A Watchmaker

 
 
 
Jagwida talks about her life and work.

Vocabulary

happen	look after	choose/chose/chosen
ill	profession	at some point
still (2)	over there	it seems to me
worry	member	grow/grew/grown
reason	right (4)	grown children
rights	pleasure	to help out
coast	at present	clock maker
state (3)	sweet (2)	I have no idea
wait	point (3)	in particular
except	excuse me	supposed to

 
 
 
 
 

 
 
 
 

Transcript

My name is Jadwiga Romanek. I live in Warsaw. I’m 57 years old.

What do you do for a living?

I’m a clock-maker. I work here with my husband. We’ve been married for 35 years.

But I worked here before that too.

I didn’t choose this profession myself. My father was a clock maker. At some point he got ill and my mother asked me to help out. And I’m still here.

What does globalization mean to you?

It seems to me that the world is becoming one big state. A kind of world state.

What worries you?

I don’t know what I’m supposed to worry about. I work. I’ve got a house. Grown children. I have no reason to worry.

What makes you happy?

Right now my grandson gives me the most pleasure. He’s four. That’s his picture over there. He’s the biggest love of my life at present. I visit him when he’s ill.

I help my daughter; I look after him. He’s the smallest and sweetest member of the family…our future.

What country would you like to visit?

I’m not a big traveler. I like the Polish coast.

What do you expect for your future?

I have no idea what’s going to happen. How could I know? I’m not waiting for anything in particular, except for more grandchildren. Now you’ll have to excuse me.

 

 

Questions

1. Who is this person? What is her name? Where does she live?

2. She sews and makes clothes. True or false? What is her job or occupation?

3. Did she go to a technical school to learn her trade (job)?

4. Is she positive, negative or neutral about globalization?

5. She is worried about climate change and the weather. Is this right or wrong?

6. Do money and luxury cars and mansions make her happy? What makes her happy?

7. She loves to travel around the world: Egypt, France, Greece, Mexico, Spain, Thailand. Is this correct or incorrect? What country would she like to visit?

8. Does she want to be rich? Does she want to become president?

9. Name some things and activities from the video clip.

A. Do you know anyone who makes or repairs clocks, watches or shoes?

B. What sort of clocks, watches or other time pieces do you have?

C. Do you live in Poland? Are you from Poland? Have you ever been to Poland?

D. Have you met people from Poland? Who were they? What were they doing?

E. Describe the geography and climate of Poland.

F. Describe the economy of Poland. What does it import and export?

G. What problems or challenges does Poland face?

H. What is Polish food or cuisine like?

I. What are some tourist attractions (cultural, historic, natural)?

J. What do you associate with Poland? What comes to mind when you hear the name “Poland”?