Mia: Hey, Liam! I can see you but I can’t hear you, I think you’re on mute.
Liam: Oh, classic, there we go—can you hear me now?

Mia: Yes, loud and clear! How’s it going? It feels like ages since we talked.
Liam: I know, it’s been way too long, things have been kind of crazy with work.

Mia: Tell me about it, what’s going on at the office?
Liam: We’ve got a big project deadline next month, so everyone’s stressed and drinking too much coffee.

Mia: Sounds intense, are you still working mostly from home?
Liam: Yeah, like three days a week from home and two days at the office, it’s a weird mix.

Mia: At least you don’t have to commute every day, that’s something.
Liam: True, I don’t miss the packed trains at all.

Mia: My job’s been busy too, but in a good way, we hired two new people on my team.
Liam: Nice, so you’re officially the experienced one now, the “office veteran”.

Mia: Haha, I guess so, they keep asking me where everything is and how stuff works.
Liam: That’s what you get for being competent, it’s the curse.

Mia: Speaking of curses, how’s your family, everything okay with them?
Liam: Yeah, they’re good, my sister just moved to another city for a new job.

Mia: Oh, really? Is she excited or stressed about it?
Liam: A bit of both, I think, but she likes her new place and she’s already made some friends.

Mia: That’s great, and how are your parents doing?
Liam: They’re fine, my mum’s obsessed with gardening now, she sends me plant photos every day.

Mia: That’s adorable, my mum does the same but with pictures of the dog.
Liam: Honestly, I’m not complaining, dog photos are the best kind of spam.

Mia: True, by the way, I saw on social media that you went to a concert last weekend.
Liam: Yeah, finally! First concert in ages, it was amazing, the band was so good live.

Mia: I was jealous, what band was it again?
Liam: A small indie band, “Northern Lights”, you probably haven’t heard of them, but they’re great.

Mia: Send me a playlist later, I need new music for work.
Liam: Sure, I’ll make you a “Mia’s focus but not too serious” playlist.

Mia: Perfect, that’s exactly my vibe. Any other news on your side?
Liam: Well… I finally started going back to the gym, my muscles are in shock.

Mia: Haha, I can imagine, the first week back is always horrible.
Liam: Yeah, I walked up the stairs yesterday and my legs were like “nope”.

Mia: I’ve been doing home workouts, mostly yoga and random YouTube videos.
Liam: That’s cool, I need something calmer like yoga, the gym is too much noise sometimes.

Mia: So, apart from work and sore muscles, how are you feeling in general?
Liam: Honestly, a bit tired, but also kind of motivated, like things are slowly moving forward.

Mia: I get that, I feel the same, like life is a bit chaotic but in a good direction.
Liam: Exactly, chaos with progress, that’s our new slogan.

Mia: We should put that on a mug. “Team Chaos with Progress.”
Liam: I’d buy that, I’d drink my stressed-out coffee from it every morning.

Mia: Hey, we should actually plan to see each other in person soon.
Liam: Yes, please, this screen is nice but I miss real-life hanging out.

Mia: How about sometime next month? Maybe a weekend brunch or a walk in the park.
Liam: Brunch sounds perfect, pancakes and complaining about work in person.

Mia: Deal, I’ll check my calendar and message you later with some dates.
Liam: Awesome, I’ll try to keep at least one weekend free this time, I promise.

Mia: Okay, before my battery dies, any last “breaking news” from your life?
Liam: Hmm… I cut my own hair last week and it didn’t end in disaster, that’s something.

Mia: Wow, that is big news, I’m proud of you, brave man.
Liam: Thank you, thank you, I’ll accept my award now.

Mia: Alright, I should go make dinner, but this was really nice, we should do it more often.
Liam: Definitely, it was great catching up, I feel much better after talking to you.

Mia: Same here, I’ll wait for that playlist and I’ll send you some new dog photos.
Liam: Best trade ever, music for dog pics, I’m in.

Mia: Okay, talk soon, take care and don’t overwork yourself.
Liam: I’ll try, you too, Mia, have a good evening.

Mia: Byeee!
Liam: Bye, talk to you soon!.

En este diálogo aparece inglés muy típico de una videollamada entre amigos.

Vocabulario de videollamada: aparecen expresiones como “you’re on mute”, “can you hear me now?”, “loud and clear”, “I can see you but I can’t hear you”. Estas fórmulas son ya clichés de videollamada y conviene reconocerlas al instante.

Vocabulario sobre trabajo: se usan expresiones como “big project deadline”, “everyone’s stressed and drinking too much coffee”, “working mostly from home”, “commute”, “packed trains”, “we hired two new people on my team”, “office veteran”. El verbo commute (hacer el trayecto casa-trabajo) es clave en conversaciones sobre trabajo. Packed significa “a tope, llenísimo”.

Vocabulario sobre familia: “my sister just moved to another city”, “new job”, “she’s already made some friends”, “my mum’s obsessed with gardening”, “plant photos”, “dog photos”. Verbos como moved, made friends son muy frecuentes al hablar de cambios vitales.

Vocabulario de ocio y noticias personales: “concert”, “first concert in ages”, “small indie band”, “playlist”, “new music for work”, “gym”, “home workouts”, “yoga”, “YouTube videos”. Y expresiones como “my muscles are in shock”, “my legs were like ‘nope’” para describir agujetas con humor.

Vocabulario emocional y de estado de ánimo: “things have been kind of crazy”, “sounds intense”, “tired but motivated”, “life is a bit chaotic but in a good direction”, “I feel much better after talking to you”, “I’m proud of you”. Muy útil para describir cómo te sientes sin irte a lo dramático.

