流行美语 (Popular American) 265

Larry开车接李华去看医生，路上堵车迟到了。李华今天要学两个常用语，meltdown和make up.

LL: I'm really sorry I am late, Li Hua. But there is no need for you to have a meltdown about it.

LH: (生气地)如果meltdown是生气的意思，那没错，I am having a meltdown.

LL: (Sheepishly) Well, Li Hua, perhaps now isn't the best time for an English lesson, but a meltdown is an excessively emotional response to a disappointment or a crisis¹.

LH: (还是有点生气)meltdown是融化的意思，跟遇到挫败或是危机，情绪过分激动有什么关系呢？

LL: Well, the term meltdown refers to the melting of the core of a nuclear reactor². When that happens, the nuclear reactor becomes unstable³ and may explode.

LH: 噢，原来是从核反应堆来的。Well, I guess I did have a meltdown. 你今天迟到，我确实很生气。

LL: I must say, it is very unlike you to have a meltdown. You are usually so calm and understanding.

LH: 我生气可是有理由的。你迟到了不是一会儿，而是整整半个小时。看来我去看医生也要迟到了。

LL: I understand why you had a meltdown, Li Hua. But honestly, there is nothing I could do about it. You know how unpredictable the traffic is in New York City.

LH: 也是，我刚才太急了，没有给你解释的机会。你在路上遇到什么状况了吗？

LL: Well, there was a car accident that blocked traffic for a long time. It wasn't very serious accident, but when the two drivers got out of their cars, there was a total meltdown in communication.

LH: 你为什么说这两个司机之间发生了total meltdown呢？

LL: Well, one driver was really angry. He was all red in the face and was yelling⁴ loudly. I could tell he was having a meltdown.

LH: 啊，脸红脖子粗的大吵大闹，真是够吓人的。那另外一个司机呢？他们俩没打起来吧？

LL: The other driver ended up having a meltdown, too - but in a different way. When the first driver started yelling at her, she started to cry.

LH: 原来还是个女的，真可怜。警察来了吗？

LL: By the time the police arrived, the two drivers had recovered from their meltdowns and were calm. The police officers were very professional.

LH: 还好最后得到了圆满解决，最重要的是没有人受伤。对不起，Larry，我刚才不问青红皂白就对你大发脾气。

LL: Don't worry about it, Li Hua. Everyone has a meltdown every once in a while.

******

LL: Well, after that meltdown, don't you think it is time for you and me to make up, Li Hua?

LH: Make up? 吵完架为什么要化妆呢？

LL: No, no. To "Make Up" means to get back to being friends after a fight.

LH: 我已经向你道歉，你也接受了，这就等于是和好了吧？

LL: Yes, I think we have made up. We are still friends, right, Li Hua?

LH: 我们当然是朋友，你也知道，我不会真跟你生气的。I am glad we've made up. 真希望Janet也能跟她的男朋友Tom和好。他们上星期吵架，到现在都不说话。Janet痛苦极了。

LL: Well, sometimes it is hard to make up with some one - especially when the argument is over something serious or someone is really stubborn⁵ and won't listen to the other person.

LH: Janet倒并不固执，她很想跟Tom和好，可是Tom好像没有和好的意思。他们是因为Tom跟另外一个女孩子很接近才吵架的。

LL: Hmmm...Well, if Tom hasn't tried to make up with Janet in a week, maybe he is more interested in that other girl.

LH: Larry, 快别说了，我们还得赶去看医生呢！

LL: Don't have another meltdown, Li Hua. I'll get you to the doctor's appointment. I think it was worth taking the time to make up and be friends again, don't you, Li Hua?

今天李华学到了两个常用语。一个是meltdown, 是情绪过分激动的意思。另一个是make up, 是和好的意思。
 

1 crisis   

n.危机，危急关头，决定性时刻，关键阶段

参考例句：

• He had proved that he could be relied on in a crisis.他已表明，在紧要关头他是可以信赖的。
• The topic today centers about the crisis in the Middle East.今天课题的中心是中东危机。

2 reactor   

n.反应器；反应堆

参考例句：

• The atomic reactor generates enormous amounts of thermal energy.原子反应堆发出大量的热能。
• Inside the reactor the large molecules are cracked into smaller molecules.在反应堆里，大分子裂变为小分子。

3 unstable   

adj.不稳定的，易变的

参考例句：

• This bookcase is too unstable to hold so many books.这书橱很不结实，装不了这么多书。
• The patient's condition was unstable.那患者的病情不稳定。

4 yelling   

v.叫喊，号叫，叫着说( yell的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The coach stood on the sidelines yelling instructions to the players. 教练站在场外，大声指挥运动员。
• He let off steam by yelling at a clerk. 他对一个职员大喊大叫，借以发泄怒气。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 stubborn   

adj.难以移动，去除的，固执的，顽固的

参考例句：

• I can not cope with that boy;he is stubborn.我对付不了那个孩子，他很固执。
• When he's in his stubborn mood,he isn't easily talked round.他那股牛劲上来了，一时不容易说服。