実践 8/5〜8/7 & 8/12〜15

実践ビジネス英語　　　Wednesday, August 5 & 12

1) McMillan says the agrihood movement combines the best elements of community gardens, urban agriculture and cooperative communities in a new setting, and that agrihoods can be more inexpensive to live in than a traditional suburban neighborhood. He adds that Agridream has survived the economic crisis in good shape, and that it grows many different crops on organic farmland. It also raises livestock.

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Farm-to-Table Living (4)

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2) be intrigued by
About a third of the way down, Umemura says, "I'm intrigued by this concept."

3) on a solid commercial footing
Here "footing" means a basis or foundation. How firmly is something standing? How stable is it? Things like, "You need to be 'on a solid financial footing' if you are going to open a new business. "Be able to operate at a loss for a while.

4) collapse
When something breaks down suddenly and stops functioning, it "collapses." Uh, you could say, "The negotiations 'collapsed.'" Or "The house 'collapsed' due to poor construction." "'Collapse' can also mean fold into a more compact shape, such as, "This stroller 'collapses' to fit neatly in the trunk."

collapsible umbrella = 折りたたみ傘

5) glorified
We say something is "glorified" when it's presented as more impressive or lofty than it really is. Collins means "Is Agridream really just a hobby farm, even though it's presented as something more valuable, more meaningful?" Also another example would be, imagine a football game where both teams are very listless. They
don't play actively. They don't give it their all. Someone could say, "This isn't a game. It's a 'glorified' practice."

6)ahem
We often use this to express slight embarrassment at something we've just said or we are going to say. McMillan was using it for his word play, like, "Ha ha. Little joke there." You could also say, "Vince got in trouble for using, 'ahem,' salty language in front of the boss."

7) undertaking
A job, a task, an enterprise. There's also the verb "undertake," which can mean deliberately start to do something, some task, enterprise, like, "We've decided to 'undertake' a company-wide survey on job satisfaction."

undertaker = 葬儀屋さん = mortician

8) certified organic farmland
When something is "certified," it's confirmed as genuine or meeting a certain standard. "She is a 'certified' tax consultant," for example, or, "He is a 'certified' judo instructor."

9) plant the seeds
Up at the top, McMillan says, "All of those trends 'planted the seeds' of the agrihood movement." When we "plant the seeds," we do something that will develop in the future. It will lead to a particular result, like, "planting seeds" that will grow into certain crops. You could say, "Reading to little children will 'plant the seeds' for their future academic performance."

10) take things to the next step
McMillan goes on to say that the agrihood trend has "taken things to the next step." This is technically go to the next stage in some progression, but it often overlaps with "to the next level," which is make it bigger, better, more advanced in some way. For example, "She's 'taking her consulting activities to the next level' and establishing her own company."

11) come through
Around the middle, McMillan says, "Agridream has 'come through' the crisis, the economic crisis, just fine." And this means pass through something, you know, in this case, an experience. You could say, "Company X didn't 'come through' the recession very well. It had to sell off several divisions."

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実践ビジネス英語　　Thursday, August 6 & 13

1) Pearson says airport restaurants are also starting to serve fresh local produce, and McMillan adds that one airline is thinking of growing potatoes and other crops at airports around the country. He says the airline was inspired by O'Hare airport in Chicago, which has an aeroponic garden that provides herbs and vegetables to its restaurants. Pearson and Collins agree that travelers are tired of heavy, unhealthy food.

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Farm-to-Table Living (5)

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2) mark a clear boundary between
Clearly indicate where things are divided. McMillan's talking about actual, physical boundaries, but you could also say, "Jane 'marks a clear boundary between' work and home. She never takes projects home from the office."

3) sweep the country
About a third of the way down, Pearson says, "You don't have to go all the way to California to see how the farm-to-table movement is 'sweeping the country.'"

4) aeroponic
About two-thirds of the way down, McMillan says, "O'Hare Airport in Chicago has an 'aeroponic' garden."

5) "Aeroponic" refers to cultivating plants without soil. The plants are suspended in the air. There's also "hydroponic," which is growing crops in water.

6) go for
Prefer, like. "I 'go for' dark-colored clothes," for example. Or, "Consumers didn't 'go for' that new tablet computer. It was too heavy." "Go for" can also mean "choose." But both of these meanings involve a sense of choice. You could say, "I think I'll 'go for' the fish today. I should eat more fish."

