Hello, everybody, and welcome to bonus episode number 150 of the Q -Lips English podcast. Yes, that's right.
You heard me correctly.
Episode 150. It's another important milestone here in the bonus episode series.
I really can't believe it.
It's crazy how fast time flies, and we're already at 150 episodes.
If you've joined me for each and every episode, if you've listened to them all, then please let me know in the comments for this episode.
I would love to know if there's anyone else out there who has listened to all of the bonus episodes.
Of course, I have, but I'm wondering if you have as well.
So if you have, let me know.
If you're new to our bonus episode series, welcome.
It's great to have you here.
My name's Andrew. I'm a Canadian, but I live in Seoul, South Korea.
And each and every week in our bonus episodes, what I do is I tell you some stories from my everyday life.
And I hope that by following along with these stories, you will be able to Big B, B -I -G -B.
These are our goals for the bonus episode series.
And Big B stands for build your fluency, increase your cultural knowledge, grow your vocabulary, and become a clearer and better English communicator.
To accompany each and every bonus episode, there's a 100 % free for everyone interactive interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary that you can get just by following the link in the description for this episode.
Plus, if you are a Q -Lips member, then you will also get a comprehension quiz.
And thank you so much to all of the members out there for your support.
Guys, we couldn't do Q -Lips without you.
Q -Lips is 100 % member supported.
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So thanks to all the members out there.
And if you'd like to sign up and become a Q -Lips member and support the work that we do, plus get awesome benefits and bonuses and tools that are designed to take your English to the next level and improve your English fluency, then just visit our website, Q -Lips .com, and you can sign up and become a member today for an affordable price.
So let's get started with the stories for this week.
And I have two that I want to tell you about.
The first one is about rage quitting, rage quitting, and I'll explain what that concept is in a moment.
And the second one is about elevator etiquette.
So two very unique stories here.
I hope you'll enjoy listening to them.
And without any further delay, let's do that right now.
So here's the first story.
Enjoy. Late last week, I got a message from my buddy, Luke.
Regular Q -Lips listeners will know all about Luke.
He's been on the podcast before and I've talked about him a lot in the past. He's been a pal of mine for over 30 years.
He's from my hometown in Canada, but he actually lives in China these days.
And so it's quite the coincidence that we both live in Asia, although we're both Canadians.
And he messaged me and said, Hey, Andrew, I'm going to be spending some time in Japan for a few days in the summer.
Do you want to join me?
And I said, you know what, I'm not so sure because last summer, I spent a few days in Japan, in Osaka, during the summer, we had a Q -Lips meetup event, which was awesome.
And one of the highlights of my year from last year.
But the weather in Japan in the summer is extremely, extremely hot.
And I almost died during my time in Osaka last year.
I was so hot the whole time and it's just humid and uncomfortable.
So when he proposed this idea to me, initially I wasn't too into it, but I asked him for some more details and he told me he'd be spending some time in Northern Japan in Sapporo.
And please forgive me, Japanese listeners.
I know I'm probably pronouncing that city name incorrectly, but I don't know how to say it the Japanese way.
So maybe you'll have to teach me about the correct way to pronounce that city name.
But anyway, so he'll be spending some time in Sapporo, which is in Northern Japan.
And he told me that because it's higher North, it's cooler in the summer and just the climate and temperature is really nice.
And so I asked him about the dates he's gonna be there and what he's planning to do.
And he told me those details and I checked my calendar and it just turns out that I actually have a little bit of a break during that time of the year as well.
And I proposed the idea to my wife, I was like, would you mind if I went away for three or four days to meet Luke in Japan?
And she was like, if you want to do it, you can doesn't matter to me.
And so I decided to do it.
And so that is my big news from this week is that later in July and August, end of July to early August, I'm going to to be spending four days in Sapporo.
So I want to throw this out to all of our Q -Lips listeners in that area of the world.
Guys, if you live in Sapporo or around the area, and maybe you'd like to meet up for a coffee or a drink or a run, if you're a runner, then please send me a message either through our Discord server.
You can send me a DM or maybe send me an email.
My address is is Andrew at Q -Lips .com.
I would love to meet with some Q -Lips listeners when I'm in Sapporo.
Anyways, back to the story.
So after I made up my mind that, yes, I wanted to go to Japan and meet Luke this summer in Sapporo, then the next step was to buy my plane tickets.
And I actually did some initial searches just to see how much it would cost to do this trip.
And it's a little bit bit expensive, to be honest with you, to go directly from Seoul to Sapporo.
But if you stop over in Osaka, it's not as bad.
And so I'm going to do that on the way to Sapporo.
I'm going to go from Seoul to Osaka, Osaka to Sapporo, just to save a little bit of money.
And it's not that big of an inconvenience.
