Synopsis
This ESL podcast is a comedy style talk show done by two Canadian brothers living in Shanghai, China. Fun to listen to and a great way to improve English.
Episodes
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124 - Getting a Job
05/10/2009 Duration: 08minIn this ESL podcast we talk about getting a job and networking. Learn English vocabulary for daily life and the workplace A: What are you up to later? B: I’m going to ask Scott for a job at his company. A: Are you serious? B: Ya, why not? A: I think you are barking up the wrong tree. B: What are you talking about? A: I think you blew your chances when you offended his girlfriend last week. She was really upset. B: I apologized the next and and we’re good now. It’s all water under the bridge. A: Well, I don’t know… B: You don’t know about what? A: Umm. Where was I? B: You were trying to explain why I couldn’t get a job at Scott’s company. A: Sorry. I forget. I lost my train of thought. B: Thanks for the advice. Get More Lessons A: Don’t mention it.
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123 - Down Low
01/09/2009 Duration: 12minThis ESL podcast is about keeping a conversation private. Learn great phrases for your daily English conversations! Dialog: A: Well, I’ve gotta hand it to you Add, This place is really something. B: I hate to say I told you so but… To be honest I wasn’t sure this place would be your cup of tea. A: Are you kidding? I love it! I heard this place sucked. I wonder why anyone would say that. B: I started that rumor. A: What possessed you to do that? B: I wanted to keep it on the D.L. If everyone knew about it, this place would be a zoo. A: You’ve got issues. B: Whatever. You’d do the same thing if you were in my shoes. A: Ya, probably. Get More Lessons
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122 - Giving a Presentation
17/07/2009 Duration: 13minThis ESL podcast is about giving a presentation and how to relax while giving one. Dialog: A: You look like you saw a ghost. What’s up with that? B: I’ve got to give a huge presentation for work today in front of 20 top execs from the company. A: What’s the big deal? You know your stuff. B: Ya but I have bigtime stagefright. At the end of my presentation the execs will asking me all kinds of questions. I freeze up when I have to think on my feet. A: Don’t psych yourself out. You’ll be fine. B: That’s easy for you to say. You’re not the one who has to give the speech. A: If you get nervous just picture the audience in their underwear. Aparantly that helps. B: I’ll do that only as a last resort. A: Why? Get More Lessons B: The execs are mostly men in their 50′s..
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121 - China232 Story
14/06/2009 Duration: 10minThis ESL podcast is about China232 changing business models. Learn English for daily conversation and learn about us. Dialog: A: Add, I’m glad we finally decided to take our heads out of the sand and go ahead with the VIP section. B: Me too. I know you wanted to keep everything free and were on the fence for quite a while about switching business models. A: I guess part of me didn’t want to face reality. B: I think it’s better now anyway. Now we have more time to make the site way better. Anyone who is really serious about improving their English will only have to cough up $75 per year to get full access to the new and improved site. Anyone who signs up won’t regret it. A: Ya. When you put it that way it’s actually a pretty sick deal. Get More Lessons
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120 - MBA
11/05/2009 Duration: 12minThis ESL Podcast is about going back to school and getting your MBA. Also, we discuss the new VIP section at china232.com Dialog: A: What are you doing tomorrow? B: I’m starting my MBA. A: I thought you hated business. What changed your mind? B: I do hate it, but I need to start making more money. A: MBA’s are a dime a dozen these days. Are you sure that is the best route to take? B: I want to ask my boss for a big pay raise. I don’t think I’ll be able to get much of a pay raise without an MBA. A: Why not? B: An MBA will justify my request. A: Don’t sell yourself short. Your boss knows how valuable you are to the company. You’ve been there for years. You don’t need a piece of paper to prove anything. It’s all in your head. Get More Lessons B: I think
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116 - Buying a Gift
12/02/2009 Duration: 14minThis English learning podcast is about shopping for someone and buying them a gift. Dialog: A: What are you getting dad for his birthday? B: I don’t know yet. He’s really hard to shop for. He seems to already have everything he wants. A: How about we get him a joint gift. I saw these really cool noise cancellation headphones that I think he’ll like for the airplane or to use when mom is cleaning the house. B: A joint gift is a good idea, but isn’t that noise cancellation thing a gimmick? A: No. I tried them on in the store and they really work. I checked into it though and I saw that they had the same ones for much cheaper on amazon. If we order them now they will arrive before dad’s birthday. B: Are they the ear buds or the big ones that cover the whole ear? A: I think we should get the big ones. Dad’s weird about putting things in his ears. B: Sounds good. How about you put them on your credit card and I’ll give you the cash for them. A: Ok. Get More Lessons
