A：You mean she doesn"t say, "Good Morning" unless you say it first?
C：没错。我昨天就没主动跟她说早安，结果不出所料，她真的没有主动理我。
A：Does she talk to you during the day?
C：谈工作的时候她倒是跟我讲话，就是从来不主动问好，或是打招呼。
A：She sounds rude. It must be difficult to work with someone like that.
C：是啊，跟她相处让我觉得挺不自在。
A：You need to talk to her. Otherwise things are going to get worse.
C：其实现在已经影响到我的工作了。我们天天在一起工作，但她却好像没我这个人似的。
A：An unfriendly co-worker is bad for morale and productivity.
C：我今天得找机会跟她谈谈。
******
陈豪下班后在车站遇到了Amy，两人一起等车。
A：Chen Hao, how did it go? Did you get a chance to talk to Carol today?
C：我专门等周围没人的时候去找了她。
A：That was good that you waited until no one else was present. You wouldn"t want to talk about a sensitive issue in front of others.
C：我记得你以前提醒过我，这种敏感的事情最好是等周围没人的时候谈。
A：Tell me what happened? What did you say?
C：我问她为什么早上从不主动跟我打招呼，是不是我有什么地方得罪她了。
A：What did she say?
C：她显得很吃惊。她说自己总是第一个来上班，因此后来的应该主动跟先来的打招呼。我不主动向她问好，会让她觉得受了冷落。
A：You"re kidding. That"s the silliest thing I ever heard.
C：我当时也是这么想，但是没敢直说，只是说谁主动跟别人打招呼跟先来后到没关系。
A：You are absolutely right. No one should wait for anyone else to speak first, smile first or even make eye contact before acknowledging the other person.
C：对呀，如果真那样的话，办公室里干脆谁也别理谁算了。我希望这次谈话能有助于改善跟Carol的关系。
A：So how did you leave the situation?
C：她最后向我赔礼道歉，说没想到会让我觉得不自在。我想，明天早上上班就知道今天的谈话有没有效果了。
A：You were right to discuss it with her. You don"t have to be best friends with all the people you work with, but you should treat each one of them with courtesy and respect.
C：是啊，有的时候，一句“早上好”就能给一天带来一个好的开端。
流行美语第288课
李华和Larry在公园散步。最近全球性的经济衰退，让Larry忧心忡忡。今天我们要学两个常用语： do-or-die和 to crater.
LL: Well, Li Hua, I"m glad to hear that you are enjoying your job. But I can"t help worrying about the overall economy. Last night I was out with my friend, Tom, you know.
LH: 我记得Tom, 他还在那家电脑公司上班吗？
LL: Tom lost his full-time job last month, and now he has only a part-time job at his local gym.
LH: 好可怜，谁会想到做电脑这一行的也会失业。
LL: That has happened just as his relationship with Sarah, his girlfriend, is reaching a crucial stage. Sarah is about to get her degree this June. For Tom, this is a "do-or-die" year.
LH: Do-or-Die? Tom生重病了吗？那他可真是太倒霉了。
LL: No, "Do or die" just means that Tom faces a key moment. He has to decide how he wants to handle his relationship with Sarah.
LH: 哦，你是说Tom要决定跟女朋友Sarah的关系。这跟他被公司裁员有什么直接关系吗？
LL: If he does nothing, Sarah may find a job and move to another city. If he wants to keep their relationship, he might decide to propose to her, but how can he, with only a part-time job?
LH: 我明白了，如果Tom现在不求婚，Sarah毕业会可能会在外地找到工作搬走，如果求婚，Tom现在又刚失业，没有经济财力。
LL: That"s it exactly. Tom"s situation is one of "do or die."
LH: 那你觉得，Tom在这种do or die的情况下，该怎么做呢？
LL: That"s a tough call. Tom is doing everything he can to get a new job, but the job market is really tight now.
