CUE CARD: COLLECT THINGS

Đề: Describe a person you know who collects something.

You should say:

• what he/she collects

• how he/she stores/saves the collection

• how long he/she has been collecting

and explain why he/she enjoys collecting that thing.

Model Answer:

Different people like to collect different things for different reasons. While some people like to collect things to preserve memories, some others like to collect them just for the fun of it. However, my friend, Ronin Gomez, likes to collect things in order to “appreciate their beauty”, even if it sounds a bit unusual.

If my memory serves me well, Ronin has been collecting “watches” from his childhood for about the last 15 years or so, and during this period, I have seldom seen him talking about any subject without any “footnotes” on his watch collection! But, I must say that my friend is really passionate about collecting different kinds of really beautiful and stylish watches from different eras and different countries even if it means travelling from one corner of the country to another with time permitting, of course. Besides, I should also mention that Ronin’s parents have been really supportive, financially or otherwise, of his “passion” for collecting watches without which, I don’t think that Ronin would be able to carry on with his “hobby”.

It’s not that Ronin just likes to collect those watches randomly and leave them here and there, but he likes to organize and store them inside a beautiful, glass-made “showcase” in the safest part of his home, away from “light” and public access, with serial numbers and other necessary information placed next to them, so that if they are ever stolen or lost, he can easily file a police report on them. And, then, of course, Ronin also makes sure that his beautiful collections are “polished” with distinguished and expensive “liquid cleaning materials” on a regular basis in order to preserve their shiny and unique looks.

Anyway, my friend enjoys collecting watches because it introduces him to the “artworks” and “technological pursuits” of different countries and eras in a way which wouldn’t be possible to know otherwise. Besides, the hobby allows my friend a “bragging right” to his friends about his efforts and “accomplishments”. Finally, he enjoys collecting watches because it keeps him busy when there is nothing really important to do.

TỪ VỰNG CHỦ ĐỀ “COLLECTING”

• Hoard: tích trữ (cùng nghĩa với sưu tập, nhưng ở quy mô lớn hơn)

• An one-off: hiếm, chỉ có một

• Have a fixation with: ám ảnh với cái gì đấy

• Wow other people: gây ấn tượng với người khác

• Can no longer control their desire: không  thể kiểm soát được ham muốn của mình

• Devote a small amount of time to collecting things: dành một khoảng thời gian ngắn để sưu tầm

• Accumulate a high number of objects: sưu tầm một số lượng lớn các đồ vật

• Hold onto the past: níu giữ quá khứ