My Little English Corner
A new accent is an adventure. Be bold! Exaggerate wildly!
Salena: What a pain in the neck! It’s like pulling teeth trying to get anything done with them!
Dario: What?Who?
Salena: The credit card company sent another bill tomy old address!
Dario: Not again . . .
Salena: This is the third time! I thought we got things squared away after the last time I called.Now they’re saying I have to cough up 150 dollars in late fees!
Dario: You’re gonna call and get that ironed out, right?
Salena: I don’t know . . . I’mso tired of dealing with them, I think Imight just bite the bullet and pay the late fee.
Dario: Don’t do that . . . That’s not right . . . Call again and insist on talking to someone who can get it off your record.
Salena: Dario, it’s like flogging a dead horse . . . Every time I call I get the same story. Address changed, everything should be fine. And if I ask to speak with amanager, I have to call back later because no one is there.
Dario: Sounds like they’re giving you the run around. Just cancel the card and refuse to pay.
Salena: Well, I will cancel the card, but if I don’t pay, I’ll have that on my credit record.
Dario: If I were in your shoes, I’d call right now.
Salena: Okay . . . Fine . . . You’ll see.
Kurtis: Hello,my name is Kurtis.How can I help you today?
Salena: Hi, Kurtis. I got a bill saying that I owe late fees, but the problemis that your company keeps sending statements tomy old address, so the payment is already late by the time I get them, and . . .
Kurtis: Okay, let me just pull up your account. Just one moment.Okay, there we are. I see that your address is listed as 47Maple Terrace . . .
Salena: Yeah, that’smy new address. But the statements are still being sent to the old one.
Kurtis: Okay, let me just put through a change of address, and we’ll . . .
Salena: No, Kurtis, I’ve been down that road before. A few times in fact. I really just want to have these late fees taken care of.Obviously, I shouldn’t have to pay them.
Kurtis: I understandma’am, but unfortunately I don’t call the shots in that area.
Salena: Okay, then I’d like to talk to someone who does.
Kurtis: All right,ma’am. If you’ll just hold . . .
Salena: Kurtis, please don’t put me on hold. I’ve been trying to take care of this problemfor weeks now, and I’mreally at my wit’s end. I need to speak to someone right now.
Kurtis: I’msorryma’am, but no one is available right now. If you’ll just hold . . .
Salena: Kurtis, look, I don’t mean to get on your case personally, but I feel like I’mjust spinning my wheels every time I talk to someone in customer service. I’m very dissatisfied, and I’mvery frustrated. I’ve got a good mind just to cancel my card.
Kurtis: I’mreally sorry you feel that way,ma’am. You are a valued customer, and . . .
Salena: Kurtis, please don’t feed me that line! If I’msuch a valued customer,why can’t anyone take care of my problem? It really is beyond me how your company can callme a valued customer but continue to . . .
Kurtis: Ma’am, I’mreally sorry, but my hands are tied. If you’ll just let me put you on hold or call back later, I’ll . . .
Salena: Call back later? Are you out of your mind? I . . .Wait, you know what, I’mnot going to take out my frustration on you. I know it’s not your fault, that you just work there, but I’ve really had it with your company. I’d like to go ahead and cancelmy card.
Kurtis: Okay,ma’am. I’msorry to hear that, but I do understand. I’mgoing to transfer you to our Cancellations Department, so if you’ll just hold . . .
1. Pain in the neck. Annoying or bothersome.
2. Like pulling teeth.Very difficult and tedious.
3. To get something squared away. To tie up loose ends. To solve the various smaller problems of a larger troublesome situation.
4. To iron something out. To fix a problem, to correct amistake in a process.
5. To bite the bullet. To accept a disagreeable solution for a difficult situation.
6. To flog a dead horse. To do something that has no hope of succeeding or bringing about the desired result.Note that this idiomis often used with “beat” instead of “flog.”
7. The same old story. The same explanation for a situation given over and over again.
8. To give someone the runaround. To avoid answering a question
or giving someone help by treating themevasively or by misleading them.
9. To be in someone’s shoes. To be in someone else’s position or situation.
10. To pull up. To access a file or other information on a computer.
11. To have been down that road before. To have experienced or tried something before, especially if it was not helpful or pleasant.
12. To call the shots. Tomake the important decisions.
13. At your wit’s end. Completely frustrated and confused about how to solve a problem.
14. To get on someone’s case. To aggressively bother or nag someone about something.
15. To be spinning your wheels. To be putting forth an effort that is having no useful effect. To be working in vain.
16. To have a goodmind to do something. To be inclined to do something. To have a strong desire to do something.
17. To feed someone a line. To tell someone something that is not genuine or truthful. To use a trite or clichéd expression instead of the truth.
18. To be beyond someone. To be impossible to understand, to be completely unbelievable.
19. To have your hands tied. To be unable to do anything to help a situation.
20. To be out of yourmind. To be crazy, to be unreasonable or irrational. This expression is very often used in response to someone who proposes something completely unreasonable.
21. To take something out on someone. To direct anger or frustration about something at someone who is not responsible for it.
22. To have had it with something or someone. To be fed up with. To not be able to handle anymore of a situation or person.
23. For crying out loud . . . This expresses complete frustration about a situation.
