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PODCAST

Ten Questions ESL Podcast

Hi, I"m Nancy Buswell and I"ve been teaching people how to improve their English for over 16 years! I"m an American who teaches in a university in southern China. The Ten Questions ESL (English as a Second Language) Podcast is for people around the world who want to improve their English listening comprehension and English accent (intonation). I produce two kinds of podcast episodes. 1) TQ: My original idea was the Ten Questions ESL Podcast. I interview native and non-native English speakers and ask

All Episodes

12:22

LnR 092 (Casual Language) Vacation

Ten Questions ESL Podcast ·

2017/01/22

LnR 092 (Casual Language) Vacation A: Hi, Miss Buswell. What are you going to do during the Spring Festival vocation? B: "Vacation", not "vocation". A: Oh, yeah. Sorry, I forgot. B: Happens all the time! Anyways, I'm staying here for the first part, then I'm going to spend two weeks in Laos. A: In Laos? That sounds interesting. B: It should be. I'll stay at a nice place just outside the capital. I want to relax, read a lot, work on projects, and do some sightseeing. A: That sounds great. Me, I'm

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15:38

TQ 061 Joy from Arkansas/Finland

Ten Questions ESL Podcast ·

2017/01/21

TQ 061 Joy from Arkansas/Finland I was happy to host Joy (and Tomas TQ 060, too) for two nights because I had never hosted a traveler from my home state of Arkansas. I grew up in the capital, Little Rock, which is the biggest city in Arkansas. Joy grew up in the middle of the woods! I recognized the name of the nearest town to her, Berryville, because I had gone to a high school football game there when I worked as a teacher. Joy's mother is from Finland. She wanted her children to get a good

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11:33

LnR 090 (Casual Language) Say and Hey

Ten Questions ESL Podcast ·

2017/01/18

LnR 090 (Casual Language) Say and Hey 1. Say, could I borrow your pen? 2. Say, could you turn the volume down a bit? 3. Say, I've got a question for you. 4. Say, can you stop by the store and get a dozen eggs on your way home? 5. Say, why is she so upset? 6. Hey, how are you? 7. Hey Mike, I haven't seen you in ages! 8. Hey, what are you doing? 9. Hey, watch out! 10. Hey, get off my lawn!

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18:06

TQ 060 Tomas from Argentina

Ten Questions ESL Podcast ·

2017/01/15

TQ 060 Tomas from Argentina Tomas and his friend Joy were my house guests for a couple of days while they were traveling in China. He is a nursing student in Finland, but is from Argentina. He's the first person from South America to be interviewed for my podcast! He said that he left home ten years ago to travel for a short time, but then ended up going all over the world. He's been to 70 countries! He and Joy had a nursing internship in Malaysia, then traveled in China and Southeast Asia. Tom said

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17:52

LnR 089 To Build a Fire 1 by Jack London

Ten Questions ESL Podcast ·

2017/01/09

LnR 089 To Build a Fire 1 TO BUILD A FIRE by Jack London (1876-1916) Day had broken cold and grey, exceedingly cold and grey, when the man turned aside from the main Yukon trail and climbed the high earth-bank, where a dim and little-travelled trail led eastward through the fat spruce timberland. It was a steep bank, and he paused for breath at the top, excusing the act to himself by looking at his watch. It was nine o’clock. There was no sun nor hint of sun, though there was not a cloud in the

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13:07

LnR (Casual Language) 088 Loan, Lend or Borrow?

