I still remember the day I decided to START OFF this project. During one of the sessions with my English teacher, I expressed my concern about not knowing the meaning of the most common idioms, slangs, and phrasal verbs. She suggested that I use them in sentences in order to memorize them and fully understand their meaning. An idea suddenly CAME TO my mind. How about, instead of writing a single sentence for every idiom, slang, and phrasal verb, I would make it more challenging and write...

Her latest project had many LOOSE ENDS. She was half way there and had a lot to do before she FINISHED UP her book. Unfortunately, due to her horrible car accident on the i35 highway, she PASSED OUT and was severely hurt. Regrettably, Maria went into a coma. After a whole month, she CAME TO with shock. She couldn’t believe what she and her family have gone through. Following the doctor’s assessment and examination, they were able to LET HER OUT of the hospital with full guidance on how to...

My closest cousin EATS LIKE A PIG but is still as SKINNY AS A BEANPOLE. I’m happy for her. I really am. But what really frustrates me the most is that I look like a pig when I EAT LIKE BIRD. My situation is getting worse and I feel like things are GOING DOWNHILL for me since I keep PUTTING ON a few pounds every month. It is unfair. If you ask me about the one thing I would die to know it would be how some people get to enjoy any meal, whether healthy or not, and still be FIT AS A FIDDLE. I...

They advised her to compromise and WATER DOWN the issue, but she insisted that she will be GOING AFTER her heart’s desire. No one was able to CHANGE HER MIND. She thought it was best for her to leave the states and follow her dream of becoming an artist in India. This idea was abnormal and bizarre to everyone in her circle. Her family wanted to KEEP the dangers of living abroad by herself in a strange country AT BAY. Also, she knew that she could only recognize the TIP OF THE ICEBERG when it...

Victoria has recently been facing a hard time with her roommate Scarlett. Scarlett is disrespectful to the people she LIVES WITH. She would borrow things without asking and sometimes she would go to the extent of stealing from Victoria. She is so loud and talks so much that nobody could GET A WORD IN EDGEWISE. She leaves most of her stuff on the LEFT, RIGHT, AND CENTER of the house. She INVITES STRANGERS OVER without asking for permission or even notifying her roommates in advance. She also...

The group HAD A BONE TO PICK with James. He hasn’t been an effective team member ever since his relationship with his ex-girlfriend CAME TO AN END. James dated his ex-girlfriend for 15 years but a lot of negative things were GOING ON between them. James and his girlfriend reached a stage where they couldn’t GET TO THE BOTTOM OF things and had no idea what the main reason for their troubles, stresses, and anxiety was anymore. This led James to leave and reflect on the things he did right and...

Because her mother turned out to be a snake doesn’t mean we should TAR Pauline WITH THE SAME BRUSH. Pauline’s mother was a WOLF IN SHEEP’S CLOTHING, outwardly kind but inwardly vicious. She had cheated on, TOOK ADVANTAGE OF, and FAKED OUT her close friends for years. She hid her real malicious intent and pretended to be harmless. But in reality, she caused five dear friends to TURN INTO enemies, three couples to SPLIT UP, and two small businesses to CLOSE DOWN. Now Pauline is GETTING INTO...

When we were teenagers we used TO LET THE CHIPS FALL WHERE THEY MAY. We used to be reckless and love to take risks. We used to be impulsive and full of energy. Yes, we made a lot of mistakes, FOOLED AROUND, and messed things up. Our family and society were okay with that too. They didn’t judge us. They didn’t even give us the sense of being guilty or being responsible. But now, in our adulthood, things are totally different. The whole society STANDS AGAINST us once we hit 18 years old. They...

Having SMALL TALK with you Has always been my dream I’ve wished I could SPILL THE BEANS And feel like I am back to being fourteen I wish I could trust you And you could always be nearby But it is unfortunate That it might only happen WHEN PIGS FLY I have to COUNT ON what my mom used to say Because it is the only way OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND This is how she used to BACK me UP So I can MOVE ON and RISE UP I have to get away and try to forget the memories of when we first met I...

I have always been a RUN-OF-THE-MILL kind of person in life. I have never been excellent or bad in any subject at school. I was neither chosen to lead a sports team nor was I the last person to be picked to play for both teams. At college, I decided to pursue a business major which was considered a field for every average person. I wasn’t hired in a big tech company in Seattle nor did I work for a small office around the corner. I wasn’t the first person to get promoted nor was I the last one...

Kevin DREW A BLANK when he stood in front of the judges. He couldn’t remember any of his lines that he has been intensively rehearsing for the past week. He remained frozen for two minutes straight. His eyes were wide open as if someone had hypnotized him. Before Kevin STEPPED UP to the theater, many thoughts were rushing inside of his head. His fear and worries CONTROLLED OVER his state of mind. Now, he was SCARED STIFF especially when he saw Mr. Johnson between the judges. Kevin HEARD a lot...

CALM BEFORE THE STORM: Courtney CAUGHT WIND OF gossip being spread about her. She was PSYCHED OUT when she heard such stories that had no connection to her. Her reputation was deeply affected in her neighborhood. She used to be the most genuine, trusted, and beloved person among the women in her circle. But things changed drastically. Women that used to keep her company were no longer around. Everyone kept their distance from her. They didn't want to ruin their reputation by getting in touch...

