VOA慢速英语2009年-THIS IS AMERICA - Saying Goodbye to 20

 

VOICE ONE:

Welcome to THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English. I'm Steve Ember.

VOICE TWO:

Numbers arrive, on pedicabs, to be placed atop Times Square in New York for the New Year's Eve ball drop welcoming 2010

And I'm Shirley Griffith. This week on our program, we find out how some people will be welcoming two thousand ten.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

So what do Americans do New Year's Eve? Hillary Huesman is from South Carolina.

HILLARY HUESMAN: "I get dressed up. I look to go out. I'm usually single, and that is usually not a problem. This year I'm still making my plans. I haven't quite confirmed them yet, but probably a hotel ballroom-type scenario¹, black-tie event."

At a black-tie event, the men dress in tuxedos² or dark suits and the women wear fancy dresses.

Hotels in many cities have special deals for New Year's Eve: dinner, Champagne³ and a party. Then people get a room for the night. That way, no one has to worry about drinking and driving home.

VOICE TWO:

On New Year's Eve, some communities in the United States hold what are called First Night celebrations. These are events where no alcohol is served. The celebrations include things like music performances, art displays and fireworks.

Boston, Massachusetts, held the first First Night celebration in nineteen seventy-six. Since then the idea has spread internationally.

VOICE ONE:

Some people might not have firm plans yet for New Year's Eve, but others know exactly what they will be doing. Joe is a twenty-one year old student at the University of Virginia.

JOE: "I don't really do a whole lot. I normally just spend time with family, go out to eat, hang out, wait for the ball to drop on TV."

Joe is talking about America's best known celebration on New Year's Eve. Hundreds of thousands of people crowd into Times Square in New York. They count down the final seconds to midnight as they watch a brightly lit ball slide down a pole on top of a tall building.

(SOUND)

A couple welcoming 2009 in Times Square

The first New Year's Eve ball drop in Times Square took place more than a century ago. The ball was made of iron and wood and it was lit with one hundred lights. Today the ball is larger and covered in more than two thousand crystals.

VOICE TWO:

Two other traditions for welcoming the New Year are a midnight kiss and an attempt to sing a song that almost no one knows.

"Auld⁴ Lang Syne," by the eighteenth century Scottish poet Robert Burns, is a song about friends and remembering times long ago.

(MUSIC)

A new year is a good time to start fresh -- and, for some people, a time to seek good fortune in the year ahead.

In the American South, for example, people might prepare a dish known as "Hoppin' John." They make it with black-eyed peas and ingredients like bacon, rice and vegetables. Eating it at the New Year is thought to bring good luck.

(MUSIC)

VOICE ONE:

On New Year's Day, some families in the United States invite friends and relatives to an open house. Jill Cooper from Santa Fe, New Mexico, gave us a description.

JILL COOPER: "They're family parties, big open house-y kind of parties with lots of cookies -- too many cookies --and punch and eggnog. And houses are decorated, and you see your friends and you bop from party to party."

But that is not all she and her family like to do to celebrate the New Year.

JILL COOPER: "We try to do something outside 'cause we live in Santa Fe and we live right in the mountains. Everybody wants to go for a wonderful hike and start off with fresh air and all the things we're going to have in our lives the whole next year. And then we drop in on parties."

VOICE TWO:

Some families like to take it easy on January first and enjoy a quiet day of rest. Twenty year old Malia is from Virginia.

MALIA: "I usually sleep in because we stay up late on New Year's Eve. And my family, we usually eat the leftovers⁵ of the desserts that we make for New Year's, or New Year's Eve and stuff, so. But, just relax, mainly."

But New Year's Day is anything but a day of rest for John Worster (WOO-ster), who lives in Idaho.

JOHN WORSTER: "I offer Catholic⁶ Mass, 'cause I'm a Catholic priest⁷ by profession, and so it is actually the feast⁸ day of Mary, Mother of God. And so we begin our Catholic way of understanding new year by just thanking God for Jesus' mother, Mary. On New Year's Day, after church we'll go out and sit in the goose pit and do some hunting for Canada geese and also ducks."

