Hibachi

This past weekend, I went to a hibachi restaurant with some friends and family. As I sat there eating the delectable food, I realized that I actually knew very little about the history and the origin of hibachi. I decided to do some internet research, and I learned some very interesting things.

One of the first things I learned is that the word hibachi is actually a misnomer. In the English language, hibachi refers to a type of Japanese restaurant where grills are integrated into tables. Customers typically sit at these tables and watch as a chef prepares their food, which may consist of beef, chicken, shrimp, scallops, rice, and vegetables. Chefs usually do the cooking in a theatrical way, often lighting things on fire and juggling cooking utensils. However, in the Japanese language, a hibachi is a special bowl used for heating homes as well as public places. It is not usually used for cooking. The correct name for hibachi-style cooking is teppanyaki, and the grill used for this type of cooking is called a teppan.

Another surprising thing I learned is that teppanyaki cooking is a relatively new invention. It was first introduced in Japan in 1945 by a restaurant called Misono. Because teppanyaki cooking was entertaining to watch and included many ingredients that were familiar to Americans and Europeans, it soon became popular with foreigners. In 1964, a man named Hiroaki Aoki brought teppanyaki to the United States when he opened a restaurant called Benihana in New York City. A few years later, he opened a similar restaurant in Chicago. Today, Benihana is a large company with restaurants all over the world.

Vocabulary

Delectable (adjective) - delicious, tasty

Origin (noun) - the place or situation where something begins to exist

Misnomer (noun) - a wrong or unsuitable name; an error in naming something

Integrated (adjective) - combining different parts in a way that works well

Theatrical (adjective) - relating to performing

Utensils (noun) - things such as a knife, fork, or spoon that are used for cooking or eating

Invention (noun) - a new thing that someone has made or designed

Ingredient (noun) - in cooking, one of the foods that is used to make a certain dish

Foreigner (noun) - someone from a different country

Vocabulary Practice

1. Pizza is a popular food of Italian _________.

2. Sometimes, a _________ may have trouble learning the language of his or her new country.

3. He read the letter in a ________ way, as if he was putting on a show for us.

4. At the restaurant, I had to ask for new _________ because I dropped my fork and spoon on the floor.

5. Professor Nenchin's pie was __________; we all enjoyed eating it.

6. Cheese is an important _________ of pizza.

7. The word parkway is a _________ because we do not park on parkways.

8. The printing press was an important _________ because it helped to make books more widely available.

9. Our city's _________ transportation system includes buses and trains. Together, they help millions of people get to where they need to go.

Grammar Point

 Oftentimes, words from one language are adopted into another language. Since the English language has been influenced by many different cultures, many foreign words have been adopted into English. Hibachi is one example of this. Other examples include pizza, café, and rodeo.

Grammar Practice

Find three English words that have been adopted from other languages. Write a sentence containing each one. If you are not sure about the origin of a word, look it up on http://dictionary.reference.com/

Pandora Internet Radio

If you've read my previous entry, I suppose you may be wondering how you can go about finding new music that suits your tastes. If so, I have some great news for you: thanks to the internet, an entire world of music is literally at your fingertips!

Pandora Internet Radio is an excellent resource for finding music. When you go to the Pandora website, you will first be asked to type the name of a musical artist or a song that you like. Next, Pandora will use a special system to analyze certain characteristics the song or artist that you've chosen, and it will create a personalized radio station for you. Your radio station will play songs by the artist you chose, but the best part is that it will also play songs by other artists that are similar in style. Because of this, Pandora is a great way to use your favorite music as a springboard for discovering new artists, songs, and genres.

So, what are you waiting for? Start exploring! Follow your ears! You just might be in for some pleasant surprises.

Happy listening!

Vocabulary

Go about (verbal idiom) -  start to do something

Suits your tastes (verbal idiom) - is acceptable to you

At your fingertips (adjectival idiom) - easily available

Resource (noun) - something useful

Analyze (verb) -to look at something carefully

Personalized (adjective) - designed in a way that is useful for a specific person

Style (noun) - a way of doing something

Springboard (noun) - something that helps you start to do something

Genre (noun) - a certain type or category of art, writing, music, etc.

