TO BUILD A FIRE

 

The story today is called "To Build a Fire."  It was written by Jack London. 

Here is Ghost teller with the story.

The man walked down the trail on a cold, gray day. This was his first winter in Alaska.  He was wearing heavy clothes and fur boots. The man was on his way to a camp near Henderson Creek, His friends were already there, and they would have a fire and hot food ready for him.

A dog walked behind the man.  It was a big gray animal, half dog and half wolf. The man continued to walk down the trail and He came to a frozen stream called Indian Creek. 

At about twelve o’clock, the man decided to stop to eat his lunch. He made a fire, beginning with small pieces of wood and adding larger ones. He sat on a snow-covered log and ate his lunch. At a place where the snow seemed very solid, the ice broke and his feet sank into the water. It was not deep, but his legs got wet to the knees. He would have to build a fire now to dry his clothes and boots. He walked over to some small trees. He put several large pieces of wood on the snow, under one of the trees. On top of the wood, he put some grass and dry branches and lighted the fire.

He sat under the tree and thought of the old men in Fairbanks that the old men had told him that no man should travel alone in the Yukon when the temperature is sixty degrees below zero. Yet here he was. He had had an accident. He was alone. And he had saved himself. He had built a fire. The dog was still watching him. The man got an idea. He would kill the dog and bury his hands inside its warm body. He called to the dog. The man reached for his knife. But he had forgotten that he could not bend his fingers. He could not kill the dog, because he could not hold his knife.

The fear of death came over the man. He jumped up and began to run. He fell several times and he decided to rest a while. As he lay in the snow, he noticed that he was not shaking. He could not feel his nose or fingers or feet. Yet, he was feeling quite warm and comfortable.He realized he was going to die. Well, he decided, he might as well take it like a man. The dog sat facing him, waiting. Finally, the dog moved closer to the man and caught the smell of death. The animal threw back its head. It let out a long, soft cry to the cold stars in the black sky.

And then it tuned and ran toward Henderson Creek…where it knew there was food and a fire.

COVERED

Covered

US [ˈkʌvɚd]

Adj.Cubierto; recubierto.

Original sentence:

1. Pure white snow and ice covered the Earth for as far as he could see.

Our sentences:

2. It was covered in blood.

3. The man was covered with scars.

SUDDENLY

Suddenly

US [ˈsʌdn̩lɪ]

Adv. De repente; De pronto; Inesperadamente.

Original sentence:

1. He stopped suddenly, and then walked around a part of the frozen stream.

Our sentences:

2. Suddenly he realized the truth.

3. Suddenly I hear a strange sound.

SEEMED

Seemed

US [ˈsimd]

V. Parecer

pl. Seem  pa. t. Seemed   pa. pple. Seemed     

pr. pple. Seeming

Original sentence:

1. At a place where the snow seemed very solid, the ice broke.

Our sentences:

2. My dream had seemed so real.

3. Its fall seemed so slow.

UNDERGROUND

Underground

US [ˌʌndɚˈɡɹaʊnd]

V. Soterrar

Adj. Subterráneo;Clandestino.

Adv. Bajo tierra.

Noun. Subsuelo; Suburbano.

pl. Undergrounds  pa. t. Undergrounded   pa. pple. Undergrounded     

pr. pple. Undergrounding

Original sentence:

1. He saw that an underground spring flowed under the ice at that spot.

Our sentences:

2. They just said that she's underground.

3. That underground railway of yours is amazing.

PULLED

Pulled

US [ˈpʊɫd]

V. Tirar; Atraer; Arrancar; Apretar.

Adj. Sacado; Tirada; Extraída.

pl. Pulls  pa. t. Pulled  pa. pple. Pulled  

pr. pple. Pulling

Original sentence:

1. He opened his jacket and shirt, and pulled out his bread and meat.

Our sentences:

2. He pulled me off the rope and I fell

3. Either way, she pulled it out.

AGAINST

Against

US [əˈɡɛntst]

Adv. En contra

Original sentence:

1. He hit his hand against his leg several times until he felt a sharp pain.

Our sentences:

2. I lean against the wall.

3. She was fun to play against.

DELAY

Delay

US [dɪˈleɪ]

V. Retrasar; Demorar; Retardar

Noun. Retardo; Retraso

pl. Delays  pa. t. Delayed  pa. pple. Delayed  

pr. pple. Delaying

Original sentence:

1. The accident would delay his arrival at the camp.

Our sentences:

2. I may have to delay a bit.

3. Hurry up and don't delay.

BRANCHES

Branches

US [ˈbɹæntʃəz]

V. Bifurcarse

Noun. Rama; Sucursal

pl. Branches  pa. t. Branched  pa. pple. Branched  

pr. pple. Branching

Original sentence:

1. In their branches were pieces of dry grass and wood left by flood waters earlier in the year.

Our sentences:

