流行美语第280课
Larry到小燕工作的“金龙”餐馆去找她，发现餐馆里很忙。今天我们要学两个常用语，一个是jumping, 一个是joint.
(Sound of a busy restaurant)
LL: Hi, Xiaoyan. I was in the neighborhood and wanted to stop and say "Hi." -- Wow. This place is jumping!
XY: 没错，真是忙死我了，今天是星期五，每到星期五和星期六晚上，这是餐馆最忙的时候。
LL: So, Xiaoyan, you obviously know that when a person says a place is "jumping" - they mean it is very busy.
XY: 这我还能不知道，别忘了，我可是餐馆的领班。我早就知道，说什么地方jumping就是客人特别多，生意特别好的意思。
LL: Say, Xiaoyan, I"d like to stay and chat with you, but I know you have a lot of work to do. Is there a time when the restaurant isn"t jumping?
XY: 你也知道，金龙是中国城生意最好的餐馆，从来就没有闲的时候。
LL: But surely there are times when "The Golden Dragon" is not as jumping as it is tonight.
XY: 相对来说，星期二晚上客人少一些，你要来吃饭，最好是星期二来。
LL: Okay, I will. See you later, Xiaoyan.
XY: 哎，别急着走啊！虽然客人多，但我还是可以休息一小会儿。你等等啊，我跟同事交代一下。(用中文跟另外一位带位小姐交代，对方用中文回答说，没问题。)
LL: Are you sure she doesn"t mind working for you when the place is jumping, Xiaoyan?
XY: 没关系，就几分钟的时间，我怎么说也不能让你白跑一趟啊！
LL: That"s nice of you, Xiaoyan. You know, I was hoping to have dinner here at "The Golden Dragon", but I didn"t expect that it would be jumping like this. How long is the wait for a table, anyway?
XY: 现在来，差不多要等半个小时，再过一会儿，可能就要等上一个小时才有空位了。
LL: Thirty minutes to an hour? That"s too long. Is there anyplace nearby I can have dinner that isn"t jumping?
XY: 我听说街对面那家德国饭馆挺不错的，而且随时有空位，要不然你去那边试试看？
******
LL: Well, I guess I will have to try the German joint, Xiaoyan.
XY: 你刚才说joint, 我以前也经常听人这么说，joint到底是什么意思啊？
LL: "Joint" is a slang for "place" - and it is often used to refer to restaurants, clubs or other places of entertainment.
XY: 哦，我明白了，joint指的是饭馆、酒吧和夜总会这类地方。我今天又学了个新词。You should go to the German joint then.
LL: I"m just sad I can"t eat at your joint, Xiaoyan. After all, the Golden Dragon is the best Chinese restaurant in town.
XY: 金龙确实是这里最好的中餐馆，但是我听说，对面那家德国餐馆真的很不错，不仅味道正宗，价格也很合理，你不会失望的。
LL: Say, Xiaoyan, maybe I can come back after I have dinner and you get off work, and we can go grab a beer at some joint nearby. What do you think about that?
XY: 好啊，你吃完饭再回来找我，如果到时候，客人没有那么多了，我就提前下班，怎么一起去喝两杯。
LL: Okay. See you later!
(Incidental music, door opening sound)
LL: Hello, Xiaoyan.
XY: Larry, 你回来了！Good to see you again.
LL: Good to see you, too, Xiaoyan. So, is this joint still jumping or has business slowed down since earlier this evening?
XY: 现在客人少多了，你等一下，我跟老板打个招呼，就可以走了。
LL: Do you know of any good joints nearby, Xiaoyan, where you can have a beer and listen to music?
XY: 我知道附近有一个爱尔兰酒吧，可以一边喝酒一边听爱尔兰音乐，气氛特别好。
LL: That does sound like fun, Xiaoyan. How do we get to this Irish Pub from here anyway?
XY: 走过去，三条街就到了。
LL: Well, let"s hurry over to the Irish joint, Xiaoyan. I could really use a beer!
我们今天学习了两个常用语。一个是jumping, 是指一个地方客人多，生意繁忙。另一个是joint, 是指餐馆、酒吧、夜总会和俱乐部等消遣的地方。
流行美语第281课
小燕下班后，跟Larry到一家爱尔兰酒吧去喝酒。今天我们要学两个常用语，一个是tough call, 一个是tone it down.
