Daily Archives: 19 September 2009

Designer Clothes

General, Students' Corner,

Sent by Estela Ramon Garcia, 4th year student


First and foremost, I have to say that I’m not the kind of girl who is hooked on shopping and on designer clothes because I’m convinced that you don’t have to wear brand clothes to be dressed up or to be cool, actually, a lot of brand items aren’t cool at all. I mean, usually, while I’m looking through some magazines I realise how spaced-out film stars are, because they put on such ugly gear that they look really scruffy and badly-dressed, don’t they?
On the one hand , having brand clothes is surpassing the boundaries because as far as I know, there are people who blow their money on buying these clothes instead of saving it for a rainy day, and in the end they are broke. From my point of view they just do this to boast and pretend they are wealthy.
On the other hand there are well-off people who can afford to purchase these trendy clothes because of their huge wages. This kind of people usually splash out their money on having everything from a designer name. I believe that people usually fall into the mistake of thinking that if you don’t have expensive clothes you are laid-back and not cool at all. Nevertheless, the truth is the opposite thing, because you are more likely to be spaced out and spoiled if you have loads of expensive things. In my opinion, this sort of people isn’t cool or fashionable , they are posh.
To me being posh it’s not just buying designer clothes, it’s the way you behave, the thoughts and feelings you have…it’s everything! I have to say that as far as I’m concerned purchasing brand gear doesn’t make me posh or spoiled because I’m really down-to earth and sensible and I know that I’m not cooler because I wear one thing or the other. Besides, I often go shopping to unknown places, although to be honest, I have to say that I usually tend to be appealed by brand clothes because I like their designers much more than the bargains I come across in cheap shops, so that’s the reason why I have some fancy gear.
To sum up ,I have to say that in my case, I go for trendy clothes because I like to be cute and dressed up, and I can’t help going window shopping, but this doesn’t mean having everything from a well-known brand. I believe that is a complete waste of money buying a plain shirt which costs you a rip-off and you pay through the nose just because it has a tiny label on it. In these cases I would rather buy one in an unknown shop or at least during sales.

A new way to meet your Mr or Miss Right

Students' Corner,

Sent by Estela Alvarez, a fourth year student.


A long time ago single women who had a romantic meeting always went with a chaperone who kept an eye on the couple, whereas nowadays people can flirt from their personal computer while they are surfing the Internet because there are websites where they chat possible partners up. It seems incredible, but there are people who go out with someone without having ever seen them .
Certainly, we live in a stressful world and some people are too busy to look for love. As a result, new ways of meeting the person of your dreams are coming along. Actually, travel agencies arrange special trips only for single people and TV programmes organize blind dates for their contestants. But one of the most original systems to meet your Mr or Miss Right is a speed date, which is becoming more and more popular in different countries, especially among young people.
It consists of a group of people, where there is the same number of men and women, who are gathered together in a room where they have a few minutes to find out as much information as they can about each other in order to see if some of them is their perfect soul mate. At a speed date a person talks one to one to a member of the opposite sex during a while and as soon as a bell rings the participants have to move on to the next person and then, they start a conversation again. At the end of the event they submit to the organizers a list with people they fancy and they would like to see again because they believe they could be compatible. If the other person also feels the same attraction the organizers will get them in touch .
In Spain a sort of “speed date” is becoming fashionable between university students, although this way to meet a possible pick-up is slightly different. It is called «traffic lights party» and it is usually celebrated in discos. It consists of wearing a sticker with the shape of a traffic light in the lapel and the colours of the signal have different meanings, so if you are wearing the green light switched on, it means you are not engaged; the yellow light means you are single but you are not especially interested in meeting anybody; and the red colour means you already have a boyfriend or a girlfriend. Funny , isn’t it?

Do you like reading?

Reading, Resources

Here is a very interesting site to visit. Here you can practice reading and do comprehension exersises.

You can choose to select:
The story: as provided by CNN SF and CBS 5. Intended for adults with moderate reading and speaking comprehension skills including advanced ESL or non-native English speakers.
The Abridged Story: Modification of original story text by simplifying complex ideas and sentences, exchanging advanced words with less difficult ones, and change difficult concepts into precise terms. Intended for adults with low reading comprehension skills including beginning ESL or non-native English speakers.
Story Outline: Outline summary of basic edited story elements.
And what is more, along with the text you can see the video.

Scones

Cooking, ,

Cooking is one of my passions although I have to confess I’m not as good at it as family and friends tend to believe. Today I’m going to show you how to bake one of my favourite British recipes “Scones”. Bur first of all, where does the word “scone” come from?


This Scottish QUICK BREAD is said to have taken its name from the Stone of Destiny (or Scone), the place where Scottish kings were once crowned. The original form was triangular-shaped and it was made with oats and griddle-baked. Today’s versions are more often flour-based and baked in the oven. They come in various shapes including triangles, rounds, squares and diamonds and you may add raisins, cheese, walnut…

Golden Scones Recipe:
225g self-raising flour
1 tsp baking powder
50g soft magarine
25g soft brown sugar
1 tbsp of golden syrup or honey
1 egg + milk
Preheat oven to 220-deg. Lightly grease a baking sheet.
(A) Put flour and baking powder in a bowl, add magarine and rub it in with your fingertips till the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
(B) In a separate bowl, crack egg into a measure, lightly beat it and then make up to 150ml with milk. Beat thoroughly egg mixture, sugar and syrup till well-blended.
Stir in (A) into (B) to a soft dough. Turn onto a lightly floured table, knead lightly and then roll out to 1/2 inch thickness.
Cut into rounds with a cutter to make an approx. 10-12 scones. Place them, spaced, onto a large baking sheet; brush the tops with a lil milk and bake for about 10 minutes or till golden brown. Remove scones and leave to cool on a wire rack!
A suggestion..? They are just lovely with clotted cream and strawberry jam if you don’t mind the calories. Anyway, let me know if you ever make up your mind to try them.