Tapescript for A01

UNIT 1: HOW TO MAKE A SANDWICH

I. Listen and answer the questions

Gordon was hungry. He opened the refrigerator. There must be something in here to eat, he thought. There was—a single hot dog. He took it out of its package and put a small frying pan onto the stove's gas burner. He turned on the heat. Then he poured a little bit of vegetable oil into the pan.

He sliced the hot dog in half lengthwise. When the oil got hot, he put the two halves in the pan. About a minute later, he flipped each half over. After another minute, he took the hot dog out of the pan.

Gordon put two slices of bread into the toaster. This was tasty and healthy bread. The first ingredient listed was organic sprouted wheat. The first ingredient in ordinary bread is usually unbleached flour. When the toast popped up, he put mustard, mayonnaise, and ketchup on one slice.

Then he added two slices of onion. On top of the onions, he placed the hot dog. On top of the hot dog, he put a couple of slices of apple. Then he added some bits of hot green chile, and then put the top piece of toast onto the chile bits. Ahh, what a sandwich, he thought, as he sat down to eat.

UNIT 2: YOU’RE COUNTRY THANKS YOU

I. Listen and answer the questions

1. Jordan Wolf signed up for the Army as soon as he graduated from high school.
2. After Jordan took various aptitude tests, the recruiter said that Jordan scored high in electronics.
3. He would receive a stateside assignment in a computer lab,
4. where he would learn to program software and repair electronic hardware.
5. Also, Jordan would receive a $10,000 cash bonus.
6. He attended eight weeks of basic training at Ft. Benning, Georgia.
7. While in training, he talked to his new buddies about how he was going to be in a computer lab stateside / after basic training.
8. His buddies were amazed, as all of them were going straight to Iraq.
9. They all graduated from basic training on a Friday / and spent the weekend getting drunk in nearby Columbus.
10. On Monday morning, the drill sergeant told all of them that their next duty station was Iraq.
11. Jordan told the drill sergeant that there must have been a mistake.
12. "The Army doesn't make mistakes, soldier!" the drill sergeant barked at him. "Now pack your gear. You'll be in Baghdad in two days."

II. Listen and dictate

1. Jordan wrote letters to his congressman and senators while he was in Iraq.
2. He couldn't believe that the recruiter had lied to him like that.
3. Meanwhile, for almost 18 months he went out on daily missions looking for the bad guys.
4. One day, his vehicle got blown up by a handmade bomb.
5. He got shrapnel in his left eye and was permanently blinded.
6. The Army gave him a glass eye, declared him unfit for duty, and discharged him.
7. After enrolling at Troy University, Jordan got a letter from the Pentagon.
8. Maybe it's a commendation, he thought as he opened the letter.
9. Since he hadn't completed his three-year commitment to the Army, the letter said, he must return all of his cash bonus, plus interest.

UNIT 3: A BIRD ATTACKS

I. Listen and answer the questions

1. Heather loved the freedom of soaring high above the land and sea.
2. She learned how to hang-glide from her boyfriend.
3. Initially, she was scared to death.
4. The first time he took her up, she hung on for dear life.
5. But by the end of that flight, she was hooked. (cuốn vào)
6. Half a year later, she bought her own hang-glider.
7. Almost every weekend, she drove to Torrey Pines and leaped off the cliff.
8. She could soar to La Jolla in less than five minutes.
9. She liked to fly over the town.
10. She would wave at kids pointing and looking up at her,
11. and they would shout and wave back excitedly.

II. Listen and dictate

1. One day she was returning to the launch site when she noticed a red hawk rapidly approaching her.
2. It briefly disappeared.
3. Then she heard its claws ripping the wing's fabric.
4. It flew off.
5. But the next thing she knew, it was flying straight at her.
6. She turned out of its way, but it dove at her again.
7. She was scared.
8. She had to evade its attacks four times before she was able to land safely.
9. Even after she landed, it circled overhead, as if daring her to fly again.
10. What did I do to you, she wondered.
11. As she drove home, she found out that she had been lucky.
12. The radio news reported that in Australia, a hang-glider had been attacked by not one, but two, eagles.
13. Maybe it was something in the air, Heather thought.

