Impala Jumps into Car to Escape Hungry Cheetahs

One clever impala recently escaped two hungry cheetahs by jumping into an open car window. The impala landed straight into a group of surprised tourists, who were on a safari in South Africa’s Kruger National Park.
“We started freaking out, going crazy,” said 20-year-old Samantha Pittendrigh. “We couldn’t believe it.”

According to Pittendrigh, who caught the whole incident on video, the impala ran out of the bushes with the cheetahs close behind. To avoid the hunters, the impala jumped right into the car. “People were screaming, and everyone was confused until one passenger realized what was happening and quickly opened the door,” Pittendrigh said. The impala quickly exited the vehicle just seconds after jumping in.

The video clearly shows that the cheetahs were a bit confused. They stared at the impala from the bushes, but made no move to chase after it once it escaped to the other side of the road.

“My family is so jealous,” Pittendrigh exclaimed proudly. “In all the years my parents have been going to Kruger Park, they have never seen anything like it. It really is a once-in-a-lifetime thing, and we managed to be in the right place at the right time.”

If you want to check out the amazing video, visit:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uD6wdrVFc0g.

Frying an Egg in Death Valley (26-07-2013)

Have you ever heard the expression: “It’s so hot you can fry an egg on the sidewalk?” This phrase is widely used to describe the weather when it’s hot outside. In Korea, the summers are hot and humid, but the heat is nothing compared to the weather in Death Valley National Park, located in eastern California. Throughout July, the temperature in Death Valley, a desert, reached 53 degrees Celsius! It’s so hot that you can literally fry an egg on the sidewalk in Death Valley! Recently, an employee at Death Valley National Park did just that. She fried an egg by placing a frying pan on the hot ground. She filmed it and posted the video on YouTube. The video quickly became popular, and in recent weeks, visitors to Death Valley have been doing the same thing. However, they don’t use frying pans, so they leave behind a big mess - fried eggs on rocks and eggshells everywhere. The park grounds have become littered with so many eggshells that park officials have released a statement on Facebook asking visitors to clean up after themselves. “An employee’s posting of frying an egg in a pan in Death Valley was intended to demonstrate how hot it can get here. However, the Death Valley maintenance crew has been busy cleaning up eggs cracked directly on the sidewalk.” Officials added that if you want to try to fry an egg, “use a pan or tin foil” and then properly throw it away when you’re done. “This is your national park. Please put trash in the garbage or recycle bins provided.”

Forgiveness:

Forgiveness: The Unreal Past

Introduction

People say that you should turn the other cheek when someone wrongs you. But what if someone did something so mean you just couldn’t forgive them? Or what if the same person wronged you in the same way over and over? Sometimes, it’s just too hard to let go.

Everyone has different ideas about what’s forgivable, and what isn’t. Some couples are able to stay together even if one partner has an affair. Other relationships break up over very small problems. Find out if Devan and Ella find it easy or hard to forgive.

Dialogue

Ella: I have the hardest time forgiving people. I don’t know if it’s a pride issue, but I just hold a grudge for so long.

Devan: Really, you can’t let go of things really easily?

Ella: Not at all. I can’t turn the other cheek, especially if I feel like I got wronged. I feel like that person needs to be punished with me not being in their life.

Devan: See, I’m the exact opposite. Sometimes I feel like it takes more energy to hold a grudge than it does to just move on.

Ella: It’s so hard for me to let go. I feel like not forgiving someone really just proves a point.

Devan: So what would be an example of a situation that you just absolutely could not forgive someone for?

Ella: I give people three chances, so the first two times I forgive, but number three, regardless of what the situation is, I can’t. That’s like my number count.

Devan: Even if it’s something really petty?

Ella: Yeah.

Devan: What if, like, your friend had a crush on the same boy that you had a crush on, and she dated him?

Ella: It depends on who had the crush first.

Devan: Well, I’ll be careful to never cross you. I don’t want to be on your bad side.

Ella: Three chances.