And then I think I'll probably go direct when I'm coming back to Seoul.
So anyways, I decided about the times and the dates and the airline and all of these things, and it was finally time to purchase my plane ticket.
And so I went through all of the steps on the website.
You know, when you're buying a plane ticket, there's a lot of information that you have to fill out on the website about your name and address and contact info and passport info and credit card info, blah, blah, blah, all of these different things that you need to fill out.
but whatever, you must do it.
So I did it. And then it was time to make the payment.
And so I chose the credit card that I wanted to use for making my payment and this window popped up and my credit card is a MasterCard. That is the credit card that I use.
And it says your card needs to be verified by MasterCard. And so I thought, this is okay.
Like I'm glad that we we have some extra security.
In fact, I'm happy that if somebody were to try and buy plane tickets with my card, if it were stolen or something, that they would have to go through these extra security steps in order to make the purchase.
And the way that I would have to verify my credit card was by downloading this little application that my bank had created for this very purpose, for verifying overseas purchases, because I was using my Korean credit card, but making purchase in japan it's a japanese airline that i'll be flying with so it was an overseas purchase which is why i had to do this extra verification step so okay no problem i downloaded the application to verify my credit card and i should say that i was using my computer i guess i'm old school for whatever reason still like when i have to make a purchase like airline
tickets it feels more comfortable for me to use my computer rather than to use my phone.
I don't know why I just prefer to see all of the information in like a large way and using my keyboard and mouse just feels better to me.
So I always make these kinds of purchases on my computer.
So yeah, I download download the application, and boy, was this frustrating.
The verification application was insane, guys.
All of the information that it had me confirm was just absolutely unbelievable.
I was expecting it to just maybe check my password with my bank or check my PIN number or do some kind of two factor authentication.
Two factor authentication is when maybe your bank will send you an email and then you have to enter the code from your email into an app on your phone or something like that, right?
And that will confirm who you are.
But this wasn't two factor authentication.
This was like 10 factor authentication.
The steps that I had to go through the hoops that I had to jump through were just insane.
So first of all, the app asked me to enter the, I believe it's called the CVC number, which is that three digit number on the back of your credit card. So, okay, no problem.
That's actually pretty standard for making online purchases, right?
So CVC entered, and then I went to the next step.
Next step asked me to enter my pin number that's associated with the card, which is also pretty common for making purchases here in Korea is that you enter your pin number for your credit card. So again, no problem, enter that.
And then next, it said that I had to verify my card with my phone provider.
So I entered my phone number and my information associated with my phone account, and then they texted me a code to my phone and I had to enter that code.
And again, this is pretty standard operating procedure for making purchases in Korea or verifying your ID in Korea.
So I didn't think much of it.
Okay. So then that's the third step now, right?
Did that, passed. And I thought, okay, now I'm going to be able to purchase my airline tickets.
But no, there was a fourth step.
So then the next step was that it showed me a number on my screen and then I got an automated call from my bank asking me to enter that number.
So I had to enter, I think it was a four digit code that was displayed on my computer screen.
And then it said, okay, verification complete, go to the next step.
So I thought, okay, obviously I've proved to you by now that I am who I am and I'm legitimately trying to buy this plane ticket, which I have to say the plane ticket was less than a hundred us dollars.
So it's not like I was buying this really expensive plane ticket, like a first class ticket around the world or anything like that.
It was a rather cheap budget airline plane ticket.
So I thought, of course, this will be the last step, right?
Wrong. Then next it asked me to enter my password that is associated with my online banking.
And so I entered that password. And at this point, I was like, I don't think there is any more information that I can give to them.
However, I was wrong, because then the next step, as far as I remember, was that it gave me a QR code on the screen.
And I had to scan that QR code with my bank app.
And so I did that. And And then finally, it was like, okay, verification complete.
I was like, thank you.
How many steps do you need?
Come on, this is ridiculous.
So this all took a while.
And I have to say, there's a countdown of 10 minutes for purchasing the airline tickets.
The airline said that it will hold that seat and that price for you for 10 minutes.
And then after 10 minutes, I guess they re -released that seat and somebody else could buy it.
And, you know, I never know when you're buying something online if the information that you can see is true or if it's just a sneaky sales tactic to try and get you to buy something quickly.
But on this airline's website, it did tell you how many seats were available.
And I was making two ticket purchases, one from Osaka or one from Seoul to Osaka and then Osaka to Sapporo.
and the ticket from Osaka to Sapporo said that there was only two remaining.
So I was feeling a little bit of stress this whole time.
It'd be pretty rare that somebody was buying that exact same ticket at that exact same time.
But I was like, come on, let's hurry up.
Let's go. Let's buy this ticket before it sells out.
So finally, I was verified.
