(单词翻译:单击)
听力文本
It was dinner time at the Wilsons' house. Henry and Susan Wilson and their two children were starting their meal. The food was left from their Thanksgiving dinner two days before. There was turkey soup. There was turkey meat mixed with potatoes and covered with turkey gravy. There were even small pieces of the traditional Thanksgiving bird with the salad greens. Eleven year old Angelina Wilson asked: Are we having turkey ice cream, too? Her father covered his mouth for a second. Then he said: Angelina, have you forgotten that I had no job for a whole year? Now I have work again. You should be very thankful. He did not sound angry, however. Henry Wilson also felt he had eaten enough turkey -- more than enough. Angelina wore her brown hair pulled back into a single braid, and she turned it thoughtfully. She regretted her comment. She regretted it especially because she had planned to ask her parents for something special. She knew that eating put them in good spirits. Then she decided to act on her plan.
I am very sorry I said that about the turkey! But unless I get a new dress, I will not look good for the Christmas Festival. The Festival was the winter holiday celebration of a group she belonged to: the Avalon Girls' Service Club. The city's Avalon neighborhood was large. All the sixth and seventh grade girls from miles around took part. Usually the club members worked hard. They wrote cheerful cards for hospital patients. They cooked meals for the homeless. Or they helped old people with their shopping needs. But the Christmas Festival was different. The Community Center was brightly lit and ready for the big event. The girls wore party clothes. They sang and danced, and many people from the neighborhood came to see them perform. But for this special celebration, Angelina had only a plain gray, wool dress that she had worn to the event last year. And now it was a little too short. Angelina was growing. Her best friend Margo kept saying: My dress is blue, and beautiful. She said the dress was a copy of one designed by Giulio Someone of Rome. Or, was it Paris? Angelina appealed to her parents. I stopped into Forbes Department Store after school the other day. There is the most beautiful red dress there, just my size. Her mother put her fork down. Well, we cannot buy it. We have to be careful. You never know when I might lose MY job. But I have at least some money. Or you could give me the dress for Christmas.
She had earned a little money by staying with her younger brother Louis when her parents went out at night. Angelina, you need to save for much more important things, like books and school clothes. But Mother -- Mr. Wilson intervened. We want to have nice Christmas gifts for both you and your brother, Angelina. You do not want to be selfish, do you? That gave nine-year-old Louis his chance to speak up. Louis always had to get into the action. You just care about you, Angie. You are selfish. Louis, be quiet! Everybody, just you eat your turkey. Angelina turned her braid some more. All hope was not gone. There was a sign in the Forbes store window that said "layaway." She decided that she would return to the store and ask about that. Maybe it was something that could help her. After school the next day, Angelina went directly to the place in the store where girls' clothing was sold. The saleswoman there wore a label on her dress with the name "Mrs. Harding." Angelina asked her what "layaway" meant. Mrs. Harding explained that buyers could choose a dress on layaway and pay just part of the total cost. That part was called a deposit. But the buyer could not take the dress home. The buyer had to return in two weeks to pay the rest of the price. If not, the dress would go back where anyone could buy it. And, the store would keep some of the deposit.
Angelina pulled ten worn dollar bills from her coat pocket. She showed them to the salesperson. This is enough for you to hold 'my' dress for me, right? Yes, it is. But you must come back in two weeks to pay the rest. Or, the store keeps 'your' dress and a little of your first payment. Angelina felt like jumping into the air. She could get the dress on layaway. Angelina was so happy that she told Mrs. Harding about the Avalon Service Club's work and its Christmas party. Mrs. Harding wished her luck. She sounded as if she meant it. Angelina almost floated out of the store. As she left, she saw a sign in one window that she did not read. She supposed it said something about the wonderful layaway plan. Angelina did not tell her parents about the layaway plan, however. She was sure she could earn enough money baby-sitting to pay for the dress. She had stayed with Louis several times, after all. Angelina shook and suffered in the cold December wind as she asked other families in the Avalon neighborhood for work. Could she baby-sit for them? One after another, they said the same things. "We already have a sitter." Or, "It is fine for you to watch bigger kids. But we have a new baby. We need someone older." Seeing the look on her face, most were kind.
Then, happily, Margo's parents decided that Angelina should help Margo's little sister make new clothing for her dolls. It seemed that Margo could not sew very well. Angelina, however, was just excellent at sewing. Sure enough, the dolls' dresses turned out beautifully. Margo's parents paid Angelina twenty dollars. Still, she was far from having enough money for her dress. The days passed way too fast. She felt helpless as the date for her final payment arrived. Angelina did not have enough money for "her" dress. She returned sadly to Forbes' Store. This time, she read the sign in the window. It said, "Going Out of Business in January." When Angelina arrived at the girls department, she again spoke to the saleswoman, Mrs.Harding. I do not have enough money for the dress for the Festival. Then she saw that Mrs. Harding's eyes were red. She looked like she had been crying. Mrs. Harding said: You know, the store is closing. I am losing my job. And I would like to make one of my last sales here to someone who belongs to your service club. You do good work. I would like you to have this dress for your Festival. I will pay the rest of what you owe so you can have it.
Angelina thought how much she wanted the red dress. But she remembered how worried and sad her father had felt during that long, long year when he had no work. She chose her words carefully. That is very good of you, Mrs. Harding. But you will need all your money until you get another job. I know about that. Are you sure? Are you very sure? I meant what I said. Yes, I am very sure. Well, I will pay to return all of the ten-dollar deposit that you left with us. Angelina expressed thanks and closed her hand around the worn dollar bills. I hope you find another job very soon. With that, she said goodbye and ran out of the store into the cold street. Outside, a man who looked like Santa Claus was asking people for money to help poor people. Other people were ringing Christmas bells. Angelina stood still for a moment on the snowy sidewalk. Then, quite suddenly, she gave the man dressed as Santa Claus several dollars. Mrs. Harding is not the only one wants to help other people. Just as suddenly she decided that maybe she would buy some material to add length to her old gray wool dress. And she started to plan how she would sew bright red ribbons along the neckline. Who knew, maybe she could look good at the Festival after all. But, in any event, she would have fun. After all, it was Christmas time. Angelina turned around in the icy December wind and went back inside the store.
