Dialogue/Story
Slow Speed begins at: 1:04
Explanation begins at: 3:31
Normal Speed begins at: 17:21
Complete Transcript
Welcome to English as a Second Language Podcast number 1,283 – Forgetting Someone’s Birthday.
This is English as a Second Language Podcast episode 1,283. I’m your host, Dr. Jeff McQuillan, coming to you from the Center for Educational Development in beautiful Los Angeles, California. Where else?
This episode is a dialogue between Gretchen and Hugh about forgetting when someone’s birthday is. Let’s get started.
[start of dialogue]
Gretchen: I thought you were going out with your girlfriend tonight. What are you doing here watching TV?
Hugh: She’s mad at me.
Gretchen: Why?
Hugh: I forgot her birthday. It was last Tuesday and it completely slipped my mind. I forgot to put a reminder on my calendar. She’s moping and giving me the silent treatment.
Gretchen: What are you going to do to make up for forgetting her birthday?
Hugh: I’m just going wait it out and let it blow over. She’ll get over it.
Gretchen: Are you sure you don’t want to get her a belated birthday present?
Hugh: I’ll double up next year. I’ll get her something really special then.
Gretchen: I don’t think it works that way. She’s not going to forget that you forgot her birthday. That’s always going to be sore spot.
Hugh: It’s not like I did something really bad that I have to atone for. I forgot. What’s the big deal?
Gretchen: Okay, you know best, but if I were her . . .
Hugh: You’re not her. I apologized. Sooner or later, she’ll realize she’s blown this completely out of proportion and she owes me an apology.
Gretchen: Okay, if you say so.
[end of dialogue]
Gretchen begins by saying to Hugh, “I thought you were going out with your girlfriend tonight.” “To go out with” someone means to go somewhere such as a restaurant, a theater, or a park to have fun. “What are you doing here watching television?” Gretchen asks. Hugh says, “She’s mad at me,” meaning his girlfriend is mad at him. She’s feeling anger toward him. Usually this happens because you have done something wrong with your girlfriend. That’s the way it works, guys.
Gretchen says, “Why?” Why is she mad at you? Hugh says, “I forgot her birthday.” “To forget” means you don’t remember, and if you don’t remember your girlfriend’s birthday, well, she won’t be your girlfriend very long. Hugh says, “It” – meaning his girlfriend’s birthday, I believe – “was last Tuesday and it completely slipped my mind.” For something “to slip (slip) your mind” means to forget something or for something to be forgotten by accident. Of course, no one forgets something on purpose. “To slip your mind” is just another way of saying “I forgot.”
Hugh says, “I forgot to put a reminder on my calendar.” A “reminder” (reminder) is something that helps you remember about something or remember to do something. Nowadays, with our electronic calendars, you can put a reminder on your calendar and when that day comes up, you will get some sort of message on your phone or on your computer.
Hugh says that his girlfriend is “moping” (moping). “To mope” means to show that you are very sad or unhappy, or perhaps disappointed with someone or with something. “To mope” means to go around with a sad face and perhaps not be very interested in doing anything. Young children, when they’re angry at their parents, sometimes like to mope. They walk around the house like the world has ended.
Hugh says his girlfriend is moping and giving him “the silent treatment.” Oh, the silent treatment. “The silent treatment” is when someone doesn’t talk to you, when someone refuses to talk to you – someone who would normally talk to you like, say, your girlfriend.
Gretchen asks, “What are you going to do to make up for forgetting her birthday?” “To make up for” something is a phrasal verb meaning to do something nice for another person because you feel sorry for something you did – to try to improve a situation that is bad by doing something nice for the other person, especially when you did something wrong to that person.
Hugh says, “I’m just going to wait it out and let it blow over.” Hugh isn’t going to do anything, I guess, to make up for forgetting his girlfriend’s birthday. Big mistake, Hugh. Hugh decides he’s going “to wait (wait) it out (out).” “To wait it out” means to not do anything, hoping that the situation will get better. If you are at your house and it starts to rain and you want to go somewhere but you think the rain will stop in a short amount of time, you will decide probably “to wait it out” – just to wait until the rain ends and then you will do what you wanted to do.
