Men make houses women make homes

Ex. 1. a) Read the dialogue. Act it out with a partner.

- Hi, George.

- Tom! Good to see you.

- Yeah. Long time no see. I hear you’ve bought a house.

- That’s right. I have always wanted to have a house of my own in the suburbs.

- Your dream has come true at last. Congratulations!

- Thanks. It’s really a nice house and quite big, too.

- Is it like most of London’s suburban houses?

- Yes, it has two storeys, but there is no basement under the house. Downstairs, on the ground floor, we have a large lounge or living room, a dining room and a kitchen. There is an oak staircase leading to the landing on the first floor. Upstairs there are three bedrooms, one of which I have turned into a study, and a bathroom.

- Sounds like it has plenty of room to work, rest and entertain. What about the interior? Is it in good condition?

- The house is in excellent condition. I am sure we’ll have no problems with any of the walls, floors or ceilings.

- It’s certainly a bit of luck. And what does the house look like on the outside?

- Well, the front yard is a nice size and the hedge around it makes it a little more private.

- Is there a garage?

- Yes. There’s a two-car garage, and the driveway is newly-paved. The former owners repaired the roof of the house just before they sold it. On top of the roof there’s a chimney.

- Oh, the house has a working fireplace, doesn’t it?

- It does. Besides, we’ve put in a new furnace to have plenty of heat all winter.

- I see. Did you make any other changes?

- No, not really. We liked the way the house was planned. As you walk in through the front door, you see a little hall where we hang our hats and coats. On your right is the living room, and the door on your left leads into a small dining room. The dining room and the kitchen are connected.

- So you can cook in the kitchen and serve the meals in the dining room, huh?

- Oh, yes. And from the kitchen window you have a nice view of the backyard, enclosed by a wooden fence with a gate in it.

- Do you have a flower or vegetable garden?

- Personally, I am not very keen on gardening, but my wife loves it. We have a lawn and some flowerbeds in the front yard and a vegetable garden at the rear of the house, where Lynn grows all kinds of vegetables.

- Well, isn’t it a perfect home?

- Absolutely. Why don’t you come and visit us some time next week?

- Thanks, I’d love to.

- How about Friday night, 7 o’clock?

- Sounds perfect. What’s your address?

- 36 Pearblossom Lane.

- Got it. See you on Friday then.

- Yeah. See you.

b) In the dialogue above find English equivalents of the following words and expressions.

загородный дом

этаж (2)

цокольный этаж / подвал

первый этаж

гостиная (2)

дубовая лестница

вести куда-л.

площадка (между этажами)

второй этаж

принимать гостей

в отличном состоянии

снаружи

достаточно большой (2)

живая изгородь

скрывать от посторонних

гараж на две машины

подъездная дорожка

отопительный котел

прихожая

обнесенный забором

огород

позади дома

c) Give the opposite of the words below.

City centre, upstairs, exterior, at the bottom, attic, inside, public, floor, in poor condition, front yard.

Ex. 2 .Translate the sentences from Russian into English. Pay special attention to the underlined words and expressions.

1. Машина в отличном состоянии, я думаю, что возьму ее. 2. Миссис Бейкер открыла дверь и выглянула наружу. 3. Куда ведет эта дверь? 4. Отопительныйкотел находится в подвале. 5. Разве не скучно жить за городом? 6. (Предупреждающая надпись) Вход на территорию запрещен! (No trespassing!) Частная собственность. 7. У Митчелов большой задний двор, обнесенный каменной стеной. 8. Мне нравятся комнаты с высокими потолками. 9. Обстановка (интерьер) гостиной оставляет желать лучшего (to leave much to be desired). 10. Сэм стоял на площадкевнизулестницы. 11. У наших соседей собственныйдвухэтажный дом с гаражом на две машины и садом позади дома. 12. Внизу, на первом этаже, прихожая, уютная гостиная и небольшая кухня. 13. Только невысокая живая изгородь разделяет наши сады. 14. Когда мы принимаем гостей, обычно готовит Марк. 15. Не могли бы Вы передвинуть свою машину, она загораживает (to block) мне выезд (подъездную дорожку)?

Ex. 3. Speak about George’s house, say what you like or dislike about it. Use some of the conversational formulas below.

