写给20多岁的你

 20多岁的你已经是个大人了，也许你还在享受美好的青春时光，但有一些幼稚的行为还是不要再做了。不管是那些不好的生活习惯、那些没注意到的社交礼仪，还是那些在感情和人际关系处理上的幼稚行为，该丢掉的就丢掉吧。是时候成熟起来啦!

1. Interrupting conversations.

打断谈话。

Remember being five, and when your parents were talking to other grownups you’d walk over mid-conversation, tug¹ on their shirts and repeatedly call, “Mom/Dad?” Yeah — that was improper² then — but you were five, so it was fathomable³. Some people are incapable⁴ of comprehending the notion of waiting their turn to speak. When this happens, utilize⁵ the sarcastic⁶ old saying: “I apologize, did the middle of my sentence interrupt the beginning of yours?”

记得5岁的时候，当父母跟其他大人谈话时，你会走过去扯着他们的衣角不断叫唤“妈妈/爸爸” 来打断谈话吗？尽管很不礼貌，但你才5岁嘛，情有可原。有些人就是等不及别人讲完再开口。遇到这种情况，可以略微暗讽一下：“不好意思，我话还没说完，影响到你了吗？”

 

2. Poor hygiene⁷.

不讲卫生。

As kids we often abhorred⁸ the concept of cleanliness. We relished⁹ wearing the same grass-stained, smelly pants for as long as possible. The thought of bathing made us shiver in our Velcro strapped¹¹ shoes. Now, it’s a different story. It’s remarkable¹² how many folks out there seem to think that deodorant¹³ is optional. I mean, technically¹⁴ it is but it shouldn’t be. They need laws enforcing this. If the pungent¹⁵ aroma¹⁶ of your body odor is burning nostrils¹⁷, and causing eyes to water, you should receive some type of ticket. Stink¹⁸ needs repercussions¹⁹ just as much as loitering does.

小孩子一般都不爱干净。就算一直穿着草迹斑斑臭不啦叽的裤子也无所谓。一听说要洗澡，我们可能会趿拉着球鞋磨蹭半天。现在又完全是另外一回事了。竟然有很多人用除臭剂代替洗澡——我觉得真是无法忍受。要是除臭剂混杂着体味都能熏得人眼睛睁不开，那这种人真该被罚款。臭不啦叽跟游手好闲一样令人讨厌。

 

3. Fighting.

打架斗殴。

With the massive rise of ignorant and disrespectful individuals populating the world — verbal spats²⁰ and altercations²¹ are inevitable²². Contrary to popular belief, screaming obscenities and puffing²³ your chest out as friends hold you back, doesn’t reek²⁴ of badass-ness. In fact, it looks rather foolish. If you consider the end result of a fight, is it ever good? Let’s consider the possible outcomes:

现如今无知不讲理的人越来越多，争执和打架也不可避免。其实，争执和强出头根本就吓不倒那些惹是生非的家伙，反倒显得你很幼稚。想想要是最后真动起手来，后果会好么？结果可能会是：

You win the fight. Receive some high fives. It ain’t UFC, so you won’t get a paycheck or anything. And now you’ve made an enemy (or enemies).

虽然挨了几巴掌，但你打赢了。可这又不是终极格斗冠军赛，就算你赢了也捞不到报酬或其他回报；相反，你却树了不少敌。

The cops come. You get arrested, which means fines, jail-time, etc.

警察把你拷了起来，然后罚款甚至蹲看守所等等。

You hit the other person in the wrong spot, accidentally doing significant and permanent damage. Now you’re screwed.

你一拳击中了对方要害，给人家造成了一辈子的伤害。这下你也完了。

The opponent hits you in the wrong spot, putting you on the receiving end of some serious damage. Now you’re screwed.

对方一拳击中了你的要害，你得一辈子面对这些永久性伤害。你还是完了。

You lose. Everyone witnessed you getting your ass¹⁰ kicked, and now you’re ashamed.

你打不过对方。所有人都眼睁睁看你被人家整得死去活来，你羞恨交加。

They pull out a weapon and stab or shoot you. While I’ve never been stabbed or shot, I hear it stings much worse than your ego²⁵ would after simply walking away from a physical confrontation²⁶.

