A Valentine to Animal

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In case you’re wondering, “Animal” is one of the Muppets. My favorite Muppet, in fact. Frank Oz, his creator, said that Animal is about sex, sleep, food, drums and pain. Sometimes Animal eats his drums, so food is not all that important. Animal was cult when I was a teen, so I’ve decided to write him a valentine.

Dear Animal,

A few weeks ago, I was watching videos on how to be the perfect girlfriend and the perfect boyfriend with some of the trainees I teach. (See Videojug links below.) They had worked so hard on their business English skills that I felt they needed to have some good fun with those videos. The tips are mostly about trying to put yourself in your partner’s shoes. For the boys, that includes washing from time to time – something you’ve probably heard from your girlfriends too, right, Animal?!?

Anyway, that reminded me of that concert you did with Rita – you know, the singer whose song you messed up because she turned you on? (See Animal and Rita below.) Wow, talk about instant chemistry! But Rita just wasn’t right for you. She simply couldn’t deal with your drum solo.

Animal, you are just so 100% yourself. Nothing phony. Everything about you is true. That’s why you have so many fans. But, you know, Animal, it’s quite an art to combine being honestly and totally wild about each other with being sensitive and caring and making it work. Getting that together is love in a nutshell, and that’s what commits you and makes love = “4evR”. Love is the energy that is holding the universe together. And what you’ve got is the spark.

Anyway, Animal, stay the way you are. Keep on drumming. And I hope you’ll be my Valentine!

Love,

Anne

    • Videojug: How to be the perfect girlfriend
    • Videojug: How to be the perfect boyfriend(Both scripts to print out!)
      • Explore Valentine’s Day on a great selfstudy site: www.ego4u.de

      Learning the Ropes – Mehr als nur Wortschatz

      Where I come from, “valentines”, or cards written on Valentine’s Day, February 14th, are sent to friends and relatives – really anyone you care about. The traditional phrase to write on such a card is “Be my Valentine!” “Love” is the normal greeting between close friends and family at the end of any letter. But the classic gesture of romantic love is a dozen red roses.

      to wonder – sich fragen, was das soll
      teen – Jugendliche/r
      trainee – Azubi
      mostly – im wesentlichen
      to put yourself in someone else’s shoes – sich in jemanden hineinversetzen
      to include – beinhalten
      to wash – sich waschen
      anyway – jedenfalls (ein Verlegenheitswort)
      to mess something up – etwas versauen
      to turn someone on – jemanden anmachen (positiv), jemandem gefallen
      instant – sofort
      chemistry – Chemie
      to deal with something – mit etwas klar kommen
      she/he isn’t right for you – sie/er ist nicht die/der richtige für dich
      phony – falsch
      quite an art – eine echte Kunst
      to be wild about someone – völlig verknallt in jemanden sein
      sensitive – sensibel
      caring – einfühlsam
      to make it work – es so hinbekommen, dass es funktioniert
      in a nutshell – auf den Punkt gebracht
      to commit someone (to something) – jemanden dazu verpflichten, sich (für etwas) voll einzusetzen
      4evR = forever – immer/ewig
      spark – Funken
      to perform – aufführen
      fever – Fieber
      gesture – Geste

      Artwork: Allison Lefcort

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