VOA流行美語 Unit 161:to putz around和worrywart

李華打電話問Larry，想不想到動物園參觀新的熊貓展覽。今天李華會學到兩個常用語：to putz around和worrywart。

LH: 嘿，Larry，你在做什麼？忙不忙？

LL: Not really. I was just putzing around the apartment, cleaning up a little and putting some things away. Why? What do you have in mind?

LH: 噢，你在家打掃，整理東西。你還在家幹什麼啦？什麼是putzing around？那是什麼意思？

LL: To putz around is to behave idly, without anything very urgent or important to do. I don't have anything special to do, so I'm just putzing around doing minor things.

LH: To putz around就是沒有什麼迫切或重要的事做，只是在家東晃晃，西摸摸。嗨，既然你沒什麼重要事做，要不要一塊兒去動物園。我想去看新來的熊貓。

LL: Sure. We can putz around the zoo and look at the animals. The weather is beautiful today, so it will be nice to go outside.

LH: 就是啊，今天天氣這麼好，待在家裏太可惜了，還不如到動物園去逛逛，看看動物。

LL: Yeah, it's much better to putz around outside in the sunshine. It's so great to have time to relax.

LH: 沒錯。前一陣子我忙得連睡覺的時間都沒有，更別說四處閒晃了。說實話，我還真喜歡閒逛，I like to putz around。

LL: When do you want to leave?

LH: 嗯，你半小時內能出門嗎？我聽說熊貓在下午的時候比較活躍，這時候去最有意思！

LL: Sure. I'll meet you at the university gate in half an hour.

LH: 沒問題！一會兒見！

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LH: Larry，快點！我怕我們會錯過這班公共汽車，太晚了我們就看不到熊貓了！

LL: Calm down, Li Hua. Don't be such a worrywart. We have plenty of time to catch the bus and the pandas aren't going anywhere.

LH: 嘿！你又說我什麼了？什麼是worrywart？

LL: A worrywart, very simply, is a person who worries too much.

LH: A Worrywart，就是指一個人不是擔心這事，就是擔心那事，而這些都是一些微不足道的事情。那不就是我們中文裏說的“杞人憂天”嗎？Larry，我真的是這樣的人嗎？

LL: Sometimes, you can be a worrywart. For instance, you worry a lot about your grades.

LH: 可是，擔心成績不好。這很正常啊！很多人都會擔心他們的成績，學習成績可不是什麼微不足道的事呢！

LL: Most people worry about their grades, but you worry more than most people.

LH: 我比別人擔心更多！我纔不信呢。你自己也不是老擔心工作，老擔心你老闆和同事對你印象不好。

LL: I don't worry too much about work! I have a healthy concern for what my boss and my co-workers think, but I don't think I'm a worrywart.

LH: 噢，我擔心就是過份。你擔心就是正常的！你自己想想，你應該8點上班，可上星期你每天早上5點就起牀，就怕遲到。這不是過份麼？

LL: Yeah, I guess that is a little extreme. I think I'll get more relaxed at work once I've gotten more settled in. I'm still new.

LH: 我知道。你是剛到那家公司去工作，所以特別緊張。等到你習慣以後就會放鬆一些的。得了，我們還是好好享受今天這麼棒的天氣，去看熊貓嘍！

今天李華學到兩個常用語。第一個是to putz around，就是四處閒晃，無所事事的意思。另外一個常用語是worrywart，是指一個人擔心個沒完，就像中文裏所說的“杞人憂天”。