Reading Dialogue

Situation: Laura has not been feeling well lately. Today she goes to see her doctor for a physical checkup. Laura: Good morning, I have an appointment with Doctor Clark at 8:30. Clerk: Let me pull your record. In the meantime, please sign-in and have a seat. Nurse: Laura Nicholson. Laura: Here. Nurse: Follow me to Room A please. Nurse: Here we are. What are your reasons for seeing Doctor Clark today? Laura: Well, lately I have been feeling tired, and occasionally I have had really bad headaches and an upset stomach. On top of that, I have had this persistent cough for the last two weeks. Nurse: When did you start having these symptoms? Laura: I started feeling tired about two months ago; then, a little bit after that the headaches came. I got the upset stomach long before feeling tired. Nurse: Are you taking any medications? Laura: Only my vitamins. Nurse: What vitamins are you taking? Laura: I am taking a multi-vitamin tablet and extra Vitamin C every day. Nurse: OK, let me take your vital signs. Laura: How am I doing? Nurse: Everything is good—normal blood pressure and no high temperature. Please wait here for a minute. Doctor Clark will be with you in a moment. Laura: Thank you. Doctor: Good morning, Laura. Laura: Good morning, Doctor. Doctor: I see here that you started feeling tired two months ago, and then you started having bad headaches. You also have had an upset stomach and a persistent cough. Did you run a fever too? Laura: No, doctor. Doctor: Let me do a quick physical check up. Doctor: Please take a deep breath, hold your breath, and exhale. Do it again please. Doctor: Were there any changes in your diet or your weight lately? Laura: I ate the usual things, but I lost five pounds recently. Doctor: Did you suffer from insomnia? Laura: Well, it is pretty hard for me to fall asleep when I go to bed. I also woke up many times during the night. Doctor: Do you drink? Do you smoke? Laura: No. Doctor: How are things at work? Laura: There was a change of ownership three months ago, and I had to work a lot of overtime, even during the weekend. Doctor: It looks like you have pneumonia. Other than that, I do not see any problems. You are probably under stress from changes at work, and the stress causes headaches, upset stomach, and sleeplessness. For now, try to relax and exercise. It may solve your problems. Come back to see me again if the symptoms persist, and I will do further tests. I am going to give you a prescription for your pneumonia. Are you allergic to any medications? Laura: Not to my knowledge. Doctor: OK, take this medication three times a day after you eat. Also, I want you to have some blood tests. Stop by the laboratory on your way out and have the nurse draw your blood. Laura: I am anxious to know my cholesterol level. When will I get the results of the blood test? Doctor: The results will be available in two weeks. Don’t stress yourself. I think everything will be OK. Laura: Thank you, Doctor. Doctor: You are welcome.

Situation: Laura’s mother had asked her to go grocery shopping before she went to work this morning. Since Laura is still busy with her homework, she asks her sister Martha to go to the market for her. Laura: Mom had asked me to go grocery shopping before she left for work this morning, but I need to finish my school project. Can you go for me, Martha? Martha: I guess I can. I am done with my homework. What did mom want you to buy? Laura: Well, she wanted me to buy enough groceries for the whole week. Besides meat, some fish and vegetables, we can buy whatever else we want for snacks and breakfast. Martha: What do you want for breakfast? Laura: I guess some cereal as usual. Martha: I do not want cereal everyday. I will buy some pancakes and syrup then. Laura: Get the new FineFood pancakes in the frozen food section please. I want to see how it tastes. Martha: Do we still have enough coffee and cream for mom and dad? Laura: Yes, we do. Talking about coffee and cream, you better buy some milk also. We almost ran out of it. Martha: Next, what do you want for snacks? Laura: Some chips would be fine with me. You probably want your chocolate cookies. Martha: I better write down all these things; otherwise, I will forget them by the time I get to the market. I would hate to make two trips to take care of things. Laura: Right! As far as meat, mom wants some pork and some chicken. Martha: Just any kind of pork? Laura: I forgot to ask mom about that. Anyways, you can ask the butcher for his opinion. He knows what is best. Martha: How about fish? Laura: Mom wants some salmon and some catfish. Make sure that they are fresh. Martha: How much salmon and catfish should I buy? Laura: Oh, buy four pieces of salmon filet and four pieces of catfish filet. Mom does not like to get the whole fish. Martha: Are these fish filets sold by weight or by the piece? Laura: I am not very sure. Just buy four decent sized pieces. Not too big and not too small. Martha: Do I need to buy some spices so mom can marinate the fish? Laura: Yes, get some ground pepper and some garlic. Martha: Now, how about vegetables? Mom probably wants carrots, potatoes, cabbages and some lettuce. Laura: That would be fine. We need some fruits also. What do you want? Martha: Dad always packs an apple for lunch everyday. I want the same thing. Laura: We have already run out of eggs. So, get a carton of eggs also. Martha: How about some soft drinks? Laura: No, buy some bottled water instead. It is healthier for us. We need to cut down on our intake of sugar, as too much sugar is not good for our bodies. Martha: I need to put bread on the list before I forget. Should I get one loaf or two? Laura: One loaf will be enough. Put down a bag of rice also. Martha: Do we need anything for dessert? Laura: Get a box of ice cream. Martha: Ice cream? Isn’t ice cream packed with sugar? Laura: Yes, but since I already drink water instead of soft drinks, one or perhaps two scoops of ice cream after dinner is not too bad. Besides, mom loves ice cream, especially cherry vanilla. Martha: OK, I will put down one box of ice cream if you say so. Do you want me to buy some pastries for you? Laura: I know the pastries at the market are delicious; however, no is my answer. Do not tempt me, Martha. 46 Martha: Just asking, Laura. Laura: You have quite a few items to take care of. You need to get going. Martha: Yes, the list is quite long. By the time I get to the cashier to pay, I will probably have a full shopping cart. OK, I am all set to go. I will be back soon. Laura: Drive carefully please! Martha: I will.

