http://realaudio.rferl.org/voa/CHIN/2013/09/24/b422ca4d-d6a8-4e78-8a64-58dcfe414537.mp3
http://www.voachinese.com/content/be-265-losing-a-job-can-be-positive/1756318.html
Suzanne 約朋友 Mickey 一起吃午飯。
Suzanne: Mickey! Good to see you! It's been too long!
Mickey: Hi, Suzanne! you're right, it has been too long.
S: Did you find something on the menu that interests you? Sorry I'm late for our lunch. Traffic was horrific.
M: Yeah....I think I'll have the chicken Caesar salad.
S: That sounds pretty good.... hey, is everything okay? -- You seem kind of down.
M: I got laid off last Friday.
S: Oh....I'm so sorry to hear that.
Suzanne 跟 Mickey 很久沒見麵,發現 Mickey 心事重重,情緒不高,seem kind of down. Down 在這裏是形容詞,意思是情緒低落。原來,Mickey 上星期五被炒了魷魚,He got laid off. 也可以說,He was let go. 丟了工作,難怪心情沮喪,我們來聽聽這是為什麽。
M: They said it had nothing to do with my performance. They just need to try and save on costs. So they're axing a bunch of jobs.
S: Ouch! Losing a job is such a nasty experience.
M: Yep....it sure is. I guess I have been a bit depressed.
S: I remember when I got fired from my job as a senior manager with a Web design company. I felt awful for weeks. But you know something? Getting fired turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to me.
Mickey 被解雇是因為公司要削減開支,所以 they axed a bunch of jobs. Ax is spelled, a-x, 或者 a-x-e, 做為動詞,是砍的意思。他丟了工作,心情十分抑鬱,depressed. Suzanne 安慰他說,自己也曾有過類似經曆,好幾個星期緩不過來,但是最後證明,getting fired turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to me. 被開除是她這輩子最幸運的事。怎麽可能,我們繼續聽。
M: And why was that?
S: It gave me a jolt that I really needed. I was just coasting along in my position day in and day out, never really thinking about my life or my career.
M: So getting fired helped you reflect on these things?
S: Absolutely! I started asking myself what I really wanted to do.
M: That makes sense. Our daily routines can turn into habits. I've been working at this company for almost 8 years and I have kind of been running on autopilot.
Suzanne 說,失業 gave me a jolt. Jolt is spelled j-o-l-t, jolt 在這裏是震動的意思。Suzanne 說,有工作的時候,她從來都是 coast along day in and day out. Coast along 做為詞組,意思是不用花一點努力隨波逐流, day in and day out 意思是日複一日,年複一年。過著這樣的生活,怎麽還會想著如何進取呢?被解雇後,她才開始思考這些問題,to reflect on things 意思是反思。Mickey 深有同感,說自己在原來的公司已經幹了將近八年了,I have been running on autopilot. Autopilot 自動駕駛,工作已經成了一種習慣,順手就幹了,就好象是 run on autopilot. 現在沒有工作了,Mickey 下一步有什麽打算呢?我們下次繼續聽。