New Home
 |  |
Eucharia | Todd |
Todd: Eucharia, you have a new house!
Eucharia: Yes I just moved last week and I have a new house. It’s on the side of a mountain. At the back of my house there are rice fields. There’s one house immediately next door to mine and it has a crazy barking dog but luckily I like dogs and the dog likes me so when she sees me she gets really hyper now and welcomes me home.
Todd: That’s a nice feeling, it’s got to be nice having a dog welcoming you home! So how big is your house?
Eucharia: Well it’s like a small bungalow. It’s one storey. When you go in the door there is a japanese style porch for taking off your shoes. Then you are in a hallway and there’s an extremely large kitchen which goes from one side of the house to the other on the right hand side.
Todd: Wow that’s cool! So does it have an oven? Can you bake?
Eucharia: I don’t have an oven yet. I have everything else but I enjoy cooking. One part of my very, very chequered past I worked as a chef so I really enjoy cooking. I’m not very good but, yeah, it relaxes me after a hard day at work and I let my stress loose on the onions. Chop chop chop chop. And then there’s a living room and there’s what I euphemistically call a work area. It’s where I have a computer, my computer and some books and research stuff. And then there’s my… It’s all Japanese style flooring except for the kitchen, so its all bamboo flooring so it smells really nice because it’s all really fresh and it smells like hay to me.
Todd: Sounds like a barn!
Eucharia: I know it’s bamboo. It’s like sleeping in a barn!
Todd: How many bathrooms do you have?
Eucharia: Oh just one but that’s completely normal in Japan. It’s a Japanese style home
Todd: So do you have the bath-shower thing? Or just a shower? Just a bath?
Eucharia: I have a bath and shower but - I really like this about Japan that - the toilet room and the bathroom, shower room are 2 seperate rooms in most places. There’s also a washing machine room, a pantry thing.
Todd: You have a washing machine?
Eucharia: Yeah I can’t live without a washing machine! I need to buy a new bigger fridge because my fridge is too small and because it’s in the country I cant do shopping as often and by the time I get out of work most… many of the shops around here are closed.
Todd: Well congratulations on your new house!
Eucharia: Thank you!
hyper
I like dogs and the dog likes me so when she sees me she gets really hyper.
To be 'hyper' is to be full of uncontrollable energy. Notice the following:
- I can't drink coffee now, because it makes me really hyper, and I have to sit on a bus for 7 hours.
- When children eat a lot of sugar, they can get really hyper.
chequered past
One part of my very, very chequered past I worked as a chef so I really enjoy cooking.
A 'chequered past' refers to a personal history with high and low points, usually referring to employment and finances. Notice the following:
- After she became famous, she tried to hide the evidence of her chequered past.
- At one point in his chequered past he worked in security at a bar.
euphemistically
What I euphemistically call a work area.
To speak 'euphemistically' is to use euphemisms to express what you really want to say. A euphemism is a substitute word used to make a statement more mild or less offensive. For example, 'pass away' is a euphemism for die. Notice the following:
- If he had told me his opinions of the company directly, rather than speaking euphemistically, I wouldn't have worked there.
- Euphemistically speaking, it's a little cold outside today.
hay
It’s all really fresh and it smells like hay to me.
'Hay' is a type of long grass that horses eat. It is a golden brown color and is stored in big blocks or rolls and used to feed animals. Notice the following:
- After my trip to the farm, I was finding hay in my hair for the next week.
- The horse ate the hay from the little boy's hand.
barn
I know it’s bamboo. It’s like sleeping in a barn!
A 'barn' is a building on a farm where the animals live. Notice the following:
- There is a big, red barn in front of my house.
- We are going to have a big party with square dancing in the barn. You should come!
Vocabulary Quiz
hay • barn