GRAMMAR REVIEW VERBS Verbs not only describe the action but also the time of the action. The time of occurrence is expressed through six tenses: the present, the past, the future, the present perfect, the past perfect and the future perfect. Present tense 1) The present tense is used to show that the action is happening now. I want you to get a blood test. I do not see any problems. 2) The present tense is also used to indicate a true fact. The sun is bright. It is cold in the winter. 3) The present tense is also used to indicate habits or customary actions. Susan always bites her nails. (Susan bites her nails in the past, today and she will continue to bite her nails in the future) I go to the supermarket every Saturday. (In the past, now, and in the future, I always go to the supermarket every Saturday) 4) The present tense can be used to replace the future tense after words that indicate time such as when, until, as soon as, before or words that indicate condition such as if or unless. I will do further tests if the symptoms persist. The doctor will see you when he is done with Ms. Anderson. Present progressive tense The progressive tenses are used to indicate that an action is ongoing at a particular time. The action begins at some earlier time, is in progress at the indicated moment, and probably continues for some time after that. The present progressive tense is used to indicate that an action is currently in progress. BE IN PRESENT TENSE + PRESENT PARTICIPLE I am taking vitamin C. Doctor Clark is seeing Laura at the moment.

GRAMMAR REVIEW VERBS Past tense The past tense is used to indicate an action that happened and ended at a particular time in the past or a habit in the past. In general, the past tense is formed by adding -ed to the end of the verb. VERB + ED Mom asked me to go grocery shopping this morning. She wanted me to buy enough groceries for the whole week this morning. For certain verbs, past tense are not formed by merely adding -ed. These types of verbs are called irregular verbs. Some verbs have the same form as the present form, others completely change to express past tense. Verb Present Past Tense Past Participle Hit Hit Hit Hit Cut Cut Cut Cut Read Read Read Read Do Do Did Done Tell Tell Told Told Begin Begin Began Begun Drive Drive Drove Driven Past Progressive tense The past progressive tense is used to indicate that an action was in progress at a particular time in the past or that an action was ongoing when another action happened in the past. Generally, the past progressive tense is formed by using the verb be in the simple past and the present participle of the verb. BE IN PAST TENSE + PRESENT PARTICIPLE I was talking to Christine after dinner last night. Paul was exercising when his mother got home from work yesterday. Present perfect tense The present perfect tense is used when an action happened at an unspecified time in the past. The present perfect tense is formed by adding have or has to a past participle. HAVE/HAS + PAST PARTICIPLE I have done my homework. She has cooked dinner. However, when the present perfect tense is accompanied by since or for, it shows that the action started in the past, is currently happening and will continue in the future. 49 I have been with Multi-Max since November 1st . (I started to work for Multi-Max on November 1st, I am still working there today and will continue to work there in the future) Note: give an exact date after since I have worked in this field for ten years. (I started working in this field ten years ago. I am still working in this field now, and I will continue to work in this field in the future. Note: give a duration of time after for) Present perfect progressive tense The present perfect progressive tense is used to indicate that an action has been in progress until now. This tense is used to express the duration of the action. HAVE BEEN/HAS BEEN + PRESENT PARTICIPLE He has been cleaning his room for the last two hours. (He started to clean his room two hours ago, and he is still cleaning it now) Past perfect tense The past perfect tense is used to indicate that an action occurred before another action in the past. The past perfect tense is formed by adding had to a past participle. HAD + PAST PARTICIPLE I had finished my homework when John came last night. (Last night I finished my homework first, and then John came over) Past perfect progressive tense The past perfect progressive is used to indicate that an action was ongoing before another action happened in the past. This tense is used to express the duration of the action, and is formed with had been and the present participle of the verb. HAD BEEN + PRESENT PARTICIPLE Paul had been watching television for two hours before it was turned off. (There are two actions in this sentence: watch television and turn off television)