📙 Part 2: Describe something you own that you want to replace

You should say: what it is, where it is, how you got it, and explain why you want to replace it.

This episode's vocabulary

• Frayed (adj.) - with the threads at the edge coming loose.
• Metaphorically (adverb) - relating to or using metaphors (= expressions that describe a person or object by referring to something that is considered to have similar characteristics).
• Vividly (adverb) - in a way that is very clear, powerful, and detailed in your mind.
• Sunk (adj.) - experiencing serious trouble, or unable to solve a problem.
• To fall to pieces (idiom) - to break apart into smaller parts.
• Cracked (adj.) - if something is cracked, it is damaged with one or more thin lines on its surface.
• Knackered (adj.) - broken or too old to use.
• Hunk (noun) - a large, thick piece, especially of food.
• Adjustment (noun) - a small change.

Questions and Answers

M: Rory, hello!

R: Hello!

M: Give us your story!

R: Well, I really do love it, I think I'll have to get a new smartphone soon. I've had it for ages. And it's a bit frayed at the edges. Quite literally, actually, in addition to metaphorically. It's a Samsung S10. And it comes everywhere with me since I need it for work and studying and entertainment. I use it to make recordings and read articles and watch or listen to videos. I even have a few workout plans on there as well. So it covers everything. It was originally a gift from a former partner who worked for Samsung. So I got it for free, which is just as well since I think they were pretty expensive at the time it was given to me. And that was Christmas 2019. So that's almost four and a half years ago now, maybe five years ago. I remember it vividly since it was just before the pandemic. And without the new phone and my new laptop, which I got at the time, I would have been sunk during everything that followed because my old phone wasn't working so well. And my old laptop was falling to pieces too. So it was almost perfectly timed for the switch over to online work, exclusively online work. Since then, like I said, it's been everywhere with me. And I've been able to do all kinds of things with it. To be honest, maybe it's come to a few too many places because the screen is slightly cracked. And I'm fairly certain the battery must be knackered at this point since it doesn't hold the charge very well compared to what it used to. And really, why should it be after so many years? I think I could get another year out of it if I had to. But I have a birthday coming up. And what better time to ask for a new phone that will work a little bit better? I still feel a bit bad about it, though. Even though it's just a hunk of plastic and metal. That thing and I have been through a lot together and I will miss it when I get something better eventually, hopefully, the adjustment period will be easy after so long using the same thing.

M: Aw... And will you get a new one soon?

R: Well, my birthday is in two months. So that seems quite soon.

Discussion

M: Right, dear listener, so the task is something you own. So something, it should be an object that you want to replace. And, Rory, replace means to have a new object or to have like a different object? So kind of you talked about your phone. So you'll get a new phone. So you will replace an old phone?

R: Yeah.

M: What else can our learners talk about here?

R: I think most people replace their phones. But other people could talk about other electronic objects which are regularly replaced, like watches, and smartwatches too. Or computers. Perhaps an appliance in the house?

M: Yeah, like a kettle, a fridge, a TV. I want to replace an old TV. Right? Something, I don't know, maybe an old mattress. Okay? An old piece of furniture, old pieces of furniture. Can I talk about clothes? Like my winter jacket.

R: Yes, if it's falling apart. But it's been a while since winter.

M: Yes, dear listener, so make your choice. But I think the easiest thing to talk about is our smartphones. Yeah? Or laptops. Rory started it with while I really love it.

R: Really do love it, which is using do for emphasis.

M: Yeah, like I do love my old phone. But I'll have to get a new one. Okay? I've had it for ages. Present Perfect. I have had it for ages. It's a bit frayed at the edges. What does it mean to be frayed at the edges?

R: Frayed at the edges is usually used to refer to clothes which are falling apart. And they've been worn so much that you can almost start to see through them. But the idea of frayed at the edges means that something is not in as good a condition as it used to be and my phone is certainly in that condition.

M: Could you use it for a laptop? Could you give us a sentence?

R: Yeah, sure. My laptop is a bit frayed at the edges. It's usually about clothes, but it can be used to describe any kind of thing that's falling to pieces.

M: Can I say my winter jacket is a bit frayed at the edges, so I'll have to get a new one?

R: Yes.

M: And Rory's phone is a Samsung S10. And Rory has had it for four years, dear listener. A long time.

R: Almost five now.

