Unexpected English!: Recent Episodes
Louis
Looking for some short, sweet, real life English to improve your listening skills or just have fun? Never too long, never boring, and always something worthwhile for the curious listener or English learner! Transcript included too! Follow now, it's all free!
[EP91] So now we have another war, and there is only hope or despair. And, uhh yeah, this song is not enough, but, for a little bit of hope that we need to… we need to keep our humanity, I’m sharing it with you. The lyrics are in the show notes, so there it is. -- SONG --I woke up this morningAnd none of the news was goodDeath machines were rumblin' across the ground where Jesus stoodAnd the man on my TV told meThat it had always been that wayAnd there was nothing anyone could do or sayAnd I almost listened to himYeah, I almost lost my mindAnd I regained my senses againAnd looked into my heart to findThat I believe that one fine dayAll the children of AbrahamWill lay down their swords foreverIn JerusalemAh now maybe I'm only dreamin'And maybe I'm just a foolBut I don't remember learnin' how to hate in Sunday schoolSomewhere along the way I strayedAnd I never looked back againBut I still find some comfort now and thenThen the storm comes rumblin' inAnd I can't lay me downAnd the drums are drummin' againAnd I can't stand the soundBut I believe there'll come a dayWhen the lion and the lambWill lie down in peace togetherIn JerusalemAnd there'll be no barricades thenAnd there'll be no wire or wallsAnd we can wash all this blood from our handsAnd all this hatred from our soulsAnd I believe that on that dayAll the children of AbrahamWill lay down their swords foreverIn Jerusalem. *"Humanity a word for the qualities that make us human"It can't be this current evil alone. We must believe in something more.[Song courtesy of Steve Earle Music]
[EP 89] Summer finale! DELICIOUS YOGURT! Listen and follow with the transcription below to help you to improve your listening skills.
INTRO: Hi everybody, and welcome to Episode 89 of Unexpected English, the podcast where you can practice your English listening in just five minutes, listening to something fun! Now, I know it's summertime, and that means it's hot. In fact. it's too hot. It's just too hot! And if you want some some, some vocabulary about hot? Go back and look for the hot episode where I give you some vocabulary. But this episode, no, this episode, we want to cool down, we're going to cool you down by taking a little visit to yogurtland where we can have some nice cool, delicious yogurt. So let's go!
~~~
Okay, so here I am at YogurtLand and I'm going to talk to the young man who's working here. Maybe he can tell us a little bit about this place called YogurtLand. How many flavors do we have?
We have around 12 flavors.
And what are some of the most popular flavors?
The most popular are the vanilla and the chocolate ice creams, the fruit punch sorbet, which is our seasonal flavor for this month, the tarot and the plain tart.
Taro, and what is that, I'd never heard of that flavor.
Taro is a unique flavor. to say the least. Okay!
It'd be hard to describe,
And after they get the yogurt, then what's all this stuff over here?
So the toppings are... you put that on top of your yogurt and we have a range from fruits to candies to cookies, peanuts, sprinkles, whipped cream, and then we have sauces over here which you can also add.
What kind of sauces do we have?
Salted caramel, marshmallow, chocolate shell, fudge and peanut butter
Hi guys, what's your favorite flavor here?
I don't know.
Oh, you haven't had it yet! How about you?
I think... I don't know.
No, so, is this your first time here?
No, but I like the French Vanilla.
Okay, so there's one guy who knows what he likes, the French vanilla. Is that when you said?
I like the French Vanilla too!
Ah, this guy, NOW he decided.
I like cheesecake.
Oh cheesecake! Okay, beautiful. All right.
Well, I hope you enjoy your yogurt and thanks for listening.
Thank you!
Okay, that was it. That was the final episode for the summer. I hope you enjoyed it and we'll see you... who knows when!
Please follow on Spotify or wherever and tell your friends who might like the podcast!!
[EP 88] Unexpected English is the suprising podcast where you can have a fun listening experience in under five minutes! Transcription below to help you!
Intro: Hey everybody, it's Fourth of July weekend here as I'm recording this. And that means everybody's off waving their American flags and eating hot dogs and doing whatever else they do while they're ignoring the fall of our democracy. Who cares, right? It's not important. The only important thing on the Fourth of July is hamburgers and hot dogs! So, are you ready? This is episode 88 of Unexpected English, and it just might have something to do with hot dogs. Okay, so let's go!
So here I am in beautiful San Diego, more specifically in Barrio Logan on Logan Ave, and I was walking down the street and I saw a place called Barrio Dog. And so that name, Barrio Dog, that kind of hit me. So I thought I would go in and ask the owner to explain a little bit about this place.
Well, thank you for stopping in. My name is Pablo Rios. I'm one of the owners here at Barrio Dog. Barrio dog is a celebration of the art, history and culture that comes from this neighborhood, the low-rider culture. So what we've done is, we've combined a classic comfort food like hotdogs, and given you an environment to come and enjoy the neighborhood, the lowrider culture.
So it's a it's a neighborhood place with a cultural feel to it. And you serve mainly dogs!
Yeah, we're a hot dog restaurant. All of our hot dogs are 100% Angus beef. We make all of our own bread fresh daily, what we're known for when we started this place with this with, a hot dog called El Cholito, it's a Tijuana style.
Tijuana style hot dog, which would...what would Tijuana style be f for people who don't know.
It's a dog that has the works so a Tijuana style dog has grilled onions,it has cheese, sour cream, salsa verde, diced tomato, red onion, jalapeño, crunchy garlic...
Oh ok, is that enough yet people, is that enough, does that sound good enough yet? That is a fully loaded dog, plus I see there's five or six or seven other kinds?
Well, we got, we got a half, we got at least twelve different hotdogs you can always try. We have flavors from all over the world. So we don't just celebrate the flavor from Mexico. We have German style. Japanese style. Cuban style.
Wow, that's interesting. So what are a couple of the most popular uhh flavors? Do I say flavors? Or style, style, dogs!
The Tijuana style is really popular. We also have a chili cheese dog called El Vaquero. We make our chili in-house. Another really popular one is called El Bombero, if you're into spicy hot dogs. It's got seven different chili peppers.
Oh, you know, I would say that sounds good, but it sounds better than good. It sounds like I'm ready to have some of that... and I see you've got some good beers on tap too.
Yeah, what we're doing here is we're showcasing sixteen of San Diego and Mexico's finest craft beers. So we have flavors as simple as a pilsner all the way to guava cider. So come on by!
All right, you heard it here first people! Next time you're in San Diego, head on down to Barrio Logan head on down to Logan Ave, and hit up Barrio Dogs for a real experience. Thanks a lot for your time. Thank you.
That was the episode, thanks for listening! Please follow on Spotify, leave a good review, tell your friends, and have a great summer! Why not listen to the other wild episodes too!
[EP87] Hi everybody, and welcome to Episode 87 of Unexpected English, the podcast where you can listen to some real American English in just five minutes, and maybe have some fun while you do it. At least I hope it's fun. Let's find out! Remember, there is a transcription in the show notes if you need any help understanding what was said, because these are interviews with real people. That's why it's real American English. Okay? All right, let's go!
So I was walking down the street in my neighborhood, looking around, and I happen to look... and I spotted what appeared to be, like a chicken condominium. I'm gonna say I'm gonna call it a chicken condominium because it's two stories tall. And it says... fluffy butt, what? Yes. My kids thought that was cute. Yeah. Okay, so I'm talking to the lady who owns the chicken condominium. Yes. It used to be a little child's play house in our backyard, but... You got rid of the kids and decided... Yeah, exactly.They just didn't play with it anymore. So we decided to make other use of it. And why did you decide to go with chickens? You know, that was, honestly, that was my husband's idea. When the pandemic first started, he had a little extra time on his hands and thought that it would be cool, especially since the city recently approved having backyard chickens in San Diego Yeah, because we're in the city, you know? What's up with having... I mean, this isn't... this isn't you know, you can't have... Maybe you CAN have goats, I don't know. I don't know about that either. But you can have chickens! Yes, you can now. And there's a real advantage. Why don't you tell us what that is? Um, well, you know, recently there was a supply shortage of eggs at the store. But uhOh yeah, eggs are high now! Eggs are still higher in price. Yeah. And so now we can just walk right out to the backyard and pluck them out of the chickens nests and have some fresh eggs! They're, they're free range. They're not caged chickens. Yeah, I see they've got a whole little playground back there. Yeah, yeah, it's huge area that they get to roam and look for bugs and whatnot. And how many chickens do you have? Five, plus a little rooster. Okay, so there you go, people. We've got five chickens. And one little rooster here, right in the middle of San Diego. And they they each produce one egg every day. So we can have five eggs a day if we wanted to. Oh, that's what they, they like...they drop an egg every day. Yep, pretty much and then, that's that's only for the first five years of their life. So after that, we're just going to be keeping them as pets. Oh after that, they get to retire, huh? Yeah, basically. So do they all have names? They do. Could you tell us the name? Sure. A lot of them are based on colors. So we have an Orange and a Gray and a Red and a Peach. And then there's Minnie and Baldy. Baldy's the one that has... uh, she's lacking feathers on her neck. Okay, so basically you went with the identification names, not the.. Okay. All right. Well, anything else we should know? If I decide okay, I'm gonna, I'm gonna get myself some chickens and do this. What do I need to know? Well, they need a chicken coop, so a place to, kind of, be protected from predators and the elements. Ah chicken run is good to for that same reason and they can... um, on rainy days, for example, they'll go in there and that's where they do their dirt baths and they eat. Okay, so it rains so they go in and watch TV and take a dirt bath. Yeah, that's how they keep themselves clean. It's kind of fun to watch. Really. I mean, they dig, they dig a little hole in the ground and then they lay down in it and kind of fluff their feathers around and get dirt all over. And then they shake it off. Alright, well, okay, that sounds, that sounds interesting too, you learn so many things that you never knew before. Yeah, I do a lot of the work. OK, well, thank you very much for you time! ---> Please follow on Spotify and share with friends!
[EP 86] Do you have five minutes to practice English listening in a fun way? Great! In this episode we interview the Candy Queen! Trascription in the notes to help you! [Transcription] Hi everybody, and welcome to Episode 86, of Unexpected English podcast where you can practice your English listening, with a transcription to help you, in under five minutes. Now this one is really short, it's not long at all, but it's a good one. And you know we have an expression when something is not long but it's good we say it's "short, but sweet." And this one you'll find out is definitely short but sweet. Now, you just have to make me one promise. If this episode of Unexpected English makes you smile, you have to share it with somebody, okay? Just just send them the link or share it on Instagram or something. Because I know you're listening on Spotify and you could do that. And that would be great. That is if you like it, and I hope you do. So let's go! (bump) So I was walking down the street and I spotted an interesting sign that said "The Candy Pushers" and I thought, what's that? And I looked inside and sure enough, it's full of candy! So I thought I would go inside and speak to the... owner? Yeah, I'm the owner. My name is Shannon. I'm the Candy Queen of the Candy Pushers. Oh, hold it right there! We are talking to the candy queen! Okay, so relax everybody. I know it's exciting, but... I'm the Candy Queen of the Candy Pushers. My wife and I own the business, and she's the Fudge Master. And we have... And you say the fudge master, does that mean she makes the fudge? Fresh homemade fudge every week. Oh, oh, okay. I'm sorry people. Hold on. I have to get over this, because I'm a little excited -- it's fudge! Yeah, we make and rotate through 48 flavors a year. What kind of flavors of fudge exist? There's the Fudge Packer. We have Lemon Blueberry uh Cheesecake. Citrus Bliss, which is an orange and lemon essential oils mix of fudge. We have Chocolate, Chocolate Walnut, Vanilla Pralines... Oh, okay, do people get, like, addicted to this? It sounds a little addicting! Yes. 100% We have people who come in every week to buy their fudge. Because the chocolate does something to you, right? Well, it makes you happy and puts a smile on your face. Oh, there you go! So okay, people next time you're on University Avenue... University and Richmond. University and Richmond, stop by the Candy Push... If you don't like fudge, there's a whole, like, wall full of other kinds of candies too. What is... We have between twelve and thirteen hundred other bin and packaged candies Twelve and thirteen hundred, That is one thousand two hundred different kinds of candies. It's true. Well, I won't ask for the names of all those candies. I'll just say thanks a lot for your time. You're welcome and have a flavorful day!
Thanks for listening! If you liked it please FOLLOW on Spotify or Apple podcasts or wherever you listen. Instagram too! IG: @UnexpectedEnglish Seriously ... if you like the podcast, please follow, share, and Hey! leave 5 stars on Apple Podcasts if you can!
[EP85] Unexpected English brings you surprising audio with a transcription to help you practice your English listening in less than five minutes. This time, we visit a salt cave for some haloterapy. Come join us!
Okay, so I was walking through the mall and I saw a place called The Salt Escape. And it had some... Well, it looked like something I had never seen before. So I thought I would go in and find out a little more. So I'm talking to the... the owner? I'm talking to someone inside who I thought maybe they can tell me... Okay, I'm talking to somebody who could tell me: What is The Salt Escape?
The Salt Escape is basically a halotherapy...
Hold up... a what therapy?
It's halotherapy which is a...
Halo, halotherapy...
Halo, H-A-L-O as in breathing in salt to cure many different ailments you might have whether it's asthma, colds, sinusitis, allergies, and it also is absorbed through your skin, so it helps with psoriasis...
OK, wait wait now, so you tell us what it helps. But what's the deal? Do people go into a room full of salt? Or what is it?
OK, so we have a cave... that you... A cave, okay, we're going slow so people can follow, So I come into salt escape, And then I get put in a cave, a salt cave...
A salt cave that has 7000 pounds of Himalayan sea salt on the ground. And then there's salt lamps all around and salt on the walls. And then we also pump salt in at different intervals throughout that 45 minutes.
Like salt air, you're saying? You pump in salty air?
Um-hum, salty air, we take the salt, we put it in a generator that breaks it down into fine little crystal mist, and we pump into the cave while you're there, sitting in lounge chairs relaxing.. not lounge chairs but reclining chairs.
I'm just sitting in a room...basically I'm sitting in a room full of salt.
Salt.And breathing it and reaping all the benefits that it has to offer.
Do.. do I get naked when I do that? Noooo..Oh, and okay, so it'll go through.. We keep it kind of clean in here.
OK, so I saw the salt goes through my clothes... and...
It goes through your skin, it also, it's absorbed through your skin, but it's the breathing that really helps any respiratory issues that you have.
So yeah, so it's primarily as a respiratory...
But, but also good through the skin absorbing the skin, if you have any kind of skin issues, it helps with that as well. But it helps with anxiety and depression all kinds of wonderful things. But our, our cave is very, very relaxing. It's dark and quiet and we play meditation music so it's...
Ohhh okay don't say it, ohhh, okay, so well, that sounds beautiful! And how long is a session?
45 minutes.
So for 45 minutes, I get to sit in the salt cave... and relax... and breathe in.
Okay people, well you heard it here first, the, the mysteries and marvels of the salt cave, all are 100% organic Himalayan salt. Alright, thanks and thanks for your time.
Thank you! Come visit us!
Thanks for listening! If you liked it please FOLLOW on Spotify or Apple podcasts or wherever you listen. Instagram too! @UnexpectedEnglish
Seriously ... if you like the podcast, please share it, thanks!
[EP84] Unexpected English is the podcast where you can practice listening to real American English in just five minutes! This episode is called Search and Rescue. I hope you like it!
[Transcription]
Hey everybody, you're listening to Unexpected English. I've got a new episode for you. And it's a good episode because it's about people doing good things. And I think we need to hear about people doing good things because there's so much..... bad stuff happening out there, as you know, so we won't talk about that. Instead I'll tell you this episode is about search and rescue. There is a transcription in the notes to help you if you need it. And if you want to help the podcast then please leave a good review on iTunes or subscribe on Spotify, or just tell your friends Okay, here we go!
(Interview)
Okay, so I was talking to a neighbor and I found out that he volunteers for some kind of interesting organization. So I thought maybe he would tell us about that.
Actually, my wife and I both volunteer with Sheriff's Search and Rescue, and we are a group of 150 volunteers that go out and look for lost or missing people anywhere in the county.
Okay, so that's the sheriff's...
Search and rescue
And you volunteer to go find lost people. Now, how does that work?
Well, you know, Grandpa goes out for a walk doesn't come home. You call, you know, if you're in the county, you call the sheriff's dispatch, explain it. The deputy will come out and investigate and if it's within reason for us to do, they will dispatch it. So they send out a text message that there's a call out and where it is, and we go out and search for him.
Okay, so what was the last search you went out on? Or some that you remember?
Well, Chelsea King, we looked for her for well over a week, Amber DuBois.
And these are, like, girls who went missing?
Yeah. Chelsea King went missing, actually, 12 years ago and was murdered by a perpetrator.
Oh my gosh! So we're talking about a missing girl who they didn't know what happened....
They called out Search and Rescue, and we worked on that for well over a week.
And in the end, did they find her?
Yes, she was located, unfortunately, deceased.
Oh my goodness. So it isn't always a happy ending, I guess.
No, it isn't. But it's it's a necessary thing, even if it's a homicide case, and we're sent out to see if we can locate the victim. It's necessary, you know, people need to be found and returned to their families.
And how about one with a happy ending? Let's give us a happy ending.
Oh, there's lots of happy endings. I don't remember the person's name. But down in National City one time we were looking for grandpa who'd only lived with the woman for a week. He'd come here from Texas, and when we found him – we located him about two o'clock in the morning – and she asked if she could thank everybody. We gathered all the searchers around and, through the tears, she said, "I never thought I'd see my Dad alive again. Thank you."
Okay, so there you have it. That's a... that's a great story. And I appreciate the time you took talking to us.
Oh, my pleasure.
Thats it! Please support the podcast by following, sharing on your social media, or leaving a five star review on iTunes!
How to leave a review on Apple Podcasts
Open the Podcasts app on your iPhone, iPad, or Mac. Navigate to the page of the podcast you want to leave a review for. ...Scroll down to find the subhead titled "Ratings & Reviews." Under one of the highlighted reviews, select "Write a Review." Five stars for your favorite English podcast! Just do it!
[EP83] Real American English to help w/ comprehension! We visit a shop in Encinitas, California, and learn about hats. Transcript below to help you! Unexpected English: real listening practice in under five minutes! [Intro, no transcript] Interview: So I was walking down the street I saw a shop that look kind of interesting called Brixton and I just thought I would go in and find out. Oh, well, I'll tell you why I thought it was interesting. I'm looking at a whole wall full of hats. So that's unusual right there. There, there are men's hats. Is that right? That is correct. So, what Brixton specializes in is our headwear and just a lot of outerwear apparel. Oh, hold up right there! I just learned a new word. I call them hats. He calls them “headwear” because you wear it on your head, pretty good! Ha! That is correct. But it's really mostly just a style of wear that you would continually dress up or dress down... (blah blah) So I guess what he said is you could wear these hats anytime, anyplace, any way you want to! That is correct. That is 100% correct there. Well, wait a minute. Now since you're a specialist, or a semi specialist Yeah, I would say specialist. I'm looking at these hats, and I'm thinking they must all have names... Is that true? They do they have quite a few names. We have the Valley Fedora. Okay, so that's a fedora. Soft brim, that's the thing that goes around the hat, gives you a little bit of shade. But do you call it a brim even on a baseball cap? If it's giving you the shade? You would, you would still. on like the normal baseball cap that I'm wearing, you would still call it a brim. As opposed to the full fedoras, which are going to have a full brim where it's going to the brim is going to circle the entirety of the crown of the hat itself. The crown is the top of the hat, is the top of the hat. So, you be a king when you’re wearing that crown! I mean, we can dress you up like a king that is for sure, or queen, either way. We got you! Well, so now I learned, I learned headwear. And I learned brim which is a thing going around, give you a little shade and the top is the crown. And one style is called a fedora, which is kind of soft, but we’ve got fedoras... now the next one, these would be... So these are gonna be Fiddler's or old school marine caps. This is actually a style I personally wear myself a lot of. Marine caps, for those of you who can't see it, it kind of looks like those Greek caps, right? Very similar, yeah, or sailor hats. That's why I meant more so by the marine, so a lot of old school sailors used to wear this kind of silhouette of head wear or hat. Yeah, we're saying hat hat hat. But I guess if it's a little smaller, it's a cap. It's a cap. You are correct, sir. Yeah, so another one that's going to be a cap (we can move on down) is these guys. Now you might recognize these: these are the older newsboy styles. Okay, so we’ve got the newsboys style, that's a flat cap. So we’ve got that, we’ve got that, and the last style I guess looks a little more formal. It's a very classic style of fedora. We call these ones the Messer with still like a nice soft crown that you can either reshape or really stylized to how you really choose to wear the hat itself. All right, well, I think we've got the total tour of the headwear. I love saying that! I learned a new word! Of the headwear available here in Brixton, in beautiful... Encinitas. We're here in Encinitas. Yeah, beautiful Encinitas, California. Okay, well, thanks very much for your time. Yeah, thank you, sir. It was a pleasure speaking with you.
That's it, thanks! And please follow on Spotify, Instagram etc, and tell your friends! More listeners = more motivation = more podcast episodes!
[EP 82] WARNING! This episode contains rude words and phrases in real American English! Don't listen if adult language offends you! This episode is longer than usual, so there is no transcription. You just have to listen! It contains some of the words, (words like POO) that were removed from the official Scrabble dictionary as not suitable for children. Don't worry, the F word is not used, but BOFF and BOINK are! Shocking! If you enjoyed this podcast, please share with friends, follow on Spotify, Apple podcast, @UnexpectedEnglish on Instagram etc. Or this link if it works! Thanks and have fun!
