ESL Podcast - Previous Episodes

Topics: Ask an American: cults; can versus could; will versus would; freedom versus liberty Words: cult imaginary satanic to spread to brainwash megalomaniacal deluded to impose connotation sect at a crossroads structure unpaid bill mainstream predominant wide open constraint innovation freedom liberty

Slow dialogue: 1:35 Explanations: 3:53 Fast dialogue: 19:19 Kerry: We’re almost done with the shopping. We just need some underwear for you and some unmentionables for me. Russell: It’s perfectly acceptable for women to buy men’s underwear, but do I have to go into the lingerie store? All of the women in the store laugh at me. Kerry: No, they don’t. I just need a few things. Here we are. Okay, I need a new bra with underwire, and I need a strapless one, too. Do you see any in a B cup? Russell: I’m not helping you look. I’m standing over here where nobody can see me. Kerry: Fine. Let’s see, I need some panties and a slip, too. Oh, these pantyhose are on sale. Russell: Can you please hurry up? That woman over there is snickering. Kerry: She’s only laughing because you look so uncomfortable. Okay, I’m done. Let’s go get your underwear. Russell: Thank God! I just need some new boxers with a comfortable waistband and a button fly. Kerry: I thought you liked the boxer briefs I bought before, you know, the seamless ones. Russell: I tried them, but they were too small. I think I’d actually like to try some regular briefs. Here are some over here. Kerry: You’d better look again. Those are g-strings. If you insist on buying those, it’ll be my turn to hide. Script by Dr. Lucy Tse

Slow dialogue: 1:24 Explanations: 3:33 Fast dialogue: 16:59 Kevin: I know a lot of people are doing it, but I’m not so sure about trying an Internet dating service. Eun: What do you have to lose? This website says that it screens all of its members. Let’s look at some of the profiles. Kevin: All right. We have to select the criteria for a search. Let’s see...gender – “female”; location – “Los Angeles”; age range – “26 to 35.” Eun: Wow, you got 243 hits. I think you’d better narrow down the search criteria. Kevin: Okay, I’ll search for people who live within a 50-mile radius. That gives us 72 hits. Eun: Click on that one. Let’s see. This woman is 29 and she’s an accountant. She’s very pretty. Kevin: Do you think people would upload any photos that weren’t flattering? Eun: Still, I think she’s promising, don’t you? Anyway, who doesn’t tell a few white lies in their dating profile? It’s not like you’re misrepresenting yourself. If you sign up for a trial membership, you’ll have to do the same thing. Kevin: Will I? What will I need to lie about? Eun: Nothing, nothing. You’re perfect just the way you are. Script by Dr. Lucy Tse

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Topics: Registering to vote and efforts to get out the vote; the G.I. Bill; growl, groan, and mutter; personnel and other collective nouns; to be fond of Words: election mandatory to register to vote to fill out democracy to get out the vote voter drives soldier veteran benefits economy social legislation growl groan mutter personnel to be fond of

Slow dialogue: 1:27 Explanations: 3:25 Fast dialogue: 14:20 Lon: What’s this? Abigail: It’s a memo about a safety inspection scheduled for next week. Lon: A safety inspection? How are we ever going to pass a safety inspection? Abigail: What do you mean? This isn’t an unsafe workplace. We’ve had a good record. None of our employees have had on-the-job injuries this year and we’ve never had a fatality. I don’t understand why you’re so worried. Lon: From what I’ve heard, the inspectors don’t just look at injury rates. They look for the smallest hazard that may be remotely dangerous. If we get cited, we may be shut down. Abigail: With all due respect, I don’t think that’s how it works. Yes, the inspector will look at our work environment and our gear and machinery to make sure there are no hazards or toxic substances. Lon: That’s what I’m worried about. Abigail: But, if they find a violation, we’ll get a chance to fix the problem. They won’t shut us down without giving us a chance to comply with their safety standards. Lon: I sure hope you’re right. Abigail: Me, too. We’ll know after next week’s inspection. Script by Dr. Lucy Tse

Slow dialogue: 1:14 Explanations: 3:03 Fast dialogue : 12:52 Joni: Smell that! Giuseppe: Smell what? Joni: Smell that fresh air. Aren’t you glad I got you to help me plant this garden? We’re going to have so much fun today. Giuseppe: Uh huh. I’m glad to help, but I don’t exactly have a green thumb. Joni: That’s okay. As long as you can tell a shovel from a lawn mower, you’ll be fine. Let’s start by moving these pots next to the bushes. Giuseppe: Okay, your wish is my command. Joni: Oh, this bag of fertilizer is so heavy. Giuseppe: Let me get that. Joni: Thanks. I didn’t know we had so many large bags of seeds, too. Giuseppe: Do you want me to help you with those? Joni: Thanks a lot. I’ll also need someone to help me hoe this soil. Giuseppe: I guess I could do that. Joni: And how am I going to pull all of these weeds? Giuseppe: Honestly, I think we need reinforcements. Joni: Good idea. You start working and I’ll go see if I can round up more help. [She leaves.] Giuseppe: I start working while she leaves? Hmm...I think she just pulled a fast one on me. Script by Dr. Lucy Tse

Topics: Cook-offs and bake-offs; public health codes; a software evangelist; to look forward to; sandwich versus hamburger Words: to grill competition judge chili recipe to sample sponsor code sanitary inspection grade to revoke evangelist to look forward to sandwich hamburger

