A: Hey, what have you been up to? I haven’t seen you for years.
B: I opened a laundromat, so nothing much, besides the daily grind.
A: Same here, but I'm working the grill at a steak house in the city. I have a question for you?
B: Go ahead, shoot.
A: I’m thinking about moving out of the city and I want to feel you out about this neighborhood.
B: It’s a good neighborhood. The schools are top notch and my kids can walk to school.
A: What about other things like supermarkets?
B: There's a small supermarket just about 10 to 12 minutes’ walk from my house. It’s open till 9:00 PM.
A: How about a hospital or clinics?
B: There is a good hospital about 3 miles up the by-pass-road from my house. Also there are two drug stores over near the supermarket.
A: What about public transportation? My car is old and won’t turn-over some mornings.
B: There is a bus stop over on P Street. I know one bus goes to the Metro Station and all of them go to the bus terminal.
A: It sounds like a decent location for me.
B: I think so, you can get almost anywhere by bus or train from here if you need to.
A: What about crime in this area? Are there many problems?
B: I had a window broken, but I think kids were playing ball down the block and it was probably accidental.
A: Forget broken windows! I’m talking about serious crimes; break-ins, muggings, carjackings.
B: No! Our police write parking and speeding tickets over here, no felony crimes. This is a very quiet place.
A: Perfect. Crime is mainly why I want to leave the city.
B: Maybe I'll see you around if you find a good place. There are some new condominiums near the bus stop.
A: I'd rather a house than a condo, but I’ll scope them out. I really don’t want another apartment.
Words and Phrases to work on:
- Laundromat
- Daily grind
- working the grill
- Shoot
- Feel you out
- Top notch
- Drug store
- Public transportation
- Metro station
- Won’t turn-over
- down the block
- felony
- break-ins, muggings, carjackings
- condominium, condo
- scope them out
Look up any other vocabulary you don't know. I threw in some idioms and slang for you.
If you practice these parts with a friend, ask each other some questions like these below.
- Would you like to move to a new area?
- What are good things to know before we move somewhere?
- How important is public transportation?
- Did you ever see a crime?
- Would you rather drive a car or ride a bus to work?
Comments
Thanks a lot, Mr.Bob. Very clear explanation.
Wakarimashita, Bob Sensei. :)
Thank you Camel. I hope it is helpful.
I love you people, but I hate the way things can disappear while working on a comment and there is no back button or way to retrieve it.
I had written thanking Rasty, Doc, Onee-chan, Mickey and Luci, then when I went down the page to see if I had missed anyone, everything disappeared (so sad :( ).
Anyway, I love all of you and appreciate the love you gave to my blog. I had some detailed thanks and an answer to Onee-chan's question. I will post some synonyms in a few days but right now I'm sick about all the careful writing I just lost.
Rasty, laundrymat or laundromat are both good terms for a coin operated laundry.
Onee-chan, to feel you out about something is to try to learn all of your feelings (good and bad) about the topic. Be careful what you say, because feel you up is something a bad boy may try to do to a girl when nobody is looking (slap them silly if they try that).
Thanks Doc, Mickey and Luci. You are the type of members I really enjoy helping and I also see you giving back to the community. I don't have much time and I love it that we have good people using their skills to get others involved. I'm really sorry I lost all the nice things I had composed for the five of you because they were from the heart and now I have a class I must prepare for. Just know that I thought very nice thoughts about each of you.
Thanks again for reading and commenting.
I love to read more of such dialogues from you, dear Mr. Bob! Very useful!
Also I like to read their comments, because some of the questions they asked are also my questions. What's more, your explanations are easy to understand.
I'd love to award you a red flower, giggling~ ;-)
Have a good day!
Mickey
Hello Mr.Bob,
I see some new words and phrases for me here, thanks. But, I really want to ask about this sentence:
I want to feel you out about this neighborhood.
I know the purpose of this sentence, but what does it actually mean?
I'm pleased to know your explanation, Mr.Bob. Thanks.
Very great and useful blog. :)
Good job, Bob!
That's something we may talk about every day - I just could use all the words and expressions.
Yes, a textbook may not teach you everything you need. That's why something written by a native English teacher can be so helpful.
This is the first time that I hear this word " Laundromat " , thanks , :)
Thanks Beautiful Elf and Setareh. I hoped you would meet some new words and become friends with them. In a few days I will post some synonyms for the new words and phrases. There are many ways to say something in English and I am trying to let you see something more than what is in your English books.
I'm sure everyone has seen the basics like:
Hello, how are you?
Fine, thank you.
And you?
Im doing great.
What I want to do with my blog is teach a little more. I hope it helps all of you,
Good question Anele. I will change it back to the way I had it originally.
I'd rather a house. I'd rather have a house. These all mean the same thing. If I ask you, Would you like an apple or an orange, you can say I'd rather an orange. You don't have to say that you will eat the orange (I'd rather eat an orange) because that is understood from the context.
I would rather a house than an apartment is the same as I'd rather live in a house than an apartment. We are lazy so we don't add extra words when the meaning is understood. So, you good teachers of English, there will be differences between textbook English and the way people actually speak.
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