My pronunciation and my kind request for tips

[angelene001]

As many others did before, I'm asking you for your help with my pronunciation.
This is the passage I'm reading:

"There was no escape. Tommy didn't know what to do. He thought for a moment and realised that the only way out was downwards, so he got a spade and started to dig. But he couldn't dig fast enough - the lions were rapidly approaching, the grizzly bear was just a few feet away, the tigers were starting to move, and the crocodile was snapping at his heels."

Here is my recording:
https://soundcloud.com/angelene001/me-reading-3


And here is something a bit more natural, a dialogue in a restaurant (between me and me, so very natural):
https://soundcloud.com/angelene001/conversation-2

---
[FONT=verdana, geneva, helvetica]Waiter: Hello, Can I help you?
Kim: Yes, I'd like to have some lunch.
Waiter: Would you like a starter?
Kim: Yes, I'd like a bowl of chicken soup, please.
Waiter: And what would you like for a main course?
Kim: I'd like a grilled cheese sandwich.
Waiter: Would you like anything to drink?
Kim: Yes, I'd like a glass of Coke, please.
Waiter... After Kim has her lunch.: Can I bring you anything else?
Kim: No thank you. Just the bill.
Waiter: Certainly.
Kim:I don't have my glasses. How much is the lunch?
Waiter: That's $6.75.
Kim: Here you are. Thank you very much.
Waiter: You're welcome. Have a good day.
Kim: Thank you, the same to you.[/FONT]

---

I'd be very grateful for any tips and for your opinion. I would like to work on my pronunciation.

 

[Tdol]

The dialogue was easier to follow than the first text; I had to look at the transcript to get downwards. The intonation was better in the restaurant text.

 

[angelene001]

The dialogue was easier to follow than the first text; I had to look at the transcript to get downwards. The intonation was better in the restaurant text.

Thank you for listening to my recordings.
What makes it hard to follow?
What should I do to make it better?

I've got a huge problem with "th" sound :/ Is it possible to recognise the words with "th" sound which I'm pronouncing?
And of course [t] and [d]. They've got a different position of the tongue than in Polish. I don't feel confident pronouncing them and I'm afraid they sound too Polish so I probably tend to pronounce then really silently.
When learning English at school at the first levels no one ever told about short and long vowels :/
So "it" and "eat" where the same. I've learned most words without distinguishing long and short vowels.