Likes I (really) like (that)… What I (really) like is (that)… It is nice / wonderful / great to have… I adore (it when)…

Dislikes I don’t much like… I hate (it when)… I can’t stand (it when)… The thing a like least about the house is (that)…

Ex. 4. a) Read the three extracts below. What kind of building does each one describe? Which comes from: 1) a brochure for holiday homes; 2) a letter; 3) a story?

…finally found somewhere to live! It’s on the fifth floor of this lovely old apartment block, right in the city centre. It’s very spacious and there’s lots of light, but the best thing is that it has a wonderful view of the river. If you look out you can actually see the parliament building…

…this three-storey house with a charming balcony is situated in a small village on the west coast of the island.

Set in its own private garden with a large swimming pool, it has 6 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, a modern kitchen and an attractive living room. There are tennis courts within a few minutes drive, and bars and supermarkets nearby.

…the address was in the suburbs, at the end of a quiet street. Sylvia went up the path, unlocked the front door, and walked in. Inside, the rooms were small and rather dark. As she looked round the living room, she noticed some wood next to the fireplace and the vase of fresh flowers by the window. The old-fashioned furniture was simple but elegant and there were colourful rugs on the wooden floor. At the back of the house there was a small, sunny courtyard with some plants in pots. Sylvia smiled. It was perfect.

(From Cutting Age)

b) Check the meaning of the words and phrases in bold type and add them to the categories below.

where things are: on the fifth floor

types of building: an apartment block

phrases to describe buildings and places: spacious

things buildings have: 6 bedrooms

things rooms have: old-fashioned furniture

Ex. 5. Use these questions to interview your partner about where he/she lives. Tell the class about your partner’s house/flat comparing it with your own home.

1) Do you live in a flat or a house? Where is it? What is the neighbourhood like?

2) Which floor is it on?/How many storeys does your house have?

3) How many bedrooms/bathrooms are there?

4) Does it have a nice view/garden/balcony?

5) What other important features does it have?

Ex. 6. a) Practice reading the following names.

François Labbé [fron'swa: la:'bei], Saint-Isidore [sæn'izido:], Nice [ni:s], Justo Gallego ['dзustou 'gæligou], Majorada del Campo [maijo:ֽra:dэdel'kΛmpou], Madrid [mэ'drid], Jim Onan [dзim 'ounæn], Illinois [ֽili'noi], Aaron Spelling ['εэrэn 'speliŋ], Tennessee [ֽtenэ'si:], Elvis Presley ['elvis 'prezli]

b) Read and translate the text.

Building Your Dream…

For most people, a dream home is just that… a dream. But for those people who have the right combination of money and imagination, building that dream can become reality and the results can be rather strange!

A Frenchman named François Labbé built the world’s first revolving house in the village of Saint-Isidore, near Nice. Made of metal, it can turn to the sun at the press of a button. A Spanish ex-priest named Justo Gallego spent nearly thirty years building his own personal cathedral in Majorada del Campo, a small town 25 kilometres east of Madrid. The strange building looks like a castle with its two 55-metre towers. The roof is made of zinc and its entrance is similar to that of the White House in Washington, D.C.

Not surprisingly, perhaps, it’s in the United States that the idea of dream homes seems strongest. Jim Onan, of Illinois, USA, built his own five-storey golden pyramid. The pyramid is surrounded by water – and just to make sure there are no unwanted visitors, there are sharks swimming around in it! The pyramid has five bedrooms, six bathrooms and an observatory on the top floor so Jim can watch the stars in peace.

But that’s tiny compared to the Hollywood home of TV producer Aaron Spelling: the house itself occupies 3,390 square metres, and contains four bars, three kitchens, eight garages, a doll museum and a special room for wrapping presents!

And if it’s technology you’re interested in, computer billionaire Bill Gates spent over $50 million on his state-of-the-art home by Lake Washington. Everyone who enters receives an electronic pin which controls lights, services and even turns off the TV when you leave the room!

Perhaps America’s most famous dream home is a white-columned mansion in Memphis, Tennessee, which now attracts 700,000 visitors a year. Graceland, Elvis Presley’s ‘rock ’n’ roll palace’ was decorated in his favourite bright colours – red, orange and green – and is filled with velvet, gold, wall-sized mirrors, and enormous statues. Elvis lived at Graceland with his family from 1957 – but became more and more lonely there. He died alone in an upstairs bathroom in 1977.

(From Cutting Age)

с) In the text find English equivalents of the following words and expressions. Complete the sentences with appropriate words.

сочетание чего-л.

