MERRY CHRISTMAS, EVERYONE!

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ST VALENTINE'S DAY WORDSEARCH

H T N I A S K R Z E S T G O P

E T M N X D O I N W E T W K X

D Q N V U S I I S J T M A J F

E K C E E U T P O S A R W I J

C N P Y E N H C U I L O O F R

T H B R E T F H M C O M R Z V

D Y X L O P R P V T C A R A L

C Y A D B P P U R B O N A N F

A V L O V E O A O Y H C U L V

R I O F D X E S O F C E O H A

D G V X A H T Y A Z W W I X Z

I V F B I J C D L L E L Y J J

F E B R U A R Y W R I Y B Z Q

W O B W P O U J S T H G F P A

I J J D S C R B B C R A J Z B

ARROW

BOW

CARD

CHOCOLATES

CUPID

FEBRUARY

FLOWERS

FOURTEENTH

HEART

KISS

LOVE

PROPOSAL

ROMANCE

ROSE

SAINT

VALENTINE

WHO WAS ROBERT BURNS?

Robert Burns [25^th January 1759 – 21^st July 1796], also known as Rabbie Burns, is the national poet of Scotland. 

He wrote in the Scots language and dialect as well as in English.Some of his poems use a mixture of Scottish dialect and English.  He also collected Scottish folk songs and many of his poems have been set to music.

His poem Auld Lang Syne, in which days gone by and old friends are remembered, is sung at Hogmanay [New Year] celebrations in Scotland and all over the UK.  His best known love poem, My Love is Like a Red Red Rose, has also been set to music.

Burns Night is celebrated on 25^th January.  People eat Scottish food, including haggis [a savoury pudding] which is “piped” into the dining room [brought into the room to the sound of bagpipes].  The guests then recite poems by Burns and finally sing Auld Lang Syne.

                              

GOING FOR GOLD

An Olympic Gold Medal from 2000
Image:  Wikipedia

All that glisters is not gold

- English proverb from Shakespeare
[Modern English would use "glitters".]

I would guess that we are all interested in gold medals at the moment, so today let's have a look at some expressions and idioms that use the words gold or golden.

First of all, what is the difference between gold and golden?  Basically, gold means that something is made of the metal gold, whilst golden means "having the appearance of gold" and is often used poetically or figuratively.  We talk about a gold ring but a golden age or golden opportunity, for instance.  As always, there are exceptions, so it is always worth checking the context of these two words.

Now see if you can match up the gold or golden expressions 1 - 6  with their meanings a - f.  You will find the answers below:

1.  good as gold

2.  to be sitting on a goldmine

3.  a gold digger

4.  to have a heart of gold

5.  worth its weight in gold

6.  a golden rule


a.  a woman who forms relationships with a rich man or men because she is interested in his / their money

b. an important rule in a particular field / a principle ensuring fairness

c.  extremely valuable or useful

d.  a well-behaved, genuine person

e.  to be very kind

f.  to own something that could make you a lot of money

To see the answers, highlight the space below:

1d, 2f, 3a, 4e, 5c, 6b.  You can also use expression number 5 about a person, for example:  "A teacher who could help me with this exercise would be worth their weight in gold."

To go for gold means to try as hard as you can to achieve something.

By the way, did you know that Welsh gold is very rare and that the wedding rings of the royal brides of Britain are made from it?

Is it raining where you are? Never mind - you may find a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow!  In Irish folklore, a leprechaun is supposed to guard it.

Image: www.cartoon-clipart.com

Now it's time for a song!

This Beatles prelude to Carry That Weight  is based on a 1603 poem by Thomas Dekker.

The Beatles - Golden Slumbers / Carry That Weight

And you have to clap your hands to this one! [In American English, a wedding ring is sometimes called a wedding band.] James Gilreath - Little Band of Gold



Little Band of Gold - Lyrics
There you were, standing there, smiling as you made your plans You were going to leave me and go with him You said you loved him so and your love would always be And that's the very same thing you once told me.
And you still had my little golden band on your hand Does my little band of gold mean nothing to you? To me it means the world but you've torn my world apart You're leaving me alone with my broken heart.
So take my little golden band from your hand My little band of gold means nothing to you To me it meant the world but you've torn my world apart You're leaving me alone with my broken heart.

