Open World p 29 . STEVEN SLATER “Quit your job with style”. Word Formation Exercise

The story of JetBlue (1) ___________ (FLY) attendant Steven Slater has garnered quite a bit of attention. And rightly so. The guy snapped, cursed out an (2)_____________(COOPERATE) passenger, deployed the emergency slide, grabbed a cold one and slid off the plane onto the JFK airport tarmac. Come on…that’s (3)___________________(AWE)! The 80′s gave us the ubiquitous “go postal”, and now, thanks to Mr. Slater, we all know what it means to “go stewardess”. (Yes, I know, “stewardess” is a relic of a bygone (4) ____________ (SEX) era, and not (5)____________________ ( POLITICAL) correct. I also realize that it is female-specific and that Steven Slater is a man. But “go flight attendant” just doesn’t work. Anyway, something tells me Mr. Slater himself would be thrilled with the expression.)

But, on the (6) _____________ (ASSUME) that someone out there might intend to realize their own “go stewardess” moment, I thought it worthwhile to discuss the potential legal consequences of Slater’s conduct? He was, of course, arrested at his home shortly after sliding of the JetBlue aircraft, and charged with (7) __________________ (RECK) endangerment, criminal mischief and criminal trespass. While I agree that Slater’s (8) _________________ (BEHAVE) is less the product of a “criminal” mind, and more the product of a” righteously-pissed-off” meets “fabulous-show-biz” mind, I DO think there are some legitimate criminal issues in this case for him.  He's now facing up to 7 years (9)____________________ (PRISON).
A (10) ________________ (DRAMA) way to quit his job to say the least, the epic of Slater has now become an internet meme in its own right, spurring animated flicks of the event, discussions on other craziest ways to quit, and even songs.


KEY:  

1. flight  

curse someone out to shout offensive words at someone because you are angry or annoyed with them.

2. uncooperative



3. awesome



4. sexist



5. politically



6. assumption



7. reckless



8. behaviour



9. imprisonment



10. dramatic

Vocabulary: Garner something (formal)/ ˈɡɑːnə/ to obtain or collect something such as information, support, etc. Gather, acquire. E.g. All the information that we garnered has been kept on file. Snap: to speak or say something in an impatient, usually angry, voice. E.g.  I was tempted to snap back angrily at him. Ubiquitous: /juːˈbɪkwɪtəs/ seeming to be everywhere or in several places at the same time; very common. E.g: The ubiquitous bicycles of university towns. The ubiquitous movie star, Tom Hank. Go postal:  to become very angry. E.g. He went postal when he found out. Bygone: happening or existing a long time ago. E.g. a bygone age/era. Reckless: showing a lack of care about danger and the possible results of your actions. E.g. He showed a reckless disregard for his own safety. Endangerment: hazard. Mischief: Damage, destruction, or injury caused by a specific person or thing. E.g. The broken window was the mischief of vandals. Trespass: /ˈtrespəs/ to enter land or a building that you do not have permission or the right to enter. E.g. He told me I was trespassing on private land. The sign on the fence said ‘No trespassing’. Righteous: / ˈraɪtʃəs/ that you think is morally acceptable or fair. Pissed off: very angry or annoyed. E.g. I'm pissed off with the way they've treated me. Show business ( Showbiz): The business of providing public entertainment, for example in the theatre, in films/movies or in television. E.g. to be in show business. Show-business people/stars. Meme: an image, a video, a piece of text, etc. that is passed very quickly from one internet user to another, often with slight changes that make it humorous. an internet meme/a blog meme An Internet meme is an idea that is propagated through the World Wide Web.  In your own right: because of your personal qualifications or efforts, not because of your connection with somebody else. E.g. She sings with a rock band, but she's also a jazz musician in her own right. Spur: to encourage somebody to do something. Flick: film

Speakout Advanced p 117. My Worst Flight Ever. Linking Devices

Connectors and Modifiers

1.            Appearance and reality.

At first sight … but in fact….

Apparently…but they were really/actually

The fact is that…

As a matter of fact…

2.            Developing an argument (sequence)

First... In the first place… To begin with…To start with… First of all…

Second… Secondly… In the second place… In addition to that… Apart from that… Besides…

Third… Finally… Lastly… Above all… In conclusion… All in all…(with everything considered). All in all, I would say John and I had a very nice trip.

All things considered, the flight wasn't so bad at first.

As if this were not enough, not only did the flight attendants never serve us any drinks, but they did not give any in-flight announcements either.

On top of all this, the airline lost my luggage!

To make matters worse, the plane that was to take us back to Palma was cancelled.

3.            Giving examples

For example… For instance… A case in point was a problem that developed during the flight.

4.            Contrast

Although… However,… At the same time… e.g. At the same time, we didn't want to take that plane.

After all, we didn't really have a choice

In spite of + noun phrase/ -ing/ the fact that…

Despite + noun phrase/ -ing/ the fact that…

5.            Balance

On one hand, the cabin crew was courteous. On the other hand, however,  in-flight entertainment was terrible.

