Tag: around the corner
Know thy enemy
Phrase: Know thy enemy With Christmas around the corner and the New Year fast approaching, it’s only natural to look back on the past year of accomplishments, lessons learned, and mistakes made. Of course, the year’s major event that has affected everyone on earth has been the Russo-Ukraine War. The famous Chinese general Sun Tzu…
Good things come to those who wait
Expression: Good things come to those who wait The end is fast approaching! The end of the year, that is. That means Christmas is just around the corner with the New Year on its heels. They say good things come to those who wait, and when it pertains to dates on the calendar, we have…
Top brass
Word of the Day: Top brass Sometimes, when I introduce a word in my classes, a student will say they have never seen that word before. Well, top brass is a term you may see a lot more of in the coming months. Top brass refers to people in the highest positions of an organization, such…
Chunk of change
WotD: Chunk of change Christmas is just around the corner, which causes me to think of certain things. You may imagine I’m thinking of candy canes, Santa Claus, turkey, and presents, but actually, what I’m thinking about is money. Christmas costs a hefty chunk of change. A chunk of change is a lot of money.…
On the cusp
Phrase: On the cusp You, me, we, I, the world, are always on the cusp of something. What does that mean exactly? Well, the cusp is the line between two different things. Now, you can’t see the line, and often you don’t know when that line was crossed until you look back and analyze what…
In dribs and drabs
Phrase: In dribs and drabs The future holds some enormous changes for Japan. The challenge is that Japan doesn’t like to change. Well, it doesn’t like dramatic and sudden change. Japan prefers change to occur in dribs and drabs. That means change occurs a little bit at a time in small amounts. There’s nothing too…
Pure as the driven snow
Phrase: Pure as the driven snow Living in the southern Kansai area, I can very happily say that I rarely see snow. Originally I came from the Great White North, otherwise known as Canada to you Southerners. I have had many opportunities to see, shovel and curse snow. That is the main reason why I…
Educated guess
WotD: Educated guess Two things in life are vital to being successful: knowledge and experience. If a person possesses both of these things in the correct amounts, they should be able to make educated guesses about the future and prepare accordingly. An educated guess is much different than a pure guess. An educated guess is…
Late to the table
Phrase: Late to the table More than 13,000 people were stuck at Narita Airport during typhoon Faxai. One of the chief complaints was that there was very little information in English. When it comes to English language fluency or bilingualism, Japan has been late to the table. It’s not too late to change, but the…
Like a moth to a flame
Phrase: Like a moth to a flame The coming of spring has caused me to think about the phrase like a moth to a flame. The phrase indicates how much a person is attracted to someone or something. It also has a negative connotation: a moth will be burned if it gets too close to a…