Unit 4: THE ARGUMENT

I. Listen and fill in the blanks

Lulu didn't want to go to the play. This Wednesday was going to be very busy. She had realty meetings and clients to drive around. Called "Narnia," the play was based on the novel by C.S. Lewis. It was a musical. "You know that I don't like musicals," she told Walt. "I can never understand what they're saying when they sing, and the music is not that good, either." He told her that there were a lot of great musicals, famous just for their music if nothing else. She asked when he was going to take her to one.

Well, he said, someone had told him that this play was the one. She still said that she'd rather not go. He argued that they only went to a play once every two months, so please be ready. He would pick her up the next day at 7 p.m.

II. Listen and dictate

1. Throughout the next day, he thought about the play—maybe Lulu was right.
2. He called up a couple of friends to ask if they had seen the play, but they had not.
3. At about 6 p.m., he had the bright idea to Google the play.
4. Sure enough, he found a site that contained music samples from the play.
5. He sampled about six tunes; they did nothing for him.
6. Lulu was right, he thought, at least about this play.
7. He was going to call Lulu, but just then his sister called him.
8. They talked for at least half an hour.

UNIT 5: A DAYTIME ROBBERY

I. Listen and answer the questions

1. Rod was a manager at House Depot.
2. He worked about 50 hours a week.
3. He loved his job, although the extra hours cut into the time he could spend with his three little girls.
4. One morning he was supposed to go home at 7 a.m.
5. Instead, he stayed on to help out for three more hours.
6. He was just about to leave at 10 a.m. when he heard something.
7. At one of the checkout counters, he saw a man dressed in white painter's coveralls pointing a gun at the female checker.
8. He had on a yellow cap, a white plastic painter's mask, and white gloves.
9. Rod hurried over.
10. Times in Los Angeles had changed.
11. All managers now received training on how to respond to armed robberies and hostage-taking.

II. Listen and dictate

1. Rod was nervous, but he knew what he was supposed to do.
2. He approached the gunman.
3. "Sir, please don't point that gun. We will give you all the money you?
4. The gunman didn't even wait for Rod to finish his sentence.
5. He shot Rod in the stomach.
6. The checker screamed.
7. The gunman ran out to a white van and hopped in.
8. The van sped off.
9. Rod didn't even make it to surgery.
10. The killing made all the TV news shows.
11. House Depot offered a $100,000 reward.

UNIT 6: A HAIRCUT

1. It was time for a haircut. Lenny didn't even have to look in the mirror. Even though he was going bald, he knew that he needed to cut his hair every two weeks. He had a "tongue" of hair on the top of his head.
2. His hair was thinning at the crown. He still had plenty of hair on the sides and back. It was what they call "salt and pepper," a mixture of gray hair and dark brown hair. It was only a few years, he figured, until the salt and pepper became just salt.
3. He never let his hair grow for more than two weeks. The longer it got, the worse it looked, he thought. He spread a newspaper over the bathroom sink so that no hair went down the drain.
4. He plugged in the clippers and started cutting his hair. He started at the back of his head, went to the sides, and finished on the top.
5. Every minute or so, he had to clean the hair out of the blades with an old toothbrush.
6. Finished, he picked up a hand mirror to check out the back of his head. Everything looked okay. He carried the newspaper back out to the kitchen and shook the hair clippings into the trash can. Then he took a shower.

UNIT 7: A NOISY NEIGHBOR

1. Barbara couldn't take it anymore. Her upstairs neighbor was blasting his stereo again. She had asked him twice already to turn the volume down.