LH: 是啊，现在找工作真的很难，就连很多华尔街原来年薪十几万的经纪人都屈尊去做一些低酬劳的工作了。
LL: If Tom keeps his part-time job, perhaps he can slowly save up enough for an engagement ring by the time Sarah graduates.
LH: 这可能是最好的权宜之计了。不行，外面太冷，我们到对面的咖啡厅去坐坐吧。
LL: That was a good idea.
******
LH: 啊....一杯热咖啡下肚，我才慢慢暖和过来。你继续说，Tom怎么会被公司裁员的呢？
LL: Last November, business at Tom"s company began to slow down. They tried to cut costs, first by not hiring new workers, then by asking the employees to take off every Friday, without pay.
LH: 公司让雇员每周五休息，这么说，Tom不是还能工作四天吗？
LL: That right, Tom still had his job at first, even if he was earning less. But it didn"t work out. The company finally cratered and had to let everybody go.
LH: Cratered? 什么叫cratered?
LL: It means that the company went bankrupt. You see, a "crater" is a hole or pit in the ground, such as is caused by a bomb or a mine that has exploded.
LH: 哦，crater就是中文里说的弹坑。这跟公司倒闭有什么关系呢？
LL: If the company fails, it may be said to have a crash landing. And if the landing is uncontrolled, only a crater may remain.
LH: 我明白了。说公司倒闭，就好象是飞机硬着陆，如果控制不好，最后就只剩一个大坑了。I hope my company never craters. 哎，Larry, 你们公司现在情况怎么样？有可能会crater吗？
LL: I hope not. Usually there are warning signs before a company fails, such as cost-cutting measures.
LH: 对啊，倒闭也有先兆。我听说，去年美国很多大公司为了削减开支，取消了年底的圣诞派对，甚至减少了超级杯的广告经费。
LL: I"m afraid that this year and next will bring very tough times for many people, and companies, too. Even big car companies like GM and Chrysler face major problems. For them, it"s also "do or die."
LH: 那政府雇员呢？他们应该没事吧。
LL: Generally, Americans believe that government jobs are stable, because the government will never "crater."
LH: 可我怎么听说加州政府为了省钱，要求雇员每个月第一个和第三个星期五不要来上班呢？这就损失了十六个小时的工资啊。
LL: Yes, but they still have their jobs.
MC: 各位听众，今天李华学了两个常用语。一个是do or die, 意思是生死关头。另一个是to crater，意思是公司倒闭。
礼节美语048讲
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陈豪在北京的ABC美国公司工作，今天他开完会出来，刚好遇到美国同事Amy.
(Office ambience)
C：Hi Amy, 你有时间吗？
A：Sure. Come into my office and tell me what"s on your mind.
C：刚才开会的时候，我们的老板Mr. Jones对年终报表上的数字大发雷霆，说财会部门没有好好追查公司的欠款。
A：I can understand why Mr. Jones was upset. What did he say?
C：他说的不少词我都没听懂，后来Todd告诉我，这些都是American obscenities, 是不是就是英语里的脏话啊？
A：That"s right. Obscenities are not nice words. They are curse words. When some people get mad, they resort to using bad language to express their anger.
C：在办公室里骂人可不怎么样，结果弄得大家特别不自在，低着头都不说话，特别是不敢看那个挨骂的人。
A：Swearing, which is another word for cursing, is never effective. It only makes the person who is cursing look badly and is awkward for everyone else.
C：我们下午还要开会，希望Mr. Jones能冷静下来。
******
陈豪下午在走廊上又遇到Amy。
A：How did it go this afternoon at your meeting?
C：Mr. Jones不仅冷静了下来，而且还跟我们所有人道歉。他承认自己上午开会时非常失态。
A：What did he say?
C：他说自己这么做很不得体，冒犯了大家。
A：Did he say anything else?
C：说啦。他说，在任何情况下，所以他也不准备为自己的错误提出什么辩解。
A：Cursing has become all too common these days. So much so that some people think nothing of it.