Unit 07

Unit 7 Page 66 READING Exercise 4 My takes on life, the universe AND EVERYTHING Take #21: It depends on how you look at it Hi again! My take today is about a choice we have: the choice to look at things from a positive point of view, or a negative one. How we see things matters – it affects our well-being. And here's a story I found recently that illustrates my point. It was New Year's Eve, and a couple were about to go out to celebrate. They were on the point of leaving when the man said to his wife, 'This year finishes in a few hours and I'm glad. It's been a terrible year.' His wife asked him, 'Why do you say that last year was terrible? I don't understand!' The man was very surprised and replied, 'You don't understand? Think about what happened last year, First of all, I had an operation to remove my kidney and now I've only got one kidney and I was in bed for weeks. Remember? And then last month, I turned 65 and I was told I had to leave my job at the newspaper, to make room for someone younger. Huh! I loved that job and didn't want to retire. What am I going to do now? And then there was our son's accident! You surely haven't forgotten that, have you? Three weeks in hospital, and that meant he couldn't take his exams to get into medical school. And we had to buy a new car. Terrible year! I'm so happy it's over.' His wife didn't say much – she went out of the room, but a few minutes later, she came back in and said, 'OK I heard what you said, but this is how I see things. Your kidney had been bothering you for years and now you won't have that pain ever again. Now that you don't have to go to work every day, you can spend more time in the garden and make it beautiful, the way you've always wanted. And yes, the car was destroyed, but our son came out alive. And now he's got more time to study, so he'll do even better in his exams next year. So, I think it was a good year. But anyway, it's gone and the new one is due to start in a few hours – it'll be another good year if we make it one.' So there you are. We can't control the things that happen to us, or to other people, but we can control how we look at them. You can take a pessimistic attitude, or an optimistic one – it's up to you. Some things are difficult to deal with. For example, I'm seeing the dentist this afternoon, which I'm not looking forward to, but then I think about my granddad and his awful teeth and I think, 'Going to the dentist now means I probably won't have problems in the future.' And if it hurts a little? Well, nothing's forever, right? OK, I won't be here next week, we're off on our annual family holiday. Now, how can I find a way to think positively about two weeks with my brother around all the time? I'll think of something!

Page 68 LISTENING Exercise 5 & 6 Hello and welcome to Silver Linings, the show where our guests try and find a little bit of good in everything. Well, we all know the expression: 'Every cloud has a silver lining' and that's exactly what my special guests Paul and Nadia are here to do; find the silver lining. I'm going to give them some potentially disastrous situations and they're going to tell me why in fact they're actually really good things. A point goes to whoever gives the most imaginative answer. Paul, Nadia, all clear? Great. So let's play Silver Linings. So Paul and Nadia, round one. It's the first day of the summer holidays, and you fall and break your ankle. The doctor says – no walking for at least three weeks. Well that's so not a problem! I can be the ruler of the house! 'Sorry Mum, I can't tidy my room!' 'Sorry Dad, I can't help you in the garden.' And 'Hey Sis, can you get me another piece of cake please?' OK Paul. Thanks. Well I think that after three weeks of that, you'll have annoyed your entire family. Never mind. Now, Nadia, what's your silver lining? OK, so, for a long time now I've had an idea for a novel. A really great, funny novel. Now I'll have the time to write it, with other people looking after me. Every day, I'll be writing the novel that's going to make me rich and famous. OK, thanks Nadia. So now over to the audience. If you think Paul's answer is best, press the green button. If you think Nadia should get the point, press the red button. And the winner is Nadia. Well done, Nadia – one point for you. OK, round two. You and your family are flying to Turkey on holiday. Halfway through the flight, the pilot says there's a technical problem and you have to land in Rome. When you land, the pilot tells everyone that they can only fly on to Turkey tomorrow. Nadia? OK, so that's not great. But look, the airline will put us in a nice hotel and soon I'll have taken a shower in a hotel room and after that I'll be sleeping in a comfy bed. And hey! I'll have spent a day in Rome, too! So when I get home I can tell my friends that I went to Rome as well as Turkey. Sounds good. What about you Paul? Well you know, I've always wanted to learn Italian, so when the airline puts us all in a hotel, I can start! When we take off the next day for Turkey, I'll have learned at least twenty Italian words. Well, ten words perhaps. But it's a start! And you know what? Because of this 'technical problem', in a few years' time I'll have married an Italian woman, I'll be living in Italy and I'll be the happiest man in the world! Hmm. I'm not sure how likely that is! Anyway, what does the audience think? Who wins that round? Green for Paul, red for Nadia. And ... it's Paul! Well done, Paul. OK, here we go for the deciding question ....

