礼节美语 Business Etiquette 265 losing a job can be positive 1

 　　Suzanne 约朋友 Mickey 一起吃午饭。

　　Suzanne: Mickey! Good to see you! It's been too long!

　　Mickey:  Hi, Suzanne! you're right, it has been too long.

　　S: Did you find something on the menu that interests you? Sorry I'm late for our lunch. Traffic was horrific.

　　M: Yeah....I think I'll have the chicken Caesar salad.

　　S: That sounds pretty good.... hey, is everything okay?  -- You seem kind of down.

　　M: I got laid off last Friday.

　　S: Oh....I'm so sorry to hear that.

　　Suzanne 跟 Mickey 很久没见面，发现 Mickey 心事重重，情绪不高，seem kind of down. Down 在这里是形容词，意思是情绪低落。原来，Mickey 上星期五被炒了鱿鱼，He got laid off.  也可以说，He was let go.  丢了工作，难怪心情沮丧，我们来听听这是为什么。

　　M: They said it had nothing to do with my performance. They just need to try and save on costs.  So they're axing¹ a bunch of jobs.

　　S: Ouch! Losing a job is such a nasty² experience.

　　M: Yep....it sure is. I guess I have been a bit depressed³.

　　S: I remember when I got fired from my job as a senior manager with a Web design company. I felt awful for weeks. But you know something? Getting fired turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to me.

　　Mickey 被解雇是因为公司要削减开支，所以 they axed⁴ a bunch of jobs.  Ax is spelled, a-x, 或者 a-x-e, 做为动词，是砍的意思。他丢了工作，心情十分抑郁，depressed. Suzanne 安慰他说，自己也曾有过类似经历，好几个星期缓不过来，但是最后证明，getting fired turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to me. 被开除是她这辈子最幸运的事。怎么可能，我们继续听。

　　M: And why was that?

　　S: It gave me a jolt⁵ that I really needed. I was just coasting along in my position day in and day out, never really thinking about my life or my career.

　　M: So getting fired helped you reflect on these things?

　　S: Absolutely! I started asking myself what I really wanted to do.

　　M: That makes sense. Our daily routines⁶ can turn into habits. I've been working at this company for almost 8 years and I have kind of been running on autopilot.

　　Suzanne 说，失业 gave me a jolt. Jolt is spelled j-o-l-t, jolt 在这里是震动的意思。Suzanne 说，有工作的时候，她从来都是 coast along day in and day out. Coast along 做为词组，意思是不用花一点努力随波逐流， day in and day out 意思是日复一日，年复一年。过着这样的生活，怎么还会想着如何进取呢？被解雇后，她才开始思考这些问题，to reflect on things 意思是反思。Mickey 深有同感，说自己在原来的公司已经干了将近八年了，I have been running on autopilot. Autopilot 自动驾驶，工作已经成了一种习惯，顺手就干了，就好象是 run on autopilot. 现在没有工作了，Mickey 下一步有什么打算呢？我们下次继续听。

1 axing   

v.（用斧）砍( axe的现在分词 )；精简（机构等）；大量削减（经费等）

参考例句：

• 'Captain Smollett, sir, axing to speak with you,'said he. “先生，斯摩莱特船长要和你谈谈。”他说。 来自英汉文学 - 金银岛
• An' Ah ain' noticed Mist' Ashley axing fer ter mahy you.\" \"思嘉顿时皱起眉头，眼看要发作了，但随即克制住自己。 来自飘（部分）

2 nasty   

adj.令人讨厌的，困难的，恶劣的，下流的

参考例句：

• She got a nasty knock on the head when she fell.她跌倒时头部受到严重碰撞。
• When this material burns，it flings off a nasty smell.这种物质燃烧时发出一股难闻的气味。

3 depressed   

adj.沮丧的，抑郁的，不景气的，萧条的

参考例句：

• When he was depressed,he felt utterly divorced from reality.他心情沮丧时就感到完全脱离了现实。
• His mother was depressed by the sad news.这个坏消息使他的母亲意志消沉。

4 axed   

v.（用斧）砍( axe的过去式和过去分词 )；精简（机构等）；大量削减（经费等）

参考例句：

• School grants are to be axed next year. 学校补助金明年将大大削减。 来自辞典例句
• After several months the project was axed by the government. 数月后政府中止了该项工程。 来自辞典例句

5 jolt   

v.（使）摇动，（使）震动，（使）颠簸

参考例句：

• We were worried that one tiny jolt could worsen her injuries.我们担心稍微颠簸一下就可能会使她的伤势恶化。
• They were working frantically in the fear that an aftershock would jolt the house again.他们拼命地干着，担心余震可能会使房子再次受到震动。

6 routines   

n.[计算机]程序( routine的名词复数 )；例行公事；日常工作；固定节目

参考例句：

• The artists were going through their daily routines. 艺术家们正进行日常的练习活动。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Hospital routines for nurses are very rigid. 医院中护士的日常工作非常刻板。 来自辞典例句