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112_sleep
13/12/2008 Duration: 10minThis ESL Podcast is about sleep and insomnia Learn about some sleeping problems and learn English. Dialog: A: I haven’t been sleeping well lately. I’m tired all day but I can’t seem to fall asleep at night. B: Have you had problems with insomnia before? A: I’ve always been a light sleeper but I’ve never experienced anything like this. It’s been like this for over 2 months now. It started after I got my new job. B: Is the job causing you much stress? Worrying or thinking too much can negatively affect people’s sleep. A: I don’t think so. It’s a really relaxing job and I don’t think about it too much when I’m home. The only thing I can think of is that I drink more coffee now than I used to. I didn’t think that would be much of a problem since I don’t drink any after I get home. B: Caffeine stays in the system for a long time. Try not drinking any coffee past noon. You might also want to do some yoga or other relaxation techniques before bed. You want to be in a relaxed state well before you
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108_good_advice
21/10/2008 Duration: 14minThis ESL Podcast is about getting good advice for your life. Learn English for daily conversation and have fun listening. Get More Lessons
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104_green_tea
27/08/2008 Duration: 12minThis ESL podcast is all about the health benefits of drinking green tea. Reading: - Green tea contains high levels of antioxidants. Antioxidants are particles that remove the charge from the free radicals moving around the body. Over time, free radicals damage the body. Free radicals are said to cause cancer, heart disease, aging, and many other problems. – Green tea helps boost the immune system. The immune system is the body’s own natural defence system against viruses and bacteria. If we didn’t have an immune system, we would die from a common cold. A healthy immune system helps us to get sick less often. – Green tea helps to suppress appetite. This indirectly helps people to maintain a healthy weight. – Green tea helps to stabilize blood sugar levels. Maintaining stable blood sugar levels reduces the risk of aquiring type 2 diabetes. Get More Lessons
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100_happiness
24/07/2008 Duration: 12minThis ESL podcast is all about true happiness. It was inspired by a Harvard professor who teaches a popular course on the subject. Get More Lessons
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096_sleep_in
26/06/2008 Duration: 10minThis ESL podcast is about sleeping in. Dialog: A: Hello B: Hey. Why haven’t you been picking up? I’ve been trying to reach you for the past 3 hours. I guess you forgot our tennis match. A: What time is it? B: It’s already 9:30. A: Really? I guess my 20 minute power nap turned into a good three hours. I even slept through my alarm. B: What were you so tired from? A: I only got 2 hours sleep last night. I felt fine all day but I just crashed as soon as I got in the door. Sorry about that. Let’s reschedule for tomorrow. B: Ok Get More Lessons
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092_lifestyle_change
28/05/2008 Duration: 10minThis ESL podcast is about a guy who desperately needs to make a lifestyle change. Dialog: A: I’ve finally come to grips with the fact that I’ve gotta make some major changes in my lifestyle. B: What’s going on? A: These past few months I’ve been staying up late and then sleeping in. Then I feel guilty when I wake up so I usually eat a comfort food like pizza to make myself feel better. Then I feel bad from eating the pizza so I have a few beers to relax. Then because of the beers I can’t go to the gym. At 10 pm or so I finally start to feel good and watch several hours of TV while thinking about how the next day will be different. B: That’s quite a vicious cycle. We’ve all been there though. Get More Lessons
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088_rent_increase
01/05/2008 Duration: 09minThis ESL podcast is about learning how to negotiate to get what you want. Dialog: Add and I were outside the other day on the starbucks patio near our apartment. We were both in great moods while enjoying our coffees and the sunshine. We were minding our own business when all of a sudden our landlord rudely interrupted our peaceful afternoon with a phonecall. She wanted to jack up our rent by 25%. I tried to bargain with her but it was no use. In the back of my mind I knew I was fighting a losing battle. The rent in the city had been going up for quite a while and we knew that sooner or later this was bound to happen. A: I’m trying to renegotiate my salary with my boss. Get More Lessons
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084_queer_eye