Discussion

Ella finds it hard to forgive people. She thinks that not forgiving someone who has wronged her is a good way to teach that person a lesson. She thinks it is especially hard to forgive someone who wrongs her more than once. She gives people three chances. After that, she won’t forgive them, no matter what they did.

Devan is the opposite. She usually forgives people. To her, it is more difficult to hold a grudge than to forgive someone. So she is pretty tolerant and forgiving.

Do you find it easy or hard to forgive people?

Grammar Point

The Unreal Past

The past tense is sometimes used in English to refer to an 'unreal' situation. So, although the tense is the past, we are usually talking about the present, e.g. in a Type 2 conditional sentence:

If an elephant and a mouse fell in love, they would have many problems.

Although fell is in the past tense, we are talking about a hypothetical situation that might exist now or at any time, but we are not referring to the past. We call this use the unreal past.

The Unreal Past Grammar Quiz

1. If I (danced, dance, will dance), would she still think I'm ugly? 2. What if Kurt Cobain were (is, will be, still alive), would you still love Nirvana's music? 3. If I (win, won, will win) the lottery, I would buy you a house. 4. Supposing Obama (loses, lost, will lose) the election, could he still be popular? 5. We could go to the movies, if only I (didn't, don't, doesn't) have to work.

lego

People all over the world love playing with Lego bricks. You can build just about anything with this popular Danish toy. Can you believe that people have made life-sized cars, miniature cities, historical landmarks, and even a house! While most people play with Lego because it’s fun, there are a few men and women who have made a career building objects from Lego bricks! In fact, they are certified Lego professionals, and only 13 of them exist! Let’s take a look at who they are and what they do! Nathan Sawaya is an American artist. He is the only person in the world who is considered a Lego Master Model Builder as well as a Lego Certified Professional. He spends most of his time building large sculptures made of Lego bricks. He then sells his work to collectors, galleries, and even companies that want an interesting piece of art. Mr. Sawaya also has a touring exhibition titled The Art of The Brick that has inspired millions of kids. You can check out some of his amazing work at: http://brickartist.com/. Adam Tucker is an architect who founded Brick Structures in 2006. His company focuses on design and construction of Lego skyscrapers and other architectural structures. In 2011, Mr. Tucker showcased an exhibition that featured the world’s 15 most famous buildings, including Dubai’s BurjKhalifa, the tallest building in the world. Rene Hoffmeister has played with Lego since he was five years old. In 1999, he created a German-language website that allows Lego lovers to provide tips on how to build Lego masterpieces. In 2008, he founded 1000 steine-land, a yearly exhibition in Berlin where Lego builders from across Europe can show off their creations. As you can see, these men have one thing in common. They get to earn a living playing with Lego! Isn’t that pretty cool?

Korean National Baseball vs. US Major League Baseball

“Choo-Choo!” Can you hear that sound? It is thousands of baseball fans cheering Cincinnati Reds center-fielder Shin-soo Choo. He and Hyun-Jin Ryu are Korean baseball players who have successfully reached a peaks in Major League Baseball (MLB). The MLB is one of the most competitive and diverse leagues in the world today. Players from Asia, Europe, Canada, and many other countries come to play professional baseball in North America. The KBO is a league comprised of nine teams with players from all over the world. Players from the KBO also leave to play all around the globe as well. In addition to the smaller amount of teams in the KBO, another difference between the two leagues is the travel time between games. Korean teams only travel short distances for away games, while teams in the MLB usually have to travel for hours to play their opponents. Go team! KBO and Korean baseball players are trying hard around the world!

Let’s Party!

