Notes:
consumption tax 消費税;

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The Japanese government has just decided to raise the consumption tax beginning next April. The tax is 5% now, but it will go up to 8%. If you want to buy something expensive (such as a car or a house), you should probably do it now. At the same time, the U.S. government doesn’t have enough money to pay all of its workers. It has to stop some of its services. Politicians cannot agree on how to spend money, so they won’t give any more money to the government. I hope they reach an agreement soon. (by Prof. Douglas Jarrell)
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Notes:
nephew: おい;
quite a : すごい、相当な;
be supposed to: するはずだ;
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This story is from a students’ aunt. She wrote:
My nephew went abroad to study English in Canada. He stayed with a Canadian family. His host parents were supposed to take care of his breakfast and dinner at first, but that didn’t happen. They worked all day, so he had to make his meals himself. He had never cooked in his life. He asked his mother how to cook using Skype. When he came back to Japan, he had grown up. Now he speaks English very well, and he’s become quite a cook. Things have turned out well. (by Prof. Douglas Jarrell)
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