Are we ready to get back to normal after the pandemic?
Hi everyone, I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com.
My mission is to help you to speak English fluently with no grammar and no textbooks.
Today, let's talk about how the lockdown has affected the way we interact with other people.
Are we ready to get back to normal after the pandemic?
And with a point of view lesson, you will learn grammar in context without memorizing any boring rules.
I'll tell you a story twice from different grammar points.
I can change the tense or the person.
And like that, you will learn grammar in context.
Please visit speakenglishpodcast.com to get the transcript.
It's free.
After a year of living practically on the couch eating takeout while watching series on Netflix, Maybe you should consider whether you're turning into a hermit.
Takeout is prepared food packaged to be consumed away from its place of sale.
So, what's a hermit?
A hermit retires from society and lives in the solitude, usually for religious reasons.
And after a year without leaving the house, many people are in danger of becoming hermits.
Although when someone lives alone and deliberately avoids other people, we call that person a recluse.
I've always been an extrovert, but being stuck at home for so long with no contact other than my family is becoming a bit of an issue.
And you know, I was certain that extroverted people would have a tough time during the lockdown.
But it turns out that even people who were never at home are finding any excuse not to leave the house.
It seems that we have adjusted to this new lifestyle and it's going to be hard to get back to normal.
And how about getting back to work?
In my opinion, the pandemic killed the traditional workplace and I am curious how companies will deal with this situation.
And I have a feeling that remote work can be mutually beneficial because, according to one study, telecommuters work 14 days more per month.
And that's more than three additional work weeks per year.
And, let's face it, while working in the office has some advantages, like meeting new people, very few employees want to go back to the office.
And what about you?
How do you feel about all this?
Do you want to get back to the office or do you prefer to stay at home and work remotely?
Before I move on to the next section, go and get the transcript of this episode.
Do you know how you can help me?
You can support this podcast by sharing it with your friends and rating it with 5 stars.
Okay, let's continue with a point of view story.
I'll tell you a short story more than one time.
Every time I'll change a grammar point.
I can change the tense or the person.
This way you'll notice the changes in context.
Let's start.
One day, Ken heard on the news that the government decreed a year-long lockdown.
So Ken decided to go to a hut in the mountains.
He hurried to buy a year's supply.
He took advantage of a bargain and bought three tons of canned beans.
Furthermore, he also bought batteries and even an electric generator.
Ken had no television or radio and no internet in that hut, so he decided to be patient and wait for the set time.
For reading, he only had an old phone book.
He was bored out of his mind.
Every day he ate a can of beans.
After three days, he was fed up, but he had to hang in there until the end.
And since he forgot to buy any razors, his beard grew every day.
At the end of the year, he left the hut with a very long beard.
His clothes half torn and headed for civilization.
People looked at him like he was crazy.
It turned out that in the end, the lockdown only lasted two weeks.
So Ken was isolated all that time, not knowing that the rest of the world had returned to normal within a few days.
And from then on, Ken hated beans.
Let's listen to the same story in the plural.
One day, Ken and Pam heard on the news that the government decreed a year-long lockdown.
So Ken and Pam decided to go to a hut in the mountains.
They hurried to buy a year's supply.
They took advantage of a bargain and bought three tons of canned beans.
Furthermore, they also purchased batteries and even an electric generator.
Ken and Pam had no television or radio and no internet in that hut.
So they decided to be patient and wait until the set time.
For reading, they only had an old phone book.
They were bored out of their minds.
Every day, they ate two cans of beans.
After three days, they were fed up, but they had to hang in there until the end.
At the end of the year, Ken left the hut with a very long beard.
His clothes half torn and headed for civilization.
People looked at him like he was crazy.
It turned out that in the end, the lockdown only lasted two weeks.
So Ken and Pam were isolated all that time, not knowing that the rest of the world had returned to normal within a few days.
From then on, Ken and Pam hated beans.
Okay, it's the end of this short lesson.
As you can see, just by changing the point of view of the story, you can learn grammar in context.
It's one of the techniques that I use in my premium courses.
I recommend you take a look at speakenglishpodcast.com slash courses.
Okay, we have reached the end of this episode.
Remember to listen to it several times.
It will help you with your English.
See you soon.
Bye-bye.
Did you enjoy today's episode?
