Well, my worst habit that I have ever had is probably smoking. I don't smoke anymore, but when I graduated from college, I went abroad to study in Mexico. And almost everyone around me was a smoker. So it was very difficult for me not to smoke. And I just decided after a couple of months to give in and to start smoking myself. I smoked for probably about two or three years, and then I decided to quit smoking.
I was lucky because I was able to quit cold turkey, whereas other people who try to quit often have to use nicotine patches or nicotine gum or something like that. But I was fortunate. I missed smoking after I stopped it for probably five years. When I would walk by someone who was smoking, I would inhale deeply to smell the smoke because it gave me a certain satisfaction, a certain pleasure. But after about five years, I got sick of the smoke so that now—and this was 10 years ago that I quit smoking—I can't stand the smell of smoke. I try to get away from the smell of smoke in a restaurant or on the street.
The other bad habits that I have include drinking alcohol, although I don't drink very much alcohol. I used to drink when I was in college and after college, but now I don't drink as much, partly because I can't handle my alcohol very well anymore, and I don't have a lot of occasions to drink. I don't go to bars anymore, and I don't hang around a lot of people or friends who are heavy drinkers.
I also like to drink tea. I was a coffee drinker for many years. I drank coffee almost every day, but eventually the coffee started to irritate my stomach, and so I had to stop drinking coffee, and I switched to tea. And now I drink all sorts or all kinds of tea. I drink black tea. I drink oolong tea. I drink jasmine tea. I drink chai tea. My favorite drink with tea is a hot chai tea latte. A latte is a drink, either tea or coffee, that's made with milk and sugar—sometimes a little cream, too. I usually have a cup of tea every morning. It helps me wake up. I like the caffeine in the morning. It gets me going. However, if I drink tea at night, I have problems sleeping. So I try to avoid drinking tea.
As usual on ESL Podcast, we recommend or suggest that you listen to this podcast several times—two, three, four times—in order to understand everything that we say. Now we're going to talk about some vocabulary that you may have had difficulty with or difficulty understanding.
The first expression used at the beginning of the segment was to give in. I said how I gave in when I was in Mexico because everyone else around me was smoking. To give in means to do something because you are pressured somehow or that you receive pressure from other people. For example, I ask my sister to lend me her car and she says no. And then I argue with her. I give her reasons. I beg her. I bribe her. I give her money, and eventually she gives in and allows me to use her car. So to give in means that you are reluctant or you don't want to do something, but eventually you do.
Another expression we used in talking about smoking was cold turkey. I said that I quit smoking cold turkey. To quit cold turkey means to stop completely without ever going back. We often use this expression when talking about bad or nasty habits, such as smoking and drinking. So to quit cold turkey is to stop some vice, some habit, some addiction you have completely.
Two other expressions that we mentioned in our talk: can't stand and can't handle. I mentioned that I can't stand the smell of smoke. Can't stand means you do not allow it, you do not tolerate it, you do not put up with it. For example, I can't stand people who shout, meaning I'm very bothered by people who shout. I try to get away from people who shout. So the expression can't stand means you can't tolerate, you can't put up with.
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