【英语时差8,16】父母反对子女旅游计划

Dear Annie:

I am in my early 30s with a small child. I recently went through some hard times and moved back home with my parents. I have never asked my parents for money. I work two jobs and have put a little away in savings¹. I'd like to take a small vacation. The only major expense would be the airfare, and I have enough for that.

My parents are completely against the trip. They feel I would not be able to afford the airfare if they hadn't been helping² me for the last few months. I agree, but on the other hand, I need a little time with friends to relax and just have a good time. I'm an adult. Can my parents still treat me as a child? － Tired in OmahaDear Tired:

When adult children live at home, parents are prone³ to treat them as children. Your parents want you to save enough to have your own place and need to know their efforts to help you are not being frittered away on less-than-necessary things. They also may not want to baby-sit for your child while you are away, in which case you should make other arrangements. Thank your parents for their concern and say you need a break from your two-job routine so you can come back refreshed and productive⁴.

hard times   缺钱；遇到瓶颈savings  (n.)   存款；储蓄expense  (n.)   支出；费用airfare  (n.)   搭飞机的费用to afford  (v.)   付得起；负担得起on the other hand   然而；另一方面来说to be prone to   易于；有…的倾向to fritter away   浪费；消耗to baby-sit   充当临时保姆；照顾小孩productive  (adj.)   有生产力的；多产的

1 savings   

n.存款，储蓄

参考例句：

• I can't afford the vacation,for it would eat up my savings.我度不起假，那样会把我的积蓄用光的。
• By this time he had used up all his savings.到这时，他的存款已全部用完。

2 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

3 prone   

adj.(to)易于…的，很可能…的；俯卧的

参考例句：

• Some people are prone to jump to hasty conclusions.有些人往往作出轻率的结论。
• He is prone to lose his temper when people disagree with him.人家一不同意他的意见,他就发脾气。

4 productive   

adj.能生产的，有生产价值的，多产的

参考例句：

• We had a productive meeting that solved some problems.我们开了一个富有成效的会议，解决了一些问题。
• Science and technology are part of the productive forces.科学技术是生产力。