вращающийся

одним нажатием кнопки

быть похожим на

незваный гость

крошечный

по сравнению с

сделанный по последнему слову техники

особняк

в ярких тонах

размером во всю стену

1. __________ our small flat, Bill’s house seemed like a palace.

2. The building is a strange __________ baroque and rococo styles.

3. __________ the room plunged into darkness.

4. We have a guard dog to keep __________ out of the garden.

5. __________ doors allow people to come in without losing all the heat inside the building.

6. The Nelsons’ new home was not just a house, it was a very expensive-looking beautiful country __________.

7. The University science laboratories have __________ equipment.

8. The room was extremely small, really __________.

9. I’d like the bedroom to be furnished in soft pastel __________.

10. Rosalind’s idea of a good roommate is __________ mine, so we are thinking of sharing a room.

11. I want an apartment with a fair-_____ kitchen.

d) Answer the questions to the text.

1) Which of the places is near Madrid?

2) How much does Bill Gates’ house cost?

3) Which of the houses has a toy museum inside?

4) What famous building does Gallego’s place look like as you walk in?

5) Whose house has enormous mirrors on the walls?

6) Where can you find a lot of large statues?

7) What special room is there in Aaron Spelling’s house?

8) Where is the place with a special system to operate the lights and television located?

9) What is special about François Labbé’s house near Nice?

10) Which of the houses in the text would you most like to visit/live in? Why?

Ex. 7. a) Read the text paying special attention to the names of furnishings and prepositions of place.

It is the twenty-fifth century. A group of children is visiting the National Museum of the Past. One child has a lot of questions for the tour guide.

Guide: We are now entering a typical living room of the late twentieth century.

Child: What’s that box in the middle of the room? And why are all those chairs in front of it?

Guide: That box is called a television. People used to look at the pictures on it for hours and hours. They used to sit in those armchairs or on the sofa, which is that big chair for two or three people.

Child: Did people have machines for listening to music in those days, like we do now?

Guide: Yes, of course. This machine in the corner is called a stereo. It has four parts. This part on top was used for playing round black disks called records. Underneath that, you can see the radio. Underneath the radio, there’s a cassette player, which was used for playing music on tape. And underneath the cassette player, there’s a compact disk player. It was used for playing music recorded on small round disks called CD’s.

Child: What’s that low table in front of the sofa? Is that a kind of desk?

Guide: No, their desks were much bigger and they had drawers. That’s called a coffee table. In those days people used to drink something called coffee and smoke things called cigarettes. They used to put their coffee cups on this table while they were watching television. They dropped the ash from their cigarettes into that glass dish. That’s why it’s called an ashtray. Coffee and cigarettes have been illegal for the last two hundred and fifty years.

Child: And what are those things on the shelves over there behind the dining table? Are they books?

Guide: Yes, they are. And the piece of furniture with the shelves is called a bookcase.

Child: Didn’t they have computers?

Guide: Yes, they did. Personal computers were invented towards the end of the century and revolutionized everyone’s lives. Now then, I’d like someone to turn off that old lamp by pushing the switch on its side. I’ll close the curtain to make the room a bit darker and we’ll turn on this television and watch a very popular twentieth-century movie for children. It’s about a mouse called Mickey.

(From American Vocabulary Builder 2)

b) Pick out those things which probably do not exist in the twenty-fifth century, according to the conversation between the guide and the child.

1. books

2. coffee

3. televisions

4. chairs

5. desks

6. curtains

7. records

8. radios

9. computers

10. sofas

11. shelves

12. machines for playing music

13. ashtrays

14. dining tables

15. Mickey Mouse movies

Ex. 8. a) In the text of Ex.7a find an expression similar in meaning to ‘press the button’. Study the given expressions with the nouns ‘button’ and ‘switch’, check their meaning in the dictionary. Translate the sentences below from English into Russian.

press / push the right buttons

press / push smb’s buttons

at / with the push / touch of a button = at the flick of a switch

press / push / flick / throw a switch

make the switch (from smth) to smth

1. Press the pause button.

2. She seemed to push all the right buttons.

3. He really knows how to push Dad’s buttons.

4. The instrument can measure a distance with the push of a button.

5. Petrol can be chosen at the flick of a switch.

6. Tom flicked the switch, but nothing happened.

7. I want to make the switch to fruit and vegetables.

b) Make up your own sentences with the set expressions.

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