讲述：布什离任后生活

 Former US president George W. Bush says he made a swift transition from White House pampering¹ to picking up his pet's poop, according to a news report Wednesday.

Bush told a packed university lecture hall in his home state of Texas on Tuesday that, shortly after leaving Washington, he faced a decidedly un-stately moment when his dog Barney relieved himself on a neighbor's lawn.

"Ten days out of the presidency², there I was with a plastic bag in my hand, picking up that which I had been dodging³ for eight years," he was quoted as saying by the Tyler Morning Telegraph in remarks confirmed by his office.

The former president has mostly shied from the limelight since leaving office -- except for a high-profile stint⁴ raising money to help Haiti recover from a devastating⁵ earthquake -- and kept a low political profile.

But Bush now plans a round of interviews to coincide with the November 9 release of his book about his time in office, "Decision Points."

"This will come as a shock to some people in our country who didn't think I could read a book, much less write one," joked the former president, who left office deeply unpopular amid the US economic crisis.

"It's not a judgmental book," he told some 2,000 people on the campus of the University of Texas at Tyler. "It's not a 'Bush is cool' (book)."

The former president spared a little bit of nostalgia⁶ for his eight years in office, telling the audience: "I miss being pampered⁷; I miss Air Force 1; I miss being commander in chief of an awesome⁸ (military)."

The former president's book is expected to have a first run of 1.5 million copies, along with an e-book version containing a video message from the former president and his home movies, Crown publishers said earlier this month.

The huge print run is equivalent to that for former Democratic president Bill Clinton's book, "My Life," which was a runaway⁹ hit.

本周三最新报道称，美国前总统乔治?W?布什表示自己很快适应了角色转变——从“养尊处优”的美国总统到捡拾自家宠物粪便的普通人。

布什于本周二在家乡得克萨斯州的一所大学发表演讲，礼堂内座无虚席。他称离任后不久，爱狗巴尼在邻居家草坪上“随地大小便”，使他不得不面对明显让自己丢份儿的时刻。

《泰勒电讯早报》向布什办公室证实后引述他的话称：“离任才10天，我就开始手提塑料袋收拾狗粪，我已经8年没干过这活儿了。”

前总统布什自离任后极少公开露面，一直保持低调的政治姿态，但在海地强震后曾为帮助募集善款高调亮相。

但为了配合11月9日将出版的讲述其白宫岁月的书籍《抉择时刻》，他计划接受一系列采访。

布什开玩笑说：“这可能让很多美国人感到震惊，他们认为我连读书都不会，更别说写书了。”布什离任时恰逢美国经济危机，支持率很低。

布什对得克萨斯大学泰勒分校的大约两千名观众说：“这本书既没有动辄指责别人，也没有自我夸耀。”

这位前总统还分享了一些对8年白宫生活的留恋之情，他对观众说：“我怀念在白宫养尊处优的生活；怀念‘空军一号’；怀念担任一个强大军队统帅的感觉。”

发行商皇冠出版社本月早些时候表示，《抉择时刻》预计首印150万册，同时还将发行含有布什视频信息及其家庭录像的电子书版本。

首版印刷量可比肩前民主党总统比尔?克林顿当年热销的书籍《我的生活》。

1 pampering   

v.纵容，宠，娇养( pamper的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• But you need to make an appointment because these people are usually very busy pampering pets. 但是你需要先预约，因为这些人通常都在忙于照顾宠物们。 来自超越目标英语 第2册
• He had been pampering, and coaxing, and indulging that individual all his life. 他一生都在姑息、迁就、纵容那家伙。 来自辞典例句

2 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

3 dodging   

n.避开，闪过，音调改变v.闪躲( dodge的现在分词 )；回避

参考例句：

• He ran across the road, dodging the traffic. 他躲开来往的车辆跑过马路。
• I crossed the highway, dodging the traffic. 我避开车流穿过了公路。 来自辞典例句

4 stint   

v.节省，限制，停止；n.舍不得化，节约，限制；连续不断的一段时间从事某件事

参考例句：

• He lavished money on his children without stint.他在孩子们身上花钱毫不吝惜。
• We hope that you will not stint your criticism.我们希望您不吝指教。

5 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

6 nostalgia   

n.怀乡病，留恋过去，怀旧

参考例句：

• He might be influenced by nostalgia for his happy youth.也许是对年轻时幸福时光的怀恋影响了他。
• I was filled with nostalgia by hearing my favourite old song.我听到这首喜爱的旧歌，心中充满了怀旧之情。

7 pampered   

adj.饮食过量的，饮食奢侈的v.纵容，宠，娇养( pamper的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The lazy scum deserve worse. What if they ain't fed up and pampered? 他们吃不饱，他们的要求满足不了，这又有什么关系？ 来自飘（部分）
• She petted and pampered him and would let no one discipline him but she, herself. 她爱他，娇养他，而且除了她自己以外，她不允许任何人管教他。 来自辞典例句

8 awesome   

adj.令人惊叹的，难得吓人的，很好的

参考例句：

• The church in Ireland has always exercised an awesome power.爱尔兰的教堂一直掌握着令人敬畏的权力。
• That new white convertible is totally awesome.那辆新的白色折篷汽车简直棒极了.

9 runaway   

n.逃走的人，逃亡，亡命者；adj.逃亡的，逃走的

参考例句：

• The police have not found the runaway to date.警察迄今没抓到逃犯。
• He was praised for bringing up the runaway horse.他勒住了脱缰之马受到了表扬。