[EP 81] In this episode, we visit a place that helps people who want to make beer... or where you can just visit and taste the beers that are available! As always, Unexpected English offers you practice listening to fun, and in less than five minutes. Use the complete transcription below to help you if you need it!
Hi everybody, welcome back to another episode of Unexpected English. This is episode 81, and it's a very short episode because I know it's getting to be a very busy time with the holidays. We're in December now, everybody's busy, but I thought I would give you just one more podcast before the year ended. So let's go! [Interview] Alright, so here we are at Ballast Point Brewery. How, how long has this been here, this place? Well, this place has been here longer than Ballast Point brewing actually has existed. This was the very first Ballast Point. So we started originally as Home Brew Mart. Home brew means if you're making that beer at home, right? That's right! For people making their own beer at home. You can do the same thing with wine and all of that. So we started as a Home Brew Mart in '92. And do a lot of people make beer at home? More than you might think! It's a pretty popular business for sure. Ever since it became legal in the US in the 80s, it's become a burgeoning thing to do by, by yourself at home. Alright, so you can make beer at home, if you know how, and you buy your supplies here. That's right buy your supplies here, your ingredients chances are you have quite a bit of the equipment that you need already in your kitchen, nd all you would need to know is what goes into beer and what the ingredients need in order to become a good beer. So originally, this was the Home Brew Mart to help people brew their own beers, and then they expanded and got the brewery location here as well. Yes, so we started as Home Brew Mart as a way to get into the brewing industry. Our founder figured that was a good way to get started in the brewing industry. So four years after we opened in '96 is when Ballast Point officially became a brewery and started to sell to the public. And then from there, 10 years later, we opened a larger production facility and has since exploded in production. So, are there particular styles of beer that Ballast Point is known for? Yes, we're very well known for the sculpin IPA. It's a very dry, very clean drinking dry IPA. It's a kind of classic for the West Coast, but we're known for several other IPAs, as well as some flagship beers that we've been brewing for decades now, like the California Koelsch and the California Amber. Alright, you know the only problem... every time I do this, it makes me thirsty... makes me thirsty. Okay, thanks for your time. And thank you for listening! P.S. Do you enjoy podcast? Then please tell your friends who may enjoy it as well. Word of mouth really helps! Follow on Spotify and Instagram, and tell your friends! THANKS for listening and for your support!
[EP 80] Enjoy a lovely song in this episode of Unexpected English. Listen to improve and practice your accent: Daughter! Water! You may even want to sing along - it's great practice!
Lyrics
Everything she sees She says she wants Everything he wants I see she gets That's my daughter in the water Everything she owns I bought her Everything she owns That's my daughter in the water Everything she knows I taught her Everything she knows Everything I say She takes to heart Everything she takes She takes apart That's my daughter in the water Every time she fell I caught her Every time she fell That's my daughter in the water I lost every time I fought her Yeah, I lost every time (music) Every time she blinks She strikes somebody blind Every time she thinks Blows her tiny mind That's my daughter in the water Who’d have ever thought her Who’d have ever thought That's my daughter in the water I lost every time I fought her Yeah, I lost every time
P.S. Do you enjoy podcast? Then please tell your friends who may enjoy it as well. Word of mouth really helps! Follow on Spotify and Instagram, and tell your friends! THANKS for listening and for your support!
[EP 79] Five minutes is all you need to find out about pupusas, and to practice your American English listening skills too! It's easy and fun! Follow along with the transcription of the interview below! [INTRO - no transcription] [Interview] Okay, I was walking down the street, and I noticed a shop that looks like it's about ready to open, and I looked at the sign and it said ... PUPUSAS! And I love that word pupusas, so I thought I would stop in and talk to the owner. Right. My name is Juan Arrienga with Cuscatlan Salvadorean Cuisine. And we’re ready to open, very soon. All right, so if you understood that, it's Salvadorian cuisine, that is from El Salvador in Centromerica Right, right, correctamundo! And the specialty there are pupusas, right? Pupusas revueltas is the number one selling so it's very good. Tasty! Okay now, for all those of you who never heard of pupusas, or don't know what they are, we’re gonna find out right now. Okay, so pupusas is like a stuffed tortilla different stuffings... uh, revueltas, which is the mixed pupusa, it's a different... it can be, can be cheese, beans, chicharron, which is pork meat or ... chicken, you name it! But isn't it like, a little like... like an empanada or something.. is it ... is that, am I thinking that... I mean, it's not just a tortilla! Right, no it's a stuffed tortilla with the stuffing inside so it could be, like, compared to empanada, but it's cooked in the tortilla so it's it’s... Oh, okay so it is cooked, it’s baked... It’s baked in the tortilla so it's it's, it blends very well with the masa, and the stuffing. All right, so we're gonna have some... and, how soon are we going to be open? It's not open yet, but pretty soon. Not yet, we are looking, hopefully by the weekend. Oh, by the weekend, we're going to be open. Let me ask... this is not for the podcast, this is for me! A lot, a lot of restaurants, I know, they do pre-opening, you know, they have a little special deal to make sure... Right, we're trying to get one of those too. Hopefully, you know, you give me your information. Let me know, let me know right now! Invite me now, invite me now! I don't have the right date, for sure. So maybe the soft opening will be Friday but I'm not sure. Oh, that's what it’s called, it’s called a “soft opening” I've seen that. So a soft opening before the restaurant opens officially. Yes, hopefully, by Friday, so we can open Saturday. And of course, you know, I'm shameless I'm like, doing a podcast and I'm thinking, “Wait a minute soft opening! Pupusas! Let me in! There you go, that's it. We'll definitely invite you! Okay, thanks very much for your time and I hope, any of you out there who are listening and getting hungry, I hope you have a chance where you are to find some pupusas! That’s correct, hopefully, there is some around. Thank you. [OUTRO] It’s like, a little crispy, but then, like, la carne, that's inside just, like, melts in your mouth. It's so flavorful! The outside is kind of crunchy... to perfection. It’s not, like, super crunchy where you have to like bite really hard but it's not, like, super gooey where everything is just gonna fall apart and then inside is just juicy! When you're eating messy that means it’s good! .... I want another one. P.S. Do you enjoy podcast? Then please tell your friends who may enjoy it as well. Word of mouth really helps! Follow on Spotify and Instagram, and tell your friends! THANKS for listening and for your support!
[EP 78] In this episode of Unexpected English, we visit a surf shop in San Diego. Why not take five minutes to listen just for fun, and practice your listening skills at the same time? There is a TRANSCRIPTION below to help you!
[INTRO ... then music, then let's go!]
So was driving down the street and I saw sign that said surf... surf shop, and I thought: Surf! This is California, surf! Surfboards! Let's go in and see what's going on. So here we are, uh, what's going on?
We're taking boards and fixing them up and get them back out to people.
So you're saying this is a surfboard repair shop.
Yes, so when a board gets dinged or broken we fix it so it can go back in the water.
How do surfboards get broken?
Rocks, waves, people, surfboards -- all kinds of things.
OK, so there's like accidents out there in the ocean that can happen.
Exactly, accidents do happen all the time. OK, accidents happen.
And if uhh.. OK I brought in my board ... I guess it depends on the kind of damage... what kind of what kind of things can happen?
Fin boxes can break... Fin boxes? Is that the fin that sticks up? Yes, glass can crack, fins can get stuck in boards.. pretty much anything you can imagine.
Fins can get stuck in boards? That sounds like ... dangerous!
Yeah, so-so, as long as it's not you. [laughter]
OK, so just out of curiosity, what does... I know you don’t sell new... you sell used surfboards here?
Yes, boards that Joe repairs or people left behind.
All right, so I'm like, you know, thinking of taking it up. I just need like an entry-level surfboard, what's it gonna sent me back?
Anywhere from 100 to 300 bucks, depending.
OK a couple hundred dollars and I’ve got myself a surfboard to start learning to surf.
Yeah, pretty much. What are the high end, I mean, not super high-end, what is like a higher end board go for?
Anywhere from $800 to $5000.
Five thousand? Yeah, I’ve got one of those... OK let me think... what else was I missing here... what else...
Uhh, certain surf essentials.
Essentials, what are the essentials? Fins, leashes, wax... OK, hold on. You wax your board before you get in the water? Yes. And that's so it’s... So ypu don’t slip off.
Oh, you wax it for you, not for the water side? No, not the water side, the deck side.
OH, you wax it to make it sticky so you're like ... on the board! Exactly. All right. Well, what other tricks should I know to like, stay on the board. Take it one step at a time. Get the basics first.
Alright that sounds like good advice, that sounds like good advice. So there you go, people, people you’ve had your advice here on how to get started, you know what it's gonna cost, and I'm just saying anytime you're here in beautiful San Diego... oh, where are the good spots here in San Diego? Anywhere! Up and down the beach.
Up and down the beach! You can be surfing up and down the beach, anywhere in beautiful San Diego! That's it, thanks a lot, thanks for your time.
[Surfing outro]
P.S. Do you enjoy podcast? Then please tell your friends who may enjoy it as well. Word of mouth really helps! Follow on Spotify and Instagram, and tell your friends! THANKS for listening and for your support!
[EP 77] Unexpected English brings you five minutes of real American English from California. Practice your English listening skills with short, fun topics. In this episode we talk to members of a car club. Use the transcription below to help you understand if you need it! . [INTRO: no transcription] . [Interview:] So I'm here talking with the members of the Unidos Car Club in San Diego about their cars and I was wondering if you could tell me why are... what is this car culture thing? The car culture is ... what ... we have a... lotta.. history and ... our people that grow up with old cars. Compadres, friends, brothers, cousins and all that, have old cars. So we start growing up with old cars. Old cars! And what do you do with these old cars? We repair ‘em, we do restorations. I have a custom shop that we do restorations for our members and more customers. OK, so tell me about some of the cars... what year... what model... We start... we start in the 30s. Like a Chevy 30s, 1938 ... 40s... 50s ...60s. So, classic cars. Classic cars, correct. And does it cost a lot of money to restore these vehicles? Yes it does. It also depends what kind of restoration you want to do, medium, all the way up ... or just some, some of the restoration. It costs between $10-$30,000 to do one – medium! Medium restoration on a vehicle costs you $10 - $30,000, and this is just... If you want to see you some of the vehicles that are here on the park they're $50 - $60,000 or more. That's a lot of money to put into... It’s a lot of money and the car still shows perfect. And do you, do you win prizes with these cars, or... You win prizes, you win, sometimes you win money on the contests, and most of the time you get, you win trophies. So basically, you're just putting the money in because you love it. Correct. That’s right, that’s our passion. It’s a passion. What's your, what's your vehicle? That’s a 1948 Chevy. 1948 Chevy. And how much have you put into that vehicle? Ah, more or less around $20,000. Twenty thousand dollars to restore that vehicle. Well, you know we're talking about it, but I don't think it's going to make any sense unless you see the vehicles, so I'm gonna go out and... (You should) see the 1951 Cadillac convertible, yellow, canary yellow that is there, and that car is $80,000. All right, so I have to look for... what year was that car? 1951 Cadillac Coupe de Ville. OK, a 1951 Cadillac Coupe de Ville convertible in yellow? Yellow, yes. That's beautiful. OK, I'm gonna go get a picture of that. Gentleman, thank you for your time. Thank you. . [OUTRO] Thanks for listening! Please share and follow on Spotify and Instagram and everywhere right here: https://linktr.ee/UnexpectedEnglish
[EP 76] In this episode, I visit a Vegan Food Truck, and YOU get to practice listening to something fun in real American English! Use the transcription below to help you!
[PODCAST INTRO, where I say the wrong episode number 😅 but no other transcription] ...
[INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPTION:] So I was walking down the street and I spotted a food truck. So I thought I would go in and find out what that was about. First of all, what is a food truck?
Well we have a industry grade kitchen in the back of our truck. And we can park anywhere we want, and serve food to people. And what's the name of this food truck? We're Rollin' Roots, San Diego.
Rollin' Roots. Okay so I'm sure you've got some kind of specialty, something you specialize in. Why don't you tell us what's really good here?
All right, first of all, we're a vegan spot. We specialize in vegan comfort food. We, we have four different styles of proteins, which are all 100% meatless and uhh plant based, so there's no soy or anything like that, and everything's gluten free, pretty much.
All right, so we're talking vegan, gluten free, and we'd better be talking tasty, right? Oh, I'll show you, man! I'll show you!
You can't, you can't, you can't show us because we're just talking. Why don't you, why don't you describe a couple of what, you said there's four styles, what's that?
Yeah four styles. So we can, you can do any of our proteins on your choice of a sandwich, loaded fries or our brown rice bowl. One of our, one of my favorite items to make is a Daikon Love which is pulled oats and mushrooms on a bed, on a bed of red cabbage with some chipotle aioli that we make here in house, and it's 100% vegan. Teriyaki sauce, sriracha, fresh mint, jalapeño. That's all in that one? Yeah, there's more stuff here, there's french fries in it and gives it kind of that Cali vibe, you know?
Uh right so that's because when I'm looking up there I see four things: I see Rich Gal, Texas in Cali, Daikon Love, and Spicy Boy, right, have I got it right? Yeah, and they're all basically different... Different proteins. So like our Spicy Boy is like a buffalo chicken, but we use fried oyster mushrooms instead of chicken. It's actually really amazing. I think the fried chicken is good on any of the styles of the sandwiches, you can substitute and play around with the different, different proteins and stuff: it's awesome.
Alright so just before we go, give me a list of, because you give me a list of the proteins that are available, because I don't think I got that.Okay, so for our po'boy. We have a heart of palm, deep fried. We have BBQ Jackfruit for Texas in Cali. We have pulled oats and mushrooms for our Bahn Mi and buffalo chicken for our Spicy Boy, fried oyster mushrooms.
All right, well, I don't know if you understood that, I got about half of it, but what I did understand is that it's probably really, really tasty! It's amazing, yeah. If you don't like vegan food, then you haven't tried Rollin Roots!
Oh there you go, and what do these things, sent you back?.What's up?What are the plates, about what do they cost? Oh, each sandwich is about $9 loaded fries for $10 but it's enough to feed two people, they're sharable!
Oh, Okay. All right, so they're that big, and that delicious! Whoa! There you go, we're right near the local little airport too so we've got extra sound effects. But that's it, next time you're in this part of the beautiful San Diego, be sure to stop by the Rollin Roots.
Yeah, thank you sir. Okay, thank you for your time. All right. Have a good one, buddy!
[OUTRO, no transcript]
P.S. Like the podcast? Spread the word ~ word of mouth really helps! Follow on Spotify and Instagram, and tell your friends! THANKS for listening and for your support!
[EP 75] Thanks for listening to this special birthday episode of Unexpected English, where you can practice your English listening skills in a fun way in less than five minutes. OK, it's too late to send a birthday present, but... it would be a kindness if you shared the podcast with a friend! Follow on Spotify and Instagram, and tell your friends! Thanks for listening and for your support!
[TRANSCRIPTION]
Hey everybody! You're listening to a special episode of Unexpected English! Yes, it is! Why? Well, it's because I realized it's summertime! And everybody's on holiday, you know? You're all on vacation and nobody is listening to podcasts. So why bother? And then I thought, I know! I know why bother! Here's a good reason: it's my birthday! Yes, that's right, so I thought, well, I'll play myself a birthday song. And maybe you'll like it, and if not, well, this is the end of season six, so we're going to start all over again pretty soon with season seven. But in the meantime, we've got this birthday song just for me. All right, here we go!
~~~ Music music music ~~~ do do do do doooo ~~~
You're older than you've ever been
And now you're even older
And now you're even older
And now you're even older
You're older than you've ever been
And now you're even older
And now you're older still
Time!
Is marching on
And time....
Is still marching on
This day will soon be at an end
And now it's even sooner
And now it's even sooner
And now it's even sooner
This day will soon be at an end
And now it's even sooner
And now it's sooner still!!!
whaaaaa whaaa what whaaa
You're older than you've ever been
And now you're even older
And now you're even older
And now you're even older
You're older than you've ever been
And now you're even older
And now you're older still
Follow on Spotify and Instagram, motivate me to do more podcasts!
[EP 74] This is a special edition for the 4th of July, because of a new world record! Have fun practicing your English listening in just five minutes with your favorite English podcast, Unexpected English! [Transcription] Hey everybody, it's Louis, and this is a special Fourth of July edition of Unexpected English. I say it's a special edition because I had a new episode ready to go. And then I read this, and it was too good not to share. What is this? This is America! From TV: “What greater fortune have we, in an endless universe of infinite matter and energy, we have been given consciousnesses to gaze upon at it all, and understand. What greater fortune, have we? To live in America! To stand, side by side, on the Fourth of July, to behold this man! What greater fortune!” Specifically, specifically today on the Fourth of July, a new world record was set. Yes. A New World Record! For what? Eating hot dogs! I'm not kidding you. It's true, it's true. The top competitive eater in the world, Joey Chestnut, managed to eat 76 --yes 76 hot dogs in just 10 minutes. TV: “Look on his works, ye mighty, and despair. For he has surpassed the Kings of Egypt, with 76 Nathan’s hot dogs and buns! A NEW! WORLD! RECORD!” I had to tell you that, because otherwise you wouldn't believe it. The person who came in number two, ate fifty. Fifty hot dogs in 10 minutes. But Joey Chestnut... Joey Chestnut ate 76 hot dogs. That's right. That's right. And it's not just hot dogs. Joey Chestnut has more than 50 eating records, I guess you know, you don't know it, but there is such a thing as competitive eating. And just to mention a few... of his records. He ate: 55 glazed doughnuts in eight minutes. And let me tell you that one again: in eight minutes, 55 glazed doughnuts. He ate, in just eight minutes, hard boiled eggs. How many hard boiled eggs in eight minutes? 141 hard boiled eggs in just eight minutes! Unbelievable. It sounds unbelievable, but there you go. But that's not the point. The point is... the point is, this is America! This is the United States, and the greatest competitive eater of all time is Joey Chestnut, who set a world record today, of 76 hot dogs. All right. Happy Fourth of July, everybody! Bam, I’m a hot dog! P.S. Like this episode? Please spread the word ~ word of mouth really helps! I have no sponsors and no advertising - people only find the podcast when YOU tell them about it! Word of mouth really helps! Follow on Spotify and Instagram, and tell your friends! Thanks for listening and for your support!
[EP 73] Love cupcakes? Love English? Want some fun listening? Let's do this!
[Transcript] Hi everybody, this is Louis and you're listening to another episode of Unexpected English, your favorite English podcast! Now, you know I say that just because I like to say it, not because I think it's true. But what IS true: CUPCAKES ARE YUMMY!! ...is that this is episode 73. And in this episode, like every episode of Unexpected English, you get the practice your listening with something... a little weird ...well, I won’t say weird... a little different, and fun, in under five minutes. So now that I was able to start doing interviews again, this one is an interview, so let's give a listen...
Okay, so I was just walking here in PB, Pacific Beach, that is Pacific Beach, San Diego, and I noticed a place called Pure Cupcakes. And that sounded so good to me, so I thought I would go in and see what I could find out. So, I asked to speak with somebody and here she is!
Hi, my name is Christina, I'm the supervisor for the weekends here at Pure Cupcakes,
Pure Cupcakes. So, okay so what are some of the most popular... do we say flavors? Flavors, what are some of the top flavors, where everybody says, “Oh, I love this one!”
I would say we have a salted caramel, that's a chocolate with caramel frosting, and a caramel drizle on top. We have a Rollo cupcake, that's going to be chocolate with caramel frosting filled with caramel and dipped in chocolate.
Ohhh, can you just stop right now because the more you're talking about those cupcakes, the more I want to have a cupcake. And I hope that's not happening to you, because if you're listening and there's no place to buy a cupcake, then you're just like, oh! what can I do? Hmm. I see here in the window that you won some awards for the best cupcakes!
We did, yes we won Cupcake Wars in 2013.
Cupcake Wars? Yes! Its that where everybody comes out and throws cupcakes at each other?
I wish! I wish! That would have been super fun! It was a TV show where different bakeries competed and the the winner had their cupcake showcased at a large event. Ours happened to win at the San Diego Zoo event.
So, there was a cupcake war at the San Diego Zoo (yes!) that did not involve throwing cupcakes. No, believe it or not! It's just, just showing them and eating them. Yes. And how many people participated in this cupcake war? I believe it was four. Okay, oh it was kind of a face off, kind of a face off. Yeah, four people. I should do the dramatic music now, you know, boom, boom.
[Dramatic: Cupcake makers, everything comes down to this....dramatic music.. You are the winner of Cupcake wars. Congratulations. Thank you! Thank you guys!!!]
Dun dun duh! OK, so, so they had Cupcake Wars, and you won the Cupcake Wars in.... 2013
Do people buy cupcakes one by one?
We can, we can do them one by one, or we can do weddings, we can do parties so as few or as many as you'd like, you can come on in and check it out.
What's the biggest order, you've ever got for a single bunch of cupcakes? Probably upwards of a couple of thousand. You can make a couple thousand cupcakes?? Right just...Yes sir, anything! Right, well there you go! So now you know if you're looking for cupcakes when you're in Pacific Beach, San Diego, stop by at Pure Cupcakes, and you'll be happy. Thank you enjoy, guys! Okay thanks for your time. Yeah, of course, do you want a cupcake?
[OUTRO] P.S. Like the podcast? Spread the word ~ word of mouth really helps! Follow on Spotify and Instagram, and tell your friends! And of course, thanks for listening and for your support!
