Larry和李华刚刚在餐馆吃完饭。李华今天要学两个常用语doggie bag和back burner。
LL: This is waaaay too much food for me to finish. I guess I’d better ask for a doggie bag.
LH: 怎么啦，你不会是想吐吧。
LL: Huh? No! I said I am going to ask for a doggie bag. That’s a bag that you use to take home leftover food from a restaurant.
LH: 我知道了，就是中国人说的打包。你们叫”doggie bag”，是因为美国人一般都把剩下的饭菜喂狗吧？可你没有狗呀。
LL: It’s just a figure of speech. I ‘m asking for a doggie bag because I plan on eating the leftovers for lunch tomorrow.
LH: 原来是你自己吃啊。美国人这种习惯真好。在中国，大家出去吃饭总要点好多菜，根本吃不了，剩下的，有的就扔了。
LL: The U.S. isn’t so different. People originally used the phrase “doggie bag” because they were embarrassed to admit they were saving food.
LH: 怪不得叫 “doggie bag”，原来开始的时候美国人也不好意思承认自己节俭，所以说是要喂狗。美国人真觉得这样做丢人吗？
LL: Hmm…well, in the U.S. you wouldn’t ask for a doggie bag at a really nice restaurant, or on a formal occasion. But otherwise most people would rather ask for a doggie bag than waste food.
LH: 所以说，在高级饭店和正式场合一般不打包，但除此之外，打包就很正常了。中国现在也差不多，打包越来越普遍，不过我们用的是饭盒。
LL: Yeah, same here. But even though the food usually goes in a box, people still use the term “doggie bag”.
LH: 美国人真把剩饭剩菜喂狗吗？
LL: (Chuckles) The food from doggie bags can make a dog fat!
LH: 不光是狗，经常在外面吃，人也会变胖的。账单来了。你得要 “doggie bag” 了。
LL: (To the waiter) Excuse me, could I get a doggie bag for this please?
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LH: Larry, 刚才说了半天 “doggie bag”。我还真想养只小狗。
LL: I know, you’ve mentioned that before. But you’d better just put that on the back burner for now.
LH: 把什么放在炉子上？你在说什么呀？
LL: I said put it on the back burner. That means, you should give your idea of owning a dog low priority, and wait until it is more practical or convenient.
LH: 你是说我养狗不现实，所以不要着急，应该暂时放一放。其实，我要是真的养条狗也没有什么不可以，就是要做出一些牺牲罢了。
LL: Really, you should just put it on the back burner. Taking care of a pet requires money and time.
LH: 你说得也对，养狗又花时间，又费钱，确实应该等毕业有工作了再说。我真恨不得马上毕业。
LL: I know! I have to put so many things on the back burner while I’m in school… I feel like I have no life!
LH: Larry, 你都想干些什么呢？
LL: Well, for instance, Jack and I were working together on an online business, but I am too busy with school to work on it often. I had to put that on the back burner.
LH: 你和Jack要合作在网上做生意，真有两下子呀！
LL: It’s on the back burner right now. You know, I was in a rock band for a while, but I put that on the back burner as well.
LH: (Laughs) 摇滚乐队？不会吧。Larry, 我听过你唱歌，你不会真想当摇滚歌星吧？(Cell Phone Rings) 是你的电话。
LL: Whoa, it’s Angie. I’ll talk to you later, Li Hua. I’ve got to answer this. I’m going to ask Angie out this weekend.
LH: 谁？你不是要跟Cindy约会吗？怎么又变成Angie了。你可不能脚踏两条船啊。
LL: Cindy? Well, earlier this week, she left for study abroad in Europe, so I had to put her on the back burner.
LH: (Groans) Whatever, Larry!
今天李华学到了两个常用语。一个是Doggie bag, 意思是在外面吃完饭打包用的盒子。还有一个是back burner，意思是暂时不考虑。