Ten Questions ESL Podcast ·

2017/01/07

LnR (Casual Language) Loan, Lend or Borrow 1. Could you loan me your pen for a minute? 2. I'd like to borrow your pen for a minute. 3. She borrowed my laptop last week. 4. I loaned her my laptop last week. 5. I'm going to the bank today to borrow money to start my business. 6. The bank is going to loan me money to start my business. 7. My daughter borrowed money from me. 8. I loaned money to my daughter. 9. Many American students borrow money from the government to pay for school. 10. The government

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21:42

TQ 059 Lydia from the Netherlands

Ten Questions ESL Podcast ·

2017/01/05

TQ 059 Lydia from the Netherlands Lydia, 21, stayed with me for several days. She's been on the road for 15 months, cycling from the Netherlands to China and then on to Southeast Asia. She desired to see China because she lived here for two years when she was a little girl. Listen as we talk about how she learned English quickly by being put in an English school in Shanghai, why she is a vegetarian, and as she tells about the beauty of the Pamir Highway in Tajikistan. She also tells us about a Dutch

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08:55

LnR 087 Gift of the Magi 6

Ten Questions ESL Podcast ·

2016/12/22

LnR 087 Gift of the Magi 6 For there lay The Combs--the set of combs, side and back, that Della had worshipped long in a Broadway window. Beautiful combs, pure tortoise shell, with jewelled rims--just the shade to wear in the beautiful vanished hair. They were expensive combs, she knew, and her heart had simply craved and yearned over them without the least hope of possession. And now, they were hers, but the tresses that should have adorned the coveted adornments were gone. But she hugged them to

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13:17

LnR 086 I call Ken

Ten Questions ESL Podcast ·

2016/12/22

LnR 086 I call Ken Nancy: Hey, Kenny, when did you (whendidja/whenja) get home? Ken: Oh, about two hours ago. N: Did you (didja) have a good drive? K: Yeah, no problems. I drove through Atlanta before their morning rush hour, so that was OK. The highways through Alabama and Mississippi were fine, too. It rained a little when I hit Arkansas, but not for long. N:That's good. Did you (didja) enjoy Mom's surprise? K: Yeah, that was so funny! I couldn't believe that Mom had gotten a new cat! I was so

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22:39

TQ 058 Milena from Poland

Ten Questions ESL Podcast ·

2016/12/15

TQ 058 Milena from Poland Milena and Alicja (TQ 056) stayed with me for two nights as they were on their way from China to Vietnam. Alexei (TQ 057) was also here at the same time - three house guests! Milena has a somewhat strong Polish accent, so this will be good listening practice for most of you. Listen as we talk about skiing, safety while hitchhiking, and Hong Kong. Here are some words that Milena uses that you may not know: to be fit, downhill skiing, cross country skiing, adrenaline junkie,

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08:29

LnR 085 Gift of the Magi 5

Ten Questions ESL Podcast ·

2016/12/13

LnR 085 Gift of the Magi 5 "You've cut off your hair?" asked Jim, laboriously, as if he had not arrived at that patent fact yet even after the hardest mental labor. "Cut it off and sold it," said Della. "Don't you like me just as well, anyhow? I'm me without my hair, ain't I?" Jim looked about the room curiously. "You say your hair is gone?" he said, with an air almost of idiocy. "You needn't look for it," said Della. "It's sold, I tell you--sold and gone, too. It's Christmas Eve, boy. Be good

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12:31

LnR 084 Accent and Dialect

Ten Questions ESL Podcast ·

2016/12/13

LnR 084 Accent and Dialect A: Where are you from? I don't recognize your accent? B: South Africa! What about you? You sound American. A: Close. I'm from Canada, but I don't have a typical Canadian accent. I lived in the U.S. for several years when I was a kid. B: OK, I see. I can't really tell the difference between Canadians and Americans. A: Sometimes there's not a big difference. Unless the person is a French-Canadian. B: I have trouble understanding people from Scotland. I have a friend from

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21:25

TQ 057 Alexei from Belarus

Ten Questions ESL Podcast ·

2016/12/11

TQ 057 Alexei from Belarus Alexei (also called Alex) stayed in my apartment several nights on his way from China to Vietnam. He had already been traveling for a long time by bike. He is from Minsk, the capitol of Belarus. His native language is Russian. Listen as we talk about his trip and the names of all the countries he has cycled in. Here are some words you may not know: the road surface, brakes, to burn calories, vegetarian, Austria, the Alps, mountain pass, serpentine road (up a mountain),

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06:19

LnR 083 Gift of the Magi 4

Ten Questions ESL Podcast ·

2016/12/08

LnR 083 Gift of the Magi 4 At 7 o'clock the coffee was made and the frying-pan was on the back of the stove hot and ready to cook the chops. Jim was never late. Della doubled the fob chain in her hand and sat on the corner of the table near the door that he always entered. Then she heard his step on the stair away down on the first flight, and she turned white for just a moment. She had a habit for saying little silent prayer about the simplest everyday things, and now she whispered: "Please God,

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11:38

LnR 082 15 or 50?

