HOST:
Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC – VOA’s radio magazine in SpecialEnglish.
(THEME)
This is Bob Doughty. On our program today …
We play songs from the show “Don’t Stop the Carnival”…
answer a question about an English expression …
and … tell how an American holiday is celebrated in Europe.
Fourth of July in Denmark
HOST:
Next Wednesday is the Fourth of July-America’s Independence Day.Americans celebrate the anniversary of their declaration ofindependence from Britain in Seventeen-Seventy-Six.
Each year, Americans hold parties to celebrate the Fourth ofJuly. They fly American flags, sing patriotic songs and lightfireworks. It might surprise you to learn that America’sIndependence Day also is celebrated in Denmark. Shirley Griffithexplains.
ANNCR:
From the middle Eighteen-Eighties until Nineteen-Hundred, one ofevery ten people in Denmark moved to the United States. They werepoor farmers seeking a new economy and a better life. Most settledin America’s middle west.
In Nineteen-Twelve, these immigrants created an organizationcalled the Danish-American Society. It bought land back home inDenmark near the city of Aalborg, about two-hundred-fifty kilometersnorthwest of Copenhagen. The society gave the land to Denmark on thecondition that America’s Independence Day would be celebrated thereevery year.
Denmark’s ruler at the time, King Christian, agreed. Heestablished a national park on the land. He said the park wouldrepresent the friendship between the two nations.
That is why America’s Independence Day has been celebrated atRebild National Park and in the city of Aalborg ever since.
Over the years, hundreds of thousands of visitors have joinedwith Danes in the celebration at Rebild Park. American and Danishflags fly side by side. People eat American and Danish food. Theylisten to speeches. Speakers in the past have included formerpresidents George Bush and Ronald Reagan and actor Danny Kaye.
Celebrations in nearby Aalborg extend over a few days. Eventsinclude concerts and shows. This year, the United States Air ForceBand will take part in the celebration.
The final event of the Fourth of July celebration in Aalborg isthe same as in the United States — fireworks. Then the nation ofDenmark ends its celebration of America’s Independence Day untilnext year.
Two-by-Four
HOST:
Our VOA listener question this week comes in an E-mail fromIndonesia. Antonius Japarizal would like us to explain the words”two-by-four.” He says he has heard it in the sentence, “You have touse a two-by-four to get his attention.”
This question really belongs in our program, “Words and theirStories,” but we will answer it anyway. A two-by-four is a piece ofwood. The name comes from the measurement of the wood — two inchesby four inches. That is about five centimeters by ten centimeters.Or two times as wide as it is thick.
A two-by-four is usually cut to the length you need. It is usedin houses and other buildings. A two-by-four is very common. You canbuy it in almost any store in the United States that sells buildingsupplies and wood.
Now to explain the sentence. Let us say you work with a young manwho has not been performing well at work. He can think of nothingbut a young woman he recently met. All he can think of is the nexttime he will see her or talk to her on the telephone. His mind hasonly room for thoughts of the young woman.
You might say of such a person, “You have to hit him with atwo-by-four to get him to pay attention.”
The English language is full of such sayings. Some of them arevery funny. Here are two more.
Let us say this same young man has a new dog. It is a nice dog,but not very smart. The young man has been trying to train the dog.But the dog can not learn to obey the most simple command.
You might say the dog is as stupid “as a sack full of hammers.” Ahammer is a tool you use to hit nails into a two-by-four. But ahammer can not think or do anything. A sack full of hammers isreally useless.
You could also say the same dog is a real “air head.” This meansthe dog has no brain, only air in its head.
All three of these expressions are similar. You could use any oneof them to explain the young man who thinks of nothing but his newlady friend. But you get the idea. I do not have to hit you with atwo-by-four to get your attention, because you are not an airhead.And no one who listens to Special English is as dumb as a sack fullof hammers.
“Don’t Stop The Carnival”
HOST:
American singer and songwriter Jimmy Buffett loves the Caribbeanarea and its music. A few years ago, he and writer Herman Woukworked together to produce a musical play. The story was based onMister Wouk’s book, “Don’t Stop the Carnival.” The show was firstperformed in the American state of Florida. Now it has opened in theBahamas. Jimmy Buffett says it might go to Broadway in New York Citysometime in the future. Steve Ember tells us about it.
ANNCR:
“Don’t Stop the Carnival” is about a man named Norman Papermanwho leaves New York City and buys a hotel in the Caribbean. The showstarts with the chorus singing about him.
((CUT 1: THE LEGEND OF NORMAN PAPERMAN))
Jimmy Buffett also owned a hotel in the Caribbean. It burned tothe ground. Norman Paperman also has nothing but trouble with hishotel. This song tells about his problem with the water supply.
((CUT 2: CHAMPAGNE SI, AGUA NO))
“Don’t Stop the Carnival” is a funny show about how Normanoperates his hotel and organizes his life. He finally decides to goback to New York. We leave you now with the final song from the show”Don’t Stop the Carnival.” It is called “Time To Go Home.”
((CUT 3: TIME TO GO HOME))
HOST:
This is Bob Doughty. I hope you enjoyed our program today. And Ihope you will join us again next week for AMERICAN MOSAIC-VOA’sradio magazine in Special English.
This AMERICAN MOSAIC program was written by Nancy Steinbach andPaul Thompson. Our studio engineer was Tom Verba. And our producerwas Paul Thompson.