美国之音《流行美语》 352

　　李华和Larry要去听演唱会。今天我们要学两个常用语：run-of-the-mill和roll the dice¹。
LH: Larry，今天晚上的演唱会好听么？那个乐队是什么类型的啊？
L: Well ... they're kind of hard to describe. Their music is a mixture of many different styles.
LH: 各种音乐的混合？听着很有新意！ 现在很多乐队都没有自己的风格，跟别的乐队差不多，没意思。
L: I totally agree, Lihua. Luckily, they are not just some run-of-the-mill rock band.
LH: Run of the mill? 是什么意思？
L: When you say that something is run-of-the-mill, that means that it is very average, or just like all the others.
LH: 哦，run-of-the-mill就是没特色的，千篇一律的。你的意思是，这个乐队并不是那种毫无特色的乐队。
L: Exactly! For example, the makers² of Avatar said it would not be just another run-of-the-mill action movie, and would be like nothing anyone had seen before.
LH: 对，电影“阿凡达”当初宣传的时候，就说自己是非同寻常的，观众从没看过的新类型电影。对了，Larry， 这个乐队我怎么从没听说过啊？
L: Well, they still aren't very well known, so only music magazines write about them. You won't read about them in the standard, run-of-the-mill newspapers.
LH: 哦，主流媒体没报道他们，只有在比较专业的音乐杂志上才会看到关于他们的介绍。Larry, 我有点饿，咱们去演唱会前是不是先吃点东西？
L: Sure, where do you want to eat?
LH: 不知道......麦当劳吧！
L: McDonalds? I don't want to eat at some run-of-the-mill fast food restaurant.
LH: 可是演唱会还有半个小时就开始了。吃麦当劳快啊。
L: Don't worry, we can be a little late. I think the opening band is just some run-of-the-mill pop band.
LH: 你是说，负责暖场的乐队没什么特色，不看也没关系。那咱们去吃寿司吧。
L: Sounds good! Let's go.
*****
Larry and 李华在谈论刚结束的演唱会。
LH: Larry, 这个乐队太棒了！ 他们肯定会红！
L: Do you think so? It takes a lot of luck to become a famous band. There is a lot of competition out there.
LH: 你说得也对。不过要想成名，就得努力抓住机会，试试看嘛！
L: Right, even though the chances aren't very good, sometimes you just have to roll the dice.
LH: Roll the dice? 你是说掷骰子么？
L: Right. When you roll the dice, that means that you take a chance, just like when you make a bet gambling³.
LH: 哦，roll the dice和掷骰子一样，表示碰碰运气！ 你是说，虽然很多乐队最终红不了，但是想出名的人还是应该碰碰运气，说不定就能成功？
L: Exactly. Here's another example. Terrence wasn't sure he would like living in New York, but he decided⁴ to roll the dice and move there anyway.
LH: 哦，Terrence并不知道自己会不会喜欢纽约，不过他还是决定先搬过去，住住试试。Larry, 如果是你，你想住在什么地方？
L: Definitely Hawaii! I'm not sure that I could find a job there, but it's such a beautiful place that sometimes I think it's worth rolling the dice.
LH: 哈哈，即使冒着找不到工作的危险，你也想搬去夏威夷？我和你不一样，我想去罗马，而且我肯定能有工作，我要去当意大利菜大厨！
L: Wow, that is definitely a roll of the dice. You don't know how to cook Italian food!
LH: A roll of the dice? 你是说我希望渺茫？我不管，不会可以学嘛！对了，说到意大利菜，咱们去你家附近那个餐馆吃点宵夜吧。
L: I don't know ... I read in the newspaper that it's just boring, run-of-the-mill Italian food.
LH: 别听报纸的，咱们自己试试去！
L: Well alright, let's roll the dice and see what happens.
LH: 好！ 吃完了咱们再去看个午夜场电影！ 最近有什么好片么？
L: I'm not sure ... Let's just roll the dice. We'll just go to the theater and watch whatever movie happens to be playing.
LH: 这样也不错！ 走吧！
今天李华学了两个常用语。一个是run-of-the-mill, 表示没有特色，千篇一律。另一是roll the dice, 意思是碰运气。

1 dice   

n.骰子；vt.把（食物）切成小方块，冒险

参考例句：

• They were playing dice.他们在玩掷骰子游戏。
• A dice is a cube.骰子是立方体。

2 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 gambling   

n.赌博；投机

参考例句：

• They have won a lot of money through gambling.他们赌博赢了很多钱。
• The men have been gambling away all night.那些人赌了整整一夜。

4 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。