Zalamit Podcast DZ زالاميط: تعلّم الإنجليزيّة بالدّارجة

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Text: 

" I am throwing a party for Aissa tomorrow. It’s his birthday. He’s turning 20. He said that he never had a birthday party before, even when he was a child. It kind of broke my heart a little because in my family birthdays are a big deal. We love to celebrate each and every one of us with a party, a big cake, gifts and lots of music. It’s going to be a surprise party. He has no clue. All he knows is that he needs to be at Slimane’s store at two. He thinks that Slimane needs help. The plan is to have a picnic at the beach. I wish I could do more but the money is tight. I hope he likes it anyways. I called all his friends and most of them RSVPed. Sam won’t be able to come. I wish he could. He’s usually the life of the party. I made a birthday cake and I bought him a book from his favorite author.  I’m a bit nervous. I hope it goes well. Aissa is my classmate. I like him. I like, like like him. I wish we could be more than friends. I want to be his girlfriend. I hope he gets the hint. This party was such a hassle to organize, I really hope he gets the message. "

Comprehension questions: 

1. What is the occasion for the party being thrown?
2. How does the writer feel about birthdays in their own family?
3. Who is the surprise party for?
4. Why does the writer think Aissa believes he needs to be at Slimane's store at 2pm?
5. How many people RSVPed to the party?
6. Who is Sam and why is the writer sad he can't come to the party?
7. What does the writer hope Aissa gets from this party?
8. What did the writer buy for Aissa and why?
9. How does the writer feel about the party?
10. What does the writer hope for his relationship with Aissa to be?

Writing task:

1. Is it appropriate for the writer to throw a surprise party for Aissa without his knowledge or consent?
2. Is it necessary for birthdays to be a big deal in a family?
3. Is it necessary for the party to be extravagant for Aissa to have a good time?
4. Is it fair for the writer to use the party as a way to communicate their feelings for Aissa, or should they have expressed them earlier?
5. Is the writer's concern about their tight budget a valid excuse for not doing more for the party?
6. Are surprise parties an effective way to show someone you care about them?
7. Is it important to include friends in birthday parties?
8. What is more important, the writer's hope to send a message or Aissa's enjoyment of the party?
9. How much thought and effort is enough to make a party special?
10. Should the writer be more honest and direct with Aissa about their feelings or could this kind of hinting through a party would be more effective?

Text: 

“New Year's resolutions can be a powerful tool for personal growth and change, but it's important to approach them with the right mindset. If you have tried and failed to stick to your resolutions in the past, it's important to remember that change is a process and setbacks are a normal part of that process. Instead of beating yourself up or feeling like a failure, try to view past failures as opportunities to learn and grow. Consider setting small, achievable goals that you can work towards gradually, and focus on building positive habits rather than trying to achieve a specific outcome. Remember to be kind to yourself and celebrate your successes, no matter how small they may seem. With the right mindset and approach, you can turn your New Year's resolution into a meaningful and lasting change.”

Hum, okay, so this is what the logic says. Instead I know I will set goals that are way too big and I will be disappointed about not achieving them. I will focus on my goals for about a week and a half and then I will slip back into my old habits because they are nice and comfortable haha I will set goals anyways. I love the sense of hope that the New Year brings."

Comprehension questions :

1. What is an important aspect to consider when making New Year's resolutions?
2. Why is it important to view past failures as opportunities to learn and grow?
3. What is a recommended approach to setting New Year's resolutions?
4. How does the second speaker typically approach their New Year's resolutions?
5. What does the second speaker enjoy about the New Year?

Key Words: temperature / overwhelming 

Text: 

"The weather is getting colder, finally! Fall is my favorite season. I'm glad it's here. This summer was too hot. We couldn't leave the house before sunset. Everyone took long afternoon naps. It was nice at first but by the end it felt like a  waste of time. The temperature dropped now. It's around 25 degrees during the day which is great. And it is 20 degrees at night. The perfect temperature for sleeping. I love it when the leaves turn brown, red and yellow. I think it's beautiful. Albert Camus wrote about fall. He said: "Autumn is another Spring where every leaf is a flower." I love this quote. Right now, I'm taking a walk on main street. The street is empty-ish. It's not completely empty but it's a huge difference compared to August. We get many tourists. It gets a bit overwhelming in the summer. I mean, they are welcome and we appreciate the business they bring, and we love hosting them but I'm glad there's not traffic jam on the sidewalk. I'll take a few pictures today. Once in a while, I like to play tourist in my own hometown. I think that if so many people choose to come here for the holiday to love the beauty of our town and snap so many pictures of everything, I, too, should make an effort and appreciate my town. I don't want to take it for granted. I see little blue dots and little pink dots on the horizon. The school day is over. The students who are wearing their pink and blue uniforms, are going home now. I'm taking a picture of that. Love what you have and you will always be happy. That's what I believe. I love my hometown in the fall." 

