这两天一直在忙着找房子，本来到这是想好好学英语的，但是由于安排上的不妥当，导致我们浪费了好多功夫找房子，而且短期房难租而且死贵死贵。我们连续花了2天下午+晚上才搞定一个房子，离公司大约20分钟脚程，如果一切顺利，明天的这个时候，我们已经搬到新租的房子里了。

随着学习的深入，新鲜感逐渐消失，觉得每天学习的内容也没有什么好说的。今天写作课，老师讲解了两种mail的写作方法，分别是’ASK FOR A FAVOR’和’THANKS FOR A FAVOR’，这两种信函比较简单，也没什么好说的。

Alex今天让我们谈谈关于Marriage、Divorce、Parents和Child，他要求我们一个人站在前面讲1-2分钟，然后其他人Ask that person一些问题，That’s All。

下午和学院的老师们见了面，交换了一下意见，估计从下周开始就不那么轻松了，时间变得紧了，没有时间复习英语了，学习的效果估计就要受到影响了，走一步算一步吧！

一大早就被震耳欲聋的雷声所惊醒，外面哗哗的下着大雨，估计也就是早上三四点钟，继续睡。昨晚GF和我说她们寝室要看世界杯决赛，我想那时那刻她们正在电脑前'朦胧地'欣赏着意大利和法国队的表演呢。早上7点闹钟把我们都叫醒了，可是外面的雨依旧那样的大。

我们趟着积水来到教室，中教口语老师依旧不见踪影，我们猜测是雨太大了，堵车或者是叫不到Taxi，大约等了半个多小时，我们的中教口语老师Susan才气喘吁吁的跑了进来，原来真的是因为雨太大了导致积水堵车，还好还有不少时间。按照原计划今天仍然是Read-Retell课程，只是这次复述的短文篇幅更长罢了。其中我复述的故事是这样的(可能很多的人都听过这个故事，挺有意思的)：

There was a farmer living in a smallvillage/who lived in a smallvillage. He suffered from a serious/severe pain in the chest/there was something wrong with his chest. This illness/disease didn't seem to get any better. The farmer finally/eventually decided to consult/see a doctor in the town. But he was too poor to pay the doctor. He was told that a patient had to pay 3 pounds for the first visit and 1 pound for the second visit. He thought about it for a long time, and then he decided to see the doctor.

When he came into the doctor's consulting room, he said naturally/casually to doctor that he came here again. With a little surprise, the doctor asked him some questions, examined his chest and then took the pound which the farmer insisted on giving him. Then the doctor said with a smile:"Well, sir. There is nothing new. Please continue to take the same medicine I gave you the first time you came to see me".

在复述的过程中，时态、人称和恰当的用词是很重要的，另外适当的用一些复杂的句子可以给你的复述增色不少，不要把retell和商务写作的原则弄混哟。

今天我们的外教Alex给我们带来的话题是'Education'，比较中西方教育的不同，话题诸如
1) your education experience；
2) good teacher & bad teacher；
3) why do you want to study；
4) if you are a parent, what do you want to teach your child?
5) what do you think of the TV's effect on children?

热烈的讨论之后，Alex教给我们几条idioms:
1) up to one's ears = very busy
[Ex.]
I'm up to my ears these days and I have little time to share with my girlfriend.

2) Hit the books/road/join
[Ex.]
If you want to learn something, You have to hit the books. = read the books

[Ex.]
I don't want to stop right after we hit the road. (出发，上路)

Hit the join = go to the toilet.

3) rub salt into the wound
[Ex.]
Tom failed the final exam. pls don't rub salt into the wound.