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ow did you do on the exam? M: Ah, I got an 82. It‘s OK, I guess. But I thought I‘d get at least an 85. Text 2 W: If you scare me like that again, I‘ll yell and the neighbors will hear. M: I‘m sorry. It was too good to pass up. You were just sitting there, and I thought it would be funny to throw the cat on you. Text 3 W: When will you be home? M: Around three. W: OK. I‘ll need the car after that. I‘m going to the movies with Sharon. M: Oh. I was hoping to take you out to dinner. Text 4 W: Airport, please. I‘m running a little late. So just take the fastest way, even if it‘s not the most direct. M: Sure, but there is a lot of traffic everywhere today because of the football game. Text 5 M: I‘m still wondering whether we should get another credit card. W: Isn‘t that just another bill to pay? M: It could be. But we don‘t have to use it a lot. I just want to build up our credit scores. They‘re not as high as they should be, and the only way to get a home loan is to have really good credit. Text 6 W: We‘re nearly there. Will we be allowed to visit all the ships, Peter? The space station and aircraft equipment, as well as the others? M: Yes, I expect so. We shall see most of them. W: Good! Visiting spaceships is always exciting. But remember, we‘ve got work to do. We‘ve got a story to write and photographs to take. M: Will we be allowed to take photographs? W: Yes. I think so. And there‘ll be a chance to ask questions. Text 7 W: May I help you? M: Yes. I‘d like to book three seats to Calgary Canada on a flight leaving sometime before next Sunday. W: Economy class? M: Yes. W: Oneway or round trip? M: Oneway. W: There aren‘t any direct flights, sir. You will have to change in Vancouver. M: That‘s all right. W: There is a Canadian Airlines Flight 30 leaving Beijing next Friday at 10:00 am. It has three seats available. Will that be all right? M: That‘s fine. W: Your name, please? M: Basil, Basil. How much is the ticket? W: $580 for one. Text 8 M: Oh, no. Is it almost 7:00 am? Why didn‘t my alarm work? W: What‘s wrong? Your class starts at 8:00 am. You have plenty of time, don‘t you? M: No, today is my school field trip. I need to be at school by 7:15 am. W: Oh, yeah, that‘s right. You asked me to pack your lunch box last night. M: Can you drive me there right now, Mom? I would be late if I took the bus. W: Sorry, sweetie. I haven‘t taken a shower or gotten dressed. I need at least 20 minutes. M: No way. I will be in big trouble. W: Oh. Look out the window! Seems like Mrs. Anderson will drive her son, Billy, to school right now. How about you go with them? Billy is your best friend. I‘m sure Mrs. Anderson wouldn‘t mind taking you with them, right? M: You‘re brilliant, Mom. Text 9 M: How do you usually get to work in the morning? W: I try to ride my bike most of the time. Of course, when I‘m running late, I take the subway. M: I always seem to be five or ten minutes late for everything. I drive to work every day, so if the traffic is bad, I have to think of a new way to apologize to my boss for being late. W: Does your boss yell at you if you‘re late? M: No, not really. He knows that I live far away. I stay late whenever I don‘t make it on time in the morning, and it probably helps that I earn a fair amount of money for the pany year after year. W: Have you ever considered moving into the city to be closer to your job? M: To be honest, I would rather change jobs than houses! My wife loves our house, especially since she works from home. Our kids are in great schools. And on the weekends, there are a million things for us to do as a family. W: It does sound nice. For me, though, I love living in the city. There are so many cultural activities, and I love not having to drive. M: Yeah, driving is pretty stressful sometimes. W: I think it‘s also easier to live in the city when you don‘t have kids. If I were a mom, I‘d probably live closer to you. M: Well, you and Timothy might want to think about getting started with that… W: You sound just like my motherinlaw! Text 10 Hello, I‘m Rachel Joyce. I‘m so happy to be here today at the Claremont Library. I‘ve traveled all the way from England, and it‘s truly wonderful to visit the United States! This is the first stop on my book tour. I‘m off to Australia next! Before I take any questions, let me tell you a bit about myself. My new novel, The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy, was recently published in 2021. The book is a panion to my first novel, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, which follows a man named Harold Fry as he goes in search of his old friend, Queenie Hennessy, in hopes of saying goodbye before she dies. The novel was published in 2021. It was almost chosen for the Commonwealth Book Prize and the Man Booker Prize. The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy is Queenie‘s side of the story as she waits for Harold. I‘ve also written many radio plays for BBC Radio Four, and in 2021, I won the Tinniswood Award for my radio play To Be a Pilgrim. I have also won the UK National Book Award for New Writer of the Year. Before I was a writer, I was an actress in theatre and on TV. I‘ll take questions from the audience now.