ESL Podcast 892 - Preparing for the Busy Season
to gear up for - to get ready for; to prepare for
The team members are gearing up for the big game on Friday.
busy season - a period of time each year when a business has more customers and more sales than at other times of year
Early spring is the busy season for tax accountants, because most personal tax returns have to be filed by April 15.
to get caught with (one's) pants down - to be found in an embarrassing or uncomfortable situation that one was not expecting and did not prepare for
The students got caught with their pants down when the teacher surprised them with a test on their reading assignments up to that point in the term.
unseasonably warm - warmer than usual for a particular place at a particular time of year
February was unseasonably warm in Colorado and it caused a lot of flooding.
for lightening to strike twice - for a rare or unusual event to happen two times; for something unlikely to happen again
Why are you still buying lottery tickets? You won the jackpot last year, but I doubt lightning will strike twice.
contingency - one of many possible events when one does not know whether or when it will happen, but one can try to be prepared for it
Does your homeowners insurance include contingencies for natural disasters, such as flooding, wildfires, and earthquakes?
a flood of - many; a large number of people or things appearing all at once
The school was overwhelmed by the flood of new students last year.
surge - a sudden, significant increase
After the terrorist attacks, there was a surge of interest in becoming a police officer.
traffic - a measure of the number of people coming to a store or another place; a measure of the number of people seen in a particular area
Our store doesn't see much traffic, but our website gets a lot of sales.
peak - greatest; biggest; with the maximum value; referring to the highest part of something
None of the employees are allowed to take their lunch break during our peak hours, because we need everyone available to assist customers.
upswing - an increase
What caused the upswing in students' test scores three years ago?
in large numbers - with a great or high value; many
When a storm is coming, people often buy flashlights and candles in large numbers, just in case they lose power.
to anticipate - to expect; to predict; to believe that something will happen in the future
As the population grows older, we anticipate continued growth in the medical industry.
to go to waste - to be wasted; to not be used and to have to be thrown away
Many grocery stores donate old bread, fruits, and vegetables to homeless shelters so that the food doesn't go to waste.
perishable - likely to decay or spoil; likely to go bad
Liquid milk is highly perishable, unless it has special packaging.