Christmas is Coming!

Christmas is Coming!

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Man: Well, Christmas is almost here. So, what do you want from Santa this year?

Micky: A toy car and walkie-talkies.

Man: Really? Well, and what about you, Emily? What do you want for Christmas?

Emily: If I can't have a Barbie radio, um, I would have some fragile dolls. And if I can't have some fragile dolls, it doesn't really matter what I get.

Man: Wow. Well, I'm excited, and Santa is coming. And how is Santa going to get inside the house, Micky?

Micky: Um, go down the chimney . . .

Man: Okay, so he's going to go down the chimney, and should we prepare anything for Santa?

Micky: Yeah!

Man: What are we going to prepare for him, Emily?

Emily: Um. We could prepare some cookies for him and some hot chocolate, and, um, we could give Rudolph some, um, hot chocolate in a bowl and a cookie. And we could give some of the reindeer some cookies and some hot chocolate in a bowl.

Man: Well, what do you think? They, Um, reindeer probably don't eat cookies, but what else could we give them, Micky?

Micky: Um, apples.

Man: Ah, that's good. And, uh . . .

Emily: Oranges and bananas.

Man: Okay and what time do you think we should go to bed?

Emily: Um, seven.

Man: About seven o'clock. Well, that's exciting. I'm really happy that Christmas is coming.

Camping under the Stars

Camping under the Stars

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Paul: Sara, I've been looking forward to our yearly campout for three weeks. [Me too] It's going to be a wonderful day for hiking tomorrow. The great outdoors. Camping under the stars . This is the life.

Sara: Yeah, but Paul, I'm a little bit worried about the weather though. The weatherman said it was going to rain later tonight.

Paul: Ah. nonsense. Nothing can spoil our adventure. Those weather reports are never right.

Sara: And it said there was a chance of high winds.

Paul: Ah. Don't worry.

[thunder]

Sara: Paul. Paul. Did you remember to bring our raincoats just in case, like I told you?

[light rain]

Paul: Uh . . . no. I left them on the front porch.

[heavy rain]

Sara: What are we going to do now?

Paul: We'll have to sleep in the car! Hurry get in!

[door shut]

Sara: So, Paul, what are we going to do now?

Paul: How about playing a card game?

Sara: Uhh. I left them next to the picnic table. [Hmmm] Hey, you don't want me to go out in this rain and get them, do you?

Paul: No. That's okay. So what now?

Sara: Well, we could head down the mountain and stay at that hotel we passed on the way up, or go home.

Paul: Hmm, why don't we just make the best of it here and hope the weather clears.

Sara: That's a good idea.

Apartments for Rent

Apartments for Rent

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Roger: Hello.

Ann: Hello Roger? This is Ann.

Roger: Oh hi, Ann. How have you been? And how's your new apartment working out?

Ann: Well, that's what I'm calling about. You see, I've decided to look for a new place.

Roger: Oh, what's the problem with your place now? I thought you liked the apartment.

Ann: Oh, I do, but it's a little far from campus, and the commute is just killing me. Do you think you could help? I thought you might know more about the housing situation near the school.

Roger: Okay, what's your budget like? I mean how much do you want to spend on rent?

Ann:Uh, somewhere under $200 a month, including utilities, if I could. Oh, and I'd prefer to rent a furnished apartment.

Roger: Hmm. And anything else?

Ann:Yeah, I need a parking space.

Roger: Well, I know there's an apartment complex around the corner that seems to have a few vacancies. I'll drop by there on my way to class today.

Ann: Hey, thanks a lot.

Roger: No problem.

A Day at School

A Day at School

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Randall: Hello. Today I'm interviewing Joshua on his experiences going to a Japanese school. Now Joshua, what time do you go to school?

Joshua: Eight O'clock.

Randall: Eight O'clock. And do you go by yourself, or on a school bus?

Joshua: No, I have a group that goes with me.

Randall: So you go with a group?

Joshua: Uh-huh.

Randall: Now what kinds of things do you take to school?

Joshua: I take my taiso fuku, that is gym clothes, and I take my backpack and my books [ Oh, okay. ] and stuff like that.

Randall: Okay and what is the first thing you do when you get to school?

Joshua: We do "kiritsu, rei."

Randall: "Kiritsu" and "rei." Now what are those?

Joshua: It means "stand up, bow."

Randall: Stand up and bow.

Joshua: Uh-huh.

Randall: And what do you study at school?

Joshua: We study kokugo, that is writing and reading and stuff like that [ Okay ], and sansu, that's math. [ Okay. ]. And, let's see . . . , we do gym too.

Randall: Okay, and where do you eat lunch? Do you have a lunchroom or cafeteria?

Joshua: No, we eat in our classroom.

Randall: You eat in your classroom! [ Yeah. ]. Oh wow. That is very interesting. Now what time do you come home from school?

Joshua: We come home sometimes at 3:00 and sometimes at 2:00.

Randall: Okay, well thank you very much Joshua.

Joshua: You're welcome.

Answering Machine

Answering Machine

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[Phone ringing . . .]

Bill: Hey, this is Bill. I'm sorry I'm not in. Just leave a message.

[Beep]

Hey Bill. This is Hank. I'm just calling to let you know that I'll be a little late to the game tomorrow night. I have to work a few extra hours to finish a report. I should wrap things up sometime between seven and eight though. Oh, then I'm planning on dropping by Lisa's house for about an hour since she's been sick recently. And, uh, one more thing. I'll swing by my house to pick up some food for the game. See you then.

Listening Exercises

Easy

1. Answering Machine
2. A Day at School
3. Apartments for Rent
4. Camping under the Stars
5. Christmas is Coming!
6. Clothing Styles
7. Business Communications
8. College Life
9. Daily Schedule
10. DVD Movie Rentals

Medium

Difficult