[EP 72] Content Warning, drugs! [Street interview episode] So I'm taking my daily walk, walking down the street and I walked by this vehicle with open windows and I get a powerful odor of what is currently called ... marijuana. ---> LISTEN NOW! [4:20 = time to get high]
Hey everybody it's me, Louis. Welcome back to another episode of Unexpected English! Yes it's episode 72, I think? It's episode 72? I know it's late, it's very late, but I know I'm also very lazy which is why it's very late, so I won't even talk, let's just get right to the episode. I apologize for the sound, you know, it was in the street , one of those spontaneous things, but here it is. Let's go!
So I'm taking my daily walk, walking down the street and I walked by this vehicle with open windows and I get a powerful odor of what is currently called ... marijuana. So I thought I would stop and ask these guys... Am I right? Are you? Yeah. Smoking a *Backwood, it’s a natural weed. A natural... what is a natural? It’s a tobacco leaf, instead of the processed tobacco.
Oh wait a minute. You... There's weed in it, but its... [inaudible] OK, help us understand here for those of us who don’t. We are smoking... what I say “we” I mean you, not me, dear listeners! I’m, I’m **straight arrow. But this is weed wrapped in a tobacco leaf? Yeah.
All right... and... where did you acquire your... your weed? Weed? From the dispensary. And then the Backwoods from just any liquor store. OK but, the dispensary, when you go in there, don’t they have like a whole lot of choices? Yeah. Hundreds of choices, *edibles, everything. And so for your particular choice, thought, I mean, do you always get the same thing, or how do you decide? Because, say, I am a newbie and I go in there and see wow look at all this, look at all this weed. How do I know what to get? I personally like Indica there's 3 different types: indica, sativa and hybrid, Indica makes you go to sleep, hybrids in the middle, and then sativa makes it kind of makes you say up and be active.
And, and what’s, what's the going rate for...I don't know how they sell what kind of quantity. An eight at the dispensary, anywhere from 20 ****bucks to like 60. $20 for how much? An eighth. To $60. $20 to $60 depending on quality. $20 up to $60 for an eight of... I mean, I don’t know what an eight is. Of weed. It’s 3.5 grams. Oh, ok 3.5 grams, between $20 up to $60. Alright, anything else my listeners should know? No, that’s about it. All right, well, thanks very much for your time!
OUTRO MUSIC: “Let me get to the point, let me roll another joint, turn the radio loud, I’m too aloud alone to be proud, you don’t know how it feels...to be me...”
P.S. Like the podcast? Spread the word ~ word of mouth really helps! Follow on Spotify and Instagram, and tell your friends! And of course, thanks for listening and for your support!
Vocabulary:
*Natural tobacco leaf sometimes used as a wrapper for marijuana
a person who a person** who leaves a clean and conventional life with hight moral standards
*** place that sells legal marijuana
****cannabis-based food products
* dollars
[EP71] What is Uptalk? Have you heard it? Is it a joke, a bad habit, or a real thing? Learn about this American English speaking style in this episode of Unexpected English! Transition here below to help!
Transcription: Hey everybody, I was listening to a podcast, and I heard this. Let's listen: “They also have a lack of complex body parts, which allows them to be able to adapt more quickly.”
Okay now, why did that make me stop? Well you may have noticed that the person was not asking a question, but their voice went up at the end, making it sound like a question. “They also have a lack of complex body parts...”
What's up with that?! Well, it is UP. In fact, it's called Uptalk. That's when people's voices go up at the end, even though they're not asking a question. So when I heard this, I thought, hmm, I wonder if my listeners have ever heard it, or noticed it, or thought about it, so I just thought I would share that example. Let's listen again: “They also have a lack of complex body parts, which allows them to be able to adapt more quickly.”
Okay now, I'll say the same thing. Here we go. Okay. "They also have a lack of complex body parts, which allows them to adapt more quickly." (applause) Right, right. Okay, thank you, thank you. The difference is, it was not a question. All right, so there it is. You've heard your examples of Upspeak or Uptalk, and I wanted to share them with you because it is fairly common. And now that you've heard it, you might notice it more and more.
[Satire:] “Uptalk is, like, super annoying if you're under the age of 40, though it's probably not that big of a deal to you. Until an older family member or colleague, tells you about this super irritating habit of young people, where every sentence ends like it's a question?”
On the other hand, ...on the other hand, it can also be explained as having a purpose, of course, because everything supposedly has a purpose, right? And the purpose of Uptalk could be, for one thing, just to sound more invitational and less aggressive, less assertive. So, if I say something, and my voice goes up a little bit. So, to be a little friendlier, a little friendlier tone, for one thing. O as a kind of unconscious gambit, that says, “I’m not done talking yet. Right, so there's more to come.” And is there a third reason for uptalk? Uhhh.. boh [great Italian word] I dunno. Wait. Oh wait, now I remember the third reason that people could be using Uptalk. And that is to check for comprehension, check for understanding from the person I'm speaking to. In a face to face conversation, if my voice goes up a little bit. I'm looking for clues from you, that you're following what I'm saying. So that could be another legitimate reason that people use Uptalk.
---> "Body parts? Adapt more quickly” Body parts? Adapt more quickly?" <--
Okay, that was it. That was the “uptalking” episode. I hope you liked it, and we'll catch you next time. Ciao ciao!
P.S. Like the podcast? Spread the word ~ word of mouth really helps! Follow on Spotify and Instagram, and tell your friends! And of course, thanks for listening and for your support!
[EP 70] Cactus Interview Show! Oh, and I put "Learn English Listening" in the show title so more people can find it. Will it work? If it did and you are a new listener, Hi there! Join the fun! Transcription below!
*** Hi everybody in this episode of Unexpected English we visit the San Diego Cactus and Succulent Society. Say that again: the San Diego Cactus and Succulent Society. Yeah, and I'll tell you my favorite part of this interview. Um, when I'm talking to the lady, I repeat that name (the name of the society) because I repeat things during the interview to help you understand. And so, I repeat that and then I say "And it's a show" after she tells me it's a show and and at this point she must think I'm a little stupid. Because, you listen, and she says yes it's a SHOW, we're having a SHOW. OK that's it that's my introduction. Here we go!
*** OK here we are in Balboa Park at a special event and I thought I would interview somebody who could explain just what's happening. Hi, my name is Susan I am a volunteer with the Cactus and Succulent Society of San Diego. Today and yesterday we have our big annual show and sale. OK, hold up now, this is... what is the name of the society again? San Diego Cactus and Succulent Society. All right then today there is a show. Yes, this is the show, we have probably over 600 plants in the SHOW. They were judged yesterday evening and they all have their ribbons placed next to them. We have several that were trophy winners and they are up on the stage at the front of the room. Oh, oh so I can go and find first place and second place and third place. That is correct. And how many different categories of prizes or awards or ribbons are there? Well, there's three categories --- you get first prize second prize or third place OK? And it's blue ribbon, red ribbon or white ribbon. And if you get a ... if you are a special plant, then you get a plaque up on the stage. OK? OK, and how many people do you think ... ah, how many entries were there in this competition... it's kind of a competition, right? Yeah, well there’s probably over 600 plants in this room. So about 600 entries, and then there were how many winners? Oh, I have no idea. Any, any number of winners... you have to go and look and see the ribbons. And how many people you think will be visiting the show today? Really I don't know, but we had hundreds of people yesterday and probably about 500 today also. OK, fantastic! So we have a popular event here in Balboa Park and I hope you enjoyed the interview.
*** [outro] and then .... Auction sounds!
P.S. Like the podcast? Spread the word ~ word of mouth really helps! Follow on Spotify and Instagram, and tell your friends! And of course, thanks for listening and for your support!
[EP 69] Ready for a sound bath at Mission Bay, San Diego? Five minutes of interesting listening for your English. Welcome!
[INTRO] Hi everybody and welcome back to another episode of Unexpected English where today or right now in this episode -- which is episode 69 by the way if you're counting -- (yeah if you're not counting, well, who cares) but this is the episode 69 and we are taking you to beautiful Mission Bay San Diego for something called a sound bath! That's right, we're going to be having a sound bath together so get ready for that, OK? OK, I won't say anything else let's just go!
[INTERVIEW] So I'm here on North Cove Beach of Mission Bay here in beautiful San Diego and I am speaking with .... Lindsey Roche ... and I was walking down the beach and I saw Lindsey had these uhh... bowls arranged here in the sand. Could you tell us about that? So yeah so this is... what we're setting up for is a sound healing session. We have ... these are crystal sound healing bowls, so they're 99.9% pure quartz and the way that sound healing works is we're all made of water, right? 70% water, so the vibrations and the frequency of these bowls react with the water inside your body and work to relax you and slow down your mind, your mental state into, ideally, a (??) state. Ohhh, so I'm gonna get, like I'm gonna get so relaxed I’ll float away... or something. OK, now tell me again, so these bowls are made of... the colored bowls that you see are 99.9% pure quartz crystal. Quartz crystal, and we've got different size quartz crystal bowls arranged in the sand and I suppose they all vibrate at a different frequency. They certainly do, they are all correlated with the different chakras, so each note is a different note. We've got the red there is your root chakra which is a C note. Oh, we're talking about your chakras, you know, you people.. what you don't know about the chakras, well you'll have to look, you'll have to Google that. But before we go maybe we could get a sound... not a sound bath, but at least an idea of what we're talking about, these sounds, what they sound like, so... she’s getting the little mallets here and... turning off the background music so, even though it might be a little breezy, so I don't know how pure our sound is going to be, but we’ll get some sound off of this for sure, so..... [...vibrations....].................. I'm feeling relaxed already, I don't know about you out there, but I'm feeling it...... OK, so there you have it people, direct from Mission Bay in San Diego, you’ve just had your first sound bath. Thanks a lot, Lindsay. Thank you, have a beautiful day. You too, bye.
[OUTRO] blah blah where, as usual I ask you, I please tell your friends -- word of mouth really helps! Follow on Spotify and Instagram, and tell your friends! And of course, thanks for listening!
[EP 68] We learn some things about Arkansas! (transcript)
Hello, thanks for calling Unexpected English, who am I speaking with? Hi, this is Kat Mondu. Kat, Yes! Where are you calling from, Kat? I'm calling from Arkansas. Arkansas. OK. I'm not sure people know where, Arkansas, is geographically so could you tell us? It is kind of in the mid-south of the USA. In the middle of the south of the USA, with other states around you like.,,Like, Oklahoma, and Texas, Missouri. Okay, all right, I guess, if, anybody doesn't know, you can look at a map for, Arkansas, right? Right above Louisiana. Right above Louisiana. Wait a minute, I have a problem with Arkansas. Yeah, I'll tell you what my problem is. Could you spell that for us? Yes. ARKANSAS That’s Arkansas right? But then you have KANSAS, and that's Kansas! So how come you guys aren't ark-KANSAS? Well, because Kansas should really be kan-SAW! OK. All right, I'm glad we got that cleared up! So this is Kat calling from Arkansas which is nowhere near kan-SAW. All right. Well, so what should we know about the beautiful state of Arkansas? Arkansas is known as the natural state. And we boast over 50 state parks. OK, so because when you say natural I'm thinking, does that mean everybody walks around naked? No it doesn't mean that, right? No, not quite that natural. You can find that here! Lots of state parks. That means hills and ... do mountains there? We have mountains in the Ozarks. Oh good, I'm learning so much. This is good, because I've never been to Arkansas. I have to be honest it's not, it's not a place I've been to. But if I go there, well I guess I'm going for the nature, because it's the, nature state or the natural state, which is it? It's the natural state. The natural state, beautiful. And I always like to know if I go to some, some state if there's a, you know, like a typical dish or some kind of specialty or something that people like to eat there that you might not find other places. Well, Arkansas, is actually home of cheese dip. Cheese DIP? Yes, we invented it, or at least we claim it, and it was in Little Rock where it was invented, Oh, do you guys have, like, cheese dip competitions? Yes, we take it very seriously, I guess so! And what, what do people in Arkansas, dip into their cheese dip? Just about anything! Tortilla chips or pretzels, or fried pickles, even! Fried pickles! That's another thing that, I don't know why I've never had a fried pickle. Are they good? They are delicious. Especially when dipped in a nice creamy cheese I suppose! Oh yes! Okay. Oh boy, well, I'm getting kind of hungry. But before we go, are there any unique expressions in Arkansas? I don't know that there are, but I'm always looking for some kind of language thing. Oh yes, let me give you a few. Oh my gosh you've got language things there, OK! Well, of course, I mean, if you’ve got, you got fried pickles in cheese dip, I guess you got everything yeah? So, okay, I'm ready. Just know if a southerner says, “Bless your heart!” that's not a good thing. If they say “Well butter my butt and call me a biscuit!” that IS a good thing. Okay. Bless your heart, kind of is used to ... shut somebody down, is that it? To say like, what does it really mean? Like, Oh, you poor soul! Oh, but that sounds, that sounds sympathetic. Not so much... Okay, and the other one sounded kind of semi-adult. What was that? It was, “Well butter my butt and call me a biscuit!” And that just means. Well, look who's here! Oh man, that's beautiful, that's a good one. Well, butter my butt and call me a biscuit! Yeah, that’s perfect. Is that right? Oh good, I did it okay! You did a great job. I’m so proud of myself. Okay, Kat, well thanks very much for your time this has been fun and very educational too. Well thank you for having me. This was very fun. FOLLOW!
[EP 67] Dead Poets! In this episode I read a poem about one great poet to honor the passing of another. Don't let the word "poem" scare you, just listen! (transcription included below)
Hey everybody! You'r listening to Unexpected English! This is episode 67 and I'm doing this episode for a special reason. That is that today I learned that the writer and poet Lawrence Ferlinghetti died, passed away. And that's OK! He was 101 years old! But it reminded me of his poetry, which I like, and I found a good one to read for you. And it's good because it's about another great poet: Allen Ginsberg. I'm sure you've heard of Allen Ginsberg. If you haven't heard about Lawrence Ferlinghetti, you might want to look for some of his poems. But Ferlinghetti wrote this poem for Ginsberg, who was dying at the time, and I thought it was appropriate. And it's quite a good poem, so I decided to read it for you. I hope you enjoy it. Here we go!
Allen Ginsberg is dying
It's in all the papers
It's on the evening news
A great poet is dying
But his voice
won't die
His voice is on the land
In Lower Manhattan
in his own bed
he is dying
There is nothing
to do about it
He is dying the death that everyone dies
He is dying the death of the poet
He has a telephone in his hand
and he calls everyone
from his bed in Lower Manhattan
All around the world
late at night
the telephone is ringing
This is Allen
the voice says
Allen Ginsberg calling
How many times have they heard it
over the long great years
He doesn't have to say Ginsberg
All around the world
in the world of poets
there is only one Allen
I wanted to tell you he says
He tells them what's happening
what's coming down
on him
Death the dark lover
going down on him
His voice goes by satellite
over the land
over the Sea of Japan
where he once stood naked
trident in hand
like a young Neptune
a young man with black beard
standing on a stone beach
It is hightide and the seabirds cry
The waves break over him now
and the seabirds cry
on the San Francisco waterfront
There is a high wind
There are great whitecaps
lashing the Embarcadero
Allen is on the telephone
His voice is on the waves
I am reading Greek poetry
The sea is in it
Horses weep in it
The horses of Achilles
weep in it
here by the sea
in San Francisco
where the waves weep
They make a sibilant sound
a sibylline sound
Allen
they whisper
Allen
Thanks for listening! please tell your friends -- word of mouth really helps! Follow on Spotify and Instagram, and tell your friends!
[EP 66] I take a call from ECUADOR and find out some unexpected things! Listen and follow with the transcript!
Hey everybody, and welcome to another episode of Unexpected English, where I have, yes, something unexpected. Well, it's unexpected because this is the first telephone interview. That's right, I interviewed someone from Ecuador, who just called. right? So it's a new thing, I think it works. And if it does work, that means, that means you can call me too and I can interview you. I guess I don't know. Let's, let's not even wait around, let's just get right to the episode. Okay. Yeah, let's do that. Here we go.
Hello, thanks for calling Unexpected English. Who am I speaking with? You’re speaking with Joffre, it’s a pleasure, Louis. Joffe, where are you calling from? I'm calling far far away from you. I'm calling from Ecuador. It’ isn’t a food. No, although, that, okay, it makes me think of food so tell me: if I go to Ecuador, what is the one dish that I have to try? Yeah, okay. You will eat guinea pig. It's something crazy for many people around the world, but we eat here guinea pig. Yeah, what, what's it called, what's it called? It is called “cuy.”
Cuy! yeah I know. I've heard of that! Cuy is.. is that, but I mean, is it a typical plate, cuy? Yes, at least in the place where I live. It is common, many people enjoy eating cuy, like, each week, or maybe twice a week. Many people are eating cuy. Okay, so we have, we sit down to a nice dish of cuy. Well yeah, with, with some kind of beer. What's the best beer to have with cuy? Here it is called Pilsner. The most popular here it is called Pilsner. Oh Pilsner but pils... Pilsner is a style of beer, actually. Ah, isn't it?
Yeah, it is! Okay, so we've got the dish we've got the beer... Some potatoes, and potatoes yeah, okay, this is... Here we have many kinds of potatoes, like 1000s of potatoes, kinds of potatoes. A thousand varieties of potatoes, and each one is more delicious than the next one, probably, yeah? Yes yeah there's a different taste. Okay, tell me, what do people, what do Ecuadorians, what are they famous for... I mean what do people say about Ecuadorians? Oh, that's a tricky question. Ecuadorians, we like to cook, to make delicious food. And we have many places to go to visit. I believe the most famous place from Ecuador is called Galapagos. Oh yeah yeah that’s too famous, we know about, that we don't need tourism... Ok, yes, like people here... we are relaxed. We aren't stressed about work.
So it's a good place to relax. It's a good place to eat cuy. Exactly! And have a beer. Let me think, the last thing.... Oh, I know, the last thing is to tell people about your podcast, because you have a podcast, right? Yes, yes. I have a podcast to help people who are learning Spanish and learning English. And we are a group, a group of friends that we have been learning Spanish and English for a while, and we decided to have a podcast to help other people. Okay, what's the...what's the name. It's called “amigos, learning languages.”
Okay, people so there it is, if you speak Spanish, or if you speak English and want to learn Spanish... because your podcast is kind of Spanglish, right? You do both languages? Yes it is, Spanglish because I'm trying to relate what we already know in Spanish, and what we already know in English, to try to make it easier for people to learn English and Spanish relating those languages.
All right, so everybody who loves Unexpected English. I know they love to learn languages. So maybe they want to check out your podcast which is called... “Amigos Learning Languages” “Amigos learning languages!”...there you go. All right, everybody, I think you've got it. You've heard we've heard from from Joffre in Ecuador, and that's it. Thanks for your time, Joffre. It was a pleasure, Louis . Okay. Have a good day. You too. Thanks. Bye Bye
PLEASE SHARE! https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish
[EP 65] Yes, it's a live in-the-park interview! I saw a lady riding a scooter and asked her about it. Her answers were UNEXPECTED! Transcript below!
So, here we are at Balboa Park and I thought I would interview somebody who just stepped off of a .... what? Bird? Bird cycle? What is it, a bird cycle? Scooter. Oh, a scooter! A scooter, is this the first first time you've ever been on a scooter? First time I’ve ever been in it. (We're not from here!) We're from Texas, Houston Texas. OK, so we’ve got some visitors from Houston Texas and she just tried out a scooter (scooter!) and how was that experience? It was... it was kinda scary... for a 60 year old woman (laughs) Yeah, it was scary, I am not young no more!
OK she’s not so young but she's brave enough to get on the scooter! Is that the craziest thing you've ever done that you can tell us about? No... I used to be ... when I was in my 30s, my early 30s, I used to be a bull rider (music) Excuse me, excuse me. Hold up, my listeners need to process that. Could you repeat that again? Uhh, in my late 30s , I was uhh... early 30s I was a bull rider (music) My father was a bull rider.And what does that mean exactly “bull rider.” Uhhh... Is that like a “bullshit artist?” (laughter) She's one of those too! I'm sorry, this is supposed to be a clean podcast... I'll... I’ll delete that out.
It was uhh there were... we had miniature bulls ... it was .. it was in a.. it was called uhh, Mexican bull... where they have “charreadas” Uh-huh. You know, “jaripeos” ... right ... and my dad used to do it, so I learned it from them. I liked it! And my brother used to do it, but I liked it more than my brother did. OK, so we're talking to a lady who used to ride bulls in “charreadas” ... and you can Google that word if you like it it's kind a like a Mexican ... Mexican bull... bull thing, horse riding, this and that. Yeah. So I guess then the scooter was no big deal. No, it was getting back on track, that was it, OK, so she's back in form and we're back live from Balboa Park. I hope to catch you again next time. Bye! (OUTRO) Thanks for listening: please tell your friends: word of mouth is the only way to encourage me to do future episodes!
This podcast has NO advertising: I do it for you, so I hope you will spread the word. Follow on Spotify and Instagram, and tell your friends! OK? Why not leave a review on Apple podcasts too! Thanks!
[EP 64] ASSAULT on the American Capitol? Just another day of the chaos, criminality and destruction brought about due to the tragic mistake called the Trump Presidency. Transcript included below.
