by Alan Townend
have to go by train. I telephoned the station and asked what time the next train down to London would be. I was informed that all services had been cancelled. I asked by whom they had been cancelled. I never knew the answer to that question because I had been cut off.
Obviously I would have to think over my plans for the day. From my bedroom window I looked down at my snow-covered car. That was my last hope. After breakfast I managed to brush off all the snow from the car and by a good stroke of fortune I managed to get it started at the third attempt. I drove along the road that led up to the motorway with a light heart because everything seemed to be going well. It was almost fun with the sun shining through the clouds and the snow gently falling down on to the car. But that feeling did not last long. As I reached the slip road that joined the motorway I saw an enormous queue of cars one behind the other. I realized I was stuck right in the middle of a huge traffic jam. In my mind I started to go through the qualities that were needed for the job. Among the requirements were: ability to work under pressure, calmness in the face of difficult circumstances and a determination to see a job through to the end. I reviewed the situation. It was 9 a.m. by now and on a normal day the drive would take about forty-five minutes. On a day like this it would be impossible to gauge. I decided to relax. After all nobody else could travel so why should I worry about it? Within five minutes the traffic was moving again and for the next two miles I was driving along the motorway at quite a good speed.
And then it happened. I skidded off the road and into the bank by the hard shoulder. There was a loud bang and steam started to pour from out of the car bonnet. I glanced at my watch. It was fifteen minutes to ten and there were still about 10 miles to go. Fortunately I had my mobile phone with me and called the car assistance firm, who promised to come as soon as possible. I also phoned the firm I was supposed to be having an interview with, apologised and said I might be a little late. They didn't sound very friendly. One hour later the repair people arrived but they couldn't start the car. They towed it away to a garage and dropped me off at the nearest railway station.
I think I must have got the only train that was running that day. Eventually I reached my destination at 11.30 a.m. just one and a half hours late.The interview panel asked me some really difficult questions and as I left to go home, I thought that I had failed miserably. Two days later I received a letter. They offered me the job because I had shown presence of mind and determination». I was feeling very pleased with myself. Apparently I had shown ability above the average and had scored well over any other candidate. It wasn't until I had been there for three weeks that I found out the truth.
I had been the only candidate who had managed to get to the interview on that snowy day ten years ago.
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English Grammar through Stories
by Alan Townend
Spot the preposition
They are only small in most cases but we would be lost without them! I am referring of course to prepositions and as you can see I've already used four of them - and there goes number five. Literally they are words that go before other words, usually nouns. The problem is deciding which one to use and which one not to use. To help show how some of them are used I have written this short story. As with all new words it is always best to try to remember them in phrases like: by the sea/outside the house/by car/at the table and so on. Hope you enjoy the story:
Our learner was in a terrible state. He knew he wanted to go somewhere but he didn't know how. At this moment he was standing near a bridge. Should he go by bus, by train, by car, by boat or possibly quite simply on foot? He could walk across the bridge, under the bridge but he couldn't possibly jump over the bridge. He just knew he wanted to get out of town. Once he had arrived there by car he could obviously get out of the car or the train or the bus but he'd have to get off the boat. And now he had arrived in the town centre and was sitting inside the tourist office looking out of the window. Well, he couldn't actually see through the window because the glass was very dirty. He left the tourist office and stood outside for a few minutes thinking what to do next. He saw a policeman coming towards him and he thought he'd ask him where to go. But the policeman walked past him and went along the street taking no notice of him. Anyhow when he thought about it, what could a police officer do for him? The trouble was that he didn't speak the language although he had learnt a few phrases by heart. He knew how to say: On what day is there a festival? At what time do the shops shut? Can I put my bike against the wall? None of these questions would be of use to him. What he really wanted to know was: Where is there a hotel? He was on the point of giving up when he saw a wonderful hotel in front of him. He walked up to the reception and within minutes he was sitting in a beautiful bedroom that looked over the sea. He had a fabulous meal in the restaurant and then went back to his room. He got into bed and fell into a deep sleep. It was in the middle of the night that he suddenly realised he wouldn't have enough money to pay for the accommodation. He decided to continue with his sleep and when he woke up he got ready and went down to the restaurant for his breakfast. He didn't leave that hotel for three weeks. That was how long it took for him to pay for that overnight stay by working in the kitchen as a washer up.
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