对方用武器（刀枪）对付你。虽然我没有被刀刺或枪击的经历，但我听说这会让你痛不欲生、死去活来。

 

4. Social networking your relationship.

网络社交。

It’s such a stereotypically²⁷ high school thing to do. Notifying Facebook every time you and your significant other have a squabble is a perfectly²⁸ idiotic²⁹ combination of obnoxious³⁰ and immature³¹. Couples’ quarrels are normal, but your friends/family shouldn’t be alerted about each one of them via Tweets and status updates. Yes, that includes the oh-so-subtle, back-and-forth song lyrics³² and quotes that are clearly projected at each other. Honestly it makes your relationship look shitty, and all of us wish you’d break up.

这么俗套的事情也只有高中的时候比较热衷罢了。要是你每次跟“亲爱的他/他”怄气就更新Facebook状态，简直是个傻瓜，既幼稚又令人讨厌。恋人吵架很正常，但你也没必要不断更新状态搅得亲朋好友不得安宁吧？哪怕你用歌词和引用之类的来含沙射影，也还是很烦人。而且说实在的，你这么做只会让人觉得你俩的关系很糟糕，还不如早些分手呢！

5. Mispronouncing pronounceable words.

拼错不该拼错的单词。

Calling spaghetti “pasquetti” isn’t cute anymore. Speech impediments are one thing, but baby talk in an attempt to be adorable should stop entirely³³.

现如今把意大利面（spaghetti）说成“pasquetti”早已不流行了。其实，语言障碍是一回事，但为了装可爱而嗲声嗲气说话的习惯却真要不得。

 

6. Picking your nose.

挖鼻孔。

Seriously, just grab a tissue. If I walk in a room and you jerk your hand away from your face, then begin to roll something between your index finger and thumb, I know you’re guilty.

说真的，还是抽张餐巾纸吧！要是我走进房间一眼看到你正煞有介事地抠鼻孔，肯定会认为你这人太没素质。

 

7. Tantrums.

乱发脾气。

By now you’ve likely experienced enough scenarios³⁴ not going your way, to take a loss and keep things moving. Throwing fits, breaking stuff, screaming, and having an attitude when the going gets tough isn’t going to solve anything. Circumstances may cause rough patches, but battle them head on. Don’t sulk and act like a bratty³⁵ toddler, having an outburst in the store ’cause their parents didn’t buy ’em what they wanted. Also, breaking objects is a bad habit. You’ll regret throwing and damaging your phone, or punching a hole in the wall once the anger wears off.

长这么大，你肯定遇过很多不尽人意的事情、遭受过损失，然后继续前行。遇到困难就歇斯底里乱摔东西根本解决不了问题，反倒使情况恶化、争吵加剧。别再跟讨厌的小孩一样，因为爸妈没买他想要的东西就直接在店里大哭大闹。更何况，乱摔东西是个坏习惯，等气消了以后，你可能会为自己摔坏手机或砸破墙壁感到懊悔。

 

8. Sending friends to talk to girls for you.

让朋友为你向女孩子传话。

I remember sending my friend over to ask a girl for her phone number. She gave a firm, “No,” and stated that if I wanted to approach her, I needed to do it myself. Mind you, this was in fifth grade. If a girl who hadn’t reached her teens yet recognized a cowardly act, surely grown women will. Just man up, and go for it. The only thing worse than getting rejected is having to be informed of said denial by a middleman.

我还记得自己曾让朋友向一个女孩要电话号码，女孩果断拒绝了，还说如果我想跟她交朋友，应该自己拿出行动来。——不过，当时我才上五年级。我认为这么小的女孩都能看出我的怯懦，成熟女性肯定也会。拿出男子汉的样子，自己行动起来！比起拒绝，更惨的是从别人口中得知”你出局了”。

 

9. High school festivities.

参加高中聚会。

If you’re 20+ years of age, you should not be asking things like, “Yo, where the graduation parties at?!” Let it go. You had your four years to shine. The same thing goes for ex-athletes who attend games and critique the current team — attempting to relive their glory days. Move on, find a hobby, and live a grown-up life.

如果你已经20出头，就不该再问“哎，毕业聚会定在哪里啊”这样的问题。过去的已经过去，四年时光不再。否则你就像参加比赛的往届冠军，一味地挑现在团队的刺儿，企图重温以往的辉煌。是时候继续前行了——发展某项兴趣，像成年人一样生活吧。

1 tug   

v.用力拖(或拉)；苦干；n.拖；苦干；拖船

参考例句：

• We need to tug the car round to the front.我们需要把那辆车拉到前面。
• The tug is towing three barges.那只拖船正拖着三只驳船。

2 improper   

adj.不适当的，不合适的，不正确的，不合礼仪的

参考例句：

• Short trousers are improper at a dance.舞会上穿短裤不成体统。
• Laughing and joking are improper at a funeral.葬礼时大笑和开玩笑是不合适的。