+++++
Hi everybody! Welcome back to another episode of Unexpected English! Unexpected... unexpectedly... this is unexpected because I did not expect to be recording an episode where I talk about the attack on democracy in my country. But I am recording this episode one day after that happened. One day after the so-called president incited his cult followers by again feeding them lies that he "won" the election. How pathetic is that? How pathological is that? But there are people who believe lies, I guess, if you repeat them often enough. And he has been repeating that lie and thousands of other lies his entire term in office. Well, no reason to talk about it I guess. If if anyone ever spoke with me, you know that I have said from the beginning the man is incapable and unfit: unfit mentally, unfit morally, unfit in every way. And this is the perfect conclusion to his four years of chaos. In fact there are, as I record this, 13 days left in his presidency and there is serious talk of invoking the 25th amendment. The 25th amendment (to the Constitution) says if the president is incapable of carrying out his duties, which of course he has been from the beginning, but in this case trying to overturn democracy and ignore the reality of an election that he lost! And inciting ... an attack on the institutions of this country: clearly that makes him unfit. But of course, I'm sure nothing will happen. That is to say, it's unlikely he will be removed from office and instead we will live counting down these final 13 days, hoping that he does not do anything crazier than what he has done. And it is crazy. it's crazy! Right now as I speak Trump is not allowed to post on Facebook. They took away his Facebook privileges but they didn't take away the codes to the nuclear weapons, you know? He could to destroy the planet, but he can't post on Facebook! So yeah, that's where we are right now. So welcome to 2021. Welcome to 2021. Oh, a little bit of news... if you listened to the last episode and I said my brother was foolishly flying across the country to visit my elderly mother. Well the good news is that did not happen because at the last minute my niece, my brother's daughter, tested positive for Covid, so they realized, finally, Uh-oh! Maybe not a good idea! So that trip didn't happen. So that's a good thing. What else do I have to report? Here in San Diego, as you know perhaps, California has zero emergency hospital beds available because of the pandemic. And to bring it back to Trump, yes he is responsible, his government is responsible... oh God! Well, let that go... let it go for now. I just wanted to give you an update. I'm staying safe at home. I hope you're staying safe at home and I hope to bring you maybe a cheerier episode, an episode was a little more fun next time around. But for now I guess that's it. Thanks for listening and we’ll catch you next time. Ciao ciao.
This podcast has NO advertising: I do it for you, so I hope you will spread the word. Follow on Spotify and Instagram, and tell your friends! OK? Why not leave a review on Apple podcasts too! Thanks!
[EP 63] Wrapping up 2020! It's a lockdown Christmas: I talk about my dumb@as brother, try to give you some holiday cheer, and even give a good recommendation for a speech to text transcription app to help you with your English. Sorry, but there is NO transcription for this episode : it was a little too long to include. BUT if you use the app I mention in the podcast, you can make it yourself! In fact, if you use this link, you can get one month FREE of the pro service and you can get the audio from your ZOOM meetings transcribed to text! https://otter.ai/referrals/LZB8CR97
* Happy Holidays!
Unexpected English has NO advertising or sponsors, and I am not looking for students. I do it for fun, and hope you enjoy it. If you do, please help spread the word. Follow on Spotify and Instagram, and tell your friends! Thanks!
[EP 62] This was supposed to be a TEST, not a podcast episode! This episode may be difficult to understand: I rant like a crazy conspiracy nut, with no thought of being understood. Need help? USE THE TRANSCRIPT BELOW*
Hi everybody! It's me Louis with another episode of Unexpected English! It’s, well, this one is unexpected but it's not supposed to be an episode. In fact, you'll hear my wife say: Oh that's stupid, because, really, it was not planned as an episode! I'll tell you, I was testing an app that does speech to text, and I wanted to see if it worked, so I started acting like a crazy conspiracy person talking about, uhh, Alexa. I can't say... if I say Alexa... you know they won't run this podcast on A-M-A-Z-O-N so, I have to be careful. Anyway, it was just a crazy thing, but then I thought it was funny, So I thought, OK this is funny, and then my wife said, “no” and she heard it and she said “oh, it's kind of cute” so I thought ahh, what the heck, right? Uh, well, you decide, OK? You listen, you decide, here we go!
Okay, so you have an Alexa in your house and you don't care that it's listening to you all the time? No, I don't care. There's that I have no secrets that Alexa would be interested in. But your private life; you have a private life. What's a private life? The things you want to keep private? Well, and why would anybody care about my private life? Not that anybody would care, but do you want Amazon to know about your private life? What are they going to do with that information? Sell it to the Russians? I don't know. The Russians would also have no need for it. Oh, so you're not like a high level government employee. No, I'm not. But you're a voter, you're an American voter. I'm an American voter and if the Russians want to know I'm voting for Biden. I'm ridin' with Biden. They want to know because now they're gonna, like, interfere with your social and everything else and send you lots of misinformation because you're a Biden voter and they don't like that. Well, that may be true but I won't pay attention to their misinformation. Oh yes, you will, you'll be manipulated! Social media manipulates people they don't even know! Oh, that's true, that happens. So maybe you want to rethink your Amazon acceptance. No, why? We just said why! Because the Russians are gonna send me memes and stupid information that is not true and I know it's not? You don't know it's not true because you'll... I do know it's not true. How do you know? Tell our fellow Americans how to tell the difference between a fake meme and a real meme. Well, if you... you can just go to Snopes.com and fact check anything. Snopes. How do you know that's not run by, you know, by anti-conspiracy, pro-pedophile, you know, overthrow the government. anti-Trump forces. That's just all crazy stuff. Oh, you call it crazy, we call it reality! Some people do call it reality, you're right. But I don't... I don't associate with those people. Yeah but, Alexa will associate you with those people because she's got your voice recordings! No, she won't associate me with them, because I'm not with them. I don't believe in them. Okay, go ahead, I guess this is a lost cause. She does not care about protecting herself from manipulation. Thanks everybody for listening. [That's not gonna be a podcast, that would be so stupid.] (pause) I just want to see if it worked. There you go. So look at this now. Scroll up and look and see, is it accurate? (unintelligible) Still recording? Stop. Stop. Stop! Stop!!! What the hell, where's the stop button? This will be a good podcast now because I can't find the frickin' stop button. Alright, there's a stop button here somewhere. Where are... where are...come on. Come on, stop! That's not it. That's not it. Oh there it is okay. Boom!
permalink: https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish
[EP61] In this episode I interview two guys a the local college about... well, just listen! Remember, Unexpected English brings you REAL English in short podcasts to help improve your listening while you have fun! Transcription included below!
Hey everybody! Welcome to December 2020. Yeah, it's December of that god-awful year 2020. But the good news is it's episode 61 of Unexpected English, your favorite English podcast! And, guess what? This episode is one of the reasons it became your favorite English podcast, because I know, like me, you enjoy the interviews. Because you hear real people, you hear different accents, and you don't know what's going to happen, and I found an interview from, oh a year ago or so that I had forgotten about. So I'm bringing it to you now, an interview with two students at a local college near me and, that’s it, I hope you enjoy it, and remember if you do enjoy it tell your friends so that everybody else can enjoy it too, all right? OK, here we go!
All right so here we are at Mesa College, going to talk to a couple students. Are you guys both from San Diego? Yeah I've been born and raised. Born and raised, San Diego California. And what's the best part about living in San Diego? As cliché as it sounds, I want to say the culture of San Diego is probably my favorite part and just how diverse the entire community is. Umm, not to mention we have beautiful blue skies and sunshine every day. This is true, we do have good weather here, right? And the last time you left San Diego, where did you go? Umm, Seattle that's my favorite city in the world. Last time I left San Diego I went to Mexico. It was a lot of fun. Where, where in Mexico? I went to Tecate, Mexico I went there on a mission trip. Aha. And if you could go any place right now, I gave you, if I funded your vacation to go someplace, where would you go? Dude, send me to Italy! I want some of food, I want to wine, I want all that good stuff! Oh, OK, how about you? I want to go to Japan really bad. I’m super into cars, and Japan has some of the best cars there. OK let me just ask you a little bit about Italy because most of my listeners are Italian so... yeah.. so.. what is it that is appealing about Italy to you? Umm, my parents are Italian so they talk a lot about how cool it was because they’ve been already and I've never been, but I hear that, like, the the culinary part of it is really nice and just the architecture is really beautiful and OK! Plus they have some really good music up there.. Beautiful, well OK, there you have it this is a spontaneous interview of two students here at Mesa College, thanks for your time guys! Yeah, thank you my man, appreciate it, have a great day!
This podcast has NO advertising: I do it for you, soI hope you will spread the word. Follow on Spotify and instagram, and tell your friends! OK? Why not leave a review on Apple podcasts too! Thanks!
[EP 60] In this episode, I read just a little selection from a story by one of my favorite American short story writers! His delightful story-telling and and language are WEIRD and FUNNY, so I hope you will enjoy it! If you do, please follow on Spotify and instagram, and tell your friends!
P.S. Is it Barth-el- may, or BART-el-may, or even Barth-Elm? Who knows??
[TRANSCRIPTION OF READING]
My wife wants a dog. She already has a baby. The baby's almost two. My wife says that the baby wants the dog. My wife has been wanting a dog for a long time. I've had to be the one to tell her that she couldn't have it. But now, the baby wants a dog my wife says. This may be true. The baby is very close to my wife, They go around together all the time, clutching each other tightly. I asked the baby “Whose girl are you? Whose girl are you? Are you daddy's girl?” The baby says, “Mama.” And she doesn't just say it once, she says it repeatedly: “mama mama mama.” I don't see why I should buy $100 dog for that damn baby.
Our baby is a pretty fine, baby. I told my wife for many years that she couldn't have a baby because it was too expensive. But they wear you down, you know? They're just wonderful wearing you down, even if it takes years, as it did in this case. Now I hang around the baby and hug her every chance I get. Her name is Joanna. She wears Oshkosh overalls and says, no, bottle, out, and mama. She looks most lovable when she's wet. And when she's just had a bath and her blonde hair is all wet, and she’s wrapped in a beige towel. Sometimes when she's watching television, she forgets that you're there. You can just look at her. When she's watching television, she looks dumb. I like her better when she's wet.
This dog thing is getting to be a big issue. I said to my wife: “Well, you've got the baby. Do we have to have the damn dog too?” The dog will probably bite somebody or get lost. I can see myself walking all over our subdivision asking people: “Have you seen this brown dog?” “What's his name?” they'll say to me, and I'll stare at them coldly and say, “Michael.” That's what she wants to call it: Michael. That's a silly name for a dog. And I'll have to go looking for this possibly rabid animal and say to people: “Have you seen this brown dog, Michael?” It's enough to make you think about divorce.
I looked at some dogs at “Pets o’ plenty,” which has birds, rodents, reptiles and dogs, all in top condition. They showed me the Cairn Terriers. The Cairn terriers ran about $295 per, with their papers. I started ask if they had any illegitimate children at lower prices, but I could see that it would be useless. And the woman already didn't like me. I could tell.
What is wrong with me? Why am I not a more natural person, like my wife wants me to be? I worry that the baby may jam a kitchen knife into the electrical outlet when she's wet. I put those little plastic plugs into all the electrical outlets, but she's learned how to pop them out. I checked the Crayolas. They made Crayolas safe to eat. I called the head office in Pennsylvania. She can eat a whole box of crayons and nothing will happen to her.
If I don't get the new tires for the car, I can buy the dog.
This podcast has NO advertising: I do it for you, soI hope you will spread the word. Follow on Spotify and instagram, and tell your friends! Please?
Why not leave a review on Apple podcasts too! Thanks!
[EP 59] I'm publishing this one day after the 2020 Presidential election. We don't have a president in the USA yet, so how about a VOCABULARY lesson? I'll talk at random about using SHOOT and SHOT is some expressions. I can't fit a transcription here, so you may need to pay attention, take notes, and listen to the podcast a few times! Some of the phrases you will hear:
To shoot a weapon, pistol shots
to shoot past to shoot a look, email, message
shoot a photo / photo shoot / nice shot (photo)
Shoot! (polite exclamation) to shoot / (sports)
Shoot - go ahead and ask me
shoot the breeze / bull s
shoot your mouth off
shoot yourself in the foot
to shoot for something, have as a goal to take a shot (attempt)
a shot in the dark
take your best shot
to shoot down, get shot down
shot - ruined, exhausted
Not mentioned: a shot - a small glass of alcohol, a medical injection
to shoot up - to fire many bullets, to inject drugs
to shoot pool - play billiards
There are probably others I can't think of, sorry!
This podcast has NO advertising I just for YOUR entertainment and mine, so if you enjoy it, please support me. HOW? I hope you will spread the word. Follow on Spotify and instagram, and tell your friends! Why not leave a review on Apple podcasts too! Thanks!
Need some links again?👉🏼 https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish
Thanks and keep listening and improving!
[EP 58] Let's talk about the FUN of eating blazing chili peppers! Transcript below! Use the text to study and identify phrasal verbs and expressions, Unexpected English brings you fun ways to practice your English listening, so be sure to subscribe!
[INTRO] Hi everybody, and welcome to another episode of Unexpected English, your favorite English podcast. Now, the other day I was reading the paper, l and I saw a story that seemed kind of interesting. And I thought, Hey! I could read this story on the podcast, why not? I'll tell you what it's about. It's a about a chili pepper eating contest. 🌶 Yeah, I don't know. I don't know why you would want to see how many chili peppers, you could stuff into your gut, but okay there it is, you know. There is such a thing as competitive eating, where people will try and see who could eat their most hotdogs. 🌭 I dunno, It's crazy. It's crazy. Anyway, this story is about eating red hot chili peppers, specifically, the infamous Carolina Reaper. So let's get right to the story! TRANSCRIPT:
San Diego is experiencing a heat wave this week, and so are the taste buds of Greg Foster, who ate dozens of the world’s hottest chilis at a contest on Saturday. The local resident and Inferno Farms Hot Sauce Company founder was attempting to eat one hundred and twenty-three Carolina Reapers to take the top spot in the “League of Fire” among internationally ranked chili eaters. But after eating 44 chilis, grown locally on his farm, the 6-foot-5-inch tall Foster was brought down to his knees in a fit of expletives and tears before throwing in the towel — and throwing up the contents of his stomach in the privacy of a pop-up tent. Measured at 1.4 million to 2.2 million Scoville heat units — the scale used to measure chili pungency — Carolina Reapers are the world’s hottest pepper, according to Chili Pepper Madness. By comparison, a jalapeño only has 2,500 to 10,000 Scoville heat units, according to Colorado State University. That makes the mildest Carolina Reaper 140 times hotter than the spiciest jalapeño. 🥵 One of four judges asked to witness the event said “Eating a Carolina Reaper pepper is like eating mace or being pepper sprayed in the mouth…. And if you don’t wait long enough between bites, you might consume too much and end up having a very, very painful experience.” ““I’m really just doing it for fun, and trying to beat my own record,” Foster said. “And that’s what today was all about. It would have been nice to get more than I did, but it’s really more for entertainment.” Greg Foster said he routinely eats a pepper a day when they’re in season, replacing fresh peppers with hot sauces in January to August when fresh chilis aren’t as readily available. He ramps up his pepper eating the week before contests and eats bananas the morning of the contest to prepare. After his failed attempt (and subsequent upchuck) he chugged water and milk to make it easier to purge the peppers out, followed by more milk, water and ice cream. 🍦He said that cuts recovery time from days to 45 minutes. Although he fell short of his goal Saturday, Foster said listening to one’s stomach is vital. “I thought I had a good pace there, and your body just tells you differently. What I’ve learned throughout eating peppers like this is: don’t ignore what your body’s telling you.” [OUTRO] Love is a burning thing, and it makers a firey ring Bound by wild desire, I fell in to a ring of fire I fell in to a burning ring of fire! I went down down down, and the flames went higher. And it burns burns burns...the ring of fire...
Like the show? Please support by following on Spotify and instagram, and tell your friends too!
(EP 57) Got a few minutes? Let's talk SpaghettiO's! Unexpected English always brings you fun ways to practice your English listening, so subscribe and tell your friends! First, I talk about this weird canned food. (Transcript help!) Next: A very very easy lesson: How to prepare SpaghettiO's (So easy! No transcript) Finally: A sweet story about how a town helped a little autistic girl get the only food she will eat: SpaghettiO's! (Transcript help!) All this and some of that famous SpaghettiO music! Listen, have fun, and subscribe!
[INTRO] Hi everybody and welcome back to another episode of Unexpected English, your favorite English podcast! Now, this episode is not about your mom's spaghetti. Yeah, I know that was lead-in song. But it's not about your mom's spaghetti. It's about something else, called SpaghettiOs. Huh? SpaghettiOs, Yeah. Just listen. (Jingle) Okay, SpaghettiOs. You may be asking yourself, what the heck are spaghettiOs? You know, if you, if you ever saw them, you would have the same question, because it's something a little strange. spaghettiOs are a canned pasta in little circles, little O's. Yeah, it's a it's a kind of food. I think they say it's food, I'm not so sure. It was invented in 1965. SpaghettiOs, invented in 1965. And it is, as I say, a kind of round pasta in a tomato sauce that maybe is good for little kids to eat. I guess that's it. So, why a story about SpaghettiOs? Well, actually, I heard a real life report about spaghettios and it reminded me that they existed, and it reminded me of the famous advertising jingle. (Jingle) That's it. Oh-oh, SpaghettiOs. So I thought I would have a little bit of fun with that by giving you a little taste of the music, and then a very simple, “how to” for SpaghettiOs, I guess you could call it “how to SpaghettiO” And then in the end, the actual news report. And the news interview does have the transcript in the show notes. So meanwhile, you have this, you have a little SpaghettiOs, you have a how-to, and then the news, and I’ll be quiet and we’ll get going, so let’s go!
HOW TO: (no transcript)
[STORY] All right let's talk SpaghettiOs. OK first interview I've ever begun like that! This is Crystal McDonal. Crystal’s unlikely obsession with canned pasta began after the birth of her daughter Ashland. Ashland is autistic. And earlier this year she stopped eating food altogether with the sole exception of SpaghettiOs and meatballs. Teachers and therapists were working to expand her palate when the pandemic hit, clearing grocery store shelves of a lot more than just toilet paper. We couldn't find SpaghettiOs anywhere. It was like they were there one day and the next, they were gone! Wait, why was there a run on SpaghettiOs? I don't know if people thought, like, if the world ended, you could survive on SpaghettiOs. I just know that I was losing my mind trying to find them. And that's when the miracle happened. Like prepackaged manna from heaven, SpaghettiOs just started showing up. On her doorstep, in the mail. Hundreds of cans from people in the community who’d heard about Ashland in the local paper and wanted to help. If it wasn't for the kindness of people like that we would not have gotten by. SpaghettiOs is hardly a culinary cause célèbre. But in this home at least, every can is now fortified with faith in humanity.
Enjoy the podcast? Subscribe and follow on Apple podcast, Spotify and everywhere! Follow on Instagram too! PLEASE tell anyone who might enjoy the podcast: all the links are here! --> linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish
(EP 56) Got Five minutes? Unexpected English always brings you fun ways to practice your English listening, so subscribe! Find us on Spotify, Apple, Instagram and everywhere! Season Five is coming soon, but for now just enjoy this musical finale. You can even sing along, the lyrics are below!
SONG: (Yes, you can sing it too!!)
I won't vote Trump
No there's not a chance in hell
I will try to make a difference
Because this isn't going well
So don't waste your bad breath on me
I'd sooner cast my vote for Cardi B
I'll never vote Trump.
Never vote Trump! Never vote Trump!! Not me!
I won't vote Trump
I will jump through any hoops
And if someone tries to make me
I will throw a can of soup
If there's a chance that I could get this bloated Cheeto off my TV set
I'll never vote Trump! Never vote Trump! Never vote Trump!
Not me. (Not I) -- Girl, please
But he'll make the country (uh-huh)
Pence will take you on a date
No thank you!
What if they manipulate and make you not feel so inclined?
I've made up my mind!
I won't vote Trump. I won't vote Trump!
To the polls is where I'll drive
If I'm 18 years older
Because I’m over 45
So sorry I've offended you
But when it comes to voting, I work blue
I'll never vote Trump! Never vote Trump!
Never vote Trump! Not me!
I won't I won't Trump. I don't want another four
And if someone steals my mailbox
I will build 100 more
I won’t vote Trump
I will vote without delay
I will do what's necessary
Just to make you go away
And though I've made some past mistakes
There's one I won’t, no matter what it takes
I will never vote Trump! Never vote Trump! Never vote Trump!
Not me, not me not me, no girl!
Not me!!!
All rights and honors for this song go to the amazing Randy Rainbow!
Having fun? Why not check out all the past episodes you haven't heard? You'll love them!
Please share the podcast!
(EP 55) Unexpected English brings you poetry? Forget the word "poetry!" In this episode, you will find simple sentences in simple, direct language: perfect for your English listening. Charles Bukowski was an American writer. He is famous for his writing, and he was famous for his drinking. That's the reason for the title. Don't judge, just listen. Even if you are an English learner, I think you will understand them and I hope you will enjoy them The poems are:
Poetry
Poem for my 43rd Birthday
My Cats
So You Want To Be A Writer
As The Poems Go
If you want the text of these poems, just Google Bukowski + the name of the poem. If you want to know more about Bukowski, you can read about him here on Wikipedia. He wrote thousands of poems, hundreds of short stories and six novels. You can also hear him reading some of his work here on YouTube
PLEASE SHARE THE PODCAST! I don't have have advertising. I don't have sponsors. I don't want students. I don't make money. I just want you to enjoy the podcast. If you do — please tell your friends. Spotify link Thank you!