6.            Cause and effect

Because of… e.g. We were worried in the morning because of the weather.

Caused by… Due to… e.g. The cancellation of the flight was due to the rain.

Consequently... As a result… In consequence…

For this reason… For these reasons… For one reason or another…

7.            Expressing personal opinion

For my part, I did not know that the maximum weight allowed was only 10 kg.

Personally… In my opinion… In my view…

As I saw it, we had no choice.

To my mind, their behaviour was unreasonable.

As far as I was concerned, that was very sound (reliable and sensible) advice.

So far as it concerned me…

8.            Modifying what is said or written

To agree

In general… As a rule… On the whole…  On the whole it was a good airline.

To agree to a certain extent

The passengers were right, in a way, but the airline had to consider the increase in the price of fuel.

In a sense the airline was the best in the country, but the way we were treated that day did not show that. In some sense I agreed with that passenger, but not entirely.

The captain was right up to a point.

To say that you are not very well informed

As far as I knew… . For all I knew… To the best of my knowledge… e.g. To the best of my knowledge, they were supposed to arrive yesterday.

To limit the argument

In those circumstances, the next suitable day for me to take a flight to New York was 30th October. At least…

But things being as they were, a riot on the plane was inevitable …

9.            Intensifying the statement

Clearly… Obviously… Of course… Needless to say… As everyone knows…

To point something out

In particular… Especially… Above all… . Let alone... Not to mention…  In other words… In any case…

10.         Referring to someone or something

With regard to…  e.g I spoke to the airline representative with regard to [as regards, in regard to, regarding] what we had to endure. As for the food, there was nothing to do but throw it away.

Speakout Advanced p 117. My Worst Flight Ever. Collocations

Sample Collocations adverb + adjective

To suggest that there should be a total ban on smoking is utterly ridiculous.

Dozens of homes have been completely destroyed in the floods.

Children get terribly excited when they fly for the first time.

He was awfully drunk. It was an embarrassment to have him there.

She's awfully pretty, don't you think? The most striking person on the plane!

She was absolutely starving so the flight attendant gave her some food

China is the most heavily populated country in the world.

Some pilots are highly qualified.                                                                               

This mistake is perfectly understandable.

The flight attendants were deeply hurt by the storm of abuse they received.

It was bitterly cold in the biting winds and after hours of sightseeing we were keen to find the quickest and easiest way back to our hotel.

We entered a richly decorated room for VIP passengers.                                          

Are you fully aware of the implications of your action?

She was wearing a brightly coloured dress, with red and yellow stripes.

When I talked to her she was understandably nervous — for several reasons, no doubt. If she missed that plane, she would have to wait for at least one more week.

Tourism is a particularly important business.

I started to wonder how I would get those 'excruciatingly painful and infuriating' cactus needles off of me.

I once had to endure an eight hour flight, seated between two people with hideously strong body odour

My worst flight was my last flight to California, on the way over someone had a heart attack and we had to make an emergency landing (I guess it was that passenger’s worst flight too). I was ok with the delay to save someone’s life but after adding on 3 hours to flight time I became ravenously hungry.

Everyone has a horror story about a bad flight on an airplane. I’ve been a flight attendant for 18 years and I’ve had some really bad flights, believe me — everything from truly terrifying weather to sickness and deaths on board. But one flight stands out in my memory for sheer misery.

Fully awake now and miserable at my conclusion that I will NEVER be able to sleep on a plane, I quickly stood up and walked to the bathroom.

I left the toilet still feeling utterly nauseous.

verb + adverb                                                                                      
A flight attendant whispered softly in another flight attendant's ear.                          
She placed the drinks gently on the trays.                                                                         
I vaguely remember that it was growing dark when we left.                                           
I was really hoping things went smoothly on the 7 Hour flight.                               
I do not usually feel poorly on a plane.
Having managed to uncomfortably sleep with a metal buckle in my lower back for about forty minutes, all of a sudden I was woken up by the in-flight announcements. Not the informative type but the scratch card type of announcements, which bothered me even more.
I truly felt that I was about to faint.
adjective + noun                                                                              
Flying gives me a real buzz
buzz: a strong feeling of pleasure, excitement or achievement. A buzz of excitement/expectation. She gets a buzz out of her work.You can sense the creative buzz in the city.
To say that we'll be landing on Jupiter in 2010 is utter nonsense.                   
The flight attendants gave us red roses, which came as a complete surprise.           
His sudden death came as a terrible shock to all passengers.                                      
It was an awful shame that she was unable to come with me on this flight.

She was in absolute agony and obviously very frightened. She told the flight attendant in floods of tears, “I just can't stand this any more”.

I've had this achy pain throughout my entire body for the last two hours.

I am not surprised that food poisoning is becoming a major problem.

The flight attendant seemed to be a caring person.

All passengers liked that flight attendant because of her boundless enthusiasm.

We arrived at the gate about 5 p.m. for our 11-hour flight back to the United States, only to discover that we had a half-hour mechanical delay.