2. The first time she asked, he was surprised. He said he didn't know that she could hear his stereo. "Yes," she said, "it's just like your stereo was in my living room. I can hear every note!"He said he would keep it down.



3. She hoped that he was telling the truth. Of course, he wasn't. The very next day, he blasted his stereo. She marched upstairs to remind him of his promise.



4. He said the volume was so low that he could barely hear it.She asked him to turn it lower. He said he would try. Barbara could swear that when she re-entered her apartment, the music was louder than when she had walked upstairs. So, this was the third time.



5. She took her baseball bat upstairs with her. She knocked very loudly on his door. When he opened the door, she screamed at him like a crazy person. She told him she would kill him if he didn't turn the music down and keep it down. His eyes got big.



6. She went back downstairs. She couldn't hear a note. I can't believe I said that, she told herself.

UNIT 8: THE WAY TO A MAN’S HEART

I. Listen and anwer the questions

1. He was her university teacher.
2. He was smart, confident, and had a great sense of humor, and he was rather good-looking, too. 3. The fact was, she had fallen in love with him.
4. She sensed that he might like her.
5. She had caught him looking at her more than once. What to do?
6. At the end of the semester, she waited till all the other students had left.
7. She said she had a gift for him.
8. He said that was very nice of her.
9. Then he looked around for a wrapped package.
10. Where was the gift, he asked.
11. She said it was still at the store.
12. She would pick him up and take him there that Saturday if that was okay with him.
13. She picked him up at the Starbucks near his apartment.
14. He was enjoying the mystery.
15. He asked her: Was it an alarm clock so that he wouldn't be late for class? Was it teaching materials, like markers and erasers? A new briefcase? An extra ink cartridge for his computer for when he printed hand-outs?
16. She said that she couldn't comment.

II. Listen and dictate

1. They got to the mall and went into Nordstrom's.
2. "I hope it isn't a suit," he joked. "I never wear suits."
3. "No, it isn't. But it's something that you always wear with a suit."
4. "A tie? Why would I wear a tie if I never wear suits?"
5. "Not a tie, silly," she said, as they walked into the shoe department.
6. She had noticed that he always wore the same pair of shoes in class.
7. She had guessed that he wore size 11, and had picked out a nice two-tone casual model by Clark.
8. She hoped that he would like the shoes as much as she did.
9. The shoes fit perfectly, and he did like them.
10. When they left the store, he offered her his hand, and they walked out to her car hand in hand.
11. She was tingling.
12. "Let me at least buy you dinner," he suggested as they got into her car.

UNIT 9: A VISIT TO ASIA

Part 1

1. Liz was excited. She was going to Asia with her mom. Neither of them had ever traveled out of the United States before. They were going to fly to Hong Kong. After staying in Hong Kong for three nights, they would travel on their cruise ship to Shanghai and Beijing.
2. "Beijing is inland, so we have to take about a two-hour bus ride to get there from the port. I forget the name of the port. Anyway, we're going to see the Great Wall, the Tiananmen Square, and the Forbidden City. It's going to be so cool!" she told her neighbor Jane.
3. From China, the cruise ship would go to Pusan in South Korea, and finally to Tokyo. From Tokyo, they would catch a flight back to Los Angeles.

Part 2

1. "The trip is going to last three weeks.
2. It's only going to cost us $2,800 each, IF we can control our urge to shop," she laughed.
3. "I hope your trip is more fun than mine was," said Jane.
4. "I took a cruise to the Bahamas, but almost all the passengers got sick.
5. I caught some kind of virus that made me throw up for almost three days.
6. They gave us a discount that we could use on a future trip.
7. Ha! No more cruising for me."
8. "We've heard about those disasters," said Liz. "Mom and I are going to be washing our hands every 30 minutes, and we're bringing surgical masks with us."

