New Years Resolutions

Y: 各位听众好！欢迎您到美语咖啡屋。我是杨晨。

J: Hello, everyone, I'm Jody! Welcome to American Cafe!  And Happy New Year everyone!  Happy New Year, Yang Chen!  You know what January brings, don't you?

Y: 一月份是新年的开始，人们当然要快快乐乐地迎接新年。比如说打扮得漂漂亮亮地参加舞会，走亲访友，还有逛街买东西等等。

J: Of course, but after all that is over that's when the New Year's Resolutions kick in.  You know when they start.

Y: New Year's Resolutions，新年的决心。哎呀，我还没想好呢！

J: You know, maybe we should talk about New Year's Resolutions a little bit to find out, you know, what we should give up for the New Year.   

Y: 对。我们还是给大家解释一下什么叫New Year's Resolution。

J: Good idea. Here's Chuck from Washington DC with a definition of New Year's Resolutions...

Chuck：Well, a New Year's Resolution is something that an individual chooses to do on the occasion of the new calendar year. They are starting off with a clean slate.  They are sort of having a fresh beginning and are going to take the occasion of the new year to introduce a new behavior or set some goals or, to the contrary, they are going to eliminate some behavior, perhaps a vice or a bad habit, and do their very best through the new year to improve their behavior.

Y:  Chuck 刚才说的clean slate是一个很有用的说法，你给大家解释一下它的意思好吗？

J: Sure.  A clean slate.  And it just means a fresh beginning.  You know adding a good habit or giving up a vice or bad habit.  But I'm still not sure of anything I should give up for the New Year's.  What about you?

Y: 嗯，我想想看。A clean slate可以解释成从头开始。可是说到要放弃什么坏习惯，我还真想不出来。你看我这么老实，遵纪守法，根本没什么坏习惯啊。

J: What, no bad habits?!  Are you sure?!  I can think of a couple bad habits you may have.

Y: 可别告诉别人！

J: Okay we'll keep that between us.  Let's introduce some of the people we met on New Year's Eve and hear what they were giving up for the new year.  The first one is Jen, from Boston.
       
Y:  我们听听Jen有什么打算。

Jen, Boston：My name is Jen and I'm from Boston and for 2004 I hope to be healthier, eat healthy, go out running and relax and find a balance in my life between work and relaxation, take some time for myself.

Y:   Jen说她要多跑步。这个主意倒是不错。

J: Oh, are you kindding!?  No thanks.  I hate running.  Jen can do all the running she wants.  What else did Jen have to say?
  
Y: 她还说她要在工作和休闲之间找到更好的平衡。

J: Now that sounds like a good idea: finding a balance between work and play.  Here's another person.  His name's John and he has a New Year's resolution too. 

Y:  好。那我们听听John有什么打算。

John：My name's John and I'm from Boston.  And New Year's Resolutions would be to go to the gym more.  Um

Y: Gym? 不行。我最不喜欢到健身房和一大堆人一块儿锻炼了。

J: Oh, I'm with you!  You know since we don't like working out or dieting maybe we could change a part of our behaviour, like Corby, a visitor to Washington D.C., had many New Year's Resolutions.   

Y: 这个Corby够贪心的。她说她有好几个New Year's Resolutions。我们听听她是怎么说的。

Corby：Resolution for next year is to control my temper, and not judge people and to quit smoking. I will probably focus on those.  They're a handfull. 

Y: Corby 真有意思。她不只有一个，而是有好几个新年的决心。她坏毛病还真不少：喜欢批评别人，坏脾气，还抽烟。哎呀，我们又没有这些坏毛病，所以我们也不用去想什么新年决心了。

J: Maybe you're right.  You know, we're both pretty easygoing and neither of us smoke.

Y: 就是，就是，我们都快成了道德典范了。

J: Here's a woman named Terry who explains why she gave up giving up stuff for New Year. 

Y:  我们听听Terry是怎么说的。

Terry：Most of the times it's because when I make them they are very difficult to follow through on and complete.  So I don't feel successful and nobody likes to do failure sorts of things.  So, I guess I just don't do New Year's Resolutions.    

Y: 还是Terry看得开。她知道自己没有毅力坚持下去，所以也就不去强求自己了。

J: We'll just keep on doing what we're doing.

Y: 没错。不用改变什么。喜欢作什么就作什么。太好了。这就是我的New Year's Resolution!  只要高兴，我们做什么都可以。

J: But good luck with your New Year's resolutions and Happy New Year. 

Y: 好。我们今天的时间就到了。下次再见。

J: See you later.