28th May – 3rd June, 2007.

This week’s edition by: David


Another week and another edition of your very own Speedo. Things are getting back to normal after a busy May, so this week we have the usual clubs to attend. Two, to be precise! Read on for more info.

Also, we have a birthday coming up. Daniel has his special day on Sunday, so wish him well when you see him in the corridor!

Enjoy!

NEWS AND REVIEWS

First up was Gosia’s Travel Club, which yet again nobody attended. With so many Polish people going abroad, I would have thought that Travel Club would have been more popular!

Next up was Brian and Sean’s Advanced Conversation Club. This was much more of a success, with five students attending to chew the fat about many things, including accents and dialects. Apparently Brian does a very good impression of a redneck…

The final club was Snooker & Pool Club with Daniel and Kel. This was a moderate success, with one student attending. Still, good fun was had, and I hear the student even stayed to watch the teachers’ weekly game of Dungeons & Dragons… Wonder if she understood any of it? Well done Jagoda!

The final event of the week was Paul’s lecture on the Glastonbury Music Festival in England, a great tradition. Sadly, nobody attended. Unlucky Paul, I’m sure you’ll still enjoy the festival this year!

This week sees two clubs. The first is Hugh and Caroline’s Intermediate Conversation Club, held at the usual Totu Café on Tuesday 29th at 7.30pm. Anyone who wants to go and chill out and chat, feel free to do so!

The second is my very own Card Club, with Paul. This takes place on Friday 1st June, at 7.30pm. It’ll most likely be held at my flat, so meet at the school at 7.30pm. Anyone is welcome! As with all clubs, sign up with the secretaries beforehand, or they won’t take place!

IDIOMS RELATED TO ANIMALS (Part One)

1. To have a bee in your bonnet – This means that something really bothers you. A bee is a small flying insect, usually gold and black. It makes a buzzing sound and can sting you. A bonnet is a straw hat for women, and is an old word.

2. To have butterflies in your stomach – This means you are nervous about something. For example, I have butterflies (it can be shortened to just this) about meeting my girlfriend’s parents!

3. To look like the cat dragged you in – This means you look very untidy and unclean. For example, after playing football in the rain my mother said to me “look what the cat dragged in!”

4. It’s raining cats and dogs – This means it is raining very heavily. The word “cat” can be used in at least ten different idioms in English!

5. A cock-and-bull story – This means that you told somebody something that was completely untrue. Usually it’s obvious that it’s untrue. A cock is a male chicken, and a bull is a male cow. Why are us guys the liars?

6. As the bird/crow flies – This means “in a straight line”. It is always the quickest way, that is if we could fly. For example, from outside McDonald’s on Zwyciestwa, it’s 1400km to Doncaster in England as the crow flies.

7. Donkeys years – This means a very long time, or a period of time that feels like a long time. For example, “I haven’t seen you for donkeys years!” I don’t know where this comes from.

8. To take to something like a duck to water - This means that you start to do something new, and you are very good at it almost immediately. For example, some teachers (Sean) take to the Polish language like a duck to water!

9. An eagle eye – This means you have very good eyesight, or an attention to detail. For example, he really has an eagle eye – he saw the bus a mile away!

10. To smell fishy – If something smells fishy, it doesn’t sound right. For example, if you are sitting on the Rynek, on a beautiful summer’s day, enjoying a cold beer, and someone who looks like the cat dragged him in comes up to you and asks for 2zl for a train ticket to Bulgaria, while scratching his arm, you could say that it smells fishy, or sounds like a cock-and-bull story. I really have a bee in my bonnet about people who do that!

See you next week guys! Keep reading to keep me in a job!

Mr. Bush speaks (or tries to)

Word of the day:

abbreviation

from Latin brevis meaning short (skrót)
e.g. is an abbreviation of exempli gratia from Latin, meaning for example. Some other well-known abbreviations are:

ASAP = As soon as possible
US = United States
SOS = Save Our Souls
Mr = Mister
PC = Personal Computer
CD = Compact Disc

It is very common to use abbreviations without full stops between letters. Text messaging, also known as SMS, makes use of abbreviations:

LOL = laughing out loudly
BTW = by the way

Clubs this week:

Advanced Conversation Club, with Sean and Brian is on Wednesday 23rd, at 7.30pm. Sign up with the secretaries.

