Larry跟李华在星巴克咖啡馆见面。今天我们要学两个常用语：for the birds和way out in left field.
LL: Hey, Li Hua, it’s good to see you. It’s been awhile since we last talked. How are you doing?
LH: 还可以，不过这天气真让人受不了。都二月底了，还没完没了地下雪，今年冬天实在是太漫长了。
LL: Yeah, this winter has been crazy. I don’t think we’ve ever gotten so much snow. And the last three winters before this one were so mild. We hardly got any snow at all.
LH: 就是！我记得去年二月底有几天六十多度，咱俩穿着T恤衫在外面打网球。太爽了。我刚听天气预报说，又要下雪。
LL: Aigh…this weather’s really for the birds.
LH: The weather is for the birds? 这是什么意思啊？
LL: Oh, I just mean that it is undesirable…”for the birds” is an idiom we use to mean that something is undesirable, for the birds.
LH: 我还是不明白，为什么不喜欢的东西要说or the birds呢？
LL: Well, it comes from the fact that birds usually eat seeds, and seeds are considered worthless and undesirable.
LH: 所以，毫无价值的，不喜欢的东西就可以说是for the birds。那如果是我不喜欢的天气，我就可以说It’s for the birds.
LL: Exactly…but you could also say it for things other than the weather. For example, say I don’t like the chicken sandwich I made for lunch…I could say that the chicken sandwich is for the birds.
LH: 你看，外面的天阴冷阴冷的，I definitely think it’s for the birds.
LL: I hear you, Lihua. Hey, how about we go and grab some lunch?
LH: 好，我们去麦当劳。
LL: No, McDonalds is for the birds.
LH: 怎么可能！麦当劳的薯条是最好吃的。Burger King is for the birds!
******
Larry和李华在麦当劳吃东西。
LH: Larry, 你这两天怎么样？
LL: I’ve been good. Just trying to forget about what happened at work yesterday. It’s been really frustrating.
LH: 发生什么事情了吗？
LL: Well, it’s my boss. He keeps on giving me assignments and telling me to do things and then not giving me any time to complete the assignments. I’m getting so tired of it. I need a break. Maybe I’ll take tomorrow off.
LH: 一定是因为你太能干了。中文里说，能者多劳。正因为你效率高，做事让老板放心，所以他才愿意把工作交给你。如果你觉得压力太大的话，应该直接跟他讲。
LL: How would I do that, Lihua. He’s so busy. It’s like he never has time for me, and he’s always busy with other people.
LH: 那你不如跟他约个时间，好好坐下来谈，而且越快越好。
LL: I think you’re right, Li Hua. Thanks for your help. You give such good advice. Sometimes other people’s advice can be way out in left field.
LH: Way out in left field? 这是什么意思？
LL: Oh, “way out in left field” is an American idiom. It’s used to describe an idea that’s really strange or completely out of touch with reality. Like I could say your idea of taking showers seven times a day is “way out in left field.”
LH: 哦，说一件事情way out in left field意思就是太不靠谱，不着边际。那这种说法，way out in left field可以用来形容人吗？
LL: Sure you can, Li Hua. The expression “way out in left field” isn’t only limited to describing ideas, you can also use it to describe people.
LH: 太有意思了。你能给我举个例子吗？
LL: Say, for example, a journalist is always coming up with crazy story ideas, You could just say that that journalist is way out in left field.
LH: 那你说Larry, 为什么要用way out in left field来形容一个人或一件事不靠谱呢？
LL: Well, “way out in left field” actually comes from baseball. In baseball, left field is away from the action, so that’s why it’s used to describe people, plans, or ideas that seem distant and strange or out of touch with reality.
LH: 那你下次再拉我去蹦极、跳伞、赛车什么的，我就告诉你，you are way out in left field.
天李华学了两个常用语。一个是for the birds, 意思是毫无价值的，没人喜欢的。另一个是way out in left field，意思是离谱的，不着边际的。