"Hungry for Success" by English Professionals. EPISODE 12 : The Invisible Woman

Rebecca makes a surprising discovery and Tim is asked to pay a "mysterious" invoice.

Transcript

Hungry for success 

by English Professionals

12. The invisible woman

TRANSCRIPT OF AUDIO

After his conversation with Sue, Tim found it very difficult to focus on his day to day work. Even occasional interjections and questions from Derek, his assistant, failed to help him take his mind off Macrosoft. He found himself on the Macrosoft website scrolling aimlessly through the numerous pages. He settled on the “who are we” page and gazed at the face of Sebastian Walker, the chairman. Tim stared intently at the photograph trying as hard as he could to answer that fundamental question - why? Sebastian Walker, a titan of industry, an innovator, a trend setter - someone who leads whilst others follow - these were some of the highlighted quotes in the brief bio of the man who many called a legend.  Why, why, why?  What do you want with Lightning Systems, Sebastian?

Unfortunately the face on the photograph remained impassive - no answer was forthcoming. Flicking onwards through the links, Tim landed on a page entitled “Our team”. He recognised one or two or the faces from the conference call even if he was unable to recall names or job titles.

At that moment Derek entered yet again - this time brandishing a sheet of paper. 

“Have you seen this?” he enquired

“Seen what” asked Tim

“This invoice”

Tim examined the piece of paper which Derek handed him. It was an invoice from a consultancy company, Black Rod consultancy. No details - simply “consultancy costs - £27,000. Tim looked for an order reference - there was none. It simply said “as agreed”. Scrawled across the invoice were the words “Please pay immediately” written in the handwriting of James and followed by his unmistakable signature.

“Where did you get this from, Derek?” Tim asked

“James handed it to me this afternoon when he arrived”. 

Even though Lightning Systems were a relatively small company, there were procedures. Purchase order processes and invoice validation processes. This invoice appeared to have circumvented all of them. Tim was an accountant through and through - the very thought of such a slapdash approach irked him. Rebecca used to take the mickey out of him when he asked for a receipt when buying a coffee - even when they were out on a weekend. She had also a selection of riské jokes alluding to accounting procedures and marital life - best not to mention them. 

Tim’s train of thought was interrupted by Derek

“What do you want me to do chief?”

“Leave it with me”, said Tim, “I’ll deal with it”

Once Derek had left. Tim surreptitiously slipped the invoice into his briefcase. This is a job for Rebecca he thought.

The rest of the day passed without anything else of note and Tim quickly made his excuses and walked to his car.

As he pulled into the driveway of their home. Tim noticed immediately that Rebecca’s car was already in the garage - a bright red Triumph Spitfire - possibly Rebecca’s only vice. She loved classic cars and this Spitfire, although now getting close to forty years old, leaking oil, and showing a few rust spots, was her pride and joy. Tim had argued unsuccessfully to persuade her to sell it and buy something, if nothing else, more reliable. There was no way she would part with it. In fact on one occasion she had said she wanted to be buried in her car when she died. 

Tim looked up and saw Rebecca smiling at the window and waving. He waved back and his heart skipped a beat - just like it had the first moment he had caught sight of her in the Student Union bar at uni. He opened the front door and walked in. Rebecca greeted him with a kiss on the cheek. 

Looking through the hall doorway he could see Rebecca’s laptop on the dining room table. He also saw a large board with several yellow post-its attached to it. Obviously Rebecca had already started her “investigation”.

“I’ve been waiting for you” she said

“There’s something odd. Libby Jones - the woman who allegedly contacted James. Well, odd thing is, she doesn’t exist”

“What do you mean she doesn’t exist?” said tim “I saw her myself on the conference call. She’s coming to visit us next week”

“What I mean” retorted Rebecca “is that she doesn’t get a single mention anywhere on Macrosoft’s webpages, she doesn’t have a profile on Linkedin, and my contact at Macrosoft has never heard of her. Even if you do a straight google search, there are no mentions of anyone by that name being in any way connected to Macrosoft or to any senior position in any company in the IT industry”. 

Rebecca paused to let the news sink in. “So either she’s completely invisible as far as the internet is concerned (which, although highly unlikely, is always possible), or, she’s not who she says she is””

COMMENTARY

Everyone on occasion has found themself browsing the internet not looking for anything in particular but just passing time. Tim was doing just this. He had opened Macrosoft’s corporate website and was scrolling aimlessly, or in other words, without any definite purpose, through the many pages.

Tim sees many titles given to Sebastian Walker, the head of Macrosoft. He is described as a titan of industry meaning an extremely powerful person in a particular industry. .Not being content with simply being a titan, Sebastian is also an innovator - simply a person who introduces new ideas, methods, or products. He is a trend setter - this means that rather than just following fashions or trends, he actually creates them - and other people follow him. All in all, a legend - understandably a very famous person.

Tim is unable to get any clues by staring at the photograph of Sebastian. It remains impassive - unmoving and showing no feeling or emotion - just as you might expect a photo to behave-

James has scrawled or written in untidy handwriting across the mystery invoice. Tim is not happy with this way of managing the administration. He is an accountant through and through. This means that he acts like an accountant in every way - it is an intrinsic part of his character. Not surprisingly Rebecca takes the mickey out of him for this - taking the mickey means to tease someone in a humorous way. You may also come across a slight variation - taking the Michael out of someone. This has an identical meaning.

Tim is irked or irritated by what he considers a slapdash approach - ie a careless and hurried approach.

Surreptitiously is one of my favorite words although very difficult to spell. Tim surreptitiously puts the invoice in his briefcase. It means to do something secretly, taking care not to be seen by anyone else.

According to Tim, Rebecca only has one vice -a  fondness for classic cars. Classic cars are usually defined as cars between 20 and 40 years old which are now considered attractive to collectors. A vice is normally a negative personal characteristic. Tim is being humorous when he describes classic car collecting as a vice. Rebecca’s car is her pride and joy - ie something which makes her very proud and happy. We often use this word to talk about our children.

These are our children - they are our pride and joy.

Clearly Tim is still strongly attracted to his wife. In fact his heart skips a beat when he sees her at the window. This idiom doesn’t mean literally that your heart doesn’t beat for a moment but merely that you are feeling excited or nervous. Maybe Tim feels both at this point.

Rebecca has already started a board to document her investigation. If you work in an office I don’t need to explain what yellow post-its are. These small yellow paper pads with a sticky edge have become ubiquitous (or appear everywhere) in the modern world.  

After telling Tim that Libby Jones is in effect the invisible woman, Rebecca pauses for a moment to let the news sink in. This means to wait a moment to allow the listener to process what they have just heard - particularly if the news is unexpected or unusual.

So two more questions to add to the list. What is the £27,000 consultancy fee that James wants to pay and, if  Libby Jones isn’t really Libby Jones, who is she?.

If you are interested in one-to-one English lessons or coaching, you can find full details of prices and how to book on my website. You can also book a free trial session. 

www.englishprofessionals.it

If you like this audio blog and would like it to continue,  please make a donation. You can do this via Paypal

https://paypal.me/onlineenglish

Thanks for your support

.