然而， 我的父母家境都很贫困，两个人都没上过大学，他们认为我过于丰富的想象力是令人惊讶的个人怪癖，根本不足以让我支付按揭，或者获得足够的养老金。

　　I know that the irony strikes with the force of a cartoon anvil, now.

　　我现在明白了反讽就像用卡通铁砧去打击你，但......

　　So they hoped that I would take a vocational degree; I wanted to study English Literature. A compromise was reached that in retrospect satisfied nobody, and I went up to study Modern Languages. Hardly had my parents' car rounded the corner at the end of the road than I ditched German and scuttled off down the Classics corridor.

　　他们希望我取得高职学位，而我却想攻读英国文学。最后，我和父母达成了妥协，我改学现代语言。现在回想起来，当时双方都不怎么满意。于是，父母的车刚一开远，我就丢下德语，去学习古典文学。

　　I cannot remember telling my parents that I was studying Classics; they might well have found out for the first time on graduation day. Of all the subjects on this planet, I think they would have been hard put to name one less useful than Greek mythology when it came to securing the keys to an executive bathroom.

　　我不记得告诉过父母自己在学习古典文学，他们可能是在我毕业典礼那天才知道的。我想，他们也许认为，在全世界所有专业中，不会有比研究希腊神话更没用的专业了，那甚至无法换来一间独立宽敞的卫生间。

　　I would like to make it clear, in parenthesis, that I do not blame my parents for their point of view. There is an expiry date on blaming your parents for steering you in the wrong direction; the moment you are old enough to take the wheel, responsibility lies with you.

　　在这里我想说明一点：我不会因为父母的观点而责怪他们。不要因为父母给你的人生路指错了方向就无休止地埋怨他们。当你到了一定年龄，可以自己把握人生时，就应该自己承担责任。

　　impoverished

　　adj. 穷困的

　　eg. Money and food were sent to the impoverished drought victims.

　　给贫困的灾民送去了救济金和粮食。

　　quirk

　　n. 怪癖

　　eg. He had a strange quirk of addressing his wife as Mrs Smith.

　　他很怪, 把自己的妻子称作史密斯夫人。

　　mortgage

　　n. 抵押

　　eg. We're paying out 300 a month on our mortgage.

　　我们每月要付300英镑抵押贷款.

　　vocational

　　adj. 职业的

　　eg. If these can be balanced, the use of a vocational school will be a bonus for his career.

　　如果这些可以得到平衡，选读职业学校就会对未来事业的发展大有裨益。

　　compromise

　　n. 妥协

　　eg.He refused to compromise his principles.

　　他对他的原则寸步不让。

　　in retrospect

　　回顾往事

　　eg. In retrospect all successful policies seem preordained.

　　追溯一切成功的政策，看来都有其预兆。

　　ditch

　　vt. 丢弃；掘沟

　　eg. The driver had to ditch the bus.

　　司机只好把公共汽车驶入沟中。

　　scuttle off

　　急促奔跑

　　eg. Several conscripts were seen to scuttle off barracks.

　　有人看见几个新兵从兵营里逃走了。

　　corridor

　　n. 走廊

　　eg. She disappeared down the corridor.

　　她消失在走廊尽头。