Be in for (verbal idiom) - guaranteed to get or have

Vocabulary Practice

1. You can use your native language as a __________ for learning English.

2. He asked the librarian how he might __________ finding information on Halloween.

3. Fiction is a __________ of writing.

4. The internet is an excellent __________ for information on many topics.

5. If you go to a haunted house, you might __________ some surprises.

6. Pandora can help you find music that __________.

7.  She has read many Gary Paulsen books because she likes his __________ of writing.

8. The doctor will __________ his blood to find out why he is sick.

9. At the library, many different types of books are __________.

10.  All of this restaurant's foods can be __________ for each customer.

Grammar Point

 Exclamation points (!) are used at the end of a sentence to show extreme pain, fear, anger, or excitement. In this blog entry, I used several exclamation points to indicate excitement: "Start exploring! Follow your ears!...Happy listening!"

Grammar Practice

a. Write five sentences with exclamation points. 

b. For each sentence, write a brief explanation of why you used an exclamation point.

c. Imagine your sentences without exclamation points. How does the meaning of the sentences change?

A "Journey" of Musical Discovery

One of my classmates recently posted a blog entry about how she discovered some of her favorite music by checking out some CDs from her local library. This reminded me of how I discovered some of my favorite music accidentally, so I figured I'd tell you a little bit about that.

Journey is one of many bands that I discovered in an unconventional way. I grew up listening to songs like "Don't Stop Believin'" and "Open Arms" on the radio, and I knew those songs were attributed to a group called Journey. I always liked these songs, but I never took the time to find out who Journey was. That changed in 2001 during an airplane trip to Florida. The plane had an individual TV at every seat, and while I was flipping through the channels, a broadcast of a recent Journey concert caught my eye. As I watched it, I realized that I was already familiar with several of Journey's songs, and I also liked the ones I wasn't familiar with. As soon as I got home, I did some internet research to learn more about this great band. To make a long story short, I now own all of their albums and have attended eight Journey concerts, including one in Spain. My flight to Florida was indeed the start of quite a journey!

Vocabulary

Unconventional (adjective) - out of the ordinary

Attributed (verb) - related to a certain source

Flip through the channels (verbal idiom) - to quickly cycle through the television channels in order to find something of interest

Broadcast (noun, can also be a verb) - a program on the radio or television

Caught my eye (verbal idiom) - attracted my attention

Album (noun) - in music, a CD with several songs on it

Vocabulary Practice

1. This painting has been _________ to Van Gogh.

2. This evening, many people are watching the _________ of the Yankee game.

3. While I was walking my dogs, a strange flashing light _________.

4. Eating dessert before dinner is quite _________, don't you think?

5. Journey's newest _________ contains 11 songs.

6. There is nothing interesting on TV. I'm going to _________ to find something to watch.

Grammar Point

As you know, some English words can have more than one meaning. When a word is used in a way that suggests more than one meaning, we call it a pun. Puns are often used for humor in written and spoken English. In this entry, I used a pun in the last sentence: the word journey refers to my trip, but it also refers to the fact that Journey is the name of the band I discovered during that trip.

Grammar Practice

 Write three sentences containing puns and write a brief explanation of each one. If you are having trouble coming up with your own puns, go to http://www.webenglishteacher.com/puns.html for some ideas.

My Trip to New Paltz

This past Saturday, I took a trip to New Paltz with my aunt, uncle, and cousins. A relatively small town about 80 miles north of New York City, New Paltz is known for its historic sites, its farms, as well as its beautiful fall foliage.

This trip to New Paltz is an annual family tradition for my aunt, uncle, and cousins. It began when my oldest cousin was a student at SUNY New Paltz. The family would come to visit her every year, and they quickly fell in love with the area's amenities and picturesque views. For this reason, even though my cousin graduated in 2005, they still set aside a day every fall to visit New Paltz. This year, they were kind enough to invite me to come with them.

Once we arrived, our first stop was the Minnewaska State Park Preserve. This preserve features excellent mountain views (see the picture above), and is a popular destination for hiking, bicycling, and picnicking. We enjoyed the scenery as we hiked through the park, and then we found a comfortable spot to settle down and eat our lunch. After we ate, we hiked back to our car and made our way to our next destination.

