Firstly, what’s an anecdote?  An anecdote is a short amusing or interesting story about a real incident or person. In other words, something that really happened in the past to yourself or someone else.

Present tense for anecdote in the past? What???

It sounds a bit strange, but we can use the present tense, to tell a story about the past.  Think of it like this – you are taking yourself and your listener back in time, into the action as it happened. This is common with native English speakers. It is, of course, possible to tell a story in the past tense, but it’s not as dramatic. In my latest video I demonstrate this by telling a short story or ‘anecdote’.  Then at the end of the video there are questions to answer so you can see how well you understood.

You can read along with the transcript of the story.

My Anecdote

The scene: (background information – in the past tense)

I used to work in a hospital on a long peninsula.  Because the peninsula was so long, there was a bridge that connected it to the mainland, to cut down on travel time.  The bridge had 3 lanes, and the middle lane changed direction at midday.  In the afternoon, there was a single lane leading out and double lanes leading in. 

The story:

One day I’m driving home from work and I get onto the bridge, where the traffic is stop/start.  I have to stop about halfway along the bridge, and I’m waiting for the traffic to go again, when SPLAT!  Ew! There’s pelican poo on my windscreen.  

If you’ve ever seen pelican poo, you’ll know that it’s very thick and there’s always a lot of it.

So anyway, I see this pelican poo and think “What am I gonna do?”  So, I turn on the windscreen wipers.  BIG MISTAKE!  The poo smears all over my windscreen.  I think, “What am I gonna do now?” The traffic is moving again.  I’m in a single lane on a bridge, the people behind me are honking their horns, and I just have to keep going.  I can’t get out and clean it off! 

Fortunately, there’s a clear patch in the bottom corner, so I have to drive the rest of the way, peering out through the space in my windscreen. Needless to say, I gave my windscreen a thorough wash with a hose when I finally arrived home!

Did you notice that I switched back to past tense at the end? It was because the drama had finished. This helps to conclude the story.

Gist Question (watch the video for the answer)

Put the story in the correct order. Write down the letters in the order that they happened.

A) A pelican ‘pooped’ on my windscreen.
B) I drove onto the bridge
C) I arrived home
D) I left work

Listening Questions (watch the video for answers)

1.        Where did I use to work?  Was it in a post office or a hospital? 
2.        Where did the story take place?
3.        How many lanes did the bridge have?
4.        What was my big mistake? 
5.        Why couldn’t I stop and get out of the car? 
6.        What did the people in the cars behind me do? 
7.        How did I get home?