Charlar en la pausa del café con compañeros de trabajo
Mark: Hey Sarah, long time no see in the kitchen, how’s your morning
going?
Sarah: Hey Mark, pretty good so far, just trying to wake up with this
coffee.
Mark: Same here, the emails were already wild at 8 a.m. today.
Sarah: Tell me about it, I opened my inbox and instantly wanted another
weekend.
Mark: How’s that new project with the marketing team going?
Sarah: Busy but interesting, we had a meeting earlier and it actually
went smoother than I expected.
Mark: That’s a pleasant surprise, normally those meetings drag on
forever.
Sarah: I know, right, but today everyone was strangely focused and on the
same page.
Mark: Maybe they’re all in a hurry to finish before the holidays.
Sarah: Probably, and our manager kept saying “let’s keep this short,”
which helped a lot.
Mark: Do you feel confident about the deadline next week?
Sarah: More or less, I think we’ll make it, but I’ll probably need to
stay a bit late tomorrow.
Mark: If you need a hand with the spreadsheet part, just ping me.
Sarah: Thanks, I might actually take you up on that because those reports
drive me crazy.
Mark: Speaking of crazy, how was your weekend, did you do anything fun?
Sarah: Yeah, I went hiking with some friends on Sunday and then spent the
rest of the day being lazy on the sofa.
Mark: That sounds perfect, I mostly did laundry and watched a couple of
movies.
Sarah: Honestly, that still sounds like a pretty decent weekend to me.
Mark: True, as long as I don’t think about work, I’m happy.
Sarah: Exactly, weekends are for pretending we’re rich and don’t need a
job.
Mark: Did you go anywhere nice for the hike?
Sarah: Yeah, we went to a trail about an hour away from the city, the
view at the top was amazing.
Mark: Nice, I’ve been wanting to get out of town more, I spend way too
much time at my desk.
Sarah: Same, sitting in front of a screen all day is not exactly the
dream.
Mark: Do you have any plans for next weekend already?
Sarah: Not yet, I’m thinking about having a movie night at home or maybe
meeting some friends for brunch.
Mark: Brunch sounds awesome, I’m jealous already.
Sarah: You should totally plan one too, it’s the perfect excuse to eat
pancakes at midday.
Mark: That’s a very good point, I’m easily convinced by pancakes.
Sarah: Food is the best way to make any plan sound better.
Mark: What about after work today, got anything planned?
Sarah: I’m meeting a friend for a quick coffee and then I’ll probably go
home and watch a series.
Mark: Nice, which series are you watching right now?
Sarah: I just started a new crime show, it’s kind of addictive.
Mark: Uh oh, so you’re going to tell yourself “just one more episode” and
then it’s suddenly midnight.
Sarah: Exactly, my future sleepy self is going to hate me.
Mark: I might hit the gym after work if I can convince myself to actually
go.
Sarah: Good for you, I always say I’ll go to the gym and then end up
going to the fridge instead.
Mark: Honestly, the fridge is my favorite gym machine.
Sarah: Same, it’s the one I use with the most discipline.
Mark: Are you staying in the office all afternoon or working from home
later?
Sarah: I’ll stay here, I have a meeting at four that I’d rather do in
person.
Mark: Oh, the one with the clients from London, right?
Sarah: Yeah, they’re actually really nice, but the time difference always
makes scheduling a bit tricky.
Mark: At least they’re friendly, that makes the calls less painful.
Sarah: True, they always start with some small talk, which helps break
the ice.
Mark: Speaking of small talk, our coffee break is turning into a full-on
catch-up session.
Sarah: I know, but I’m not complaining, this is the best part of the
morning.
Mark: Same here, it’s nice to talk about something other than tasks and
deadlines.
Sarah: Exactly, it reminds me that my life is not just emails and
spreadsheets.
Mark: We should do this coffee break more often, not just when we’re
stressed.
Sarah: Agreed, let’s make it a thing, at least once or twice a week.
Mark: Deal, next time I’ll bring some cookies to make it official.
Sarah: Then it’s definitely a deal, I’ll never say no to cookies with my
coffee.
Mark: Okay, I guess we should get back before someone thinks we’ve moved
into the kitchen.
Sarah: Yeah, you’re right, let’s survive the rest of the day and then
enjoy our after-work plans.
VOCABULARIO CLAVE
En este tipo de situación se usa un inglés muy informal, típico de oficina y de
confianza entre compañeros.
Palabras y expresiones útiles:
– Small talk de oficina: morning, coffee, emails, inbox, meeting,
deadline, project, report, calls, clients.
– Adjetivos coloquiales: crazy emails, pretty good, kind of addictive,
really nice, a bit tricky, busy but interesting.
– Verbos frecuentes: to wake up, to drag on, to make it (llegar a
tiempo), to take you up on that (aceptar una oferta), to hang out, to stay late,
to hit the gym.
– Tiempo libre y planes: weekend, hiking, trail, movie night, brunch,
series, gym, fridge.
Recomendación: memoriza pequeños “bloques” listos para usar, por ejemplo:
– “It’s been pretty busy but interesting.” (para hablar del trabajo)
– “I just stayed home and watched a couple of movies.” (para el fin de
semana)
EXPRESIONES COLOQUIALES DESTACABLES
Estas expresiones suenan muy naturales y marcan mucho la diferencia respecto a
un inglés demasiado “de libro”.
