洋話美眉在紐約

大餐之后來點啥

After a big meal， everyone was full， so they finished up and left.

Jack:Hey， that food was terrific! My stomach isn't growling at me anymore. Are you sure you don't want another dish?

Amber:Nah， I'm stuffed. Thank you all the same.

Jack:How about you， Ethabella?

Ethabella:No，thanks. I can't eat another bite.

Jack:I know what you mean. I'm so full I could burst.Shall we go，then?

Amber:I'm all set.

Ethabella:Me too. Thanks for the dinner，Jack.

一頓大餐后，每個人都吃得很飽，稍做逗留之后他們離開了飯店。

Jack:嘿！這頓飯可真棒啊！這下我的肚子不會再叫喚了。你們確實不想再點什么菜了嗎？

Amber:不用了，我吃飽了。謝謝你。

Jack:你呢？Ethabella？

Ethabella:不點了，謝謝。我一口都吃不下了。

Jack:我也有同感。我都撐死了。那么我們走吧？

Amber:我準備好了。

Ethabella:我也準備好了。 Jack，謝謝你請我們吃晚餐。

告訴媽媽新鮮事

Dear Mom，

Can you imagine that I'm now in the United States， a country so different from China? Everything is new and interesting! I made some friends on the trip over and they have been very kind and helpful. Still， you know how much I miss you and your cooking? My mouth waters at the mere thought of those delectable Chinese dishes you prepare. Last night， my friends invited me to dinner. They had some strange ways of describing their hunger. For instance， there was \"I'm starving to death\"，\"I'm famished\"， and \"I'm so hungry， I could eat a horse\"， which has a similar expression in Chinese，I'm sure you know the one. How about \"I'm making a pig of myself\"! A little confusing， hmm?Anyway，this stuff may be useful to you as an English teacher， so I'm also sending a tape. You can listen to our conversation and hear some real modern American English.

Your loving daughter，

Amber

親愛的媽媽：

您能想象出，我在美國這樣一個與中國有著種種不同的國家里是如何生活的嗎？這里所有的事情都是那么新鮮有趣。我現在交了許多新朋友， 他們人很好，給了我很多幫助。但是，我仍然想念您，想念您做的飯菜。一想到那些飯菜，我就忍不住要流口水。好在我有一些朋友，上星期他們邀請我去學校附近的一家餐館吃了一頓，我發現他們有很多古怪形容餓的說法。像：“I'm starving to death.”“I'm famished.”等等。最有趣的一句是“I'm so hungry，I could eat a horse.”中文中有一句類似的話，我想您是知道的。還有一句話理解起來可能就有些困難了----“I'm making a pig of myself!”是不是有點糊涂了？不管怎么說，您在中國教英語，這些東西可能會有用。所以隨信寄去一盤磁帶，好讓您聽一聽我們的交談，了解一下“真正”的現代美國口語。

愛您的女兒

Amber

溫馨房間有學問

Ethabella and Amber go to Jack's house for dinner Friday evening. Conversation centers on home decoration and improvement. Jack talks about the common problems every house owner encounters， and then how he'd like to spruce up the house sometime in the near future. Ethabella，who studied Western-style interior decoration as a hobby， offers some suggestions for his home. Is she good at it?

Ethabella:You have a lovely house， Jack.

Jack:Thank you. Yeah， it's home， but a number of things have been going wrong lately.

Amber:That's too bad. What problems are you having?

Jack:Oh， the whole house needs re-painting， for starters. The carpet in the living room is worn out， and I'd like to put in new wall-to-wall carpeting. Last week， I had to call the plumber to fix the toilet. Anyway， all par for the course when you own a house， I guess. I think I'm going to hire an interior decorator to look the place over.

Ethabella:I've studied Western home decoration as a hobby. Could I make some suggestions?

Jack:Go right ahead.

Ethabella:Well， I think a crystal chandelier would look great in your living room， and maybe some new drapes for the windows. Also， a grandfather clock would look great in the den. Perhaps you could buy some potted plants for the dining room.

Jack:Wow! You really do have a talent for this， Ethabella. Thanks for your suggestions.

Ethabella:Your welcome， Jack. Glad to be of help.

星期五晚上， Ethabella 和 Amber 一起去Jack的家吃晚飯。 他們的話題集中在家庭裝飾和布置的改進上。Jack談了一些房子經常出現的問題，然后又談了談自己以后將怎樣裝修房子。室內裝飾是 Ethabella的一個愛好，以前還專門學過，于是她給了Jack一些建議。 她是不是很在行呢？

Ethabella:Jack，你的房子真不錯！

Jack:謝謝，是啊，這是一個家。但是最近有很多地方出了問題。

Amber:那可太糟了， 出什么問題了？

Jack:哦，剛剛住進來， 整間房子都需要重新粉刷，臥室里的地毯也已經很舊了， 我想裝一套新的。 上星期，我不得不打電話找水管工來修理廁所。不管怎么說，如果你有一間房子，我覺得這都是最尋常不過的事。我看我要請一個室內工程師來看看這個地方。

Ethabella:我曾學過室內裝飾。我能給你提一些建議嗎？

Jack:太棒了，請講。

Ethabella:啊，我覺得在臥室里裝一盞水晶燈會很漂亮。另外呢，可能需要一些落地窗來裝飾窗戶。還有， 休息室里放一盞落地燈會很漂亮的。 你還可以買一些盆栽裝飾飯廳。

Jack:哇噻！你在這方面，可真是天才啊，Ethabella。謝謝你的建議。

Ethabella:不客氣，Jack。很高興能幫助你。