(EP 54) Five minutes of real-life American English to train your listening while you have fun! In this episode we visit a private wine cellar in an exclusive beach community near Los Angeles. Transcription here -->
[INTRO]
OK so I'm here with my friend Mike at his house in Manhattan Beach and… could you tell us where we are standing right now? We are standing in a prime wine cellar. This is a wine cellar, I want to tell you, I am in a wine cellar. How many bottles of wine have we got in this wine cellar? We’ve got about seven hundred on the rack and there's another, probably, three hundred sitting in cases. So we're talking about a thousand bottles. A thousand bottles. All right, and can you give us just an idea what kind of wine you've got here? Well I’ve got the two racks of Kurt’s (his son) and then I’ve got 3 - 4 racks here which are Pinot Noir, no, no Zinfandels and I’ve got two racks of Pinot Noir and I’ve got all the rest are Cabernet. I’m a big Cabernet guy.** So we're talking a couple hundred bottles of Cabernet. Easily. Probably 500. Where do you, where do you acquire this wine? Well, I work with Kurt. He’ll order a bottle of wine, and we’ll taste it when it comes in, and if it tastes good, he’ll order me a case of it. OK, so you, so you research the wine, you read, you read about the wine and then you get yourself a bottle…. Preferably Napa Valley, Sonoma… So what percentage of your wines in here are California wines? Probably seventy percent. 70% are California, and the rest? The rest are right behind here they are Bordeaux and they're drinking OK, they are “2000”, so that's 20 years old and it, uh, it taste OK, but it's nothing compared to our red wines from Napa. Tell me this, what is the most, let's call it the most valuable bottle you’ve got in here. Not very expensive, the most expensive one is on the top. Those are probably $250 bottles, two hundred and fifty bucks a bottle. About $250 per bottle, and how long will they be sitting here? Probably I'll be dead by the time they are ripe. (laughter Oh, the son will be drinking the, because.. (hahha) OK well, thanks for the tour and thanks for listening.
[OUTRO}
Thank you for supporting the podcast by telling friends and sharing this link--> https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish
- Idiom note: You can say a person is "big on" something (or an activity) to mean they enjoy it a lot or promote it. Here we see a variation. Mike is "a big Cabernet guy" - he loves Cabernet!
(EP 53) Unexpected English, with more real-life interviews to train your listening while you have fun! This time: Mexican flavor! Transcript abbreviated with xxx due to length limits. Please share, support the podcast --> https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish
#1 Jasmine's Quinceañera -> OK so here we are at Balboa Park and I noticed these fine looking young men here with their T-shirts on that say..... can you tell us what's going on here? It's a photo shoot for a quinceañera. And could you tell us what a quinceañera is? It's a Mexican traditional party for when girl turns 15. And what does your T-shirt say? “Jasmine's Quinceañera” And how do you fit into the party scene? I’m a chambelan. A chambelan, and could you tell us what that is? We’re one of her dancers, part of her, like, chorus. And how many... the guys, right? So how many guys will there be? Seven of us. Seven of you. And have you been practicing your dance moves? Yeah, we have. And anything else you want to explain about what this, because my listeners don't know about a quinceañera, so anything you else you could explain what that is. It’s just like when a girl transforms into a woman and it’s like they leave their childhood behind. That’s basically it. And have a big party, right? xxx
#2 Karina’s Ceviches -> So I'm here at a place called Karina’s Ceviches and More. Can you tell me about this restaurant? Right now? Yeah, I mean, just tell me, what is ceviche? Ceviche? It’s like a, I mean it's a combination of like spicy lime juice and shrimp and fish there's like marinated shrimp with spices in it. So it's a seafood dish. Seafood, yeah yeah yeah Mostly with what seafood? Shrimp or fish. And where does this recipe come from? Mexico I believe? You buh.. you believe? I mean, I yeah I believe. I mean are you... I don’t have facts about it but... I can't say. Oh, you just work here right? So I would have to talk to the men in the back they're the ones who know. Probably, yes. xxx
#3 Casa Guadalajara -> So here we are in Old Town at one of the most famous restaurants called... what's the name of this restaurant? Casa Guadalajara. xxx! How long has this restaurant been here? Over a decade, honestly, it's been here for a really long time I'm not sure the exact date, it’s back like 1980s I believe? But it's been here for a really long time. Long time! I think longer than, I think since the 80s because, because I've been living here that long and I know it was here. And what is there that makes this place special? It's just so vibrant it's very, like, colorful, it’s fun, we have mariachi band so it's always, like, high energy it's very fun place to come. And food-wise what’s some of the most popular dishes? One of my favorite dishes is the shrimp mango tacos, our signature dish is... Shrimp mango tacos! OK. Sooo good, they’re the best thing on the menu. Our signature dish is the tequila lime shrimp, and if people are just not for seafood, I would say either the Carne Asada Tampiqueña, or the house special, especial de la casa. OK well, I don't think I can do any more interview because the more she talks about food, the hungrier I get. So there you go, that's the story from... xxx
#4 Elote-> Hey there people, can I ask you what you're getting. Uh, “elote.” Elote, and what would that be? Mexican corn, basically. So here we are in Balboa Park and somebody is selling “elote” how is it served up, could you describe it to people who never had it? It’s served up in a styrofoam cup with corn and then some toppings. What kind of toppings are on there? Tajin, what is that? (It’s chamoy) Yeah, chamoy... Chamoy would be what? I think its Mexican hot sauce. OK maybe I should just ask the boss here, he's the one who has to tell us. What is it that you’re serving here today? Ahorita no, gracias! xxx
(EP 52) Unexpected English has an interview episode for you: we visit the House of Finland. Use the transcription below for help!
So, here we are at the House of Finland in beautiful Balboa Park. Uh, tell us what should we know about Finland? You should know that sauna is very, very important part of the Finnish culture. Every family has a sauna and it is very relaxing and very wonderful experience to go into the sauna, to get yourself totally hot and then jump into the water in the summertime. OK, wait a minute now, we have to explain the slowly, because this is for people learning English so... OH! Yeah, so, you said there’s, so... so saunas are very important. Could you tell us what a sauna is? Originally, sauna was the bath place for families, you know, because you didn't have running water, uh, in the house. You had a separate house where you heated the water, heated the rocks to throw some water on to get the steam kind of heat going on. OK, so it's a hot room with steam, right? Yes, it is. And it's very enjoyable! And I understand they do that even in the winter. Of course, in the winter especially! (laughter) Really, so tell me how that works in the winter. Uh, you have the wood cut, and you... you put the fire underneath the rocks that are heated for the heat in the sauna. And you have another place where you heat the water in the big, huge pot. And, uhm, in the winter time, you get yourself really warm in the sauna first... OK, how long will you be in the sauna? Uh, that depends how much you can take! And how hot it is, but for ten minutes at a time definitely, and then you do it several times. OK, ten minutes and then...? You go outside, and you roll yourself in that wonderful soft snow. OK... you roll yourself in the snow, and that I suppose feels really.... Invigorating! Oh there's the word, it feels invigorating! OK, so everybody who's listening: next time you're in Finland, make sure to go to a sauna, especially in the winter, so you can then go and run out and roll in the snow, right? Yes, that's that's what we do. Thank you! You’re welcome.
That's it! If you like the show, please support the podcast by telling your friends and sharing this link --> https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish Follow on Spotify, message me on Instagram so I know you are listening, and leave a good review on Apple Podcasts. I don't pay for promotions of have sponsors, so thank you for your support!
(EP 51) This is a social-distancing, non-interview episode: it features oral practice of five irregular verbs. Are you ready?
Please, if you like the show, please support my efforts by telling your friends and sharing this link --> https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish Follow on Spotify, message me on Instagram so I know you are listening, and leave a good review on Apple Podcasts This is a non-commercial project, so thank you for your support!
(EP 50) Listen to real American English! Improve your listening skills with another Unexpected English interview episode, complete with transcription to help you! I apologize for the sound quality in some sections: it was a windy day at the dog park! See links at the bottom of the transcription for more. Spoken intro... and then... [Transcript] OK so here we are at the dog park and I found a young man here who volunteered to be interviewed. What's your name and how old are you? Hi, my name is Adrian and I'm 12 years old. Twelve years old, what grade are you in? I'm in 7th grade. Seventh grade... and what's your favorite class at school? My favorite class is Math because I love decimals and I also love geometry. Oh cool, and what other subjects do you have? I have a model building class and I have a PE class... Hold up, let me ask you a question: a model building class: what is that? Umm, so basically, you buy a model from the store and it's like a plastic model and you can glue the pieces together and it builds a model. So, like, it could be... like I built a Skyline GTR-R34. Wait, wait, hold it a minute! You built a what? And what is that? I built a Skyline GTR-R34. Is that a car? Yes. Ok I guessed it! It was a car, I'm good! It was a car, ok good! And, umm, it can’t... it's not in America and it's only in Japan. But I love the car because it's in the Fast and the Furious. Because it's a what? It's in the Fast and the Furious. Fast.. The fast and the furious.. it's a movie, alright, because I don’t, I don't know ... and what was that movie about? It's about cars basically racing, people racing each other. So I'm guessing that's like your favorite movie. Yes. OK so, we've got your favorite class, we got your favorite movie ... and what about your favorite food? My favorite food is probably pizza. Pizza, yeah pizza is everybody's favorite food, I think that's true. Anything else you want to tell anybody before we go? Oh my favorite color is pink because it stands up for breast cancer. Oh, that's fantastic, pink for breast cancer! OK thanks very much. Again we were talking to... Adrian Jones. Adrian, here in San Diego at the dog park and we hope you enjoy this podcast, and could understand it, and we hope you join us again next time! Bye! (outro music from fast and furious) *** Thats it! Please, if you like the show, please support my efforts by telling your friends and sharing this link --> https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish Follow on Spotify, message me on Instagram so I know you are listening, and leave a good review on Apple Podcasts This is a non-commercial project, so thank you for your support!
(EP 49) Special episode of Unexpected English.
[Intro transcript]
Hi everybody it's me, Louis, and you should be listening to a normal episode of Unexpected English. And I was going to upload a normal episode. But as you know, uh, today is June 1 and these are not normal times. We have just had a long weekend of protests and violence in this country and people are asking me if I'm OK and what's going on and uh... I just wanted to say that, umm, you should not be surprised by this. You should not be surprised. Because this country has a long history of ... of racial violence and economic injustice. And sometimes it becomes very obvious... it comes up to the surface and that is what has happened and is happening. But the problems go way back and you know that. And so rather than talk about it I thought I would share an... something from a great American writer, James Baldwin, who was speaking in 1968 uhh, to explain the riots at that time from his perspective as a black man. And so I think you'll find that interesting. And then I'll close with a song from 1974 by Gil Scott-Heron who was uhh something of a musical genius in that he was a forerunner of modern styles of African-American music. And again, if you listen to the song 1974, you'll see that there is nothing new here. And anyway umm that's it. I will share those things and we'll catch you next time with perhaps a normal episode. Until then, I hope you enjoy the rest of the podcast.
Links: James Baldwin on the riots of 1968
Gil Scott-Heron Winter in America
Unexpected English: links
(EP 48) Unexpected English is a five minute podcast for English learners looking for something unusual and fun to practice their listening. As always, there is no English "lesson" - just an unexpected encounter with real life English. Sorry for the poor sound, but the interviews are recorded for you live on location without professional equipment. [Transcript]
OK here we are at Mesa College, going to talk to a random student about his student life. Tell me, what classes are you taking right now? I'm taking Java, that's programming, and I'm taking sociology. So you’re taking two classes. Is this your first year here? How does it fit into your plans? I'm actually a transfer student from Louisiana so this is my first semester out here. Pretty well so far, pretty good campus, good teachers, I like it. All right, and what's the long-term plan after, what, are you gonna, I mean after you finish your courses here, then what? After I finish here and I finish at my other school I plan on going to either NASA or any other coding tech, any of the coding fi rms that, you know, offer aerospace engineering. OK, so we're talking to a high-end engineering kind of a guy here, we’re not playing around! Uh, tell me this though, you said you transferred from Louisiana? Where were you in Louisiana? Grambling State University in Louisiana. And how long you been here? I've been here, this is my second semester. And, so, what do you think about San Diego? Pretty good good weather, good people, wonderful air, it's pretty pretty fun out here. All right, and qhat's the what's the biggest thing you miss about, about Louisiana, about not being back at home, so was that home for you back there? I mean, other than missing your family, what are you missing about back home? Probably the food. Food’s better, more home-cooked meals out there. It really fills you up. What kind of, what kind of a specialties they got there? Jambalaya.. Hold up, hold up now, because people don't know, most of my people they don't know... tell us what jambalaya is! So, jambalaya is kind of like rice mixed with seafood and sausages and pretty much a bunch of different meat you would like all in one dish. Ahh, it's good, you’re telling me is good, I believe that, alright.! So, have you tried any of the so-called local food here in San Diego? What would you identify as being San Diego food? Probably the tacos. Very very local, a custom everywhere, you can find a taco shop almost every corner, different styles... Yeah, we do have a lotta Mexican food here that's for sure! All right, well, thanks for your time and we hope you enjoyed the interview, take care!
That's it! This podcast is a non-commercial effort, made by me so that you have something unique and fun real life English to listen to. If you like the show, please support my efforts by telling your friends and sharing this link --> https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish Follow on Spotify, message @UnexpectedEnglish on Instagram so I know you are listening, and leave a good review on Apple Podcasts. Thank you for your support!
(EP 47) Unexpected English is a five minute podcast for English learners looking for something unusual and fun to practice their listening. As always, there is no English "lesson" - just an unexpected encounter with real life English. This episode is not real. I'm just fixing a hole in the ocean, waiting for you to spread the word so that I know you enjoy the podcast! Please, if you like the show, please support my efforts by telling your friends and sharing this link --> https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish Follow on Spotify, message me on Instagram so I know you are listening, and leave a good review on Apple Podcasts This is a non-commercial project, so thank you for your support!
(EP 46) Season Four gets started with some awesome soul! Soul food, James Brown funk, ribs, and a fabulous, fun interview for the curious listener or English learner looking for some unique content. Listen a few times [with and without the transcript below] to improve your comprehension. Let's do it!
TRANSCRIPT: OK, so here I am at an outdoor event where they have a lot of different stands including this one selling food. And I see the name of the stand is “In Your Mama’s Kitchen.” So could you tell us what your specialty is here at In Your Mama’s Kitchen? At In Your Mama’s Kitchen we have soul food that's not just good for the soul but it's good for the mind body and the spirit and stomach if you are hungry. If you are not, you can always take a plate to go. Soul food, soul food, so for the listeners who don't know what that means, could you explain a little bit what soul food really is? Soul food is, it’s just that food that when you take that one bite, it really just hits you so deep it just makes you go MMMM! MMM MMM MM! And it makes you just want more and more and more! Mmm, that does sound good, that does sound good, could you give me an idea of what kind of items we’re talking about? So we have some ribs, we have... Ribs? Ribs! Ribs! Did you say ribs? Oh, of course! Ribs and ribs and ribs! We have barbecue chicken and hotlinks. We have collard greens, red beans and rice, mac & cheese, corn on the cob, sliced bread, and... we have cornbread too! And it's all Southern Style! Wow! That does that sound good! Who.. who.. who’s our chef? Who’s cooking up all these delicious things for us? Our chef's name is Brenda Allen and she also makes fabulous desserts that are delicious and don't disappoint. Wow, that's amazing! Well that sounds really good, I think I'm gonna cut podcast right here because, I'll tell you what: it's time to eat! All right, let's do it!
Thats it!
If you like the show, please support my efforts by telling your friends and sharing this link --> https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish
Follow of Spotify, leave a good review on Apple Podcasts and check us out on Instagram. Thank you for your support!
(EP 45) Yes, it's more Unexpected English to help you improve your listening skills while you have fun. Listen and find out what's next! [Transcript below]
Hi everybody and welcome to Season Four --- I think it’s a season four? Season four, I'm gonna call it season four. Season Four of Unexpected English. your favorite English podcast! That's right, that's right. That's right. And I'm saying season four, and you’re saying What? How can that be? Well, here's how. For one thing, if I say it’s season four, boom! It’s season four, why not? So there’s one reason. Another reason? It's been more than a month since my last podcast from my closet. That's right, I did a podcast in the closet, it's been a month and you know why, right? Because we are all trying to cope with... and cope with means deal with ... and deal with means handle... and handle means... hmmm what does it mean? Live with the conditions that we’re living with, right? But enough of that! That's what I decided ENOUGH of that. Enough! Enough! So I said boom, OK forget that, we’ll just start a NEW season right there, and that's what we're doing right here! So this is the introduction to Season Four. But you'll have to just listen to the next episode to get to Season Four. But I promise you, it's a good one. I recorded it sometime ago, and I was saving it because uhh it's a lot of fun, I had fun doing it and I was like “This is good!” So now is the time. It's time to bring out a good episode and start Season Four. So if you're subscribing, you'll get it next! This is just a little teaser, so thanks for listening and we'll catch you next time! Ciao ciao!
That's it!
If you enjoy the podcast, subscribe on Spotify, Apple podcasts etc etc, tell your friends Oh! Share this link --> https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish And follow @UnexpectedEnglish on Instagram... Or you can always just send me cookies!!
(EP 44) Your favorite English podcast here with a new episode from my closet! I try to sound positive. Does it work? [Transcript below]
Hi everybody and welcome back to another episode of Unexpected English, your favorite English podcast! Yeah. Yeah this one is unexpected, maybe the most unexpected because, I dunno, I personally did not expect to be sitting in my closet ... sitting in my closet recording a podcast because I'm under quarantine. But I think you know all about it, right? Now, I mean, quarantine in Italy ... quarantine in Spain ... quarantine in France ... quarantine in New York and here in California.
So there it is. Now, what can I do to make your day a little happier? I don't know! I'm thinking, well people have more time for podcasts, that's for sure. But, at the same time, I .. I don't understand how people... some people apparently, can just, you know, go about their business, go about their theirtheir podcasting (and instagramming and facebooking) just like... oh, it's all good, life is good, huh? Because right, I know, it's not good for a lot of people. But... at the same time you don't want to hear about that right? You don't want I hear about that because you may be living that, right? So, who needs that! Um, I just wanted to explain anyway that well, obviously, for one thing, I won't be putting my phone in anybody's face anytime real soon for spontaneous interviews. And you know Unexpected English is always spontaneous!
So instead I thought I would sit here in my closet and see you what I would talk about. Although I can tell you I do have maybe two or three episodes ready and so when you hear those and they sound all so happy and you know, “Where is he?” and “How can you be out interviewing people?” They happened some time ago. Right? so I thought I would explain that. And I thought I would end a little solidarity out there to everybody who is ... uh.. living under... living under difficult conditions. Actually, and I can tell you here... I'm in California, and it's not bad here at all because we can go out. Everything is closed, and if you want to go shopping there’s, you know, there's no toilet paper! There's like a global panic on toilet paper I don't know. No toilet paper, but you can go and get groceries if you want to go out, you know. Personally we did some shopping here and hope to stay in for a few weeks and hope for the best. So that's our situation here, but I do go out every day and have a nice walk because I live in an area where I don't see very many people.
But again don't wanna talk about that don't want to talk about the quarantine. Anyway I guess I'm rambling at this point, so I'll just stop and say, well, I thought I should continue podcasting, even if, uh, I am only talking nonsense. At least you know I'm here and maybe it gives you something to listen to? And let me know how it's going and ...you can ... I'll catch you next time! All right, yeah. OK! See, I’m staying positive. That's what we need to do. So let's do that, all right? All right, we'll catch you next time. Ciao Ciao!
That's it!
If you enjoy the podcast please share this link --> https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish tell your friends etc etc. STAY SAFE!
(EP 43) Listen to real American English! Improve your listening skills with this Interview episode, complete with transcription to help you! Please support the podcast by telling your friends and sharing this link --> https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish
[Transcript] OK so I was walking down the street and I saw a United States Postal Service truck with a uhh uhh “postal carrier” inside. I that’s what we call, do we call “postal carrier” A “letter carrier,” yeah. Letter carrier -- it used to be mailman back in the day, but as you can tell from the voice I'm not talking to a mailman, I'm talking to uhhh.... uhhh... we don’t say “mail lady” that sounds funny! Yeah, no, a mail lady is about right, yeah, about right. OK mail man, mail lady, LETTER CARRIER, ok! So how long have you been a letter carrier? Since 2014. Since 2014 and ... how about walking, do have any idea how far you walk every day? It depends on the route. Um, I actually have a route over down the street from here. It's about 14 point something miles. Wait a minute, that's a long route... but you don't walk 14 miles. Well, no because, you know, you cover one side of the street and then you do the other side. So it's a good.. yeah it's a lot, it's a lot. Definitely more than 20,000 steps. So do you have a pedometer, I mean, do you ever check it out to see, it’s on your phone. Yeah, on the health app, on the iPhone. OK, and you said more than... It's definitely more than 20,000 steps. Right, so she does more than 20,000 steps uh, five days a week. Yeah, oh yeah, for sure. So, so OK that's why she know she's in shape because that’s 20,000 steps, five days a week delivering the mail. Umm, I'm thinking you must really hate Christmas time! Oh for sure, for sure! That's like, 12 hours plus every freaking day. For the whole season, it's so bad! And so can you tell people why, if they can't put two and two together, why a letter carrier would not like Christmas. Because of that, it's not only just packages but everything, always has to go out and that's like, every day. And it's ... it's a lot, it's a lot! It's just a lot of mail, a lotta Christmas cards, a lotta packages, a lotta presents, a lot of work! A lot of presents, for sure! OK, well that's about it, I guess I ran out of questions, but thanks for taking the time to talk to us. Yes of course, you’re welcome. Bye!
