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Dating Mini-Story Lesson

Hi. Welcome to the mini-story lesson for the conversation “Dating.” Let’s get started with the story now.

Carly the cat was ready to stop dating. She only seemed to meet total losers.

Then on December 31, her luck changed. She ran into her friend Katie the cougar at the library. Katie moved to Africa three years ago. They had not been in touch since then but Katie was now living in America again.

Katie wanted to set her up on a blind date with her friend Timmy the tiger. Carly thought that all blind dates were a recipe for disaster. But she agreed to go out with Timmy one time.

One month later Katie saw Carly at a café. She was bursting at the seams. She and Timmy had fallen in love.

“Thank you so much, Katie,” Carly said, “Timmy is really head and shoulders above the rest.”

Okay, so that’s our story. Now this time I will read the story again and I will ask you questions. You can answer the questions out loud and if you need a little more time, please just pause your iPod or your computer and then press play again when you’re ready to actually answer the question. But if you just feel like sitting back and listening and not answering the questions out loud, that’s fine, too.

Alright, here we go.

Carly the cat was ready to stop dating.

Was Carly the cat ready to stop dating?

Yes, yes, she was. Carly the cat was ready to stop dating.

What was Carly the cat ready to do?

To stop dating, Carly the cat was ready to stop dating.

Was she ready to read a book?

No, she wasn’t ready to read a book.

Was she ready to stop dating?

Yes, yes, she was. She was ready to stop dating.

Was she ready to stop looking for romance?

Yes, yes, that’s true also. She was ready to stop dating so she was ready to stop looking for romance.

Who was ready to stop dating?

Carly the cat, Carly the cat was ready to stop dating.

Was Sam the lion ready to stop dating?

No, it wasn’t Sam the lion.

Was Carly the cat ready to stop dating?

Yes, yes, she was. Carly the cat was ready to stop dating.

What type of animal is Carly?

A cat, Carly is a cat.

Is Carly a dog?

No, Carly is not a dog.

Is Carly a cat?

Yes, Carly is a cat.

She only seemed to meet total losers.

Did she only seem to meet total losers?

Yes, she did. She only seemed to meet total losers.

Who only seemed to meet total losers?

Carly the cat, Carly the cat only seemed to meet total losers.

Did Carly the cat or Sam the lion only seem to meet total losers?

Carly the cat, Carly the cat only seemed to meet total losers.

What type of animals did Carly meet when she was dating? Were they nice?

No, they weren’t nice. They were total losers.

Were they successful?

No, they definitely were not successful. They were total losers, which is the same thing as saying they were unsuccessful or that they were jerks.

Did she only seem to meet total losers?

Yes, she only seemed to meet total losers.

Then on December 31, her luck changed.

Did her luck change?

Yes, it did. Her luck changed.

Okay, so what changed?

Her luck, her luck changed.

Whose luck changed?

Carly’s, Carly’s luck changed.

Did Carly’s luck change?

Yes, it did. Carly’s luck changed.

When did her luck change?

Well, it changed on December 31. That’s when it changed.

Did her luck change on March 2?

No, it didn’t change on March 2.

Did her luck change on December 31?

Yes, yes, it did. On December 31, her luck changed.

She ran into her friend Katie the cougar at the library.

Did she run into her friend Katie the cougar?

Yes, she did. She ran into her friend Katie the cougar.

Did she see Katie the cougar?

Yes, yes, she did. She ran into Katie the cougar, which is the same thing as saying that she had seen Katie the cougar.

Did she expect to see Katie the cougar?

No, she did not. She ran into her, which means that she unexpectedly saw her. So she did not expect to see her and she saw her, ran into means to unexpectedly see someone.

Who ran into Katie the cougar?

Carly did, Carly ran into Katie the cougar.

Did Carly or Brian run into Katie the cougar?

Carly, Carly ran into Katie the cougar.

Who did Carly run into?

Katie the cougar, Carly ran into Katie the cougar.

Did she run into Sara the snake?

No, she didn’t run into Sara the snake.

Did she run into Katie the cougar?

Yes, she did. She ran into Katie the cougar.

Did Carly trip over Katie the cougar?

No, she didn’t trip over her. She ran into her, which means she unexpectedly saw her.

Did Carly expect to see Katie the cougar at the library?

