Day 102: Please Use the Next Till
In their flat in Krosno, the evening before the cabaret night at the local University of the Third Age, Waldemar (A), a retired tax office clerk, rehearses with his wife Celina (B) the sketch he has written: he plays a self-checkout machine, and she plays a pensioner out shopping.
How to study this lesson 3 steps
- Read the situation under the title. It says who is talking and how they know each other, which decides how politely they speak.
- Read the dialogue line by line with its translation, until every line makes sense. Point at (or tap) a Polish word to see what it means.
- Spend at least 30 minutes listening to native Polish, for example from the Resources page. It doesn't matter if you don't understand it yet.
Dialogue
Audio recordings are on the way. For now, each lesson is the dialogue with its English translation.
Keys: E hide English · ← → previous / next day · point at a word to see its meaning
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A
Celinko, próba generalna: ja jestem kasą samoobsługową, ty emerytką z koszykiem. Zaczynam: „W celu dokonania zakupu proszę zeskanować produkt”.
Celina, dress rehearsal: I'm the self-checkout, you're a pensioner with a shopping basket. Here goes: 'In order to complete your purchase, please scan the product.'
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B
Dzień dobry, pani kaso. Ja tylko po bułeczkę, a pani do mnie jak urząd skarbowy.
Good morning, Mrs Checkout. I've only come for a little bread roll, and you talk to me like the tax office.
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A
„Nieoczekiwany przedmiot w strefie pakowania. Po dokonaniu weryfikacji transakcja zostanie wznowiona”. Tu sala ryknie śmiechem.
'Unexpected item in the bagging area. Once verification has been carried out, the transaction will resume.' This is where the audience will roar with laughter.
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B
Waldku, czterdzieści lat przepracowałeś w skarbówce. Jak powiesz ze sceny „po dokonaniu weryfikacji”, pół sali sięgnie po portfele.
Waldek, you spent forty years at the tax office. If you say 'once verification has been carried out' from the stage, half the audience will reach for their wallets.
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A
I o to chodzi: satyra musi uwierać. Dalej didaskalia: „Emerytka, rozejrzawszy się ukradkiem, chowa bułkę do torebki”.
That's the whole point: satire has to sting. Next, the stage directions: 'The pensioner, having glanced furtively around, slips the roll into her handbag.'
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B
Mam grać złodziejkę przed całym Uniwersytetem Trzeciego Wieku? Przecież w pierwszym rzędzie zawsze siedzi ksiądz proboszcz!
I'm supposed to play a thief in front of the whole University of the Third Age? The parish priest always sits in the front row!
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A
Nie złodziejkę, tylko bohaterkę ruchu oporu przeciw automatyzacji. Kasa, wykrywszy bułkę w torebce, wzywa ochronę w celu sporządzenia protokołu.
Not a thief: a heroine of the resistance against automation. The checkout, having detected the roll in the handbag, calls security for the purpose of drawing up a report.
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B
Wiesz co? Zamieńmy się rolami: ja będę kasą, a ty zobaczysz, jak to jest stać z bułką w ręku.
You know what? Let's swap roles: I'll be the checkout, and you'll find out what it's like to stand there with a roll in your hand.
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A
Proszę bardzo. Dzień dobry, szanowna kaso, pragnę dokonać zakupu jednej bułki, płatność gotówką.
Be my guest. Good morning, esteemed checkout, I wish to effect the purchase of one bread roll, payment in cash.
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B
„Kasa nieczynna, zapraszamy do kasy obok”. Koniec skeczu: każdy to słyszał po kwadransie stania w kolejce, więc sala popłacze się ze śmiechu.
'Till closed, please use the next till.' End of sketch: everyone's heard that after queuing for a quarter of an hour, so the audience will cry with laughter.
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A
Trzy strony tekstu, a ty mnie zakasowałaś jednym zdaniem. W związku z powyższym puenta jest twoja, ale w programie zostaje „Tekst: Waldemar”.
Three pages of script, and you've upstaged me with one sentence. In view of the above, the punchline is yours, but the programme still says 'Written by Waldemar'.
Your progress is saved in this browser only, with no sign-up. The course page and the menu show where you left off. Well done! Next up: Day 103: Read to the Last Stanza
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