Apartment Hunting 租房

Bill is looking for a new apartment. He just moved to a new city in order to start studying at a university. He is at a Rental Agency in the new city. 

比尔在找一个新公寓，他才来到一个新城市读大学，这是他在一家租房中介的对话 。

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Agent: Hi! Welcome to Rental Property Management. How may I help you?

Bill: Hi, yes. I'm interested in renting a two-bedroom apartment.

Agent: Okay. If you have a seat, one of our rental agents will be with you in a moment.

Bill: Thank you.

Associate: Hi, my name is Ann Smith.

Bill: Hi, I'm Bill Harrington.

Ann: Hi, Mr. Harrington. So that we will be able to match your needs better, I would like to ask you a few questions before I show you what we have available. First, what price range were you interested in?

Bill: Somewhere between $400-$450 a month.

Ann: Okay. Did you have a specific location in mind?

Bill: Well, I would like to live somewhere near the university. Or at least on a bus line.

Ann: And when would you like to move in?

Bill: On the first of the month.

Ann: Okay. Are there any other amenities which you would like to have? For example, a dishwasher, a balcony, a swimming pool or central air conditioning?

Bill: I would definitely like to have a dishwasher, and with summers like these, central air! A balcony is not that important. Oh, yes, and two bathrooms would be nice.

Ann: Okay. Here are photos of the apartments we have available which fit your preferences.

Bill: Thank you. This one on Broadway Avenue looks nice. I would like to see that one. And the one on Main Street.

Ann: Sure. Let me get the keys and we will go look at them. If you choose to rent one of them, we will need a damage deposit of $250. You will be responsible for all the utilities. You can sign a lease today, if you like.

Bill: Great! Thank you.

Making friends 结识朋友

When making new friends, there are usually three parts to the conversation you will have with your new friend. The first is the greeting. In this part, you and your new friend will greet each other and tell each other your names. The second part is the conversation. Sometimes the conversation is small talk and some times the conversation is about important matters, such as business. "Small talk" is an American slang term. It means that the conversation is about matters that are not very important. When conversing with your new friend, it is customary to give information about your family, your work, or you will talk about any matter that is important to you and your new friend. The third part of the conversation is the leave-taking. In this part, you tell your new friend that you are happy to meet him and that you must end the conversation.

结识新朋友时，你和新朋友的谈话一般分为三个部分：第一部分是问候，你和你的新朋友要互相问候并告诉对方彼此的姓名。第二部分是交谈，有时候谈话是简单的聊天，有时候是谈论一些重要的问题比如商务。“small talk”是一个美式俚语，意思是关于一些不太重要的问题的闲聊。当你和新朋友交谈时，通常会聊一些关于你的家庭、工作的情况，或谈一些对你和你的新朋友比较重要的事情。第三部分是告别，这里你要告诉你的新朋友很高兴认识他并且你不得不结束谈话了。

In this conversation, Thinh will introduce himself and his wife to Jim, their new neighbor.

下面这段对话，Thinh 将要向他的新邻居Jim介绍自己和妻子。

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Thinh: Hello.

Jim: Oh, hi there!

Thinh: Please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Thinh Nguyen and this is my wife, Lan Quong.

Jim: Pleased to meet you. My name is Jim Peters. Did you just move in next door?

Lan: Yes, we did. Have you lived here long?

Jim: Me? I guess so. I've lived here for about 6 years now. Have you lived in America very long?

Thinh: No. Not really. When we left Vietnam and came to America we lived with a cousin in Dallas for 2 years. Where do you work, Jim?

Jim: I teach mathematics at Willow Springs community college. What do you do?

Thinh: I am a mechanic at Allied Diesel. I repair truck engines.

Jim: What about you, Lan?

Lan: I am a nurse's assistant at Whitfield County hospital.

Jim: Well, Thinh and Lan, it was good to meet you. I have to go now. I'm teaching a class this evening and I need to get to the college.

Thinh: It was good to meet you, too, Jim.

Lan: Yes, it was good to meet you.

Jim: See you around!

Thinh and Lan: Good-bye, Jim!

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New words and Expressions

1. "Allow me to introduce myself.

" - This phrase is used when you want to tell your new friend that you are going to tell him your name.

这个短语是用于你告诉你的新朋友你将要向他介绍自己的名字了。

2. "Pleased to meet you."

- This phrase is used after you and your new friend have told each other your names.

这个短语是用在你和你的新朋友互相介绍了自己的名字之后。

3. "Did you just move in next door?", "Where do you work?", "Have you lived here long?"

- These are some phrases that people use to make "small talk." These phrases are used when you ask your friend for basic information about himself. These phrases help new friends to get to know about each other's lives.

这些是一般用来聊天的短句，用来告诉朋友你的一些基本情况，帮助新朋友互相了解彼此的生活。

4. "It was good to meet you."

- This phrase is usually used when you are ending the conversation. A person who uses this phrase will be considered polite by his new friend.

当你结束交谈时一般要用这个习惯用语，这样会比较有礼貌。

Commonly used English

1.I’m an office worker. 我是上班族。
2.I work for the government. 我在政府机关做事。
3.I’m happy to meet you. 很高兴见到你。
4.I like your sense of humor. 我喜欢你的幽默感。
5.I’m glad to see you again. 很高兴再次见到你。
6.I’ll call you. 我会打电话给你。
7.I feel like sleeping/ taking a walk. 我想睡/散步。
8.I want something to eat. 我想吃点东西。
9.I need your help. 我需要你的帮助。
10.I would like to talk to you for a minute. 我想和你谈一下。
11.I have a lot of problems. 我有很多问题。
12.I hope our dreams come true. 我希望我们的梦想成真。
13.I’m looking forward to seeing you. 我期望见到你。
14.I’m supposed to go on a diet / get a raise. 我应该节食/涨工资。
15.I heard that you’re getting married. Congratulations.听说你要结婚了，恭喜！
16.I see what your mean. 我了解你的意思。
17.I can’t do this. 我不能这么做。
18.Let me explain why I was late. 让我解释迟到的理由。
19.Let’s have a beer or something. 咱们喝点啤酒什么的。
20.Where is your office? 你们的办公室在哪？