2-25

 

25.

I went with JLP to Kensington Palace for a cocktail¹ with General Dannatt.

As we knocked at the door to the general’s apartment I felt jumpier than I had when leavingfor war.

The general and his wife, Pippa, greeted us warmly, congratulated me on my service.

I smiled, but then frowned. Yes, they said. They were sorry about my deployment² being cutshort.

The press—they ruin everything, don’t they?

They do, they surely do.

The general poured me a gin and tonic³. We gathered in chairs, a sitting area, and I took a biggulp and felt the gin go down and blurted⁴ that I needed to get back. I needed to do a full andproper tour.

The general stared. Oh. I see. Well, if that’s the case…He began thinking aloud, running through different options, analyzing⁵ all the politics andramifications of each.

What about…becoming a helicopter pilot?

Wow. I leaned back. Hadn’t ever considered that. Maybe because Willy and my father—andGrandpa and Uncle Andrew—were pilots. I was always keen on following my own line, doing myown thing, but General Dannatt said this would be the best way. The only way. I’d be safer, so tospeak, above the fray⁶, among the clouds. So would everyone else serving with me. Even if thepress were to find out I’d gone back to Afghanistan, even if they did something stupid again—even when they did something stupid again—so what? The Taliban might know where I was, butgood luck to them tracking me in the air.

How long until I can qualify as a pilot, General?

About two years.

I shook my head. Too long, sir.

He shrugged⁷. It takes what it takes. And for good reason.

There was a great deal of schoolwork involved, he explained.

Bloody⁸ hell. At every turn, life was determined⁹ to drag me back into a classroom.

I thanked him, told him I’d think about it.

 

1 cocktail   

n.鸡尾酒；餐前开胃小吃；混合物

参考例句：

• We invited some foreign friends for a cocktail party.我们邀请了一些外国朋友参加鸡尾酒会。
• At a cocktail party in Hollywood,I was introduced to Charlie Chaplin.在好莱坞的一次鸡尾酒会上，人家把我介绍给查理·卓别林。

2 deployment   

n. 部署,展开

参考例句：

• He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。

3 tonic   

n./adj.滋补品，补药，强身的，健体的

参考例句：

• It will be marketed as a tonic for the elderly.这将作为老年人滋补品在市场上销售。
• Sea air is Nature's best tonic for mind and body.海上的空气是大自然赋予的对人们身心的最佳补品。

4 blurted   

v.突然说出，脱口而出( blurt的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She blurted it out before I could stop her. 我还没来得及制止，她已脱口而出。
• He blurted out the truth, that he committed the crime. 他不慎说出了真相，说是他犯了那个罪。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 analyzing   

v.分析；分析( analyze的现在分词 )；分解；解释；对…进行心理分析n.分析

参考例句：

• Analyzing the date of some socialist countries presents even greater problem s. 分析某些社会主义国家的统计数据，暴露出的问题甚至更大。 来自辞典例句
• He undoubtedly was not far off the mark in analyzing its predictions. 当然，他对其预测所作的分析倒也八九不离十。 来自辞典例句

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 shrugged   

vt.耸肩（shrug的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• Sam shrugged and said nothing. 萨姆耸耸肩膀，什么也没说。
• She shrugged, feigning nonchalance. 她耸耸肩，装出一副无所谓的样子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 bloody   

adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染

参考例句：

• He got a bloody nose in the fight.他在打斗中被打得鼻子流血。
• He is a bloody fool.他是一个十足的笨蛋。

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。