作者:冰汝
來源:冰汝看美國
文章已獲授權







我的朋友家被大火燒了
小王再次邀請在中國生活了九年,現居華盛頓的資深英語老師馬思瑞馬老師(Chris),根據每篇文章內容分享一些英語常用詞彙,讓大家瞭解英語新聞裡的地道表達,以及一個美國人對當地新聞的真實看法,努力打破資訊差。
01
馬老師有話說
Imagine that the Spring Festival just ended, and you finally return to the city where you live after spending some time with family. All of a sudden, your phone starts blowing up with notifications that you need to evacuate(撤離)…NOW.
想象一下,你剛在老家跟家人一起過完春節,回到了你現在居住的城市。突然間,你手機開始不停地響:你需要馬上撤離……現在就得走!
You pack up some vital things and go stay with a friend nearby. But the next morning, you wake up and hear the news… Your house burned down(燒掉;燒沒). Everything you own, all your memories… gone.
你快速收拾了一些重要的東西,到附近的朋友家住一個晚上。但是第二天早上醒來,你收到資訊…你的房子燒沒了。你擁有的一切、所有的記憶……全都消失了。
Sounds like a nightmare, right? I have tons of friends who live in L.A., and recently, many of them were in harm’s way(身處危險之中). I’ve heard so many heartbreaking(令人心碎的)stories of people driving through flames, desperately trying to save their pets or grab a few personal belongings, navigating around police blockades and downed powerlines—all while holding onto the slim hope that something might be left to salvage.
聽著像個噩夢,對吧?我有很多住在洛杉磯的朋友,最近他們很多人都身處危險之中。我聽到了太多令人心碎的故事:有人開車穿過火海,拼命想要救出寵物或者找回幾件重要物品;有人繞過警察的封鎖線和倒塌的電線,只希望還能挽回點什麼。

(撤離前,我最好的朋友在他家門口拍的照片,兩隻寵物貓也安全帶走了)
My best friend and business partner had been back in L.A. for less than 24 hours before he had to evacuate. The fires were only 3 kilometers from this house. He’s one of the lucky ones. The wind changed directions, and his house was saved.
我合夥人,也是我最好的朋友剛回到洛杉磯不到24小時就不得不撤離了。那場大火離他房子只有3公里遠。不過他算是幸運的那些人,風向變了,他房子保住了。
But remember the Spring Festival hypothetical? That’s what happened to two of my friends who lived in Altadena. They lost their home and, tragically(悲劇的是), everything they owned.
不過你還記得剛剛的春節假設嗎?這正是我的兩個住在阿爾塔迪納的朋友所經歷的悲劇。他們失去了家,他們所有的財產都沒了。

(我朋友第二天回阿爾塔迪納看看房子的情況)
You’ve probably seen pictures or videos of celebrities’ homes, but that’s just part of the picture. A significant number of those who lost their homes were working-class families.
那你可能看過一些關於名人豪宅的照片或影片,但那只是冰山一角。事實上,失去房子的人中有相當一部分是普通上班組的家庭。
My friends just bought their house a few years ago, and now they face the impossible burden of paying a mortgage(房屋貸款) and property taxes on a home that no longer exists. They also have to rent somewhere to live now—essentially doubling their housing costs.
我那兩個朋友幾年前才剛買的房子,而他們現在不得不面對的現實是:為一座不再存在的房子還貸款、繳房產稅。同時,他們還得租房子住,就相當於他們住房的支出基本上翻了一倍。
What’s crazy is that they’re actually some of the lucky people. They have fire insurance(火災保險), whereas many other homeowners recently lost it and might not have had coverage lately.
更離譜的是,他們其實算是幸運的,因為他們有火災保險。而最近有很多其他房主卻摸莫名其妙失去了保險,可能根本沒有任何保障。
My friends will supposedly(據說;按理說) get money from insurance, but it might be 3 or 4 years before their house is rebuilt. Wealthier homeowners can pay a lot more money, so construction companies are going to be very busy building homes for the rich. Normal people can’t compete against(與…競爭) the Hollywood elite, so they’re stuck at the back of the line.
我的朋友據說會從保險公司那兒拿到賠償,但他們的房子可能得等三四年才能重建。那些更富有的房主可以花更多錢,因此開發商會優先為這些有錢人建房子。普通人沒辦法跟好萊塢的精英競爭,只能排在隊尾。
Many people might have already been struggling tomake ends meet(維持生計). And the true impact of this all is hard to describe in this short article. For many people I know, and even more that we don’t know, their lives will never be the same.
很多這些人本來就已經在為生計發愁。這一切的真正影響,這麼短的文章根本無法完全描述。對我認識的許多人來說,以及更多我們不認識的人,他們這輩子會徹底改變了。