VOICE ONE:

University of Illinois cheerleaders and float at the 2008 Rose Parade

On New Year's morning, millions of television viewers watch the Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California. The parade includes marching bands and horseback riders. But the parade is most famous for its motorized floats. They come in all shapes and sizes, but they are all covered with flowers.

In Southern California, the weather on New Year's Day might be cold. But the skies are usually sunny and dry, even as other parts of the country might experience snowstorms.

A local group created the Tournament of Roses festival in Pasadena in eighteen ninety. The festival later expanded to include the parade and a big game in college football.

The champion teams from two college athletic⁹ conferences play in the Rose Bowl Stadium. This Friday, the Buckeyes of Ohio State University will play the University of Oregon Ducks.

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Will you be making any New Year's resolutions? Hillary Huesman from South Carolina has a few in mind.

HILLARY HUESMAN: "I'd like to solidify¹⁰ my romantic relationship, lose twenty-eight pounds. I'd like to travel a lot more in twenty-ten. Two thousand nine was a long year -- struggled financially, like most of America. So I'm looking for prosperity in twenty-ten."

VOICE ONE:

Malia from Virginia does not make too many resolutions. She says she does not want to disappoint herself when she fails to keep them. Joe, the University of Virginia student, is of a similar mind.

JOE: "I'm not a believer in resolutions for New Year's. I think that resolutions come when they need to throughout the year, when you decide that someone needs a change."

VOICE TWO:

What about John Worster, the Catholic priest?

JOHN WORSTER: "I make a New Year's resolution every year and usually by the third or fourth of January it's already been broken, so...(Laughs).

REPORTER: "What kind of resolutions are those?"

JOHN WORSTER: "Oh, usually to lead a healthier lifestyle by eating better food and not drinking so much, so ... (Laughs)"

VOICE ONE:

Jamar Negron, a high school student from New Jersey¹¹, has a few resolutions for two thousand ten:

JAMAR NEGRON: "I'm a fencer, so my New Year's resolution is just to become better at fencing. And better in the general sense: become better in schoolwork, become a better person, become a better writer -- become as best as I can be in all aspects of my life."

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Holiday planning can be difficult when business has to come before pleasure.

We did interviews near the Capitol building here in Washington. One of the people we met happened to be the wife of a newly elected senator¹². Jill Cooper is married to Tom Udall, a Democrat¹³ from New Mexico who entered the Senate this past January.

When we talked to her earlier this month, their plans for the New Year were still open.

JILL COOPER: "There was a chance that we would go on a trip to India and Afghanistan, but apparently¹⁴ we're not doing that. Since he's in the Senate and we don't know what's going to happen with the health care bill, he may not even be home. If we're home, we'll probably have dinner with friends."

VOICE ONE:

We give the last word to Jamar, the high school student from New Jersey, and his hopes for two thousand ten.

JAMAR NEGRON: "Prosperity. Strength. Confidence. Equality. Good fortune. Goodwill¹⁵. That everything will work out for the better. That I'll leave no stone unturned, and that I'm able to go to sleep at night with no regrets at what I've done."

(MUSIC)

VOICE TWO:

Our program was written by Nancy Steinbach and Mario Ritter and produced by Caty Weaver¹⁶. Tell us your resolutions and hopes for two thousand ten, and what you will be doing New Year's Eve. Post your comments at voaspecialenglish.com -- where you can also find transcripts¹⁷, MP3s and podcasts of our programs. I'm Shirley Griffith.

VOICE ONE:

And I'm Steve Ember. We wish you all happiness and good fortune in the New Year, and hope will join us again next time for THIS IS AMERICA in VOA Special English.

