A: We were going to Hong Kong this weekend, but I’m afraid I can’t go.

B: How come?

A: I have a really big geography test and I have to study for it.

B: We can go next week instead.

A: No, I don’t want to ruin your weekend. You go ahead and please take the book I bought to my friend Sally. Tell her I have to study all weekend, because I can’t afford to fail the test.

B: Ok, then I’ll go with Dan. But it’s a pity you can’t come.

8. A: Hello, this is Andrea.

B: Hello, Andrea, this is Alex. I have some very good news for you. Miranda was very satisfied with you and said she’s very much looking forward to working with you. Isn’t that wonderful? Congratulations dear! How does it feel to be Miranda’s new assistant? I imagine that you’ll just be delighted with this news. So let’s see, you can start on Monday, right?

A: Umm, well, I don’t think I can start Monday. I am visiting my father in Baltimore. And because I don’t live in New York, I’ll need a couple of days to find a flat and buy some furniture and move my things from Avon.

B: Oh, well then, in that case I suppose Wednesday would be good. Ok, see you then!

9. Woman: Hello, Mr. Jan Erick Freedman. You’re a frequent traveler. And we also know that you eat out twice a day. How come you’re so fond of eating out?

Man: When I got my first job back in 1982 and started travelling, I had no other choice but eat out. I found that I felt different due to what I was eating, so I tried to find places that served food that made me feel good. The secret was the quality of the food and how well the food was prepared. I made an effort to find good restaurants as well as nice dishes.

Woman: How did you manage to make a list of 218 favorite restaurants?

Man: I’ve lived in many cities and when I moved back to Sweden from the United States, people asked me where to go and eat when they went to cities I knew. I got a lot of ideas. Then I wrote about restaurants for the Swedish club magazine and someone suggested I gather the information about the restaurants together since I had all the facts about the restaurants I’ve been to. I started to do that.