1, Karen has just had her house redecorated.

　　翻译为: 凯瑞刚让人把房子重新装修.

　　注意这里的用法, had sth done — 强调的是让别人做了什么

　　例: I had my clothes washed.(我让人把衣服洗了)

　　2, The architect and Tom put there heads together to discuss what we wanted what was possible.

　　注意的词语: put heads together: 共同商量,集思广益.

　　翻译为: 建筑师和提姆共同商讨以可行的方式来满足我们的需求.

　　3, After a few meetings, they came up with some super idea that everybody agreed with.

　　注意的词语: come up with: 提出,拿出.

　　翻译为: 经过一会儿的交谈, 他们拿出了一些大家都同意的好点子.

　　4, But the rest of it was surprisingly expensive.

　　注意的词语: the rest: 其余者.It: 代指装修所用的材料.

　　翻译为: 但是其余的材料简直便宜得让人吃惊.

　　5, We were able to make do with the materials we already have.

　　注意的词语: make do with: 设法应付.

　　翻译为: 我们设法将我们已经拥有的材料都用上了.

　　6, I made up some of the curtains and pillows on the couch form mere sheets.

　　注意的词语: make up : 在这里指做缝制.编织.

　　翻译为: 我缝制了一些窗帘和睡椅靠垫, 仅仅是用一些床单做的.

　　7, It’s funny how people can find solution afer they kick something around for a while.

　　注意的词语: kick something around: 直译——将什么东西踢来踢去.引申意——讨论.

　　翻译为: 人们怎样通过暂时的讨论之后, 就能找到解决方法是件有趣的事情.

　　8, You’re on your own.

　　注意的词语: on one's own: 独立地,独自地.

　　翻译为: 你自己玩吧!

　　9, I’d like to concentrate on getting the best score ever on this game.

　　注意的词语: concentrate on: 精中(精力),全神贯注于

　　翻译为: 我将集中精力在这个游戏上取得最好的分数.注意even在这里的用法.

　　10,No matter how busy you are, always take time out to check that your child hasn't gotten hold of something that could hurt him.

　　注意的词语: take time out to: 暂停下来.Get hold of: 抓住,得到.

　　11,But quit my job and took up housekeeping the year after my marriage. Daily household chores keep me on my toes; I’m delighted all day long.

　　注意的词语: take up: 开始从事. on one’s toe : 准备行动. all day long: 一整天.

　　keep me on my toes: 让我保持活力的状态, 结合句意就: 一刻也闲不着, 乐此不疲.

　　翻译为: 但是自从我结婚以后, 便放弃了工作, 开始打理家务.每天的家务琐事让我乐此不疲.我一整天都眉天眼笑的.

　　12,”in a moment”与 “or so”

　　一个表示”立刻”, 一个表示”大约”.都是形容时间的.

　　13,That's the “tremendous business” for me out of the three meals a day, for, except for the weekends,we have only this meal together. Besides, he always has his lunch in a neglected way at his workplace.

　　翻译为: 那对于我来说, 是除了三顿饭以外, 最为重大的事情.因为, 除了周末, 我们只能在一起吃一顿正餐.此外, 他总是在他的工作场所, 很轻率的打发他的午餐.

练习:

　　Mrs. Chambers sits comfortably in her armchair, enjoying a cup of coffee. She has had athe right to relax. She has had a long and very busy life.

　　Mrs. Chambers has retired now to a small house in Bangor, a popular seaside town not far from Belfast. But for most of her life she lived in the country. Her husband’s farm was on an island in the middle of Strangford Lake. There, Mrs. Chambers baked bread twice a week, made jam every summer, and put her husband’s dinner on the table at twelve 0’clock exactly every day. The island farm had been owned by the Chambers family for may years, passing on from father to son. It was a quiet and beautiful place to live. They grew potatoes and vegetables, and kept hens and cows. When Mr. Chambers died, his son took on the farm, Mrs. Chambers moved away.

　　She takes another sip of coffee, and smiles as she remembers people from the past. “The old lady down the road thought she had a ghost in the house,” she says, “but it was only old Tom MaAleer, frightening her for fun.” The memories come fast. “Twenty men, they had, only tem years ago, to bring in the potato crop. Young Hugh has a machine now. He only needs five.”

　　It’s time for the news on TV. Mrs. Chambers wants to see the racing results. She won quite a lot of money last week. Next month she’s going down to Tipperary in the Republic of Ireland. The horse-racing there is wonderful. She finds it hard to stay away. But before the racing results there’s another item of news. A bomb has exploded in Belfast. Several people have been killed. Mrs. Chambers shakes her head. “They’re all crazy,” she says. “It’s just a few who make all the trouble. The rest of us want to live in peace. We’ve all got life long friends from both sides. And most of the time we never talk about the trouble.”

　　The racing results come on. She leans forward to watch. For her, ordinary everyday life is the most important thing.

　　参考译文:

　　乔柏斯太太舒服地坐在扶手椅里, 享受着一杯咖啡.她有权利放松, 她已经过了很长时间的忙碌生活了.

　　现在乔柏斯太太已经退休了, 住在班戈区的一所小房子里.班戈区是贝尔法斯特附近一个广受喜爱的海边小城.但是在生命中的大部分时间里, 她都住在农 村.她丈夫在斯福德湖中间的一座岛上有一个农场.乔柏斯太太每周都烤两次面包, 每个夏天都要做果酱, 每天12点准时把丈夫的午饭摆在桌上.岛上的那个农场 属于乔柏斯家族已经很多年了, 是从父辈传下来的.那是个安静美丽的地方.他们自己种土豆和蔬菜, 还养母鸡和奶牛.乔柏斯先生去世后, 他的儿子接管了农场, 乔柏斯太太搬离了那里.

　　她喝了口咖啡.想起以前那些人的时候, 她笑了.”住在路尽头的那个老太太以为自己房子里有鬼, “她说, “其实那只是老汤姆.麦艾里尔唬她逗她玩的.”记忆被快速的唤醒.”仅仅在十年前, 他们请了二十个人来挖土豆.年轻的休现在有了自己的机器, 他只需要五个人.”

　　现在到电视新闻时间了.乔柏斯太太想看看跑马比赛的结果.她上个礼拜赢了一大笔钱.她下个月要去爱尔兰的蒂帕雷里, 那里的跑马比赛很精彩, 她发现自 己很难不参与进去.但是在比赛结果公布之前还有另外一则新闻: 贝尔法斯特发生一起爆炸, 几个人被炸死了.乔柏斯太太摇了摇头.”他们疯了”她说, “制造麻 烦的只是少数人, 我们其余的人都想过平静的生活.我们都有来自双方的终身朋友(双方指天主教徒和新教徒), 多数时候我们从不谈论烦心事.”

　　比赛结果出来了.她倾着身子去看.对她来说, 普通平凡的日常生活才是最重要的.