Conversation one: Peggy is talking to her friend, Ken
Peggy: You remember last week I told you about the noisy neighbours in the flat next door. Well, things are getting worse. Every evening their TV is on full blast and it's driving me crazy.
Ken: Yes, you've mentioned that a few times.
Peggy: Now that it's slightly cooler, they’re leaving their door open in the evening and I can hear their TV as if it was in my flat. And it isn't just the TV.
Ken: Have you had said anything to them?
Peggy: [Interrupting] Every morning when they're getting ready to go to work, they shout at each other instead of talking normally. You would think a hundred people lived in that flat, not two.
Ken: I'm sure it's not as bad as that.
Peggy: Oh, it is! You don't have to live next door to them.
Ken: You should do something about it. Have a word with them. They’re just next door.
Peggy: Don't get me started on doors! They don't know how to close doors quietly. They slam every door in the flat and I can hear it in my place. It’s all really getting on my nerves. And I haven't told you about ...
Ken: Oh, Peggy! Please stop whinging! Complaining to me will get you nowhere. Just talk to them about your concerns and I’m sure things will change. Now can we talk about something else – please? I sympathise about your noisy neighbours, but I am a bit fed up with you going on about them all the time.
Conversation two: Mr Chan is talking to his neighbour Mrs Lee
Mr C: Do you ever shop at ‘ShopRite’ on Station Street? I do most of my shopping there. It’s convenient in the evening when I come out of the mtr and walk towards home. I pop in two or three times a week.
Mrs L: I know where it is, but I’ve never shopped there.
Mr C: Well. They’ve really put up their prices recently. I noticed about a month ago that my weekly grocery shop was starting to cost more. They’ve hiked up the prices on almost everything.
I bought some carrots and some broccoli last night, and I’m sure I paid twice as much as I paid last year.
Mrs L: I never buy my vegetables at the supermarket. They’re much better quality at the local wet market.
Mr C: They keep moving stuff round, too. One week the coffee is in aisle four and the next it’s in aisle seven. The staff are so unhelpful. You ask them where something is and they look at you as if you are an idiot.
Mrs L: Why do you still go there then?
Mr C: [Interrupting] And the queues at the checkout are so long. They have six checkouts, but last night only two were open. I had to stand in line for almost ten minutes before I could pay.
Mrs L: What a waste of time!
Mr C: Indeed! I think the general quality of the fresh stuff there is going downhill as well. The bread I got last week was bone-dry.
Mrs L: Why don’t you shop elsewhere, then?
Mr C: Oh, I’ve been shopping at ‘ShopRite’ ever since I moved into the area.
Mrs L: Well, that’s no reason to continue shopping there. If I were you, Mr Chan, I would stop moaning, and find somewhere else to shop. Have you tried ‘GoodPrice’ just round the corner? That’s where I go, and I have no complaints at all.
Mr C: Yes, but … and I haven’t mentioned the litter on the floor at ‘ShopRite’…
Mrs L: Oh, Mr Chan, stop whinging!. It isn’t as if ‘ShopRite’ is the only supermarket around here. We have lots of choices. Be brave and go somewhere else! I’ve got to go!