Something for the ladies.

Okay, as much as we teachers would like to ignore it (since you obviously can't), Christmas prom is right around the corner. I do remember the excitement of walking into the the gymnastics room in my finest gown to date. If I was really brave, I would have posted a photo of me in my prom dress. But I won't. The important thing is that you feel amazing, and that you know that style and class has nothing to do with an expensive dress.

I wanted to show you this link, as a small contribution to making the prom cheaper (and maybe even cooler, because if you learn to do this yourself you do not need a hair dresser - ever) for you, and maybe more fun.

Here is a link to HAIR TUTORIALS you should all be able to do with some practice. If it is difficult, you'll get by with a little help from your friends.

If Money Was No Object

Doing the conversations with you and your parents these days, makes me think about how lucky we all are to live in a part of the world that hands us choices. Choices of studies, jobs, friends and many other things. Still, all of these possibilities come with a lot of worries of choosing the right thing for you, and I can see that many of you worry about not being good enough or about closing doors too early in your lives. If you did not have to think about money in the future, what would you choose to do?

Take a look at this very smart lecture.

Don't Judge a Book by It's Cover...

Many of you may have seen this. I find it so facinating, I keep returning to it. This is, of course, an excellent commercial for make-up, but more importantly, I think it is a story about a young man finding his identity in trying to be as different from other people as you possibly can, unlike many people who do everything they can to fit in. What do you think? A desperate call for attention, or a brave expression of a true self?

PS. I do not recommend this for ANYONE. There are SO many other ways to express yourselves without going to these extremes.

A Tip From Ella's Mum!

I was so happy when I finally managed to check my mail today, Ella's mum had sent me a tip on this beautiful little story. It is truly thought-provoking, and reminds us what is important in life. I do not know about you, but I need that reminder every now and then.

If you like the story, I have two book recommendations for you, both by Mitch Albom.

They were once recommended to me by my friend Jenny from Denver, Colorado, and they are quite easy to read, especially Tuesdays With Morrie. Press "Read On" to read the story. And please bring me tips from you, or your parents if you find things you would like me to share on the blog! And not only those of you in 10 CD, you are all welcome to!

It's Sunday After All

What I am showing you today can hardly be described as useful. But I warned you, not everything will be. This is a video by The Slow-Mo Guys, who do weird things, film it, and then play it in slow motion. This sequence contains a water melon and a whole bunch of rubber bands. Enjoy! It's sunday after all.

The burning house

I came across this art project a while ago, and have been thinking about it a few times since. I want to share this with you. Here is a description:

The idea is that although we spent so much money on material things, what we would take with us if the house started burning are not the most expensive stuff we own, but small things with a lot of affectionate value. Even though these are just picture of things, it somehow seems very personal and private. I really like it, and it makes me think what my pic would look like. If any of you would like to share your pic, I'll be more than happy to post it on this post!

See the pics here.

Welcome Back!

Men Throwing Rocks With The Other Hand from Juan Etchegaray on Vimeo.

I really look forward to seeing you all tomorrow. We have such an exciting and intense year ahead of us, and I hope I am prepared to lead you through. I have thought a bit about this blog during summer, and started to wonder if I should try to find stuff more related to the topics we are dealing with in class. But I soon realized that it would take the fun out of it. So to prove that I will still post fun stuff, I am sharing this hilarious video of men throwing rocks with the other hand. I actually had to try this myself after watching. I am left-handed, and throwing with my right is almost impossible.

I will continue writing this blog, and if I find good stuff directly relevant: great! But most of all I want this to be a blog where you 1. read a bit of English, 2. maybe find something you will explore further, which makes you read even more English AND get new interests and ideas, 3. learn something.

Hopefully you can give me tips as well!
Get a good night's rest, tomorrow starts the most important but also the most interesting year so far.
BRING IT ON!

Would you dare the "Walk of Faith"?

Ok, so not directly connected to English, but the mountain has a 500- year- old Buddhist temple nestled within it - so it is slightly connected to RLE. I found this very facinating. This is from the Tianmen Mountain in China, where they have build a 60 m long glass pavement around the edge.  It is 1430 meters to the ground! I get dizzy just by looking at the pictures.

What do you say? Would you go on the Walk of Faith?

And what about The Devil's Swimming pool?

(Read more about the national park here. Pics from here and here.)

Where are your manners?

In some of the groups we talked about manners when it comes to British culture. It is really important to remember to say "please" and "thank you". I consider you all exceptionally well-behaved, but there may be some formal rules that you are not aware of. These would not be very important if you are having pizza at a friend's house, but as you grow up and become fabulous men and women, you will most definately be invited to formal dinners.

Check this out.

Were any of these surprising to you?