Ten Questions ESL Podcast

Hello from Nanning in southern China! I arrived back home (I have two homes, in China and in the US) on Monday. I still have jet lag, which means I feel more tired than usual and I have trouble sleeping at the normal times.Here's a replay from a couple of years ago. This is part of a series I did using words from French, German, Chinese and Spanish. I'm going to post the podcast episodes about Chinese and Spanish words in the next two days, then next Friday I will start to make new recordings. I haven't made a new Casual English Listen and Repeat episode for about nine months! It's time that I started again. So look for a new Listen and Repeat Around the World in 80 Days episode on Monday, maybe an interview on Wednesday, and then a new Casual English episode on Friday. I'm in China now, so my Friday may be your Thursday! LnR 054 Words from German (Replay) Here are some words that the English language has borrowed from the German language. Some use the German pronunciation and some have been changed to an English pronunciation. angst     edelweiss     gesundheit     kaput     wanderlust     verboten     waltz     autobahn     knapsack     doppelganger (should be two dots over the "a")     schadenfreude     blitz     diesel     flak/flack     kindergarten     hamburger     lager     lederhosen

LnR 052 Words from French (Replay) >>> I'm in a hotel room tonight because I leave early tomorrow morning for China! My mother lives 2 1/2 hours from the airport, and my flight is early in the morning, so the easiest thing to do is spend the night in a hotel. That way we don't have to drive in the dark Here's an episode from two years ago. I think you'll learn some interesting words in this podcast! In this episode I'll give you some French words that we use in English. You can see how to pronounce them and how they are used in a sentence. The words are below: au contraire     au pair     ballet     blase (this word has a mark over the "e", but I don't know how to make it in this podcast program)     Bon voyage!     bouquet     cafe (mark over the "e")     charlatan     chic     cliche (mark over the "e")     clique     critique     decor     deja vu (marks over the "e" and "a")     entrepreneur     facade (there's a mark under the "c") faux pas     fiance (mark over the "e")     genre     nouvou riche     omelette I ask the French people to please forgive me for pronouncing the words wrong in the podcast and for not using the correct marks in these notes. It seems that the program for the notes doesn't allow the extra marks . . . or I don't know how to use it.

LnR 050 If I were . . . (Replay) This was recorded two years ago. I'm still on vacation at my mother's house in the U.S. The unreal conditional: If I were . . . , I would/could . . . . I sing the song "If I were a rich man" from the movie "Fiddler on the Roof". I'm sorry if I hurt your ears! 1. If I were you, I would tell your girlfriend the truth. Otherwise, she'll be furious if she finds out from someone else. 2. If I had a son, I would teach him how to play football. But I have three daughters, who I take to ballet and gymnastics lessons on Saturdays. 3. If I won a million dollars, I would never have to work again. However, I don't gamble, so I'll just continue working hard. 4. If she hadn't gone to that college, she wouldn't have met her husband. Her future husband, I mean. 5. If he were taller, he'd be a better basketball player. 6. If we didn't live in a such a cold place, we could play outside more. As it is, in the winter I stay inside and play computer games. My older sister shops online. 7. If my students had listened to me, they wouldn't have failed the quiz. But I told them just before the bell rang, and they were all thinking about lunch! 8. If I had some extra money, I would buy that expensive bike I want. But it's too expensive for me right now, so I'll just keep riding my old bike.

In this podcast, Matthew from Shanghai, China discusses his name, favorite school subjects, and the heavy workload Chinese students face in the summer. The conversation also covers his musical adventures in the U.S., including competing in a choral festival and visiting friends. Topics range from algebra to spaghetti to aviation, providing a glimpse into a day in the life of a 14-year-old Chinese student.

 LnR Around the World in Eighty Days 8   As for Passepartout, he was a true Parisian of Paris. Since he had abandoned his own country for England, taking service as a valet, he had in vain searched for a master after his own heart. Passepartout was by no means one of those pert dunces depicted by Moliere with a bold gaze and a nose held high in the air; he was an honest fellow, with a pleasant face, lips a trifle protruding, soft-mannered and serviceable, with a good round head, such as one likes to see on the shoulders of a friend. His eyes were blue, his complexion rubicund, his figure almost portly and well-built, his body muscular, and his physical powers fully developed by the exercises of his younger days. His brown hair was somewhat tumbled; for, while the ancient sculptors are said to have known eighteen methods of arranging Minerva's tresses, Passepartout was familiar with but one of dressing his own: three strokes of a large-tooth comb completed his toilet. It would be rash to predict how Passepartout's lively nature would agree with Mr. Fogg. It was impossible to tell whether the new servant would turn out as absolutely methodical as his master required; experience alone could solve the question. Passepartout had been a sort of vagrant in his early years, and now yearned for repose; but so far he had failed to find it, though he had already served in ten English houses. But he could not take root in any of these; with chagrin, he found his masters invariably whimsical and irregular, constantly running about the country, or on the look-out for adventure. His last master, young Lord Longferry, Member of Parliament, after passing his nights in the Haymarket taverns, was too often brought home in the morning on policemen's shoulders. Passepartout, desirous of respecting the gentleman whom he served, ventured a mild remonstrance on such conduct; which, being ill-received, he took his leave. Hearing that Mr. Phileas Fogg was looking for a servant, and that his life was one of unbroken regularity, that he neither travelled nor stayed from home overnight, he felt sure that this would be the place he was after. He presented himself, and was accepted, as has been seen.