Saludo y arranque de la llamada:
Frases como “Hey, I can see you but I can’t hear you”, “there we go”, “how’s it going?”, “it feels like ages since we talked” dan un tono muy natural. “How’s it going?” es una alternativa muy común a How are you? en contexto informal.

Para hablar de trabajo sin ser demasiado serio:
“Things have been kind of crazy with work”, “big project deadline”, “everyone’s stressed and drinking too much coffee”. La estructura “kind of crazy” es muy coloquial para “un poco loco”.

Reacciones típicas:
“Tell me about it” significa “ya lo sé / te entiendo perfectamente”.
“Sounds intense”, “that’s cool”, “I was jealous”, “that’s adorable”, “honestly, I’m not complaining”, “best kind of spam”; todas son mini-reacciones muy útiles para mantener una conversación fluida.

Humor y auto-broma:
“Classic” cuando pasa algo típico (como estar en mute).
“That’s what you get for being competent, it’s the curse”: se usa en broma para decir que te cargan de responsabilidad por ser bueno.
“Chaos with progress, that’s our new slogan”, “we should put that on a mug”: juego típico de convertir una frase en “eslogan de vida”.
“My legs were like ‘nope’” personifica las piernas para enfatizar que no responden.

Cerrar y proponer verse en persona:
“We should actually plan to see each other in person soon.”
“Brunch sounds perfect, pancakes and complaining about work in person.”
“I’ll check my calendar and message you later with some dates.”
Son expresiones muy reales para pasar de la pantalla a un plan físico.

Uso del PRESENT PERFECT para hablar del tiempo transcurrido
Frases como “it’s been way too long” y “first concert in ages” (implícito “I haven’t been to a concert in ages”) usan la idea de tiempo hasta ahora. El present perfect se enfoca en la experiencia reciente: It’s been too long since we talked = hace demasiado que no hablamos (visto desde el presente).

Uso de PRESENTE CONTINUO para situaciones temporales
“Things have been kind of crazy with work” combina present perfect continuo con matiz de duración.
“I’m doing home workouts” (implícito en I’ve been doing home workouts).
Se usa mucho para acciones que están en marcha en este periodo de la vida, no solo ahora mismo.

Uso de expresiones de frecuencia y duración
“First concert in ages”, “way too long”, “the first week back is always horrible”. Son formas muy naturales de hablar de tiempo sin recurrir a estructuras complicadas.

Contracciones y coloquialidad
Abundan I’m, it’s, we’ve, don’t, can’t, I’ll, I’d, there we go, what’s up. En una videollamada entre amigos, las contracciones son básicas; evitar contracciones haría el discurso sonar rígido.

Phrasal verbs y expresiones idiomáticas
“Catch up” (ponerse al día, implícito en “great catching up”),
“go back to the gym”,
“work out” (hacer ejercicio),
“cut my own hair”,
“ended in disaster” (terminó en desastre).
Estos verbos y expresiones son muy frecuentes en conversación informal y conviene aprenderlos en bloque, no palabra a palabra.

Quejarse del trabajo con humor
Es muy típico usar quejas suaves y cómicas: “everyone’s stressed and drinking too much coffee”, “pancakes and complaining about work”. En inglés, este tipo de humor compartido funciona como forma de conexión, no como negatividad.

Uso de exageraciones suaves
Expresiones como “spam” para fotos de plantas o perros, “my muscles are in shock”, “my legs were like ‘nope’” son exageraciones humorísticas, muy típicas en inglés coloquial. No se interpretan literalmente.

Combinación de apoyo emocional y ligereza
Frases como “I feel much better after talking to you” y “I’m proud of you, brave man” muestran apoyo emocional, pero con tono ligero. En la cultura anglófona, hablar de cómo te sientes puede ir envuelto en humor y frases cálidas, sin dramatismo.

Planear verse en persona sin concretar demasiado
Se suele hacer primero una propuesta general: “we should plan to see each other in person soon”, luego algo más concreto: “How about sometime next month?”, y finalmente lo detallado se pasa a mensaje: “I’ll check my calendar and message you later with some dates.”. Gran parte de la negociación real de fechas ocurre por mensajería.

Para empezar una videollamada de forma natural
Puedes usar:
“Hey, I can see you but I can’t hear you, I think you’re on mute.”
“How’s it going? It feels like ages since we talked.”
Son frases muy auténticas que puedes casi memorizar.

Para hablar de trabajo sin tecnicismos
Frases como:
“Things have been kind of crazy at work.”
“We’ve got a big deadline coming up.”
“I’m working from home a few days a week.”
Te permiten sonar natural sin explicar demasiado.

Para hablar de familia y noticias personales
Usa estructuras sencillas:
“My sister just moved to another city for a new job.”
“My mum’s obsessed with [hobby], she sends me photos every day.”
“I finally went to my first concert in ages.”

Para mostrar apoyo y conexión
Puedes decir:
“That sounds intense, I totally get it.”
“I feel better after talking to you.”
“We should do this more often.”

Para proponer verse en persona
Muy útil:
“We should plan to see each other in person soon.”
“How about brunch or a walk in the park next month?”
“I’ll check my calendar and send you some dates.”

En una videollamada entre amigos en inglés te interesa:
Usar saludos y frases de arranque muy coloquiales como “you’re on mute”, “how’s it going?”, “it’s been ages”.
Tener un pequeño repertorio de frases sobre trabajo, familia y pequeñas noticias: “things have been kind of crazy at work”, “my family’s fine, my mum’s obsessed with…”, “I finally went to a concert”.
Y apoyarte en mini-reacciones y humor ligero: “that’s adorable”, “I was jealous”, “best kind of spam”, “chaos with progress” para mantener una conversación fluida, cercana y natural aunque tu nivel de inglés no sea perfecto.