The passenger needed further medical attention and needed to be taken off the plane.

As the passengers disembark, they hurled endless verbal abuse, threatened and pushed the crew members; one elderly passenger even spat in a crew member’s face.

As the plane pushed back and rolled along the runway, we said our belated farewells to the airport. Or so we thought.

Two hours later, we finally took off, praying for an uneventful flight, which somehow we knew was unlikely.

They handed out the trays, which consisted of a salad, a roll, revolting airplane chicken and a melted dessert.

 “I’m never flying this crappy airline again,” many said as they stormed off the plane.
I’ve never been able to sleep on planes, so flying through the night for ten hours only to arrive at 8AM with a full day ahead of me has proven to be a brutal combination over the years.

Speakout Advanced p 117. Air Travel. Extra Vocabulary

Air travel

A flight made regularly according to a timetable: scheduled flight.

A flight in a plane hired for a particular purpose or a particular group of people: charter flight: I'm going to take a charter flight; it's much cheaper.

A plane that travels frequently between two places: shuttle: I'm catching the shuttle up to Edinburgh.

The amount of money you pay to travel by plane: (air) fare.

Bags, etc that you take with you onto a plane: hand luggage (AmE hand baggage)(noun U): Can I take my guitar as hand luggage?

Money that you have to pay for bags, etc that are heavier than the weight limit: excess baggage (charge): Will I have to pay excess baggage?

A place in an airport where you wait before getting on your plane: departure lounge.

To get on a plane: board: How much longer before we board?

A ticket that you need in order to board a plane: boarding card, boarding pass.

The person who is in charge of a plane: captain: This is your captain speaking.

All the people who look after the passengers on a plane: cabin crew (with singular or plural verb).

A person who looks after the passengers on a plane: flight attendant; a man who does this is also called a steward; a woman who does this is also called a stewardess, or air hostess.

The part of a plane where the passengers sit: cabin.

Fuselage: /ˈfjuːzəlɑːʒ/ the main part of an aircraft in which passengers and goods are carried. The part in which you sit as a passenger — is called the fuselage. Your luggage rides in the fuselage too. E.g. The fuselage was recovered on Sunday but the salvage team is still looking for the tail section, which contained the black box flight data recorder. Surrounding homes and shops were also destroyed: television pictures showed the fuselage of the plane lodged in a building, one of its wings detached.

The part of an airliner with the cheapest passenger seats: economy class (noun U); parts with more expensive seats: first class (noun U), business class (noun U), club class (noun U): I usually fly economy. A business-class seat.

Happening or provided during a journey on a plane: in-flight: In-flight movies.

Overhead compartment, airplane luggage compartment, overhead bin, overhead locker: a luggage compartment above the passenger seats for holding carry-on luggage in an airplane.

 On a plane you can get an aisle seat, a middle seat or a window seat: I definitely prefer the window seat. That way, I don't have to deal with people moving up and down the aisles or being crammed between two people I don't know. If I'm travelling with people I know, I don't mind the middle seat as much.

To get off a plane: disembark.

To stop for a short time on a plane journey: stop over; noun: stopover: We're planning to stop over in London. We had a two-hour stopover in Delhi on our way to Sydney.

A plane that leaves soon after another arrives and that takes you on the next part of your journey: connection: If this plane is late, I'll miss my connection in Dallas.

To change to a different plane during a journey: transfer: At Heathrow we transferred to a domestic airline.

A feeling of tiredness caused by travelling to a place where the local time is very different: jet lag (noun U); sb who suffers from this is jet-lagged.

All the people who work on a plane: crew (with singular or plural verb): The plane has a crew of seven.

The part of a plane where the pilots sit: cockpit.

To move slowly along the ground before take-off or after landing: taxi: The plane taxied up to the terminal building.

A long piece of ground with a hard surface where aircraft take off and land at an airport, etc: runway.

A tall airport building from where planes are controlled: control tower.

A person at an airport who gives radio instructions to pilots from the control tower: air traffic controller.

If an aircraft flies without using an engine, it glides.

The height of an aircraft above sea level: altitude.

An accident in a plane, etc: (plane) crash; verb: crash (sth).

To land an aircraft causing damage to it: crash-land (sth); the pilot or the aircraft crash-lands; noun: crash landing: He was forced to crash-land in a field. The plane ran out of fuel and had to make a crash-landing in the desert.

If a plane falls from the sky or lands in a place outside an airport, it comes down: The plane came down in the middle of a field.

Broken pieces of a plane, etc that has been badly damaged: wreckage (noun U): The rescuers managed to pull three survivors from the wreckage.

A plastic or rubber jacket filled with air that keeps sb floating in water: life jacket.

A thing that you put over your face to be able to breathe in an emergency in a plane: oxygen mask.

A piece of strong cloth that is tied to sb and that lets them fall slowly to the ground when they jump from a plane: parachute; to use a parachute: parachute: He parachuted safely to the ground.

Violent or uneven movement of air, making flight uncomfortable: turbulence (noun U).