ESL Podcast 229 – Irritating Co-Workers

#ESL Podcast 229 – Irritating Co-Workers##GLOSSARY**to get on (someone’s) nerves –** to annoy someone; to irritate someone*I love my sister, but we really get on each other’s nerves sometimes.**cut that out! –** a rude (not polite) expression meaning *“Stop that!”* or “Stop doingwhat you’re doing!”*Can you please cut that out? I can’t talk on the phone while you’re making somuch noise!**to drive (someone) crazy –** to annoy someone; to irritate someone*Josephina’s mother always comes into her room without knocking and it drivesher crazy.**to slurp –** to make a loud noise while drinking a beverage*I really hope that the kids will remember not to slurp their soup at dinner tonight.**you’ve got to be kidding me –** you must be joking; I can’t believe what I’mhearing; you can’t be serious*You were never allowed to watch TV when you were growing up? You’ve gotto be kidding me!**to shoot the breeze –** to have a relaxed conversation about things that aren’timportant*Aleksay doesn’t really like fishing, but he does like spending time on the boat,just shooting the breeze with his friends.**to not be able to stand (something) –** to not be able to tolerate something; tobe frustrated and tired of something*I can’t stand the way my girlfriend is always trying to tell me what to do with myfree time.**no skin off my nose –** something that does not matter to someone because itdoes not affect him or her; it doesn’t matter to me*Jacqueline can sit in the front seat if she wants to. It’s no skin off my nose.**pent-up –** built up over time; an emotion that has been growing stronger overtime but has not been let out*He didn’t cry when his father died, but at the funeral, he cried for hours with allof his pent-up feelings of anger and sadness over his death.**close quarters –** cramped or crowded space; a room with little space for thepeople in it*In college, I lived with three other guys in a small apartment. Those closequarters made it hard to have any privacy.**to let off steam –** to do or say something that lets someone get rid of negativeemotions that have been growing over time*I’m sorry I yelled at you earlier. I was just letting off steam from my frustrationat work, but it really had nothing to do with you.**to keep (something) up –** to continue to do something*You played really well in the basketball game yesterday! If you keep it up, you’llbe the next team captain.**to forgive and forget –** to stop fighting, apologize, and behave as if a fight hadnever happened; to reconcile and be friends again*The brothers had a huge fight five years ago and stopped talking to each other,but last week, they finally decided to forgive and forget.**truce –** an agreement to stop fighting*Jill has been fighting with her roommate all week. Her roommate wants to calla truce, but Jill isn’t interested. She’s still too angry.**considerate –** thoughtful of another person’s feelings; careful not to hurtsomeone else’s feelings*Manuel is the most considerate person I know. He always thinks before hespeaks, and he never says anything that would hurt someone else’s feelings.##COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS1. Why is Isabel irritated by Pete’s friend Deepak?a) Because he interrupts her phone calls.b) Because he leaves the window open and lets in the breeze.c) Because he comes to the office to talk too often.2. Pete is upset with Isabel because:a) She is too noisy.b) She took his pencil.c) She uses his phone.##WHAT ELSE DOES IT MEAN?close quartersThe phrase *“close quarters,”* in this podcast, means a cramped or crowdedspace, or a room with little space for the people in it: “The soldiers live in veryclose quarters.” A *“quarter”* can also refer to one-fourth (1/4) of something: “Therecipe says that we should use a quarter of a cup of sugar and three-quarters ofa cup of flour.” A *“quarter”* is also one-fourth (1/4) of an academic year at somecolleges and universities: “Even though she received all A’s in the fall quarter,she almost failed