Ten Questions ESL Podcast ·

2016/12/07

LnR 082 15 or 50? A: My son is 13 years old. B: Oh, is he married? A: I said, 13, not 30. 1-3. B. Oh, of course! Sorry 'bout that. Say, how many orders did that company place for our new product? A: 14. B: 40! That's great! A: No, 14. 1-4. B: Oh, too bad. We need the business. A: How many orders did you get for our older product? B: 60. A: 16. That's not too good, either. B: No, 60. 6-0. They really like that product. A: Is that the company that's been in business for 90 years? B: No, they've been

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22:32

TQ 056 Alicja from Poland

Ten Questions ESL Podcast ·

2016/12/07

TQ 056 Alicja from Poland Alicja and her friend Milena stayed with me two nights. A cyclist from Belarus was also here at the same time. Alicja and her friend sometimes travel by hitchhiking. Listen as we talk about her favorite sport, ski jumping, and how the Poles have 12 dishes for their Christmas Eve dinner, and how she visited a beautiful place in Bolivia, South America. She also traveled across Russia on the Trans-Siberian Railway, which is one of the great train rides in the world. Words that

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08:53

LnR 081 The Gift of the Magi 3

Ten Questions ESL Podcast ·

2016/11/29

LnR 081 The Gift of the Magi 3 Where she stopped the sign read: "Mne. Sofronie. Hair Goods of All Kinds." One flight up Della ran, and collected herself, panting. Madame, large, too white, chilly, hardly looked the "Sofronie." "Will you buy my hair?" asked Della. "I buy hair," said Madame. "Take yer hat off and let's have a sight at the looks of it." Down rippled the brown cascade. "Twenty dollars," said Madame, lifting the mass with a practised hand. "Give it to me quick," said Della. Oh, and

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07:51

LnR 080 Too or Very

Ten Questions ESL Podcast ·

2016/11/29

LnR 080 Too or Very A: Let's go out to eat tonight. B: Sounds good. Where do you want to go? (Where d'ya wanna go?) A: How about that place on the corner? It's my favorite. B: Yeah, but there's always too many people there. A: There's a lot of (lotta) people, but I don't think there are too many. B: Their food is also too spicy for me. A: Their food is very spicy, but that's how I like it. B: You know (Ya know) what, I've changed my mind. It's too cold outside to go out to eat. A: What do you

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24:19

TQ 055 William from Malaysia

Ten Questions ESL Podcast ·

2016/11/29

TQ 055 William from Malaysia William stayed with me for four nights after spending several months in Southeast Asia. Now he's on his way up through China on his way to Russia and then Europe. He plans to travel for two years! He's from Sarawak Province on the island of Borneo, which is the eastern part of Malaysia. His family has been there for four generations. He tells us his English name, Chinese name and Malay name. Listen as we talk about the warm clothes that he has bought here and about his

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09:29

LnR 079 The Gift of the Magi 2

Ten Questions ESL Podcast ·

2016/11/24

LnR 079 The Gift of the Magi 2 http://www.online-literature.com/o_henry/1014/ Della finished her cry and attended to her cheeks with the powder rag. She stood by the window and looked out dully at a gray cat walking a gray fence in a gray backyard. Tomorrow would be Christmas Day, and she had only $1.87 with which to buy Jim a present. She had been saving every penny she could for months, with this result. Twenty dollars a week doesn't go far. Expenses had been greater than she had calculated. They

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