– “Long time no see”: muy típico al saludar a alguien que hace tiempo
que no ves.
– “Tell me about it”: significa “ya ves”, “ni que lo digas”; expresa
acuerdo con una queja.
– “I’ll take you up on that”: aceptar una oferta de ayuda o invitación.
– “That sounds perfect / awesome / pretty decent”: fórmula comodín para
reaccionar a los planes de otra persona.
– “I might actually…”: suaviza la intención; es menos rotundo que “I
will”.
– “One more episode”: broma típica con series; se entiende el contexto de
“maratón” de capítulos.
– Humor con el trabajo: “weekends are for pretending we’re rich and
don’t need a job”, o bromas sobre el “fridge as my favorite gym machine”.
Este tipo de humor ligero es muy típico en pausas de café.
Recomendación: practica 3–4 expresiones y úsalas mucho hasta que te salgan
automáticas, por ejemplo:
– “Tell me about it.”
– “That sounds great.”
– “I might do that too.”
GRAMÁTICA QUE MERECE ATENCIÓN
Uso del presente continuo para planes cercanos
– “I’m meeting a friend after work.”
No es “I will meet” en este contexto; el presente continuo transmite que el plan
ya está organizado.
Uso de “going to” vs. “will” (aunque en el diálogo casi no aparece, la
lógica es la misma)
– Para planes ya pensados: “I’m going to watch a series.”
– Para decisiones espontáneas: “OK, I’ll bring some cookies next time.”
(decisión en el momento).
Modales suaves: “might”, “probably”, “more or less”
– “I might actually take you up on that.”
– “I’ll probably need to stay a bit late.”
– “More or less, I think we’ll make it.”
Estas palabras rebajan la fuerza de lo que dices, algo muy típico en inglés para
sonar educado y no tajante.
Gerundios tras preposición
– “I’m thinking about having a movie night.”
Después de about va verbo en -ing, nunca en infinitivo: no decimos “about
have”.
“Do” como verbo de apoyo en respuestas cortas
– “That sounds perfect.” / “That still sounds pretty decent.”
Aunque aquí no se ve tanto do, en este tipo de diálogo es habitual:
“Yes, it does.”, “No, I don’t.”, etc. Practicarlo ayuda a sonar más
natural que repetir toda la frase.
DIFERENCIAS IDIOMÁTICAS Y CULTURALES
La importancia del small talk
En inglés, hablar del fin de semana, del tiempo, de series o del gimnasio no es
“perder el tiempo”: es una forma social de mantener una relación cordial.
Un español podría ir directo al tema del trabajo; en inglés, un par de minutos
de charla ligera se consideran normales y hasta recomendables.
Menos quejas directas, más humor suave
En vez de decir “mi jefe es un desastre” (muy directo), se usan bromas o quejas
suaves:
– “The emails were already wild at 8 a.m.”
– “Our meetings usually drag on forever.”
Esto critica la situación sin atacar a nadie directamente.
Uso de “understatement” (minimizar las cosas)
– “It’s been pretty busy.” puede significar “estoy hasta arriba de
trabajo”.
En español tendemos a exagerar; en inglés se tiende a rebajar la intensidad.
Distancia entre vida personal y trabajo
Hablar de planes tipo movies, brunch, hiking es normal y neutral. Pero se
suele evitar entrar demasiado en temas muy personales (política, religión,
problemas familiares) en una pausa informal, especialmente con gente con la que
no hay mucha confianza.
CONSEJOS PRÁCTICOS PARA HISPANOHABLANTES
PREPARA FRASES “PLANTILLA”
Ten listas 2–3 frases para cada tema típico:
Trabajo
– “It’s been pretty busy, but not too bad.”
– “The project is interesting, just a bit stressful.”
Fin de semana
– “I just stayed home and relaxed.”
– “I went out with some friends, nothing crazy.”
Planes después del trabajo
– “I’m meeting a friend for a quick coffee.”
– “I’m going home to watch a series.”
USA RESPUESTAS CORTAS Y NATURALES
En lugar de explicaciones largas, responde con estructuras muy simples:
– Reacción positiva: “That sounds great / nice / fun.”
– Empatía: “Yeah, I know what you mean.”, “Tell me about it.”
– Ofrecer ayuda: “If you need a hand, just let me know.”
NO TE OBSESIONES CON LA GRAMÁTICA PERFECTA
En este contexto es mejor un inglés sencillo pero fluido que frases muy
complejas.
Por ejemplo, en vez de:
– “At the weekend I was very tired because I had had a lot of work during the
week.”
di simplemente:
– “I was really tired, I had a lot of work last week.”
PRACTICA LA ENTRADA Y LA SALIDA DE LA CONVERSACIÓN
Inicio de charla en la pausa del café:
– “Hey, how’s your day going so far?”
– “How’s your morning been?”
Para cerrar sin quedar brusco:
– “Alright, I should get back to work. Talk to you later.”
– “I’d better go before someone thinks I live in the kitchen.” (tono de
broma, como en el diálogo).
ACEPTA EL HUMOR LIGERO
No hace falta traducir chistes complicados. Basta con reír, sonreír y usar algo
simple:
– “Haha, yeah, same here.”
– “That’s so true.”
Si no entiendes un comentario, puedes salir del paso con:
– “Sorry, what do you mean?”
– “I didn’t catch that, could you say it again?”