Comprehension questions:

1. What season does the narrator enjoy the most?
2. Why was it difficult to leave the house during the summer?
3. How does the narrator feel about the temperature now that it has cooled down?
4. What does the narrator think about the quote by Albert Camus about autumn?
5. Why does the narrator decide to play tourist in their own hometown?
6. What is the narrator's belief about happiness?
7. What do the students in the narrator's town wear as uniforms?

Key Words: gut feeling / had to

Text:

"It all started the day before. I was waiting in line at El Djidjli to buy a chicken panini for lunch when I saw these two sketchy guys. They were not from here it was clear. I know most people in this town and I don't know, I can tell when people are not from here. It's the attitude, they way they move, the way they carry themselves, something, I don't know, I just know it. I hadn't even heard them speak by then. Later, I heard their accent but at that moment I just saw them walking around. They were looking closely at every parked car. I thought I saw one of them taking a picture of a license plate but I wasn't sure. My lunch break was over and I had to go back to the office. I couldn't shake the feeling that something was up. It was a slow day at the office. We don't get many customers in the Winter. That's okay. It's our slow season. Our busy season is in Spring. Anyways, I wish I had done something that day. I wish I had told someone, the cops, the neighbour, anyone. I didn't. The next day, in the morning, I noticed the same two guys by Kaokao Park. I was driving. When I stopped at the red light I looked into the rearview mirror and I saw that there was a child with them. The blood in my veins turned into ice. I can't explain. It was an animal instinct in me. I remembered that the car that was parked by El Djidjli, yesterday, had stickers on it. The stickers were a family stick figures and a baby on board sign. The light turned green and I had to drive. Something was up. I just knew it. I have children myself and since I became a mom I scan the environment nonstop. I turned the car around and went to the park. I had the courage to call the cops this time. I entered the park and looked for them but they had vanished. I walked around the woods, looking left and right, expecting to see them behind every tree, until I saw them. One of them, the tall one started running towards me. To say that I was scared is an understatement. I ran as fast as I could but he caught up with me. He grabbed me by the hair and I screamed at the top of my lungs. He was dragging me when we heard a loud voice yelling "let her go". We both looked around, it was a  police officer. He was running towards us. Another police officer came from the other side. The tall guy let go of me and he tried to escape but the cop caught him. This is the craziest thing that ever happened to me. The police officer took me to the station and after I recovered from the scare he told me that the two men were trying to kidnap the little girl but my call saved her. I couldn't believe my ears. I was so proud of myself but so horrified and the same time. I am still in shock to this day. I was right. My instincts were right. I am glad I followed my gut feeling. There was an article about me in the local newspaper and many social media pages talked about me too. Since that day, I decided to always listen to my instincts."

Comprehension Questions:

1. What made the speaker suspicious of the two men they saw at El Djidjli?
2. What did the speaker do when they saw the two men and a child at Kaokao Park?
3. How did the speaker react when the tall man grabbed them by the hair?
4. How did the situation resolve?
5. Why did the speaker decide to always listen to their instincts after this incident?

There's so many of you guys listening to Zalamit! It makes me sooo happy. Thank you everyone! I am proud of what we are doing here.

Key Words: Either / Tie the knot

Text: 

"You need to make up your mind. You can't stall forever. I know it's a hard decision to make but you have to make it. No one else can do this for you. It's your responsibility. You've been avoiding this for how long? Six months? That's too long. Either you marry her or you let her go. I know you don't like this kind of ultimatums and you think it's immature and life is too complicated for this type of requests and it's too much pressure and bla bla bla but it's not about you. It's not only about what you want. She has made herself clear. She has given you many chances before and I really feel like this is the last one you're going to get. You've been together for many years now so it's time to tie the knot or move on. Is she not a good person? Do you not love her? And don't start with your stories of "my situation". She knows about your situation. She knows everything about you and she accepts you. You say she deserves better and that you're working to have better things to give her but all these reasons feel like excuses now. I'm telling you. You're going to lose her."
That's what Karim told me two months before she left. She left me and she left the city. She moved to Annaba to start over. Algiers is empty without her. My life is empty without her."

