داستان کوتاه

Hi, I’m Joe Weiss and I’m one of the teachers and directors of Learn Real English and I’d like to welcome you to this mini-story lesson. Okay, I want to start this lesson by telling you about some of the idioms that you will hear in the story, so let’s start there.

Okay, first is to “be uptight.” So if you are uptight, it means that you are unable to relax. You are always worried about something or preoccupied with something. Let me give you an example. After Mary lost her job, she was uptight because she did not have any money to pay rent. Okay, so what I’m saying is after Mary lost her job, she was worried, okay? She was unable to relax because she didn’t have any money to pay her rent.

Okay, so next is to “get trashed.” So if you get trashed, it means that you get drunk or you get intoxicated.

Here’s an example for you. The night after John’s cat died, he got trashed. Okay, so the night after John’s cat died, he got intoxicated or he got drunk. He got trashed.

Okay, so next is to “sneak out.” So it’s usually to sneak out of someplace. So if you sneak out of someplace, it means that you leave without anyone knowing. Okay, you secretly leave that place. Let me give you an example and this is actually a true story. When I was younger, my brother Bill used to sneak out of the house at night while my parents were sleeping. When I was younger, my brother Bill used to secretly leave the house at night while my parents were sleeping. He used to sneak out of the house at night. He used to secretly leave the house.

Okay, so next is to “pull the wool over someone’s eyes,” and this is one I really like. To pull the wool over someone’s eyes means to deceive someone or to trick someone, okay? I think when you hear an example of this one you’ll understand it a little better. And I’m going to use my brother Bill as an example in this one also. So my brother Bill told my parents that he was going to sleep but then he secretly left the house and went to meet his friends so he pulled the wool over my parents’ eyes. Okay, so what I’m saying is my brother Bill told my parents that he was going to sleep but then he secretly left the house and went to meet his friends so he deceived my parents or you could say he tricked my parents. They thought he was sleeping but he was with his friends. He snuck out of the house. He secretly left the house to go meet his friends so he pulled the wool over my parents’ eyes. He tricked them or he deceived them.

Okay, I have one more for you and this one is to “be laid back,” laid back. And this is actually the opposite of uptight. So if you are laid back, it means that you’re relaxed. You’re calm. You don’t worry about things, okay? You’re not preoccupied with things. Let me give you an example and this example will sound familiar to you. After Mary lost her job, she was still laid back even though she did not havemoney to pay her rent. Okay, so what I’m saying is after Mary lost her job, she was still relaxed or calm.

She wasn’t worried even though she didn’t have money to pay her rent.

Okay, so now I’m going to tell you a story and I’m going to ask you a lot of questions as I tell you the story. So when I ask you a question, I want you to answer that question by just telling me the first answer that you think of, okay? And don’t worry about making mistakes. Mistakes are okay as long as you learn from them.

So if you make a mistake when you’re answering one of these questions, just try and learn from it. Don’t make the same mistake again the next time you listen to this lesson. And when you answer these questions, I want you to speak loudly and confidently. Well, it’s time for our story then, so let’s begin.

There was a cat and her name was Carol. And guess what? There was a second cat and his name was Jerry. And Carol and Jerry were married, yes, they were. But unfortunately, Carol had a problem. Carol wanted a new car but Jerry refused to buy a new car.

Okay, time for some questions. Were there two cats or two dogs in this story?

Two cats, there were two cats, right?

And what were the cats’ names?

Carol and Jerry, the cats were named Carol and Jerry.

And tell me this. Did Carol want a new car?

She did, yes, Carol wanted a new car.

Who wanted a new car? Did Jerry want a new car?

No, not Jerry.

Who wanted a new car?

Carol did, of course, Carol wanted a new car.

And tell me this. What did Carol want?

She wanted a new car, Carol wanted a new car.And what kind of car did Carol want?

A new one, of course, she wanted a new car.

So did Jerry refuse to buy a new car?

Yes, yes, he did, Jerry refused to buy a new car.

Who refused to buy a new car?

Jerry did, Jerry refused to buy a new car.

And tell me this. What did Jerry refuse to do?

He refused to buy a new car.

