Meeting Irena on 201508/03 We continued our discussion on Van Gogh's life. Vocabulary: To retain: Without practicing, we can't retain much we have learned. Preacher: Van Gogh became an apprentice/disciple to a preacher at the early stage of his life. Lofty: Van Gogh's parents had a lofty expectation on him. Chronology: the arrangement of events or dates in the order of their occurrence. Pointillism (double l): a branch of painting that uses short dots to form an image. Draw vs. paint vs. sketch: drawing and sketching tend to use pencil/graphite to draw the outline. Van Gogh used a brush to fill an area with color (painting?) Graphite: a carbon-based painting tool. Myths: I tend to miss "s" in in the sentences "there are a lot of myths about Van Gogh" (or similar sentences). Present: Human beings like to escape from their presents. Time passing vs. time elapsing: "time elapsing" sounds too scientific. "time passing" or "passing of the time" works better in conversation. Breath vs. breathing: When having a meditation, one usually has to focus on the (tempo of the) breath. Deprivation: Van Gogh chose to feel deprivation. Chamber vs. room: Van Gogh lived in a small room. "chamber" almost feels too official. Layers have their chambers. Cupcake: in transcript? Phrases: Van Gogh did not find enough space to express himself when he worked for the church. wisdom talkings: Van Gogh had a lot of wisdom talkings. (Irena, does "talking" really an "s" in this case?) At the age of 27: not "at age of 27", not "at age of 27th", not "at the age of 27th". Between him and his father: not "between he and his father". Active melancholy: active depression. Sharpen the instinct: Active melancholy sharpens one's instinct on art. Pronunciation: Summit: I tend to drop the 't' sound so the word sounds like "submit" or "summy". Chronological: the emphasis is on "lo", not "no" nor "chro". Interestingly, the emphasis of "chronology" is on "no". Creativity: The "a" (ei) sound should be clear. I tend to pronounce it as "critivity". The "ea" should follow the "prolonged 3:1 rule" (cre + ativity). Breath vs. breath: the pronunciations of the noun and the verb are different. Transcribing: "cri" is as "crisis", not as in "script". "ai" vs. "i". Poverty: Note "v" is not "w". I tend to pronounce it as "powerty". Others: the great escaper: When I tried to explain Kierkegaard's philosophical idea on boredom, I was not fluent and I was trying to skip it. Irena helped to finish the explanation