The Commute
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Martin
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Tom
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Tom: Hey Martin, where do you live?
Martin: I live near the train station.
Tom: Really?
Martin: Yeah.
Tom: I live near the train station.
Martin: Oh wow!
Tom: How do you come here?
Martin: I usually take the red bus. Well, I always take the red bus.
Tom: Ok, I take the blue bus.
Martin: Really, so how's that work?
Tom: It's a different route. I think it comes straight up through the town.
Martin: Oh, ok.
Tom: And then approaches from the east side. It's a small old bus and the cost is in the middle of the range but I get a little card that gives me three months travel.
Martin: Oh, ok.
Tom: It's quite crowded at the beginning when there is a lot of high school kids getting on, but they get off after a couple of stops and after then the bus is nearly empty.
Martin: Wow, really?
Tom: What's it like on the red bus?
Martin: Almost the opposite. Probably I imagine the cost is the same but this busses are much bigger and I don't know if they are newer but they seem a little more comfortable, almost like a tour bus and they end up being very, very crowded which is very different than it sounds on your bus by the time they get up here. Usually when I get on the bus, I'm standing all the way up the mountain so it's really not very comfortable to ride on those even though they have the tour bus comfy seats but it's a pretty quick route --about 15 minutes up here.
Tom: Oh, that is fast. That sounds like it's faster than the blue bus but I heard the drivers are pretty fast.
Martin: Sometimes the drivers can be very nice and courteous and sometimes the drivers act like your not really there.
Tom: It's quite a steep route as well, isn't it?
Martin: Yes, it's very steep and there's a few stops up the middle of the hill and I don't know why they are there and the drivers sometimes take the turns quite quickly and especially when you are standing, it's not so comfortable.
how's that work?
You always take the red bus, so how's that work?
Here, Martin uses the question 'how's that work?' to ask Tom to describe traveling on the blue bus. He wants to know how the red and blue buses are different. Notice the following:
- So you guys both work, and you have one car. How's that work?
- You said you got a new phone. How's that work?
middle of the range
It's a small old bus and the cost is in the middle of the range.
If the cost of something is the 'middle of the range,' it is not too cheap and not too expensive. Notice the following:
- We are just looking for a middle of the range car. We need something that is safe and reliable.
- Most of the the clothes she buys are so middle of the range that I thought it would be nice to get her something fancy.
all the way
The bus is usually crowded, so I usually stand all the way up.
Here, 'all the way' refers to the whole duration of the trip. Martin stands the whole time the bus is going up the mountain. Notice the following:
- Did you drive all the way there without stopping?
- My radio is broken, so we had to drive without music all the way here.
comfy seats
I don't take the tour bus with comfy seats, because it's just a pretty quick ride.
'Comfy' is a shortened version of the word 'comfortable.' A comfy seat would be one that has a cushion and feels good to sit on. Notice the following:
- This cinema has very comfy seats.
- Wow. These are really comfy seats. I could fall asleep.
courteous
There are some drivers who are nice and courteous, but there are some who are not.
A 'courteous' person is polite and has good manners. Notice the following:
- It is courteous to hold the door for the person behind you.
- You should be courteous and let the old man have your seat.
Vocabulary Quiz
comfy • courteous