Hugh is going to wait it out with his girlfriend, hoping that she will no longer be angry with him in the future. That’s what he means by the expression “to let it blow (blow) over.” “To let something blow over” means to wait until things become better or wait until a problem solves itself. I’m not sure. I’m guessing the expression, however, comes from the idea of a storm, with the big clouds in the sky eventually blowing over, meaning they will eventually leave and things will be better when it comes to the weather.
In any case, Hugh says that his girlfriend will “get over it.” “To get over it” means to no longer be bothered by something bad that has happened to you. Hugh is hoping his girlfriend will get over the fact that he forgot her birthday. Now, you have to be careful with this expression in using it with other people, especially using it as what we would call a “command form,” or an “imperative.” It’s somewhat rude to say to someone, “Get over it.” People do say it, of course. What they mean is you should stop being sad or angry and just not worry about that situation that is making you sad or angry.
Gretchen asks another question of Hugh. She says, “Are you sure you don’t want to get her a belated birthday present?” “Belated” (belated) means happening later than it should. If someone’s birthday was yesterday and you don’t see that person until today, you might say, “Oh, a belated happy birthday,” meaning it’s too late now. Your birthday has already passed, but I’m still going to wish you a happy birthday. Anything that is “belated” is happening later than it should. So a “belated birthday present” or gift is giving someone a gift after his birthday.
Hugh says, “I’ll double up next year. I’ll get her something really special then.” Hugh says he’s not going to buy his girlfriend a birthday present this year. Instead, he’s going to buy an even better birthday present next year. He’s going “to double (double) up.” “To double up” means to do twice as much as what you would normally do. Now, you see, that’s not the way girlfriends work, Hugh. You can’t wait until next year. She’s not going to wait for you, perhaps, if you do.
Gretchen says, “I don’t think it works that way,” and Gretchen, of course, is correct. She says, “She’s not going to forget that you forgot her birthday. That’s always going to be a sore spot.” Something that is “sore” (sore) is something that hurts or causes you pain. A “sore spot” could be an area on your body that when you touch, it hurts, but here it’s used more generally or more metaphorically to mean something that hurts you emotionally or psychologically. A “sore spot” would be a topic or an area or a subject that is upsetting to you, that bothers you, that makes you upset.
Hugh says, “It’s not like I did something really bad that I have to atone for. I forgot. What’s the big deal?” “To atone” (atone) means to do something to show that you are sorry, to try “to make up for,” going back to our previous phrasal verb, a bad situation. You try to do something that will make things better – maybe you give someone a small gift in order “to atone for” criticizing that person unfairly last week. Hugh doesn’t think he did anything really bad that he has to atone for. “What’s the big deal?” he asks, meaning “Why is this so important?”
Gretchen says, “Okay, you know best, but if I were her . . .” The expression “You know best” (best) is used to show that you think the other person knows better than you about how to handle a situation. We often use it, however, in a way that shows that we don’t agree with the other person, and that’s what Gretchen is doing here. She’s saying to Hugh, “You know best,” which you think would mean “You’re smarter than I am,” or “You know more than I do,” but in fact what she’s really saying is, “I disagree with you. I think you’re wrong.”
She then says, “If I were her . . .” meaning “If I were your girlfriend, Hugh . . .” She doesn’t finish that sentence, but you know what she means here is that she would be angry and probably not forgive Hugh. Hugh says, “You’re not her. I apologized,” Hugh says. “To apologize” (apologize) means to say that you are sorry for something you have done, something wrong that you have done.
Hugh continues, “Sooner or later, she’ll realize she’s blown this completely out of proportion and she owes me an apology.” The expression “to blow (blow) something completely out of proportion (proportion)” means to make something seem more important than it really is, especially a problem – to make a problem seem as though it is more important than it really is. Hugh thinks that eventually his girlfriend will realize that she has blown this completely out of proportion and that she should apologize to Hugh.