This week’s Film Club will be held at the Amok theatre. The film is called The Fountain. If you want to go, meet at the school at 7:45pm.

Snooker & Pool Club is on Sunday at 2pm.

The English Language

Have you ever wondered why foreigners have trouble with the English Language?

Let's face it

English is a stupid language.

There is no egg in the eggplant

No ham in the hamburger

And neither pine nor apple in the pineapple.

English muffins were not invented in England

French fries were not invented in France.
We sometimes take English for granted

But if we examine its paradoxes we find that

Quicksand takes you down slowly

Boxing rings are square

And a guinea pig is neither from Guinea nor is it a pig.

If writers write, how come fingers don't fing.

If the plural of tooth is teeth

Shouldn't the plural of phone booth be phone beeth

If the teacher taught,

Why didn't the preacher praught.

If a vegetarian eats vegetables

What the heck does a humanitarian eat!?

Why do people recite at a play

Yet play at a recital?

Park on driveways and

Drive on parkways

You have to marvel at the unique lunacy

Of a language where a house can burn up as

It burns down

And in which you fill in a form

By filling it out

And a bell is only heard once it goes!
English was invented by people, not computers

And it reflects the creativity of the human race

(Which of course isn't a race at all)

That is why

When the stars are out they are visible

But when the lights are out they are invisible

And why it is that when I wind up my watch

It starts

But when I wind up this observation,

It ends.

This week’s edition by: David

Well guys, it looks like we’re finally back to normal after the May Weekend (or week for some!)


This week sees a range of exciting events, including a bumper edition of Music Club, an upcoming lecture and more Callan lessons. Read on for more information.

Aren’t you all excited?



NEWS AND REVIEWS

Well, absolutely nothing happened last week. Everyone was suffering from the effects of their time off, and there were no clubs or lectures. So that’s enough of the reviews, on to the good stuff!

First up is Marcin’s Music Club. He has decided to hold two, both at rather large music festivals. The first is Gliwice’s very own Igry Festival, held at the Airfield. Two headlining acts are Polish bands I’ve never heard of, Lady Pank and Pidzama Porno. Sounds interesting. I’ll still be there. It’s on Thursday 17th and Friday 18th, all evening.

Second is the Maj Music Festival in Chorzow. I know nothing about this festival, or who will be playing, but it’s held on May 25th. If you want more info, ask Marcin.

Next up is Caroline’s lecture, on Chocolate. This is on the 18th, at 7.30pm. Sign up with the secretaries if you want to attend.

Then we have Kids’ Club. This will be on Saturday 19th, at 1pm, with Tanya. Again, sign up with the secretaries.

Then it’s Advanced Conversation Club, with Sean and Brian. This is on Wednesday 23rd, at 7.30pm. Yet again, sign up with the secretaries.

Also that day we have Film Club. This time it’s a film called The Fountain, and it is showing at the Amok. Sign up with the secretaries and then meet at the school at 7.45pm. Cost for a ticket is 15zl.



EXTREME WEATHER

The last year or so has been a strange one for weather in Poland. For example, winter 2005-2006 was very cold, yet the winter we have just had I’m told was very warm! Here we will look at some extreme weather in Poland…

· The highest rainfall ever recorded in Poland was a huge 30cm at one time. This is roughly the size of a piece of A4 paper, or a 1-litre bottle of Coca-Cola! This happened in June 1973, in the Tatra's Hala Gasienicowa.

· In 1901, winds from the Sahara Desert in Africa turned the rain a black brown colour. In 1972, the same winds turned the snow orange in Zakopane. It can be explained by the winds carrying dust all that way. Strange, eh?

· In the mountains, there are typically over 200 days of freezing temperature every year. That’s almost seven months! The lowest ever recorded was -41ºC, in Siedlce in 1940. The highest temperature was 40.2ºC, recorded in Pruszkow near Opole in 1921. That’s a difference of 81.2ºC!!!