Page 70 READING Exercise 2 QUOTATIONS FOR WORRIERS 'You'll never find a RAINBOW if you look down!' Who said that? No, it wasn't me. It was Charlie Chaplin and I love it. You should know that I wasn't exactly born an optimist myself. I was actually quite a worrier until I discovered the power of inspirational quotes. Try me. Send me a worry, and I'll send you a quote. For free. If you like the quote, please let me know. Positive messages help me, to, and so far, all the feedback has been positive! A SHALL I STAY OR SHALL I GO? Hi, I don't know what to do. I've got an aunt and uncle in the US, and they've invited me to go there for a month or so. Sounds cool, doesn't it? But I'm worried there won't be anyone my age to hang out with. They live in a smallish sort of town, and they haven't got any kids themselves. It may sound weird, but I feel that whatever I decide, I'll probably regret it later! Can you help? I hope so. B DRUMMER BOY I got this drum kit for my 16th birthday. There's a band at my school. They're great, but their drummer, Luca, is leaving at the end of the school year – his family is moving to another town. The band have asked me if I want to audition and Luca has offered to teach me. But I'm not sure I'll be good enough. I don't think I should get my hopes up. I'd be so disappointed if I didn't get in. 1 Hmm. Yes, I understand that's not an easy situation. But I don't think that means you should just sit around complaining that everything's gloomy. Maybe what Anne Frank said will help you to be more optimistic: 'How wonderful it is that nobody needs to wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.' 2 Look, this is for you, and it's by Mahatma Gandhi. I'll say no more. It's all in the quote. 'Man often becomes what he believes himself to be. If I keep on saying to myself that I cannot do a certain thing, it is possible that I may end by really becoming incapable of doing it. On the contrary, if I have the belief that I can do it, I shall surely acquire the capacity to do it even if I may not have it at the beginning.' 3 My quote for you is by Winston Churchill: 'A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.' Even if you are right, there are probably about a million things you can do there that you can't do at home! So I'd say, go. And remember the rainbow!

Page 72 DEVELOPING SPEAKING Exercise 1 & 2 Hey, Matt. What's up? You look terrible. Hi, Zoe. Well, I had an audition this afternoon – you know, for a part in a play. It was awful. Come on, Matt, cheer up! I'm sure it wasn't that bad. Oh, it was! It really was. For a start I was late, then I read the wrong lines, then I started coughing. I made a real fool of myself! Am I a fool? Am I a terrible actor? Well, to be honest it sounds like you might have prepared better. But don't let it get you down. One bad audition doesn't mean you haven't got talent. I guess. But I really wanted that part. I need parts to have a better chance of getting into drama school. Well, let's look on the bright side. There'll be more auditions, won't there? Yes, sure. In fact, I put my name down for another audition next week, but I don't think I want to go. No, Matt. Go for it. You don't have anything to lose. I just don't want to get my hopes up for nothing. Fair enough. Getting turned down isn't easy. But you've got to hang in there! I know. Thanks, Zoe. You always manage to cheer me up, I really appreciate it. Anyway, how was your day? Well, nothing special, but it was better than yours, I think! Come on, let's get an ice cream! Page 72 PRONUNCIATION Exercise 1 & 2 Hi, Harry! You don't look very happy. What's up? Well ... I just failed my driving test. Oh! That's too bad ... but don't let it get you down. Plenty of people fail the first time! Actually, it's not the first time. Oh well, look on the bright side – you can only get better! I suppose so ... I just feel kind of stupid. It'll be all right! You just need a bit more practice, that's all. I know you can do it! Page 72 PRONUNCIATION Exercise 3 Hi, Harry! You don't look very happy. What's up? Well ... I just failed my driving test. Oh! That's too bad ... but don't let it get you down. Plenty of people fail the first time! Actually, it's not the first time. Oh well, look on the bright side – you can only get better! I suppose so ... I just feel kind of stupid. It'll be all right! You just need a bit more practice, that's all. I know you can do it!