英语听力精选进阶版 6318（在线收听）

Have you ever had a troubling problem that has left you wondering where to turn for help?

Eve Hobsbawm is a life counsellor. She offers advice to people struggling with all kinds of dilemmas, from relationship difficulties to what to cook for dinner.

She does this through a website inviting people to email her with their queries and quandaries. There's nothing unusual about that... except for the fact that Eve is only eight years old.

This junior trouble-shooter, who also goes by the name 'Miss Evie Mouse', lives in London with her parents. Not only is Miss Mouse willing to lend an ear to her clients, she will also offer them a helping hand... for a fee of course.

She charges between 10p (1 yuan) for advice on little, everyday worries and ￡1 (10 yuan) for thornier problems. Her areas of expertise - if not of experience - are: "Problems about love, life and work-life balance."

A problem shared is a problem halved, but Eve can't always help. A note on the site states that she can't answer questions like "Does space ever end?" and she won't solve "schoolwork-related problems (especially not maths)."

She explained to the Guardian newspaper that she was inspired to set up the company by her father who runs a tech start-up. Eve said: "As soon as I saw his business and understood the kinds of things businesses do, I thought that's what I'm going to do."

But since setting up her company in December she has been so overwhelmed with messages that she has had to take a step back. "There has been a lot of sudden interest in my site, which is nice," she says, "but I need to do my homework too, so I won't be solving any more problems for a bit."

Quiz 测验

How old is Eve?

Eight years old.

Is this statement true, false, or not given? Eve has been running her problem-solving company for many years.

False: She set up the problem-solving company in December.

Does Eve offer to solve all problems?

No. Eve doesn't promise help for all problems. A note on the site states that she can't answer questions like "Does space ever end?" and she won't solve "schoolwork-related problems (especially not maths)."

Look at the article. Can you see a word that means 'more difficult'?

Thornier.

Look at the article. What idiom relating to problems uses the language of fractions?

A problem shared is a problem halved.

Glossary 词汇表

troubling 令人烦恼的

where to turn for help 到哪里求救？

a life counsellor 人生顾问

to offer (someone) advice 提供咨询

to struggle 挣扎

a dilemma （进退两难的）窘境

a query 提问

a quandary 左右为难的情况

a trouble-shooter 能解决问题的人

to lend (someone) an ear 聆听他人的问题

to offer (someone) a helping hand 助人一臂之力

thornier 多刺的，此处形容棘手的

work-life balance 工作生活平衡

a problem shared is a problem halved （成语）跟人说了，问题就解决了一半。

inspired 受鼓舞

a tech start-up 一个新创科技公司

to be overwhelmed 被淹没，使之难以承受