VOA流行美語 Unit 80: KICK ONESELF / RAW DEAL
VOA流行美語 Unit 80: KICK ONESELF / RAW DEAL
今天Michael和李華正在談論有關買汽車的事。李華會學到兩個常用語：to kick oneself和raw deal。
L: Michael, 你沒有買Jerry的車啊？我以爲價錢很公道啊！怎麼回事啊？
M: Please don't mention that! Jerry sold the car to someone else yesterday. I'm still kicking myself for not buying it when I had the chance.
L: Kicking yourself, kick不就是k-i-c-k，踢球的踢嗎？你爲什麼要踢你自己呢？
M: No, no Li Hua. "To kick oneself" means to feel regret for missing an opportunity, or making a mistake that could have been avoided.
L: 噢，to kick oneself不是真的踢自己，意思是：自己失去了一個好機會而埋怨自己太笨。Michael, 那到底是怎麼回事啊？
M: Well, I told Jerry that I wanted to check out some other cars before I made a decision. Someone else bought the car before I had a chance to decide. I'm still kicking myself for waiting too long.
L: 原來你是想等看看別的車以後再做決定，結果Jerry就把車賣給別人了。哎喲，Michael, 你不用埋怨自己啦。不管做什麼交易，作決定前仔細考慮清楚總是好的。
M: Well, I guess you're right. When I bought the car I have now, I wasn't careful enough. Later, I found out the car was in very poor condition, and I have been kicking myself ever since.
L: 你看，我說得沒錯。你買現在這輛車的時候不小心，所以現在老要出問題。哎，Michael, 你呀，買得不好也怨自己，沒有買到也埋怨自己。你累不累呀！
M: Hey, speaking of regret, I heard that your ex-boyfriend Ding Yu is doing really well these days. I bet you are kicking yourself for dumping him, huh?
L: 你在說我以前的男朋友丁餘？告訴你，不管他現在多有錢我都不會因爲跟他分手而後悔。
M: Hmm, I know, when you're a famous professor at a top U.S. university, Ding Yu will be kicking himself for not being nicer to you when you were together.
L: 我要是在美國當了名教授，他再捶胸頓足地後悔也沒有用。
******
L: Michael, 你沒有買Jerry的車，那你是不是還想找一輛舊車呢？
M: Yes, I still want to replace my car. But I'm sort of afraid... The last time I bought a car, I got a really raw deal!
L: 你上回買車怎麼啦？什麼是raw deal？是不是不好的意思？
M: That's right! A raw deal. Raw. A "raw deal" means an unfair deal, or to be treated roughly and unfairly by someone.
L: A raw deal就是吃了虧的交易。你的意思是，你上次買這輛車的時候，賣車的人讓你吃了大虧？
M: That's right. The week after I bought the car, the engine broke down, and I had to completely replace it! The guy I bought it from refused to pay for it.
L: 車纔買了一個星期就出問題。這實在是太倒黴了。這就是所謂的a raw deal。那麼，Michael, raw deal是不是隻能用在買賣方面的？
M: No, not necessarily. For instance, my Uncle George worked at a factory for over twenty years. Unfortunately, the factory was shut down and George lost his job right before he had a chance to retire. That was a raw deal!
L: That's really a raw deal! 我聽到好幾個這樣的例子了。一個人在一個公司做了幾十年，還沒來得及退休公司就關門了。退休金全完了。我舅舅的工廠關門前，他工作了八個月，到現在還沒拿到工資呢！
M: That's really a raw deal!
今天李華學到了兩個常用語：to kick oneself和raw deal。To kick oneself是由於錯過了機會而怨恨自己。Raw deal就是在跟別人打交道時吃了虧。