LnR 048 Throw under the bus (Replay) My Chinese friend Lina and her son left yesterday. I hope you have listened to her interview. I'll post her son's interview next Wednesday. ===== Two friends are talking on the phone: A: Hi, Monica, this is Joanna. B: Oh, hey, Joanna! What's up? A: Nothing much. I haven't talked to you for a while, so I thought I'd give you a call. B: Yeah, I've been busy with a project at work. Our team had four weeks to renovate ten rooms for a law firm downtown.  A: Four weeks? B: Right. The first three weeks were for designing the rooms and choosing the materials. We had meetings with a representative of the law firm twice a week to make sure we were on track.  A: Then only one week to do the renovations? Is that enough time? B: Yes, because we hire contractors to do most of the work, like painting the walls and putting in new carpeting. Some of the rooms got new office furniture, so we also had to hire movers.  A: So, did you meet the deadline? B: No! We forgot to order the curtains! The windows in that building are an unusual size, so the curtains had to be custom-made. That takes two weeks. I was the one who chose the color of the curtains and the team leader chose the place that would make them. I thought he would place the order and I guess he thought I would place the order.  A: What happened? B: When the law firm complained to our supervisor, my team leader totally threw me under the bus! He said I was supposed to order the curtains, so I was reprimanded by my boss. I was so hacked off. 

In this podcast, Nancy and her friend Lina from Shanghai discuss pronouncing 'Shanghai', compare it to Beijing, and share insights about the Amish community in the U.S. Lina gives tips to English students, including not expecting perfection and using English for tests, classes, or trips. They also talk about their enduring friendship and Lina's travels around the U.S.

LnR Around the World in Eighty Days 7 Chapter 2 IN WHICH PASSEPARTOUT IS CONVINCED THAT HE HAS AT LAST FOUND HIS IDEAL "Faith," muttered Passepartout, somewhat flurried, "I've seen people at Madame Tussaud's as lively as my new master!" Madame Tussaud's "people," let it be said, are of wax, and are much visited in London; speech is all that is wanting to make them human. During his brief interview with Mr. Fogg, Passepartout had been carefully observing him. He appeared to be a man about forty years of age, with fine, handsome features, and a tall, well-shaped figure; his hair and whiskers were light, his forehead compact and unwrinkled, his face rather pale, his teeth magnificent. His countenance possessed in the highest degree what physiognomists call "repose in action," a quality of those who act rather than talk. Calm and phlegmatic, with a clear eye, Mr. Fogg seemed a perfect type of that English composure which Angelica Kauffmann has so skilfully represented on canvas. Seen in the various phases of his daily life, he gave the idea of being perfectly well-balanced, as exactly regulated as a Leroy chronometer. Phileas Fogg was, indeed, exactitude personified, and this was betrayed even in the expression of his very hands and feet; for in men, as well as in animals, the limbs themselves are expressive of the passions. He was so exact that he was never in a hurry, was always ready, and was economical alike of his steps and his motions. He never took one step too many, and always went to his destination by the shortest cut; he made no superfluous gestures, and was never seen to be moved or agitated. He was the most deliberate person in the world, yet always reached his destination at the exact moment. He lived alone, and, so to speak, outside of every social relation; and as he knew that in this world account must be taken of friction, and that friction retards, he never rubbed against anybody.

The podcast explores the world of slang, jargon, and regional expressions, with a focus on hip hop slang. The discussion includes differences between hip hop and rap, learning slang through music and online resources, and examples like 'bling'. Exploring Southern expressions in American English is also highlighted, showcasing unique phrases like 'y'all' and 'fixing to'.

A valet with a colorful past, Passepartout, seeks a tranquil life with Mr. Fogg. They discuss punctuality, past professions, and linguistic differences in a humorous and engaging dialogue.