英语博客：Sharp is good.

　　It's funny how ordinary items or actions can show your knowledge of a language. Sometimes when I do something, or say something, I ask myself the question, "Could I say that in Spanish or French?" Your question would probably be, "Could I say that in English?" With that in mind, I was looking for a pen, the other day, to write down some notes. I couldn't find one anywhere which is really annoying. We seem to have little elves that come at night and steal useful items of all kinds, like pencils, pens, note paper, even envelopes. Mmmm....I wonder who they could be. I couldn't find a decent pencil either. The ones that were in the pencil holder¹ didn't have any nibs³. Whoever had previously⁴ used them had worn them down, or simply pressed down so hard that the nib² had broken off. The solution? A pencil sharpener. But no ordinary pencil sharpener. We have always had the ordinary little plastic ones that have a small blade in them. You insert the pencil, turn it a few times while pushing against the blade, and voila, a sharp pencil. But I decided⁵ to buy something that would give immediate⁶ gratification. A super-dooper electronic office sharpener. Ooooo! It's black, and very serious looking. Now, with ease, I can insert a pencil into the hole, and the blades automatically come on. They do their job in a few seconds, and out comes the pencil, with a sharp nib, and ready to be used. No more messing about with pencil shavings. My kids were impressed with my new buy. They, by the way, are the culprits for the disappearing pens and pencils. My daughter sat down and sharpened about fifteen pencils straight away. I had bought a battery run sharpener a couple of years ago, but my youngest son tried to sharpen the other end of some pencils, you know, the end with the eraser in the little metal holder. Well, you can guess what happened. The sharpener broke. However, now the youngest are older and less likely to do that again. And their fingers are too big to put in the hole, ....thank goodness!
Grammar notes.
Related vocabulary and expressions: with that in mind, elf/ elves, no ordinary...., nib.
1. The concert was cancelled because of the rain; with that in mind, we should think of something else to do.
2. They say that Santa is helped by elves.
3. She is no ordinary woman. She's an astronaut, a racing⁷ car driver, and a best selling novelist.
4. The nib of this pencil is broken. Where's the sharpener?

1 holder   

n.持有者，占有者；(台，架等)支持物

参考例句：

• The holder of the office of chairman is reponsible for arranging meetings.担任主席职位的人负责安排会议。
• That runner is the holder of the world record for the hundred-yard dash.那位运动员是一百码赛跑世界纪录的保持者。

2 nib   

n.钢笔尖；尖头

参考例句：

• The sharp nib scratched through the paper.钢笔尖把纸戳穿了。
• I want to buy a pen with a gold nib.我要金笔。

3 nibs   

上司，大人物； 钢笔尖，鹅毛管笔笔尖( nib的名词复数 )； 可可豆的碎粒； 小瑕疵

参考例句：

• They were careful not to offend his nibs. 他们小心翼翼，不敢冒犯这位大人。
• Please tell his nibs that we'd like his help with the washing-up! 请转告那位大人，我们想请他帮助刷锅洗碗！

4 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

5 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

6 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

7 racing   

n.竞赛，赛马；adj.竞赛用的，赛马用的

参考例句：

• I was watching the racing on television last night.昨晚我在电视上看赛马。
• The two racing drivers fenced for a chance to gain the lead.两个赛车手伺机竞相领先。