cooking for oneself; cooking one's own food; doing one's own cooking; scanning a book or magazine to create an ebook by oneself
beginning of the year; early in the New Year
national holiday; festival day
food expenses; money for food; charge for board
to mount up; to pile up; to accumulate; to increase
household economy; family finances
making do; getting by (somehow); managing
disagreeable; unpleasant; nasty; detestable; sarcastic; snide
evasion; excuse; subterfuge; runaround
to blame; to reproach; to question (a suspect); to challenge; to aggravate (an injury); to be aggravated
to raise objections; to complain; (to have the right) to say anything
to look toward; to have one's eyes drawn towards something
to shut oneself in (e.g. one's room); to be confined in; to fill with (emotion, enthusiasm, power, etc.); to imbue with; to fill a space (of a gas, smell, etc.); to be heavy with (e.g. smoke); to be muffled (e.g. of a voice)
hard to please; difficult; particular; bad-tempered; in a bad mood; displeased
approximate age; apparent age; marriageable age (esp. of a woman); age of maturity; age (when ...); for years (past)
to lock (a door, etc.); to lock up
creepy (feeling); uneasy (feeling); bad (feeling); giving one the creeps; hideous; scaring
yearning; longing; aspiration; adoration; admiration
the teaching profession; education of laity
to change the subject (e.g. away from something awkward or inconvenient)
person concerned; people involved (in an event); those concerned; staff
principle of laissez-faire
latchkey child; latchkey kid
to stray from the right path; to go wrong; to go off the rails; to turn delinquent
reaction; recoil; kick; backlash
every evening; night after night
rare; strange; odd; peculiar
how should I put it?; what shall I say?; well, you know; like
slipping out (a chuckle, giggle); unintentionally (letting out a quiet laugh)
brothers and sisters; siblings; half-siblings; step-siblings; mate; friend
to cling to ... in tears; to beg ... in tears; to appeal; to throw oneself on someone's mercy
difficult to ... (physically or emotionally); hard to ...
attachment; adhesion; insistence; tenacity; fixation; obsession
simplistic (thinking, idea, etc.); hasty
disclosure; exposure; revelation
air conditioner; air conditioning; aircon
How did you like ...?; How about ...?; What's going on?; How's it going?
air conditioning; air cooling
insane; crazy; nuts; out of one's mind