No, she did not. She ran into her, which means she did not expect to see her. She unexpectedly saw her.

Where did Carly run into Katie the cougar?

At the library, she ran into her at the library.

Did Carly run into Katie at the gas station or the library?

The library, she ran into her at the library.

Did Carly unexpectedly see Katie the cougar at the library?

Yes, she did. She ran into Katie the cougar at the library, which means that she unexpectedly saw Katie the cougar at the library. To run into means to unexpectedly see someone.

Katie moved to Africa three years ago.

Did Katie move to Africa three years ago?

Yes, she did. She moved to Africa three years ago.

Okay, so what did Katie do?

She moved to Africa.

Who moved to Africa?

Katie, Katie moved to Africa.

Did Katie or Carly move to Africa?

Katie did. Katie moved to Africa. Carly did not move to Africa.

How long ago did Katie move to Africa?

Three years ago, she moved to Africa three years ago.

Did Katie move to Africa four or three years ago?

Three, she moved to Africa three years ago.

They had not been in touch since then

Had they been in touch since then?

No, they had not. They had not been in touch since then.

Had they seen each other since then?

No, they hadn’t. They had not been in touch since then, which means they had not seen each other since then.

Had they spoken on the phone since then?

No, no, they had not. They had not been in touch since then, so that means they had not spoken on the phone since then. When you have not been in touch with someone that means you haven’t spoken with them and you have not seen them. And they had not been in touch.

Who had not been in touch since then?

Katie and Carly, Katie and Carly had not been in touch since then.

Had Katie and Carly been in contact since then?

No, no, they had not. They had not been in touch since then, which means they had not been in contact since then.

but Katie was now living in America again.

Was Katie living in America?

Yes, yes, she was. She was living in America again.

Who was now living in America again?

Katie, Katie was now living in America again.

Was Sara the snake now living in America again?

No, not Sara the snake.

Was Katie the cougar now living in America again?

Yes, yes, she was. Katie the cougar was now living in America again.

Where was Katie now living?

In America, she was now living in America.

Was Katie now living in Africa?

No, not Africa, she was now living in America.

Was Katie now living in America again?

Yes, she was now living in America again.

Had Katie ever lived in America before?

Well, yes, she had. She was living in America again, which means that she has lived in America before.

Katie wanted to set her up on a blind date with her friend Timmy the tiger.

Did Katie want to set her up on a blind date?

Yes, she did. She wanted to set her up on a blind date.

What did Katie want to do?

To set her up on a blind date, she wanted to set her up on a blind date.

Who did she want to set up on a blind date?

Carly, she wanted to set Carly up on a blind date.

Did she want to set up Carly on a blind date?

Yes, she did. She wanted to set up Carly on a blind date.

Who did she want to set her up on a blind date with?

Timmy the tiger, she wanted to set her up on a blind date with Timmy the tiger.

Have Timmy the tiger and Carly ever met?

No, they have not ever met. She wants to set them up on a blind date, so that means that they have never met. A blind date is a date between two people who have never met.

Whose friend is Timmy?

Katie’s, Timmy is Katie’s friend.

Are Katie and Timmy friends?

Yes, they are. Katie and Timmy are friends.

Are Carly and Timmy friends?

No, no, they’re not. She wants to set them up on a blind date, so that means they’ve never met so they must not be friends. A blind date, remember, is a date between two people who have never met.

Carly thought that all blind dates were a recipe for disaster.

Did Carly think that all blind dates were a recipe for disaster?

Yes, she did. She thought that all blind dates were a recipe for disaster.

Did Carly think that blind dates are good?

No, no, she didn’t. She thought they were a recipe for disaster, which means she did not think they were good.

Did Carly think that all blind dates end badly?

Yes, yes, she did. She thought they were a recipe for disaster, which means that she thought that they all end badly. When something is a recipe for disaster that means that it ends badly.

What did Carly think about blind dates?

Well, she thought that they were a recipe for disaster.

Who thought that blind dates were a recipe for disaster?

Carly did. Carly thought that blind dates were a recipe for disaster.

Did Katie think that blind dates were a recipe for disaster?

No, it wasn’t Katie. It was Carly.

Did Carly think that blind dates were fun?

No, she thought they were a recipe for disaster so she did not think they were fun. She thought that they all ended badly. When something is a recipe for disaster, it means that it ends badly.

