英语博客：ESL Podcast 739 – Performing an Intervention

　　Petra: Hey, what’s going on here? Why are all of you here in my apartment?
Johann: Your family and close friends are here to perform an intervention¹. We feel that you have a problem that is negatively affecting your life and the lives of the people around you.
Petra: An intervention?! I don’t need an intervention. What am I supposed to be addicted² to?
Johann: I think you know. Each of us can attest³ to your obsession⁴ and the consequences of that addiction⁵. It is interfering⁶ with your work and your personal relationships.
Petra: No, it’s not. I can’t believe this. I feel cornered!
Johann: We just want to help you. We all agree that you need to see a therapist and maybe go into treatment.
Petra: You guys are all crazy. Is that an ultimatum⁷?
Johann: Yes, I’m afraid it is. If you don’t stop your obsessive⁸ behavior, we’ll take that away.
Petra: What?! Take away my MP3 player? If you take away my MP3 player, how am I supposed to listen to ESL Podcast?
Johann: That’s the idea. Listening to ESL Podcast 14 hours a day is not healthy.
Petra: Okay, I know I’ve gone overboard, but I’ll stop. I promise.
Johann: You’ll stop cold turkey?
Petra: Well...I need to be weaned off, I think. How about if I cut back to 10 hours a day to start?
Script by Dr. Lucy Tse

1 intervention   

n.介入，干涉，干预

参考例句：

• The government's intervention in this dispute will not help.政府对这场争论的干预不会起作用。
• Many people felt he would be hostile to the idea of foreign intervention.许多人觉得他会反对外来干预。

2 addicted   

adj.沉溺于....的，对...上瘾的

参考例句：

• He was addicted to heroin at the age of 17.他17岁的时候对海洛因上了瘾。
• She's become addicted to love stories.她迷上了爱情小说。

3 attest   

vt.证明，证实；表明

参考例句：

• I can attest to the absolute truth of his statement. 我可以证实他的话是千真万确的。
• These ruins sufficiently attest the former grandeur of the place. 这些遗迹充分证明此处昔日的宏伟。

4 obsession   

n.困扰，无法摆脱的思想(或情感)

参考例句：

• I was suffering from obsession that my career would be ended.那时的我陷入了我的事业有可能就此终止的困扰当中。
• She would try to forget her obsession with Christopher.她会努力忘记对克里斯托弗的迷恋。

5 addiction   

n.上瘾入迷，嗜好

参考例句：

• He stole money from his parents to feed his addiction.他从父母那儿偷钱以满足自己的嗜好。
• Areas of drug dealing are hellholes of addiction,poverty and murder.贩卖毒品的地区往往是吸毒上瘾、贫困和发生谋杀的地方。

6 interfering   

adj. 妨碍的 动词interfere的现在分词

参考例句：

• He's an interfering old busybody! 他老爱管闲事！
• I wish my mother would stop interfering and let me make my own decisions. 我希望我母亲不再干预，让我自己拿主意。

7 ultimatum   

n.最后通牒

参考例句：

• This time the proposal was couched as an ultimatum.这一次该提议是以最后通牒的形式提出来的。
• The cabinet met today to discuss how to respond to the ultimatum.内阁今天开会商量如何应对这道最后通牒。

8 obsessive   

adj. 着迷的, 强迫性的, 分神的

参考例句：

• Some people are obsessive about cleanliness.有些人有洁癖。
• He's becoming more and more obsessive about punctuality.他对守时要求越来越过分了。