UNIT 10: CARBON MONOXIDE

I. Listen and answer the questions

1. Helen stepped outside her front door to see what the weather was like.
2. It was sunny and warm.
3. That was nice, because for the past two weeks it had been cold and rainy.
4. It had been so cold that she had had to turn her heater on.
5. She was lucky, because her heater worked and she could pay her heating bills.
6. Some people in Los Angeles were not so lucky.
7. Unable to use their home heater, they placed charcoal into a barbecue grill and lit it.
8. The heat kept them warm, but the carbon monoxide killed them.
9. This happens almost every winter in Los Angeles.
10. People shut all the windows tight to keep the cold out, then light the charcoal.

II. Listen and dictate

1. Soon enough, the oxygen in their home is consumed by the open flames.
2. The family suffocates to death.
3. Everyone knows that smoke detectors are required in Los Angeles.
4. But many people don't know about, or don't think they need carbon monoxide detectors.
5. They're not expensive.
6. A $25 investment can save a family from death.
7. People always think that nothing bad will happen to them;
8. it always happens to "the other guy."
9. So they forget to put fresh batteries into their smoke detectors annually,
10. and they don't bother to buy carbon monoxide detectors.

UNIT 11: EDDIE'S SHORT VISIT

Part I

1. Eddie drove over to see Betty. When he got to her apartment at about 3:15 p.m., he saw that her car wasn't in the carport. So he wrote a note: "Hi, Betty. I love you and I miss you. Love, Eddie."
2. He was about to tape the note onto her front door when he saw her car pull up. She walked up the stairs. Instead of the big smile, hug, and kiss that she usually greeted him with, she simply said, "What's up?"
3. "You didn't call me back for the last two days, honey, so I came over to see you." He gave her the note. She opened it, read it, and put it on the kitchen table.
4. "That's sweet," she said. She walked into her bedroom. Eddie followed her. She put her purse on the bed. Eddie tried to hug her.
5. "I have to wash my hands," she said. When she came out of the bathroom, she told Eddie that he should go home. She said that she was hungry and tired. She was going to fix something to eat. Then she was going to take a nap. She said that she might call him later.
6. During Eddie's entire five-minute visit, Betty had constantly avoided his eyes. Instead of walking him out to his car, like she usually did, Betty locked her front door as soon as Eddie was outside her apartment.

Unit 12: LET SPEAK ENGLISH

Part 1

1. It was the first day of class. Two of her new ESL classmates wanted to know where Tara was from. They were both from Iraq.
2. Because Tara looked Iraqi, one of the women asked Tara, in English, if she was from Iraq. Tara replied, "No, I'm not."
3. Then the women took turns asking Tara if she was from Iran, or Syria, or Jordan. To each question, Tara responded with a simple no.
4. Laughing, one woman said to the other, "She's not from anywhere!"
5. The two went to their desks, talking to each other in Arabic. The next day, the teacher divided the students into groups of four. The students in each group asked introductory questions of each other. A student in Tara's group asked her, "Where are you from?" Tara answered that she was from Iraq.

Part II

6. The two women who had questioned Tara the day before were sitting only a few feet away. Both of them heard Tara's response. "Aha!" they both exclaimed. "You ARE from Iraq!" Tara smiled and said yes. Then she apologized to both of them for lying the day before. She explained that she had not wanted to get into an Arabic conversation with them.
7. It had been her experience that many ESL students continued to speak their native language in ESL class, and Tara had not come to ESL class to practice her Arabic. In her opinion, ESL students should try to speak English only.
8. "I agree," said Rose. "You're 100 percent right," agreed Jennifer. "Rose and I must stop speaking Arabic to each other. Right, Rose?"
9. Rose nodded, and then said something in Arabic. All three women laughed. Over the next four months, Tara became friendly with both women, although she never spoke a word of Arabic to them during class or break.

