Everything but the kitchen sink
| Neil: | Hi, Li. The car's outside. Are you ready for our camping trip? Have you packed? |
| Li: | Yes. I'm excited Neil. This is my first camping trip! I have the plastic forks and spoons ... and plates ... and the cups that you told me to get ... |
| Neil: | Good. I have a couple of pans and a small gas cooker. And I've got the tent and sleeping bags ... |
| Li: | Oh Neil, how about my TV? I can't miss my favourite programmes! |
| Neil: | A TV?! Well ... OK. |
| Li: | And ... I can't sleep without my goose feather pillow. Actually, I use two of them. |
| Neil: | Pillows? OK ... |
| Li: | And chairs ... We have to take my comfortable chair. And ... and my lovely soft rug. |
| Neil: | A rug?! What?! You want to take everything but the kitchen sink! |
| Li: | Oh, the sink? I might need a sink, Neil, but I think it might be difficult to move it. Unless I try to ... well, I could call a plumber ... |
| Neil: | No plumber, Li! We're not taking a plumber camping! In English, when we say 'take everything but the kitchen sink', we mean: take far more things than we need. |
| Li: | Ah. So you think I might be taking far more things than necessary. |
| Neil: | Yes, Li. 'Everything but the kitchen sink' is the expression in this edition of The English We Speak. Now let's hear some examples of how it is used. |
| When Emma went on holiday to Greece, she took everything but the kitchen sink. She had to pay a lot extra at the airport! | |
| Peter went to London for the weekend with a huge bag of things—clothes, computers, his special shampoo ... He really took everything but the kitchen sink! | |
| Li: | Oh. No sink then. I think I'm ready to go Neil. |
| (A sudden clap of thunder) | |
| Neil: | Oh, no! |
| Li: | What is it? |
| Neil: | A storm is coming! That's not great for camping. I think this trip will have to wait, Li. |
| Li: | No problem. We can go camping another time. Why don't you enjoy my comfortable chair? |
| Neil: | Oh, let me just sit down here. Mmm ... it is quite comfortable, isn't it? |
| Li: | Who needs camping after all! You watch some TV while I go and wash some dishes in my nice and shiny ... kitchen sink. Bye. |
| Neil: | Bye. |