1 scenario   

n.剧本，脚本；概要

参考例句：

• But the birth scenario is not completely accurate.然而分娩脚本并非完全准确的。
• This is a totally different scenario.这是完全不同的剧本。

2 tuxedos   

n.餐服，无尾晚礼服( tuxedo的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Our services include design and tailoring for wedding gowns, tuxedos and party dressesfrom and American brands. 们的服务范围包括高级婚纱设计定制，高级礼服、派对装设计定制，及欧美一线品牌成衣的驳样定制。 来自互联网
• Most tuxedos are black, but some people like to wear white ones called 'morning suits'. 大多数男士无尾晚礼服是黑色的，不过有些人喜欢穿那种被称为“晨服”的白色装。 来自互联网

3 champagne   

n.香槟酒；微黄色

参考例句：

• There were two glasses of champagne on the tray.托盘里有两杯香槟酒。
• They sat there swilling champagne.他们坐在那里大喝香槟酒。

4 auld   

adj.老的，旧的

参考例句：

• Should auld acquaintance be forgot,and never brought to mind?怎能忘记旧日朋友，心中能不怀念？
• The party ended up with the singing of Auld Lang Sync.宴会以《友谊地久天长》的歌声而告终。

5 leftovers   

n.剩余物，残留物，剩菜

参考例句：

• He can do miracles with a few kitchen leftovers.他能用厨房里几样剩饭做出一顿美餐。
• She made supper from leftovers she had thrown together.她用吃剩的食物拼凑成一顿晚饭。

6 catholic   

adj.天主教的；n.天主教徒

参考例句：

• The Pope is the supreme leader of the Roman Catholic Church.教皇是罗马天主教的最高领袖。
• She was a devoutly Catholic.她是一个虔诚地天主教徒。

7 priest   

n.神父，牧师，司铎，司祭，领导者，神甫；vt.使成为神职人员

参考例句：

• He confessed to a priest that he had sinned.他向神父忏悔他犯了罪。
• The priest visited all the old people in the parish.牧师探望了教区里的所有老人。

8 feast   

n.盛宴，筵席，节日

参考例句：

• After the feast she spent a week dieting to salve her conscience.大吃了一顿之后，她花了一周时间节食以安慰自己。
• You shouldn't have troubled yourself to prepare such a feast!你不该准备这样丰盛的饭菜，这样太麻烦你了！

9 athletic   

adj.擅长运动的，强健的；活跃的，体格健壮的

参考例句：

• This area has been marked off for athletic practice.这块地方被划出来供体育训练之用。
• He is an athletic star.他是一个运动明星。

10 solidify   

v.(使)凝固，(使)固化，(使)团结

参考例句：

• Opinion on this question began to solidify.对这个问题的意见开始具体化了。
• Water will solidify into ice if you freeze it.水冷冻会结冰。

11 jersey   

n.运动衫

参考例句：

• He wears a cotton jersey when he plays football.他穿运动衫踢足球。
• They were dressed alike in blue jersey and knickers.他们穿着一致，都是蓝色的运动衫和灯笼短裤。

12 senator   

n.参议员，评议员

参考例句：

• The senator urged against the adoption of the measure.那参议员极力反对采取这项措施。
• The senator's speech hit at government spending.参议员的讲话批评了政府的开支。

13 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

14 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

15 goodwill   

n.善意，亲善，信誉，声誉

参考例句：

• His heart is full of goodwill to all men.他心里对所有人都充满着爱心。
• We paid ￡10,000 for the shop,and ￡2000 for its goodwill.我们用一万英镑买下了这家商店，两千英镑买下了它的信誉。

16 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。

17 transcripts   

n.抄本（ transcript的名词复数 ）；转写本；文字本；副本

参考例句：

• Like mRNA, both tRNA and rRNA are transcripts of chromosomal DNA. tRNA及rRNA同mRNA一样，都是染色体DNA的转录产物。 来自辞典例句
• You can't take the transfer students'exam without your transcripts. 没有成绩证明书，你就不能参加转学考试。 来自辞典例句