Category Archives: From shopping

There are some expressions that you will hear so many times when you go shopping (grocery, clothing, electronics, car, etc.) Also there are very useful things you wish you would know such as name of the vegetables, etc.

04 Nov

step on toes

Who taught: Random guy sat beside me

Step on toes (source: http://politicalpistachio.blogspot.com/)

People do not smoke in a coffee shop in America. At least in the ones that I go often. A few days ago, something that I did not expect happened. Someone sitting beside me was smoking. Huh?! What is going on? Is it illegal? But, something was different. I could not smell anything.

I quickly noticed that it is not a regular cigarette. All of the other people in the coffee shop seemed to know that it is not a real one.

A few minutes later, the owner was talking to him about his fake-smoking. The owner did not try to have him stop smoking but rather just checking it out.

In their conversation, the guy who was smoking said, “This is completely harmless but I will smoke this till someone says not. I do not want to step on toes.”

In my mind, “Oh, yeah? Let me ask you to stop,” but I did not have the guts to say so. Instead, I was thinking about the expression he used, “step on toes.” You know what? Playing soccer, I do know how it feels if someone steps or runs on my toes. It feels so painful.

So, this was easy for me to feel it. Basically, this expression is the same meaning of causing a problem or bothering someone. It is an interesting way of talking. Don’t you think?

But, in my opinion, I think he was sort of already stepping on toes by fake-smoking.

18 Aug

will-call

WILL-CALL (source: http://fieldnotesbrand.com/)

Oh boy! It is official! Pirates lose every time I go to the ballpark to watch a game. Yesterday, I went to the PNC Park with my friends and Jessy. They won two previous games but they lost yesterday when Jessy and I were there. But, I will support the Pirates no matter what because I am not a fair weather fan.

Knowing that my friends are visiting and they want to see a MLB game, I bought tickets online. As I was filling the required information out, I noticed that  there was only one option for the delivery type and it was “WILL-CALL.”  (I believe there should be a lot more options but all the other options were not available because I only had two more days to the game.)

When I first saw this “WILL-CALL,” I thought they WILL CALL me to discuss how they are going to deliver the tickets. Thus, I decided to wait for one day. Nothing happened. Well, I gotta do something to make sure that I get the tickets before the game. So, I called the Pirates’ customer service, asking this simple question, “What does this WILL-CALL  mean as the delivery type?”

My initial guess was totally off. However, it is not too far off according to its origin or history. Here is the history of the expression I got from Wikipedia.

In the days before the telephone, the phrase “I will call on you” was commonly used to mean that someone will visit you, or speak to you. The phrase has since largely fallen into disuse, with the word “call” being much more commonly associated with the telephone than speaking to someone in person. The term “will call”, however, has stuck, and means that the customer “will call on” the company to pick up the tickets or merchandise, as opposed to having the items delivered to them.

Even with this origin, the real meaning as of now is the box office that customers pick up their pre-purchased tickets. It does not even mean that the customer WILL CALL the box office. Instead, it means the physical box office. Oh, well, I actually did call.

So, one advice, if you hear or see “WILL-CALL” in the context of purchasing tickets, that does not mean you call someone or they will call you. It just means the box office or you need to pick up your tickets from the box-office.

Good luck with your shopping!

13 May

rug vs carpet

Rug (source: cb2.com)

For the first time in my life, I bought a rug for the living room. When I was trying to buy, shopping around online which means I did not see it physically, I used this word, a rug.

But, when it was delivered to my house which means I was able to see it physically, I kept calling it a carpet. So, I had to ask myself. What happened? Why do I call it a carpet from the moment that I can really see it physically? Here is my thought about the reason.

So, in Korea, my parents used to put a rug in the living room in front of a sofa every winter. When it comes to that time, my mother called me and my brother, saying “Boys! It is the time to put the carpet down in the living room.” I hated that time because we need to pull it out from the storage and clean and put it down. Well, the point is that she has been using the English word, carpet, all the time to mean, I think, a rug.

Actually, that makes me ask another question. What is the difference between a rug and a carpet? Is it the size? I bought a 4’*6′ rug. Can I also call it a carpet?

I am confused. I feel like carpet should cover the whole floor, not part of it. My friends, I need your help here.

