【大紀元7月30日訊】
Larry和李華剛上完課，現在在一面喝咖啡，一面聊天。今天李華會學到兩個常用語：off one’s rocker和silent treatment.
(Bar noise)
LH: Larry, 我看你一直盯著那邊那個女孩。你為什麼不走過去跟她聊一聊呢？
LL: Are you kidding? She’ll think I’m off my rocker if I just walk over and start talking to her.
LH: 你走過去跟她講話，她會認為你是什麼？Off your rocker，那是什麼意思啊？
LL: To be “off one’s rocker” means to be crazy. I’m afraid she’ll think I’m crazy, or at least really weird, if I start talking to her for no reason.
LH: 噢！所以off one’s rocker就是指一個人特別怪，行為反常。嗨，你要是覺得和陌生人說話很奇怪，那你才真的是off your rocker呢！
LL: I don’t know, I guess I’m just a little shy about it, okay?
LH: 你這麼害羞，難怪總是錯失良機！算了，你要膽子那麼小，我也沒辦法。哎，Larry，你看那邊那個人才真的有點不正常？
LL: Who?
LH: 就是坐在角落裡的那個人，你看他還在唱歌呢！
LL: Yeah, he looks like he’s a bit off his rocker, but he’s probably just really drunk.
LH: 就是，也許他是喝醉了。Larry，我今天不能玩太晚。明天早上9點鐘，歷史課的教授要給大家補課。
LL: 9:00 am on a Saturday morning? Your professor is either completely off his rocker or he just likes to torture his students.
LH: 星期六早上給大家補課不是挺好嗎？ 你認為這教授是瘋啦！ 我看你才是off your rocker。Larry，班上沒有一個同學認為那教授這樣做有什麼不正常，更沒有人認為他是為了要折磨學生。
LL: Ok, ok. But to me, anyone who likes to go to class on Saturday morning is off his rocker.
******
LL: Hey, I forgot to tell you that my sister is giving me the silent treatment. She’s mad at me for telling our mom about her new boyfriend.
LH: 你把你妹妹交男朋友的事告訴你媽，難怪你妹妹對你發火。你說她還給你silent treatment，那是什麼意思？
LL: To give someone “the silent treatment” is to refuse to talk to that person. My sister is refusing to talk to me because she’s mad at me.
LH: 噢，我懂了。Silent treatment就是不理你，不跟你說話。這麼說，你妹妹也不接你電話咯？
LL: No, she wouldn’t even speak to me when I was home last weekend.
LH: 我最討厭這種態度了。不講話，能解決問題嗎？
LL: Exactly. If my sister is giving me the silent treatment, then how are we supposed to talk over the problem?
LH: 我還記得，當我告訴我媽我決定要來美國念書時，她氣得一個月不和我說話。
LL: She probably wasn’t really mad at you. She was just upset that you would be so far away.
LH: 我知道，她不是真的生我的氣，而是不捨得我到這麼遠的地方來念書。可是不說話有什麼用啊！
LL: Sometimes giving someone the silent treatment is a good idea, though. There are a couple of people I avoid talking to because I know that they like to gossip.
LH: 那倒也是。碰上那種喜歡嚼舌頭的人，最好不和他們說話。去年我的同屋就是這樣的人，所以我一個學期都不跟她說話，給她silent treatment。
LL: Hey, Li Hua, you learn fast!
今天李華學到兩個常用語。一個是off one’s rocker，就是指一個人行為不正常。也就是我們平常所說的，某某人瘋了。另外一個常用語是silent treatment，就是沉默對待的意思。
(轉載自《美國之音》)(http://www.dajiyuan.com)
