美語訓(xùn)練班 026

GoEnglish: Commute to work-beginner

各位聽眾，大家好！今天我們?yōu)槟コ?ldquo;美語三級跳”節(jié)目“出行”單元的初級課程。

MC: Craig 被紐約一家大公司錄用，今天第一天上班。他剛搬來紐約不久，對公司周圍的路不太熟，為了保險起見，他決定打車去公司--take a taxi。

Professor: Yes, Winnie. But if there is lots of traffic, taking a taxi might be slower than the subway.

MC: 的確，如果路上有l(wèi)ots of traffic--很多車的話，那么，坐subway--地鐵，的確比打車更快。讓我們一起聽 Craig 打車是否順利。

Driver: Good morning. Where are you headed?

Craig: I'm going to number 250, East 97th Street.

Driver: Which way do you want to go?

Craig: I'm not from New York, so I don't know the way. You decide.

MC: Professor Bowman, 司機(jī)問 Craig "where he is headed", 這是什么意思？

Professor: Asking someone where he is headed is a common and casual way to ask him where he is going.

MC: 我明白了，那么Craig在回答的時候，也可以說I'm headed to East 97th Street.

Professor: That's correct.

MC: 不過，我還真有點(diǎn)兒替Craig擔(dān)心。他居然老實地告訴出租車司機(jī)，說自己新來乍道，不認(rèn)識路。這種乘客很可能被司機(jī) rip off，宰上一刀!

Professor: Well, let's see if your worries are necessary.

Driver: Oh, you don't know where you're going? Well, I know a special shortcut to that address.

Craig: I'm not sure we need a special shortcut. The address isn't very far away.

Driver: Well, it's rush hour right now. If we don't take my shortcut you might be late.

Craig: Hmm.... alright. I guess you know where to go.

Professor:Winnie. Why did the taxi driver say he needs to take the shortcut?

MC: 他說，現(xiàn)在是rush hour--上下班的高峰時段，如果不 take the shortcut--超近道，Craig 就可能會遲到。

Professor: That's right, Winnie. If traffic is really bad, you can say there is a "traffic jam."

But I think the driver sounds quite sketchy.

MC: 沒錯！我倒要看看這條shortcut能不能省時間！

Craig: Are we there yet? We've been driving for 30 minutes, and it feels like we've been going in circles.

Driver: Don't worry, we'll be there soon.

Craig: But the meter says the fare is already $25 dollars! I'm only going a few blocks. It shouldn't cost so much money.

Driver: Hey, you have to trust me. I'm a professional driver, remember?

MC: Craig 雖然不熟悉紐約，但也知道公司其實并不遠(yuǎn)?？墒?，出租車司機(jī)開了半個小時還在繞圈子，而且，the meter--計價器，顯示，the fare--車錢，已經(jīng)25塊了!

Professor: That's right, Winnie. And remember, in this case the word "fare" is spelled F-A-R-E, not F-A-I-R.

MC: 我記住了。Professor Bowman, 看來我們猜對了，司機(jī)是想黑 Craig 的錢。

Craig: Alright, just pull over here and I'll get out. This is the last time I hail a cab.

Driver: What? Why? We're almost there.

Craig: You've been saying that for the past 30 minutes. I'm going to walk.

Driver: Well, at least you got to see a lot of the city. Will you give me a good tip for that?

Craig: A tip? I'm not even paying the fare!

MC: 好樣的，Craig! 他明智地讓司機(jī)停車，決定自己走到公司去。對了，Professor，什么叫hail a cab？

Professor: "Hail a cab" is when you stand on the side of the road and raise your hand to tell the taxis to stop and pick you up.

MC: 哦，就是站在路旁招手叫出租車。Craig說，他以后再也不打車了！對了，Professor，是不是在美國打車時都得給司機(jī) a tip--小費(fèi)呢？

Professor: Usually you give a tip, but not if he cheats you.

MC: 難怪Craig說，別說小費(fèi)，他連車錢都不想付! 唉，希望他能順利地走到公司！

Professor: Listen next time to find out!

B: Poor Craig! He was taken for a ride.

A: Yeah, but he got out of the taxi before the cabbie can take more advantage of him. 如果換成我，可能就不好意思，只能認(rèn)倒霉挨宰了。

B: 我也是。

A: 所以還是自己開車好！ 對了，CAT, you don't drive, do you?

B: No I don't. I live in the city and it's very convenient─everything is within walking distance. So I don't need a car.

A: But there must be some places outside the city where you want to go, right?

B: That's right. In that case, I'll have to ask other people for a ride or get a taxi.

A: 那不是要張嘴求人？要不就是要花很多錢。

B: 對啊。

A: 不如買車吧！來聽聽今天的“禮節(jié)美語”，講的就是買車的事兒。

Business Etiquette: buying a car I

Chris告訴同事Jason, 準(zhǔn)備買輛新車。

Jason: Hey there Chris, what are you up to?

Chris: I'm just poring over some brochures about various car models.

J: Oh, so you're thinking about buying a new car?

C: Yeah, it looks that way. My wife has been bugging me about it. I thought we could probably survive without one, but with a baby on the way, maybe it is time to get a car.

J: So this would be your first automobile?

C: That's right. For quite a few years, I rode a bicycle to work. Then I got a motorbike.

