📙 Part 2: Describe your favorite place in your house where you can relax

This episode's vocabulary

To stretch out (phrasal verb) – to extend your body to its full length. → After a long day at my desk, it feels great to stretch out on the sofa.

To unwind (verb) – to relax and allow your mind to be free from worry after a period of work or tension. → Listening to calm music is a great way to unwind in the evening.

To drift off (phrasal verb) – to gradually fall asleep. → The gentle sound of the rain helped me drift off to sleep.

Safe space (collocation) – a place or environment in which a person can feel confident and comfortable. → My journal is a safe space for my thoughts and feelings.

To chill out (phrasal verb) – to relax completely, or not allow things to upset you. → Let's just stay in and chill out with a movie tonight.

To plow through (phrasal verb) – to finish something that takes a long time and is difficult or boring. → I have to plow through this stack of paperwork before I can go home.

Delineation (noun) – the action of describing or marking the border or limits of something. → There should be a clear delineation between your professional and private life.

Workspace (noun) – the area where someone works. → It's important to keep your workspace clean and organized to improve focus.

Rest area (noun) – a place designated for resting. → My bedroom is strictly a rest area; I never do work in there.

Overwhelmed (adjective) – feeling that something is too much to deal with. → New parents often feel overwhelmed by their responsibilities.

Minimalist design (collocation) – a style characterized by extreme simplicity and spareness. → The apartment had a minimalist design, which made it feel very spacious and calm.

Spacious (adjective) – having a lot of space. → Their new house has a spacious living room, perfect for entertaining guests.

Cozy (adjective) – giving a feeling of comfort, warmth, and relaxation. → On a cold winter's night, there's nothing better than a cozy blanket and a hot drink.

Questions and Answers

Maria: Describe your favorite place in your house where you can relax. You should say where it is, what it's like, what you enjoy doing there, and explain why you feel relaxed at this place. Rory, give us your story.

Rory: Well, my whole house is a pretty calm place, but the room I like to go the most to relax is definitely my bedroom. In terms of where it is, I think it's on the west side of my house, or the end furthest away from the front door. That's why it's easy to relax there because it's quiet. Not only that, but it's the second largest room in the house too, I think. So, it's away from the noise on the stairs and it's got a lot of space as well to stretch out in. When it comes to what it's like, it's a pretty key part of my home. It's right down the main corridor, so I don't have to go too far if I ever need to be there and the walls are dark blue, which I think is quite a relaxing color to help me unwind and even drift off to sleep in the evenings. And all the things I like are there, like my books and clothes and things I've collected over the years. So, it feels like a very safe space to be in. To tell you a bit more about what I like doing there, it's just nice to chill out on the bed sometimes. It's quite a large one, so that's fairly easy to do. And I have all my unread books that I'm plowing my way through next to my bed or on shelves so I can get to those easily enough. Sometimes during the day, I'll go there and sit on my bed to work or read, though, I'm trying to do that less these days since I like a clear delineation between my workspaces and my rest areas. But it's still nice to know that I can go there if I ever needed to. And as for why I feel so relaxed there, well, apart from the things I mentioned, it's also because I like having a place to go if I feel overwhelmed that's away from people and work. If I didn't have it, I think life might be a lot more stressful and no one wants that, do they?