礼节美语116讲
MicroMax公司销售部主管Fred 给客户Tom打电话，讨论涨价的事情。
Susan (secretary): Hello, Tom Grossman`s office. How may I help you?
Fred Lim: Hi, Susan. This is Fred Lim from MicroMax. Is Tom available for a second?
Susan: One moment, please. I`m connecting you now.
Tom: Hey, Fred. What`s up?
F: Well, I was going to send you an email, but I thought it might be better for me to call.
T: Uh, oh. Sounds serious.
秘书Susan帮Fred接通Tom的电话。Tom拿起电话来问，Hey, Fred, what`s up?这是熟人之间见面，或是打电话一上来很常见的说法。直截了当，又很亲切。Fred说，本想发个电子邮件，后来觉得还是电话里说好，是什么重要的事呢？
F: It`s about the last order your company placed with us.
T: Let`s see...you mean the order for six containers of chipboards?
F: Yep, that`s the one. Now I know we originally agreed on the price, but there`s a little problem. Yesterday one of our major suppliers notified us that they are raising prices.
T: That`s never good.
订货要用动词place, to place an order. 供货商昨天电话通知Fred的公司，要涨价they are raising prices. 这可不是好消息。
F: Also, due to recent jumps in energy prices, our shipping agent is also upping fees. I guess what I`m getting at is that we just can`t offer our product at the original price anymore.
T: But Fred, this order is already in! I made it two weeks ago! You can`t change prices on me like this.
F: I understand your position, Tom. But if we fill your order as is, we lose money. If we can`t find some kind of compromise, I`m afraid our company might have to cancel the order all together.
Fred抱怨说，油价贵了，运费也水涨船高，What I`m getting at is that....归根结底要涨价。Tom不同意，因为the order is already in. 货已经定好了，怎么还能涨价呢？Fred表示，if we fill your order as is, 如果按原样供货，就会赔钱。如果谈不拢，就只好cancel the order, 取消定单。
T: Well, how much more are you asking for?
F: We need to ask for another - are you sitting down? - 25%.
T: 25%! That`s a huge increase, Fred!
F: Tom, you are one of our most valued customers. Your business is important to us, but this situation is out of our hands.
T: I understand that your company needs to make a profit. But it`s going to be very hard for me to pass on these increases to our customers.
Tom听说要取消定单，口气软了下来，但觉得涨25%还是太多。Fred和Tom接下来如何讨价还价，我们下次再听
流行美语第340课
李华和Larry在夏威夷渡假, 俩人今天坐着帆船出海。今天我们要学两个常用语：the ropes和get the hang of.
LH: Wow, Larry, 我太喜欢坐帆船了。你看，蓝天白云，海天一色，微风拂面，我好象已经融化在大自然里了。
LL: Yeah, this is really great! Do you think the captain would teach me how to sail the boat?
LH: 你想试试看吗？可是Larry, 这么大一条船，驾驭起来可没那么简单，肯定不是一下子就能学会的。
LL: That`s OK, Lihua. I don`t expect to become an expert in one day. I just want to learn the ropes a little bit.
LH: Learn the ropes? 你是指如何用这些绳子来控制船帆吗？
LL: Exactly! Actually, when you learn the basic rules of how to do something, you can say that you learn the ropes.
LH: 哦，the ropes, 就是指最基本的知识和技巧，那你的意思是，不是真要学会驾驶帆船，只是要了解一些皮毛。
LL: Right! Or, here is another example. When you start a new job and don`t know how to do things, you should find a more experienced colleague to teach you the ropes.
LH: 没错，到了一个新的工作单位，是要找个熟悉工作的同事带你入门，给你介绍一下工作的基本要求和流程。
LL: So Lihua, do you like sailing or surfing better?
LH: 坐帆船出海更放松，去海边冲浪更刺激，嗯，我更喜欢冲浪，而且我冲浪已经入门了，可以自己练习了。
LL: Right. Once the surfing instructor has shown you the ropes, you can practice by yourself.
LH: 今天出来坐帆船算是休息，明天我们加大活动量，去爬山！
LL: Sure! But since we are visitors and don`t know anything about hiking in Hawaii, we should find a local guide to show us the ropes.
LH: Come on Larry! 你的冒险精神都跑到哪里去了？好了，我们还是去找船长，让他教我们几招show us the ropes, 好不好？
******
两小时后，Larry和李华回到岸上。
LH: Wow, Larry, 看不出，你还真有两下子，船长教了你一下，你就自己把船开了回来，真是让我刮目相看。
LL: Thanks, Lihua. You weren`t nervous when the captain let me sail the boat?
LH: 那有什么好紧张的？你的飞车我都敢坐，更别说帆船了，大不了掉到海里去，反正我会游泳。驾驶帆船难不难？
LL: Well learning to sail was pretty hard at first, but after a little while I got the hang of it.
LH: You got the hang of it? 这是什么意思啊？
LL: When you get the hang of something, that means that you succeed in learning it.
LH: 哦，我明白了，to get the hang of something, 就是学会、掌握的意思。你是说驾驶帆船虽然并不容易，但是练习一会，就能学会基本技巧。
LL: Exactly. Or for another example, I could say that John is a really talented athlete in whatever sport he tries. When I showed him how to play football, he got the hang of it very quickly.
LH: 就是说John有体育天分，凡是体育项目一教就会，所以没用多久就掌握了橄榄球的基本技巧。
LL: Right. So Lihua, you don`t think I`m a good driver?
LH: 这么说吧，我倒是觉得在海上开船更安全，地方大，足够你横冲直撞。
LL: Well driving is hard! Remember when I taught you? It took a long time before you started to get the hang of it.
LH: 怎么会，我可是天生的司机，考驾照都是一次通过。对了，Larry, 我们明天真的要去钓鱼吗？我可从来没钓过鱼，you have to show me the ropes. 你得手把手地教我。
LL: Sure. Fishing is pretty simple. so I`m sure you won`t have problem getting the hang of it.
LH: 好，如果咱俩明天真能钓到鱼，我保证回去做给你吃。
LL: That`s a great idea. I`ve never got the hang of how to cook Chinese food. All the dishes I make taste terrible!
LH: Right...Larry, 你难道就想不出更好的借口逃避做饭吗？
LL: Haha... I`m still trying to get the hang of it.
今天李华学了两个常用语。一个是the ropes, 意思是基本技巧和要领。另一个是get the hang of, 意思是学会，掌握。