My name is Jay, and I live in Mapo. Every morning, I cycle to work. I start my journey early, around 5AM, so I can enjoy watching the sunrise as I ride. This morning, the weather was perfect—about 18 degrees and not a cloud in sight! Yesterday it rained all day, so the air smelled fresh and clean. And there was no fine dust—a perfect day for cycling. I stopped several times to take pictures along the way.
I passed by a small stream in Banpo, and the water was so clear. It's Spring now, so I could see a whole family of ducks. I tried to video-call my wife to show her how cute the ducklings were, but she was still sleeping. She got annoyed and hung up. Oops. I’ll show her the video when I get home.
After about an hour, I arrived at the office near Yangjae station. There were no spots left to park my bike near Exit 1, so I had to park a bit farther away and jog to avoid being late. Good thing I left early. Now, it's time to start working before my boss notices I'm slacking off. I can't wait to see the sunset on my ride home. Maybe the ducklings will still be there, and maybe my wife will forget about me waking her up at 5:30 in the morning... But probably not. She usually remembers those kinds of things. We'll see.
Vocabulary
Fine dust - very small particles in the air, often referring to air pollution
The fine dust in the air made it difficult to breathe, so many people wore masks.
After the construction work, a layer of fine dust covered all the nearby cars.
Environmental experts warned about the health risks posed by fine dust during the dry season.
Stream - a small, narrow river
The children spent the afternoon playing by the stream, skipping stones across the water.
The sound of the stream flowing over the rocks was calming and peaceful.
We followed the narrow path until we reached a stream where we could fill our water bottles.
Ducklings - young ducks
The mother duck led her ducklings across the road, causing traffic to stop for a few minutes.
We watched as the fluffy ducklings took their first swim in the pond.
The park was full of families enjoying the sight of the newly hatched ducklings.
Annoyed - slightly angry; irritated
She was annoyed when her meeting was rescheduled for the third time this week.
I get annoyed when people don't follow the rules in public places.
He was annoyed by the constant noise coming from the construction site next door.
Slacking off - not working as hard as one should
His boss noticed that he had been slacking off recently and warned him to improve his performance.
Instead of slacking off, she used her free time to learn new skills.
The team leader told everyone to stop slacking off and focus on finishing the project.
Comprehension Questions
Where does Jay live?
What was the weather like today during Jay's ride?
What did Jay see near the stream?
Did Jay’s wife want to see the ducklings during the video call?
Where does Jay work?
Discussion Questions
Do you like being active in the morning? Why or why not?
What kind of weather makes you want to spend some time outside?
When was the last time you made a video call? What did you talk about?
Have you ever been late because you couldn’t find parking?
Is there anything you look forward to while you’re busy at work?
Have you ever cycled to work before? How was it? How long did it take?
How do you usually start your day? Do you have any morning routines?
Have you ever seen ducklings before? Where were they? Did you take any pictures?
What’s your favourite way to commute to work?
Have you ever had an early morning adventure or experience like Jay? What was it like?