米字旗起源杂谈
文章摘要：我们大概都知道英国国旗长什么样子吧~现在国内的服饰、装饰好多都用英国国旗相关的图案彰显英伦风。但是，你知道英国国旗的历史吗？它可不是从来就是现在这个样子的！
你知道吗？英国的四个地区英格兰、苏格兰、威尔士以及北爱尔兰都有各自的旗帜。现在广泛使用的英国国旗又称作"the Union Jack”或者"the Union Flag”，由深蓝底色和红、白色“米”字组成。
英国国旗产生于1801年，是由原英格兰的白地红色正十旗（代表英格兰守护神圣乔治）、苏格兰的蓝地白色交叉十字旗（代表苏格兰守护神圣安德鲁）和爱尔兰的白地红色交叉十字旗（代表爱尔兰守护神圣帕特里克）重叠而成。
按照顺序，首先是苏格兰旗(St Andrews’s Cross)和英格兰的旗(St George’s Cross)组合在一起，然后爱尔兰王国的旗帜(St Patrick’s Cross)也被叠加了上来，最后形成的了现在的样子。
Saint Andrew's（圣安德鲁）Cross是苏格兰的国旗，象征着苏格兰国民的忠诚。圣安德鲁是苏格兰的守护者，传说他就是被钉在X型的十字架上，所以知道为什么旗子上是个白色X型的十字啦！
请看下面介绍：
The Union Flag has been used in a variety of forms since the proclamation by Orders in Council （枢密令） 1606, when the Flag of Scotland and the Flag of England were first merged to symbolize the Union of the Crowns. (The Union of the Crowns having occurred in 1603).
In Scotland, and in particular on Scottish vessels at sea, historical evidence suggests that a separate design of Union Flag was flown to that used in England. However, following the Acts of Union （《合并法令》）of 1707, which united the Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England to become the Kingdom of Great Britain , the 'English' version of the Union Flag was adopted as the official Flag of Great Britain.
From 1801, in order to symbolise the union of the Kingdom of Great Britain with the Kingdom of Ireland, a new design which included the St Patrick's Cross was adopted for the flag of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. The Flag of the United Kingdom, having remained unchanged following the partition of Ireland in 1921 and creation of the Irish Free State and Northern Ireland, continues to be used as the flag of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
1606年，詹姆斯一世统一英格兰和苏格兰时，将这两面旗帜图案重叠起来，作为大不列颠的国旗。英国国旗的历史最早可追溯到1606年。1603年，当时英格兰和苏格兰拥有了同一位国王，在英格兰的名叫詹姆士一世，在苏格兰的名叫詹姆士六世。
1606年4月12日制定的国旗，是由英格兰的圣乔治十字旗和苏格兰的圣安德鲁旗交叉合并而成，但和现在的有点不一样，没有红色的斜杠(圣帕特里克十字)。
爱尔兰的圣帕特里克的白地红色"x"型十字旗，最早是爱尔兰菲茨诺德家族的旗帜;1801年，爱尔兰与大不列颠联合组成王国后，这面旗帜又与大不列颠国旗重叠，最后形成了大不列颠及北爱尔兰联合王国的这面构图奇特的“米字旗”。
Green：我是新人，请多关照！
文章摘要：驾车已经成为了现代人的基本生存技能，但是新手司机很可能成为马路杀手哦~今天我们就来学习一下和驾车相关的green一词的特殊用法。
He is green at riding motorbikes.
意思是说他是新手上路、没有经验。这里的 green 通常是说某人的技术或者工作不成熟、缺乏经验。我们摔得够呛，你这车技也太 green 了。I'm a bit green at video editing, so it takes me a long time to edit things.
He's a bit green in this job so he's bound to need some help.
My uncle's very green at searching the internet. He prefers to go to the library.
