Six months ago, I noticed I couldn’t hear my gym instructors clearly. At first, I chalked it up to the loud music, but then I realized it wasn’t the background noise, it was me.

In this episode, I’ll share:

• What hearing loss is, and how it often changes as we age

• Why hearing aids feel so different from reading glasses, and why that hit different for me

• What we can do to protect our hearing, reduce the risks of dementia, and adapt when hearing loss happens

As always, I’ll also point out some advanced English expressions like chalk it up, the rub, and chide yourself, among others. So, listen now, and test out your listening skills in this intermediate English and advanced English language podcast episode.

Episode 79 – It Takes Two to Tango: A Conversation with Lisa Wood | Advanced English Conversations

In this episode of Hear You Go, I speak with English teacher and neuro-language coach Lisa Wood about the importance of being an active, kind, gentle listener in the dance that is a conversation.

Our chat is perfect for advanced English learners, English teachers, and anyone interested in mindset, confidence, and how listening shapes communication. You’ll hear how Lisa sees language learning as a dance between speaker and listener (it always takes two to tango!), and why connection—not perfection—is the real goal of fluency.

🎧 You’ll hear:

• What The CALM Way is and how it supports learners

• Why listening is never passive, but always active

• How mindset influences confidence and fluency

• Encouragement to show up and communicate, even if it’s not “perfect”

Enjoy this great example of the dance that is a conversation!

We all tell stories, but what stories do we tell? | Ideas in English for Advanced Listening Practice.

📚 In this episode of Hear You Go, I dive into The Bee Sting by Paul Murray—a Booker Prize–shortlisted novel about an Irish family falling apart, unraveling really, under pressure. Each family member tells their own version of events, showing us how perspective, memory, and emotion shape the stories we carry.

The episode explores:

• Why personal narratives matter, both in novels and in our own lives

• How different voices and perspectives in The Bee Sting reveal deeper truths

• What language learners can take from the idea of rewriting their own narratives

• Useful vocabulary for talking about stories and identity

I invite you to reflect on your narrative. What story do you tell about yourself—and how might you tell it differently?

🎧 Ready to rethink the stories you carry? Here we go…

Have you heard the alarm bells too? Are we reading less these days?

My friends are all readers, so I find it hard to imagine that people don’t read for enjoyment. In search of answers, I decided to take a look at the shifting habits around reading for pleasure. Are people (especially young people) actually reading less? What does the data say? And why does it matter?

We’ll explore:

• What does it mean to read and be a “reader”

• What the data say about reading rates today

• What we might lose if the “reading class” keeps shrinking—and what role AI and smartphones play in all this

This is an advanced English language exploration of books, literacy, and attention—but also about empathy, imagination, and the kind of connection that only deep reading can bring. Whether you're an avid reader or someone who’s been meaning to get back into it, I hope this episode gives you something to reflect on.

📖 So… are you still reading for pleasure? Let’s talk about it.