美語情景對話 第1344期:Giving Gifts 送禮物(1)

Todd: So, Jen, the holiday season is coming up, and many cultures give gifts around the New Year's for different holidays. First of all, do you.like to give people gifts?

託德：珍，假日季馬上就要到了，新年期間有不同的節日，許多文化都有在新年期間送禮物的習俗。第一個問題是，你喜歡送什麼禮物？

Jen: What kind of a person would I be if I said, "No, I don't like people giving people gifts?" But yeah, I'm not really good at choosing gifts for people though.

珍：如果我說我不喜歡人們互相送禮物，你會認爲我是哪種人？嗯，我不擅長挑選禮物。

Todd: Why do you think that?

託德：你爲什麼會這麼想？

Jen: Because every time I go and buy something for someone, I want to buy something that I like, and I would think that it would look good on them or something. But then my friends end up being like, you know? They don't really like the gift so much because it doesn't suit them, or something?

珍：因爲每次我去爲他人買禮物，都想買自己喜歡的東西，而且我認爲外觀一定要漂亮。可是你知道最後我朋友打開禮物時的情況嗎？他們非常不喜歡我送的禮物，因爲那並不適合他們，或者是其他原因。

Todd: Yeah.

託德：好。

Jen: For example, I bought this pair of earrings for this friend, and then I realized that she doesn't really like jewelries and stuff, so she never wore it.

珍：舉個例子，我買了耳環送一個朋友，後來我意識到她並不喜歡飾品之類的東西，所以她從來沒戴過。

Todd: Right, yeah. It's kind of hard to know what they want. Actually, for that reason, I don't like giving gifts at all. I think it's because of my background, like studying economics. It's just, to me, it's inefficient. You're buying something, you don't know if they really want it, and they say, "Oh. It's the thought that counts." But the time that you waste finding the gift and then you give them the gift, and maybe they don't use it. So I'm not a big fan of gift giving. Even for birthdays.

託德：嗯。其實很難知道他們想要什麼。因爲這個原因，我也完全不喜歡送禮物。我認爲這和我的背景有關，因爲我是學經濟出身。對我來說，這件事的經濟效率很低。你買了禮物，可是不知道他們是否需要，而且你送出去之後他們會說，“哦，心意最重要。”可是你在選禮物時浪費了時間，而且你送出禮物後，他們可能也不會用。所以我不太喜歡送禮物。即使在節日時也是一樣。

Jen: I actually agree with you. And for me, if it was my birthday, I would rather have someone make a card for me. It would have more value than someone buying gifts for me anyways, you know?

珍：我同意你的觀點。對我來說，如果是我生日，我更希望收到他人爲我做的生日賀卡。我認爲那比買禮物更貴重，你明白嗎？

Todd: Yeah. I think, like in Asia, it's more common, which I like. And that's kind of the gift you give to somebody when you travel. So if I travel somewhere, I'll pick something up for my mom, from a country I went to. Or somebody ... Let's say they went to Korea or China during their break, they might bring back some special food to the office, and everybody can have a cracker or a cookie, or something like that. I like that.

託德：嗯，有種情況在亞洲更爲普遍，我喜歡這樣。就是有人去旅行的話，會帶禮物回來。比如，如果我去其他地方旅行，那我會在旅行的那個地方爲我媽媽買禮物。比如有人在假期去韓國或中國旅行，他們可能會帶回來一些當地的特色食物，他們會拿到辦公室和大家分享，所以，所有人都會收到薄脆餅乾或餅乾之類的小吃。我很喜歡這樣。

Jen: Yeah. I'm from Nepal, and here too. In my country too, they would rather give us like, fruits and like different kind of ... Other sweets and stuff rather than clothes and jewelries, you know?

珍：對，我來自尼泊爾，日本也是這樣。我的祖國也是，他們更喜歡送水果之類的食物，或是糖果，而不會送衣服和珠寶飾品，你知道嗎？

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重點講解：
1. come up 即將發生；即將到來；
例句：A thunder shower is coming up.
雷陣雨馬上就要來了。
2. be good at 擅長的；精通的；能幹的；
例句：I'm good at my work.
我對自己的工作得心應手。
3. end up 最終；結果；到頭來；
例句：After all I've done for him, I end up being called a busybody.
我爲他忙了半天，歸終還說我是多管閒事。
4. rather than 而非；勝於；而不是；
例句：Do not fear the winds of adversity. Remember: A kite rises against the wind rather than with it.
不要擔心逆境和挫折，記住：風箏是逆風而行的，不是順風。