June

“And what is so rare as a day in June? Then, if ever, come perfect days.” – James Russell Lowell

Temperatures rise, flowers fill gardens, skies are sunny, and people head off to the beach in the Northern Hemisphere! Spring ends as summer begins on June 21 with the longest day of the year. 

In the Southern Hemisphere, however winter begins, bringing cold, rainy weather. In Iceland, Fishermen's Day celebrations occur the first weekend of June as fishing is an important aspect of the country's economics. All fishing boats dock in the harbors so that the fishermen can attend the carnivals and festivities that are held.

And in Asia, people celebrate Dragon Boat Festival with dragon boat races and by eating the traditional Chinese rice dumpling zongzi (粽子). Both commemorate the death of patriot Qu Yuan (屈原 ). 

The rose, June's traditional flower, symbolizes love and appreciation. The birthstone for June is the pearl, a symbol of purity. This gem is the only one that comes from a living creature. Those who like candy can go ahead and satisfy their sweet tooth as June is Candy Month! But it is also Fresh Fruit and Vegetables Month, so balance the sweets with those!

Grammar Gym
Hello, Friends, welcome to the Grammar Gym, my name is Liz. In today's article we read " ....Winter begins bringing cold, rainy weather." That's our grammar tip sentence. Our focus today is on the sentence pattern " Notice the pattern, [subject] + [verb 1], [verb-ing 2].

This is a great sentence pattern to use when you want to talk about the conditions or results of a situation. Looking at today's grammar tip sentence, you can see there are two parts.

Part 1, Winter begins. Part 2, Winter brings cold, rainy weather.
Part 1 is the main point of the sentence, winter begins.
But part 2 describes part 1 winter brings cold, rainy weather.
Put the two together, add a comma in between both parts. and make sure the verb in part 2 ends in ing form. and that's the sentence pattern. Let's look at some example sentences.

- The tired traveler climbed on board the train, dragging his suitcase with him.
- The dog chased the thief down the road, barking wildly and waking up the whole neighborhood.

And, that's it for today. Thanks for joining me here at the Grammar Gym. This is Liz, and I'll see you next time.

Info Cloud
port/harbor 大海港/ 小港口

harbor n.
an area of water next to the land where the water is calm, so that ships are safe when they are inside it
port n.
a place where ships can be loaded and unloaded

port city  a city near the port: Los Angels.
harbor 小型海港, 也指“海港的水域”，port include harbor, harbor is not port.
dock in the harbors. 停泊在大型海港

Language Lab
head off somewhere [phrasal verb] 動身前往
to go to another place
- Don't worry! Well be heading off soon, We won't be late.
head off to somewhere 去那兒用介系詞 to +地點 place
- The boss will head off to the convention center in a minute.
- Online shopping impacted the economics of retail business.

economics n.一個國家或是一個公司的狀況或體制
a science concerned with the process or system by which goods and services are produced, sold, and bought
- Online shopping impacted the economics of retail businesses.
economic adj. 經濟的, 有經濟效益的
relating to trade, industry, and the management of money
- The economic growth of the country has slowed down in the past two years.

patriot n. 愛國者, 愛國主義者 [o發ə ]
/ˈpeɪtrijət/
a person who loves and strongly supports or fights for his or her country  
- Henry has been a fierce patriot since he was a teenager.
patriotic adj.愛國的 [o發 重音在第3音節]
/ˌpeɪtriˈɑ:tɪk/
having or showing great love and support for your country : having or showing patriotism  
patriotic songs 愛國歌曲

appreciation  n. 感恩，感謝
a feeling of being grateful for something someone has done
- The students expressed their appreciation to their teacher through a song.
appreciation 欣賞, 賞識
pleasure you feel when you realize something is good, useful, or well done
- Exposure to great art work can enhance children's appreciation of art.

commemorate v.
/kəˈmɛməˌreɪt/
to do something to show that you remember and respect someone important or an important event in the past

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