Gretchen says, “Okay, if you say so.” “If you say so” is another expression similar to “You know best,” that really means “You’re wrong. I disagree with you. I don’t think what you are saying is correct.” And here, those of us who have some experience in the world know that Gretchen is right and Hugh is definitely wrong.
Now let’s listen to the dialogue, this time at a normal speed.
[start of dialogue]
Gretchen: I thought you were going out with your girlfriend tonight. What are you doing here watching TV?
Hugh: She’s mad at me.
Gretchen: Why?
Hugh: I forgot her birthday. It was last Tuesday and it completely slipped my mind. I forgot to put a reminder on my calendar. She’s moping and giving me the silent treatment.
Gretchen: What are you going to do to make up for forgetting her birthday?
Hugh: I’m just going wait it out and let it blow over. She’ll get over it.
Gretchen: Are you sure you don’t want to get her a belated birthday present?
Hugh: I’ll double up next year. I’ll get her something really special then.
Gretchen: I don’t think it works that way. She’s not going to forget that you forgot her birthday. That’s always going to be sore spot.
Hugh: It’s not like I did something really bad that I have to atone for. I forgot. What’s the big deal?
Gretchen: Okay, you know best, but if I were her . . .
Hugh: You’re not her. I apologized. Sooner or later, she’ll realize she’s blown this completely out of proportion and she owes me an apology.
Gretchen: Okay, if you say so.
[end of dialogue]
It never slips my mind to thank our scriptwriter for her wonderful scripts. Thank you, Dr. Lucy Tse.
From Los Angeles, California, I’m Jeff McQuillan. Thank you for listening. Come back and listen to us again right here on ESL Podcast.
English as a Second Language Podcast was written and produced by Dr. Lucy Tse, hosted by Dr. Jeff McQuillan. Copyright 2016 by the Center for Educational Development.
Glossary
to be mad at (someone) – to feel anger toward another person, especially when one believes that one has been treated badly by that person
* My parents were really mad at me when I crashed their car.
to forget – to not remember; to not do or think about something as one should have done
* I forgot to take out the trash last week.
to slip (one’s) mind – for something to be forgotten; for one to accidentally not do what one should have done
* I was supposed to submit the report on the 15th, but it slipped my mind.
reminder – something that helps one remember to do something
* Please set an alarm as a reminder for the conference call at 1:30 today.
to mope – to show that one is very sad, unhappy, depressed, and disappointed, with little energy or enthusiasm for anything
* I know you’re disappointed you didn’t get that job, but it’s time to stop moping.
silent treatment – a period of time when one refuses to speak to another person usually because one is upset and wants to punish that person
* Lorilee wore her sister’s sweater without permission, and now her sister is giving her the silent treatment.
to make up for – to do something that makes a bad situation better, solves a problem, or shows that one is sorry for what happened and wants to make it right
* I know these flowers can’t make up for what I said, but please take them.
to wait it out – to delay; to not do something for a period of time, hoping that the situation changes and improves before one acts
* This is a big storm. Stay here and wait it out. Don’t try to drive home right now.
to let (something) blow over – to wait for a situation to become less upsetting, serious, or problematic; to wait for a problem to end or solve itself
* Is it better to let these news stories blow over, or should we tell the reporters our side of what happened?
to get over it – to move on; to no longer be hurt or affected by something that happened; to continue as if a bad thing never happened
* The coach told us to get over it and forget about losing to our rivals.
belated – happening later than something should have, or recalled after the fact
* Please accept our belated wishes for a happy graduation. We’re sorry we didn’t send this card sooner.
birthday – the anniversary of one’s birth; the date of one’s birth, celebrated every year
* The twins never liked sharing a birthday, because they always had to share the attention.
present – a gift; something given to another person as a sign of affection, respect, or love
* Do you give presents to all of your grandkids?
to double up – to do twice as much as one normally would, or to do 200% of the expected amount
* We’re going to have a lot of houseguests this week, so we should double up on milk, eggs, bread, and bananas.
sore spot – something that makes one feel resentful, angry, or embarrassed; unresolved, negative feelings about something
* Not getting accepted into the university is a sore spot for Hillary, so let’s not bring it up during dinner.
to atone – to make amends; to do something to show that one is sorry for what happened or for what one did; to do something that tries to correct a mistake or a bad situation
* Should we send the client a gift to atone for missing the meeting?