And after I clicked the final like verification button on the computer then it just kind of you know i got the wheel of death the spinning wheel of death where it just says loading loading loading loading but nothing actually ever loads and then finally the request timed out and it didn't work so i hit the reload button on my browser and nothing was saved it was back to square one and i had to try and do everything all over again.
So I tried again, and exactly the same thing happened.
And then I tried again, and then exactly the same thing happened.
So I was like, Oh, this is crazy.
I'm not going to do this anymore.
So I decided to use a different credit card. And I use a different credit card from a different bank, which had a different verification system.
And this bank is much more more reasonable.
Their verification system was just easy.
Like I had to just scan a code in the credit card app and then it verified it that way.
And it was just like one step.
Perfect. Okay. However, I had some like weird fraud protection setting on that card that's automatically denied denied overseas purchases.
And I have no idea why that setting was turned on, but it was like a security setting.
I guess. I don't even know if I've used this card for overseas purchases to tell you the truth.
So maybe that's why I didn't notice in the past. But anyways, I went through all of these steps again, you know, on the airlines website, filling out your contact information, your passport information, blah, blah, blah.
And then again, with this card fail and it didn't work because as soon as I tried to make the purchase, my bank just automatically declined that transaction.
So I was super frustrated by this point.
And I have to tell you guys, this week here in South Korea, the weather has been extremely hot.
And when I was trying to make this purchase, it was like the middle of the afternoon, I had the sun blaring in my window on me and I didn't have the air con turned on.
I was just boiling hot and frustrated and really just like at my wits end with trying to make this cheap airline ticket purchase.
I was feeling really frustrated.
And so I was like, okay, I have one more credit card that I can try.
And so let me try my third and final card. So I refreshed the website and then can you guess what happened?
Yes, that's right. The ticket price went up by $20.
So at this point I was just super frustrated and I was like, screw it.
I'm not going to Japan.
I'm staying here. Like I'm not paying more for this ticket anymore.
Like this is totally ridiculous.
Why are none of my cards working?
Why is all of this just not going my way at all?
And that's when I rage quit.
And rage quit is originally slang that comes from computer gaming when you're playing a game and you're so frustrated that you're losing the game that you just pick up your controller or pick up your keyboard or mouse.
If you're playing a computer game, not a console game, then you kind of throw your keyboard down and just walk away and you quit because you feel so frustrated and angry.
And so I rage quit trying to buy the airline ticket because I was just just frustrated and angry.
And I have to say, I'm a pretty patient person usually overall and nothing.
I don't want to say nothing because I did get frustrated and angry by this event, but usually things don't get to me and actually make me feel angry, but I could feel my blood boiling and I was just like, ah, stupid thing.
So yeah, I, I rage quit.
I didn't throw my computer or my phone or anything like that.
But I did have to put it aside.
And I said, Okay, I'm going to try again tomorrow.
And we'll see, we'll hope for a better result tomorrow.
So I put my travel plan on hold.
And then the next morning, I tried again.
And I thought, you know, why don't I just use my phone?
Why am I using like this weird application that I have to download to my computer to verify Verify my ID with my bank and verify my credit card. So why don't I just do it on my phone?
I won't have to download an application.
And then I tried it on my phone and it worked the very first time.
So it was like super smooth when I did it on my phone.
However, I was very frustrated there for, for an afternoon trying to purchase that ticket on my computer.
So lesson learned. And yeah, I had a rage quit incident this last week.
However, the good news is I was able to purchase my ticket.
And this is kind of good news, bad news, I guess.
The ticket was $10 cheaper than the ticket after the $20 price increase.
crease. That was an awkward way to say that.
But essentially, when I was trying to buy the ticket the first time the price went up $20 during that time.
And then when I checked the next day, it had dropped $10.
But it was still more expensive than the very first time I tried, right.
So I guess I lost out on $10 by using my computer instead of using my phone to start with.
But lesson learned, and next time I'll just book the ticket on my phone So that I don't have any problems like that But the good news at the end of the day is that I'll be visiting Japan In late July, early August And yeah, I hope I can see some Q -Lips listeners out there in Sapporo And if anybody has any travel tips or suggestions For anything that I should do Well, Luke and I should do Then please let me know, I'm all ears and yeah, any advice that you could give would be very much appreciated.
Let's move on to the second story for this week quickly.
And I wanted to talk a little bit about elevator etiquette because I had an interesting elevator experience and I was just wondering what you guys think about this.
And we could have a conversation about this topic over on our discord or in the comments for this episode.
If you're watching on YouTube as well, it would be really interesting to hear what you guys have to say.
Because the etiquette and manners surrounding elevators and surrounding a lot of things in life, they're kind of unwritten rules.
It's not like we have laws governing some of the smaller etiquette points regarding like how we walk on the sidewalk or how we use an elevator.