3 fathomable   

可测的，看得透的

参考例句：

• All his life, the scholar attempt to render science fathomable to the public. 这位学者一生都试图使科学为大众所理解。
• It is a breakthrough to extract key information from fathomable electrical measurements with appropriate mathematics tool. 寻找合适的数学工具从可测电气量中提取故障信息是重要的突破点。

4 incapable   

adj.无能力的，不能做某事的

参考例句：

• He would be incapable of committing such a cruel deed.他不会做出这么残忍的事。
• Computers are incapable of creative thought.计算机不会创造性地思维。

5 utilize   

vt.使用，利用

参考例句：

• The cook will utilize the leftover ham bone to make soup.厨师要用吃剩的猪腿骨做汤。
• You must utilize all available resources.你必须利用一切可以得到的资源。

6 sarcastic   

adj.讥讽的，讽刺的，嘲弄的

参考例句：

• I squashed him with a sarcastic remark.我说了一句讽刺的话把他给镇住了。
• She poked fun at people's shortcomings with sarcastic remarks.她冷嘲热讽地拿别人的缺点开玩笑。

7 hygiene   

n.健康法，卫生学 （a.hygienic）

参考例句：

• Their course of study includes elementary hygiene and medical theory.他们的课程包括基础卫生学和医疗知识。
• He's going to give us a lecture on public hygiene.他要给我们作关于公共卫生方面的报告。

8 abhorred   

v.憎恶( abhor的过去式和过去分词 )；（厌恶地）回避；拒绝；淘汰

参考例句：

• He abhorred the thoughts of stripping me and making me miserable. 他憎恶把我掠夺干净，使我受苦的那个念头。 来自辞典例句
• Each of these oracles hated a particular phrase. Liu the Sage abhorred "Not right for sowing". 二诸葛忌讳“不宜栽种”，三仙姑忌讳“米烂了”。 来自汉英文学 - 中国现代小说

9 relished   

v.欣赏( relish的过去式和过去分词 )；从…获得乐趣；渴望

参考例句：

• The chaplain relished the privacy and isolation of his verdant surroundings. 牧师十分欣赏他那苍翠的环境所具有的幽雅恬静，与世隔绝的气氛。 来自辞典例句
• Dalleson relished the first portion of the work before him. 达尔生对眼前这工作的前半部分满有兴趣。 来自辞典例句

10 ass   

n.驴；傻瓜，蠢笨的人

参考例句：

• He is not an ass as they make him.他不象大家猜想的那样笨。
• An ass endures his burden but not more than his burden.驴能负重但不能超过它能力所负担的。

11 strapped   

adj.用皮带捆住的，用皮带装饰的；身无分文的；缺钱；手头紧v.用皮带捆扎(strap的过去式和过去分词)；用皮带抽打；包扎；给…打绷带

参考例句：

• Make sure that the child is strapped tightly into the buggy. 一定要把孩子牢牢地拴在婴儿车上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The soldiers' great coats were strapped on their packs. 战士们的厚大衣扎捆在背包上。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

13 deodorant   

adj.除臭的；n.除臭剂

参考例句：

• She applies deodorant to her armpits after she showers.沐浴后，她在腋下涂上除臭剂。
• Spray deodorant and keep the silk garments dry before dressing.在穿衣之前，洒涂防臭剂并保持干燥。

14 technically   

adv.专门地，技术上地

参考例句：

• Technically it is the most advanced equipment ever.从技术上说，这是最先进的设备。
• The tomato is technically a fruit,although it is eaten as a vegetable.严格地说，西红柿是一种水果，尽管它是当作蔬菜吃的。

15 pungent   

adj.（气味、味道）刺激性的，辛辣的；尖锐的

参考例句：

• The article is written in a pungent style.文章写得泼辣。
• Its pungent smell can choke terrorists and force them out of their hideouts.它的刺激性气味会令恐怖分子窒息，迫使他们从藏身地点逃脱出来。

16 aroma   

n.香气，芬芳，芳香

参考例句：

• The whole house was filled with the aroma of coffee.满屋子都是咖啡的香味。
• The air was heavy with the aroma of the paddy fields.稻花飘香。

17 nostrils   

鼻孔( nostril的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Her nostrils flared with anger. 她气得两个鼻孔都鼓了起来。
• The horse dilated its nostrils. 马张大鼻孔。