实用语法总结之"动词+for"[1]
文章摘要：考试中经常会碰到这样的考题，让你选择一个动词后该搭配哪个介词。大家一定都很头疼这种题目吧！别急，今天我们就来为大家汇总一下搭配for的动词短语，你可要记清楚咯。
account for 解释，说明;是……的原因;弄清……的下落;占（一定数量或比例）
How can you account for the accident? 你如何解释这个事故？
I want you to account for every cent you spent. 我要你说明你所花的每一分钱的用途。
Recent pressure at work may account for his behavior. 他的行为也许是最近的工作压力导致的。
One small child was still not accounted for. 还有一个小孩下落不明。
Afro-Americans account for 12% of the US population. 非洲裔美国人占美国人口的12%。
act for 代理
Please act for me during my absence. 我不在时请代理我处理事务。
I acted for our captain while he was in hospital. 我们队长住院时由我代理他。
allow for 考虑到，把……考虑进来；体谅
We should allow for every possible delay. 我们应该考虑到任何可能的延误。
We must allow for his youth. 我们必须体谅他的年轻。
answer for 对……负责，对……承担责任；保证；代表
I will answer for it (him). 我愿对它（他）负责。
One day you’ll have to answer for what you’ve done. 有一天你得对你今天的所作所为承担责任。
I agree but I can’t answer for my friends. 我同意，但我不能代表我的朋友也同意。
【注】该短语通常用于将来时态或含有情态动词的句子，其后可接名词或代词，一般不接 that 从句，若要接that从句，则应先接形式宾语 it。如：
I can’t answer for his honesty.=I can’t answer for it that he is honest. 我不能保证他是诚实的。
apologize for 为……而道歉
He apologized for not being able to meet her. 他因为未能去接她而向她道歉。
I must apologize for the delay in replying to your letter. 未能及时给你回信，我得向你道歉。
apply for申请（请求）得到
He applied for a job as an English teacher. 他申请得到一份当英语教师的工作。
They applied to the government for financial help. 他们向政府申请经济援助。
blame … for 埋怨，责怪
Movies have been blamed for the crime wave. 电影已被指责要对犯罪率上升负责。
The conductor is blamed for the accident. 售票员因那次事故而受到指责。
call for 大声呼叫；去接（某人）
The baby is calling for his mother. 婴孩叫着要母亲。
I’ll call for you at six o’clock. 6点时我将去接你。
care for 关心；想要
He always cares for my health. 他一直关心我的健康。
Would you care for some tea? 想喝点茶吗？
change…for 将……更换为
I’d like to change this dress for another. 我想换另一件相同款式的衣服。
The boy change soiled clothes for clean ones. 这个男孩脱下脏衣服换上干净衣服。
exchange…for 以……交换，兑换
I’ve just bought this tie, but can I exchange it for that one? 我刚买了这条领带，可不可以换那条呢？
Can I exchange pounds for dollars here? 我可以在这里把英镑兑换成美元吗？
excuse … for 因为……而原谅（宽恕）
She excused him for being late. 她原谅他迟到。
Excuse me for bothering you. 请原谅我打扰你。
hope for 希望（有），期待（得到），希望（发生）
She is hoping for her son’s early marriage. 她希望她的儿子能早日结婚。
There is every reason to hope for success. 有充分的理由期待成功的到来。
leave (…) for 离开（……）去，动身去
He left for New York yesterday. 他昨天去了纽约。
We are leaving London for Paris on Friday. 星期五我们将离开伦敦前往巴黎。
listen for 留神听，倾听
She listened for his step. 她在注意听有没有他的脚步声。
The children listened for the clock to announce the New Year. 孩子们等着听新年的钟声。
long for 渴望，极想
The children are longing for the holidays. 孩子们盼望着放假。
She longed for him to ask her to dance. 她巴不得他邀请自己跳舞。
look for 寻找；期待
They were looking for the missing child. 他们正在寻找那失踪的小孩。
We are looking for George to arrive any day now. 我们在期待着乔治，他说不定哪天就到。
make for 走向;袭击；有助于，有益于
It’s late. We’d better make for home. 时间不早了，我们最好赶快回家吧。
The dog is making for the thief. 狗正向窃贼扑过去。
Early rising makes for good health. 早起有益于健康。
mistake … for 误认为……是
She is often mistaken for a famous singer. 她常常被误认为是个名歌手。
I’m sorry. I mistook you for a friend of mine. 对不起，我把你误当作我的一位朋友。
pay for 为……付钱；为……付出代价
Did you pay for the bok? 那本书的书款你付过了吗？
You’ll have to pay for your selfishness some day. 有一天你一定会为你的自私付出代价。
A Careless Barber 粗心的理发员
Barber: Were you wearing a red scarf when you came in?Customer: No.Barber: Oh, then I must have cut your throat.理发员：你进来时是不是系着红围巾？顾客：没有呀。理发员：噢，那我肯定弄破了你的喉咙。
多种时态表达“本想”
文章摘要：在英语中，表达“本想”有很多种方法，在运用时要特别注意时态的变化。
1. 用come / go 等动词的过去进行时表示。如：
We were coming to see you, but it rained (so we didn’t). 我们本打算来看你的，只是下起雨来了。
I was trying to help but I screwed up again. 我本想帮忙，反而又把事情搞糟了。
2. 用was (were) going to do sth 表示。如：
She was going to attend the concert last night, but she was too busy. 她昨晚本想去听音乐会的，但她太忙了。
3. 用think, hope, plan, mean, expect, intend, suppose 等动词的过去完成时表示。如：
I had meant to come, but something happened. 我本想来，但有事就没有来。
I had intended to speak, but time did not permit. 我本想发言，但时间不允许。