But it's just like good manners or common sense, it seems like to me.
but then other people think differently and use them differently.
So then I'm wondering, is it really common sense or is it just me?
And because it's an unwritten rule or there's no standardized rules or procedures, then it can just get a little confusing.
And so I want to know what you guys think about this situation, okay?
As I told you in last week's bonus episode, I went to the eye doctor last week because my eye was just really bloodshot after running and getting some bugs in my eye.
So I went to the eye doctor, the ophthalmologist and the clinic was on, I think the fifth or sixth floor.
And usually I would just walk up the stairs but it was super hot and humid that day and I didn't wanna get all sweaty climbing up the stairs.
So I decided to take the elevator and there were several people waiting for the elevator.
And yeah, I only had to wait for like a second because they had already clicked the button for the elevator to come down to the lobby.
And so I just stood there for a moment and then the elevator opened and there were several people that got inside, maybe four or five people that entered the elevator.
And then I was the last one on the elevator.
So here's what I'm wondering about.
I am technically the last person to enter the elevator, but the elevator was quite small.
and that means that I was sort of standing right up against the door, facing the door, and as soon as the elevator opened, then I'm the first one out.
Now, it just so happened that everybody riding the elevator at that time was going to the same floor.
And I don't know, this was the first time that I went to that building, so I wasn't sure if there were many clinics on that floor and many services, it's possible that there would be like tons of different things for people to go to.
However, I had the feeling that maybe all of the people that were riding the elevator with me were going to the same place.
And so my gut reaction was like, okay, I was the last one to arrive.
These people were already waiting for the elevator.
They were were here first. And so when the doors opened and we all got off the elevator, I stood back and I let them go first so they could enter the clinic.
And it's true. They were all going, we were all going to the same place, but I thought they were here first and they were waiting before me.
And so I should let them go first. However, I could have really saved myself like some time, actually probably like 20, 25 minutes had I just bolted.
As soon as the elevator door opened, if I just Because I was in the lead at that point.
If I just walked into the iClinic, then I would have been served right away.
I would have been the first one there.
So this is what I'm wondering.
This is what I'm curious about.
For elevator etiquette, does the line begin in the lobby when you're waiting for the elevator?
If you're the first one there, should you have first dibs for going to the office or using whatever service you're waiting for at the end of the elevator?
Or when you enter the elevator, does everything reset?
And it's just the first person out of the elevator is the first one who gets the right to go to wherever they're going.
I don't know. I felt like I should wait and let the people go, but talking to some of my friends and talking to my wife about this kind of funny moral question this week got some really different responses.
Some people said, no way.
When you're in the elevator, everything resets, and if you're the first one out of the elevator, then you should go and be the first one in line.
That's totally really fine.
Somebody else told me they thought that if you control the elevator button, then you have the right to be the first in line because you're like the controller, you're hitting the open and close button and pressing the floor number.
You're like the captain.
And that gives you the right to access services first at the top.
I'm of the opinion that yeah, the line starts in lobby.
So if you are first, if you are the first person to hit like the call button for the elevator, then that means you should be the first to access the service when we get off the elevator.
And but yeah, some people said no, it's it doesn't start at the lobby, it starts at the the front desk of the place that you're going to.
So I don't know, I'd like to know your opinion about this.
It's one of those like fun little etiquette issues to think about.
And I love thinking about these things.
Let me know, what do you think about etiquette for riding the elevator like this?
I really want to know what you guys think about this because it is to me kind of interesting moral question.
But anyways guys, those are the two kind of funny stories that happened to me this week.
One about rage quitting, one about elevator etiquette, and I hope you enjoyed listening to them and were able to improve your English fluency by spending some time with with me today.
And I got to say, great job.
You know, if you want to hit that next level with your English, you need to spend a lot of time getting the language into your brain.
You need to spend a lot of time just listening to naturally spoken English.
And that's what I did here with you today is I just spoke to you in a way that I would do if I were hanging out with one of my friends.
So great job on getting that language into your brain.
And since you made it all the the way to the end of this episode, I'm going to share the completion code with you.
And what I'd like you to do is leave a comment using the completion code word in either on our discord server or on the YouTube comments or Instagram comments, wherever you'd like.
And your comment will signal to me and to all of our listeners that you finished this episode and you made it all the way to the end.
So for this week's completion code, why don't we go with the word elevator, Elevator.
Elevator. It seems fitting.
So you can leave a one -word comment just with elevator if you'd like, or you could leave a longer example sentence to practice making an English sentence.
I think that's a great idea too.
And I look forward to reading what you come up with.
So guys, have a great week of English studying up ahead.
Please take care, and I'll talk to you in bonus episode 151 next week.
Until then, goodbye.
