Vacations Are Good for You

Taking a break may be the most important thing you do this summer

Did you know German law gives all full-time employees 20 vacation days each year? Many European countries have similar laws. That may be because vacations serve an important function: protecting people's health. 

Taking regular vacations corresponds to having a healthier heart. One study says men who miss vacations are 30 percent more likely to have heart attacks. Another looked at women who take vacations every six years or even less often. They're eight times more likely to have heart disease or heart attacks!

Other studies indicate that people who take time to relax usually have lower blood pressure. They also have lower levels of stress hormones and thinner waists! And let's not overlook the happiness that vacations bring. One survey studied people's feelings about spending money. Most were happier spending money on experiences like vacations than on possessions. Perhaps this is because they continued to share the memories with others.

Vacations keep you healthy, happy, and can help build relationships, especially if you take them with family. So what are you waiting for? Take one this summer!

Info Cloud 

In the modern America business world, there have traditionally been three ways to take time off work and still get paid.

And, they are "vacation days", "personal days", and "sick days".

For vacation days, employees schedule their time away from the office in advance. This helps bosses plan ahead, making sure the office isn't understaffed.

Personal days are intended for personal things like a doctor's appointment, unexpected things like a death in a family, or emergencies like when a child suddenly needs to go to the hospital.

OK, next are sick days. As with personal days, employees who are sick just call in at the last minute and let the boss know they're not going to work.

But, that's often inconvenient for the employer. To simplify things, including record keeping, some companies have adopted the PTO or paid time off plan. It's when all the employees' time off is lumped together in one unit. Some call it a time bank.

Right. And employees can spend their time anyway they want, so long as they give enough advanced notice. The PTO plan saves a lot of headache. But, it too, has it's disadvantages.

Which we'll talk about some other time.

vacation days 休假
personal days 事假
sick days 病假
PTO: paid time off
將員工所有的有薪假合併放在一起, 要用時提前跟老板報告就可以使用

Grammar Gym
Hello, friends, my name is Liz, and thanks for joining me here at the Grammar Gym.

In today's article we see this sentence:

"They're eight times more likely to have heart disease or heart attacks!"

Our focus today is on the phrase "more likely". It just means greater possibility.

So, when there is a greater possibility for something to happen, consider using "more likely".

For example, let's say Kevin doesn't like to go out. So when he wants to go watch a movie, Kevin is more likely to watch a DVD at home than to go to a movie theater.

Or certain studies have shown that more smokers die of cancer than non-smokers.

So we can say: Smokers are more likely to get cancer than non-smokers.

Now it's your turn to practice. Think of something that has a greater chance of happening than something else. Then, meet with a friend and try using "more likely" in a sentence.

That's all the time we have it for today. This is Liz from the Grammar Gym. I'll see you next time.


Language Lab
employee n. 雇員, 職員 [employ v. 雇用]
a person who works for another person or for a company for wages or a salary
- Over 20% of our employees are part-time workers.
我們職員當中的百分之二十是兼職的
employer n. 老闆,雇主
a person or company that has people who do work for wages or a salary
- Richard's employer sent him to the company's branch office in Japan.
Richard 被他的老闆送到日本的分公司

correspond v. 符合，一致 [cor 字首: 一起]
to be similar or equal to something
- The statements from the witness and the victim correspond.
證人和受害人的說法是一致的

correspond to 和...一致
if two things or ideas correspond, the parts or information in one relate to the parts or information in the other
- The patients' reactions to the treatment correspond to what the doctor expected.
病人對於治療的反應和醫生所預期的結果是一致的

overlook v.看漏; 忽略
to fail to see or notice (something)

- People tend to overlook small but important details.
人們常常忽略微小但時分重要的細節
- Accidents happen when safety checks are overlooked.
當我們忽略安全檢查的時候, 意外就會發生

overlook 俯瞰，眺望
to have a view looking down at (something)
- Our suite overlooks a beautiful lake.
我們旅館的套房可以眺望美麗的湖

possession n. 所擁有的東西/財產 [possess v. 擁有]
something that you own or have with you at a particular time [= belongings]
- Robert lost all his possessions in the fire.
Robert 因為火災失去了所有的財產

possession 擁有, 所有權
if something is in your possession, you own it, or you have obtained it from somewhere
- This hard disk is now in the possession of the police.
這個硬碟現在規警方所有

staycation 
think about money spending and saving money, most people choice to stay home or in town to relax and enjoy their vacation..


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