Comprehension questions :

1. What decision does the speaker need to make?
2. How long has the speaker been avoiding this decision?
3. What has the speaker's partner made clear to them?
4. What does Karim tell the speaker?
5. What happened two months later?

Debate questions based on the text:

1. Is it fair to give someone an ultimatum in a relationship?
2. Is it justifiable to end a relationship if your partner is not ready to commit to marriage?
3. Is it ever acceptable to make excuses in a relationship?
4. Is it always necessary to end a relationship if one person wants to move on?
5. Is it possible for a person to change their mind about marriage after being in a long-term relationship?

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Key words: bite / brakes

Text: 

"Marwa's car is having problems already. She bought it recently but she didn't buy it new. She bought it second hand. I told her not to buy from Chakib Chakma. He's the typical greasy car salesman. He's a fast talker and a con artist. She should have known better. She should have asked around. She told me that the first week she needed to replace the brakes, and a few days later the transmission went. She youtubed a way to fix it and it worked for a few days and then broke again. This is no joke. It's dangerous. She could really get hurt if she got into an accident because of this old car. I guess she's going to just have to bite the bullet and get it fixed by a professional."

Love.

Key Words:

Text: 

"My name is Moundir. I got a summer job, which means, I now have to wake up early. Well, early compared to my usual 1 p.m. wake up time. These days I wake up at 9 a.m. I have to be at the store by 10. I sell ice-cream on the board walk. I work from 10 to 10. It’s a really long day but I need the money. It’s an easy and pleasant job, all in all. It makes people happy. I like talking to the kids. They crack me up. Especially this small kid named Mustapha. He comes to the store with a bunch of coins and spreads them on the counter. He says he gets paid to do chores and run errands then he comes here to spend his hard earned money. He’s a hustler. I understand. I’m doing the same. The thing that surprised me the most about this job is the sore forearms. I wasn’t expecting scooping ice-cream could be so challenging. It’s not hard but it adds up. By the end of the day my arm is dead. If I spend my money wisely, I will be able to buy a new pc by the end of the summer. I hope I can resist the temptation of buying clothes and going out. I guess it’s a good thing that I work such long hours. It helps me save."

Thank you for listening

Key Words: Optimistic / Pessimistic

Text: 

"Hanane and Ali are friends. They grew up together like brother and sister. They are both an only-child, so they found in each other the sibling they never had. They are seventeen years old now. It's their last year of high school. They often discuss their ambitions. Hanane is very optimistic,.unlike Ali who tends to see the glass half empty. "After the Bac exam, I'm going to study at Esi. I'll do my best to be the top of my grade. I think I can do it. I'm ready to outwork anybody. Then, I"ll apply for scholarships until I get one. I'll do my masters degree in the US. Finally, I'll get a job at a big tech company. I think you should do the same." Hannan explained. "I hate to burst your bubble" Ali answered,"but I don't think you're forgetting where we're from. No one from Sidi Makhlouf goes into tech and succeeds, plus we're poor, plus my parents will never accept me leaving Algeria, they'll say yes but they'll be very sad, plus your parents will never accept, you're a girl."
"So what?" Answered Hannan "so what? I'll find a solution to every problem. I won't let anything stop me. I think my parents will end up being proud. You can keep dreaming of working for Sonatrach. I have bigger dreams."

Key Words: pull an all nighter / game designer

Text: 

"Oh no, I hear the birds chirping, that means I stayed up all night, again. I don't mind pulling an all nighter once in a while, before an exam or when a project has a deadline, but this is different. This is becoming a problem. It's the third time this week that I don't sleep a wink all night. I bought a ps5 and I haven't been able to control myself. Every time I have a minute of free time I spend it on games. You can say I let the controller control me. I love video games, always have. The first game I played was Tetris on my dad's phone. I was 6 years old. I remember I would beg him for hours until he caved in. My mother had nerves of steel. I would beg and beg and cry and throw tantrums but no meant no. I want to become a game designer. But for that I need to do more work and less play."