(one) knows best – a phrase used to show that another person has the best insight and knows what should be done, often used when one does not agree with that person
* I think this would be a better paint color for the house, but you know best.
to apologize – to say that one is sorry for what one has done and to request forgiveness
* Did you apologize to the neighbor for hitting your baseball through her window?
to blow (something) completely out of proportion – to make something seem much more important than it actually is; to overreact
* Don’t blow my comments completely out of proportion. I was only joking.
Comprehension Questions
1. What is Hugh’s girlfriend doing?
a) She’s yelling at him.
b) She’s breaking up with him.
c) She’s refusing to talk to him.
2. What does Hugh mean when he says, “She’s blowing this completely out of proportion”?
a) She’s overreacting.
b) She’s ending their relationship.
c) She’s making him very angry.
Answers at bottom.
What Else Does It Mean?
to double up
The phrase “to double up,” in this podcast, means to do twice as much as one normally would, or to do 200% of the expected amount: “With so many employees on vacation, we’re going to have to double up on the number of hours each of us work to cover all the shifts.” The phrase “to double over” means to bend over at the waist: “She doubled over and said, ‘I think I’m going to throw up.’” The phrase “to double back” means to stop moving forward and instead go back in the direction from which one came: “We drove down the street for a few blocks, but then Bashar realized he had left his wallet at home, so we had to double back.” Finally, the phrase “to double down” means to strengthen one’s commitment and do something more seriously than before: “If I don’t double down and study more, I might lose my scholarship.”
(one) knows best
In this podcast, the phrase “(one) knows best” is used to show that another person has the best insight and knows what should be done, often used when one does not agree with that person: “Randall is convinced that he always knows best, but that attitude irritates other people.” The phrase “to know better” means to have enough knowledge and experience to know that something is wrong and should not be done: “You’re not a kid anymore – you know better than to get into fights.” The phrase “to know no bounds” means to have no limits, especially when describing someone’s good qualities: “Her patience has no bounds.” Finally, the phrase “to know a thing or two” means to know a lot: “James has a black belt in karate, so he knows a thing or two about self-defense.”
Culture Note
Classic Birthday Party Games
Before eating birthday cake and opening gifts, birthday party “guests” (the people who come to a party) might play some of these “classic” (popular over time, with high quality) games.
In “Pin the Tail on the Donkey,” the “host” (the person who organized the party) puts a picture of a “donkey” (a horse-like animal, but smaller) on the wall, but the donkey does not have a tail. Each of these guests is given a paper donkey tail and a “pushpin” (a plastic object with a sharp metal point at one end, used to attach something to a wall). “One by one” (one at a time), the guests are “blindfolded” (the eyes are covered by tying a piece of fabric over the eyes and around the head) and asked to pin the tail on the donkey. The person whose tail is closest to the right place wins the game and receives a small “prize” (an object given to the winner of a game).
In “Musical Chairs,” music plays while a group of people walk around several chairs placed in a circle in the middle of the room. However, there are not enough chairs for the last person in the group to sit down. When the music stops, everyone must sit in a chair. The person who is left standing must leave the game. Then one chair is removed, the music “resumes” (continues), and the people walk until the music stops again. The game continues until only one person is left as the winner.
Finally, some parties have a Guess How Many game. A glass jar or other container is filled with objects, like “marbles” (small glass balls used in games) or candies. The guests write down a number “indicating” (showing) how many pieces they think are in the container. The person whose “guess” (estimate) is closest to the actual number is the winner.
Comprehension Answers
1 - c
2 - a