We had hoped that you would come to see us, but you didn't. 我们本想你来看我们的，但你没有来。
We had thought to return early but they wouldn't let us go. 我们本想早回来的，但他们不让我们走。
若不至于引导误解，有时也可用以上动词的一般过去时表示“本想”。如：
I thought I could go, but I can’t. 我原以为我能去，但我（现在）去不了。
I meant to reason with you, but you won't reason. 我本想和你讲道理，但你不肯讲道理。
He hoped to come with us, but he was too busy. 他本想同我们一起来的，但他太忙了。
4. 用hope, plan, mean, expect, intend, suppose 的过去式后接完成式不定式表示。
I expected to have come early, but I missed the early bus. 我本来想早点来的，但未赶上早班车。
I meant to have told you about it earlier, but I could not come. 我本想早点把这事告诉你，但是我来不及了。
比较同义表达：
We had intended to go to London.=We intended to have gone to London. 我们本来打算到伦敦去的。
5. 用would have done 表示。如：
I would have written before, but I have been ill. 我本想给你写信的，但我生病了。
I would have preferred a bed, but beggars can’t be choosers so I slept on the sofa. 我本想要张床,，但是叫花子不能挑肥拣瘦, 所以我就睡在沙发上了。
6. 用should [would] like [love] have done 表示。如：
I should like to have seen it (but it wasn't possible). 我本想事前看到的（但这不可能）。
I would like to have gone to the party last night but I had to work extra hours to finish a report. 昨晚我本想去参加晚会的，但我要加班写一个报告。
I'd love to have taken him round the factory, but I was too busy. 我本想带他去厂里看看，但我太忙了。
You are awesome 你是卓越的
文章摘要：试想一下……你！一个空前绝后的你，不论是以往还是将来都不会有一个跟你一模一样的人。你在历史上和宇宙中都是独一无二的。哇！想想吧，你是万里挑一、亿里挑一、兆里挑一的。
Consider...YOU. In all time before now and in all time to come, there has never been and will never be anyone just like you. You are unique in the entire history and future of the universe. Wow! Stop and think about that. You're better than one in a million, or a billion, or a gazillion...
You are the only one like you in a sea of infinity!
You're amazing! You're awesome! And by the way, TAG, you're it. As amazing and awesome as you already are, you can be even more so. Beautiful young people are the whimsey of nature, but beautiful old people are true works of art. But you don't become "beautiful" just by virtue of the aging process.
Real beauty comes from learning, growing, and loving in the ways of life. That is the Art of Life. You can learn slowly, and sometimes painfully, by just waiting for life to happen to you. Or you can choose to accelerate your growth and intentionally devour life and all it offers. You are the artist that paints your future with the brush of today.
Consider...YOU. In all time before now and in all time to come, there has never been and will never be anyone just like you. You are unique in the entire history and future of the universe. Wow! Stop and think about that. You're better than one in a million, or a billion, or a gazillion...
You are the only one like you in a sea of infinity!
You're amazing! You're awesome! And by the way, TAG, you're it. As amazing and awesome as you already are, you can be even more so. Beautiful young people are the whimsey of nature, but beautiful old people are true works of art. But you don't become "beautiful" just by virtue of the aging process.
Real beauty comes from learning, growing, and loving in the ways of life. That is the Art of Life. You can learn slowly, and sometimes painfully, by just waiting for life to happen to you. Or you can choose to accelerate your growth and intentionally devour life and all it offers. You are the artist that paints your future with the brush of today.
Paint a Masterpiece.
God gives every bird its food, but he doesn't throw it into its nest. Wherever you want to go, whatever you want to do, it's truly up to you.
试想一下……你！一个空前绝后的你，不论是以往还是将来都不会有一个跟你一模一样的人。你在历史上和宇宙中都是独一无二的。哇！想想吧，你是万里挑一、亿里挑一、兆里挑一的。
在无穷无尽的宇宙中，你是举世无双的！！！
你是了不起的！你是卓越的！没错，就是你。你已经是了不起的，是卓越的，你还可以更卓越更了不起。美丽的年轻人是大自然的奇想，而美丽的老人却是艺术的杰作。但你不会因为年龄的渐长就自然而然地变得“美丽”。
真正的美丽源于生命里的学习、成长和热爱。这就是生命的艺术。你可以只听天由命， 慢慢地学，有时候或许会很痛苦。又或许你可以选择加速自己的成长，故意地挥霍生活及其提供的一切。你就是手握今日之刷描绘自己未来的艺术家。画出一幅杰作吧！
上帝给了鸟儿食物，但他没有将食物扔到它们的巢里。不管你想要去哪里，不管你想要做什么，真正做决定的还是你自己。
美名胜过美貌
A good fame is better than a good face.美名胜过美貌。