Our next stop was the Apple Hill Farm, where we went apple picking. The farm had several different types of apples, many of which I'd never even heard of! I sampled several different ones and found that the golden delicious were my favorite. Delicious, indeed!

For information on the Minnewaska State Park Preserve, see http://www.lakeminnewaska.org/state.html
Visit the Apple Hill Farm on the web at http://www.applehillfarm.com/

Vocabulary

Relatively (adverb) - when compared with something else

Foliage (noun) - leaves, flowers, branches, etc.

Annual (adjective) - happening every year

SUNY New Paltz (noun) - State University of New York at New Paltz

Amenities (noun) - features that provide comfort or pleasure

Picturesque (adjective) - having a pleasing appearance

Destination (noun) - the place to which someone travels

Sample (verb) - to taste a food or drink

Vocabulary Practice

1.  The flight's __________ was Rome.

2. The __________ of this hotel include a pool and room service.

3. My cousin attended college at _________.

4. Compared to New York, Rhode Island is a _________ small state.

5. During our vacation, we enjoyed the _________ ocean views.

6. There are many trees here. Look at the colorful _________.

7. At some ice cream shops, you can _________ the different flavors before you choose one.

8. The talent show is an _________ event.

 Grammar Point

We use the past tense of verbs to talk about things that have already happened. In this entry, I used the past tense several times because I was describing a trip that I took a few days ago.

Grammar Practice

Write a paragraph about a trip you have taken or a special event you have attended. Include at least five verbs in the past tense.

Rosh Hashanah

A few weeks ago, Jewish people all over the world celebrated the holiday of Rosh Hashanah. Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish new year, and it literally means head of the year in Hebrew. Often referred to as one of the “high holidays”, Rosh Hashanah is one of the holiest and most important days of the year in the Jewish religion.

Many Jews attend services at local synagogues on Rosh Hashanah. Since this holiday is so important, Rosh Hashanah services usually include some extra prayers and are longer than typical services. Rosh Hashanah services are also characterized by the blowing of the shofar, which is a ram’s horn that is played in a manner similar to a trumpet. (A shofar is pictured above.)

Families often celebrate Rosh Hashanah by eating a special meal together. The foods eaten during this meal can vary depending on local and family traditions. Most Rosh Hashanah meals include apples and honey, which symbolize a sweet new year. Oftentimes, round challah bread is also served to represent the ongoing cycle of the year. In addition to these traditional foods, my family enjoys eating brisket, turkey, steamed vegetables, and sweet potato pie on Rosh Hashanah.

Although I am not very religious, I very much enjoy celebrating Rosh Hashanah with family and friends. I feel that it is an important part of my heritage, and I look forward to passing the traditions of this holiday down to future generations.

For more information on this holiday, please visit http://www.jewfaq.org/holiday2.htm

Vocabulary

Literally (adverb) – actually, really
Refer (verb) – to speak about someone or something
Synagogue (noun) – a building where Jewish people go for religious services
Characterized (verb) – having certain traits
Manner (noun) – the way in which something is done
Vary (verb) – to be different
Cycle (noun) – a set of events that happens again and again
Heritage (noun) - Something that is passed down from generation to generation; a tradition

Vocabulary Practice

1. During a fire drill, we need to leave the building in an orderly _________.
2. The four seasons are an example of a __________.
3. Our school is ____________ by enthusiastic teachers.
4. We go to the ____________ for holiday services.
5. I was ____________ sneezing all day because I had a terrible cold.
6. Prices may __________ from one store to another.
7. During tomorrow’s lesson, the teacher will ____________ to the article we read today.
8. Family traditions are part of your _____________.

Grammar Point

Adjectives are words that provide information about a noun. It has been said that they add “color” to a description. In this blog entry, I used several adjectives to describe the characteristics of the Rosh Hashanah holiday.

Grammar Practice

a. Underline all of the adjectives in this blog entry.
b. Choose five of the adjectives you underlined and write a sentence using each one.
c. Imagine your sentences without adjectives. Do they still make sense? Does the meaning of the sentences change? If so, how?