** That’s it! Thanks for listening and please tell your friends! Follow @UnexpectedEnglish on Instagram!
(Ep 42) Another interview episode with a transcription to help you. I spoke too fast in this episode, I know, because I got agitated! That’s because "you know who" is still in the White House, and I'm sick of it! 🤮Please support the podcast by telling your friends and sharing this link --> https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish
[INTRO]
All right, so I was sitting at home and somebody rang my front doorbell, two young people. Can I say young people? Yes. OK, two young people. So tell me, young people, what is it that you're doing? We are protecting our oceans with Greenpeace. You're... wait a minute.. you're knocking on my door, I'm 7 miles from the ocean. I'm confused. Yeah, totally, so right now we're in the middle.... Yeah she's right, I'm totally confused! Yes you are! She got me! I’m totally confused No, no, c'mon, now seriously, you are representing... Yeah, Greenpeace. So a lot of people in the neighborhood support Greenpeace in our awesome campaigns. Today we're working on plastic pollution in the ocean. It's become a huge epidemic, I'm sure it's been on your radar lately. On my radar? On my radar? I mean, the oceans, at this point... What? What’s the problem with the ocean to this point? You don’t know? I do know! Oh, OK. That’s why we’re here. I was asking you! Oh, you don’t have to ask me, you don’t have to ask anybody, we all know. OK, good! We know. Yeah we definitely know. We all should be aware about the issues in the ocean. 🌊 So right now, every 60 seconds we’re seeing the equivalent of a garbage truck load of plastic enter our oceans. (music) Hear that again people? Every... could you said again slowly? Every 60 seconds we're seeing the equivalent of a dump truck load of plastic enter our oceans. A dump truck load of plastic into our oceans every 60 seconds. (music) Yep, it's horrible because then the whales eat it 🐳 and the turtles eat it and then they're not having a good time. It’s messed up! It's really messed up! But no need to fear, you know, Greenpeace is here! (laughter) All right, so what is... what is what is Greenpeace doing.... So we need to make Greenpeace a priority and the environment a priority. So how are we going to get that assh*le out of the White House? (YEAH, he's garbage!) That's our number one issue, isn’t it? Uh, so Greenpeace is non-partisan, we don't... Well, I’m partisan! I'm partisan! Aren’t you partisan? I’mm... working for Greenpeace Oh, he’s working for Greenpeace, so he can not say. Well there you go. I guess, uhh, that being the case, we can't uhhh get too political even though... well, no! Saving the planet, is that political?? No! I would say everybody should want to save the planet, everybody has a live on the planet.🌍 So what is wrong with the damn Republicans that they don't wanna save the planet? They just wanna keep on pollutin’ and pollutin’!!! 💀 Umm... "I can't say I’m working for Greenpeace." OK thanks we’ll cut it right there. Thanks everybody for listening, ciao ciao!
[Outro] 👉🏼--> Did you enjoy the episode? Please support the podcast by sharing this link with friends on social media. Or better, just tell then about it: word of mouth helps! Look for Unexpected English on Spotify, Apple podcasts and everywhere! Thanks for your help and support! ♥️
Song snippets: Fresh Garbage by Spirit, 1968. Yes I am that old!
(EP 41) Your favorite English podcast finally brings you a new episode! [see Transcription below!] Please support the podcast by telling your friends and sharing this link --> https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish Thank you! OK so here I am with one of my neighbors and I thought I would ask him a question, basically because I was walking by his garage and I saw that he has a boat in there. So tell me, why do you have a boat in your garage? Because my entire life I have always enjoyed small boats. When I was about seven years old my brother and I bought a very poor little wooden boat that was about seven foot long. It cost us $15, but it was my own little vessel, and I was the captain over my own little ship. OK so he loves boats, you love boats but... how did this boat end up in your garage? I built this boat. About... Uhh, excuse me, let me make sure I understand. You're saying YOU built this boat? Every stick of it, yes sir. Wow! OK, well umm we're talking to a man then who built a boat and it's now housed in his garage. How long did it take you to make, I mean to build a boat? I don't know I can't even build a model car, so building a boat seems to me kind of an incredible thing. How long did that take it? It took about three years to build this one I had built two other boats in the past... OK, wait a minute now... three years to build a boat, it's his third boat that he’s built, so I guess you could say I'm talking to a boat-building guy here! OK thanks, I guess we're gonna cut, cut it right there. I hope you enjoyed it, and stay tuned for more. Bye! ****** You listened, you liked it... so now you have to share it! 😂 You maybe know about the podcast because I personally invited you to listen, right? That's the way it works best - word of mouth! Please tell ONE FRIEND so they start listening too. Thanks! 🙏🏼
(EP 40) Your favorite English podcast opens Season Three with a surprising man on the street interview! Listening tips:🔊 (1) No transcript (2) With the transcript below (3) One last time just for for fun! Let's GO! [Intro... ] Interview: Hi everybody! I was just walking down the street and I saw this kind of a hippie looking dude and I thought, and I thought, Hey, this hippie looking dude, he could be interesting to interview! So, and he, and I said, Hey can I interview you? And he said, Yeah, sure! About what? And I said, Well what do you do? Are you a musician? 🎼 (I was guessing you know, because he looked like, like a hippie dude) So, and he said, Yeah, I am! So tell me, what... what instrument do you play? I play the harp. 🎶 Oh, the harp, umm, so that is a solo thing, no? Sometimes solo, sometimes with orchestras, small groups... And so do you play regularly with a small group? Umm, I’d say that I play regularly with different groups, actually. And tell me how long have you been playing the harp? 18 years. Oh so, you're like... you're a professional harpist as it were. I suppose so. I’d like think so. How long did it take for you to master the harp? Oh, I wouldn't say that I've mastered harp. I don't even know what that means! Oh yeah, that's a good response! I was thinking “master” is maybe... too much. How long would it take someone (say me, if I had any talent) to learn to play a song on the harp? Umm, depending on the song maybe a few weeks, maybe a month or a couple months. Depends on how hard you wanna work and how interested you are. OK, so I could pick up a harp and maybe be playing something in a year, yeah? Yeah, I mean you’d be playing “something” the whole time (haha) This is true! Um, how many harps do you own? Three harps. Three harps, and how much does a harp cost? It sort of depends on the kind of harp. I have a small harp time, that maybe has a the couple of octaves, three octaves or so, and that's probably only a few hundred dollars. But then, the big concert harp is at least $12,000. $12,000 for your concert style harp, so, so to all the listeners out there, I suggest you start off with a little harp and work your way up. OK? OK, I think that's it, we're going to end it there. Thanks again to my guest, whose name I won’t ask because, you know, we’ve got to keep everything on the "discreet." But, it was a lucky thing to bump into this dude and find out, Yeah! He's a harpist! I hope you enjoyed the podcast, and we’ll see you next time. Bye! ... Bye! -👉🏼--> Did you enjoy the episode? Please support the podcast by sharing with friends on social media or even in your English study group! https://linktr.ee/UnexpectedEnglish Look for Unexpected English on Spotify, Apple podcasts and everywhere! Thanks for your help and support!♥️
(EP 39) This wraps up not only Season Two of Unexpected English, but also 2019! Season's Greetings and best wishes to all for a Happy and Prosperous New Year! TRANSCRIPT: (Musical Intro) Hi everybody! Welcome back to Unexpected English! And I want to thank Mr... (name deleted in case Bob's lawyers don't like it) for playing that introduction and for recording maybe in the worst Christmas album of all time! My opinion! I mean, c'mon, that was Bob (name deleted for to protect myself) singing "Here comes Santa Claus!" Really? Well, that shows where we're at! And where were at is... is December and coming close to Christmas, but not really coming close to an episode. That's right. But you can keep on listening just for fun because I'm gonna play a little more crazy Christmas music for you. How about that? A little more crazy Christmas music for YOU! Right now! OK! (Musical interlude) All right, have you had enough Christmas spirit yet, or do you need little more? OK I know it's not an English learning episode but it's Christmas time, right? So we're supposed to have fun! And.. that's why I'm playing this music for you and I promise you this: we'll do one more little clip and then I'll have a serious message for you. OK? All right! (Musical interlude) OK, thanks for letting me have a little bit of fun with the music. And now I do have a message for you, because I want you to know that I know that you are doing lots of good things to improve your English. I mean, listening to this podcast is one, but I know you do a lot more, and I know what that means is you're getting better and better. And every day is getting better and better! And let's hope this New Year is going to get better and better. So I wanna take you out with one of my favorites Mr. Van (name deleted in case Van's lawyers don't like it) with some great thoughts to carry on into the New Year. Here we go! Better and Better!
(EP 38)We visit San Diego's Little Italy and hear not one but TWO lively interviews with Luca at Civico 1845. Does he have an Italian accent? Of course! Will you understand him? Listen and find out! Because in this episode, I'm only giving the transcript of my introduction. For the interview, you are on your own, but I promise it will be fun! [TRANSCRIPT OF INTRO BELOW] Hi everybody! Wait a minute, let me start again. Hi everybody, and welcome back to another episode of Unexpected English, your favorite English podcast. Ha ha, I know it is... NOT! But that's OK because I'm happy because I have a special, an especially good Italian episode for you. I know you’re thinking, “Wait a minute! I listen to this podcast for English not Italian!” OOO K, OK that's true., but in this episode we're going to Little Italy in San Diego, to one of the best known restaurants there. And I had a quick visit, and I had a lot of fun, and actually I did the interview twice which I normally don't do. And instead of editing the interview, I will just play it for you. I will play both versions for you. And because I'm doing that, and because I'm lazy, and because it's Italian-accented English, I'm not going to do a transcript. So if you're in Italy, I think you can understand what’s said. And anybody else, hey just enjoy it, right? Just have fun because that's why we’re here. OK, here we go! ----> Thanks for sharing with your friends on social, and thanks for following Unexpected English on Spotify, Apple or wherever you do! You can always find Unexpected English with this link: https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish
(EP 37) English listening challenge: jokes! OK, the last episode about the WALL was rather serious, so I thought I needed a SILLY episode for balance. There is NO transcript for this episode because it is just TOO silly. I mean, 7-8-9 (seven ate nine) Really? But since there is a bird, I will share the episode. Be cause It's Thanksgiving time, that wonderful holiday when Americans get together with family and eat a big bird! Fun Mexican word: GUAJOLOTE!! Famous drink: Wild Turkey! Fun link: https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish Tell your friends! Thanks for listening!
(EP 36)America was made by immigrants FOR immigrants. So what FEAR leads to building walls? If this episode sounds heavy, don't worry: there is MUSIC! 🎼 Intro Transcription: Hi everybody! Welcome back to another episode of Unexpected English, your favorite English podcast! Uh-huh! And this one is an unexpected episode because I did not expect to do! At all! That is, I'm only doing it because I heard a song today that I wanted to share with you. And I wanted to share it for a few reasons. One is that it's very easy to understand and.... it's an interesting song with an important message about building walls. Now you may know from that title that it could be related to the current embarrassment in our country. The political embarrassment. I don't want to talk about that! People who know me know how I feel about that particular pathological liar. You know: that fraud, that bully, that sexual predator, that narcissist. So, I won’t. Instead I'll just share this song with you and I hope you like it. So here we go! MUSIC LYRICS: https://genius.com/Anais-mitchell-why-we-build-the-wall-lyrics Like the podcast? Please leave a five star iTunes review. Or at least share it with your friends! That will make me happy, but not as happy as all decent people will be when we finally get rid of that vulgar jackass you-know-who!
(EP 35) In this episode, we meet Cesar the parrot! (English listening transcript below) Listen to the end for BONUS CONTENT Song Intro: When Mr. Slater's parrot says, "Hello!" A geezer likes to get one on the go. We hope to hear him swear. We love to hear him squeak. We like to see him biting fingers in his horny beak. Sometimes he wants to whistle through his nose. Whilst picking up a peanut with his toes. If Johnny Morris had him on his show, You'd hear the Fuhrer's favorite say, "HELLO!"
(SPOKEN INTRO / no transcript)
OK, so I was walking in my neighborhood and I saw my neighbor standing outside with his pet. I see you've got an unusual pet. He's a Blue Front Amazon. He came from Argentina. I'm sorry, this is a Blue Front Amazon, which is a.... He is into the Amazon family, but he is further down south America. He's is more into Argentina area. But I mean it's a... it's not a dog. No, he's a parrot, he's a Blue Front Amazon parrot. Oh, ok I've got a big, I've got a big beautiful parrot in front of me. (squawk) Oh, talking to me! Want to say hi, Cesar? Want to say something? PARROT: "HI!" There we go. you heard again, the parrot speaks pretty good English. Do you want to say that again? Say hi! (squawk) Say hi, c'mon, you can do it! Hi Cesar, hi Cesar! (squawk!) Uhh between the parrot and my dog in the background who is crying because she's jealous that I'm paying attention to the... to the parrot... So what's... how long will a parrot.. how long will this be your pet? In captivity, they can live up to 70 years old in captivity, But in the wild, they can go to up to a hundred and ten. So 70, so, this parrot, this parrot is yours for life. Correct, he's only 20 years old. He just turned turn 20 in June. And how long have you had him? The whole 20 years. 20 years with your... what's the bird's name? Cesar. (squawk) Cesar. OK. Cesar. What's the... oh will you be quiet! I don't know, it's getting noisy here between the dog and the parrot I don't know. (squawk squawk!) OK (squawk) Well I think we'll have to cut the podcast short because it's getting a little noisy. What... we'll try again... what's the best thing about having a parrot as a pet. Well, I'm disabled, and it's hard for me to walk a dog and get out, so having a parrot is a companion ... is more longer than a dog. So I picked him because he can talk back to me and I can teach him things. Oh, ok. He loves to play pitch and catch. He loves to throw balls back and forth. OK, so you play catch with your parrot, that's interesting. Oh yeah. he loves to play pitch and catch. I've got a ball with a bunch of holes in it, I'll throw it to him, he throws it back to me. Ok, and what other words does Cesar know? He knows uh "come here" uhh "I love" ,,, he can't get the "you" out, but he goes "I love" OK, C'mon Cesar, I want to hear... And he knows his name. Cesar Cesar Hi Cesar Say Hi, Cesar, hi Cesar! I think (squawk) I think Cesar's a little shy, a little shy today. OK well I think we'd better, we'd better cut it short. Thanks a lot for your time. Thank you very much, you have a great morning.! (OUTRO no transcript) BONUS: Mr. Praline: I wish to make a complaint! Owner: We're closin' for lunch. Mr. Praline: Never mind that, my lad. I wish to complain about this parrot what I purchased not half an hour ago from this very boutique. Owner: Oh yes, the, uh, the Norwegian Blue...What's,uh...What's wrong with it? Mr. Praline: I'll tell you what's wrong with it, my lad. 'E's dead, that's what's wrong with it! Owner: No, no, 'e's uh,...he's resting. Mr. Praline: Look, matey, I know a dead parrot when I see one, and I'm looking at one right now. Owner: No no he's not dead, he's, he's restin'! Remarkable bird, the Norwegian Blue, idn'it, ay? Beautiful plumage! Mr. Praline: The plumage don't enter into it. It's stone dead. Owner: Nononono, no, no! He’s resting!
Support the podcast! Share on social media! https://linktr.ee/UnexpectedEnglish
(EP 34) You mean they will sell us Internet, and give us cash too? Listen and find out! Another fun episode to practice your English listening skills in just five minutes! [Rough transcript below]
OK, so here we are with somebody who is offering a service or something I don't know. Why don't you tell me exactly what you’ve got?
Well, it depends on what you want.
Uhh, well, I'd like to go dancing and drinking with you but I don't think that's what you're selling here.
--- (yeah, I'm bad, LOL) ---
Do you currently have Internet?
So you're selling Internet services? - Yes - And what is included?
So it depends on what you want, Who do you have for Internet currently?
She's really hard-core sales, I'm, I'm just trying... this is... this is for people learning English so if you could explain what it is that you are offering we’ll know...
OK. well, we're offering Internet and TV.
And what do we... how much would that cost me every month?
You can start at $75 depending on what channels you want, then you can go up from there.
So for $75, what do I get?
You get Internet, high-speed Internet, and our “choice package” it's our standard TV channels
How fast is high-speed Internet?
So it depends on what we offer in your area, so we’d have to check your ZIP Code and your address to see.
Complicated answers... I don't know if this is going to work. And how many channels on the basic service for $75 a month?
Umm, I think there's about 50 channels
(voice in background)
OK, hold up. I think I'm interviewing the wrong person here! I’ve got the boss in the background here, so let's... let's let's start all over. What do I get for my $75?
Ok, so you can potentially get up to 1000 MB per second. -- A thousand what? -- Megabits per second -- A thousand Mb per second, is that fast?That is the fastest internet in the market, yes. -- That's the fastest Internet in the market, ok!
Absolutely! Now you can get a little bit more, above standard channels, so, locals are included, so you looking at Discovery, Hallmark HBO, Cinemax, Starz and Showtime for the first three months. ...OK those are all TV channels?
Yes sir, movie channels -- Movie channels.
Absolutely. And you do get a $350 cash card --- Wait a minute, wait a minute! You will give me $350 if I sign up for .... one year?
Two years -- Two years, cash back $350!! You heard it here first! OK don't everybody rush, because I'm not sure it's available in your area. Thanks a lot. Bye!
++++
Please support the podcast! Tell your friends! Share this link ---> https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish
Thank you!
(EP 33) I heard some music! I made this podcast! If you like the show please support it by telling your friends and sharing this link --> https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish Thank you! [Transcription below] Hi everybody! I was I was walking through the campus of the school near my house and I heard some music and I thought what's going on here? So I walked over and found these two gentlemen. So maybe they can explain it to me. Gentlemen, what's going on here? We're playing music up by Mesa College. We do it on Sundays when there's no people around. We’ve been doing this for about 10 years. So we started off playing Beatles and Bob Dylan and we kind of expanded from there. So you're saying that playing music is your relaxation? Yeah, exactly, it's a fun thing to do, yeah it makes me feel good! And what instrument do you play? I play the guitar. And I play flute and recorder. OK, so we've got a guitar and a flute and/or recorder and a nice quiet atmosphere where there's -- A lovely place on a Sunday. Yeah it absolutely is! And I agree with that because that's why I'm up here too on Sunday, it's nice and quiet -- Your very own park! Exactly it's a very very very peaceful park-like setting. So probably the best thing we could do is maybe hear a little bit of the music! How about, say, one verse of Happy Together, a song by The Turtles. [Music]
(EP 32) We visit a local brewery! We taste the beer! What can be better? San Diego is Beer Heaven! If you like the show, please support my efforts by telling your friends and sharing this link --> https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish Thank you! [Transcription below]
So here we are at a local microbrewery called Ketch Brewing and I thought I would find out what's going on here. What's up with Ketch brewing? We basically are owned by a larger restaurant. We brew all the beer that served at those restaurants as well…. Hold up, hold up. So you make the beer for the restaurants? Correct, we make beer for several other restaurants in the city and we also get to experiment and put beer on sale here that you can't get other places. OK, and how many different varieties of beer do we have available right now? Available right now we have seven on tap. Usually we will have more than that, but right now this is basically split into lighter beers and darker beers and IPAs. OK, so speaking of the styles of beer, uhh, what have we got going right now? Right now we have a Kolsch. A Kolsch is a light beer it's very flavorful it's good for summertime, good for the heat over the summer, this is been a really hot summer and that's the type of beer that's very refreshing is very good to drink when you're outside with friends and summertime. Aha.. Kolsch sounds good. OK, what’s next? What's next? Up there we have a pilsner. A pilsner is another light German style beer. Pilsners are going to be very clear and very crisp; ours is no different. It is very true style is very well-brewed and it’s done with all German ingredients. OK, and then I see we've got a lager. Correct. What’s the difference between a lager and a pilsner? The real difference between lager and pilsner is lager versus ale. So lager has to do with bottom up fermentation versus top down fermentation. Ah that sounds a little technical to me .. and would I be able to taste.. I guess I should taste the difference, huh? You absolutely can taste the difference. Oh oh oh oh! OK, I think I'm gonna put that to the test and I’m gonna have to taste both of them. We’ll do that in a minute, Then I see we have two IPAs and IPAs are basically…. IPA stands for India pale ale. And an India pale ale is known for being bitter and full of flavor. People like to drink IPAs. quite frankly. because they're fun to drink. You get a lot of flavors from them and they're very strong. Very strong smelling, very strong tasting, they’re delicious overall, ours is especially fruity, so lots of pineapple, citrus, blueberry notes from our IPAs. OK, so, it seems like you guys specialize in lighter beers. I don't see any, any uhh stouts, or any… Well I wouldn’t speak so fast because we are working on a stout currently and that will come out in the winter time. I'm not sure exactly what month, maybe November or December time frame. OK, so we’ve got a stout to look forward to! All right, well thanks for your help I think we're going to just stop the podcast now so I can taste some beer! Sound good, cheers!
Follow @UnexpectedEnglish on Instagram! Tell your friends! Leave a 5 star review on Apple podcasts. Send me money! Or at least a hello!
