My Flat (1)

We have a nice flat in a new block of flats. Our flat is on the fourth floor.
It has all modern conveniences: central heating, gas, electricity, cold and hot water, a lift and a chute to carry rubbish down. 
There are three rooms, a kitchen, a bathroom and a hall in our flat. The living-room is the largest and most comfortable room in the flat. In the middle of the room we have a square-table with six chairs round it. To the right of the dinner-table there is a wall-unit which has several sections: a sideboard, a wardrobe and some shelves. At the opposite wall there is a piano and stool before it. Between the two large windows there is a little table with a colour TV set on it. Near the TV set there are two cozy armchairs. A small round table, a divan-bed and a standard lamp are in the left-hand corner. This small table is for newspapers and magazines. 
My father is used to having a rest sitting on this divan-bed reading books, newspapers, magazines or watching TV. The bedroom is smaller than the living-room and not so light as there is only one window in it. 
In this room there are two beds with a bedside-table between them. An alarm-clock and a small lamp with a pink lamp-shade are on the table. In the left-hand corner there is a dressing-table with a big mirror. In this room we have a built-in wardrobe with coat-hangers to hang clothes on.There is a thick carpet on the floor and plain light-brown curtains on the window. 
The third room is my study. It is not large but very cosy. There isn't much furniture in it, only the most necessary. It has a writing-table and an armchair before it. In the right-hand corner there is a bookcase full of books, magazines and newspapers. A small table with a radio is standing in the left-hand corner. Near it there is a sofa with some cushions. In my opinion, the study is the best room in our flat. 
But the warmest place in our flat is the kitchen, I think — the place where the whole family gathers every evening not only to have supper together, but also to speak and rest. 
I like the English proverb: "My home is my castle" because my flat is, indeed, my castle.

My Flat (2)

Our house is a short walk from the trolleybus stop. 
We live in panel house on the fourth floor. Our flat has all modern conveniences: central heating, gas, electricity, running cold and hot water, telephone, a lift and chute.
Our flat consists of three rooms, kitchen, bathroom and a hall. First there is a small hall with a mirror and small table with a telephone on it. 
The three rooms of our flat are: living-room, bedroom, my study. The floor is parquet in the rooms and linoleum in the kitchen. There is a thick carpet in the living-room on the floor. All the rooms are papered with wallpaper of a different pattern and colour.
The living-room is the largest and most comfortable room in the flat. It's a large room with a balcony. In the middle of the room there is a table with some chairs around it.There is a sofa with two armchairs and low table with a TV-set on the left-hand side of the room. On the right-hand side there is a cupboard. There is a bookcase near it.The bedroom is smaller and not so light. There are two beds, a wardrobe, a dressing-table.
The room I like best is my study. It is nice and cosy. It has a bed, a desk and an armchair. In the right-hand corner there is a bookcase full of books, magazines, newspapers. 
The kitchen is handily arranged: there is a gas-stove, a frig, a deep sink, built-in cupboards and a table that folds against the wall when not in use. I like our flat very much.

My Room

Wе live in three-room flat. The room I like best in our flat is mine. I use my room as a study and a bedroom. It is very nice and cosy. There isn't much furniture in it, only the most necessary pieces. The built-in furniture doesn't take much space in the room. 
On the left there is my bed and desk. The desk has a lot of drawers where I keep my text-books, notes, pens, pencils and other necessary things. On the right there is a sofa and a built-in wardrobe. In the right corner there is a comfortable arm-chair. Beside it stands a lamp with blue shade. 
I like to turn on the lamp, sit in the arm-chair and read an interesting book. There are some shelves with books in my room. You can see Russian and English books there. 
There is a big thick carpet on the floor. There are some posters with my favourite singers on the wall. 
I like my room very much. When my friends come to visit me, I invite them into my room. My room is a nice place for both rest and work.

British Homes

There are 22 million homes in Britain — big homes and small homes, old cottages and new buildings, houses and flats. (Americans say "apartment" but British people say "flat"). Many British people love old houses and these are often more expensive than modern ones. They also love gardening and you will see gardens everywhere you go: in towns, villages and out in the country. 
Some are very small with just one tree and a few flowers. Others are enormous with plenty of flowers and enough vegetables and fruit trees. Two third of the families in Britain own their houses.

Millions of these houses are the same with two or three bedrooms and a bathroom upstairs, dining-room and kitchen downstairs. To pay for their house, home owners borrow money from a "building society" and pay back a little every month. 
There are a great many different kinds of homes in Britain, but there are not enough! It is often very difficult for young people to find a home when they want to start a family. British homes are usually smaller than American homes. But like Americans old people, young families and unmarried people do not usually live together.

American Homes (1)

The majority of Americans live in or near large cities, but small living-town is still widespread. A suburb (a small community near a big city) offers the advantages of safer, more intimate small-town life with the recreational and cultural activities of the big city nearby. For the typical American family, home may be at different place every five or six years. 
Most moves relate to new job opportunities, but sometimes the American pioneering spirit and desire for adventure inspire the move. 
About two-thirds of Americans live in homes or apartments that they own. But many people rent their living quarters. Some high-rise apartments are very expensive and elegant, but many are built for moderate or even law-income families. Many apartment buildings are condominiums or cooperative apartments, which means that each family owns the unit it lives in. 
More than 10 million Americans live in mobile homes, living quarters built on wheels. They can be moved, but are generally brought to a site that becomes more or less permanent. Then the wheels are removed and the home is attached to the ground. Because they cost less than conventional homes, mobile homes are especially popular with young couples and retired couples with a limited incomes.