Slow dialogue: 1:23 Explanations: 4:20 Fast dialogue: 16:33 Buck: I’m never going to that coffee house again! Star: Why? What happened? Buck: It’s the third time in a week that I’ve had lousy service. I don’t expect five-star treatment, but I do expect service industry employees to be at least civil. Star: What happened this time? Buck: I walked in and went up to the counter to place my order. The woman working there was talking to her friend, another customer. I stood there, clearly needing to be waited on and she couldn’t have cared less. Star: You mean she didn’t even acknowledge you? Buck: Are you kidding? She didn’t stop talking for one second. When she finally took a breath, I told her my order. She gave me a dirty look and finally turned around to get my coffee. She practically threw it at me! Star: Well, maybe she was having a bad day. At least you got your coffee. Buck: I got a cup of coffee, but not the kind I ordered. When I realized it, I went back to the counter and she was still talking to her friend. I interrupted her and told her that I got the wrong order. She had the chutzpah to try to tell me that I had made a mistake in telling her my order. Not only did she not take responsibility for her mistake, she tried to tell me that it was my fault! Star: That’s really infuriating. What are you going to do? Buck: One good thing about her talking with her friend for so long is that I got her name. I’ll be calling the manager to complain. Star: Aren’t you overreacting? Buck: No, I’m not. She’s lucky I didn’t pour the coffee over her head! Script by Dr. Lucy Tse

Slow dialogue: 1:29 Explanations: 3:27 Fast dialogue: 16:18 Joyce: We need to apply for our passports now if we want to have them in time for our trip to McQuillanland. Steven: I have a passport. Joyce: Yes, but it expired last year. You need to renew it before you can get a visa. McQuillanland requires a visa and vaccinations before they’ll allow entry into the country. Steven: Okay, okay, where is the application? I thought U.S. citizens could travel freely in McQuillanland. Joyce: That used to be true, but their policies have changed. We also need to bring our applications to their consulate in person, with all of the supporting documents. Steven: Fine. The application asks which visa classification we’re applying for. Should I check student or tourist? Joyce: Even though we’re taking a language course while we’re there, we’re asking for a tourist visa. We can stay for three months on a tourist visa. Steven: What are they going to do if we overstay our visa, deport us? Joyce: Yes they will, and you don’t want to deal with the McQuillanland authorities. They’re not known for being kind to lawbreakers. Steven: Those McQuillanlanders are my kind of people. Script by Dr. Lucy Tse

Topics: Famous Americans: William Randolph Hearst; what to call people from the top five cities/states in the U.S.; please as the magic word; using an apostrophe (‘) for possessive cases, remember versus remind Words: magnate publisher to put a lot of something into something municipal corruption circulation yellow journalism influence population to drop to learn by heart to leave it at that please to remind to remember

Slow dialogue: 1:18 Explanations: 3:25 Fast dialogue: 14:20 Hello, business students. I’m here today at your professor’s request to talk to you about the importance of finding your own niche in business. Conventional wisdom says that people in business need to diversify their skill sets so that they can be the most flexible in whatever field they decide to enter. While there is some truth to this, that’s only half of the picture. Those who diversify too much run the risk of being a jack of all trades and master of none. Not having a focused set of skills may also be seen as indecisive from the standpoint of a potential employer, and your application may fall by the wayside as a result. Having a niche will help you stand out in the crowd. In business, it’s a balancing act between having the general skills that any company will want, and also possessing specialized skills that will make you the go-to person in your organization. Keep this in mind and you’ll go far. Script by Dr. Lucy Tse

Slow dialogue: 1:26 Explanations: 2:58 Fast dialogue: 15:09 Ray: My mother is coming for a visit, which means we need to do some spring cleaning this weekend. Debra: I’ll get the duster, if you’ll get the broom. Ray: I’m serious. You know how nit-picky my mother is and I want our house to be neat and tidy. Debra: Fine, fine, I understand. You don’t want her to know we live in a pigsty. Ray: I’m not saying we live in a pigsty, but the house is a little messy and dusty. It wouldn’t hurt to straighten up a little bit, that’s all. Debra: I’m willing to pitch in, but I’m not going to spend the entire weekend slaving away to get this house spotless. Your mother won’t love you any less if you’re not a neat freak. Ray: You don’t know my mother very well. Debra: I know her well enough. I don’t want to spoil her fun. If she can’t complain about our dirty house, what will she complain about? Script by Dr. Lucy Tse

Topics: American Cities: Salt Lake City; university admissions; within versus inside versus interior; so much for; to want out Words: to persecute temple canyon to be home to admissions to get a feel for due rank top-tier school back-up school to enroll deferred admission interior so much for to want out

Slow dialogue: 1:27 Explanations: 3:20 Fast dialogue: 17:04 Ben: Why are you squinting like that? Lauren: I left my glasses at the office. Ben: You mean you can’t see?! Lauren: I can see pretty well. What was that yellow sign we just passed? Ben: It said, “Dead End.” Stop! Turn around. Lauren: I can’t. That sign says, “No U-turn.” Ben: Okay, but we can’t keep going. Those signs say, “Do Not Enter” and “One Way.” Lauren: Okay, fine. I’ll just pull off the road and you can drive. Ben: You can’t. That sign says, “No Stopping.” Hey, you just made an illegal U-turn! Lauren: What else could I do? Anyway, we’re back on track now. Ben: Watch out for those speed bumps! You really are blind without your glasses. You’re going too fast. According to that sign, this is a school crossing zone. The posted speed limit is 25 miles per hour. Lauren: That’s only true when the lights are flashing. Is that a “Detour” sign? Ben: I can’t believe it. Will I never get home? Script by Dr. Lucy Tse