· Poland is not a normal country. In a single year it can have as many as six distinct seasons. These are the four typical seasons you learn about in Callan, and two others. One is called przedzimie (early winter) and the other is called przedwiosnie, and means (early spring).

· Once, in January 1982, the temperature in Wloclawek dropped overnight from 8ºC to -20ºC, the largest drop since official records began. Also, on 8th January 1994 the temperature in Krakow stood at 17.3ºC. Cieplo!

· In a very strange way, the driest part of Poland is one that contains many lakes and rivers – Kujawy. Another strange fact is that in winter, in the Tatra Mountains, it is colder in the valleys than higher up the mountains. This is known as temperature inversion. At this time, you can see for hundreds of kilometers from the peaks.

THANKS TO THE POLISH TOURISM OFFICE FOR THIS INFORMATION – CHECK OUT http://www.poland.gov.pl/ FOR MORE INFORMATION!

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AND FINALLY….

Gosia is currently searching for a soulmate, so I’m placing an advert in the newsletter. If there are any students interested in dating Gosia, you must first meet the requirements. Any applicants must be “tall, tanned and hot”. If you fit the profile, or look like this guy, come see me.

Welcome back! I hope you all had a good time last week, whatever you did. I went to Zakopane, Kel and Linda went to Rome, David went to Prague, and Tanya went to Mikołajki with Caroline. As for the rest of us, well, you will have to ask them what they did! There aren’t any clubs or lectures this week so just sit back and enjoy your usual dose of English, or to put it in other words, enjoy your lessons :)


Word of the day:
Trip

A journey or tour (wycieczka). In English we say, for example, I went on a trip to Zakopane, or I took a trip to Zakopane.

Trip, as a verb, means potykać się in Polish. Stumble is a synonym. For example, she tripped over the stair. Generally, the verb trip is used with a word like up or over. Apart from tripping over objects, you can trip up on answers to questions, for example, when you make a mistake.

The slang meaning of trip is to have a hallucination - when you see things that aren’t real, which is usually caused by taking drugs or drinking too much. To take a trip means to take a drug like LSD, and then you can use it as a verb and say “I’m tripping”.

Now you can say:
I took a trip to London and took a trip and then tripped over a dog. Man, I was really tripping!

EXCERPTS FROM A DOG'S DIARY

Day number 180
8:00 AM - GREAT! DOG FOOD! MY FAVOURITE!
9:30 AM - GREAT! A CAR RIDE! MY FAVOURITE!
9:40 AM - GREAT! A WALK! MY FAVOURITE!
10:30 AM - GREAT! A CAR RIDE! MY FAVOURITE!
11:30 AM - GREAT! DOG FOOD! MY FAVOURITE!
12:00 NOON - GREAT! THE KIDS! MY FAVOURITE!
1:00 PM - GREAT! THE YARD! MY FAVOURITE!
4:00 PM - GREAT! THE KIDS! MY FAVOURITE!
5:00 PM - GREAT! DOG FOOD! MY FAVOURITE!
5:30 PM - GREAT! MUM! MY FAVOURITE!

Day number 1081
8:00 AM - GREAT! DOG FOOD! MY FAVOURITE!
9:30 AM - GREAT! A CAR RIDE! MY FAVOURITE!
9:40 AM - GREAT! A WALK! MY FAVOURITE!
10:30 AM - GREAT! A CAR RIDE! MY FAVOURITE!
11:30 AM - GREAT! DOG FOOD! MY FAVOURITE!
12:00 NOON - GREAT! THE KIDS! MY FAVOURITE!
1:00 PM - GREAT! THE YARD! MY FAVOURITE!
4:00 PM - GREAT! THE KIDS! MY FAVOURITE!
5:00 PM - GREAT! DOG FOOD! MY FAVOURITE!
5:30 PM - GREAT! MUM! MY FAVOURITE!

Day number 2082
8:00 AM - GREAT! DOG FOOD! MY FAVOURITE!
9:30 AM - GREAT! A CAR RIDE! MY FAVOURITE!
9:40 AM - GREAT! A WALK! MY FAVOURITE!
10:30 AM - GREAT! A CAR RIDE! MY FAVOURITE!
11:30 AM - GREAT! DOG FOOD! MY FAVOURITE!