Author Archives: Dr. Jeff McQuillan

Headline English: A Video Experiment

Posted on Tuesday - March 31, 2015 by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

I’m trying a little video experiment today. I decided today that instead of writing my blog post, I’d just shoot a little video. I did this first thing this morning, as I was drinking my morning coffee (and before I … Continue reading →

Posted in News and Current Events | 51 Comments

So Go Ahead and Sue Me, Taylor Swift

Posted on Tuesday - March 3, 2015 by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

I can’t say that I have never, never, never listened to a song by Taylor Swift, but I can say that I’m not exactly (I’m not really) a fan of her music. Ms. Swift is, however, extremely popular in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Life in the United States | 20 Comments

Honking: An L.A. Story

Posted on Tuesday - February 3, 2015 by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

Every city has its particular characteristics that, for whatever reason –  the culture of the city, the geography (the physical area) of the city, the history of the city – help shape (change) the people who live there. People adapt … Continue reading →

Posted in Life in the United States | 27 Comments

On the Twelfth Day of Christmas, My True Love Gave To Me

Posted on Tuesday - January 6, 2015 by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

In the U.S., you start to hear Christmas music played on the radio after the late November holiday of Thanksgiving, and you continue to hear it all the way through the month of December. By New Year’s Day, the radio … Continue reading →

Posted in Life in the United States | 24 Comments

A Capital’s Capitol Requires a Lot of Capital

Posted on Tuesday - December 9, 2014 by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

Question: What’s the difference between capital and capitol? Answer: I’ll answer this question with a little story. In many American elementary schools (schools for children ages six to twelve), it’s very common for students to memorize the names of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Language & Terms | 33 Comments

How Much Does a Free Library Book Cost?

Posted on Tuesday - November 4, 2014 by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

“Time is money” is an old saying in English, meaning of course that your time is valuable. The time you spend doing one thing is time you are not spending doing something else, something that might give you more money … Continue reading →

Posted in Life in the United States | 13 Comments

Headline English: A Captain Should Be Pitch Perfect at a Multitude of Skills

Posted on Tuesday - October 7, 2014 by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

Here’s a recent headline from the Financial Times: A Captain Should be Pitch Perfect at a Multitude of Skills This headline is for an article that compares the game of cricket, popular in Great Britain and other countries, to the … Continue reading →

Posted in Language & Terms | 15 Comments

Want to Become an American Citizen? Try Dying First.

Posted on Tuesday - September 9, 2014 by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

There are several paths (ways) to become a citizen of the United States, most of them requiring many years of waiting and, often, a bit of luck. I think the most difficult path – one I do not recommend – … Continue reading →

Posted in Life in the United States | 25 Comments

Headline English: Private Equity’s Latest Fix

Posted on Tuesday - August 12, 2014 by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

Here’s a headline from a recent Wall Street Journal article: Private Equity’s Latest Fix: Auto-Body Repair A lot of newspaper headlines (titles of articles) are based on a “double meaning” of one of the words, where one word has two … Continue reading →

Posted in News and Current Events | 19 Comments

A World Cup of Something Else

Posted on Tuesday - June 24, 2014 by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

The World Cup is in full swing (is already in progress), and millions of people around the world are watching their favorite teams compete (play against each other). Even here in the U.S., there are millions who watch soccer (or … Continue reading →

Posted in News and Current Events | 26 Comments