Do the preparation task first. Then listen to the audio and do the exercises.
Preparation
Transcript
Selina: Patrick? Is that you?
Patrick: Selina! Hello!
Selina: Well, well. Patrick Eastwood. How have you been?
Patrick: Good. Great, actually. How are you? I haven't seen you for ... how long?
Selina: It's been ages. At least fifteen years. Wow.
Patrick: Yeah. Wow.
Patrick and Selina: So, what are you doing here?
Selina: Sorry, you go first.
Patrick: OK. What are you doing here? I thought you'd moved to London.
Selina: I was in London for a couple of years. But it didn't work out.
Patrick: Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. Are you ... OK?
Selina: I'm fine! The dream job wasn't really a dream, you know? Um ... and London is great but it's so expensive. I mean, just the rent on a flat is ... uh … crazy expensive.
Patrick: I see.
Selina: So, I came back. I've been back now for almost five months. Living back home with Mum and Dad. Which is err ... interesting. Um ... but anyway, what about you?
Patrick: Me? Oh, nothing new. You know me – 'Patrick the predictable'. I never left here.
Selina: Oh. And is that ...?
Patrick: Oh, I'm very happy. I'm married now. We've just celebrated our tenth anniversary.
Selina: No way! You? Married? To …?
Patrick: I don't think you know her. Her name's Marigold. And we've got two kids. They're five and eight years old.
Selina: Married and with two kids? Wow!
Patrick: Don't look so surprised!
Selina: No, no … I'm just amazed how time flies! I'm happy for you. I really am.
Patrick: Thanks. You should really come round to the house one day.
Selina: That would be great. Let's swap numbers and ...
It's good to meet your old friends
Yeah!! I mean we haven´t seen each other face to face for a long time but we always keep in touch, like I have her number, then we talk every time about whats new in our lives. Her name is Sofia and we know each other since the elementary school, but one day I had to move and I changed my school, so we stopped to talk for some years, however when I was in the High School she call me at the Instagram and made me a DM, then we start to talk again and she said me that she was going to USA for making an Exchange Programm, then she invited me to go on a party in her house, it was like a ´´goodbye party`` cause she was arriving to other country in a few days. After that party we became more and more close, so today we dont talk every day but I can say that we are very close, because when we have time we always send some messages!! I admire her very much, and I always want her as my friend!!
Honestly, after I moved to another city, I sometimes missed my old friends from my previous city. However, no matter what happened, we remained best friends forever, even though we were no longer in the same city.
Yes, I do, with some of them. I am 50 years old and I still see 5 high school mates but above all my university collegues who are still my best friends and we talk and see each other very often.
A few weeks ago, during the study program orientation, I ran into an old friend from elementary school. He hadn’t changed at all! We reminisced about the past, talked about what we’ve been up to since graduation, and laughed at how he still remembers me as the 'troublemaker' in class. I couldn’t help but laugh and apologize, admitting that I really was a handful back then. But he just smiled and said I’ve changed a lot I'm not as fierce as I used to be, and now I seem much calmer. Meeting him felt so nostalgic; it brought back a flood of memories from my ridiculous elementary school days."
It's good to find long-standing friends because they remind you of your good times.
I had many friends in high school, but after we graduated, we went our own ways because we live on different islands. I really want to see them again because, after six years together, they feel like family to me. Even though I have new friends now, my old friends can’t be replaced. We still keep in touch on social media and wish each other happy birthdays, even though we can’t celebrate together anymore :(
Hey, do you wanna practice speaking together?