UNIT 13: BAD DREAM

I. Listen and fill in the blanks

"I had another bad dream," she told her fiance? "It was about you again. You and your ex-girlfriend were kissing. I yelled at you to stop it. You looked right at me, and then you laughed at me! She laughed, too. Then you both went back to kissing. I tried not to watch, but when I covered my eyes, something pulled my hands away. I tried to leave, but my feet were glued to the ground. Finally, I woke up. Of course, it was very difficult to get back to sleep.
"I had to drive home from Las Vegas this morning. It's a wonder I didn't crash 50 times. Instead of seeing traffic in front of me, all I saw was you and her. I can't take any more dreams like this. We're going to have to break up. We can be friends, but just friends. That way, I won't be jealous anymore, and I won't have these bad dreams anymore."
"Why didn't you call me up and tell me about your dream?" he asked. "They say that the more you talk about bad dreams, the sooner you'll stop having them."

II. Listen and answer the questions

1. She disagreed.
2. She thought that the only solution was to break up and be just friends.
3. She loved him, but these dreams had become so frequent that she was actually afraid to go to sleep.
4. She was losing weight and having stomachaches from the stress.
5. He didn't know what to do.
6. He wanted her to have pleasant dreams, He wanted her to have a life without stress. He wanted her to be his wife.
7. This was it, she repeated; if she had just one more bad dream, they were through.
8. He squeezed her hand, but said nothing.

UNIT 14: FAMOUS MODEL DIES

Once in a while, someone dies and you remember where you were and what you were doing when you heard the sad news. Thousands of people worldwide felt that way when they heard that the beautiful Anna Nicole Smith had suddenly died.
It was a "tragedy that shocked the nation," according to various TV and radio reporters. "The nation is in mourning," these same reporters claimed. She was only 39.
Her husband discovered her lying in bed unconscious and not breathing. Paramedics quickly arrived and tried to revive her, but it was too late. Her body was taken to the morgue, where the coroner did an autopsy the next day. No evidence of drugs was found. It might have been a heart attack, but further testing was necessary.
Anna was a cover girl, a model, and an actress. She married a billionaire who was 89 when she was only 25. The billionaire died a couple of years later. Anna went to court to get her fair share of her husband's wealth.
The case was still unresolved when she died. Now it will continue after her death, because Anna has a new-born daughter. The daughter might be entitled to millions when the court case is finally settled. At least three men have claimed to be the father of this millionaire baby.

UNIT 15: A JALUOS GIRLFRIEND

Gary and Alma were having problems, again.
"But you told me it was okay to call up Carol," said Gary. "I asked you if it was okay to talk to her, because it was her birthday and I've wished her a happy birthday every year for the last 10 years."
"But you had already promised me that you would never call her again. You promised me that. So, you lied to me."
"But I had forgotten that I told you that. You know that I forget things. I'm not going to argue with you; you have a memory like an elephant. But you've got to believe me, I completely forgot. And more important, Carol is just a friend."
"No, she isn't. She's still in love with you."
"But I'm not in love with her. She can love me all she wants, but I'm not in love with her. I never was!"
"Well, you say that. Maybe it's true. Maybe it isn't. But the important thing is that you never know what the future will bring. You say that nothing will happen between you and her, but you don't know that for sure, because you don't know the future."
"Yes, you're right. No one knows the future. I could fall in love with her again, and she and I might run off and get married and have nine or ten kids."
"Again? What do you mean 'again'?"

UNIT 16: NEW TO AMERICA

Nancy was new to America. She came to America speaking only her native language. She brought her 8-year-old son with her. He was all she had in the world.

They found an apartment in Arcadia. They were there for only two months when a neighbor's dog jumped over the fence. The dog ran toward Nancy's son. Nancy put her body in between the dog and her son. The dog stopped when it saw Nancy screaming at it. She was going to punch it in the nose. The dog turned around.

Shaking, Nancy took her son upstairs. They stayed in the apartment all weekend. Then Nancy found another apartment, close to the school that her son was going to attend. She and her son walked everywhere. One day her son started coughing badly. He had an asthma attack. All the walking was making his asthma worse.

