李華和Larry 因為暴風雪，都不用去上班，倆人商量該干點什么。今天我們
要學兩個常用語：fish out of water 和have a crack at something.

    LH： Larry，下大雪真是太好了，堆雪人、打雪仗比上班好玩多了。

    LL： Yeah it's really nice that we don't have to go to work or class.
But I am a little worried that I might freeze to death in the snow！

    LH：凍死在雪里？你也太夸張了吧。下雪天兒其實一點兒都不冷，多穿兩件
衣服就行了。

    LL： Lihua， I'm from the southern United States， where it never
snows. I feel like a fish out of water in all this snowy weather.

    LH：你說什么？感覺自己象是a fish out of water ？這是什么意思呢？

    LL： When you are in a strange environment， or feel like you are
out of place， you can say that you feel like a fish out of water.

    LH：哦，a fish out of water 感覺好象離開水的魚一樣不自在，跟周圍陌
生的環境格格不入。

    LL： Exactly！ For example， Roger grew up living in the city ， so
he felt like a fish out of water when his girlfriend took him on a camping
trip.

    LH：我剛從中國到美國來讀書的時候，那才叫不適應呢！

    LL： Right！ I bet when you came to America for the first time and
were in a totally new environment ， you felt like a fish out of water.

    LH：絕對的！不過，我很快就認識了很多象你這樣的好朋友，沒過多久就適
應了。So I don't feel like a fish out of water anymore.

    LL： That's great ， Lihua！ You know ， I felt that way too when
I visited New York. I grew up in a small town ， so I really felt like
a fish out of water in the big city.

    LH：不提過去那些事兒了，快穿上衣服，我們出去玩雪！

    LL： Ok ， Lihua. If I freeze to death， will you tell my parents
that I love them？

    LH：好了，Larry ，別鬧了。在雪地里玩兒一會兒是死不了人的！

    ******

    LH： Larry，你想先玩什么？是堆雪人還是滑雪橇？

    LL： I've got a great idea！ Let's build an army of snowmen. We will
make a snow version of the Terra Cotta Warriors ！

    LH：兵馬俑？Larry ，你知道兵馬俑一共有多少個嗎？我們還沒堆完，雪就
化光了。

    LL： Come on， we'll never know for sure unless we try！ Let's have
a crack at it.

    LH： Have a crack at it ？這是什么意思啊？

    LL： When you try to do something that is not very likely to succeed，
you can say that you "have a crack at it." Crack is spelled c-r-a-c-k.

    LH：你是說，明知不太可能用雪堆出兵馬俑來，你還是想試試看， to have
a crack at it ？

    LL： Right！ Or for example ， even though I knew it was unlikely
that I would win American Idol， I decided to have a crack at it anyway
and try out for it.

    LH：慢著慢著，你去參加美國偶像的選秀了？我怎么不知道。Larry ，我了
解你唱歌的水平，你當選美國偶像的機會，恐怕還不如我們用雪堆出個兵馬俑來
的機會大呢！

    LL： Don't worry， even though I might not have a great voice ， I
can make up for it with my hot dance moves.

    LH：你的熱舞？那就更可怕了。不過言歸正傳，Larry ，我以前聽人說過"take
a stab at something"這跟have a crack at something 是一個意思嗎？

    LL： Yes. They mean the same thing.

    LH：那你能不能給我舉個不會讓我做惡夢的例子？

    LL： Sure. My math teacher gave the class a really hard problem to
do. Even though he knew we probably wouldn't be able to do it ， he told
us to take a stab at it anyway.

    LH：這位數學老師真夠損的，明知學生做不出來，還要他們去試。那我可以
說，明知教你跳舞是浪費時間，可我還是決定要take a stab at it ？

    LL： Very funny. Now come on， let's start making these snowmen ！

    LH： Larry，你還是自己堆吧，我要去那邊山坡上滑雪了。

    今天李華學了兩個常用語。一個是fish out of water ，意思是在陌生的環
境里覺得格格不入，不自在。另一個是have a crack at something ，或是 take
a stab at something ，意思是明明知道可能不會成功，可還是要去嘗試一下。