★ Little Sunshine's Wonderland ★

: Hi Dave. [Hi] Good to see you could make it. Come on in.

Dave: Wow. Looks like the party is in full swing.

Jori: Yeah. And they're eating me out of house and home. Oh, I'd like you to meet my sister, Carol. She's visiting for the weekend.

Dave: Oh. Which one is she?

Jori: She's sitting on the sofa over there.

Dave: You mean the woman wearing the red sweater with the long black hair?

Jori: Yeah. That's right. Let me introduce her to you. I just know you two will hit it off. You're both so outgoing and adventurous.

Dave: Uh, and who's the man sitting next to her? Uh, the man with the suit jacket and flashy green tie?

Jori: Oh, that's Bob, my karate teacher.

Dave: Karate teacher! I never knew you were into karate.

Jori: Yeah, I started about two months ago. Come on. I'd like you to meet them.

• good to see you could make it : happy to see you could come
  - It's really good to see you could make it.

• full swing (idiom): at its high point
  - The party really got into full swing around midnight.

• eat someone out of house and home (idiom): they're eating all of my food
  - My teenagers have huge appetites and are eating me out of house and home.

• hit it off (idiom): get along well
  - My roommate and I hit it off from the very first day we moved in.

• outgoing (adjective): very friendly and sociable
  - He is very outgoing and always makes newcomers feel comfortable at a party.

• adventurous (adjective): willingness to try new things
  - If I were more adventurous, I think I would try mountain climbing.

• flashy (adjective): brightly colored or unusually decorated beyond normal standards
  - She tends to wear flashy ski wear during the winter season.

• "life of the party" = a person who makes a party fun for everyone

•  - "You need to invite him. He's always the life of the party, and he keeps things exciting."

• "eat you out of house and home" = be difficult to feed because someone is eating so much food

•   - "You need to tell your adult children to move out because they're eating you out of house and home."

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Topic 2: Phone Message

Conversation,

Little Girl: Hello.

Caller: He, he.., hello? Uh, yeah. Is . . . uh . . . your dad home?

Little Girl: Just a minute please.

Older Sister: Hello.

Caller: Uh . . . yeah . . . uh hello? Yeah, um . . . is . . . uh . . . Nick home please?

Older Sister: Oh, he can't come to the phone right now.

Caller: Okay, well, um, yeah, I need to talk to your dad. Um, yeah, could you . . . um . . . take a message?

Older Sister: Yeah.

Caller: Yeah. This is . . . my name's Nick Johnson. And if . . .

Older Sister: The phone number?

Caller: Yeah if you could tell him. Yeah, the phone number is 589 [Uh-huh] 7248.

Older Sister: 589-7248?

Caller: Yeah, right and if you could tell him to call me tonight between 7:00 and 8:30?

Older Sister: Okay.

Caller: Alright, and uh. Now, I think . . . are you his daughter?

Older Sister: Yeah.

Caller: Yeah, now what's your name?

Older Sister: I . . . I'm not supposed to tell that.

Caller: Ah, that's really smart. Alright, well just tell him I called.

Older Sister: (O)kay.

Caller: Okay, bye.

Older Sister: Bye

• "sleep on it" = wait until tomorrow to make a decision

•  - "She wanted to sleep on it before making such an important decision."

• "right off the bat" = immediately

•   - "When I called her yesterday, she told me right off the bat that she was getting married."

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Topic 3: Picnic Preparations

Conversation,

Scott: Dave. I'm going to the supermarket to pick up food and drink for Saturday's picnic later. Any suggestions?

Dave: Well, everyone has been talking about having a barbecue down by the river, so why don't you pick up some hamburger and hot dogs?

Scott: Okay, but how much hamburger meat are we going to need? And hot dogs too?

Dave: Uh, I don't know. How about three pounds of hamburger and a couple packages of hot dogs?

Scott: Oh, that's not going to be enough. Do you remember the last picnic we went on? Your roommate, Jim, ate about ten hamburgers by himself!

Dave: You're right. Let's see. I'd better write this down. Uh, let's see about nine pounds of hamburger meat and, uh . . . , seven packages of hot dogs.

Scott: And you better pick up some chicken for those who don't like hamburger or hot dogs.

Dave: Okay. How about five or six bags of potato chips?

Scott: Humm. Better make that eight or so.

Dave: Alright. Oh, and we're gonna [going to] need some hamburger and hot dog buns. How about five packages a piece? I think that sounds about right.

Scott: Yeah, you better pick up some mustard, catchup, and mayonnaise too.

Dave: Okay. What else? Uh, we're gonna [going to] need some soft drinks. How about ten of those big 2-liter bottles?

Scott: Sounds fine, but be sure to buy a variety of drinks.

Dave: Okay. And what about dessert?

Scott: Well, maybe we could ask Kathy to make a few cherry pies like she did last time.

Dave: Well, I wouldn't mind that, but you know, she's been very busy working two jobs, so I'd hate to ask her, [Oh, hum . . . ] and uh . . . Hey, why don't you whip up some of your oatmeal cookies? [Well . . .] Hey, you could even ask, uh . . . , what's her name . . . yeah that new girl, Susan, the one that moved in across the street! [Well . . .] I bet she'd be willing to help you! [I don't know . . . ] She's a real knockout!

Scott: Nah, I don't think I could ask her . . .[Ahh!] I don't know her phone number, plus . . .

[ Door bell rings . . . ]

Dave: Hey, you don't need to. She's at the door!

Scott: What do you mean?

Dave: Well, I thought you two would hit it off, so I called her up saying I was you, and I invited her over to watch a movie.

Scott: You did what???

Dave: Wait, wait, wait . . . [uhhhhh . . . ]

• supermarket (noun): a place where you buy food or other household goods, also grocery store
  - She went to the supermarket to buy food for dinner.

• talk about (phrasal verb): discuss
  - Let's get together after class to talk about tonight's party.

• pound (noun): a common measure of weight in the US, also 16 ounces
  - The turkey weighs over 25 pounds, so there should be enough to feed all our guests.

• package (noun): a container often used for food
  - He said he bought three packages of cookies to feed the kids an afternoon snack.

• you better (modal of advice): informal for "you had better" or "you'd better" and is generally used when there could be a negative consequence or result if the advice isn't followed
  - I told her that she better make enough food for 20 people, or some of the guests won't be happy or satisfied.

• whip up (phrasal verb): prepare quickly
  - There's no time to fix a big dinner, so I'll just have to whip up a simple salad.

• bet (verb): strongly believe or have faith in
  - This cake has a nice flavor. I bet she added some cinnamon to the recipe.

• knockout (noun): a very attractive or beautiful woman
  - Hey, you'll love her roommate. She's a real knockout, and she isn't dating anyone.

• nah: informal for "no"
  - Nah, I don't want to go out to eat. Let's just eat something easy at home.

• hit it off (phrasal verb): get along well
  - I thought they would hit it off and go on another date, but it turns out that they didn't have much in common.

• "gift of gab" = skill of interesting conversation

•  - "Not only was Allen a great cook, he also has the gift of gab that keeps a crowd entertained."

• "not your cup of tea" = not be the kind of thing you like

•   - "I'm sorry, but playing volleyball at a picnic isn't my cup of tea."