📘 Part 3: Losing and forgetting things

This episode's vocabulary

Lanyard (noun) - a cord worn around the neck, shoulder, etc, to hold something such as a whistle or knife.

Prominent (adj.) - something that is prominent is very noticeable or is an important part of something else.

Automatically (adverb) - if you do something automatically, you do it without thinking about it.

To double-check (verb) - if you double-check something, you make certain it is correct or safe, usually by examining it again.

In the first instance (phrase) - as the first attempt or effort.

To curse (verb) - to use a word or an expression that is not polite, usually when you are very angry.

To take stock of (something) (phrasal verb) - to examine a situation carefully.

Scattered (adj.) - covering a wide area.

To reflect on someone/something (phrasal verb) - to affect other people's opinion of someone or something, especially in a bad way.

To get something across (phrasal verb) - to manage to make someone understand or believe something.

Questions and Answers

M: What are some common items that people tend to lose easily?

R: I think keys are the thing I most often hear about, and I can never understand why. But then, I have like one key and my door is almost never locked. Maybe if you don't have them on some kind of lanyard or keychain, it's easier to lose them. As for other things that could be lost, I actually can't think of anything else.

M: Why do people often misplace or lose things?

R: Probably because they're not paying attention. They might be tired, or their focus could be elsewhere, and it's just not that prominent in their minds as a result. I mean, if you're leaving work and you have a load of things to do at home, then you may just not have it in your head to check you picked up the keys. I mean, it seems fairly obvious you would do that almost automatically.

M: What do people often do after losing things?

R: Well, we're feeling creatures in the first instance, so probably the initial impulse is to panic. Double-check for the lost thing, and then curse when you find out it's really actually not there. And then you get to work hunting for it, and ideally, you come up with a plan to avoid losing whatever it is again. But that's not always true, is it?

M: What should parents do to teach their children not to lose things?

R: Well, probably highlighting the lengths that they go to in order to avoid it, like using a key chain or a bowl for keys or some sort of routine or inventory in their heads to take stock of everything, including their keys.

M: What are good ways to remind us not to forget or lose things?

R: Well, some people use alarms on their phones to remind them to pick things up that they might have scattered around. And, oh, if you have a routine in your head, it's kind of like an algorithm that reminds you to pick stuff up before you go too.

M: Is it important for students to be organized?

R: It's probably important for everyone to be organized, don't you think. In the case of students, they could at least attempt to think about things in advance and reflect on what's happened to become more efficient in terms of learning and participating in classes. If that's the goal of studying, then you'd think it would be important to organize the ideas in your head. At least the ones that you want to get across at the very least.

M: How can we avoid losing things?

R: Well, setting reminders seems to be quite a good idea, and so does having a routine. As for what else that could be done... Well, if you have fewer things, then there are reduced opportunities for you to lose them, I suppose.

M: Thank you, Rory, for your answers!

R: No worries. I hope you didn't lose yourself in all of the vocabulary.