18 stink   

vi.发出恶臭；糟透，招人厌恶；n.恶臭

参考例句：

• The stink of the rotten fish turned my stomach.腐烂的鱼臭味使我恶心。
• The room has awful stink.那个房间散发着难闻的臭气。

19 repercussions   

n.后果，反响( repercussion的名词复数 )；余波

参考例句：

• The collapse of the company will have repercussions for the whole industry. 这家公司的垮台将会给整个行业造成间接的负面影响。
• Human acts have repercussions far beyond the frontiers of the human world. 人类行为所产生的影响远远超出人类世界的范围。 来自《简明英汉词典》

20 spats   

n.口角( spat的名词复数 )；小争吵；鞋罩；鞋套v.spit的过去式和过去分词( spat的第三人称单数 )；口角；小争吵；鞋罩

参考例句：

• Gasoline is a solvent liquid that removes grease spats. 汽油是一种能脱去油迹的有溶解能力的液体。 来自辞典例句
• Then spats took a catnap, and the bird looked out for dogs. 然后斯派茨小睡了一会儿。小鸟为它站岗放哨，防止狗跑过来。 来自互联网

21 altercations   

n.争辩，争吵( altercation的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Have I been in physical altercations with men? 我有和男人们发生肢体上冲突么？ 来自互联网

22 inevitable   

adj.不可避免的，必然发生的

参考例句：

• Mary was wearing her inevitable large hat.玛丽戴着她总是戴的那顶大帽子。
• The defeat had inevitable consequences for British policy.战败对英国政策不可避免地产生了影响。

23 puffing   

v.使喷出( puff的现在分词 )；喷着汽（或烟）移动；吹嘘；吹捧

参考例句：

• He was puffing hard when he jumped on to the bus. 他跳上公共汽车时喘息不已。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• My father sat puffing contentedly on his pipe. 父亲坐着心满意足地抽着烟斗。 来自《简明英汉词典》

24 reek   

v.发出臭气；n.恶臭

参考例句：

• Where there's reek,there's heat.哪里有恶臭，哪里必发热。
• That reek is from the fox.那股恶臭是狐狸发出的。

25 ego   

n.自我，自己，自尊

参考例句：

• He is absolute ego in all thing.在所有的事情上他都绝对自我。
• She has been on an ego trip since she sang on television.她上电视台唱过歌之后就一直自吹自擂。

26 confrontation   

n.对抗，对峙，冲突

参考例句：

• We can't risk another confrontation with the union.我们不能冒再次同工会对抗的危险。
• After years of confrontation,they finally have achieved a modus vivendi.在对抗很长时间后，他们最后达成安宁生存的非正式协议。

27 stereotypically   

adv.带有成见地(stereotype的副词形式)

参考例句：

28 perfectly   

adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The witnesses were each perfectly certain of what they said.证人们个个对自己所说的话十分肯定。
• Everything that we're doing is all perfectly above board.我们做的每件事情都是光明正大的。

29 idiotic   

adj.白痴的

参考例句：

• It is idiotic to go shopping with no money.去买东西而不带钱是很蠢的。
• The child's idiotic deeds caused his family much trouble.那小孩愚蠢的行为给家庭带来许多麻烦。

30 obnoxious   

adj.极恼人的，讨人厌的，可憎的

参考例句：

• These fires produce really obnoxious fumes and smoke.这些火炉冒出来的烟气确实很难闻。
• He is the most obnoxious man I know.他是我认识的最可憎的人。

31 immature   

adj.未成熟的，发育未全的，未充分发展的

参考例句：

• Tony seemed very shallow and immature.托尼看起来好像很肤浅，不夠成熟。
• The birds were in immature plumage.这些鸟儿羽翅未全。

32 lyrics   

n.歌词

参考例句：

• music and lyrics by Rodgers and Hart 由罗杰斯和哈特作词作曲
• The book contains lyrics and guitar tablatures for over 100 songs. 这本书有100多首歌的歌词和吉他奏法谱。

33 entirely   

ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地

参考例句：

• The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
• His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。

34 scenarios   

n.[意]情节；剧本；事态；脚本

参考例句：

• Further, graphite cores may be safer than non-graphite cores under some accident scenarios. 再者，根据一些事故解说，石墨堆芯可比非石墨堆芯更安全一些。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法
• Again, scenarios should make it clear which modes are acceptable to users in various contexts. 同样，我们可以运用场景剧本来搞清楚在不同情境下哪些模式可被用户接受。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

35 bratty   

adj.讨厌的，不服从的

参考例句：