Nancy knew that she had to buy a car. So she called up the Honda dealer. She talked to a salesman who spoke her language. She told him that she wanted to buy a new car if he could come over to pick her up. The salesman said he would be right over.

UNIT 17: DEATH IS A PART OF LIFE

Part 1
"Happy birthday! This is your dad calling," Dad said. Dad always identified himself, as if after 60 years Joel didn't recognize his own dad's voice. "Well, you're getting pretty old, aren't you?" Dad asked.
"I sure am," Joel said. "In fact, I'm the same age you were 20 years ago!"
"Yes, who'd ever think that they wished they were 60 again," said his dad. "This aging process is certainly no fun."
"You can say that again," Joel said. But as they say, it's a lot better than the alternative. As long as you're reasonably healthy in mind and body. They both agreed.
His dad and mom were still quite active. They lived together in their house. They both drove. They both played golf regularly and were active volunteers in the community.
But, such independence would not last forever. Both of them would eventually need part-time or full-time nursing assistance at home, or maybe even have to be moved into a nursing home.
Part 2
1. What a quiet end that will be, Joel thought, to such fun, productive, and eventful lives.
2. Lying in a bed in a nursing home, waiting for relatives and friends to come visit.
3. Waiting for the nurse's aide to bring medication, dinner, or an extra blanket.
4. Waiting for help to use the bathroom.
5. Much of that time spent waiting would also be spent in thought.
6. What do people think about when they know their time is almost up, Joel wondered.
UNIT 18: WHY THE SKY IS BROWN
Every two years, DMV sent Cory a notice to get a pollution check to make sure his Cadillac wasn't fouling the California sky. Cory thought that DMV was fighting a losing battle, considering that there were 30 million cars and 10 million cows in California, not to mention the air pollution drifting into California from across the Pacific.
After driving on the 210 freeway for 20 minutes to warm the engine up, Cory drove to the test-only center on Colorado Blvd. Sam, the owner, offered Cory a bottle of purified water. Sam pulled the car up to the test machine and stuck the machine's sensor up the car's tail pipe. This isn't good, Cory thought. Sam showed Cory the printout: "Your vehicle is a gross polluter!"
"What does that mean?" Cory asked. It meant that Cory had to take his car to a mechanic to find out why the car was running so rich. It was using gasoline inefficiently. Maybe that's why I'm getting only 8 miles per gallon, Cory thought. Sam said that once the problem was fixed, bring the car back for a second test, which would be free.
2. Part 2
1. Cory took his car to Moe, his regular mechanic.
2. Moe said he couldn't help Cory, but his friend Ramsey specialized in emission problems.
3. He gave Cory Ramsey's business card.
4. "Tell him that I recommended you," Moe said.
5. Ramsey said to bring the car by 8:00 a.m.
6. Monday through Friday--"first come, first served."
7. Cory got there at 7:40 a.m. Monday.
8. There were three cars already parked there, but Cory was relieved to discover that they were the mechanics' cars.
9. He was the first customer.
10. Ramsey introduced himself, saying, "Coffee will be ready in a few minutes.
11. I'll show you the waiting room."
12. He was a friendly, courteous man.
13. Cory felt comfortable.
14. Moe had sent him to a good place.
UNIT 19: MAN’S BEST FRIEND
A professional football player was charged by government prosecutors (ben nguyên) with breeding dogs to fight, providing the site for the dog fights, gambling on the dog fights, and killing dogs that were not good fighters. The quarterback, Roger Cheney, at first denied everything. He told the media that he hoped his mother would not hear about any of this and, if she did, she knew him well enough not to believe any of the charges.
Unfortunately, all the people that worked for him immediately confessed everything, hoping for reduced sentences. They all pointed a finger at the quarterback.
The media interviewed Cheney's father, who said that he had told his boy that dog-fighting was evil and he should stop it. His son told him that it was only some dogs—it wasn't like he was destroying lions or elephants. "He told me that humane societies destroy thousands of dogs a month, so what was the big deal," Cheney's dad said.
Part 2:
1. Two weeks after the initial charges were made, Cheney agreed to plead guilty to several reduced charges, including animal cruelty.
2. He could be sentenced to five years in jail.
3. Across the nation, football fans and animal fans were equally outraged at his admission.
4. "Athletes are supposed to be a model for our nation's youth," said some.
5. "He is more of an animal than any of his poor dogs," said others.
6. Few were surprised or saddened when the National Football League suspended Cheney without pay for an undisclosed term.
UNIT 20: UP UP AND AWAY