Speaking of carpet, I learned an expression that is related with a carpet but it has nothing to do with meaning a carpet. Let me give you an example when I can use this one. Suppose that you are my son and you managed to drive my car without telling me and got an accident. I would be totally unhappy about it, right? Then, as you got home back, I will definitely call you. Here is the moment that you can use this expression. What you can say is “Oh no! I am sure my father calls me on the carpet for the accident.”

CAN YOU FEEL IT? I guess not.

It means “to question someone for his/her action.” No wonder why these days people like wood floor, not carpet, huh? 🙂

19 Apr

gas station

Gas station (source: http://pass-forward.blogspot.com/)

In 1996, I got on a plane that was bound for Vancouver, Canada. Looking back, that was the most luxurious year in my life. I spent several months in Vancouver to study English. “Studying” here may not be correct because it sounds like I spent a lot of time in Library, reading and writing English and memorizing vocabulary. Not really…. But, I did go to the library in Vancouver to meet friends, not to study English. (By the way, the library in Vancouver is so beautiful. So, if you have not been yet, you should try.) OK! Let me rephrase. I was there to LEARN English.

Making Canadian friends and spending time together with them, I was really able to learn English. Mostly, how to speak and engage in conversations without worrying about my grammatical mistakes. One of the great ways to learn English is going on a trip with friends who are native English speakers. One day, my friends and I rented a car to go to the Vancouver Island. It was beautiful and very fun.

During the trip, I learned a few interesting things. Here is the first thing I learned. As we drove the car for a while, our car asked us to provide some fuel. At that time, my friends said, “We need to find a gas station.”

Me…. so puzzled. Why? Well, it was because of the usage of the word, “gas.” Growing up, I learned that gas is anything airlike fluid substance which expands freely to fill any space available, irrespective of its quantity. And, a car needs some type of oil, not gas. So, I thought…. I thought that it should be called, “oil station,” not “gas station.”

So, I asked my friends, “Why do you call it gas station? Shouldn’t it be oil station?” They said, “No, we are pumping gasoline up into cars. So, it should be gas station.”

That is confusing. Then, what about diesel cars? Then, is it “die station?” (Use only the first three alphabets from diesel.) I do not want to go to die station. Regardless of the type of oil, they are all oil. Wouldn’t it be making more sense to call it oil station?

That is still my thought about gas station even though I am so used to call it gas station that I would also feel weird if some of my Korean friends who are new to the U.S. say oil station.

P.S: If you are going to buy or rent a car in the U.S., be ready to pump gas up by yourself. Some states have full-service areas at gas stations but many are self-service stations. In Korea, most of them are full-service.

24 Jan

Is it edible?

Where : Walmart

Terry, groomsman!

About two and half years ago, one of my close friends got married and I was invited to the wedding as one of the groomsmen. It was a new experience for me because there is no groomsman and bridesmaid in Korea. Well, I was excited to be the part of the wedding.
By the way, it was so beautiful to see autumn leaves with yellow and red colors on the way to Philadelphia from Pittsburgh. I would recommend you to take highway 76 in fall, if you can. There is nothing but mountains and leaves but it is so beautiful.

On wedding day morning, the groom called me to buy a few bags of ice for the party. My friend, one of bride’s friends and I went to Walmart close to the wedding venue. And we took some other stuff and bags of ice. At a counter, I wanted to make sure whether the ice is fine to eat or not. So, I tried to ask the clerk, “Is this ice fine for us to put into drinks. blah blah blah,” and the clerk was looking at me, trying to understand me. In the middle of my asking, the bride’s friend said one thing, “Is the ice edible?” As soon as the clerk heard her, she answered very quickly, “Oh, yeah. I do eat and it should be totally fine to eat.”

At that moment, I was talking to myself, “Huh! I know that word, edible. How come have I not thought about it at all?” A little bit embarrassed, I acted like I do not care. But, I felt I am so stupid. How easy and simple is it? “Is it edible?” Even elementary school students can say that. Knowing words is totally different from using them in conversations. To be able to use an expression or word, you have to speak it as often as possible. To be honest, I have written 180 posts into this blog but I do not remember and have not used all of them. If you want to get better in speaking English, you have to speak English. There is no other shortcuts.

Let’s start from an easy one, shall we? “Is it edible?” I am not gonna forget that expression in the rest of my life. Also, don’t forget to check the proper pronunciation before you speak. If not, no one would understand you.