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Hello and welcome to the English Like A Native podcast. My name is Anna and you're listening to week 28, day 5 of Your English Five A Day, the second season.
With this series, my goal is to help you to build a daily habit of dipping into the English language so that you can, at the very least, maintain your level, but ideally expand your vocabulary, improve your listening skills and overall feel more confident and more like yourself when communicating in English.
I release episodes every day of the working week from Monday to Friday.
All you have have to do is tune in.
And if you want the written version of all the vocabulary from across the entire series with definitions and example sentences, then you can access this through the Vocabulary Vault.
This is free to access.
I'll leave a link in the show notes for you.
you. Let's begin today's story that brings together all of the vocabulary we've explored this week.
Now, this is a personal story, so sit back and enjoy.
A Hair Raising Wedding Tale Many years ago, when I was a wide -eyed, hopeful teenager, not even a young adult yet, just 17 or 18, I started a drama course at college in Manchester.
I remember my audition day vividly, not just because of the nerves or the excitement, but because that was the day I met Mark.
mark mark was and still is the most flamboyant young man i think i've ever met from the moment we crossed paths we clicked there was something magnetic about him he was gorgeous Gorgeous, yes, but also grounded.
He was empathetic, vulnerable, but carried this quiet strength that made it clear this person had lived.
After our audition, we took a long walk along the canal in Manchester.
that's where the real audition happened the audition of hearts and souls as we swapped stories and began the beautiful process of becoming close that day he told me he came from a traveler community and I'll admit I was fascinated I'd never met a real gypsy before and to me it felt like a doorway into a world I'd only ever heard about in passing.
But as we talked, the thrill of discovery gave way to something heavier.
He didn't speak fondly of his childhood.
In fact, he spoke of it as a kind of emotional torture.
Growing up gay in a community that, at least in his experience, didn't accept or acknowledge who he was.
Mark had been forced to hide himself away.
He spent years trying to conform, to be the son they wanted.
But the cost was too great.
Eventually, he ran away.
And so there he was, standing beside me, ready to start drama school, his new life with fierce hope in his eyes and a suitcase full of stories the next three years were magical we became inseparable we laughed we cried we made spectacles of ourselves in voice class and devised the most over the top scenes in movement he blossomed we all did really because Because let's face it, no one in their late teens or early 20s truly knows who they are.
But in that wild world of drama school, we were free to try on identities like costumes.
Some fit, some didn't.
After graduation, as it often happens, many of us drifted apart, but Mark and I stayed in touch. years later i was thrilled to receive an invitation to his wedding he'd met an incredible man a gentle hilarious brilliant soul and they were finally tying the knot i'd never been to a gay ceremony before but i was buzzing with excitement i knew deep down that it was going to to be extravagant, heartfelt and absolutely full of drama.
The good kind. The ceremony was held in a beautiful old town hall in London.
The dress code was floral, so naturally I wore my most flowery dress and a pair of high heels that made me walk like I was stepping over landmines.
The priest, yes, there was a priest, was hysterical.
He had the entire room roaring with laughter.
The entire event felt like a celebration of life, love and everything fabulous.
After the I do's and a thunderous standing ovation, we made our way to the reception where champagne was being poured.
board now here's something you should know about me i'm a lightweight bubbles and i do not get along a single glass of champagne and i'm halfway to karaoke but on this day i hadn't eaten much i wasn't sure if food would be served and honestly i was too excited to care so when someone handed handed me a glass.
I accepted it without hesitation, without a second thought.
And then I had another and maybe one more after that.
To say I was drunk would be an understatement.
I was absolutely sloshed.
Somewhere between glass two and three, I stumbled off to the toilets, high heels clicking, dress, swishing, brain, swimming.
Now this is where things take a turn.
I went into the cubicle and without thinking, I placed my phone on top of the toilet cistern.
In my haze, I remember thinking, oh, that's a bit close to the edge, probably not the best idea.
but did I move it? No, because logic had left the building.
Once I finished and flushed, I leaned over, lost my balance and knocked the phone.
I watched in horror as it spun through the air, perilously close to safety and then plop, it landed right in the toilet bowl.
Now here's the worst part.
Without blinking, without a second thought, I plunged my hand in, right down, past the waterline, almost around the U -bend.
The toilet was mid -flush, so I knew I had seconds before the phone disappeared forever.
It was a moment of pure jeopardy.
And I braved it. I emerged victorious.
phone in hand but disgusted in ways I didn't know were possible.
You see, I'm a bit of a clean freak.
The idea of putting my bare hand into a toilet, especially one in a public venue during a wedding, was unsanitary on a level that defied comprehension.
I bolted out of the cubicle and and scrubbed my hand like a woman possessed, soap flying everywhere.
I looked for bleach. There was none, probably for the best, because had there been, I'd have no skin left on my fingers.
As for the phone, I wrapped it in tissue, shoved it in my handbag, and didn't speak a word of it to anyone.
I floated back into the reception like nothing had happened, happened avoiding handshakes dodging hugs and guarding my shame like a state secret and from that day forward I never and I mean never put my phone on a toilet cistern if I have a bag the phone stays there and I hang that bag on the hook behind the door if I'm empty -handed it goes on the toilet roll holder far from the danger zone because let's face it i may be a thrill seeker but that's not the kind of hair raising risk i ever want to take again so have you ever dropped your phone somewhere unspeakable and what did you do to get it
back so there you have it my story about my automatic disgraceful actions when i lost my phone down the loo please don't judge me i hope you found this useful and educational and fun and above all i hope you have a wonderful weekend until next time take very good care and goodbye