But she agreed to go out with Timmy one time.

Did she agree to go out with Timmy?

Yes, she did. She agreed to go out with Timmy.

What did she agree to do?

To go out with Timmy, she agreed to go out with Timmy one time.

Did she agree to bake Katie a cake?

No, she didn’t agree to bake Katie a cake.

Did Carly agree to go out with Timmy?

Yes, she did. She agreed to go out with Timmy.

Did Carly agree to have a date with Timmy?

Yes, yes, she did. She agreed to go out with Timmy, which is the same thing as saying she agreed to have a date with Timmy. To go out with means to have a date with or to go on a date with.

Who did Carly agree to go out with?

Timmy, she agreed to go out with Timmy.

Did she agree to go out with Timmy or Charlie?

Timmy, she agreed to go out with Timmy.

How many times did she agree to go out with Timmy?

One time, she agreed to go out with Timmy one time.

How many dates did she agree to have with Timmy?

One, she agreed to go out with Timmy one time, which is the same thing as saying she agreed to have one date with Timmy. To go out with is the same thing as having a date with.

One month later Katie saw Carly at a café.

Who saw Carly at a café?

Katie, Katie did. Katie saw Carly at a café.

Did Katie see Carly at a café?

Yes, she did. Katie saw Carly at a café.

Who did Katie see?

Carly, she saw Carly.

Did Katie see Carly or Timmy?

Carly, she saw Carly.

Where did she see Carly?

At a café, she saw Carly at a café.

Did Katie see Carly at the movie theatre?

No, she didn’t see her at the movie theatre.

Did Katie see Carly at a café?

Yes, yes, she did. Katie saw Carly at a café.

When did Katie see Carly?

One month later, one month later Katie saw Carly.

Did she see her one year later?

No, it wasn’t one year later.

Did she see her one month later?

Yes, yes, she did. She saw her one month later.

She was bursting at the seams.

Who was bursting at the seams?

Carly, Carly was bursting at the seams.

Was Carly or Sam bursting at the seams?

Carly, Carly was bursting at the seams.

Was Carly sad?

No, she wasn’t sad. She was bursting at the seams, which means she was really happy.

Was Carly tired?

No, she wasn’t tired. She was bursting at the seams.

Was Carly very happy?

Yes, she was. She was bursting at the seams, which means she was very happy. If someone is bursting at the seams, they are very happy.

She and Timmy had fallen in love.

Who had fallen in love? Katie and Timmy?

No, Katie and Timmy hadn’t fallen in love.

Had Carly and Timmy fallen in love?

Yes, Carly and Timmy had fallen in love.

Had Carly and Timmy fallen on the floor?

No, they didn’t fall on the floor, they fell in love.

Was Carly in love with Timmy?

Yes, she was. She was in love with Timmy.

Was Timmy in love with Carly?

Yes, Timmy was in love with Carly. Carly and Timmy had fallen in love so that means that Timmy loves Carly and Carly loves Timmy.

Were Carly and Timmy in love?

Yes, they had fallen in love, which means they were in love.

“Thank you so much, Katie,” Carly said, “Timmy is really head and shoulders above the rest.” Who did Carly say is head and shoulders above the rest?

Timmy, she said that Timmy is head and shoulders above the rest.

Did Carly say that Timmy is head and shoulders above the rest?

Yes, she did. Carly said that Timmy is head and shoulders above the rest.

Does Carly think that Timmy is a total loser?

No, she thinks he is head and shoulders above the rest, which means that she thinks he is much better than anyone else she has dated before. When something is head and shoulders above the rest, it means it is much better than something else.

Does Carly think that Timmy is much better than anyone else who she has dated?

Yes, she does. She thinks that he is head and shoulders above the rest, which means she thinks that he is much better than the others that she has dated.

Okay, we have reached the end of our story, which means that we are at the end of the mini-story lesson for the conversation “Dating.” Now please try to tell the story by yourself. Remember, you do not need to memorize every word in the story, but you should use the idioms that we discussed. So here are those idioms: “total losers,” “ran into,” “in touch,” “blind date,” “recipe for disaster,” “bursting at the seams,” and “head and shoulders above the rest.” Okay, so good luck telling the story. Remember, you can listen to this mini-story lesson as many times as you need to.

Alright, thanks. We’ll see you next time.