(EP 31) Free food? What?!? This is “advanced listening” but don't worry! You don't need to understand everything to answer the easy questions below. 1) How often is this event? When? 2) What does it cost? 3) What four food items are mentioned? 4) How many pounds of food are there? 5) What percent of students have “food insecurity?” Answers will be on Instagram soon, just follow UnexpectedEnglish! Use the transcript below AFTER you answer the questions! OK so here we are again at Mesa College and there's a special event going on, and I'm going to try and find out exactly what that is. Could you explain to us what's going on? Yeah hi my name is Johanna Aliman and I work with the Office of Equity and I’m the coordinator for The Stand here at Mesa College.. And so The Stand is for college students and it’s a free food pantry and professional clothing closet. Some of the additional programs we do is the event like you see here today it's the Farmer’s Market. we do it once a month, it's typically the third Thursday of every month. OK, hold up now — the third Thursday of every month you have a farmers market; and what is that exactly? OK, our Farmer’s Market is where we hand out free fresh produce and it costs nobody nothing (sic) —all they’ve got to do is sign in, and come and get as much as they can carry. So you're saying it's free food today. It is free food today! And what what kind of food are we offering? Today we are offering onions, carrots, corn and tomatoes. And about how much food do you think will move out of here today? Ah, just over 8000 to 9000 pounds. That's a lot of food! Yes, we do about 9 to 10,000 pounds a month of various produce. And why is this kind of event necessary? So, recently the Hope Lab out of Temple University conducted its third, umm, research event that included our college district on food insecurity and homelessness among college students, and found that about 18.4% of our students are homeless and about 50% of our students have some level of food insecurity. And food insecurity means that they are not able to obtain regular, healthy meals in what we would see as a normal way. OK well I think we've got it, we'll probably have to listen to it a few times to understand everything, but it's a lot of information, and good information, and thanks for your time! You're welcome, and thanks for coming out seeing us today!
If you like the show, please support my efforts by telling your friends and sharing this link --> https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish Thank you!
(EP 30) We visit the House of Ireland! Plus an unexpected bonus! No transcript for the bonus at the end, but you can tap your feet to the music!
Transcript
OK so here I am in beautiful Balboa Park and there's this area called the... The International Cottages. The International Cottages where... well why don't you tell us? What are the international cottages? So the international cottages were formed back in 1935 and, uh, for the Worlds Fair and have been there, here since, and we have 33 different countries represented. Each country has a cottage. Right, and so we're in The House of Ireland right now, which is one of them, and... Oh! We're in the House of Ireland! That's fantastic, I dunno if you can hear the Irish music, let's try! .....Oops, there we go! That's, uh, Irish music in the house of Ireland. And we are open and every Saturday and Sunday for visitors and we typically have Irish food of various types here and the other cottages likewise have food from their countries, and we have entertainment, usually music and dance from different countries and cultures. OK so I can get some food at every one of these cottages and occasionally some entertainment. Correct, and then, uh, we do ours in March for St. Patrick's Day. OK that makes sense. Alright, so there you have it. You learned a little bit about The house of Ireland here in beautiful Balboa Park. Thanks a lot. Thank you! ............BONUS CONTENT: GAELIC!
[Music: The Chieftans] Follow on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts! Tell your friends!!!! Instagram: @UnexpectedEnglish
(EP 29) A story from the Mexico / USA border. We're not just for English learners! Listen, enjoy and subscribe on Spotify, Apple podcasts and everywhere!
Unexpected English brings you another spontaneous interview from the streets. Check out our past episodes for more interesting stories!
RoughTranscript
So here I am in downtown San Diego at another restaurant talking to the hostess outside, and she told me that she lives in ... Tijuana, Mexico ... I thought it would be interesting to do a little podcast because here in San Diego we're right on the border and you're proof of that I guess? Yes sir, one of the many people that commute across two countries to go to work and live. So every day, how do you get to work? So, I leave my house at 4:40 in the morning to walk 20 minutes to a local bus station and I take the 5 AM bus that drops me off at the border at 5:30 in the morning. I do about one hour and a half wait time which it makes it about seven in the morning. Wait a minute now, they drop you off and then you have to wait an hour and a half for what? To cross the border from Mexico to United States. In the bus? No, the bus drops me off to the, umm, walking way to cross to the US. Alright, what we call La Linea, right? La linea. OK, then and from there, there's so many people it takes an hour.... an hour, an hour and a half roughly if it's during peak hours which usually are in the morning because many of us work early or have school. OK, so she's got an hour. hour and a half wait to get across the border, and then once you get across... I take the trolley, the Blue Line from the San Isidro station all the way to 12th and Imperial, which takes about 30 to 40 minutes, and then I get off. I transfer to the Green Line which takes me from 12th and Imperial to County Center and Little Italy, where I get off and I walk about five minutes to get to work. So all together the trolley time is... it depends on the day, like an hour-ish, maybe more. OK, so an hour on the trolley, an hour waiting.... (someone interrupts…) OK, well, we had a little interruption because somebody was looking for a bathroom but I think you got the idea! So that's it, thanks for listening!
**** OK people, now show your friends how to subscribe! That will make me happy, and I need to be happy to do more interviews and create your podcasts for you. Let's do this!
(EP 28) Yes, It's another episode of Unexpected English, the podcast for English learners who want something DIFFERENT!
Short, fun, and totally unexpected!
Transcript below
OK so I was walking down the street and I see this dude wearing a yellow vest and it says Amnesty International. So I thought I'd stop and ask him what's going on. Yeah thanks, I really appreciate it. Amnesty International is a for-profit, or a NON-profit organization that’s been operation for 57 years to combat human rights abuses around the world. And we’ve actually got a new program right now that we're running 150 countries... But wait a minute, wait a minute what are YOU doing right now? Oh, I'm canvassing! I'm going door-to-door to get people engaged. it's a grassroots efforts so we can get donors on board to make sure our seven million member strong number gets even bigger, cuz it's gonna take a lot of people to help make that. So, you're saying there are 7 million members now? Yeah, in Amnesty International; we’ve been running for a really long time, so that number has been building for decades. And you're going door-to-door to get more people to sign up? That is correct. And, briefly, what does Amnesty International do? Well, we are the largest human rights organization in the world. We’re fully nonprofit with a seat at the United Nations and our biggest goal right now is to stop human rights abuses for refugees. Refugees... so where... where do we see the biggest problem of the abuse of refugees worldwide. Right now the biggest problem is that I've seen personally are in Venezuela, Israel, Syria. and right here on our southern border. I've seen the southern border stuff, we're right here about 20 minutes away. I've seen border patrol separate kids from their families of my own eyes. And it doesn't look good, does it? It does not, no sir! And that's why we’re out here trying to make a change, because someone's got to look out for them. OK well I appreciate it, I appreciate your time and I wish you the best of luck with your project. Thank you very much!
Like the podcast? Become a supporter!
Time to SUBSCRIBE to the podcast and SHARE with your friends!
Follow @UnexpectedEnglishUnexpectedEnglish on Instagram!
It's lonely without you!
(EP 27) My neighbor has a new kitchen! I made a podcast! I promise it won't be too... BORING... UNINTERESTING... UNEXCITING... MUNDANE...TIRESOME...HO-HUM... or HUMDRUM Let me know what you think on Instagram! Now....... let's listen!
TRANSCRIPT
OK so I'm at my neighbors house and he invited me in because he just redid his kitchen and I wanna tell you it's beautiful, it looks beautiful. But I thought maybe you could tell us what was involved. Well, good question. What was involved is uh, a complete demolition of the kitchen area and living room. So, so so you mean you took out a wall. I took out a few walls and some supporting beams that supported the roof. Uh-huh, and now it's all wide-open. Well, I’ll have to get a picture of this too and I can see this, and that looks beautiful. What else we got? Well, then we started on remodeling the kitchen taking everything out that was originally here for the past 65 years and, umm... 65 years? 65 years it was here. Because the house was built in what year? 1963. OK, so it was the original, and he said “Enough is enough, time for a new kitchen!” Very true, because we remodeled the whole house except for the kitchen! So the kitchen was last, but the kitchen is now the best! It is! It flows into one large room, a very open concept, so that you can be here, cook and entertain with everybody in the living room and the dining room area. And we had all new cabinets put in. New cabinets. Well, we put in. And new appliances. New appliances –appliances means what? A stove, an oven, sinks, dishwasher. microwave and a very large refrigerator. Oh so that must've cost you a lot of money! Appliances alone were $9500. OK, so $9500 for new appliances, wow, alright, but it looks nice! Thank you very much! Yeah, so, it, it was just a work in progress -- new tile new -- tile. tile on the floor -- yeah, and the countertops which are quartz countertops, which were $6000 for just the countertops. $6000 of countertops! Are you, like, uh uh a rich guy? I mean, it seem like... I just work hard and save money. OK, so he works hard, saves money, and now he spent it all on a fabulous new kitchen and I'm gonna stop the podcast here so I can take a picture, so you can see the beautiful result. OK, thank you. Alright, thank you very much! ====================
Now SHARE THE PODCAST! Or at least subscribe, follow on Instagram and especially: send me cookies!
(EP 26) This is Unexpected English! She's 15 and ½! She's learning to drive! [Transcript, including the intro, below]
Follow on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or Google Podcasts to listen to ALL the episodes of your favorite English podcast, Unexpected English!
**** INTRO Hey everybody and welcome back to another episode of Unexpected English! Your favorite English podcast! That's right! You know what, uhh I don't even believe that myself to be honest. But anyway, this podcast is about driving as maybe you could tell from the intro music, Maybe? I can tell you this about driving in the United States there is no national drivers license every state is different, and so every state has different regulations. For example the age that you can drive or the conditions. For example, who's in the car or what hours of the day can you drive when you are a learner. When you finally get a full license will depend again on the state, because in some states you can get a full driver's license at age 16 1/2 other states you have to be 18. The same for beginning to learn. You can begin to learn to drive as young as 14 1/2 in some states, 15 1/2 in some states... Anyway, if you're interested you can look in Wikipedia. But I think right now we should get right to the podcast. What do you say? OK, here we go! INTERVIEW OK so I was walking through the parking lot and I saw a car with a sign on the side that says student driver. So I thought I would see what was going on. Are you a student driver? Yes. And tell me about this experience. Umm, so I'm 15 1/2 right now I just got my permit the other day, and so... Permit means what? Umm, I... am permitted to drive with an adult who is over 25 years of age with me in the car for six months until I can get my drivers license. OK, so a permit is not like a driver’s license, it's like a first step for as long as there's an adult in the car then you can drive. Yes. And so, who's your teacher here? This is my dad. Actually I have my first driving lesson on September 15 with the teacher. OK so we've got a student driver and we got dad in the car making sure everything is going OK. Are you excited about learning to drive? Umm, I am quite scared but I am really excited. I think driving is really fun, so yeah. I'm really excited. OK well that sounds sounds great I know you're going to have a great... great experience learning to drive and you'll be a great driver, right? Yes! And drive safely, OK? Thank you. Thank you Bye! Follow on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or Google Podcasts to listen to ALL the episodes of your favorite English podcast, Unexpected English!
(EP 25) Maybe the most exciting interview on the podcast yet! [Hahaha!] 😂 If you like it, you can become a friend of the show on Facebook and Instagram. TRANSCRIPT below. And please please: spread the word! New listeners can't find the show unless YOU tell them! TRANSCRIPT: OK so I'm here in Balboa Park with ... with... what? I don't know! These two ladies here, they’re... they're giving me the... the “We can't talk face” You hear the deadly silence? I think it's the same people to come knocking on your door all the time and want to talk to you but you can't record them because then they get in trouble with... Who do you get in trouble with? Like... they won’t even tell me who.. Who’s your boss here? OK, well, OK there we go, that was it, that was the interview with the people announcing Jehovah's Kingdom and the Watchtower magazine with the provocative question “Is this life all there is?” Now, normally, they would be telling me all about that but I guess they're not allowed to go on the record.... Is that right, you can’t go on record? So there you go.... So, here's my tip, listeners: next time Jehovah's Witness people come knocking at your door, just pull out your phone and pretend you're recording them and then they'll, like, zip their lip right away and that will be the end of the experience. OK, thanks a lot thanks for your time * on the record - say something officially, in a public way *zip your lip --- be quiet, shut up, stop talking (rude)
/// Please tell your friends about your favorite English podcast! 😂😎👍🏼
(EP 24) We're back for Season Two of Unexpected English with a burger that you never expected! Transcript below! [Spoken Intro] OK so here I am at a local eating establishment called “Thai burger company.” So I thought I would find out a little bit about Thai burgers. Because we all know about hamburgers, we all know about cheeseburgers, but maybe you've never heard of a Thai burger before! So let's find out. What can you tell us about a Thai burger? (Thai accented English) OK so Thai burger is very unique and we create for a friendly, for American people easy for eating (sic) so we use a rice as a bun. No bread bun, rice bun! Rice as the bun, OK. And how about the burger — what is the burger? So for the burger, we create a. like a Thai famous dishes from Thailand. Like a barbecue pork, Panang curry pork, spicy Kaprao, basically spicy Kaprao pork, turned to a patty and put between rice bun. And how can you hold it if it's in rice? Because we do a special rice, like a sticky rice, not fall apart (sic) like a Jasmine rice. We use sticky rice. OK sticky rice. And are they popular? Do people like these Thai burgers? Yeah people love them! We love these Thai burgers! Oh, I've got a customer coming in right now! So, can I ask you a question? Have you ever had one of these Thai burgers? I've been coming here since they opened! And what is you like about these burgers? The flavor! It's different, nobody has burger like it! Nobody... would you really call it a burger or... Yes, I'd call it a burger, it's a patty. OK there we go! And you've been coming for... Since they opened. I was here last night! Oh, so you're like an addict, you're addicted! it's not just like you like this... You can't get anything like this anywhere San Diego. So it's unique that's for sure. All right! Well, thanks for your time and I hope you enjoy your burger. Thanks for the interview, and we’ll catch you next time! [Outro] OK that's it! You're invited to the Unexpected English Facebook group, or follow on Instagram! I want to know my listeners, so please follow and I'll follow back. And don't forget to tell your friends about the podcast! https://linktr.ee/UnexpectedEnglish
[EP 23] Final music episode of the summer! ----------------------------------------- And now, folks, the summer is is ended I think that the music should quit If any of you feel offended Stick your head in a barrel of shh....... ----------------------------------------- LYRICS I have a sad story to tell you It may hurt your feelings a bit Last night when I walked into my bathroom I stepped in a big pile of shh... Shaving cream, be nice and clean Shave everyday and you'll always look keen I think I'll break off with my girlfriend Her antics are queer I'll admit Each time I say, "Darling, I love you" She tells me that I'm full of shh... Shaving cream, be nice and clean Shave everyday and you'll always look keen Our baby fell out of the window You'd think that her head would be split But good luck was with her that morning She fell in a barrel of shh... Shaving cream, be nice and clean Shave everyday and you'll always look keen An old lady died in a bathtub She died from a terrible fit In order to fulfill her wishes She was buried in six feet of shh... Shaving cream, be nice and clean Shave everyday and you'll always look keen When I was in France with the army One day I looked into my kit I thought I would find me a sandwich But the darn thing was loaded with shh... Shaving cream, be nice and clean Shave everyday and you'll always look keen And now, folks, my story is ended I think it is time I should quit If any of you feel offended Stick your head in a barrel of shh.. SHAVING CREAM! Instagram: @UnexpectedEnglish
(EP 22) I LIKE BANANAS! This super short bonus episode is a musical flashback to 1936! Lyrics here: Standing by the fruit store on the corner, Once I heard a customer complain: "You never seem to show the fruit we all love so, That's why business hasn't been the same. I don't like your peaches, They are full of stones. I like bananas, Because they have no bones. Don't give me tomatoes, Can't stand ice cream cones, I like bananas, Because they have no bones. No matter where I go, With Susie, May or Anna, I want the world to know, I must have my banana! Cabbages and onions, Hurt my singing tones, I like bananas, Because they have no bones!" * these are normally called peach PITS in American English * check out that pronunciation! FEEDBACK? Write Unexpected English on Instagram Please leave a good review on Apple podcasts!
(EP 21) I'm doing whatever I want! You don't want to miss this - fun song included! Send feedback to Unexpected English on Instagram!
(ep 20) It's not a real episode, it's just a summer thing! /-/-/ You won't get a transcript, but you get this: Musical intro | Why this is not an episode | Listener Alessandro calls in | Self-deprecation | Podcasts long and short | Americans and the British accent | More nonsense | Two short podcast recommendations | A lovely listener tells us why she loves Unexpected English | Bonus nonsense | Musical outro by Sly and the Family Stone Contact me: UnexpectedEnglish on Instagram!
(EP 19) Roundup of Season One! [roundup : "a summary of facts or events"] - No transcript, because I just take you down "memory lane" and with a review of the first season episodes. Contains music and a “personal tidbit” to make sure you have some fun along with your listening practice! Season TWO is coming soon, so be sure to tell your friends to subscribe! ---> Spotify | GooglePodcasts | Apple Podcasts --> INSTAGRAM: UnexpectedEnglish - If you listen, follow on IG and I follow back! Have fun! Check out the episode song with lyrics: Turn! Turn! Turn!
(EP 18) Summer fun and summer drinks! [Transcript of the interview below!] OK so I was walking down the mall here and I noticed a place called “Masters of Bartending” and that kinda seemed interesting and then I saw the guy outside and I thought I would ask a few questions. So tell me what is Masters of Bartending? -- Masters of Bartending is a training facility for bartending. -- A training facility, you learn how to become a bartender. -- Yes. Well I think of it more as a as a cooking school, you learn how to create cocktails. -- I can come here and I can learn how to make cocktails, right? -- Absolutely! -- And how many cocktails should I know how to make, more or less. to consider myself at least a beginning bartender? -- The must-knows. The must-knows, how many is that I don’t know, I never counted them. But it's... for... -- The must-knows, he’s calling them the must-knows in case you didn’t understand that, he’s thinking, well, which ones, well in other words, which ones do people order the most, so you have to know how to make those. -- Yes absolutely -- Well, tell me this, that name some of the most popular cocktails. -- How about like a Cape Cod, a Kamikaze, a Margarita -- OK hold up right there. He said Cape Cod which is... vodka, cranberry with squeezed lime -- vodka and cranberry juice with squeezed limes, then he said a kamikaze which is... it's a shooter, a lime-flavored shooter with vodka, triple sec and lime juice. -- OK I get it, it’s a vodka-based thing, and the other one, the last one you said? -- A margarita -- Margarita, we all know a margarita, I know that one, that’s tequila, right? -- Yes that's where a margarita’s from. OK so somebody takes this uh, take a course, How long does it take them to become more or less proficient? -- Umm, our program is two weeks everybody has a different learning curve some take longer than two weeks, some can do it faster than two weeks. -- So in two weeks I can learn to make a couple dozen cocktails... ---You know what? How about a I bring you into the class and I'll let you podcast this whole thing for the next two weeks -- Whoa, how about that, that’s a challenge that's a challenge, I don’t know if I’m up to that challenge because -- It's not it's not about just, you know, bartending, it's about being able to create, uhh it’s like cooking, you cook your guests. you host a party. you cook food. Bartending, it's not just about bartending, it’s about being able to create a good craft cocktail that you can enjoy an experience with you and your friends. And the first week, at least the first week, I give you four days to come in here I'll let you podcast the whole thing and I think this will be a fun little thing that might help boost your podcast here, but I think for me to try to explain this in a nutshell, it's almost impossible because you just have to see if yourself. And everything that you learn inside of here, it's it's truly an educational program whether you choose to be a bartender or not, this is a skill that you’re gonna take with you for life. -- Wow, this is a skill. Well I'm halfway, there because I already have the skill of drinking the cocktails right? -- Yeah boy! -- OK thanks a lot for your time! Hey, well uh take me up on that offer and I'm always right here whenever you wanna come on and your jazzed audience wants to see it. -- OK. all right thanks a lot, and thanks for listening!
(EP 17) I do the interview, but my wife gets the gelato? Dang!
--> The intro has no transcript... but the show transcript is below! <--
TRANSCRIPT
So I was walking down the street and I noticed a place called "Gelato Vero" which to me sounds like “real gelato” right? So I thought I would walk in and ask them a few questions. — Hi, umm do you work here? — Yes I do — And could you tell me what flavors we have of gelato here? — Umm right now we have strawberry, cookies and cream, pistachio dark chocolate, espresso, vanilla, mocha almond crunch and gianduia, which is our chocolate hazelnut, spumoni and umm banana. — And what makes this gelato different than normal ice cream? — Ummm it’s prepared differently. it's it's made with little to no air, so it's more dense. — And who makes the gelato? —His name is Michael and he's been making it since 1984 since we opened. — Since 1984 in this location? — yes in this very location — and, but he's not here. — Not right now. he usually works at night actually. — So tell me, since he's not here, is the gelato really good? — It's very good actually. most people say it's the most authentic thing they've tasted here in the United States — Wow! So that means I should taste some, right? — You should definitely taste some! — Well then I guess I'm gonna end the podcast right here so that I can just taste some gelato. Thanks for listening!
--> Part II <--
So here I am with my lovely bride who is enjoying the gelato that we just got — MMM, it is so delicious! — I wouldn't know because she's eating it all and I'm not getting any! What's up with that? — Well, you don't like cherries and the flavor that I chose has cherries in it. — What flavor is that? —Spumoni — Spumoni with cherries yeah hmm ok, not my favorite. Why did you get something that I don't like? — Because you said you didn't want any. — Didn't you know I was lying? I'm like Donald Trump, I lie all the time! — Well, that's true. You do lie quite a bit, but I thought you were serious because you had such a big, fat, rich burrito with guacamole and sour cream and cheddar cheese on it — Wait a minute, wait a minute, that's a different podcast! Don't talk about Mexican food when the podcast is about gelato, c’mon, it's. like. confusing the issue. — Well I'm just telling you, and everyone, why you didn't want to have any of the best gelato that we've had in a long time, maybe the best in San Diego — OK well folks you see how I get treated around here. But I'll tell you what, I'm gonna, I'm gonna like, press the stop button right now Oh, dang! it's too late! She ate all of it!! Nothing left for me at all! OK well, there you have it: another true story, another real life story from the... OK thanks for listening. Dang! Bye!
