A Lawyer's Ethical Dilemma...

After completing law school and passing the bar, a man decides to open up a private practice with one of his law school buddies as partner.

On their first day, they set up shop, and around lunchtime, the man's buddy goes out to get them some sandwiches.

Two minutes later, a woman walks in -- their first client!

She asks him to draw up some papers and review a couple of very simple contracts.

"That'll be $100," the man replies.

She complies, and having just gone to the bank, hands over a brand new, crisp $100 bill.

The woman decides to leave for the next hour, leaving the man to resume his work.

The man, relishing in his first payment as a lawyer, sits back in his brand new, leather chair and holds the brand new, crisp $100 bill up to the light with admiration and pride.

He sniffs the bill and starts to rub it a bit when suddenly, he discovers that he was mistakenly given TWO $100 bills!!!

And thus, he was confronted with his first ethical dilemma as a lawyer.

Should he tell his partner?

↓良かったら、こちらをクリックしてね。↓

昨日は汗ばむ陽気の中、会場の部屋を締め切ってクーラー全開で熱心なメンバーが参加して、約２時間半英語の学習に取り組んだ。

今回取り上げた「ニュースを読む」のコーナーの英文記事が難解であり、かつ世界各国の性モラルを問う問題であっただけに、メンバー各位の読解に要する時間が予想以上にかかり、後半部分が殆どできずに終わった。今回の積み残しは、どこかのタイミングで行いたい。

そんなニュースの英題は"US spouses cheat like the French, but feel worse"で、詳しい内容はhttp://fe35.news.sp1.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070504/od_nm/adultery_odd_dcにアクセスすべし！

【６月度開催予定】
６月９日（土）世田谷区代田南地区会館
６月２３日（土）世田谷区代沢地区会館

↓良かったら、こちらをクリックしてね。↓

その昔、「おじいさん、あれは山形屋の海苔ですよ。」で始まる、とぼけた老夫婦の会話のTVコマーシャルがありましたが・・・。

Remember the Time When We...What Was I Saying?"

An 80 year old couple were having problems remembering things, so they decided to go to their doctor to get checked out to make sure nothing was wrong with them.

When they arrived to the doctor's office, they explained to the doctor about the problems they were having with their memory. After checking the couple out, the doctor told them that they were physically okay but might want to start writing things down and make notes to help them remember things. The couple thanked the doctor and left.

Later that night while watching TV, the man got up from his chair and his wife asked, "Where are you going?"

He replied, "To the kitchen."

She asked, "Will you get me a bowl of ice cream?"

He replied, "Sure."

She then asked him, "Don't you think you should write it down so you can remember it?"

He said, "No, I can remember that."

She then said, "Well I would also like some strawberries on top. You had better write that down because I know you'll forget that."

He said, "I can remember that, you want a bowl of ice cream with strawberries."

She replied, "Well I also would like whipped cream on top. I know you will forget that so you better write it down."

With irritation in his voice, he said, "I don't need to write that down! I can remember that." He then fumes into the kitchen.

After about 20 minutes he returned from the kitchen and handed her a plate of bacon and eggs. She stared at the plate for a moment and said angrily:

"I TOLD you to write it down! You forgot my toast!"

↓良かったら、こちらをクリックしてね。↓

本日は午前中から激しい雨が続いたものの、サークルの活動を開始する午後２時頃には雨はやみ、終わる頃には晴れ間も顔をのぞかせる中で、新しく見学者２名を交えて約２時間半熱心に英語の学習に取り組んだ。

本日の「ニュースを読む」のコーナーでは、英文ニュースをナレーターによる音声で聞いて勉強でき、記事を読んで英語が勉強できる、学習者のためのニュース・サイトＶＯＡより、アメリカの大統領選挙活動にかかる資金を各候補の陣営が、どの程度募ったかという記事を取り上げた。
英題は"Presidential Candidates Raise Record Amounts of Money for Campaigns"で、詳しい内容はhttp://www.voanews.com/specialenglish/2007-04-06-voa1.cfm
に、アクセスすべし！

【本日学習した表現】
1. be about to ...
2. be thinking about ...ing
3. How come ... ?
4. When it comes to ... ,

↓良かったら、こちらをクリックしてね。↓

The Magical Shiny-Walled Box Thingie...


An Amish boy and his father were visiting a nearby mall. They were amazed by almost everything they saw, but especially by two shiny silver walls that moved apart and back together again by themselves.

The lad asked, "What is this, father?"

The father (having never seen an elevator) responded, "I have no idea what it is."

While the boy and his father were watching wide-eyed, an old lady in a wheelchair rolled up to the moving walls and pressed a button. The walls opened and the lady rolled between them into a small room. The walls closed and the boy and his father watched as small circles lit up above the walls.

The walls opened up again and a beautiful twenty-four-year-old woman stepped out.

