与巴菲特共进午餐 神秘客一掷千金

 The cost of the average restaurant meal has risen 2.7 per cent in the past year, according to the US Bureau of Labor¹ Statistics, but if that looks steep against an economywide inflation rate of 1.1 per cent, it is nothing compared to the rising cost of lunching with Warren Buffett.

根据美国劳工统计局(Bureau of Labor Statistics)的数据，餐馆就餐成本在过去一年上涨了2.7%，这与整体经济1.1%的通胀率相比也许显得陡峭，但是相比同沃伦?巴菲特(Warren Buffett)共进午餐的扶摇直上的开销，这点涨幅实在算不了什么。

An anonymous² bidder³ has paid $3,456,789 for a lunch date with the investment guru and founder⁴ of Berkshire Hathaway, some 47 per cent more than the winner of the charity auction⁵ last year.

一位匿名投标者支付了3456789美元与这位投资大师、伯克希尔哈撒韦公司(Berkshire Hathaway)创始人相约共进午餐，比这场慈善拍卖去年中标者的出价高出大约47%。

Mr Buffett will meet the winning bidder and up to seven friends for an intimate meal, in what has become an annual tradition that has netted more than $23m in total for the San Francisco charity, Glide⁷.

巴菲特将与中标者和最多七个朋友一起进餐，这一年度传统已经为旧金山慈善机构Glide累计筹集2300多万美元。

Mr Buffett’s late wife Susan used to be a volunteer at Glide, which offers meals, medical testing and other services to homeless and low-income people in the San Francisco’s Tenderloin district. Volunteers and supporters sang and cheered as the five-day auction moved into its final minutes on Friday night, and a late bid swelled⁸ the proceeds from $2.8m, where bidding had hovered⁹ for most of the day, to a final total that matched the all-time record from 2012.

巴菲特已故太太苏珊曾经在Glide当义工，该组织为旧金山田德隆区(Tenderloin district)的无家可归者和低收入者提供膳食、医疗检验等服务。周五晚，在持续五天的拍卖进入最后几分钟之际，义工和支持者们欢呼并唱起歌来。当日大部分时间里，出价一直徘徊在280万美元上下，但拍卖结束前的出价远远超出这个水平，最终中标价格平了2012年创下的最高纪录。

Reverend Cecil Williams, co-founder of Glide, said he was astonished by the result. “This is a banner year,” he said, “and this is truly a power lunch for the people.”

Glide共同创始人、牧师塞西尔?威廉斯(Cecil Williams)表示，这个结果让他惊讶。“这是成果丰硕的一年，”他说，“这是真正为人民的‘巨头午餐会’。”

The auction is now in its 17th year, and the price of lunch with Mr Buffett began rising dramatically after it switched to the online site eBay in 2003, opening it to the investor’s followers¹⁰ all around the world.

这个拍卖活动已进入第17个年头，自拍卖活动在2003年转至eBay进行、让巴菲特在世界各地的粉丝都能投标以来，与这位知名投资者共进午餐的价格开始急剧上涨。

Since that first online auction, the price of the average restaurant meal has risen 44 per cent, while Mr Buffett’s 2016 lunch is 1,282 per cent higher. Berkshire’s share price is up 200 per cent over the same 13-year period.

自第一次网上拍卖以来，餐馆就餐的价格上涨44%，而巴菲特的2016年午餐价格高了1282%。伯克希尔的股价在这13年期间上升200%。

In some cases the experience of meeting Mr Buffett can be career-changing for lunch guests. Guy Spier wrote a book about how the advice and inspiration he received improved his approach to investing, for example.

在某些情况下，与巴菲特会晤的经历可能改变午餐客人的职业道路。例如，盖伊?施皮尔(Guy Spier)写了一本书，介绍他得到的建议和灵感如何改进了他的投资方法。

And Ted⁶ Weschler, a Virginia hedge fund manager who won with bid of $2.6m in both 2010 and 2011, so impressed Mr Buffett that he offered him a job. Today, Mr Weschler runs a $9bn slice of Berkshire’s $128bn equity¹¹ portfolio¹².

弗吉尼亚州对冲基金经理泰德?韦施勒(Ted Weschler)曾以260万美元的出价在2010和2011年两度中标。巴菲特对他的印象很深，以至于向他提供了一个职位。如今，韦施勒负责管理伯克希尔公司1280亿美元股票投资组合中的90亿美元。

Mr Buffett will meet the winning bidder and guests at the famed Smith & Wollensky steakhouse in New York City on a mutually agreed upon date.

巴菲特将和中标者及其客人在纽约知名牛排餐厅“史密斯与沃伦斯基”(Smith & Wollensky)一起进餐，具体日期有待双方约定。

1 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

2 anonymous   

adj.无名的；匿名的；无特色的

参考例句：

• Sending anonymous letters is a cowardly act.寄匿名信是懦夫的行为。
• The author wishes to remain anonymous.作者希望姓名不公开。

3 bidder   

n.(拍卖时的)出价人，报价人，投标人

参考例句：

• TV franchises will be auctioned to the highest bidder.电视特许经营权将拍卖给出价最高的投标人。
• The bidder withdrew his bid after submission of his bid.投标者在投标之后撤销了投标书。

4 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

5 auction   

n.拍卖；拍卖会；vt.拍卖

参考例句：

• They've put the contents of their house up for auction.他们把房子里的东西全都拿去拍卖了。
• They bought a new minibus with the proceeds from the auction.他们用拍卖得来的钱买了一辆新面包车。

6 ted   

vt.翻晒，撒，撒开

参考例句：

• The invaders gut ted the village.侵略者把村中财物洗劫一空。
• She often teds the corn when it's sunny.天好的时候她就翻晒玉米。

7 glide   

n./v.溜，滑行；(时间)消逝

参考例句：

• We stood in silence watching the snake glide effortlessly.我们噤若寒蝉地站着，眼看那条蛇逍遥自在地游来游去。
• So graceful was the ballerina that she just seemed to glide.那芭蕾舞女演员翩跹起舞，宛如滑翔。

8 swelled   

增强( swell的过去式和过去分词 )； 肿胀； （使）凸出； 充满（激情）

参考例句：

• The infection swelled his hand. 由于感染，他的手肿了起来。
• After the heavy rain the river swelled. 大雨过后，河水猛涨。

9 hovered   

鸟( hover的过去式和过去分词 )； 靠近（某事物）； （人）徘徊； 犹豫

参考例句：

• A hawk hovered over the hill. 一只鹰在小山的上空翱翔。
• A hawk hovered in the blue sky. 一只老鹰在蓝色的天空中翱翔。

10 followers   

追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件

参考例句：

• the followers of Mahatma Gandhi 圣雄甘地的拥护者
• The reformer soon gathered a band of followers round him. 改革者很快就获得一群追随者支持他。

11 equity   

n.公正，公平，（无固定利息的）股票

参考例句：

• They shared the work of the house with equity.他们公平地分担家务。
• To capture his equity,Murphy must either sell or refinance.要获得资产净值，墨菲必须出售或者重新融资。

12 portfolio   

n.公事包；文件夹；大臣及部长职位

参考例句：

• He remembered her because she was carrying a large portfolio.他因为她带着一个大公文包而记住了她。
• He resigned his portfolio.他辞去了大臣职务。