礼节美语076讲
陈豪在北京的ABC美国公司工作。他在走廊上遇到同事Amy。
(Office ambience)
C：早上好，Amy. 我刚听到一条办公室的小道消息。
A：小道消息？
C：是关于销售部那个金发美女Sally的。
A：I know a Sally Smith in Marketing. I don`t know anything about her except that she appears to be quite talented.
C：我从来没有跟她共事过，听说挺能干的，不过这件事跟工作无关。
A：Then why are you talking about her?
C：我听说她结婚刚刚几个月，就在闹离婚了。
A：I`m sorry, Chen Hao. What does this have to do with work?
C：当然跟工作无关了，说说罢了。
A：This is gossip. How did you come to know this?
C：会计部的Tim跟Sally是朋友，他告诉了Melissa, Melissa又告诉了我。
A：So, is everyone talking about this now?
C：大家都在传。Amy, 你干嘛那么不高兴，是因为Sally要离婚，替她觉得惋惜吗？
A：No. Well, yes, I am sorry to hear that kind of news, but that is not what is bothering me. Let`s talk about this over lunch.
C：好，那我们中午在餐厅见。
******
陈豪和Amy一起吃中饭。
C：Amy, 你早上干嘛那么生气，是我说错话了吗？
A：You got into a conversation that you shouldn`t have at work.
C：你什么意思，我怎么听不懂啊？
A：We need to have boundaries in the office.
C：Boundaries，界限？
A：Yes. Boundaries or limits on what we talk about in the workplace.
C：你的意思是说Sally的私事不应该拿到办公室里来说？
A：Talking about Sally`s private life has nothing to do with our work. Whoever started this kind of gossip overstepped the bounds of office friendship.
C：我不是告诉你了吗，是Tim最早开始传的？
A：If that is the case, then Sally should have been more careful about choosing her office friends and about what she confided in them.
C：难道Sally也有错吗？
A：We need to be careful about what we confide to our colleagues. Unless you can trust someone completely and unless you want your private life to become public, be careful what you say to whom.
C：我以为同事间应该经常交流，才能有利于搞好关系啊！
A：That`s true. It`s called "small talk." You talk about the weather, what movie you saw last night, your favorite restaurant, where you are going on vacation, but not the personal details of your life.
C：可以谈天气、谈电影、谈出去渡假，就是不能谈私生活。
A：Be careful about what you tell your colleagues. Those who talk to you about others will also talk to others about you.
流行美语第309课
LH: Larry, 晚上你想干什么？
LL: I`m not sure Li Hua, did you have anything in mind?
LH: 我想去看新上映的喜剧片，讲好几个俄亥俄单身女子的那个。
LL: That movie? It looks like a total snoozefest! There`s no way you`ll get me in there!
LH: Snoozefest? 我猜snoozefest是无聊的意思吧？
LL: Yes, Li Hua, snooze is another word for sleep, and fest means party. So a snoozefest is something that`s so boring it puts everyone to sleep.
LH: 我可不觉得这个电影无聊。要不你说，看什么电影？
LL: I would like to see that new action movie about a spy in Russia.
LH: 啊？你想看那个俄罗斯间谍片？光看介绍就知道，绝对是俗套的snoozefest!
LL: I don`t think it sounds like a snoozefest to me. I find action movies to be very exciting.
LH: 看起来，我们两人对电影的品味完全不同。
LL: Yes, that sounds exactly right. So how are your classes going?
LH: 别提了，我刚完成的那篇文章枯燥极了。It is a total snoozefest. 题目是七十年代加拿大的经济和不列颠哥伦比亚省的捕鱼业。
LL: (Yawn) You`re putting me to sleep just explaining it.
LH: 你还没去上过课呢！那位老先生讲起课来循循善诱，徐徐道来，经常说着说着就跑题了。It truly is a snoozefest.
LL: How do you deal with it?
LH: 一个字：coffee.
LL: That seems like a good plan. The other day I had a meeting at work that was also a total snoozefest. It took all of my energy to stay awake.
LH: 言归正传，咱们晚上到底看什么电影？赶快决定吧。
LL: Well, I guess we can see the movie you want to see.
LH: Thank you. 你怎么会改变主意的？
LL: I need to catch up on my sleep.
******
MC：李华和Larry看完电影后走出电影院。
LH: Larry, 你觉得那个电影怎么样？特别好看吧！
LL: Great? I don`t Li Hua, I thought that movie was really passé .
LH: Passé. Passé 是什么意思？
LL: Passé Pass-AY, is a word borrowed from French that means lame or uncool when used in English.
LH: 什么？你居然会觉得这么好的电影没劲？Your taste in movies is so Passé 不说这个了，现在时间还早，咱们干点什么？
LL: We could go out to a club and go dancing.
LH: 好啊，去哪里跳舞？
LL: The one on 9th street is cheap.
LH: 你说九街上那间舞厅？But that place is so passé 那里的音乐都是老掉牙的。
LL: Yes, I`ll admit it is a little passé.
LH: 咱们去市中心新开的那个舞厅怎么样？听说里面特别棒，It`s not passé at all.
LL: I heard it`s pretty cool, but it`s kind of far away.
LH: 这倒是真的。那我们还是去九街上的那间吧。
LL: That sounds good to me. Say, did you ever finish that book I loaned you?
LH: 刚看完。
LL: What did you think of it?
LH: 还可以。我觉得it was a little passé作者在书里并没有提出什么新论点，都是别人提过的。
LL: Really? I did not think it was passé at all. I thought that the author made some interesting points.
LH: 书里只有个别片段让我感兴趣，但是总的来说，I thought it was a snoozefest.
LL: Well I for one liked it. Did I tell you that a new restaurant opened down the street from my job?
LH: 你们公司附近又开新餐馆了？How is it?
LL: I haven`t been yet, but I read a review of it. It said the decorations are somewhat passé but the food is supposed to be delicious.
LH: 真的？什么风味的？
LL: I think it is a Moroccan restaurant.
LH: 我们下次去吃吃看。
LL: Sure, I think that sounds like a great idea Li hua.
今天李华学了两个常用语。一个是snoozefest, 意思是无聊得只会让人睡觉。另一个是passé, 意思是落伍的，过时的。