Everything except the weather
          唯独没有考虑到天气

    First listen and then answer the question.
    听录音，然后回答以下问题。
    Why did Harrison sell his house so quickly?

    My old friend, Harrison, had lived in the Mediterranean for many years before he returned to England. He had often dreamed of retiring in England and had planned to settle down in the country. He had no sooner returned than h

e bought a house and went to live there. Almost immediately he began to complain about the weather, for even though it was still summer, it rained continually and it was often bitterly cold. After so many years of sunshine, Harrison got a shock. He acted as if he had never lived in England before. In the end, it was more than he could bear. He had hardly had time to settle down when he sold the house and left the country. The dream he had had for so many years ended there. Harrison had thought of everything except the weather.

New words and expressions 生词和短语

except  prep. 除了
Mediterranean  n. 地中海
complain  v. 抱怨
continually  adv. 不断地
bitterly  adv. 刺骨地
sunshine  n. 阳光

参考译文

    我的老朋友哈里森在回到英国以前曾多年居住在地中海地区。过去他常幻想退休后到英国，并计划在乡间安顿下来。他刚一回到英国便买下了一幢房子住了进去。但紧接着他就开始抱怨那里的天气了。因为即使那时仍为夏季，但雨总是下个不停，而且常常冷得厉害。在阳光下生活了那么多年的哈里森对此感到惊奇。他的举动就好像他从未在英国生活过一样。最后，他再也忍受不住，还没等安顿下来就卖掉了房子，离开了这个国家。他多年来的幻想从此破灭。哈里森把每件事情都考虑到了，唯独没想到天气。

               Lesson 39
            Am I all right?
              我是否痊愈？

    First listen and then answer the question.
    听录音，然后回答以下问题。
    Why did Mr. Gilbert telephone Dr. Millington?

    While John Gilbert was in hospital, he asked his doctor to tell him whether his operation had been successful, but the doctor refused to do so. The following day, the patient asked for a bedside telephone. When he was alone, he telephoned the hospital exchange and asked for Doctor Millington. When the doctor answered the phone, Mr. Gilbert said he was inquiring about a certain patient, a Mr. John Gilbert. He asked if Mr. Gilbert's operation had been successful and the doctor told him that it had been. He then asked when Mr. Gilbert would be allowed to go home and the doctor told him that he would have to stay in hosptial for another two weeks. Then Dr. Millington asked the caller if he was a relative of the patient. 'No,' the patient answered, 'I am Mr. John Gilbert.'

New words and expressions 生词和短语

operation  n. 手术
successful  adj. 成功的
following  adj. 下一个
patient  n. 病人
alone  adj. 独自的
exchange  n. （电话的）交换台
inquire  v. 询问，打听
certain  adj. 某个
caller  n. 打电话的人
relative  n. 亲戚

参考译文

    当约翰.吉尔伯特住院的时候，他问医生他的手术是否成功，但医生拒绝告诉他。第二天，这位病人要了一部床头电话。当房里只剩他一个人时，他挂通了医院的交换台，要求与米灵顿医生讲话。当这位医生接过电话时，吉尔伯特先生说他想询问一个病人的情况，是一位名叫约翰.吉尔伯特的先生。他问吉尔伯特先生的手术中否成功，医生告诉他手术很成功。然后他又问吉尔伯特先生什么时候可以回家，医生说他在医院还必须再住上两个星期。之后，米灵顿医生问打电话的人是否是病人的亲属。“不是，”病人回答说，“我就是约翰.吉尔伯特先生。”

               Lesson 40
             Food and talk
               进餐与交谈

    First listen and then answer the question.
    听录音，然后回答以下问题。
    Was Mrs. Rumbold a good companion at dinner?

    Last week at a dinner party, the hostess asked me to sit next to Mrs. Rumbold. Mrs. Rumbold was a large, unsmiling lady in a tight black dress. She did not even look up when I took my seat beside her. Her eyes were fixed on her plate and in a short time, she was busy eating. I tried to make conversation.
    'A new play is coming to "The Globe" soon,' I said. 'Will you be seeing it?'
    'No,' she answered.