I still remember how my teacher LEFT A BAD TASTE IN MY MOUTH. It is not a TALL TALE but it’s a true story that left a great impact on my life. One day, we were reading a story in class and each student was given a section to read. I kept on waiting for the teacher to assign me a paragraph but that never happened. It was so obvious that she PASSED ME BY on purpose. I started to feel teary-eyed but I tried my best to control my feelings. But, for a nine-year-old girl, my heart was aching so...

I WOKE UP ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE BED this morning and my wife IS STILL GOING ON AND ON ABOUT  how miserable her life has been. She literally puts me OUT OF SORTS. I can no longer PUT UP with her. In fact, I don’t have enough energy to PULL MYSELF UP anymore. I am so bored and SICK OF every detail in my life. I have even BECOME AWARE OF all the symptoms and signs that say I am in a deep depression. I can't FEEL FOR my wife anymore. My pain has become the center of my attention. My depression...

I still remember how I was sure that she was living her best life. I had no idea that she was blowing smoke and was actually faking most of her life. She used to upload pictures of her travel trips, romantic dinners, and luxurious cars on Instagram. The sarcastic truth was that everything she posted online was totally fake. If you looked closely, you can tell that things were not as they seemed. After a while, things became clearer. Her stories were made up and started to conflict with one...

David SNEAKED INTO the laundry room without Maria noticing. He was BREATHING DOWN HER NECK and watching whether Maria would go back on the promise she made to herself. Maria took a vow that she would never smoke again after her mother’s death. Maria CALLED IT QUITS because her mother PASSED AWAY due to lung cancer and that BROKE her DOWN even more. But watching if Maria would LIGHT UP a cigarette wouldn’t make the situation better. David needed to know that acting this way would RUB HER THE...

After I MULLED OVER it, I finally GOT IT OUT OF MY SYSTEM and decided to get back to my favorite hobby. I have had enough stress lately due to being STUCK IN A RUT. I was neither doing well at work nor on a personal level. I found out that I was the reason behind my depression and lack of enthusiasm in life since I left the things that made me content and fulfilled. That’s why, I thought that once I set up a daily time slot to paint, I shouldn’t GO BACK ON the promise I made myself because I...

Emma and Chris had a very hard time when the school's doors were shut and their 4 kids were sent back home for 3 months due to COVID. It was also obvious that this lockdown period was SUBJECT TO extension since the school DIDN’T HAVE THE FOGGIEST IDEA of when this madness will be over. Emma and Chris WENT THROUGH THE ROOF not only because their children were bored and MONKEYING AROUND but also because they were facing a lot of troubles at work. Both of their companies RAMPED DOWN the number...

Rene looks so angry today. A STORM IS BREWING on the inside of her. Maya has been IN RENE’S GOOD BOOKS ever since they were roommates. However, when Rene finds out that Maya is still secretly in touch with Matthew, she couldn’t stand her anymore. Rene had enough of Maya’s NAGGING ABOUT her relationship with Matthew because she makes the same mistake over and over again. It is obvious to Rene that Matthew is using Maya for her money to pay his bills. Whenever he GETS SACKED, he would come back...

Having a company that does not KNOW ITS STUFF is a real issue in this day and age. Mexus, a well-known company, needed to WAKE UP AND SMELL THE COFFEE since they hadn't got much done to win the bidding against the local company Tyron. On Monday, the bidding was officially GRANTED TO Tyron. Tyron knew that gaining this project will HELP them OUT immensely to be an UP AND COMING construction company in town. They were waiting for such an opportunity so badly to expand their services on a larger...

Rick spent a considerable amount of time LEARNING THE ROPES but still, he faced a lot of challenges that he needed to tackle to improve in his role as a newspaper reporter. All of his projects needed work and most of them were OFF THE MARK. His supervisor mentioned that his work LEAVES MUCH TO BE DESIRED. He MESSED UP several times in verifying sensitive information before publishing them. He would be late to conduct interviews that he SET UP beforehand. What also HELD him OFF was when he...

He DID THE TRICK and convinced her to GO OUT with him. He was ALL FIRED UP when he finally got the chance to TAKE her OUT for their first date. It TURNED OUT that their houses were STONE’S THROW apart. They were LIVING IN the same neighborhood but they haven’t gotten the chance to meet each other before. He was waiting for this moment for so long. He was single for years, but he didn’t want to CROSS THE BRIDGE WHEN HE CAME TO IT unless he found the girl that highly be the love of his life. It...

A guy stood up and MOVED TOWARD the buffet to serve himself, but something happened to him on the way back to his table. He spotted a girl sitting by herself doing nothing. He felt as though someone was GRABBING him BACK while he was STEPPING FORWARD. He didn’t know what was going on. He LOOKED AROUND but he didn’t notice anyone behind him. A strange feeling came over him. He was almost SHRUGGING OFF this feeling and trying to ignore what his gut was telling him, but he could tell that there...

You want to SHOOT THE BREEZE with me Counting the days to look at me Whenever your eyes catch mine You get TONGUE-TIED and lose your lines You feel that you are ON THE LINE Waiting for any sign You WATCH me LIKE A HAWK Listening to my footsteps and my talks Trying to make things between us COME OFF Wondering if this thing we have can be PULLED OFF At this point, I’m LOST AT SEA And you’re FEELING SORRY for me But I really don’t need your sympathy I’m not sure if I can afford to...