Tag Archives: nfl

10 Jan

long haul

Who taught: Ginny

Long haul - a ghost marriage (source: http://thelonghaulproject.com/)

If you want to live in the U.S., there are a few things that you really need to try to have interest in. American football is one of them. NFL (National Football League) has 32 teams (16 under AFC and 16 under NFC). There are so many offensive and defensive positions and also the rules are pretty complicated. But, once you start to watch games, you would enjoy them a lot. I love them. And, of course, I am a big fan of the Pittsburgh Steelers. If you do not support any team yet, you should consider to be a fan of the Steelers. It will be more fun. 🙂

Even though it is fun to watch games, there is one thing I do not like when it comes to any game time. There are so many ADs. In theory, a game should take only an hour (four 15-minute quarters) to finish. However, in reality, it usually takes around 3 and half hours. If it is a Sunday afternoon or night game, it is not bad to watch. But, sometimes, a game can be scheduled to be held at Monday night. It is a pretty tiring experience to watch a Monday night game.

A few weeks ago, Steelers played agains San Francisco 49ers at Monday night. Right before I watched the game, I checked facebook need. Ginny, one of my friends, updated her status, “I am in for the long haul tonight,” meaning a long Monday night football game between Steelers and 49ers.

That was my first time to see the expression, long haul. I automatically looked it up on a dictionary. It says it means “a long distance” or “a lengthy job.” A few days ago, I heard the same expression watching a TV show. On the show, an actress said, “We have been married for the long haul.”

We all know what long is. Knowing the definition of the word, haul, will definitely help you feel this expression. It means to pull or drag forcibly. Does it make you think? You know what I think now. I think of pulling a washer. Man, a washer is too heavy to even lift. You gotta just pull or drag with a lot of efforts. What if you haul a washer for a long time? You would be exhausted. That is what a long haul means. For example, a long flight from the U.S. to South Korea is definitely a long haul. It is a long distance as well as a hard and lengthy job. Don’t you agree? The opposite expression is of course a short haul. And there is another expression, backhaul. Why don’t you look it up by yourself?

06 Sep

pepper in talk?


Pep talk (source:http://brownsharpie.courtneygibbons.org/)

Today was Labor day which is one of the national holidays in the United States. In addition to the fact that people do not go to work, it has a few meanings to the American people. It is the end of summer. To enjoy the symbolic last day of the summer, people go for a picnic where they grill a lot. Labor day also meas the start of NFL and college football season, which I am so happy about. After labor day, the number of people playing golf decrease a lot because people start to watch college football on saturdays and NFL on sundays. These are a few things I know about Labor day. Do you guys know anything else you want to share?

Moving on to today’s expression, let me ask you a question! Have you ever experienced any situation that your boss or boss’s boss call a meeting and make a short or long talk about work, work, work? Well, more specifically, the main thing that he/she is trying to say is that you need to work harder? I am sure you do have that experience, (In which you would be talking to yourself like, “Oh! Great! Here it goes again!”) Maybe you are the one who is making that talk? Oh… good luck with that! Well, either way… Do you know what is the English expression you can use for that kind of talk? It is called, “PEP TALK.”

Definitions I found on the web are:

1. a vigorous, emotional talk, as to a person or group, intended to arouse enthusiasm or increase determination to succeed, etc.

2. This is usually a 5-10 minute speech given by your Supervisor at work,so as to make you work twice as hard for the same amount of money.

Well, the first one sounds pretty good but, in reality, you would hear pep talk in relation to the second one. Don’t you think?

Anyways, I had to find the origin of “PEP” to figure out why people started to use the expression. PEP is a shortened form of pepper. Now, in general, putting some peppers in your food sort of stimulates your appetite, doesn’t it? (American people use pepper a lot in the food. And, I do also love peppers.) Having that kind of feeling, what would be your feeling if someone add pepper in their talks? That is right! It is encouraging and stimulating. Another very good example of pep talk is the time when a coach of a football team tries to encourage the players before they go out to play a game, like “Hey, Guys, It is the time that you guys just go out there and show what you have! Let’s go! You can do it!”

Now, let’s put some peppers in your talk when you want to encourage yourself, shall we!