VOA流行美語 Unit 329:直面難題&印象深刻
Larry和李華一起坐地鐵回家。今天我們要學兩個常用語：take the bull by the horns和knock your socks off.
LL: You look really tired, Li Hua. What have you been up to?
LH: 別提了，我最近兩天一直睡不好覺。比如說昨天晚上，凌晨兩點醒來後，就再也睡不着了，翻來覆去一直到早上起牀。
LL: I am sorry to hear that, Li Hua. Sleep is really important. It can affect your mood and feelings for an entire day, and it can really wear you down after awhile. So why did you wake up in the middle of the night?
LH: 還不是因爲我那個室友Tammy。她男朋友去西岸上學，跟我們有三個小時的時差，所有她經常半夜三更給男朋友打電話。我們公寓的牆壁又很薄，她一打電話，我就醒過來了。
LL: If that's the case, I think you should take the bull by the horns and talk to Tammy because her late night phone calls are interfering with your sleep.
LH: 你說take the bull by the horns是什麼意思，抓住牛角？這跟睡覺有關係嗎？
LL: Haha. Li Hua, to take the bull by the horns means to confront a problem head-on and to deal with it openly. That's what I think you should do with Tammy.
LH: 哦，我明白了， taking a bull by the horns意思是採取直接的、果斷的行動，你是讓我別不好意思，開誠佈公地告訴Tammy, 她打電話影響我睡眠。
LL: Exactly. You can tell her that her phone calls are keeping you up at night and that you would appreciate it if she made the calls earlier in the evening or made the calls outside.
LH: 好，聽你的。I will take the bull by the horns and talk to Tammy. 我今天回去就跟Tammy談。看她能不能十點以前給男朋友打電話或是到外面去打電話。
雖然缺覺，但是李華的工作好象十分順利。我們一起聽。
LH: Larry, 雖然沒睡好覺，我還是想出去慶祝一下，因爲我跟你說過的那個項目，我今天終於完工了。
LL: Really? That's nice! I know you have been working really hard on it. I just finished something at work for a client too. We should definitely go out and celebrate.
LH: 太好了。那我們去哪兒？
LL: Well the weather's so nice out. How about we go on a walk?
LH: 去散步？好主意！我正好也可以活動活動。今天我一整天幾乎沒有離開座位。不過，去哪裏走好呢？到處都是車，一點也不浪漫。
LL: I know a place right off 5th Street which is perfect for romantic walks. There aren't too many cars, and they close one lane of the street during the evenings, so pedestrians can walk on the street.
LH: 我怎麼從來不知道有這麼個地方。
LL: Trust me, Li Hua. It will be so romantic and beautiful in the evening. It will knock your socks off.
LH: 好，我們就去哪兒。不過，Larry, 散步可以，我可不要脫襪子。I will NOT take my socks off.
LL: Haha, Li Hua. I didn't ask you to take your socks off. I said the walk is gonna be so romantic that it will KNOCK your socks off.
LH: 我還是不明白，你爲什麼要knock my socks off.
LL: To knock somebody's socks off means to completely surprise someone or please someone very much. Like I could say that the movie was so beautiful that it really knocked my socks off, or I could say the young pianist knocked the socks off of the judges.
LH: 哦，這下我明白了，to knock somebody's socks off意思就是把某人給震了，給人留下深刻的印象。
LL: You got it. How about after we go on this walk, we go out to eat? I know an Italian restaurant that will really knock your socks off!
LH: 你今天怎麼興致這麼高？又是散步、又是意大利大餐，太浪漫了。You're really knocking my socks off!
LL: WOW, Li Hua. You're such a quick learner. Someday you'll be teaching me about American idioms.
今天李華學了兩個常用語。一個是take the bull by the horns, 意思是不迴避問題，採取果斷行動，勇敢地去面對問題。另一個是knock somebody's socks off意思是給人留下深刻印象。
