十一日：告诉妈妈新鲜事

　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
　　亲爱的妈妈：
　　您能想象出，我在美国这样一个与中国有着种种不同的国家里是如何生活的吗？这里所有的事情都是那么新鲜有趣。我现在交了许多新朋友，他们人很好，给了我很多帮助。但是，我仍然想念您，想念您做的饭菜。一想到那些饭菜，我就忍不住要流口水。好在我有一些朋友，上星期他们邀请我去学校附近的一家餐馆吃了一顿，我发现他们形容饿的方法很有意思，我得花点时间去熟悉熟悉。比如如果觉得饿了，我一般会说：“I’m so hungry”。可是，他们有很多古怪的说法。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.”中文中有一句类似的话，我想您是知道的。还有一句话理解起来可能就有些困难了----“I’m making a pig of myself!”是不是有点糊涂了？不管怎么说，您在中国教英语，这些东西可能会有用。所以随信寄去一盘磁带，好让您听一听我们的交谈，了解一下“真正”的现代美国口语。
　　您的女儿
　　Amber

　    十二日：温馨房间有学问

　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的家吃晚饭。他们的话题集中在家庭装饰和布置的改进上。Jack谈了一些房子经常出现的问题，然后又谈了谈自己以后将怎样装修房子。室内装饰是Ethabella的一个爱好，以前还专门学过,于是她给了Jack一些建议。她是不是很在行呢？
　　Ethabella:Jack，你的房子真不错！
　　Jack:谢谢，是啊，这是一个家。但是最近有很多地方出了问题。
　　Amber:那可太糟了，出什么问题了？
　　Jack:哦，刚刚住进来，正间房子都需要从新粉刷，卧室里的地毯也已经很旧了，我想装一套新的。上星期，我不得不打电话找水管工来修理厕所。不管怎么说，如果你有一间房子，我觉得这都是最寻常不过的事。我看我要请一个室内工程师来看看这个地方。
　　Ethabella:我曾学过室内装饰。我能给你提一些建议吗？
　　Jack:太棒了，请讲。
　　Ethabella:啊，我觉得在卧室里装一盏水晶灯会很漂亮。另外呢，可能需要一些落地窗来装饰窗户。还有,休息室里放一盏落地灯会很漂亮的。你还可以买一些盆栽装饰饭厅。
　　Jack:哇噻！你在这方面，可真是天才啊，Ethabella.。谢谢你的建议。
　　Ethabella:不客气，Jack。很高兴能帮助你。

Jason takes the BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) to Berkeley, grabs a cab, and goes to pick up Amber at her apartment. On the way to the restaurant that Ethabella suggested, Jason asks Amber her age. She is a little reluctant to tell him at first, but then does so. Is there a problem with asking this question?

　　Jason:You really do look great tonight, Amber.

　　Amber:Why, thank you. You don't look so bad yourself (laughs)

　　Jasonlaughing also) I appreciate that. Speaking of which, I was wondering if I am older than you, because you look so young. How old are you, anyway?

　　Amberhesitatingly) Oh, I'm not too old, but I'm over eighteen.

　　Jason:I'm sorry, maybe that was a dumb question.

　　Amber:No, it's not that. Just…well, I was just a little surprised with your question. It's a bit unusual here for people to ask about age so soon.

　　Jack:Forgive me. I didn't mean to be impolite or rude.

　　Amber:I know. Anyway, I'm 27.

　　Jason:Really. You don't look a day over 23. How do you stay so young-looking?

　　Amberflattered) No special way. Just a happy-go-lucky type of person, I guess.

　　Jason:Well, it works. You really don't look your age. I'm 28, by the way.

　　Amberjokingly) Is that right? I thought you might be a bit older…just joking.

　　Jason:I guess I deserved that. (changing the subject) So, what about….

　　Jason乘海岸快速列车到了Berkeley,叫了一辆出租车就去接Amber了。在去Ethabella建议的餐厅的路上, Jason问起了Amber的年龄。开始她有点不愿意告诉他，但最后还是说了。这个问题有什么不对劲吗？

　　Jason:你今天晚上看起来很美，Amber。

　　Amber:谢谢。你看起来也不错啊！(笑起来)

　　Jason:(也笑起来)非常感谢，说起这个，我在想我一定比你大因为你看起来很年轻。你多大了？

　　Amber:(犹豫了一下)哦，我还不算太老，但是也过了18岁了。

　　Jason:对不起，可能这是个很愚蠢的问题。

　　Amber:不，不是那么回事，只是……我真是被你的问题弄得很吃惊。在这里，这么快地问别人有多大不太常见。

　　Jason:请原谅我，我不是故意这么粗鲁无理的。

　　Amber:我知道，不管它了，我27岁了。

　　Jason:真的吗？你看起来还不到23岁。你是怎么保持年轻的？

　　Amber:(高兴状)没什么特殊的方法。只是生性快乐罢了。

　　Jason:看来行得通。你看上去真的没那么大。另外我28岁了。

　　Amber:(开玩笑地说)是真的吗？我觉得你可能更老一点……开开玩笑而已。

　　Jason:我想你说得对。(换了一个话题)那么……

zhenniu

真的不错
学到不少东西哦