220 - The Signs of the Zodiac (pl) / The Zodiac (singular) / Star Signs (pl) <em> ** We have different ways to say this :)</em>

The signs of the zodiac are an important part of <s>the</s> western popular culture. Here in Italy a lot of TV shows have a special segment / a slot dedicated to them. I don't know many of my peers who consider <s>the </s>a person's zodiac sign to be important, but it's the opposite case when we speak to older people. This is especially true for women. I'm not really sure about this but it might be that all the women I know believe in zodiac signs and that planets have an influence on people's lives. I'm not writing this notebook entry to judge anyone but just to describe the situation where I live. To be honest, I don't have a strong opinion on this subject. Nevertheless, I still find it interesting.

Do you believe in zodiac signs?

Last Wednesday was my birthday. My brother asked me to go to the hills near Verona with his friends.

I went to my brother’s house at 9.00 and then we went to an area 10 Km away where we met some other people.

We organized two cars and started our trip <s>to arrived</s> to the park<em> *under </em>the hills. - (*Is the park under the ground?)

We walked for 8.0 km <s>in the middle of the nature</s> in the countryside, met some more groups of people there and *saw a deer near a little wood. <em>(*We can't meet animals</em>)

At 13.00 we reached a chalet with a restaurant where we ate some typical food and drank two very good kinds of beer. We were happy and sang some Italian songs with the landlord and his staff.

My friends gave me a gift: a ticket for a weekend in *Firenze.<em> (Or you can say Florence in English)</em>

At 16.00 we returned to the cars and <s>so</s> went back home.

I enjoyed myself and I want to thank my brother and my friend for the trip and the gift.

The story is about a couple in love. Huw is a young man with a drunken father. He works in a mine and is poor. His lover Megan is a young woman whose father has many plans for her. Megan's father Mr Jenkins wants her to go to college. He disagrees with his daughter's relationship with Huw. All of this changes when Huw´s brother dies in the mine. Huw's father gets into a lot of trouble and the only solution they find is to travel to Canada with his uncle. <em>(Is this Huw's uncle of Huw's father's uncle? It is not clear)</em>

Fifty years later, Megan is tidying up some of her father´s belongings when suddenly she finds several unopened letters sent to her by Huw. She realises that her father had lied to her. All this time she had been asking her father about Huw´s letters but he had always told her that she must forget him. By this point Megan has her own family and Huw is now divorced with a son called Mike. Both Megan and Huw have moved on with their lives. Megan decides to send a letter to Huw in which she explains to him what happened.

mine = a place where you go to get coal etc

miner = a person who works in a mine

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Very good effort! Well done! :-)

My weekend

On my last weekend I travel to another city to celebrate my sister's graduation because she finish her college. It was a great cellebration and party. Also I eated great food and talk to my others parents. In a specific time the pleople start to dance but I don't dance because I leave the party early after the dinner.

Last weekend I travelled to another city to celebrate my sister's graduation because she finished college. It was a great celebration <s>and party</s>. <s>Also</s> I ate some great food and talked to the other parents there. At one point the people there started dancing but I didn't join in because I left the party early after the dinner.

I did something stupid today. I laughed at someone for no reason! Afterwards, I felt bad about it.

1: She has blue eyes. <em>(Good :-)</em>

2: I saw her <s>at</s> in the science room 3 days ago. ('At' is the wrong preposition for 'room')

Thank you :-)

I hope this helps you!

Melbourne is one of the biggest cities in Australia. There are many people from a variety of countries living or studying here. It is also well-known as a multicultural, artistic and traditional city. There are many events taking place all over the city <s>everytime</s> throughout the year. The winter night market is one of the famous ones. Many people enjoy the food, music and cultural activities there very much but there are both pros and cons in hosting it.

One of the advantages of hosting the winter night market is that the event attracts not only the locals but also many of tourists from foreign countries. They spend a lot of money on food, drinks and souvenirs. It is very beneficial to the city's economy. Furthermore, the event creates a lot of jobs for local people. For example as event organizers, security guards and cleaners. It also helps with community development.

However, there are also disadvantages <s>in it</s>. The event results in tons of rubbish being produced in only a few days. It is a bad for the environment and the city council has to waste a lot of money on rubbish collection paid for by our taxes. Another disadvantage is traffic jams. Many people come here and go home within a short space of time thereby causing serious traffic congestion.

In my view, of course there are the pros and cons but the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. These kinds of events bring many benefits to the economy. I think many foreign students would choose to study in Melbourne if we had more events like these as they revitalize the local economy. Therefore, hosting this event is a good idea.

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I hope this helps! Eigo de gambatte kudasai! :-)

Hi Tom,

(1) I've left the office for a couple of hours because I have to take my dog to the vet. Our (2)boss asked me to complete a report for the Green Company (3) about (4)our firm's financial situation. Please (5) could you finish (6) it for me. (7)You'll find an Excel file on my desktop <s>it is</s> (8)named "Green Oil". The boss also added that (9a)he would like to check the report before it's printed, so email (9b)him a copy. I'll back at (10)16:00.

Thanks

Peter

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(1) Hi this is an informal note so you can use contractions if you want. I + have = I've

(5) you should do = 'I think it is a good idea for you to do' - but really you want to make a request and ask him to do it for you. I would use 'could you' instead.

(6) We already know that you are talking about writing a report. Therefore use 'it' the object pronoun

(7) 'You are going to' sounds like you and Tom already made a plan together yesterday to find the file. Use 'will' as it's more spontaneous.

(8) 'a boy named Simon', 'a file named Green Oil, a girl named Angela etc.

(9a/9b) Be careful here! he -> him she -> her they -> them <em>etc. </em>