英语播客 A Cup of English Colors at the carnival.

These past two weeks have been Apple Blossom here in Wenatchee. It is a springtime celebration that brings in a lot of business to the area, and is great fun. Just around the time that the apple blossoms appear, the setting up of this week begins. We see large trucks coming into town with the equipment for the food fair, the carnival, the parade, and all the related games and stalls. This annual event has taken place for 90 years, and has grown from a one day event to about eleven days of celebration. It is run by volunteers from different groups, and overseen and organized by the Applarians, which are a group dedicated to the festival. The carnival was the main attraction for us this year. Our children are now at the ages when we can relax a bit more; when you have young babies and toddlers, it's a bit hectic and tiring to go to a carnival. In fact, our oldest is what we call a pre-teen, so he is very much into the scary rides, the fastest, scariest ones that would probably make me throw up. "Are you sure you want to go on that, Hudson? It looks at bit crazy to me," I said when he asked me if he could go on the 'Hard Rocker'. Silly question, really. Obviously he was sure that he wanted to go on the ride, otherwise he wouldn't have asked me! Sure, go ahead, get locked in a metal cage that swings 360 degrees, and then the whole ride spins around fast. As long as it's you and not me. He did the scariest rides with his friends who were as braves as him. Oh, to be a teenager again. No thanks. I would rather keep my feet on the ground and just watch. We did, however, all have a great time. The kids went on several rides each, and finished off with cotton candy. And I enjoyed the colors and interesting sights of our little yearly carnival.

Grammar notes.

Practice of the subjunctive in positive and negative phrases plus related vocabulary: cotton candy, hectic, a stall, to oversee.

1. If I had known that they sell cotton candy, I would have brought some money.

2. Your life wouldn't be so hectic if you were more organized.

3. If she could choose her career, she would own a large organic vegetable stall.

4. He wouldn't oversee the project as general manager, if he wasn't qualified.