世界节假日博览 第66期:无家务日

 No Housework Day is one of those days you see on calendars on the Internet but don’t know where it came from. It is always on April 7th. It is one day of the year when it is OK to do nothing in the house. Everybody has the day off from doing the household chores. It’s OK to let the dishes and washing pile up; it’s no problem to let another layer of dust settle on top of the TV; and it’s absolutely fine to leave the vacuum¹ cleaner in its corner for the day. And as for cooking, make sure you have a home-delivery phone number handy². Or even better, get yourself off to a restaurant. This is also a good day for those who never do anything around the house, who never lift a finger, to appreciate those who do the housework.

在互联网日历中，我们能够看到“无家务日”，但却不知道它的来源。每年的4月7日为“无家务日”。在每年的这一天里，我们可以在家“无所事事”。所有人都可以不做家务。让碗筷堆积如山；电视上再多一层灰也没有问题；角落里的吸尘器可以不用工作了。至于做饭，记得要把送餐电话准备好。下馆子更好。对于那些从不做家务的人来说，我们也可以在这一天感谢他人的辛勤劳动。

What is housework, exactly? If you never do it, you probably never think about this. It is a lot of hard work and someone does it every single day. It starts while the rest of the house is still asleep. Next time you wake up, listen to see if you can hear the washing machine working or smell the coffee machine. It happens while you are still trying to open your eyes at the breakfast table. Then while you are at school or work, the breakfast dishes are magically cleaned, the tables wiped and the dishes all put in their place. You come home from school or work and the bath is clean, again. Your shirts are washed, ironed, and hanging in your closet, again. The toothpaste tube in the bathroom is never empty. Who does all this invisible³ housework?

到底什么是家务？如果你从不干家务，你也许从来不会思考这一问题。家务指的每天需要做的体力活。天不亮就有人起来干活了。下次醒来后，看看你是否能够听到洗衣机的声音，或是咖啡机的香味。在你睡意惺忪的早餐时间，这些工作就已经开始了。我们上班上学，早餐盘子神奇般地变干净了，桌子擦过了，盘子放回了原位。放学下班回家，浴缸干净如新。衣服洗净熨平，又一次放在了你的壁橱中。从来不会出现浴室没有牙膏的情况。是谁做了这些家务？

1.household chore 家务活

例句：He is doing household chores.

他正在做家务.

2.pile up 堆积

例句：Mail was still piling up at the office.

办公室里的邮件仍在往上堆。

3.vacuum cleaner 真空吸尘器

例句：The Marshal⁴ stepped over the vacuum-cleaner and stumped⁵ out of the room.

元帅迈过真空吸尘器，脚步沉重地走出了房间。

4.washing machine 洗衣机

例句：Her washing machine tends to fray⁶ edges on intricate⁷ designs.

她的洗衣机经常会把织物上的一些复杂图案的边缘磨坏。

1 vacuum   

n.真空，空间，真空吸尘器；adj.真空的，产生(利用)真空的；v.用吸尘器打扫

参考例句：

• Sound waves will not travel through a vacuum.声波在真空里不能传播。
• He sells vacuum cleaners.他经销真空吸尘器。

2 handy   

adj.方便的；手边的，近便的；手巧的

参考例句：

• A few more traveler's checks may come in handy on holiday.多带几张旅行支票，度假时会有用的。
• She is a handy girl who can turn her hand to anything.她是个心灵手巧的姑娘。

3 invisible   

adj.看不见的，无形的

参考例句：

• The air is full of millions of invisible germs.空气中充满了许多看不见的细菌。
• Many stars are invisible without a telescope.许多星辰不用望远镜便看不见。

4 marshal   

n.元帅，总指挥，（美）执法官；vt.整理，集结

参考例句：

• The oldest general was appointed marshal of the armies.资格最老的将军被任命为军队的元帅。
• Marshal your arguments before debating.辩论前整理一下你的论点。

5 stumped   

僵直地行走，跺步行走( stump的过去式和过去分词 )； 把（某人）难住； 使为难； （选举前）在某一地区作政治性巡回演说

参考例句：

• Jack huffed himself up and stumped out of the room. 杰克气喘吁吁地干完活，然后很艰难地走出房间。
• He was stumped by the questions and remained tongue-tied for a good while. 他被问得张口结舌，半天说不出话来。

6 fray   

v.争吵；打斗；磨损，磨破；n.吵架；打斗

参考例句：

• Why should you get involved in their fray?你为什么要介入他们的争吵呢？
• Tempers began to fray in the hot weather.大热天脾气烦燥。

7 intricate   

adj.错综复杂的，复杂精细的

参考例句：

• We were able to thread but slowly through the intricate reports.我们能弄懂这些复杂的报告，只是很慢。
• The plot of the novel is intricate and fascinating.这部小说的情节错综复杂，引人入胜。