英语博客：Nik Wallenda's wife.

 　　Well, you've probably all heard about Nik Walenda, the man who recently walked 1,500 ft above the Gran Canyon¹ on a two inch thick wire, with no protection, and no net. I watched him 'live' as he took every step, and every breath. I actually found myself(1) holding my breath while he walked and balanced and prayed. Judging by(2) his facial expression, he was more relaxed than I was. I was so nervous; my hands were sweaty, and my fingers were tingling². And then I remembered to breathe. "Oh, that's right. He's doing it, not me." It was too much for any normal person to see comfortably. And the "Thank you Jesus", and "Halleluyah" that he repeated, which I'm sure helped his performance, made it worse for me, because I kept on(3) imagining one of those Halleluyahs turning into a "Halleluyah!" His wife and three children and a group of friends and family were watching him from the other side of the Canyon. I couldn't decide if that was good or bad. Of course his family wanted to support him by being there(4), but what about them? What if he f-e-l-l in front of them? What a tragic³ and bizarre situation that would be for his kids. What would they do? Gasp⁴, and then call out a quick, "Bye!" But, Nik Walenda is good. Infact, he's spectacular. He is 7th generation of a family of tightrope⁵ walkers, so as he says, "It's in my blood." I bet his wife wishes that accounting⁶ was in his blood instead. Imagine the sleepless⁷ nights that she has experienced, the nerves, and the stress. She must be a woman of steel, and unusual patience. He's done the same across the Niagara Falls, and plans to walk between two skyscrapers⁸ in New York. He is brave, focused, and determined⁹. And he's now a bit of a national hero. But my hat goes off to(5) his wife. Most husbands come home and talk about what went on at the office. He comes home and talks about how much he wobbled(6) in practice. She's the one who I'd love to interview. What does she do to relieve stress? Does she have any hobbies? Is she an extreme knitter? If she is, her house must be full of the most amazing sweaters and socks. Maybe it's her knitting that drives(7) Nik Walenda to get as high up and far away as possible. Ok, I'm being strange and random¹⁰. But, don't you think that crossing the Gran Canyon at 1,500 ft is strange and random? Add to that a wife and children. How does that all work? Well, even though I don't understand how extreme tightrope walking and a family can work well together, it does seem to. And I think it all works because of the wife. She is like the Gran Canyon, solid as a rock, and her patience just as big. As they say here in the U.S, "He owes her big time!"

　　1. 'To find oneself' + gerund is a common expression in English. It implies that you started doing something almost unconsciously or that some emotion or instinct pushed you into doing it.

　　a. She found herself agreeing with everything he said because he was so handsome.

　　b. He found himself washing his car. It was a habit; he always did it on Sunday's.

　　2. 'Judging by' speaks for itself really. It is like a comment on what you hear or see, and then a conclusion follows.

　　a. Judging by his tone of voice, he was not please at all.

　　b. Judging by their lazy attitude, the project won't be finished on time.

　　3. 'I kept on imagining' to keep on + gerund is the same as 'to continue + gerund'.

　　a. He kept on golfing even though it was raining hard.

　　b. They kept on interrupting while we were talking.

　　4. 'To support someone by + gerund'

　　a. We support them by donating every month.

　　b. They support the arts by giving talks in schools.

　　5. 'My hat goes off to' means I honour/ respect/ look up to/celebrate.

　　a. My hat goes off to the second place runner who had a knee injury.

　　b. Our hats go off to the even organizers who did such a great job.

　　6. 'To wobble' is to move in an unbalanced way.

　　a. The gymnist walked across the wooden beam and didn't wobble at all.

　　b. That ornament¹¹ wobbles each time someone walks in the room.

　　7. 'To drive someone to do something' means that a person is emotionally forced into a situation.

　　a. My noisy neighbors have driven me to talk to the police about them.

　　b. His bad behavior drove them to leave early.

　　Join me on FACEBOOK at Anna Fromacupofenglish; you're all welcome. Need the app? It's available in iTunes called A Cup Of English.

1 canyon   

n.峡谷，溪谷

参考例句：

• The Grand Canyon in the USA is 1900 metres deep.美国的大峡谷1900米深。
• The canyon is famous for producing echoes.这个峡谷以回声而闻名。

2 tingling   

v.有刺痛感( tingle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• My ears are tingling [humming; ringing; singing]. 我耳鸣。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• My tongue is tingling. 舌头发麻。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

3 tragic   

adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的

参考例句：

• The effect of the pollution on the beaches is absolutely tragic.污染海滩后果可悲。
• Charles was a man doomed to tragic issues.查理是个注定不得善终的人。

4 gasp   

n.喘息，气喘；v.喘息；气吁吁他说

参考例句：

• She gave a gasp of surprise.她吃惊得大口喘气。
• The enemy are at their last gasp.敌人在做垂死的挣扎。

5 tightrope   

n.绷紧的绳索或钢丝

参考例句：

• The audience held their breath as the acrobat walked along the tightrope.杂技演员走钢丝时，观众都屏住了呼吸。
• The tightrope walker kept her balance by holding up an umbrella.走钢丝的演员举着一把伞，保持身体的均衡。

6 accounting   

n.会计，会计学，借贷对照表

参考例句：

• A job fell vacant in the accounting department.财会部出现了一个空缺。
• There's an accounting error in this entry.这笔账目里有差错。

7 sleepless   

adj.不睡眠的，睡不著的，不休息的

参考例句：

• The situation gave her many sleepless nights.这种情况害她一连好多天睡不好觉。
• One evening I heard a tale that rendered me sleepless for nights.一天晚上，我听说了一个传闻，把我搞得一连几夜都不能入睡。

8 skyscrapers   

n.摩天大楼

参考例句：

• A lot of skyscrapers in Manhattan are rising up to the skies. 曼哈顿有许多摩天大楼耸入云霄。
• On all sides, skyscrapers rose like jagged teeth. 四周耸起的摩天大楼参差不齐。

9 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

10 random   

adj.随机的；任意的；n.偶然的(或随便的)行动

参考例句：

• The list is arranged in a random order.名单排列不分先后。
• On random inspection the meat was found to be bad.经抽查，发现肉变质了。

11 ornament   

v.装饰，美化；n.装饰，装饰物

参考例句：

• The flowers were put on the table for ornament.花放在桌子上做装饰用。
• She wears a crystal ornament on her chest.她的前胸戴了一个水晶饰品。