Well, one night Jerry wanted to go to a party with his friends and I have something to tell you about Carol. Carol did not like parties because she was uptight. Well, Carol told Jerry that he was not allowed to go to the party. Yeah, he wasn’t allowed to go to the party because whenever he went to a party, he got trashed.

Okay, time for some questions. Tell me this. Who wanted to go to a party with his friends?

Jerry did, of course, Jerry wanted to go to a party with his friends.

And who did Jerry want to go to the party with? Did he want to go to the party with Carol?

No, Jerry did not want to go to the party with Carol.

Who did he want to go to the party with?

His friends, he wanted to go to the party with his friends.

And tell me this. Did Carol like parties?

No, no, Carol did not like parties.

Who didn’t like parties? Carol, Carol didn’t like parties.

So tell me this. Was Carol uptight?

She was, yes, Carol was uptight.

How about Jerry, was he uptight?

No, no, Jerry wasn’t uptight.

So was Carol relaxed and carefree?

No, no, she was uptight, so that means she was not carefree, okay? She was unable to relax. She worried about a lot of things.

So tell me this. Why didn’t Carol like parties?

Because she was uptight, that’s why.

So who wasn’t allowed to go to the party?

Jerry wasn’t, Jerry wasn’t allowed to go to the party.

And what wasn’t Jerry allowed to do?

He wasn’t allowed to go to the party, Jerry wasn’t allowed to go to the party.

So tell me this. Did Jerry get drunk whenever he went to a party or did he get trashed whenever he went to a party?

Yes, he did, Jerry got trashed whenever he went to a party.

Who got trashed whenever he went to a party?

Jerry did, Jerry got trashed whenever he went to a party.

And tell me this, when did Jerry get trashed?

Whenever he went to a party, Jerry got trashed whenever he went to a party.So did Jerry get drunk whenever he went to a party?

Yes, yes, he did, Jerry got trashed whenever he went to a party so that means he got drunk whenever he went to a party. If you get trashed, that means you get drunk.

Well, Jerry wanted to go to the party so after Carol was asleep, Jerry snuck out of the house. Yes, he snuck out of the house and he went to the party. You see, Carol, she thought that Jerry was sleeping in bed with her, but he wasn’t. So Jerry pulled the wool over Carol’s eyes.

Okay, tell me this. Who was sleeping? Was Jerry sleeping or was Carol sleeping?

Carol, Carol was sleeping.

And did Carol sneak out of the house?

No, no, Carol didn’t sneak out of the house.

Who snuck out of the house?

Jerry did, of course, Jerry snuck out of the house.

So did Jerry tell Carol before he left the house or did he secretly leave the house?

Oh, he secretly left the house, Jerry snuck out of the house so that means he did not tell Carol. He secretly left the house.

So tell me this. Did Jerry pull the wool over Carol’s eyes?

He did, yes, Jerry pulled the wool over Carol’s eyes.

And over whose eyes did Jerry pull the wool?

Carol’s, he pulled the wool over Carol’s eyes.

So did Jerry trick Carol?

He did, yes, he pulled the wool over her eyes so that means he tricked Carol or he deceived her. He pulled the wool over her eyes.Well, Jerry drove to the party and when he went inside the party, he left his keys in his car. And that wasn’t the first time that he had done that. You see, he always left his keys in his car. You see, Jerry was laid back so he never worried about his car being stolen.

Okay, tell me this. Did Jerry drive to the party?

He did, yes, Jerry drove to the party.

Who drove to the party? Carol or Jerry?

Jerry did, of course, Jerry drove to the party.

And where did Jerry drive to? Did he drive to church?

No, no, Jerry didn’t drive to church, of course.

Where did he drive to?

The party, Jerry drove to the party.

And what did Jerry leave in the car when he went into the party?

His keys, yes, Jerry left his keys in the car when he went into the party.

Tell me this. When did Jerry leave his keys in the car?

When he went into the party, Jerry left his keys in the car when he went into the party.

And was that the first time that Jerry had ever left his keys in his car or did he always leave his keys in his car?

Oh, he always left his keys in his car, Jerry always left his keys in his car.

So tell me this. Was Jerry uptight or was he laid back?

He was laid back, Jerry was laid back.