M: Almost five years. Wow. And the phone is still alive. Well, half dead. It comes everywhere with me. Okay? So Rory does all his work, studying and entertainment using his phone, dear listener. He also uses it to make recordings, and read articles. Wow. So all his life happens inside this phone. It was originally a gift.

R: Yeah. That's how I got it.

M: And I got it for free. That's very nice. It was pretty expensive at the time given to me. So it was given to me like five years ago. I remember it vividly. If you remember something vividly, you remember it very well. In colours. And this was before the pandemic. Rory got a new phone and then he started working online. How convenient. Rory, well done you! Perfect time.

R: I know, it was so convenient. Otherwise, it would have been a disaster.

M: And we can say that, without this new phone, I would have been sunk during the pandemic. Sunk? In this context, I would, I don't know, I would have had difficulties.

R: Serious difficulties.

M: Serious. Like "sink", we usually use it to talk about ships. The Titanic sank.

R: But you can also be sunk in terms of your efforts.

M: For example.

R: Well, if something doesn't work out, for example, I tried to... Yeah, well, if I hadn't had that computer, my efforts would have been sank in terms of adapting to online learning.

M: Since 2019 this phone has been everywhere with me. I've been able to do all kinds of things with this phone. So again, Present Perfect, dear listener. I've been using it for over five years, and I've been able to do all the work with this. So you can use the same expressions if you're talking about your laptop. Even if you don't have to replace it, talk about your laptop, okay? Or your smartphone. Very easy to do. To be honest, it's come to too many places. So your phone has visited many places with you. Yes, Rory? It has been through difficult times.

R: It's been through a lot.

M: And the screen is slightly cracked. Okay? So Rory dropped it a couple of times, right, Rory?

R: Yes. I dropped it twice. And both of those times it's cracked a little bit.

M: The battery must be knackered. What does it mean to be knackered?

R: It just, it's done. It's finished, or it's been destroyed. In this case, the battery is just about finished. It doesn't hold the charge as effectively as it used to.

M: Yeah, if you say like, ooh, I'm I was knackered at the end of the working day, I was very tired. In formal British English. But here, the battery must be knackered. So half dead. The battery doesn't hold a charge. So you charge your phone, but it just doesn't charge well. Yeah? I could get another one soon. And I have a birthday coming up. And I'm going to ask my family to give me a new smartphone. Yay

R: Yeah.

M: And then it's so cute. Rory tells us that he feels bad about it because they've been together for a long time, Rory and his phone. And kind of, you know, they are family. They are family. Yeah, they've been through difficult times. It's just a hunk of plastic and metal. A hunk of it's like a piece of?

R: Yeah. Or a lump of something.

M: But it's, well, Rory has grown attached to this smartphone during these five years. Five happy years. We've been through a lot together. Have been through a lot together. And I will miss it. Aw, this is so cute. And then, people, we know that when you buy a new phone, it's this period of adjustment, right? So you'll have to adjust to a new device. So hopefully, the adjustment periods will be easy. How Rory changes from an old phone to a new one. And you're gonna get a Samsung, right? You're not gonna get Apple or something? Nokia?

R: I don't know, I'm torn on this. I'm either getting a Samsung or I'm getting a Fairphone. I can't decide which one.

M: Which one? Fearphone?

R: A Fairphone. Yeah. They're a little bit more expensive, but the materials to make it are ethically sourced.

M: Oh, okay, but you're gonna ask your family to get you one, right?

R: For my birthday? Yes, I'm thinking about it.

M: Nice. So they can all chip in, and like get you a new one.

R: Well, yes.

M: What helped you organize this answer?

R: Almost everything that was in the task, I did add a little a bit of an introduction, just to say, I do love this thing, but it's time for it to go. And I think most people like their phones, and they don't want to get rid of it. But they reached the end of being able to use it successfully.

M: This is the end. You know.

R: Speaking of the end, I also added something that I was talking about, hopefully, the adjustment period will be easier after using the same thing for so long. So this is about a possible side effect of replacing it, but it's all connected to the idea of replacing a product.

M: Lovely. So dear listener, talk about your smartphone or your laptop. Okay? Excellent. Thank you very much for listening! And we'll get back to you in our new episode about consumer habits!

R: Oh, gosh, the consumerism. Bye!

M: Bye!

Make sure to subscribe to our social media to see some of the “behind the scenes” stuff:

Our Instagram: bit.ly/instagramswi

Our Telegram: bit.ly/telegramswi