Day 124 of 160

Day 124: Stores in the Stairwell

In the stairwell of a medium-rise public housing building in Tondo, Angelica (A) reads her draft petition to the housing authority to two neighbors: Benedict (B), whose sari-sari store sits on the third-floor landing, and Isabel (C), who has to squeeze past it every day.

How to study this lesson 3 steps
  1. Read the situation under the title. It says who is talking and how they know each other, which decides how politely they speak.
  2. Read the dialogue line by line with its translation, until every line makes sense.
  3. Spend at least 30 minutes listening to native Tagalog. It doesn't matter if you don't understand it yet.

Dialogue

Audio for this lesson is coming soon. For now, read the dialogue and its translation.

Keys: E hide English · ← → previous / next day

  1. A

    Kami, ang mga residente ng Gusali 5, ay magalang na humihiling na payagan ang maliliit na tindahan sa aming mga yunit.

    We, the residents of Building 5, respectfully request that small stores be allowed in our units.

  2. B

    Ayos! Isama mo na rin ang mga tindahan sa hagdan, Angelica.

    Great! Put the stores on the stairs in there too, Angelica.

  3. C

    E paano naman kami? Araw-araw, para kaming nag-o-obstacle course sa hagdan!

    And what about us? Every day it's like running an obstacle course on those stairs!

  4. B

    Ang arte mo, Isabel. Dalawang kahon lang ng softdrinks 'yon, nakakadaan ka pa rin.

    You're so dramatic, Isabel. It's just two cases of soft drinks, you can still get past.

  5. C

    Patagilid nga lang! Kahapon, may pasan akong galon ng tubig, muntik na akong gumulong pababa.

    Only sideways! Yesterday I had a water jug on my shoulder and nearly went tumbling down.

  6. A

    Fire exit ang hagdan. Kahit pumirma ang buong building, hindi 'yan papayagan ng NHA.

    The stairs are a fire exit. Even if the whole building signs, the NHA will never allow that.

  7. B

    E saan ako lilipat? Sa loob ng unit, walang makakakita sa tindahan ko.

    So where do I go? Inside my unit, nobody will see my store.

  8. C

    Bakit hindi tayo humingi ng isang puwesto sa ground floor na paghahatian nating lahat?

    Why don't we ask for one stall on the ground floor that we can all share?

  9. A

    Idadagdag ko: "at isang puwesto sa unang palapag na magagamit ng lahat ng residente." Benedict, ikaw ang unang pipirma.

    I'll add: "and one stall on the ground floor for the use of all residents." Benedict, you're signing first.

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