(Sound of a bar and Irish music in the background)
LL: Wow, Xiaoyan, you must be exhausted. Did you work a full shift?
XY: 我今天连着当了两班，double Shift, 快累瘫了。好在这是纽约，能赚不少小费。
LL: So let"s eat and drink, shall we? Here"s the menu.
XY: 好啊，我饿极了。你觉得点点儿什么好？
LL: It"s a tough call, Xiaoyan. There are a lot of great choices, so it"s difficult to say that one in particular is the best.
XY: 这有什么好难的！我告诉你什么叫难吧，我的日子才叫难呢！
LL: You know? You are different than Li Hua when you don"t understand something. She"s so sweet...and you"re...
XY: 我怎么样？你是不是觉得我太张扬，不够温柔？我跟李华可不一样。(语气中带有一丝嫉妒)
LL: "A tough call" is a difficult decision to make, especially when there are so many choices or when something is not clear. For example, choosing the best meal on this menu is a tough call, because so many choices are good!
XY: 我知道了，tough call是说很难选择。你是说菜单上很多东西好像都不错，所以很难决定，it"s a tough call. 你看，这还有这么多种啤酒，我真不知道该点哪种。It"s a tough call too.
LL: Not for me! Excuse me, waiter, I"ll have a Guinness please. Make that two Guinnesses, because my friend here is battling a tough call on what beer to order. So have you had to make any other tough calls in your life recently, Xiaoyan?
XY: 有啊。我正拿不定主意，不知道该回去读书，还是再在金龙干一年，多赚点钱。It"s really a tough call!
LL: Yeah, especially since you live in New York, where there are lots of opportunities, yet high costs of living. Ah, here come our beers!
XY: 来，让我们为年轻和机会干杯。
*******
LL: The beers are good! How do you like your food, Xiaoyan? Is it better than Golden Dragon"s food?
XY: Ha! That"s not a tough call at all. 金龙的菜是最好的！
(Cut off due to blaring music音乐声音放大)
LL: (Shouting over the music)Wow that"s loud! I wish they"d tone it down!
XY: 什么？ Tone it down? 你是想说 turn it down 吧。
LL: Just a minute. (to the waiter) Hey, could you turn down the music, please? We"re trying to have a conversation, and we can"t hear each other"s voices. Thanks!
(音乐声音变小)
XY: Larry, tone it down和turn it down的区别到底在哪里啊？
LL: Well, "turn it down" means to reduce the noise level of things like music and overall voice level. "Tone it down" means to cool the overall tone or attitude that someone or someplace has.
XY: 我有点明白了。Turn it down是降低音量。Tone it down是降低声调、语气、改善态度、变得更为和缓的意思。Tone it down能用来指行动吗？比如说，我想请你吃饭，因为我觉得你...
LL: Oh my, Xiaoyan. I think you DO need to tone it down. Perhaps you"ve had too many beers, haha!
XY: 那其他情况呢？比如说生活习惯和穿着打扮，can we use "tone it down" for that, too?
LL: Yes. If people are acting out of control, or if they are wearing obnoxious clothing to a formal party, then they need to tone it down.
XY: (生气地) 你是说我的穿着、举止不得体吗？
LL: Hey, Xiaoyan, tone it down. There"s no reason to get excited and upset at me. I don"t mean YOU specifically. I"m talking about a situation in general.
XY: 那好，这次原谅你。啊，你看那个男的，怎么穿了一件粉红色的外衣，太离谱了。Now, HE needs to tone it down. 不好，他好像冲我们走过来了。
LL: It"s your lucky day, Xiaoyan. He"s coming over here to buy you a drink!
XY: 不好，三十六计走为上！我们赶快买单吧。
LL: Absolutely. Check please!
我们今天学习了两个常用语。一个是tough call, 意思上很难做的选择。另一个是tone it down, 是指降低语音、语调，让举止、态度变得更加和缓的意思。
礼节美语037讲
陈豪在北京的ABC美国公司工作。他接到公司晚宴派对的邀请，但是不想去。
(Office ambience)