The father looked at his son anxiously and said, "Go get your mother."

↓良かったら、こちらをクリックしてね。↓

本日は湿度もあり初夏の陽気の中、新しく参加希望の見学者を迎えて約２時間半熱心に英語学習に取り組んだ。
本日の見学者は海外での長い生活経験の後に昨年秋に日本に帰国されて、なお積極的に英語を勉強し続けようとなさる姿勢に、メンバー一同とても感動し勉強に取り組む目つきが変わった。
本日の「ニュースを読む」のコーナーで取り上げた記事は、アメリカの癌関連慈善団体が基金集めの一環として寄付を受けて集めていた結婚衣裳を盗まれたが、メキシコとの国境警備隊員によって奪い返された、という内容。
英代は"U.S. border cops recover 1,000 stolen gowns"で、詳しい内容はhttp://uk.reuters.com/article/oddlyEnoughNews/idUKN1042872220070410

なお、次回free talkingのテーマは"Your favorite athlete"です。あなたのご贔屓のスポーツ選手について、英語で熱く語る準備をしてきてくださいね！

↓良かったら、こちらをクリックしてね。↓

A Duck Walks Into A Bar...

A Duck walks into a bar and orders a beer. The barman says, "Hey, you're a duck!"

"Nothing wrong with your eyesight," observes the duck.

"Yeah, but I mean - you can TALK," says the barman.

"Guess your ears are fine too," answers the duck. "Now, can have a beer please?"

The barman serves the duck a pint and asks him, "So, what brings a duck like you to these parts?"

"Oh," says the duck, "I work on the building site across the road. We'll be here for a couple of weeks, and I'll most likely be in every lunch hour for a pint." The duck slurped down his beer, wiggling his tail happily.

The next day, just as he said, the duck waddles over from his job at the building site and has his lunch time lager.

The next week, the circus comes to town on its annual round. The Circus owner wanders in for a pint and the barman tells him about the talking duck.

"You should get this duck to join your circus," he says. "For a little consideration, I could hook you up with this duck and you could make lots of bucks. Everyone would love to see a talking duck don't you think?"

The circus man nods excitedly while sipping his beer, the barman agrees to talk to the duck about the circus.

The following day, the duck comes in at lunch time as he had been for those many days. The barman says to the duck (with dollar signs in his eyes), "You know, the circus is in town, and yesterday I was chatting to the owner about you. He's very interested in you."

"Really?" says the duck.

"Yeah. You could make a lot of money there. I can fix it up for you easily."

"Hang on," said the duck. "You did say a CIRCUS, didn't you?"

"That's right."

"That's one of those big tent things, isn't it? With a big pole in the middle?"

"Yeah!"

"That's canvas, isn't it?" said the duck.

"Of course," replied the barman, "I can get you a job there starting tomorrow. The circus owner's dead keen on the idea."

The duck, scratching his head and looking very puzzled replied:

"But why would he want to hire a plasterer?"

↓良かったら、こちらをクリックしてね。↓

本日はゴールデンウィークの後半にも関わらず、暑い中コアメンバーが集まり２時間半熱心に英語学習に取り組んだ。

そんな中で本日の「ニュースを読む」では、ニュースをナレーションで聞いて聞き取り練習ができ、英文記事を読んで英文読解の練習ができるサイトVOAより、バージニア工科大学での銃乱射事件の続報を取り上げた。

英題は"Issues After Killings at Verginia Tech Go Beyond Debate Over Gun Laws"で、詳しい内容はhttp://www.voanews.com/specialenglish/2007-04-21-voa1.cfmにアクセスすべし！

次回のToday's Expressionの表現は以下の通り。
1) that just came out
2) anywhere you go
3) pretty amazing
4) that way
5) be in bed with ...
6) ... kept me in bed for 〜 days
7) give me a lift

↓良かったら、こちらをクリックしてね。↓

Two men waiting at the Pearly Gates strike up a conversation. "How'd you die?" the first man asks the second.

"I froze to death," says the second.

"That's awful," says the first man. "How does it feel to freeze to death?"

"It's very uncomfortable at first", says the second man. "You get the shakes, and you get pains in all your fingers and toes. But eventually, it's a very calm way to go. You get numb and you kind of drift off, as if you're sleeping. How about you, how did you die?"

"I had a heart attack," says the first man. "You see, I knew my wife was cheating on me, so one day I showed up at home unexpectedly. I ran up to the bedroom, and found her alone, knitting. I ran down to the basement, but no one was hiding there, either. I ran up to the second floor, but no one was hiding there either. I ran as fast as I could to the attic, and just as I got there, I had a massive heart attack and died."

The second man shakes his head. "That's so ironic," he says.

"What do you mean?" asks the first man.

"If you had only stopped to look in the freezer, we'd both still be alive."

↓良かったら、こちらをクリックしてね。↓