ESL Pod Official - Speak English Fluently by Listening (with Text)

One of my favorite hang-outs is a cafe near where I live called Bolivar in Santa Monica. It's only five minutes away, and its never too busy to find a table. Sometimes it can be bustling, but that's usually just in the morning during rush hour or at lunchtime. The owners are from Venezuela, and always have some cool music playing in the background. Yesterday, I decided to take my New York Times and my laptop and kill a few hours there. I ordered the usual. I'm a regular , the folks there know I want a Vanilla Latte with a double shot of espresso, hold the whipped cream. Sometimes I'll order a coffee cake if I'm feeling a little hungry. The cafe also has soup and sandwich menu you can order off of. Cafes are great for people watching. Sometimes I just sit and watch the people come and go. You get all types at this cafe. Yesterday, for example, a mother comes in with her three daughters, and one of the little girls ordered a latte! This being Los Angeles, you have your typical mix of screenwriters, out-of-work actors, and various Hollywood wannabes. They make for a colorful mix most of the time. Me, I just sit and read my paper. I'm no actor, but someday I would like to direct. Script by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

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Would you want to have a special talent in something? Maybe as a musician or an athlete? I'm of two minds about this. Sometimes I watch TV or read about someone who has a special talent. This was true during the Olympics. Some of those athletes I saw were very talented. Whether it was playing soccer, running track, ice skating, or doing gymnastic routines, you could see how gifted they were and how well- trained and focused they were. I get the same feeling when I see musicians who can sing well or play an instrument easily. Watching or listening to them can take your breath away . I sometimes wish I had an special gift like theirs. On the other hand, I also read about stories of children who are singled out as having talent early in life. Some of these kids begin training or practicing at the exclusion of other things kids do, like hanging out with friends or learning things in other subjects. Some of these kids don't go to school but are taught at home with tutors instead. They may be sent away to teachers or trainers in other cities, sometimes even without their parents. And, sometimes they spend so much time developing their talent, they don't have much time to develop other parts of their lives. These kids often live under a lot of pressure to perform. I envy these kids, talent, but I don't envy their lives. I guess maybe it's not so bad being mediocre after all. At least that's what I'll keep telling myself when I practice this week. Script by Dr. Lucy Tse

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For me, things never go very smoothly at my local post office. I've learned that if you want to mail a letter, you'll have no problems. But if things get more complicated than that, well, watch out! Yesterday I went there to mail a small package and to pick up a book of stamps. I waited my turn in line, and when I get up to the window, the clerk asks me, "What can I do for you?" "Well," I said, "I need a book‚no, make that a roll of stamps. And I need to send this package priority to San Francisco." "You want insurance with that?" he asked me. "Uh, I don't know, what do you recommend?" "Well," he said, "you can send it priority with tracking if you want to see when it gets there, you can send it insured if the contents are valuable, or you can do both." "Okay, I'll take the insurance." "Then step aside to fill out the insurance form," he said, "and bring it back up to me when you're finished." With that, I was waved aside to fill out my form. "Next in line!" the clerk called. When I finished filling out the form, I waited patiently until the gentleman being waited on in front of me was finished, and then stepped back up to the window. "Sorry," the clerk said, "I'm on break now. She can help you at the next window." Maybe it would be quicker just to drive my package to San Francisco. Script by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

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I fell into the habit of reading the newspaper every morning when I was a kid. Back then, there used to be two daily newspapers--morning edition and an afternoon edition. Nowadays, of course, many cities in the U.S. have just a morning paper. I'm not too picky about which newspaper I read, although when it comes to national newspapers, I prefer reading the New York Times or the Wall Street Journal over the USA Today. Don't get me wrong: I'm not a news junkie. I just like browsing the different sections, reading the headlines, and checking out the classifieds. I usually skip the sports section and the funnies, and only flip through the food and health sections, but I always read the front page and the editorial page. On the weekends, I'll skim the entertainment section for the movie listings and reviews. I'm sort of old-fashioned in that I still like reading a real, paper newspaper. Sure, I also read some of my news online, but nothing beats lounging around on Sunday morning reading the big, thick paper. Don't worry, though: I always recycle my stack of newspapers. Script by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

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I stopped by the drugstore last night on my way back home from work. I had a few toiletries to pick up, as well as my prescription. Fortunately, the chain pharmacy where I go has a little bit of everything: food, greeting cards, magazines--it's almost as big as a regular supermarket. To begin with, I needed to get some medications for my allergies. I've got hay fever, so I'm sneezing up a storm every morning when I wake up. While I was at it, I also got some antacids and some Band-Aids. Now it was time to pick up my refill. I stood in line for a few minutes before being waited on. Since it was not a new prescription, the pharmacist didn't have to do a consultation with me. I just gave the clerk my insurance card and she rang up the sale. Fortunately, I have a low co-pay, so my HMO foots most of the bill. Script by Dr. Jeff McQuillan

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I came across some good advice while reading this week. If you're like me, you spend most of your time thinking about all of the things that are on your "to-do‚" list and you try to figure out how you're going to do them all. Or, sometimes, I think about things that have already happened. Maybe I messed up my presentation at work or had a fight with my boyfriend. People dwell on these kinds of things all of the time. The book I was reading made a very good point. If you're constantly thinking about the past or the future, how can you enjoy the present? In other words, you're making yourself unhappy by stressing out about things that you can't control. At the same time, you're missing what's happening right now. I know I do this all the time. For instance, I was at the movies this past weekend. I was with my good friend and we were seeing a movie we've had our eye on for weeks. I was looking forward to it and my friend and I were both in a great mood. Then, I saw someone across the theater who looked like my co- worker. It wasn't her but it got me thinking. I thought about the report I had to do on Monday and how much I hated working on it. Then, I thought about my co-worker who wasn't pulling her weight. The more I thought about it, the more angry I got. By the time the movie started, my mood had changed completely. I was stressed out. Where did all of that thinking and worrying get me? Nowhere. My new resolution is to try to stop obsessing about the past and the future so much, and to just enjoy the here and now. Script by Dr. Lucy Tse

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