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第91课：without a hitch
期终考试今天全部结束，Larry和Li Hua准备开个party来庆祝一番。Li Hua会学到两个常用语：without a hitch和chow down。
(household utensil noise)
LH: Larry, 你看我们准备的东西够不够啊？这是我第一次请朋友来开party，要是东西不够吃，那就糟糕啦！
LL: Calm down, Li Hua. I"m sure the party will go off without a hitch.
LH: 你说我们的party会怎么样 - without a hitch - 那是什么意思啊？
LL: Oh, if something goes without a hitch, it means that everything goes smoothly and nothing will go wrong.
LH: 对，hitch这个字也可以解释为障碍，那something goes without a hitch, 就是进展顺利。
LH: Larry，你的意思就是我们的party will go off without a hitch，肯定能办好，不会有问题...那我可不可以说：There won"t be any hitches？
LL: No, No, Li Hua, you can"t use it that way. You can only say that something goes without a hitch. This is an idiomatic expression. You can"t generally substitute the word hitch for problem.
LH: 啊，原来something goes without a hitch是一个习惯用语，不能把hitch 和problem两个交替来使用。那想说什么事一帆风顺，我们就只能说：什么事情goes without a hitch.
LL: Okay, Li Hua, now that you understand the phrase, can you give me an example?
LH: 我来想一想。有了。最近这次考试我觉得我考得不错 - My exams went without a hitch.
LL: I wish I were as confident as you are. Now, can you give me another example of how to use without a hitch?
LH: 嗯...我最近申请了暑期里到一个公司去工作。他们约我上星期去面谈。我觉得那个面谈进行得挺顺利的，所以 - It went off without a hitch.
LL: Hey congratulations!
LH: Thank you, Larry. 哎哟，我们赶快准备吧。客人马上就要到了！
******
(party SFX)
LL: See, everybody is enjoying the party, I told you it would be fine.
LH: 嗯，大家好象都玩得挺开心。我原来还担心吃的不够呢，现在看来说不定还做多了！
LL: I don"t know about that. Some people are really chowing down. Hey, look at Jim, he"s eating one hot dog after another!
LH: 就是啊，我也注意到Jim挺喜欢吃热狗的，可是你说什么？ 这儿有的人是在chowing down? 什么是chow down啊？
LL: Well, chow is slang for food and to chow down is to eat a lot and to do it enthusiastically.
LH: 噢，chow这个字在
口语里可以表示食物。那么chow down就是吃得很多，而且还兴致勃勃的。那不就有点儿像我们中文里说的狼吞虎咽吗？
LL: Yep. Look, Jim has finished his hot dog. He"s now moved on to eating a piece of cake. He"s definitely chowing down. He acts as though he hasn"t eaten in days.
LH: 对，Jim他刚吃完热狗，现在又在吃蛋糕了 - He is really chowing down. 好象几天没吃饭一样的。哎，对了，Larry, 这也说明我们准备的东西受欢迎哪！
LL: That"s right! See, Li Hua, I told you that the party will go off without a hitch.
LH: 哎，Larry, 说了这么半天了，你都吃什么啦？
LL: What have I chowed down? Well, I have been busy helping you and haven"t got time to eat yet.
LH: 哎哟，真是抱歉，你光顾着帮我招待客人，自己都还没顾上吃呢！
LL: That"s OK. I think we should chow down now before all of the good stuff is gone!
LH: 好啊，那我们赶紧开吃吧，要不然好东西都没了！
今天李华从Larry那儿学到两个常用语。一个是without a hitch, 表示事情进展顺利。另外一个是chow down, 相当于中文里所说的狼吞虎咽。
