English in Madrid

Grisly or just country life? The mole photos dividing social media Warning - this story contains images some readers may find distressing For decades, mole catchers in the countryside have hung their carcasses on fences to be counted for payment and as evidence of their trapping prowess . But when hill walker Simon Lucas shared a photograph of the tradition on social media, he was unprepared for the ferocity of the response. "It seemed to really strike a nerve ," he says. Lucas, 61, a musician from Bristol, travels to the Lake District in Cumbria for one week every month and regularly posts pictures of his wanderings . In February, he was returning from a hike on the road which connects Borrowdale to Seathwaite Farm when something caught his eye : a row of moles had been hung by their pink snouts from a barbed wire fence, their outsized front paws groping lifelessly in the air. "I did think it was a bit grisly but I was mostly intrigued," he says. He put h...

Image generated by Chat GPT Murphy’s Law: Why Things Go Wrong at the Worst Time Have you ever studied all night for a test… only to find out it’s been postponed? Or printed your assignment just before class, and the printer jammed ? If so, you’ve already experienced something called Murphy’s Law . Murphy’s Law is a popular saying that goes: “Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.” It’s not exactly a scientific rule, but it feels true in everyday life — especially when bad timing makes things worse! The Origins of Murphy’s Law The term comes from Captain Edward A. Murphy Jr. , an American aerospace engineer working on high-speed safety tests in 1949 . He and his team were testing how much sudden deceleration a person could handle (important for pilots and astronauts). But during one experiment, the sensors were wired incorrectly , ruining the results. Frustrated, Murphy supposedly said: “If there’s any way to do it wrong, someone will.” The project leader, Dr. John Pa...

Image generated by Chat GPT Here are some more commonly heard expressions that Chat GPT came up with . See the previous post on in-expressions . Click on words in red - some have listening practice. 11. Mansplaining  - a man explaining something to someone, typically a woman, in a condescending or patronising manner. e.g. She found it frustrating when her male colleague kept mansplaining basic concepts to her. e.g. Mansplaining can undermine professional confidence in meetings. 12. Doomscrolling  - the act of spending an excessive amount of time reading negative news online. e.g. He stayed up until 2 a.m. doomscrolling through updates on the crisis. e.g. Doomscrolling can exacerbate anxiety and stress. 13. Clout Chasing  - seeking attention or fame by associating with popular trends or people. e.g. Critics accused the influencer of clout chasing by aligning with the latest viral cause. e.g. Clout chasing can lead to shallow interactions and short-lived fame. 14...

Image generated by Chat GPT Today in class the expression echo chamber came up . It's a term that you can come across quite often nowadays. I asked Chat GPT for other expressions that may come in handy . 1. Echo Chamber - an environment where a person only encounters information or opinions that reflect and reinforce their own. e.g. Social media algorithms often create echo chambers that limit exposure to diverse viewpoints. e.g. Living in an echo chamber can make people more resistant to opposing ideas. 2. Gaslighting - manipulating someone to question their reality. e.g. He was gaslighting her by denying events she clearly remembered. e.g. The politician was accused of gaslighting the public to cover up the scandal . 3. Virtue Signalling - demonstrating one's moral values to gain approval. e.g. Critics argued that the celebrity's tweet was mere virtue signalling. ¡e.g. There's a fine line between genuine advocacy and virtue signalling." 4. Cancel Cultur...

Source:   Kira auf der Heide en Unsplash If you do something by the skin of your teeth , you only just succeed in doing it Djokovic made it through to the final by the skin of his teeth . There is not much that feels as nice as catching the last train home (by the skin of your teeth) — Ricardo Sueiras 🇺🇦💙💛 (@094459@hachyderm.io) (@094459) August 19, 2023 have a sweet tooth - #idioms Do you HAVE A SWEET TOOTH? ie love eating sweet things. I don't take sugar in tea or coffee but it is often accompanied by a cake or a biscuit. I SELDOM SKIP dessert but I'M not KEEN ON very sugary things. pic.twitter.com/yYQRtE6MCG — English in Madrid (@madteacher72) October 17, 2018    Despite her efforts to eat healthily, Maria's sweet tooth often leads her to indulge in chocolate and pastries. rule of thumb -  a practical and approximate way of doing or measuring something (por norma general,  regla de oro) As a rule of  thumb, you should save 20% of your incom...