ALL TOGETHER, NOW....

Jeremy Irons - London Pride [BBC Proms, 1999]

London Pride - Lyrics

London Pride has been handed down to us,

London Pride is a flower that's free.

London Pride is our own dear town to us,

And our pride it forever will be.
Whoa, Liza,

See the coster barrows,

 Vegetable marrows and the fruit piled high.
Whoa, Liza,

Little London sparrows,

Covent Garden Markets where the costers cry.

Cockney feet 

Mark the beat of history.

Every street pins a memory down.

Nothing ever could quite replace

The grace of London Town.

There's a little city flower,

Every spring unfailing,

Growing in the crevices,

By some London railing.

Though it has a Latin name

In town and countryside,

We in England call it

London Pride.

London Pride has been handed down to us,

London Pride is a flower that's free.

London Pride is our own dear town to us,

And our pride it forever will be.

Hey, lady,

When the day is dawning,

See the policeman yawning

On his lonely beat.

Gay lady,

Mayfair in the morning,

Hear your footsteps echo 

In the empty street.

Early rain,

And the pavement's glistening,

All Park Lane 

In a shimmering gown.

Nothing ever could break or harm

The charm

Of London Town.

In our city, darkened now,

Street and square and crescent,

We can feel our living past

In our shadowed present.

Ghosts beside the starlit Thames

Who lived and loved and died

Keep throughout the ages

London Pride.

London Pride has been handed down to us,

London Pride is a flower that's free.

London Pride is our own dear town to us,

And our pride it forever will be.

Grey city,

Stubbornly implanted,

Taken so for granted

For a thousand years.

Stay, city,

Smokily enchanted,

Cradle of our memories,

Our hopes and fears.

Every Blitz,

Your resistance toughening.

From the Ritz

To the Anchor and Crown,

Nothing ever could override

The pride

Of London Town.

- Sir Noel Coward

Notes:
whoa - a command, usually used when speaking to horses, meaning "Stop". The speaker or singer is telling his companion to stop for a moment and look around.

coster [archaic]  - a seller of fruit or vegetables 

Cockney - traditionally someone born within the sound of the bells of the Church of St Mary-le-Bow in London. See also this post.

beat - [1] the passing of time [2] the area which a policeman patrols on foot

gay - here used with its old meaning of "happy"!

Blitz [here] - the bombing of Britain during World War II

Ritz - the Ritz Hotel

The Anchor & Crown - name of a pub

London Pride flower
[saxifraga x urbium]
Image:  Picture Esk on flickr

Now, you all have to clap your hands while you sing this one! Are you ready? Go!

The Business - Maybe it's Because I'm a Londoner

Maybe it's Because I'm a Londoner - Lyrics
Maybe it's because I'm a Londoner That I love London so Maybe it's because I'm a Londoner That I think of her wherever I go I get a funny feeling inside of me Just walking up and down Maybe it's because I'm a Londoner That I love London town
- Hubert Gregg
Note:Towns and countries are sometimes referred to in the feminine gender.  This is mostly a poetic usage these days.
ENJOY THE LONDON OLYMPICS, EVERYBODY!

OLYMPIC FLAMES AND ROYAL FLAMES

When the Olympic Flame arrived at the Tower of London last Friday, Mayor of London Boris Johnson joked that, as King Henry VIII had discovered, the Tower was "the perfect place to bring an old flame".  An old flame is a person you loved romantically in the past and the Mayor was referring to Henry's second and fifth wives, Anne Boleyn and Catherine Howard, who were both imprisoned in the Tower prior to their execution.  The ghost of Anne Boleyn is said to haunt the building.

You can also have a "new flame" or "latest flame", as in the Elvis Presley song:

Elvis Presley - His Latest Flame

What about you? Do you still think about your old flames?

ORANGES AND LEMONS

Do you know this nursery rhyme?  It is based on the words that the bells of six famous London churches seem to be saying:

KiddieOK - Oranges and Lemons

A farthing was a pre-decimal coin with the value of one quarter of an "old" [pre-decimal] penny.  The farthing was removed from circulation on 31st December 1960.  The "penny-farthing" bicycle got its name because its big wheel and little wheel reminded people of a penny and a farthing.

Image: Wikimedia Commons