Twelve people in British Columbia experienced a disastrous balloon ride when it accidentally caught fire. The balloon was still tied to the ground when the fire started. Three people jumped out immediately and safely. But the ropes securing the balloon burnt through and the basket started rising.
Seven more people jumped out as quickly as they could, but each one jumped from a higher height. The last two jumped from almost 50 feet up. Their clothes were on fire. They survived, but both would be in the hospital for several months, according to officials. The others escaped with broken bones and first- and second-degree burns, but nothing "critical." Officials said that another balloon fire, causing no deaths and only minor injuries, had occurred only a week earlier.
The two balloon riders who failed to jump out were a married couple celebrating their 50th anniversary. Their oldest son had surprised them with this "champagne flight" as a gift. The couple burnt to death in the basket, which ascended to about 500 feet. Then the entire balloon burst into flames and plummeted to the ground, landing in a trailer park. The basket was still burning furiously. It looked like an orange torch as it descended, brilliant against the blue sky. Four trailers were destroyed by the bomb-like effect of the basket's heavy landing. When the dust finally cleared, the married couple were found, completely charred, embracing each other.
UNIT 21: A WOMAN HAS NEEDS
Wally asked Anita how her daughter Heather was doing. Heather had always been a dutiful, loving daughter. She got married about 10 years ago, at the age of 23. It was the first marriage for her and her husband Ben. They had two kids. Everything seemed fine, even though Heather was the only one working. Ben had gotten laid off two years ago. He was still looking for work.
They were fortunate because Heather's grandma loved her to death. She had bought a house for Heather as a wedding gift, so Ben and Heather had no mortgage to pay. Not one penny. Grandma asked only that Heather call her twice a month. Recently, grandma had asked Anita what was wrong with Heather. Anita said she didn't understand—nothing was wrong. "Then why hasn't she called?" grandma asked. Anita said she would talk to Heather.
She left several messages, but Heather didn't call back. Anita drove over to the house. Ben was home, taking care of the kids.
"Where's Heather?" Anita asked.
"She went to the beach," Ben told her.
Part 2
1. "Without you and the kids?"
2. Ben was reluctant to talk, but he did.
3. Heather had started smoking again.
4. Even worse, she had found a boyfriend.
5. She had met this guy at work, and things got out of hand.
6. Ben didn't know what to do.
7. If he filed for divorce, he might be out on the street with two kids to support.
8. If he didn't get a divorce, he had to live with the humiliation of being supported by a wife who was cheating on him.
9. Anita was astounded at her daughter's selfish actions.
10. She drove home and called her mom.
11. Grandma said that hopefully it was just a phase that Heather was going through.
12. She told Anita to make sure to remind Heather to call.
UNIT 22: SHOPPING AT THE 99 CENTS
I. Listen and answer the question
1. Once a week, Neil went grocery shopping.
2. He always made a list, but he always forgot to put one or more items on the list.
3. This used to anger him, but now he just accepted it.
4. You're not as sharp as you used to be, he told himself.
5. It was Friday—shopping day.
6. He went to the 99?store.
7. Sometimes they had a lot of fresh produce, sometimes they didn't.
8. He got lucky.
9. There were fresh, packaged broccoli, celery, eggplant, and squash.
10. Also, packages of peaches, plums, and apples.
11. He easily had enough produce to last all week, if it didn't rot first.
12. The produce alone filled up four plastic bags.
13. Four other bags contained other items that were on Neil's list.
II. Listen and dictate
1. He drove to Albertson's, which sold milk by the gallon and at cheaper prices than the 99?store. (đơn vị đo lường chất lỏng bằng 4, 54 lít ở Anh, 3, 78 lít ở Mỹ))
2. Interestingly, the price of milk had soared in the last month.
3. He used to buy 2 gallons of non-fat milk for $3.59.
4. Now he was paying $4.69. Yet, the news media was silent—the same news media that reports a 2-cent increase in gasoline prices or even a 1-cent decrease.
5. That's all over the news.
6. Milk, he thought, just isn't sexy enough.
7. He parked his car in the carport and opened the trunk.
8. Somehow he managed, as usual, to put all 10 plastic bags into his hands and lug them upstairs. (keo
9. What a drag shopping is, he thought.
10. And then he mentally slapped himself: if you think it's a drag now, wait till you can't drive.
11. Wait till you can't even walk up the stairs unless you use a cane.
12. How are you going to get your groceries then?
13. The older you get, he told himself, the more you'd better appreciate the fact that you can still do all these boring chores and errands.