Source: Pexels ( Liliana Drew) Spain hopes domestic tasks app will ensure men * pull their weight Free app designed to shed light on ‘mental load ’ overwhelmingly carried by women * when it comes to chores The Spanish government is hoping to encourage men to do more at home by developing a free app that will log how much time each household or family member spends on domestic chores. Announcing the measure in Geneva earlier this week, Spain’s secretary of state for equality, Ángela Rodríguez, said the aim was to shed light on the invisible “mental load” overwhelmingly carried by women when it comes to domestic tasks. Rodríguez told the UN committee on the elimination of discrimination against women: “We’ll soon be unveiling an app that will allow people to log the household chores that different members of the family perform so we can see how many hours of work we each spend on housework and thus reorder the time we spend doing that housework.” She said the new app, whos...

Match the following expressions to their definitions. Then make some examples of your own with them. I thought she really liked me but the next day she gave me the cold shoulder . We had to pull over on the hard shoulder when smoke started coming from the engine. He has had a chip on his shoulder ever since he didn't get the promotion he was expecting. Future generations will have to shoulder the burden of our mistakes. Nicholas, for a time, was able to rub shoulders with top politicians and even royalty. She is undeniably gorgeous but as they say - beauty is only skin deep . Nadal went through to the next round but only by the skin of his teeth . Nowadays you need to have a thick skin if you want to be in the public eye. My job interview is tomorrow so I have butterflies in my stomach . I did n't have the stomach for another fight. MPs couldn`t stomach the proposals and rebelled against the government. The images from the war-torn country turned my stomach .   Source: J...

Spain passes law allowing anyone over 16 to change registered gender Legislation will also ban conversion therapy, introduce menstrual leave and ease abortion limits Spain’s parliament has approved new legislation that will allow anyone over 16 to change their legally registered gender, ease abortion limits for those aged 16 and 17, and make the country the first in Europe to introduce paid menstrual leave. The new transgender law – which was passed despite protests from feminist groups, warnings from opposition parties, and amid tensions between different wings of the Socialist- led coalition government – means that anyone aged over 16 will be able to change their gender on official documents without medical supervision. However, a judge will need to authorise the change for minors aged between 12 and 14, while those aged between 14 and 16 will need the consent of their parents or guardians. No such changes will be available to those under the age of 12. The law will also see ...

Here are some more animals to add to the list of expressions. See A - D , E - H , K - M , O - P and R - S . Turkey This is a picture of a very friendly turkey who is being looked after, along with my Pepita the pigeon and many other animals, in La Voz Animal shelter. Cold turkey is the unpleasant physical reaction that people experience when they suddenly stop taking a drug that they have become addicted to. I tried quitting smoking for several years, using nicotine patches, gums, and even hypnotherapy. Eventually , I just had to go cold turkey and rely on my own willpower. He had been spending far too much time on dating apps, so he decided to go cold turkey and deleted all of them. Vulture Source: Photos By Beks en Unsplash A vulture is a person or organization that is eager to win an advantage from other people's difficulties or problems. The vultures started circling when they heard that Auntie had gone into an old people's home. A culture vulture is a person with an...

Source:  Max Fischer  en  Pexels  Today, as if it was possible to ignore, is Black Friday. I hope, like me, that you are refusing to particpate in the American import. Here are a few previous Black Friday-related blog posts and tweets. Black Friday madness   Bigger than Black Friday   BBC News - Black Friday shopping in US marred by violence http://t.co/gPpjYn8tH9 And this is what they want to import to Spain ... — English in Madrid (@madteacher72) November 29, 2013 How Black Friday came to the UK https://t.co/qMNcPfLVQk — English in Madrid (@madteacher72) November 25, 2016 Black Friday backlash getting bigger - and more consumerist https://t.co/DRdlH5ZmwI — English in Madrid (@madteacher72) November 26, 2016 Take a look at some black-related expressions: a black mark against sb - something that you have done wrong or failed to do which is noticed and remembered by people and affects your reputation in a bad way If I'm late for the meeting, it'll be a...