Who was laid back? Jerry was, Jerry was laid back.

So was Jerry always nervous about things? Was he unable to relax?

No, no, Jerry was laid back so that means he was calm, he was relaxed, okay? He didn’t worry about things. For example, he didn’t worry about his car being stolen.

Well, guess what? At 2:00 in the morning, Carol woke up and she saw that Jerry wasn’t in bed with her. So she knew that Jerry went to the party. And, I don’t know if you know this, but cats can ride bicycles very fast, so Carol rode her bicycle to the party. She rode very fast. And when she arrived at the party, she saw their car and she saw the keys in the car. So Carol put her bicycle in the car and then she drove away. She drove to her sister’s house and she left the car at her sister’s house and then she went home. She rode her bicycle home and she went back to bed as if nothing had happened.

Okay, so tell me this. Did Carol wake up at 2:00 in the morning?

She did, yes, Carol woke up at 2:00 in the morning.

Who woke up at 2:00 in the morning?

Carol did, Carol woke up at 2:00 in the morning.

And at what time did Carol wake up?

2:00 in the morning, she woke up at 2:00 in the morning.

And tell me this. Was Jerry in bed with Carol at 2:00 in the morning?

No, no, Jerry was not in bed with Carol.

Where was Jerry?

He was at the party, yes, Jerry was at the party at 2:00 in the morning.

So did Carol ride her bicycle to the party?

She did, yes, Carol rode her bicycle to the party.

Who rode her bicycle to the party? Carol did, Carol rode her bicycle to the party.

And tell me this. Where did Carol ride her bicycle to?

The party, yeah, she rode her bicycle to the party.

So did Carol drive the car to her sister’s house?

She did, yes, Carol drove the car to her sister’s house.

And where did Carol drive the car? Did she drive it to her brother’s house?

No, she didn’t drive it to her brother’s house.

Where did Carol drive the car to?

Her sister’s house, she drove the car to her sister’s house.

And how did Carol get home from her sister’s house?

She rode her bicycle, Carol rode her bicycle back to her house and then she got back into bed as if nothing had happened.

Well, just a little later than that, Jerry left the party and he went to where his car had been parked.

And guess what? His car wasn’t there. No, his car was not there, of course. So Jerry didn’t know what to do so he walked home and when he got home he quietly got into bed because he didn’t want to wake up Carol.

Okay, was the car where Jerry had parked it?

No, no, the car was not where Jerry had parked it. It was not where he had parked it.

So tell me this. How did Jerry get home? Did he drive the car home?

No, of course not, the car wasn’t there.

How did Jerry get home?

He walked, yes, Jerry walked home.And was Jerry very quiet when he got into bed or was he very noisy when he got into bed?

Oh, he was very quiet, he was very quiet when he got into bed.

Why was Jerry quiet when he got into bed?

Well, Jerry was very quiet because he didn’t want to wake up Carol.

Who didn’t want to wake up Carol?

Jerry didn’t, Jerry didn’t want to wake up Carol.

And what didn’t Jerry want to do when he got in bed?

He didn’t want to wake up Carol.

Well, I have some more news for you. Jerry did not want Carol to know that the car was missing so the next day he woke up very early in the morning and he went to a car dealership, that’s a place where you buy cars. And guess what? He bought a new car! Yes, Jerry bought a new car for Carol and Carol was very happy to have a new car. And the first place that she drove was to her sister’s house and she told her sister to immediately sell the old car and she never told Jerry about it. So you see, in the end, it was Carol who really pulled the wool over Jerry’s eyes.

Okay, well that’s the end of our story and I hope you enjoyed it because now I want you to tell the story. I want you to tell the story to someone who you know. It can be anyone who you know, okay? And as you’re telling the story, I want you to use the idioms that I taught you at the beginning of this lesson, okay?

And I know this is a long story and there are a lot of details, so maybe the first time that you tell the story, you can tell the story without all of the details. And then later, as you continue to listen to the story, you can start to tell more of the details as you tell the story then, okay? So I want you to listen to this lesson every day for at least seven days and I’m sure at the end of those seven days, you will probably be able to tell this story even better than I can.

Alright, that’s all for this mini-story lesson then. I’ll see you next time.