2. The branches are freshly cut.

3. Cash transaction reporting by branches.

MATCHES

Matches

US [ˈmætʃəz]

V. Igualar; Emparejar; Coincidir; Corresponder.

Noun. Partidos; Fósforos; Cerillas; Pareja

pl. Matches  pa. t. Matched  pa. pple. Matched  

pr. pple. Matching

Original sentence:

1. He pulled off his gloves, took out his matches, and lighted the fire.

Our sentences:

2. I have to watch matches.

3. I also have wax matches.

WITHDRAW

Withdraw

US [wɪθˈdɹɑ]

V. Retirar; Retirarse; Revocar

pl. Withdraws  pa. t. Withdrew  pa. pple. Withdrawn  

pr. pple. Withdrawing

Original sentence:

1. Cold was forcing his blood to withdraw deeper into his body.

Our sentences:

2. She did not withdraw her hand.

3. Then they will be given one last chance to withdraw.

DEGREES

Degrees

US [dɪˈɡɹiz]

Noun. Grados; Título; Diploma; Carrera.

Original sentence:

1. The old men had told him that no man should travel alone in the Yukon when the temperature is sixty degrees below zero.

Our sentences:

2. The mother has a certain degree of concern for her child.

3. She has a degree in Sociology from Harvard University.

REACHED

Reached

US [ˈɹitʃt]

V. Alcanzar

Adj. Alcanzado; Logrado; Obtenido

pl. Reaches  pa. t. Reached  pa. pple. Reached  

pr. pple. Reaching

Original sentence:

1. He reached into his pocket for the matches.

Our sentences:

2. She reached her objective.

3. The future has reached me.

GATHERED

Gathered

US [ˈɡæðɚd]

V. Recabar; recoger; recolectar; reunirse.

Adj. Reunido; recogidos; recolectado; recabado.

pl. Gatherings      pa. t. Gathered  

pa. pple. Gathered   pr. pple. Gathering

Original sentence:

1. He gathered them together.

Our sentences:

2. He gathered her in his arms.

3. He gathered some grasses and took them away.

SCRATCHED

Scratched

US [ˈskɹætʃt]

V. Rayar; Arañar; Rascar; Rasguñar.

Adj. Rasguño; Arañazo; Rayado.

pl. Scratches  pa. t. Scratched  pa. pple. Scratched  

pr. pple. Scratching

Original sentence:

1. He scratched the matches along his leg.

Our sentences:

2. The translator scratched his head.

3. When they weren't looking he scratched.

BLAZING

Blazing

US [ˈbleɪzɪŋ]

V. Arder; Brillar; Flamear.

Noun. Resplandor; Fuego; Llamarada.

pl. Blazes  pa. t. Blazed  pa. pple. Blazed  

pr. pple. Blazing

Original sentence:

1. He held the blazing matches to a piece of wood.

Our sentences:

2. It was August and blazing hot

3. His eyes were blazing with power.

AWARE

Aware

US [əˈwɛr]

Adj. Conciente; Al corriente.

Original sentence:

1. He became aware that he could smell his hands burning.

Our sentences:

2. He was very aware that.

3. I became aware of her attention.

GROUND

Ground

US [ˈɡɹaʊnd]

V. Suelo; Superficie; 

Noun. Tierra; Suelo; Terreno.

pl. Grounds  pa. t. Grounded  pa. pple. Grounded  

pr. pple. Grounding

Original sentence:

1. It felt strange to run and not feel his feet when they hit the ground.

Our sentences:

2. I fell to the ground when I threw the ball.

3. The ground was wet and dry at the same time.

SHAKING

Shaking

US [ˈʃeɪkɪŋ]

V. Sacudir; Agitar; estrechar

Adj. Tembloroso; Desconcertante; Conmocion

Noun. Sacudida; Estremecimiento.

pl. Shakes  pa. t. Shook  pa. pple. Shaken  

pr. pple. Shaking

Original sentence:

1. He noticed that he was not shaking.

Our sentences:

2. I’m shaking like a kid.

3. He was shaking with nerves.

FLOATED

Floated

US [ˈfloʊtəd]

V. Flotar; Hacer flotar; Boyar.

Noun. Flotador; Carrozas; Balsas.

pl. Floats  pa. t. Floated  pa. pple. Floated  

pr. pple. Floating

Original sentence:

1. The man closed his eyes and floated into the most comfortable sleep he had ever known.

Our sentences:

2. I contacted him and floated the idea.

3. It floated on the water.

TUNED

Tuned

US [ˈtund]

V.  Sintonizar; Ajustar; Afinar;

Adj. Sintonizado; Afinado; Ajustado.

pl. Branches  pa. t. Tuned  pa. pple. Tuned 

pr. pple. Tuning

Original sentence:

1. And then it tuned and ran toward Henderson Creek.

Our sentences:

2. The TV was tuned to HCH.

3. It is tuned to channels one and five.