礼节美语 Business Etiquette 237-crush-on-a-co-worker-1

 　　King跟同事Dan聊天，发现他心不在焉。King说，

　　King: The trip was pretty good except for the flat tire we got on the way home. I was going to change it myself but then...hey Dan, are you even listening to me? Dan?

　　Dan: Oh sorry, I spaced out there for a second.

　　K: Who were you looking at? Wait a second...you were looking at Julie!

　　D: All right, I confess! I'm busted¹. I have a big crush on Julie.

　　K: That's wonderful! Julie is a great woman, and you're a great guy! So have you asked her out yet?

　　D: No. I'm not really sure it's appropriate.

　　King正在给Dan讲自己最近的一次旅行，他们回家路上车胎爆了。We got a flat tire. 正说得高兴，King发现Dan根本没在听自己说话。Dan很不好意思，承认 I spaced out for a second. 我走神了。space out 是走神的意思，形容心不在焉，走神，还可以用daydream², 所以刚才那句话也可以说 I was daydreaming³ for a second. King发现，Dan走神是在看女同事 Julie。 Dan只好承认说，I'm busted. I have a big crush on Julie. I'm busted，意思是我被抓住了，被发现了，暴露了。他说自己确实在偷偷喜欢Julie，但又不敢，ask her out，约她出去，不知道这样做是否合适，appropriate。King说，

　　K: I think lots of people meet their "significant other" in the workplace. It's not like she's your boss...go ask her out!

　　D: I don't know...what if she says 'no'?

　　K: Have you ever heard the old expression: "Nothing ventured, nothing gained?" What if she says 'yes'?

　　D: I've always had a really hard time approaching women. I get tongue-tied and start sweating. I don't want to come across as too aggressive, but I also don't want to appear too passive...It's really hard to get it right!

　　King 说，很多人都是在工作场所遇到自己另一半的，significant other，是伴侣的意思，也可以说是自己的better half. Dan害怕被拒绝。King 告诉他说：Nothing ventured, nothing gained，不去冒险尝试，就绝不会有收获。Dan说自己在追女人方面特别不在行，I get tongue-tied and start sweating，我说话会结结巴巴，直冒冷汗。Dan还说，既不想显得太主动，也不想显得太被动，It's really hard to get it right，很难把握好分寸。King劝他说：

　　K: If there's one thing I've learned in my life it's that you never lose by trying. You never know unless you try! Getting rejected isn't the end of the world!

　　D: But how do I make the initial approach? Should I try to come up with some clever or witty⁴ remarks?

　　K: There are a lot of guys out there who think they're Casanova, but in my experience, women don't go for cheesy pickup⁵ lines. I suggest being sweet, straightforward⁶ and sincere.

　　D: So what should I say?

　　King说，最糟糕也不过是被拒绝。Getting rejected isn't the end  of the world! 被拒绝也并非世界末日，没什么大不了的。Dan问，要不要come up with some clever or witty remark，想出一些俏皮话。King告诉他，约女人出去，直截了当些就好，很多男人都以为自己是 Casanova, 卡萨诺瓦是十八世纪的一个意大利探险家和作家，也是一个风流倜傥的情圣，在英语里是大众情人的代名词。King还说，其实，women don't go for cheesy pickup lines. cheesy is spelled c-h-e-e-s-y, cheesy，意思是俗气的，肉麻的；pick up lines，是指男人跟女人搭讪时说的俏皮话。Dan会鼓起勇气约Julie出去吗？我们下次继续听。

1 busted   

adj. 破产了的，失败了的，被降级的，被逮捕的，被抓到的 动词bust的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• You are so busted! 你被当场逮住了！
• It was money troubles that busted up their marriage. 是金钱纠纷使他们的婚姻破裂了。

2 daydream   

v.做白日梦，幻想

参考例句：

• Boys and girls daydream about what they want to be.孩子们遐想着他们将来要干什么。
• He drifted off into another daydream.他飘飘然又做了一个白日梦。

3 daydreaming   

v.想入非非，空想( daydream的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Stop daydreaming and be realistic. 别空想了，还是从实际出发吧。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Bill was sitting and daydreaming so his mother told him to come down to earth and to do his homework. 比尔坐着空想， 他母亲要他面对现实，去做课外作业。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

4 witty   

adj.机智的，风趣的

参考例句：

• Her witty remarks added a little salt to the conversation.她的妙语使谈话增添了一些风趣。
• He scored a bull's-eye in their argument with that witty retort.在他们的辩论中他那一句机智的反驳击中了要害。

5 pickup   

n.拾起，获得

参考例句：

• I would love to trade this car for a pickup truck.我愿意用这辆汽车换一辆小型轻便卡车。||The luck guy is a choice pickup for the girls.那位幸运的男孩是女孩子们想勾搭上的人。

6 straightforward   

adj.正直的，坦率的；易懂的，简单的

参考例句：

• A straightforward talk is better than a flowery speech.巧言不如直说。
• I must insist on your giving me a straightforward answer.我一定要你给我一个直截了当的回答。