英语博客：The best bargains at Ross.

　　Do you like to shop? I actually do not like to at all. I always find that I am in a hurry, I don't enjoy looking through aisles² and aisles of clothes for just one piece that I like, and I get impatient when I have to wait in line. But, one thing makes a very big difference. If I can find a good bargain, then I am a happy camper. That means that I am quite content to do the shopping 'thing', just like everybody else. There is a place just over the river from here called Ross. It is one of a chain of clothing and houseware stores that sells new items for incredible bargains. But, how is that possible? As far as I know, the store buys out of season clothes and surplus items from big department stores. Now, I have a hobby of second-hand³ store shopping; getting ridiculously cheap items from stores that sell second-hand items. That is different all together. When you go into one of those places you never know what to expect. You know that you might not find anything suitable at all. You are very unlikely to lose money or feel cheated, because everything is so, so cheap. And, occasionally when you do find something worth buying, it feels like a major achievement. Ross gives a similar experience, but you also know that you are buying something that is brand new; it's never been used. It is brand spanking⁴ new. So, if you do happen to have some time to browse⁵, it is worth making a trip to Ross. I bought a couple of bags worth of tops today, that I threw on in the changing rooms to make sure that everything fit well, and when I got to the check-out till, I had a smile on my face because I had managed to spend very little for what I had bought. "Good deal!" as they say around here.
Grammar notes.
Related vocabulary: a happy camper, the aisle¹, houseware, brand spanking new.
1. I am a happy camper today because I got so many bargains.
2. The clothes store was huge; there were ten aisles of jeans.
3. This is a houseware catalogue. You can find anything that you can think of for your home.
4. His shiny new car is brand spanking new; he bought it an hour ago.

1 aisle   

n.（教堂、教室、戏院等里的）过道，通道

参考例句：

• The aisle was crammed with people.过道上挤满了人。
• The girl ushered me along the aisle to my seat.引座小姐带领我沿着通道到我的座位上去。

2 aisles   

n. (席位间的)通道, 侧廊

参考例句：

• Aisles were added to the original Saxon building in the Norman period. 在诺曼时期，原来的萨克森风格的建筑物都增添了走廊。
• They walked about the Abbey aisles, and presently sat down. 他们走到大教堂的走廊附近，并且很快就坐了下来。

3 second-hand   

adj.用过的，旧的，二手的

参考例句：

• I got this book by chance at a second-hand bookshop.我赶巧在一家旧书店里买到这本书。
• They will put all these second-hand goods up for sale.他们将把这些旧货全部公开出售。

4 spanking   

adj.强烈的，疾行的；n.打屁股

参考例句：

• The boat is spanking along on the river.船在小河疾驶。
• He heard a horse approaching at a spanking trot.他听到一匹马正在疾步驰近。

5 browse   

vi.随意翻阅，浏览；(牛、羊等)吃草

参考例句：

• I had a browse through the books on her shelf.我浏览了一下她书架上的书。
• It is a good idea to browse through it first.最好先通篇浏览一遍。