ANDY: Hey Tracy. I heard that your mother isn't very well.
TRACY: Hi Andy. Yes, that's right. Well, she isn't too bad. But she's had some problems …
ANDY: With her shoulder, right? Or her wrist?
TRACY: No, actually, it's her elbow. In fact, she had to have an operation to try to fix it. We don't know yet if it's fixed.
ANDY: Well, I hope she's OK. But how did the problem start?
TRACY: Well, a couple of years ago she was promoted at work and that was great, but she had to use the computer a lot more.
ANDY: Oh right.
TRACY: She'd been working outside the office a lot before that – but then she started sitting, using her arm and wrist to move the mouse, typing – and she types really badly!
ANDY: Oh, that can be really bad for your wrist and elbow.
TRACY: Yes, and another problem is that she plays tennis too. When she left school, she'd already won some competitions. But now she only plays for fun – but, of course, you know, if you play a lot of tennis, you can have problems with your elbow.
ANDY: I hear some guitar players have the same problem, actually.
TRACY: Yes, but that's not something Mum has problems with! Anyway, this working at a computer just made things far, far worse.
ANDY: Well, yes. My uncle had an operation on his elbow too – and he'd been playing tennis for years too. And he was warned by the doctors, but he still played.
TRACY: Hope I never get it. Anyway, Mum's getting better now, but she's decided not to go back to work at the same place. She's given in her notice. She doesn't really like working in an office anyway.
ANDY: So what's she going to do?
TRACY: Well, she really wants to be a cook, believe it or not. So she's going to start at a small restaurant near the railway station. They're going to give her on-the-job training.
ANDY: I always think that kind of work is pretty challenging – more than people think.
TRACY: Yes, but she's looking forward to it. She won't earn as much, of course, but she just wants to do something she likes.
ANDY: Good for her. Give her my best wishes, OK?
TRACY: I'll do that. Thanks! See you soon.
ANDY: Bye.
