VOA标准英语2010年-Christmas Tree Rises In New York

America's Thanksgiving holiday is nearly two weeks away, but there are already some signs that the Christmas season is here. That was the impression at New York's Rockefeller Center on Friday as workers carefully put in place and secured a 22 meter tall Norway Spruce tree that, when illuminated², will serve as one of the Big Apple's most recognizable and beloved holiday icons³. Amid a press of tourists, curious passersby⁴ and TV crews from nearly a dozen media outlets⁵, a somewhere tired looking construction worker gazed up at a giant crane that has just put this year's Rockefeller Center Christmas tree more or less upright. He wiped the sweat from his brow, and gave a status report on the tree, which is as yet unadorned with the 30,000 glittering lights and giant crystal star that will illuminate¹ it on November 30. "It will be stood up and secured with four cables today, All the scaffolding will go up. Monday we'll start decorating and putting the lights on, getting ready for the lighting," he said.
Soon rather than later is just fine with Steve, a native New Yorker who stood nearby looking up at the tree and grinning. "I think it smart to put it up early so it's up and decorated and beautiful for the holidays... It wouldn't be Christmas without seeing the tree in the middle of Rockefeller Center. . It's part of New York's culture," he said.
But the tree isn't just for New Yorkers. For Rick and Jessica, two twenty-somethings from Bloomington Indiana, it will be a highlight of a whirlwind tour of New York that will also include Times Square, the Empire State Building, and two Broadways shows. "Of course, it's Rockefeller Center so we had to come by. And we happen to be here when the tree is coming up so that's pretty cool. Its' one of those things you hear about. You see it on the TV, you see it on the news, whenever anyone is trying to make the Christmas spirit, they are probably going to reference or show the tree. It's about the most iconic thing you can get, yeah! Actually, a good friend of mine who went to Fordham came with his wife last year, and they did the walk around here and he proposed in this area right around the tree. So it's very much iconic," said Rick.
For Carol and Noel from Palm Springs, California, it was neither luck, nor the sheer size of the tree that got them to this spot. "We smelled the pine needles. It was beautiful," said Noel. "We picked the perfect time to come. We didn't even think it would be here yet. And I hope after decorating it kinds of brings down the branches. It looks like it kind of warped⁶ for a while in wrappings," added Carol.
For Peter Acton, a firefighter and his family, this day is an emotional one. The tree grew and was felled on their land in rural New York State. "The tree was from our house. It was growing there for over 70 years. It was part of our house. We've picnicked under it. We've enjoyed it so much, and now New York and the rest of the world will get to enjoy it as much as we have hopefully," he said.
For both Peter and his 11-year-old son Seamus, the fact that agents of Rockefeller Center found the tree on September 11th 2010 is also highly significant.
"It's tough to talk about but it's a little glimmer⁷ of hope in the healing process to bring my family a little bit closer and hopefully bring my family and the whole world a little closer too," said Peter.
"And it's like a gift from us to the city. I just feel relieved that it's over with and no more people have to come to our house because they make a mess so... I just want to get back to being a regular person," added Seamus. A comment true both to the joyful⁸ spirit of the upcoming Christmas season, and what for many will be its inevitable⁹ exhausted¹⁰ aftermath.

1 illuminate   

vt.照亮，照明；用灯光装饰；说明，阐释

参考例句：

• Dreams kindle a flame to illuminate our dark roads.梦想点燃火炬照亮我们黑暗的道路。
• They use games and drawings to illuminate their subject.他们用游戏和图画来阐明他们的主题。

2 illuminated   

adj.被照明的；受启迪的

参考例句：

• Floodlights illuminated the stadium. 泛光灯照亮了体育场。
• the illuminated city at night 夜幕中万家灯火的城市

3 icons   

n.偶像( icon的名词复数 )；（计算机屏幕上表示命令、程序的）符号，图像

参考例句：

• Distinguish important text items in lists with graphic icons. 用图标来区分重要的文本项。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
• Daemonic icons should only be employed persistently if they provide continuous, useful status information. 只有会连续地提供有用状态信息的情况下，后台应用程序才应该一直使用图标。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

4 passersby   

n. 过路人(行人,经过者)

参考例句：

• He had terrorized Oxford Street,where passersby had seen only his footprints. 他曾使牛津街笼罩了一片恐怖气氛，因为那儿的行人只能看到他的脚印，看不到他的人。 来自英汉 - 翻译样例 - 文学
• A person is marceling on a street, watching passersby passing. 街边烫发者打量着匆匆行人。

5 outlets   

n.出口( outlet的名词复数 )；经销店；插座；廉价经销店

参考例句：

• The dumping of foreign cotton blocked outlets for locally grown cotton. 外国棉花的倾销阻滞了当地生产的棉花的销路。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• They must find outlets for their products. 他们必须为自己的产品寻找出路。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

6 warped   

adj.反常的；乖戾的；（变）弯曲的；变形的v.弄弯，变歪( warp的过去式和过去分词 )；使（行为等）不合情理，使乖戾，

参考例句：

• a warped sense of humour 畸形的幽默感
• The board has warped. 木板翘了。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

7 glimmer   

v.发出闪烁的微光；n.微光，微弱的闪光

参考例句：

• I looked at her and felt a glimmer of hope.我注视她，感到了一线希望。
• A glimmer of amusement showed in her eyes.她的眼中露出一丝笑意。

8 joyful   

adj.欢乐的，令人欢欣的

参考例句：

• She was joyful of her good result of the scientific experiments.她为自己的科学实验取得好成果而高兴。
• They were singing and dancing to celebrate this joyful occasion.他们唱着、跳着庆祝这令人欢乐的时刻。

9 inevitable   

adj.不可避免的，必然发生的

参考例句：

• Mary was wearing her inevitable large hat.玛丽戴着她总是戴的那顶大帽子。
• The defeat had inevitable consequences for British policy.战败对英国政策不可避免地产生了影响。

10 exhausted   

adj.极其疲惫的，精疲力尽的

参考例句：

• It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长，到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
• Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。