Have you ever enjoyed a carnival? A carnival is a kind of festival. People celebrate carnival by disguising themselves as funny characters. Interestingly, “carnival” is originally a Christian event. Catholic Christians traditionally marked an event called Lent. During Lent, Catholics do not eat rich foods and they don’t hold any parties. So they held a big party before Lent with their neighbors. This party was called “carnival.” Now there are many forms of carnival. Joan Miro, a famous Spanish artist, depicted the joyfulness of carnival in this painting. The painting is titled Harlequin’s Carnival 할로퀸스 카니발 and it was painted in 1925. How did he express the idea of a carnival? You can find various interesting characters all over the painting. However, it is not that easy to figure out what they are. On the left side, there is a ladder. The ladder means escape or elevation. On top of the ladder, there are two human shapes. They look like they are swaying to music. Next to the ladder, you can find a man with two colored faces, red and blue. He is disguised as a guitar. There is an insect with yellow and blue wings inside a dice. You can see a tall yellow masked man in the center. Look at the table on the right. There is a dark sphere that represents a globe, and fish. Oh, two cats are playing with string under the table. You can see the sun and a black triangle through the window. The triangle represents the Eiffel Tower. The musical notes next to the window add to the festive mood of the painting. Miro painted objects in an interesting and strange way, and this way is called Surrealism. The interesting characters make us feel the joy of a carnival. Doesn’t it feel like we are in the middle of a carnival?

Photo News

비만률 1. Building A House What are the people in the picture doing? They are building a house. On June 28, 15 male students aged from 16 to 18 gathered in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province. They participated in a mentoring program called “Male School.” They not only built a house, but also cooked and performed on stage! 2. I Am Hot, Too! How did you spend the last weekend of June? The temperature reached 34 degrees Celsius! It was the hottest day so far this year. Animals as well as people tried to avoid the sweltering heat. On that day, the dog in this picture cooled off from the heat, swimming in the Han River. The dog looks cool! 3. Call Us Haenyeo People in the picture look like haenyeo, female divers who catch seafood! On June 30, a lot of people visited Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province. This is because an event was held to attract tourists from metropolitan areas to Jeju Island. People learned how to speak Jeju dialect and had a chance to experience the work of haenyeo! 4. 3-3-3 Project Seoul’s obesity rate has increased by 10 percent compared to 10 years ago. In an attempt to reduce its obesity rate, a special program named the 3-3-3 Project was organized. The goal was set to lose 3 kg for 3 months and keep the weight off for the next 3 months! Can you do that, too?

Where Is the Cleanest Beach in Korea?

Recently, the beaches are crowded with many people who want to cool down in summer. Sometimes, the beaches become polluted because a lot of people enjoy the same beaches at the same time. Therefore, more and more people want to know where they can enjoy clean seawater and beaches.

According to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries해양수산부, the cleanest beaches in the nation are Jumunjin beach on the east coast, Daegwang beach on the west coast, and Gujora beach on the south coast! The ministry studied 187 beaches all over the nation for water quality and other factors.
Jeongdongjin beach and Mangsang beach in the east and Hamo beach on Jeju Island were chosen as relatively clean beaches, too.

“Water quality can be changed by weather conditions and numbers of tourists,” said a ministry official. And he added that people should be careful not to swim in the sea right after rain. This is because there is a great amount of trash and sewage that can float on the surface of the sea!

Should Sharks’ Fins Be Consumed? (12-07-2013)

(사회적)운동, 캠페인 Korean Air and Asiana Airlines announced that they will stop transporting shark’s fins. Shark’s fin soup is one of the most popular Chinese dishes. It is known to delay the human aging process and extend people’s lifespans. However, after the fins are cut off still living sharks, the wounded sharks are dumped into the sea to die, and other fish eat them. So should shark’s fins be consumed? Jae-min: I ate shark’s fin soup at a luxurious Chinese restaurant with my family yesterday. Bo-ra: What? Do you know how people collect sharks’ fins? Jae-min: No. It was delicious. I want to eat it again. Bo-ra: When people cut off sharks’ fins, they throw the sharks back into the ocean. It’s very painful, and other fish come and devour them. Jae-min: Really? I didn’t know that. But shark’s fin is a healthy food. You should eat it. Bo-ra: No way. You should know that sharks may disappear soon! We should save them! Jae-min: I think people can control how many sharks they will catch. Bo-ra: That’s impossible. Actually, people don’t stop. Jae-min: Then let’s do something positive. What about conducting a campaign to save sharks?