English, baby!

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Naps
小睡

Date: Oct 08 2010

Themes: Work

Grammar: Zero Conditional

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Intro

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Basketball superstar LeBron James recently said that he takes a nap every day. And if he does it, shouldn’t everybody?

In some cultures, it’s common to lie down and rest or even sleep in the middle of the day. But in the U.S., not many people take naps during the work week, except for children. A quick nap can be a good way to refresh oneself after a late night. But people who nap all the time are usually seen as lazy. Find out if Amy and Devan like to catch some zzz’s in the middle of the day.

Dialog

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Amy

Devan

Amy: I wish that I were a person who could take naps. It seems like such a nice thing to do and such a good way to refresh yourself if you’re, you know…if you didn’t sleep well or if you’re having a hard day.

Devan: So why don’t you take naps?

Amy: I just can’t do it. I just can’t go to sleep in the daytime. I don’t know. I try, and I just end up lying there, you know, for hours, potentially, just staring at the ceiling. Do you take naps?

Devan: Sometimes I’ll take like a power nap, like right after I get off work I’ll take a quick 20 minute nap. But I can’t take a nap longer than that, because if I fall asleep for hours in the middle of the day, then when I wake up I feel really awful. Like I just need a really quick power nap to get me re-energized, but if I sleep too long then I’m gonna want to sleep all night and then I’ll wake up again at three o’clock in the morning. But you know, in a lot of cultures it’s very common to have like a siesta or a nap in the middle of the day, and I wonder why in the United States that hasn’t really become a common practice.

Amy: Sometimes I’ll just take it easy in the middle of the day, if I’m feeling tired and I need to have a little break, just watch TV for a half an hour or do something mindless to relax. But I just…I kind of feel the same way you do, like if I really lay down and tried to take a nap in the middle of the day, it would be really hard to get up and go back to work. I don’t know how people do it.

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Discussion

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Amy doesn’t take naps, because she finds it difficult to fall asleep in the middle of the day. But sometimes she wishes she could take naps, because it seems like a good way to refresh oneself in the middle of the day.

Devan sometimes likes to take short naps after work, but she doesn’t like to sleep for a long time when she takes a nap. If she takes a long nap, she has a hard time getting up and doing anything productive afterward.

Is it common to take a nap in the afternoon in your country? Do you enjoy taking naps?

Comments

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Anita Chung

Taiwan

It's common to take a nap in my country…It's a good way to reflash oneself, but most of the time it's painful when get up to back work…

emmashow1280

China

usually i take a nap in hot summer. and also when i free at home and nothing to do. but yeah i had that feel befor itis sleep too long time in daytime and hard to get up or back to do somethings , or wake up in the night and then really missed up in next day! it is awful! but people always says that take a nap it very good for health and blood,so it is common practice for some people, i wish i can do that and hanging on

rosendo

Mexico

yeah , lets do that !!!

renemex

Mexico

In Spain are a great tradition, in México are popular either

john

United States

great!

hraza

Pakistan

Siesta (Nap) is very good for health.It make you fresh and you can do your work in better way.

hraza

Pakistan

Siesta (Nap) is very good for health.I make you fresh and you can do your work in better way.

fawaz10

Sudan

i like nap middle of the day its very nice and make refrish for our brains and make us fit its important i think :)

MUHAMMAD92

Saudi Arabia

some people take nap in the afternoon, i dont like that.

hndev

Saudi Arabia

naps cause me headache and insomnia, when i get tired i sleep for 9-12 hours and never take a nap

charming princess

Saudi Arabia

I take a nap sometimes for 4 hours. Is this a nap? hehe I must make up a new term for this. When i get off work , i take a nap ,usually for two hours or so. Then I would wake up full of energy. Yes I have some headache but a cup of cappuccino will clear my head. I can't do without a nap. Otherwise, i would come back from work feeling tired and sleepy. I can't read a book or study because i cant really concentrate on anything . I just wait when it is bed time ! but , yeah during the workdays i do take naps , but at the weekends I do not take naps because i do not feel like having a nap. I mean , i am not tired . And as naps have good positive effect on me , they have bad negative effects as well ! I find it hard to fall asleep at night. I would lie there on my bed for hours sometimes. My friend used to call me a nocturnal creature ! I wish i could take a power nap for like 20 to 30 minutes ! when I fall asleep i find it hard to get up. No alarm clock in the world could wake me up !

K L

Myanmar

It's a kind of relax but this is very short break to relax at daytime. Just nap is a good thing to refresh when we are feeling tired by working.But it is not too good that we used to do a nap as our regular habit.If we really addicted a nap in our life , it supports to gain our wieghts directly.

manjunath D

India

I too like taking naps.

camar666

Saudi Arabia

sometimes I felt not enough to take rest when I taking a nap.

majed9

Yemen

This is true for all of us need a nap

suresh_madishetty

India

It's Good.

filona

Ukraine

Yes, i'm do it with a great pleasure, when it's possible of course Smile

dangthaibinh

United States

I always have a nap in the middle of the day. I have a hard work so in order to feel better and to do my word well in the afternoon, I need and enjoy taking the nap everyday!

koxa

Ukraine

Everybody whose work is reffered to hard activity takes a nap in the afternoon…it is so common in our country.But as for me taking a nap it's kind of weird because of bad feeling afterwards, like a headache and difficulties that appear during night sleep. So it's better to wait untill night and then to rest all the night!