书城外语没有抵达不了的港湾
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第4章 每个成功者都知道的秘密 (4)

The disease is considered endemic in the United States.

在美国,该病被认为是地方性流行疾病。

perpetuate [p(:)'petjueit] v. 使永存;使不朽

It is dead because it is self-perpetuating and cannot evolve.

它是死亡是因为它是自我永存而不能进化。

occupant ['kju:pnt] n. 占有者;居住者;占领者

Are you the occupant of this house?

你是不是住在这所房子里的?

回忆是一个园丁真正的调色板;它唤起了陈年往事,筑就了今天的生活,也描绘出明日的美好。

A garden, no matter how good it is, must never completely satisfy.

no matter:无论(……);不管(……);无论怎样

The world as we know it, after all, began in a very good garden, a completely satisfying garden—Paradise—but after a while the owner and the occupants wanted more.

after all:毕竟;终究;终于

治疗心灵创伤的药物

Medicine for a Broken Heart

佚名 / Anonymous

Within my group of friends, when one of us is struggling with a recent breakup after a long-term relationship, the castaway will be sad and depressed. The response to sadness takes one of two courses—either appetite fails totally, or we eat excessively to quell our yearnings over lost loves.

If one of the girls in my dorm wants to indulge her appetite for food after a breakup, we all join in. We all eat terrible food in terrible quantities. For instance, ice cream, cakes, cookies and potato chips all become comfort foods that we consume in excess. I think this happens for a variety of reasons. To begin with, at my age—nineteen—we are all very concerned with our physical appearance. We want to be attractive, to have the kind of body image our society values. To that end, we moderate what kinds of foods we eat, how much, and how often; and we often overexert ourselves at the gym trying to burn off extra calories. We maintain good habits to keep up good appearance and thereby maintain a good relationship. However, when anyone experiences something as stressful and emotionally draining as a broken heart, he or she tends to disregard healthy habits and takes some pleasure in consuming those formerly forbidden foods. Of course, it is all a vicious circle. We lose our boyfriends, we become depressed, we eat, we gain weight (which, in turn, depresses us), we struggle to regain our self-respect, we enter into another relationship, and the cycle goes on.

Food is not the only recourse for a sad lover. One friend of mine soothes her broken heart by going shopping—buying new clothes and new shoes, maybe a piece of jewelry—to make herself feel better. Whether it's food or shopping, self-indulgence is often good medicine for the blues, if it is not carried to excess. The worst response is turning to alcohol or drugs.

我的朋友中,若有人失恋,被抛弃的人当然会沮丧难过。失恋后的悲伤有两种反应——要么食欲全无,要么通过暴饮暴食的方式来减轻对爱情的怀念。

宿舍里,若有同伴和男友分手后想放纵一下食欲,我们都会参与进来,无节制地享用那些毫无营养价值的食品,比如冰淇淋、蛋糕、饼干、炸薯片之类的,这些都是我们大量消耗的安慰性食品。这种悲伤反应的原因有很多种。首先,在我们这个年纪——19岁——都很关注自身外在形象。我们希望自己魅力十足,希望自身的形象符合社会的审美标准。为了达到这个目的,我们限制食物的种类,减少食量和进餐次数;还常到健身房进行过量的运动,来消耗过多的热量。美丽,让我们保持着良好的习惯,维护好恋情。但是,一旦身心受创,他或她就会将那些健康习惯抛之脑后,食用那些以前禁食的东西来获得些许快乐。无疑,这完全是一种恶性循环。失恋、沮丧、暴饮暴食、发胖反过来又会打击我们,努力找回自尊,开始新的恋情,这个循环往复地进行下去。

食物并不是慰藉失恋者的唯一方法。我的一个朋友通过逛商场来抚慰自己受伤的心——添置新衣服、鞋子,或是买一件珠宝——这会让她好受些。不管是食物还是购物,只要不是太过分,自我放纵往往就是治疗抑郁的良药。然而,失恋后最糟糕的反应就是通过酗酒和吸毒来寻求解脱。

冲动是魔鬼,人在不理智的情况下总是会做一些让自己后悔不已的事情。没有一种“报复”人的方法是用伤害自己为手段的。悲伤的时候,对自己好一点儿,不要在已经流血的伤口上再捅一刀了。

castaway ['k:stwei] n. 被抛弃的人;坐船遇难者;漂流者

She there remains a hopeless castaway.

她还停留在原处,品尝着绝望的苦果。

appetite ['鎝itait] n. 爱好;嗜好;食欲;胃口;欲望

There's nothing to touch mountain air for giving you an appetite.

再也没有比山间清新的空气更能促进食欲的了。

self-indulgence ['selfin'dldns] n. 放纵;任性

You said that you are spoiled and self-indulgence like a princess,aren't

you?

你说你被溺爱坏了,任性得像个公主,是吗?

无疑,这完全是一种恶性循环。

食物并不是慰藉失恋者的唯一方法。

失恋后最糟糕的反应就是通过酗酒和吸毒来寻求解脱。

For instance, ice cream, cakes, cookies and potato chips all become comfort foods that we consume in excess.

for instance:比如;例如;举例说

To begin with, at my age—nineteen—we are all very concerned with our physical appearance.

to begin with:首先;第一;原先本来;起初

工作对于年轻人的益处和意义

The Benefits of Work

佚名 / Anonymous

Advice to a Young Man Remember, my son, you have to work.

Whether you handle a pick or a pen, a wheel-barrow or a set of books, digging ditches or editing a paper, ringing an auction bell or writing funny things, you must work. If you look around you will see the men who are the most able to live the rest of their days without work are the men who work the hardest. Don't be afraid of killing yourself with overwork. It is beyond your power to do that on the sunny side of thirty. They die sometimes, but it is because they quit work at six in the evening, and do not go home until two in the morning. It's the interval that kills, my son. The work gives you an appetite for your meals; it lends solidity to your slumbers; it gives you a perfect and grateful appreciation of a holiday.

There are young men who do not work, but the world is not proud of them. It does not know their names; even it simply speaks of them as "old so-and-so's boy". Nobody likes them; the great, busy world doesn't know that they are there. So find out what you want to be and do, and take off your coat and make a dust in the world. The busier you are, the less harm you will be apt to get into, the sweeter will be your sleep, the brighter and happier your holidays, and the better satisfied will the world be with you.

年轻人,记住,你必须工作。

不论你是使用锄头还是钢笔,不论你是推车还是统计账簿,也不论你是挖沟渠还是编辑报纸,又或是敲响拍卖槌还是写些有趣的东西,你必须工作。环顾四周,你会发现最有可能安度晚年无须工作的人,现在工作最努力。别害怕工作过度会谋害你的性命。不到三十岁的美好年华,承受能力远不止此。有人丧生,只是因为他们晚上六点结束工作后,不是径直回家,而是流浪到凌晨两点。年轻人,正是那段时间毁了他们。工作让你食欲大增,使你安然入睡,让你心满意足地享受假日。

不工作的年轻人有很多,但世界不会以他们为荣。他们的名字无人知晓,甚至被人谈及时只会称其为“某人的儿子”。没有人喜欢他们,庞大、繁忙的世界根本不知道他们的存在。所以,想清楚自己想成为怎样的人,想要去做什么。然后,脱下外套,投身于繁忙的世界。你越忙碌,受到的伤害就越少,睡眠就越香甜,假日就越快乐、越幸福,你也会对这个世界更满意。

ditch [dit] n. 沟渠

If one sheep leaps over the ditch, all the rest will follow.