(EP 16) Students were filming in my street, so I made a quick podcast for you. No need to thank me: please just share the podcast with friends: Unexpected English! ROUGH TRANSCRIPT Hey everybody and welcome back to another episode of Unexpected English. Uhhh, should I say it? Yes! Your favorite English podcast! OK, I said it. I know it's not true, but I said it anyway. I must be like Trump, you know, I just say things they aren't true, but I say it anyway right? People believe it, so what the heck, maybe that works! Anyway, in the last episode I said "No more episodes until I get 40 listens!" And again, like Trump, I was lying! Because I didn't get 40 epis..listens, but, but here is another episode. So why is that? Well, because I know you're waiting for more episodes! And because the other day there were some boys out in the street that I went to interview quickly, and so here you go! You've got two minutes of my interview with some students in the street. I hope you enjoy it and we'll catch you at the end of the podcast... So here I am on my street and I look out and I see some kids. Can I say kids? — Yeah. So I see some guys, I see some guys with a camera mounted on the hood of their car (that's the front of the car)... So what's that about? — So, we're filming a short film for my class right now for my school... they don't go to my school but... Wait wait wait a minute, what are you talking about? They? Oh, you mean those other guys? Because remember, this is not video, so nobody knows what you're talking about unless you... — Oh yeah, huh. There are three people with me right now, I don't know whether to say their names and Adam... — Hey, I don't care, we don't want to say names. We'll protect the guilty by not saying their names, how's that? —OK, that sounds good — And, and the dog too! Why don't one of you guys go up and run around with the dog and distract her, go, go right ahead, distract her just take herand there you go, get rid of my crazy dog — OK so, you're making up film about... — it's kind of like... it's kind a hard to describe, it's like a bad experience and stuff — Ok we don't want any bad experiences so we don't want to hear about that! How long will the film be? — like uh 10 minutes — And how long will it take you to create this 10 minute film? — Well, it's due on Thursday so probably another four days or something— OK, so they've got a mount of the hood of the car for the camera for their film that is due in four days. — Yeah yeah— OK well good luck with the project, what, does the film have a name? — It's called Medium. It's... I called it Medium because, it just, I dunno it's kind of hard to explain. —OK. another thing that is hard to explain. Everything is hard to explain! What are we gonna do, OK? This, in fact, this podcast is going to be very hard to explain! So I won't even try! We'll just say goodbye and thanks for listening! — Thank you. LINK: https://linktr.ee/UnexpectedEnglish
EP.15) Not an "episode," — just a monologue asking for your help and hoping for better days ahead!
ROUGH TRANSCRIPT:
Hi everybody and welcome back to another episode of Unexpected English, your favorite English podcast! Haha it never gets old — I love that — but, but in fact there is no episode today! This is just a heads up! Heads up, good phrase! A heads up means when you tell someone in advance — when you inform them in advance of something that will happen or won't happen. And I thought I’d give a heads up because people ask me “When’s the next episode? I can't wait! I love your podcast, and I need another episode!”
Well, great — but here's the deal: not very many people out there are listening. I mean, they say there are podcasts with thousands of listeners right? Now I don't ... I don't expect thousands — I don't even expect hundreds! But, you know, c’mon people — some listeners! That would be nice!
So I decided — I WILL. DO. A NEW. EPISODE. -- every time the last episode gets 40 listeners. That's all! That's not too much to ask! 40 listeners, that's all I'm asking! if I get 0 listeners I'll do a new episode for you, OK? So what do you need to do? Spread the word. help me out here! You know you have friends learning English: tell them about the podcast. say “Hey, Unexpected English, it's my favorite English podcast!” You can put it on your Facebook, you could put it on your Instagram you can put it on your social — or not I don't know, — do I sound desperate? — I'm not. ;) I'm just saying: if you want more episodes, I need 40 listens, OK? I get 40 listeners and you get a new episode! That's the way it works, all right?
And other than that, all I can say is Happy Fourth of July! It is July, it is the Fourth of July America's Independence Day! And, I'm thinking, so many of us are just waiting for that freedom to come (I need! I need!) in 2020 when we will no longer have... well you know what. I won't mention his name! So I will leave it at that, thanks for listening and remember! I'm counting on you to spread the word, to let people know about the podcast, and as soon as we get more listeners, we get more podcasts and, if not.. I'll probably do the podcast anyway! Don't worry about it just have a good time! OK thanks for listening, ciao.
BETTER DAYS AHEAD! (Gil-Scott Heron)
EP.14) ---> It's a heat wave! <--- ---> Transcript below <--- Hey everybody and welcome back to another episode of Unexpected English! I was not expecting to do this episode, but I was inspired by the heat. That is, I know all my listeners... all my listeners, haha! All three of you! All my listeners in Italy and other places are suffering with the hot weather. So I thought hot...hot... hmm... maybe will do a podcast! And there it is that's what we're doing. So I thought I'd teach you a few expressions -- or remind you of a few expressions if you already knew them, all relating to hot and the heat. So let's go! When it's hot- and I know it is, I'm sorry, but I know they're setting records with the heat, huh, it's terrible. Anyway when it's that hot, you can say it's hot as hell alright it's hot as hell or it's like an oven alright really hot like an oven. Or it's a scorcher! It's a scorcher. Another way to say it's hot. And then if you want to add in the humidity -- which makes it even worse-- then you could say it's sweltering! It's sweltering or it's stifling! It's stifling! OK, so you got all those expressions for the heat –– hot as hell, it's like an oven, it's a scorcher, It's sweltering, it's stifling, ... all of those when you're suffering in a heat wave. It's a heat wave! And it reminds me of Martha and the Vandellas song (tries to sing) I'm sorry, forget that! Yeah, Google that, go to YouTube and look for Martha and the Vandellas Heatwave. If you don't know tha song, it's great. All right let's see... so I know you're looking for a way to beat the heat right? When you're looking for a way to “beat the heat” you're trying to escape the heat. So I don't know how you're beating the heat -- if you have a fan, if you have an air conditioner, but I hope you're managing to beat the heat somehow. And let me see -- maybe my time is up! Because we like to keep it short and sweet, so I'll just say bye and thanks for listening! Ciao ciao! BONUS ENDING contains: Get hot under the collar - to get angry Full of hot air - [trump] Hot and bothered - agitated, irritated, aroused Hot to trot - excited, eager to engage in an activity
You're not finished! Now it's time to subscribe to Unexpected English! [ Spotify | Apple Podcasts | Good Podcasts | Stitcher | Podbean | Breaker etc etc] Follow UnexpectedEnglish on Instagram and Facebook too. It can't hurt!
EP.13) Unexpected English brings you another true story from an interview on the street! It's not that scary, don't worry! And the transcript is below to help you! ROUGH TRANSCRIPT OK so here I am on the street again and I was talking to these lovely young ladies who are working some kind of job where they go door-to-door, and one of them told me about uh well something terrible that happened. Why don't you tell me what that was --- I knocked on someone's door and the dog came out and bit me -- Wait a minute, you knocked on the door... -- Yes, so I knocked on the door and the lady umm opened the main door and the dog forced open the metal sheet door that was in between us and it just ran out and bit me -- Wow! Where did it bite you -- On my leg, right here on my lower right calf. -- Lower right calf. And did it hurt a whole lot? Honestly, it didn’t really hurt that much to be honest with you but, like then, like, five minutes later I looked down and I was, like, dripping in blood and I was, like, oh... -- Oh, so the dog drew blood? -- Oh yeah, definitely yeah --- And what kind of a dog was that because I guess I should be on the lookout not to come too close to those dogs -- It was a German Shepherd but my sister has a German Shepherd and it, I mean, not all of them are, you know... No, that's right, the.. the Germans... the German shepherds can be nice, but this one was like a BAD dog --- Yeah I mean, that's with every dog breed I guess but yeah, Germans tend to be more aggressive -- So you're all better now --- Yes I'm all good, I got off my antibiotics, now I'm fine -- Oh you had to take some medicine --- Yeah, I had a couple courses of antibiotics so... Antibiotics for a dog bite,= There you go, it's another real story from the street, brought to you by Unexpected English! OK, thanks for listening! Link: https://linktr.ee/UnexpectedEnglish
EP.12) What makes UNEXPECTED ENGLISH everyone's favorite ? Why do more and more people listen and subscribe? Just listen to this episode to find out! Subscribe to get all future episodes! Tell your friends, too - they will be happy! Follow Unexpected English on Facebook and Instagram too! [ROUGH TRANSCRIPT BELOW] Hi everybody, and welcome back to another episode of Unexpected English, your favorite English podcast! And I was thinking... why is this everybody's favorite English podcast? I mean, there are so many podcasts out there that can help you with your English! So what makes unexpected English so special? Well for one thing, you don't know what to expect! I mean there is no script. there is no preparation, I just pick up my iPhone and start recording and there it is -- a fantastic podcast for you. Other podcasts, they have professional voices, professional microphones, they have a webpage, they want you to become their student and pay them for lessons, they'll sell you the transcript of their podcast --- no no no no, not here, not here! Here it's all about the fun! So that's one thing. What else? Umm, we don't just do grammar -- in fact I don't think I've done any grammar -- time for some grammar! Maybe the next episode OK? Oh, I know! interviews! Yes, interviews! Why does that matter? Well some podcasts have the same people talking — and that's great, but you get used to their voice, and the reality is, when you hear English there will be a lot of different people talking — different speeds, different accents and different pronunciations, so it's good to have a variety. Which is why I go out there, in the street, and bring you real English! Yeah, that's right, so that's another difference. What else? Oh well, it's the beautiful American version! I mean, modestamente -- modestly speaking -- yes, I do have an American accent. So if you're looking for the fine BBC pronunciation, you won't get that here, I'm sorry. But that's OK because, you know, English now is a global language. So many different accents -- including mine, which I hope you can understand, I don't know. Umm, uhh last item. My idea is to bring English to you in the bite-size lessons. Yes, I said bite-sized! Some podcasts go on for 10 minutes 20 minutes 30 minutes... no, that's too much too, too much ... we need bite-sized. And bite-sized, actually the phrase bite-size means so little you don't need to bite it, you just pop it into your mouth! You know, like a bite-sized cupcake? you just -- POP! right in your mouth, good! Bite-sized chocolate? Right into your mouth, good! That's bite-size! So the idea would be to keep the podcast short and sweet because you're busy -- you're busy people! I know! You've got a job, you've got a boyfriend or a girlfriend or a spouse or a kid -- so much that you only have a few minutes for your English. And those minutes, come to think, are probably just about finished right now! So I guess I should say goodbye! Thanks for listening, and will catch you next time on another episode of Unexpected English. Ciao!.
EP.11) I was in Balboa Park. Someone was paying people to tell their story! I got their story for free! This is it! Rough Transcript: So here we are at Balboa Park again, and I just noticed an interesting sign and I thought I would ask the person about their sign and what they're doing -- Umm, Hi, I’m Ashley I'm a film student at UCSD and I'm doing sort of a social project so I accumulate stories and gather stories and just get to meet new people and talk to them for a dollar. Umm, because, could you read your sign for us? This is, this a podcast and we can't see anything -- Oh, I got you -- so it says I need someone to talk to? Share your story make a dollar -- So you're paying people for their stories every time or only if it's a good story? -- No, every time time, no matter what, and any story, it doesn’t have to be like your life story, any story you want to tell -- And how many stories have you collected today? -- So far just one, the gentleman that just got up before you -- OK well then, you're just starting out getting your stories! (I am!) Well, it’s an interesting idea, uhh I wish you a lot of luck. Do you have any questions for me? -- Umm do you wanna share a story? Ah, I, I am going to share a story, I'm gonna share this story right here on the next episode of my podcast Unexpected English! So... Unexpected English?.. So, so look for it on Spotify, iTunes, wherever! Thanks! Bye! Link: https://linktr.ee/UnexpectedEnglish
EP.10) Something unexpected happened while we were driving, so I pulled out my phone and we made a lesson! ROUGH TRANSCRIPT: All right so here we are on the freeway could you tell us about the excitement that you just went through? — whoa! we just had a rain storm that was a cloudburst — wait a minute was a rainstorm or was it a cloudburst? — well it seem like it was a cloudburst because it happened very suddenly — and what exactly happened could you describe it for us? — well all at once the rain started like from one minute to the next minute and the sky was blue in many parts of the sky that was blue and we hadn't seen any dark clouds but apparently we were under a dark cloud that opened up — ahaha is that a metaphor of being under a dark cloud? — I think it, I don't know I'll have to look that one up — OK we're gonna leave you with that thought of the cloudburst and uhh being under dark cloud — why don’t you define a cloudburst? — oh I don't know we'll do that in another do that in another... oh oh ok my interviewee has more to add — a cloudburst is a short quick shower with very strong rain — shower oh from from the cloud not like taking a shower? — no. shower. rain shower — a rain shower is that like when it's raining — yes — and you call that a rain shower? — yes — So I — showers in the afternoon the weather forecast will forecast showers for the afternoon — oh the weather forecast calls for showers that's another way to say calls for rain, is that it? — that's correct — wow we're learning a lot here! but I think we've learned enough for one lesson because were almost at the two minute mark and the whole point is keep it short keep it sweet so that's the end of it! thanks and will catch you next time! link: https://linktr.ee/UnexpectedEnglish
EP.09) I went to a street fair! I saw something that said "panzerotti!” This is the podcast! WarnIng! 🛑 You will hear an Italian accent. 🇮🇹 Rough transcript (of the introduction only) After that — good luck! 😂 Hi everybody and welcome to another episode of your favorite podcast! yeah I'm sorry yes it's your favorite podcast unexpected English there right now the other day I was in my neighborhood and there was a street fair and I saw a stand we call it a stand; that's not stand up but it's a place where people sell things at farmers market or a street fair —so I saw a stand that said on the sorority and I thought that myself what what what is that so I decided on the spot to interview the owner of the stand and that's what you're getting right now OK warning I have to apologize it turns out the owner is not a native speaker in fact he's an Italian speaker so he has an Italian accent but at this point most of my listeners are in Italy so I think they'll be able to understand it and anyway English It was an international language you are here a lot of different people speaking English with different accents so that's the bad and the side it's all leaves should be two minutes so don't worry about it no but there is no there are excuse me there are no no podcast notes there's no transcription this time so you're on Your own I hope you understand it if you don't, oh well! it any rate I hope you have fun and we’ll see you at the end of the episode!
EP.08) A quick episode from the dog park. It's easy! It's fun!
And it even has a transcription! — Share, follow, subscribe to Unexpected English!
Rough transcript:
OK here we are again at the dog park talking to some dog owners about their dogs — Hi what's your dog's name — His name is Max — Max what kind of a dog is Max — He is a maltipoo — a maltipoo could you tell people what a maltipoo is if they don’t know — so he is half Maltese and half poodle — oh sweet what color is he — he is black and he has a little bit of white on him — and where, what's his name — max — max — and where did you meet Max — we actually got him from someone off of craigslist so yeah OK — and what is the most trouble that Max ever got into did Max next ever do anything bad or is he always good — When he was younger he's about 10 months old now and he was younger he liked to cry a lot when we left when we had him in the crate and now he's like he cries a little bit but he's OK with us leaving because he knows we're gonna come back — OK so Max was kind of a crybaby when he was a puppy but he's all grown-up now — where does Max sleep — he sleeps with us in our bed he sleeps right right near our head — OK another another happy dog sleeping in the owner's bed — that seems to be the way it goes...
EP.07) I went to the park! I heard some music I wanted share! Read on for transcription! Rough transcription of Intro Hi everybody and welcome back — you're listening to a Unexpected English! your favorite English podcast — there see I said it and I didn't laugh — good progress — OK well this episode is not really an episode — that is I went looking for an interesting place to make some podcasts and one of the most interesting places is beautiful Balboa Park here in San Diego that has umm beautiful buildings and several interesting museums — there is a museum of art museum of natural science Museum photography — umm and like many places — public spaces — there are occasionally street performers and musicians and so while I was down there I heard a song that I know most of you may know — so I quickly thought oh — I should record this to share on the podcast — so that's why I did — there's nothing else to this podcast just this is OK — it's a preliminary because in the future I will have something from the park — but this time I just wanted to share this beautiful song with you — so I hope you enjoy it I hope you subscribe I hope you tell your friends and we’ll catch you next time OK — ciao ciao!!
EP.06) I saw some kids! I interviewed them! This is the podcast, with a guest appearance by a listener! A rough transcript is here below to help you... ROUGH TRANSCRIPT OK I am walking in the neighborhood and as I was walking by I saw a couple of kids here on the sidewalk so I thought I thought I would ask them what they were doing — hi guys hi what's your name — Harper and I'm Finley McNally — and how old are you —9 years old and I'm eight and I was the one who thought of the lemonade stand —I 'm sorry you have to speak a little slower because what what is it that you doing right now — mmm I'm I'm eight and I and I'm the one who who decided we should do a lemonade stand — a lemonade stand is that what you're doing — yes and we're doing buy one get one free —so you're selling your selling lemonade is that right — yes you want to try some —yeah I think I’ll try It when we're finished is it good? — yes it's very good very good— Oh it’s very good hey OK well I guess I better try it right now hey here we go I'm gonna try it —Oh that's good lemonade I've gotta tell ya —how much does a lemonade cost— it cost $.25 — .25 for a glass a big glass class that's a pretty good deal it's only $.25 and and and it’s buy one get one free if it if you want to have two like those kids they just bought one and they got one free — OK I want to ask a different question what's your favorite food — my favorite is a bean and cheese burrito with sour cream — OK and you? my favorite thing is tofu — tofu? — yeah. — wow OK and tell me this hmm last question do you have a pet and tell me about your pet — I have two pets actually three pets I have one name Leon he's a brown lab I have another that's a labrador retriever yeah ok and I am he's a boy and then I have a girl named Bubba and she's like she's yellow well she's blonde and she's a mix of a boxer and a Labrador — also a dog — yeah and then I have this pig — a pig? did you say a pig —yes a pig named Pooty — oh my goodness! OK well I want to thank you for your time. do you have anything else you wanna add? oh OK — What um um are you having fun today? — I'm having fun yeah I'm having fun interviewing you guys! — You guys have a good day, byeeee!
EP.05) A short episode where I ask a few people in the dog park about pizza! If you like the show, please support my efforts by telling your friends and sharing this link --> https://linktr.ee/unexpectedenglish Thank you! [Transcription below]
ROUGH TRANSCRIPT:
OK here we are we're going to ask a few simple questions. When was the last time you had pizza? About a month and a half ago. Wow, six weeks ago! About four months ago. Oh my gosh, four months with no pizza! A week ago. All right a week ago, that sounds good! Now tell me, tell me - normally what do you like on your pizza? I like a pan pizza with the stuffed crust, extra cheese, pepperoni. bacon and sausage. (xxx) OK, so you said stuffed crust, can you you explain what that is because they don’t have that very many places. Its when the end of the pizza, the crust - Yeah, the crust, at the end of the pizza for people - I don't even know that word in Italian - but yeah, the end of the pizza is the crust ... xxx and they roll it up ...xxx and that way when you bite into it you have a little surprise ... HA HA HA! - OK I thought this was going to be the easy podcast but he made it complicated with his “stuffed crust”. On your pizza? Sausage. Just sausage? Just sausage and cheese. And yours? Pepperoni! Just pepperoni? Just pepperoni. And what do you drink when you're having a pizza? A glass of wine. A glass of wine. Uhh, water. Straight up water! Yeah, water.. And water. OK, we lost our fourth person so, so we'lll have to leave it at that. Thanks that was a quickie about pizza, I hope I can add more onto this some other time. Bye-bye!
Cultural note: "Stuffed crust" is "cornicione ripieno” - another American way to brutalize the beauty of pizza! I personally put this in the same category as pineapple on pizza as something that should be illegal! 😂 Also notice that the word pepperoni is not the same as in Italy. Here it refers to an American variety of salami, made from cured pork and beef mixed together and seasoned with paprika or other chili pepper. Pepperoni is characteristically soft and bright red in color. Thinly sliced pepperoni is a popular pizza topping in American-style pizzerias.
EP.04) Easy beginner episode! (Almost easy) I hope you enjoy it. I apologize for the sound quality; the dog park is windy and some people are shy when they see a microphone. There is no transcript for this episode, so listen more than once if you need to! And please subscribe! Link: https://linktr.ee/UnexpectedEnglish
EP.03 )A few common expressions with the word “matter.” If it is too difficult, here is the YouTube link, where you can listen and turn on English subtitles for help! This episode is a bit longer than I plan for future episodes, but it won't hurt and it might be fun, so give it a go! And please subscribe to download future episodes, and tell your friends too!
Subtitles here: https://youtu.be/ddmPnZSBmVk
EP.02) I chat with two owners at the local dog park about their dogs. Can you understand most of the conversation? Listen a few times to see what you can understand, because there is NO transcript for this episode. 😢 Remember to subscribe to get all future episodes! Tell your friends too!
EP.01) What's Louis up to now? It's a new podcast with random audio treats to expand your listening and language skills in English. I hope you like and and I hope you subscribe for future episodes!