UNIT 23: YOU’RE NOT MY DADDY
Zach drove over to his fiancée's place. She was in China, visiting her parents. Her son Bradley hadn't gone with her. Bradley was a junior in high school. He neither liked nor disliked Zach, even though he had known Zach for three years. Zach was still trying to win Bradley over. He called Bradley to tell him that he was coming over. Bradley said okay. When Zach got there, he checked all of Christine's mail to see if there were any bills to pay. There were none.
He asked if Bradley wanted to drive Zach's car. Bradley had a driver's permit, and was always pestering his mom to let him drive her car. Bradley said all right. Zach told him not to speed, but he could drive anywhere he wanted. Bradley got on the 210 freeway and headed northwest to where it meets the 5. Zach gave Bradley a few driving tips: Don't drive next to big rigs, because you never know when they might tip over and crush you. Don't drive behind pickup trucks with loads, because you never know when something in the truck will get airborne and come flying through your windshield.
Part 2
On their way back, Zach suggested that they stop at the driving range. He wanted to show Bradley how to play golf. Bradley wasn't enthusiastic. He preferred his video games. But Bradley soon discovered that golf was fun! He hit a large bucket of balls. Zach told him that he had a natural swing. The next day Bradley, for the first time ever, called Zach. He had a few blisters on his hands; Zach said that was normal. Then Bradley asked if Zach would come by next Saturday so they could take a drive and hit golf balls again. Zach said of course, with a happy feeling in his heart.
UNIT 24: WE COULD HAVE DIED ALL
Two bombing attempts in London failed last night. A Mercedes was parked in front of a popular nightclub before closing time. There were at least 500 patrons inside the club. The Mercedes contained 11 full gasoline cans and 7 containers of nails. (customers)
Apparently, the car was to be exploded by a call from a cell phone, but someone, or something, goofed. The cell phone call didn't trigger the explosion. Instead, some smoke started spewing out of the car.
An ambulance happened to drive by. The driver, seeing the smoke, called the police. The police arrived quickly, and a bomb expert immediately entered the car and started disarming the vehicle. A few minutes later, the police were notified about another car, also full of explosive material, parked behind the nightclub. That vehicle was also disarmed. Twice in one night, deadly explosions had failed to occur. The bad guys had lost--this time.
A new prime minister had just taken over in England. He said that God was watching over London. Scotland Yard believed that terrorists were behind the bombing attempts. When one patron at the nightclub found out how close he had been to death, he said, "I'm so happy to be alive! Last night I was dancing all night near the windows next to the street, and I would have been one of the first to die. It's scary to think about. I won't be coming to this club for another week or so."