Things We Shouldn't Find Embarrassing
Welcome to the very first Saturday episode of the podcast! This is a reaction episode where I respond to a Reddit post on r/CasualUK talking about things we find embarrassing that we probably shouldn’t.
I’d love to hear your feedback! Do you like the topic? Are you happy with an extra episode? Feel free to get in touch and let me know.
r/CasualUK is great for getting a secret insight into the British culture and the way people here think. It’s also very entertaining! It might be a good language learning resource for you.
Embarrasing Situations
- Walking across a zebra crossing
- Suddenly turning around and walking in the other direction
- Walking back to your seat after having your go at bowling
- Asking someone sitting next to you on the train to move when approaching your stop
- Leaving a shop without buying anything
Can you relate to any of these?
I mentioned a lot of vocabulary and expressions in this episode. Remember, vocab lists can be found at Level Up English Members on the Transcripts course.
Share with us in the comments one situation where you feel awkward
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I rarely feel embarrassed in any of these situations, but I can relate to the shopping situation when you recognize that the staff is observing you. I liked it in London when the staff asked me if they could help you. In my country, they would rather hide than offer their customers their help (I rarely go into a store if I don’t need something). I need to try out the situation with turning around suddenly and walking in the other direction. It seems to be fun to see the people’s reactions.
Hi Bruno! Great to hear you’re not too bothered in these situations. I agree it can be nice when the staff ask if we need help, although based on my previous experience working as a sales assistant, sometimes we’re forced to ask as part of our job even if we don’t want to!
Good luck with your turning around experiment. haha!
Hi Michael! Thanks so much for this new idea! I really enjoyed this reaction episode! All you said is relatable for me. I’m not the typical Italian stereotype (being shy and not too self-confident). Maybe the only situation that could be different is the bowling one, since the Italian friends would react with jokes and loud funny comments! As to feeling embarrassed… Well… I listened to this podcast during one of my walks (I also like walking to keep a little more active) and I felt a bit strange when I was smiling imagining myself in the situations you were describing in front of other people … 🤦♀️ Anyway I hope that wearing earphones got me some indulgence… Thanks a lot again for your precious advice. I started my new job as an English teacher in Italian middle school two days ago and following you and many of your colleagues has been really helpful to practice my English again after 18 years spent as a teacher with special needs students. Good luck with your experiment and thank you for showing me how a teacher can be interesting and funny! You’re an inspiration!😊
Hi Rosalba. Thank you for the feedback! It’s funny to imagine you smiling to yourself on your walk. I do that with podcasts all the time too! Best of luck with your teaching! Thanks for motivating me to continue