01/04/2008 Duration: 16minThis ESL podcast is about a reality TV show about 5 gay guys. It's called, "Queer Eye for the Straight guy" Dialog: Last night, Add and I watched an episode of "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy". It is a TV show staring 5 gay guys. Each episode they take a typical straight guy who needs tips on fashion, grooming, and interior design. Yesterday’s episode was hilarious! A guy from Colorado and a girl from New York City were dating online for 6 months. This show was about preparing both of them for their first meeting. Everyone was expecting fireworks. When they finally met in person it was a total disaster. The guy was acting really awkward and there was no chemistry whatsoever. It was obvious that he was interested in her but she didn’t feel the same way. There was a lot of awkward silence during the date and his lame attempts at humour only made the situation worse. You could easily tell from her body language that the date wasn’t up to her expectations. Get More Lessons
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080_thailand_trip
04/03/2008 Duration: 13minThis ESL podcast is a fun free style chat about our latest trip to Thailand. Get More Lessons
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076_strict_parent
04/02/2008 Duration: 15minThis ESL podcast is about strict parents and how a couple of young guys might deal with them. Dialog: A: Are you going to Sara’s party this weekend? B: I can’t. I’m grounded. A: What did you do this time? B: My mom lost it on me when she found out I had a porno magazine in my room. She told me I’m not allowed to watch TV or meet any friends for a week. A: Your mom is pretty strict. Do you think there is any way you can get her to make an exception for the party? B: No way. My mom is a total psycho about these things. She’s so stubborn when she makes her mind up about something. A: Well, you can’t miss the party. It’s going to be amazing. You should sneak out of your bedroom window when she’s asleep and go to the party for at least a couple hours. Get More Lessons
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072_advertising
08/01/2008 Duration: 13minThis ESL podcast is a dialog between two co-workers about making a tv commercial. Dialog: A: Would you mind helping me with a tv commercial for a new expensive anti-aging cream? B: Who are we targeting? A: Wealthy housewives in their late 20′s and early 30′s. B: What angle are you going for? A: I was thinking about making the woman feel self-conscious about looking older, and then showing that our product would make them feel young again. B: Ok. What about also making them feel that the reason their husband hasn’t been spending as much time with them as before is that their skin is looking older? A: Perfect! Get More Lessons
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068_lending_money
13/12/2007 Duration: 13minThis ESL podcast talks about friends loaning money to each other. Dialog: A: Hey, would you mind loaning me a couple bucks? B: Ya sure. No problem. How much do you need? A: 50 would be great! B: Ok here. So now I guess you owe me 100 right? A: From what? B: I spotted you 50 bucks a couple weeks ago. Remember? You needed it to chip in for your share of the rent. A: I remember that but I figured we were even after I bought the new flat screen. B: I told you I wasn’t pitching in for that. I don’t even watch TV. A: Well, what do you call what you were doing last night? B: What are you talking about? A: Was it just me, or did I see you curled up on the couch last night watching some stupid chick flick on HBO? B: I think it was just you. (ha ha) Get More Lessons
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064_buying_tickets_2
27/11/2007 Duration: 14minThis ESL podcast is the second part of the dialog about getting tickets to the tennis match in Shanghai. Dialog: A: How did it go last night? B: It was an emotional roller coaster. At first we were excited to go because we thought we’d get in no problem. Then when we got there we found out the tickets were selling for a lot more than we’d planned, which almost made us leave. We finally made a deal with someone to get cheap seats, but after waiting around and freezing our butts off for 25 minutes, that deal fell through for some stupid reason that I still haven’t figured out. A: So did you guys end up leaving? B: We were going to. After the deal fell through we started walking back to the car and heard a voice shout out, “Who wants free box seats?” We were obviously skeptical of that so we just kept walking. All of a sudden, a guy ran up to us, handed us the tickets, and said, “Go enjoy the game guys, my girlfriend got food poisoning all of a sudden and I need to take her to the hospital”. Before we even had a
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060_holding_a_grudge
06/11/2007 Duration: 15minThis ESL podcast is about a guy who is refusing to go to a concert because he is still upset with his friend for something he did in the past. Dialog: A: Great news! U2 is coming to town in a couple months. Tickets go on sale next week. I say we all pony up and get some good seats. B: I’m not much of a concert guy so I really can’t see myself “ponying up”. A: What do you mean, “you’re not a concert guy”. That’s a pretty lame excuse. B: To each his own I guess. I can’t remember you ponying up when we all went to watch the NBA game last year. A: You’re not still bitter about that are you? I wanted to go but I was sick. B: You had a sore throat and a little sniffle. A: Wow. You are still bitter. I can’t believe you are still holding a holding a grudge. Ok. How about this? I’ll pay for the concert tickets this time if you promise never to mention the NBA thing again. B: Deal. Get More Lessons