7) stodgy
"Stodgy" food is very heavy. It makes you feel full in a bad way. But "stodgy" can also mean dull or very old-fashioned, like, "His 'stodgy' grandfather didn't want him to be a ballet dancer." Or, "The movie tried to be deep but it was just 'stodgy.'"

8) road warrior
Someone who travels a lot usually on business. There's also the term "wanderlust," which means the strong desire to travel.

9) see for oneself
Up at the top, Umemura says, "It sounds like a very serious project. I'd like to 'see it for myself' sometime." See or check something personally, Umemura means, not relying on other people's information or opinions. For example, "Everyone says Prague is beautiful. I really want to 'see it for myself' someday."

10) It's also common to say "judge for oneself, think for oneself."

11) grapevine
Just a little bit down, McMillan says "the fences at Agridream are tastefully covered by 'grapevines' and blackberry bushes." He means actual grapevines, but this word can also refer to gossip, information being passed from person to person, such as, "Word on the 'grapevine' is we are getting a new boss." Or, "I heard through the 'grapevine' that Paul is leaving."

word on the grapevine = hear through the grapevine = 噂では

12) you don't have to go all the way to
About a third of the way down, Pearson says, "'You don't have to go all the way to' California to see how the farm-to-table movement is sweeping the country." You could also say, "you don't have to go as far as," like, "'You don't have to go as far as' Paris for great French food. Tokyo has lots of good French restaurants."

13) get on the scales
Down at the bottom, Collins says, "I am sick and tired of 'getting on the scales' after yet another business trip." You could also say, "get on the scale," singular. They both mean weigh oneself. Some fitness experts say we should get on the scale or the scales every day. If we are constantly aware of our weight, it can apparently help prevent overeating.

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実践ビジネス英語　　　Friday, August 7 & 14

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Farm-to-Table Living (6)

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1[S]: Our current vignette begins with Paul Pearson talking about his upcoming trip to a California town that's famous for its food and wine. Have you ever taken a trip like that, Heather?

2[H]: I've taken a few that were similar mostly in my college days. For example, my university is located near the Finger Lakes in New Your State. They're called that because the lakes look like fingers, they're long and thin. There are a lot of wineries in that area, so during my senior year, I took a wine tour with some friends.

We drove around to different wineries, sampled a great deal. We also bought a few cases and midway through, we stopped for a picnic with bread, cheese, fruit and of course some of the wine we'd bought. That was a great day -- I can still remember sitting on the picnic blanket in the warm sun.

3[S]: You said drove around. So I presume at least one of you wasn't drinking.

4[H]: Absolutely. My then boyfriend volunteered to be the designated driver, so he didn't drink anything until we got back to campus. That was very generous of him, but I think he may also have been motivated by the desire to safeguard his car. I don't think he wanted anyone else driving his baby.

5[S]: What other food related trips have you taken?

6[H]: Let's see. Some weren't primarily centered on food, but they had memorable dining moments. One I mentioned in July last year when we talked about menu-less restaurants. My boyfriend and I went to a prix fixe restaurant in New York City. Had seven courses all chosen by the chef, had different wine with nearly every course.

A few years back, I also went to Vietnam where my husband and I took a cooking class. Our guide took us to a local market to buy ingredients, which we took back to the hotel kitchen and used to make local dishes. All right. My husband used them to make local dishes while I sat and watched, I confess.

7[S]: What about memorable food related experiences in Japan?

8[H]: Oh, great many. No one could deny that the food in Japan is one of the best parts of living here. Let's see, there was the crab restaurant I went to in Hokkaido, where every single dish on the menu included crab in some way.

Now that I think of it, that place was probably a sea-to-table establishment. And the horsehair crab, especially the "Kegani," was divine. I also went to an "uangi," eel restaurant in Kumamoto that was hundreds of years old.

It felt like every single moment of that time had been spent perfecting their technique with the "unagi" just melted in your mouth. And that's my favorite Japanese food so wish you a heaven.

9[S]: What do you think of the farm-to-table concept?

10[H]: It sounds great and especially for all the pollution we could eliminate by not shipping foods across long distances. I read last year that food travels on average of 2,400 km from fields to the dinner table in the United States.

【原稿チェック： Cecile, Hiromi, Akira】
【ディクテーション： Sanae】