Chris太太懷孕，所以不得不考慮買車。Chris說，my wife has been bugging me about it. 意思是我太太一直在軟磨硬泡要說服我，to bug someone是沒完沒了煩某人的意思，比如說，Stop bugging me. 意思就是別煩我了。這是Chris的第一輛車，他以前都是騎自行車或是騎摩托車上班，但現(xiàn)在 with a baby on the way 眼看就要有孩子了，所以只好考慮買車。Jason表示理解。

J: Yeah, I think I can understand your wife's position. Asking her to ride on a motorcycle when she's pregnant is a tall order.

C: Oh...I don't let her ride with me. It's just too dangerous. She takes the bus to work, but it is sometimes difficult to get a seat and it's crowded and hot.

J: So it's time to buy your very first car! Wow, that's exciting!

C: Yes, but it's also a pretty big financial responsibility.

J: Yeah. I still remember my first car. It was an old clunker that my dad gave me when I turned 17. I drove it around for a couple of years until I scraped together enough money to buy a better secondhand car.

Jason說，讓太太挺著大肚子坐Chris的摩托車確實有點(diǎn)強(qiáng)人所難，It's a tall order. tall order 意思是很難完成的任務(wù)或要求。Christ解釋說，其實太太不坐他的摩托車上班，但是擠公交車也很辛苦，所以才必須買車。Jason說，他的第一輛車是 17歲過生日時老爸送的，It was an old clunker. clunker is spelled c-l-u-n-k-e-r, clunker, clunker 是老破車的意思，開了幾年后，攢夠了錢才自己買了輛稍微像點(diǎn)兒樣的 secondhand car 二手車。Chris 說，

C: I'm having a hard time deciding which model is best for us.

J: Yeah, it is a tough call. Each one has its pros and cons. Are you looking for a sedan?

C: Yes, I'd like a Jeep, but my wife says we have to get a comfortable sedan for long drives home to see her relatives.

J: I'd advise you to listen to your wife. She will be sitting in the back taking care of the kids so whatever she prefers is probably the best choice.

Chris說，拿不定主意應(yīng)該買什么型號的車。Jason承認(rèn)，It's a tough call. tough call意思是很難做的決定。他還說，不同型號的車有各自的優(yōu)缺點(diǎn)，pros and cons 是指一件事情的正反面，pros 是優(yōu)點(diǎn)，正面的，cons 是缺點(diǎn)，負(fù)面的。Chris想買吉普車Jeep，但他太太堅持要買轎車sedan, 因為sedan開長途坐著更舒服些。買車還要考慮其他哪些因素呢？我們下次繼續(xù)聽。

B: See? That's exactly why I don't want to get a car─not only is it a big financial responsibility, it is also too much headache to choose the right model.

A: 咳，買車都一樣。好車買不起，破車又不敢買。

B: So you don't like your car?

A：一般吧，It's not my dream car, but I can live with it just for now.

B：What's your dream car then?

A：越野吉普！開那種車馳騁在荒野里，太酷了！

B: You? driving a jeep in the wilderness? Er....I just don't see it.

A：別看我外表斯文，其實我內(nèi)心是很狂野的！

B: If that's the case, you'll definitely like the sport we are doing in today's American Sports English!

American sports English: ski jump

Y: Aren't the Rocky Mountains beautiful, Patrick? 多么壯觀的洛基山脈！啊！I'm so glad you agreed to go skiing with me.

P: Uhhh..Yeah, the Rocky Mountains are beautiful, Yang Chen. But I guess when you asked me to go skiing with you, I didn't realize you meant to go ski jumping. S-K-I J-U-M-P-I-N-G

Y: Of course, we are going ski jumping. 高臺滑雪。多刺激啊。Say, Patrick, 你臉色發(fā)綠. Are you feeling okay?

P: Actually, Yang Chen, I look green because I'm afraid of heights. And right now I'm feeling a little sick.

Y: 你有恐高癥啊！Well, think about it this way, once you slide down the take-off ramp and make your jump─you will be at the bottom.

P: I have to ski down there?

Y: Yup. There's only one way to learn, Patrick. Here let me give you a little push.

P: No, Yang Chen, wait. Don't push me.

Y: 跳啊，多么籃的天，快點(diǎn)兒跳。跳下去你就會融入藍(lán)天。。。

P: I have no idea what you are talking about, it sounds like some kind of cheesy Japanese movie.

Y. All I'm saying is "Jump"!

P: .Noooooooooooooooàà.Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah.

Y: Are you OK, Patrick?

P: Yeah, I'm okay. I'm glad I'm still alive.

Y: Good, it's my turn next. 該我跳了。You better get out of my way.

P: Okay, I'm out of the way. It's all clear. You can jump now, Yang Chen.

Y: Okay! Here I go! Yeeeeee-haaaawwwww! (Sound of sliding down a ramp, landing).

P: Wow, Yang Chen. That was a great jump! And a perfect landing, too.

Y: I love ski jumping! Do you want to go again, Patrick?

P: Uh, no thanks, Yang Chen. I'll just stay down here and watch you jump.

Y. Here I go again. Yeeeeee-haaaawwwww!

B: How about that, 楊琳? Wanna go try ski jumping some day?

A: 誒....這個，我....

B: 不用不好意思承認(rèn)，我也不敢！

A: 這個太危險了，咱們有時間還是多研究研究做飯吧。

B: 這也差得太遠(yuǎn)了。

A: 哈哈！ 好了，今天的節(jié)目時間差不多了。這次的撰稿人是曉北，編輯是蔚然。同學(xué)們，我們下次的美語訓(xùn)練班再見!

B: Bye!