American Homes (2)

American homes are some of the biggest and best in the world. Many have a garage for one or two cars, a big modern kitchen, a living room, and a playroom for the children. 
Upstairs there are two bathrooms and three or floor bedrooms. Young Johnny sleeps in one room. His sister, Sally, has another. Their parents sleep in the third bedroom. There is another room for visitors. 
Some families have two homes. They have one house or apartment in the city or suburbs. They live and work there. But they have another home near the sea or in the mountains. They go to their second home on weekends and for vacations. Seventy percent of Americans buy the house they live in. They are lucky. But thirty percent cannot buy a house or an apartment. Some of them rent their home from a landlord. 
Some landlords are good, but some are not. Windows break, or roofs get old, and the landlord does not always help. 
The poorest people live in "public housing" apartments. These apartments are not like rich American homes. People do not like to live in public housing projects. They are afraid of thieves and drug sellers. Americans who live in towns and cities move often. A family stays in one house for four or five years, and then they move again. Some people move because they have found a new job. Other people move because they want a bigger or a smaller home. In American suburbs, families come and go all the time.
Americans are always trying to make their homes better. They take a lot of time to buy furniture and make their homes beautiful. They buy books and magazines about houses and furniture. They work hard on their homes in the evenings and on weekends. 
Americans like to think the United States is a young country, but really it has a long and interesting history. You can see some of its history in the styles of the houses. The lovely pueblo houses of Native American villages, the old pioneer log cabins, the plantation houses in the South, the beautiful colonial homes of the Northeast — they are all a part of American history. They are part of modem America too, because people copy the old styles in new houses. The history lives on.

My Household Duties (1)

This is my last year at school, and I work hard to pass my final exams successfully. As I am very busy, I can't help my parents much in keeping the house. But still I have some household duties. 
Every day I do my room and my Ded, wash up dishes, dust the furniture and usually go to the baker's after I have dinner. I buy some brown and white bread, biscuits and cakes there. 
The shop is not far from our house and it doesn't take me long to do everyday shopping. 
Once a week I help my mother to do all other work about the house. We wash our linen, iron and mend it, clean the flat. We beat the dust out of the carpets, vacuum the floors and polish them. It's not difficult to keep the flat tidy if you do your rooms regularly. This is my usual round of duties. 
But sometimes I have some other things to do. When my mother is ill or away from home, I do the cooking and the washing up, the buying of food and the planning of meals. I am not a good cook, but my vegetable soup is always tasty. I can also boil an egg or fry some meat. I also lay the table and clear away the dishes. If I'm too busy or can't do these things, all the duties are organized among other members of our family. 
Sometimes I have to visit everyday services: hairdresser's, shoemaker's, tailor's, dry-cleaner's, photographer's. At the hairdresser's I have my hair cut and waved. At the shoemaker's I have my shoes and boots repaired, at the photographer's I have my photos taken. Service is generally good, but in some cases it leaves much to be desired. 
My brother has his own duties at home. He helps to fix and repair some things. For example, he repairs electrical appliances when they are out of order. He has already repaired our mother's electric iron, my desk lamp and his own shaver. Last year I was at my grandparents. They are elderly people and need care and attention. During my stay there, I swept the floors and washed them, fed the chickens, collected the eggs and weeded the vegetable-beds. I don't know how to milk the cow but I helped to feed the other animals: lambs, sheep and pigs. I enjoyed this work very much.

My Household Duties (2)

I live with my mother and father. I like to help them. Every Sunday I clean my room. I take the vacuum — cleaner and clean the carpets. I sweep the floor, dust the sofa and the chairs, I try to dust the furniture in a proper way. We have got many flowers at home. Twice a week I water them. I like flowers very much. 
But best of all I like to lay the table. I do it carefully. I spread the table cloth and then I put out table — mats to protect the table from hot plates and dishes. A small mat for each guest and larger ones for the hot dishes. I put out the cutlery, which clean and polish every week, and I sharpen the carving-knife. The cutlery is kept in a drawer in the sideboard. The wine-glasses are kept on shelves in the sideboard. 
I take out of the drawer in the sideboard all the cutlery — a fish knife and fork for the fish, a large knife and fork for the meat, a small knife for the butter and fruit-knife for the dessert. Then there is a pudding-spoon and a fork for the sweet, and a soup-spoon for the soup. I put the knives and the soup-spoon on the right-hand side and the forks on the left, except the pudding-spoon and fork which I put across the top. Then I put the serving — spoons and forks, the carving-knife and fork, the bread-board and a knife to cut the bread. On the left of each guest I put a small plate for bread and on his right a wine-glass if we are having wine. And I am ready for the guests to come.

My Duties About The House.

My name is ...... I am 17 years old. I have already finished my school. There are four people in
my family: my mother, my father, my brother and myself. We have a two-room flat. There is always much work in the house. There is always much work in the garden near the summer-cottage. My duties about the house are to clean the rooms, to wash the dishes after meals, to do shopping. Sometimes I help my mother to bake cakes and pies, to lay the table for meals. I usually help my sister to do lessons. In the spring and in the autumn I often help my parents in the garden. I look after the flowers andvegetables. I enjoy helping my parents.