.  To wear your heart on your sleeve now means that it is easy for other people to know how you are feeling.
 
 
 
 In some countries, a young woman may receive a gift of clothing from a young man.  If she keeps the gift, it means she will marry him.
 
Some people used to believe that if a woman saw a robin flying overhead on Valentine's Day, it meant she would marry a sailor.  If she saw a sparrow, she would marry a poor man and be very happy.  If she saw a goldfinch, she would marry a millionaire.
 
 
 
 A love seat is a wide chair.  It was first made to seat one woman and her wide dress.  Later, the love seat or courting seat had two sections, often in an S-shape.  In this way, a couple could sit together -- but not too closely!
 
Think of five or six names of boys or girls you might marry, As you twist the stem of an apple, recite the names until the stem comes off.  You will marry the person whose name you were saying when the stem fell off.
 
 
 
 Pick a dandelion that has gone to seed.  Take a deep breath and blow the seeds into the wind.  Count the seeds that remain on the stem.  That is the number of children you will have.
 
If you cut an apple in half and count how many seeds are inside, you will also know how many children you will have

---

Roman Empire:  noun the empire under Roman rule established in 27 BC and divided in AD 395 into the Western or Latin and Eastern or Greek Empire.
امپراطورى رم

Juno: n. goddess of marriage and wife of the god Jupiter (Roman Mythology); one of the 4 largest and brightest asteroids (Astronomy); regal and beautiful woman; female first name -نام زن ژوپیتر

Feast: n. banquet, huge meal, exceptionally delicious meal; something unusually pleasurable; holiday, religious festival -مهمانى ،سور،ضیافت ،عید،خوشگذرانى کردن ،جشن 

Lupercalia:
Lupercalia: also Lupercal 'lu:pəkal)
■  noun [usu. treated as sing.] an ancient Roman festival of purification and fertility, held annually on 15 February. روز 15 فوریه

Origin
L., neut. plural of lupercalis 'relating to Lupercus', Roman equivalent of the Greek god Pan.

strictly: adv. severely, harshly; literally; explicitly, exactly; absolutely, completely -اکیدا"،سخت ،دقیقا"

eve: n. day or evening before a holiday or other event; period of time before an important event -شب عید،شب ،شامگاه ،در شرف ،(باحرف بزرگ )حوا،جنس زن

Emperor: n. ruler, sovereign, monarch

-شاهنشاه ،امپراطور،امپراتور،فرمانفرما

Claudius: n. Claudius I (10 BC-AD 54), Roman emperor; Claudius II (AD 214-270), Roman emperor

priest: n. clergyman, minister; one who performs religious rites

 -کشیش ،مجتهد،روحانى

martyr: n. one who chooses to die or be put to death rather than renounce his faith; one who suffers greatly -
فدایى ،شهید

amidst: prep. in the middle of; surrounded by

درمیان ،وسط

پاسخ به سوالات

مریم: در ان مورد مطالعه کنید و با لغات و جملات خودتان بنوسید.مطمئن باشید میتوانید.

سپیده: پیدا نکردم.

از بقیه دوستان به خاطر لطفشان تشکر میکنم.

پاسخ به سوالات

مریم: در ان مورد مطالعه کنید و با لغات و جملات خودتان بنوسید.مطمئن باشید میتوانید.

سپیده: پیدا نکردم.

از بقیه دوستان به خاطر لطفشان تشکر میکنم.