Michael Chugani 褚簡寧 - to know something like the back of your hand|又中又英

Manhattan in New York City is a lively place with many things to do. There are restaurants that serve American, Italian, Chinese, Greek, Mexican, Indian, Japanese, and even Afghan food. Pizza and burger restaurants are plentiful. Central Park is huge, with lakes and ponds where people can row boats, bicycle lanes, and playgrounds for children. I can walk to one of the many entrances from my apartment in 15 minutes. The four-mile long Riverside Park, which faces the Hudson River, is ten minutes away by walking. Mid-town Manhattan has many live Broadway shows. Harry Potter, The Lion King, Phantom of the Opera, and MJ, which is the life story of Michael Jackson, are some of the live shows now on Broadway.

Even though there are so many things to do, Manhattan can be a lonely place if you are all by yourself. I live alone in my younger brother's apartment. He and his wife live in Delaware. Over the past few months I have become increasingly bored and lonely. I have just one friend in Manhattan but he is in poor health and seldom goes out. I have been to Central Park and Riverside Park so many times that I know them like the back of my hand. To know something like the back of your hand means to know it completely.

I know all the different parts of Central Park and Riverside Park because I go for long walks in one or the other daily. That's why both parks are getting a little boring for me. To escape boredom I watch Netflix every evening. In one movie about a court case someone used the expression “open and shut case”. An open and shut case is a court case that is very simple and likely to be decided very quickly. If you admit to punching someone in the face, the judge can quickly decide if you should go to jail or be fined. The expression can also be used to describe a problem that can be solved easily.

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 紐約市的曼哈頓是個充滿活力的地方,有很多事情可以做。這裏的餐廳有美國、意大利、中國、希臘、墨西哥、印度、日本甚至阿富汗的菜餚。賣薄餅和漢堡包的餐廳非常多。中央公園偌大,還有湖泊池塘供人划船,又有單車徑和兒童遊樂場。從我住的單位走到公園的其中一個入口,才不過十五分鐘。走十分鐘,就可到達那全長四英里的河濱公園,它面向哈德遜河。曼哈頓中城有許多百老滙音樂劇在上演。《哈利波特》、《獅子王》、《歌聲魅影》,以及《MJ》,演的是米高‧積遜的生平事迹——這些都是現正於百老滙上演,芸芸音樂劇中的一些。

雖然曼哈頓有許多事情可做,但若你是獨自一人,它仍可以是個寂寞的地方。我現在在我弟弟的單位裏一個人住。他和他太太在特拉華州居住。過去幾個月,我愈發感到沉悶和寂寞。在曼哈頓我只有一個朋友,但他健康欠佳,很少外出。中央公園和河濱公園我已到過無數遍,次數多得我know them like the back of my hand——to know something like the back of your hand是對某事物瞭如指掌。

我熟知中央公園與河濱公園的各個部份,因為我每天不是去這個就是去另一個,散長長的步。因此對我來說這兩個公園亦開始變得有點乏味了。為了排遣無聊沉悶的心情,我每晚都會觀看Netflix。在一套關於一單官司的電影裏,有人用上習語“open and shut case”。An open and shut case是指一宗很單純、看來亦很快可以裁決的案件。若你承認你拳打某人的臉,法官可以很快決定你要入獄還是判罰款。這個習語也可以用來形容一個問題很容易解決。
中譯:七刻
Michael Chugani 褚簡寧
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