重点解析
1.more than 多于；超过
He supervised and trained more than 400 volunteers.
他指导和培训了400多名志愿者。
2.ready for 准备好；预备好
I think he may be ready for a sleep soon.
我想他也许很快就要睡一觉了。
3.at least 起码；最少
He's been away for at least a week.
他走了总有一个星期吧。
4.the rest of 剩下的；剩余的
I hope this is a portent for the rest of the year.
我希望这对今年余下的时间是个兆头。
参考译文
《安吉丽娜的连衣裙》。威尔森家的晚餐时间到了。亨利、苏珊·威尔逊和他们的两个孩子开始吃饭，食物是他们两天前感恩节晚餐留下的。有火鸡汤，火鸡肉和土豆，上面覆盖着火鸡肉汁，甚至还有一小片传统的感恩节火鸡和蔬菜沙拉。11岁的安吉丽娜·威尔逊问：我们也吃火鸡冰淇淋吗？她父亲捂了一下嘴，然后说道：安吉丽娜，你忘了我整整一年没有工作了吗？现在，我又有工作了，你应该非常感激。不过，听起来他并不生气。亨利·威尔逊也觉得他已经吃了足够多的火鸡——有点多。安吉丽娜把棕色的头发向后梳成一条辫子，她若有所思地把头发梳成一条辫子。她后悔自己发表评论，特别后悔，因为她本打算向父母要些特别的东西，她知道吃东西能使他们精神振奋。然后她决定按计划行事。
我很抱歉我说了有关火鸡的事！但是，除非我买了一件新衣服，否则我在圣诞节时就不会好看了。这个节日是她所属的一个团体的寒假庆祝活动：阿瓦隆女孩俱乐部。这个城市的阿瓦隆社区范围很大，周围数英里的六、七年级女生都参加了。通常俱乐部成员工作很努力，他们为住院病人写了令人愉快的卡片，为无家可归的人做饭，或者帮助老人解决购物需求。但圣诞节不同。社区中心灯火通明，准备迎接这一重大的活动。女孩们穿着派对服装，载歌载舞，许多邻居都来观看她们表演。但为了这次特别的庆祝活动，安吉丽娜只有一件她去年参加活动时穿的纯灰色羊毛连衣裙。现在那条裙子有点太短了，安吉丽娜在长个。她最好的朋友玛戈一直说：我的衣服是蓝色的，而且很漂亮。她说，这条裙子是罗马的朱利奥设计的，要么就是巴黎的？安吉丽娜恳求自己的父母。前几天放学后，我去了福布斯百货公司，那有最漂亮的红色连衣裙，正好是我的尺码。她母亲放下叉子。好吧，我们不能买，我们必须小心花钱。你永远不知道我什么时候失业。但我至少有一些钱，或者你可以把这条裙子当圣诞礼物送给我。
父母晚上外出时，她和弟弟路易斯住在一起，挣了一点钱。安吉丽娜，你得为更重要的东西存些钱，比如书本和校服。但是妈妈——威尔逊先生插话了。安吉丽娜，我们想送给你和你哥哥漂亮的圣诞礼物。你不想自私，对吧？这给了九岁的路易斯说话的机会，路易斯总是想参与。你只是关心自己，安吉，你太自私了。路易斯，安静点！所有人，吃你的火鸡。布斯商店橱窗上有一块牌子写着“分期预付”。她决定回店里询问一下，也许这能帮到她。第二天放学后，安吉丽娜直接去了卖女装的那家店铺。那里的女售货员的连衣裙上有一个标签，上面写着“哈丁女士”。安吉丽娜问她“分期付款”是什么意思。哈丁女士解释说，买主可以选择分期付款购买衣服，只需支付总价格的一部分。那部分款项叫押金。但是，买主不能把这件衣服带回家。买主不得不在两周后回来支付剩下的款项，如果不这样做，任何人就都能购买这条裙子。而且，商店会保留一些订金。
安吉丽娜从上衣口袋里掏出十张破旧的美元钞票，把它们交给售货员看。这些钱足够你帮我保留“我的”衣服了，对吧？是的，是的。但你必须在两周后回来付剩下的款项，商店会为你保留衣服，以及你支付的第一笔款项。安吉丽娜想跳到空中，她可以通过分期付款购买这件衣服。安吉丽娜非常高兴，她把阿瓦隆俱乐部的工作和圣诞晚会的事告诉了哈丁夫人。哈丁夫人祝她好运，她听起来好像是认真的。安吉丽娜差点从商店里漂出来，她离开时，看到一扇窗户上有一个之前没看的牌子。她认为，牌子是在解释这种很好的分期付款计划。不过，安吉丽娜没有告诉父母分期付款这件事。她确信自己做保姆，能赚够钱来支付这条裙子的费用。她毕竟和路易斯住过一段日子。安吉丽娜在12月的寒风中感到摇摇晃晃，她向阿瓦隆社区的其他家庭寻求工作，看她能替他们照顾孩子吗？他们一个接一个地说着同样的话，“我们已经有保姆了。”或者，“你可以看大点的孩子，但我们有了一个新婴儿。我们需要一个更年长的保姆。”看到她脸上的表情，大多数人都很友善。
然后，玛尔戈的父母高兴地决定，安吉丽娜应该帮助玛尔戈的妹妹为她的娃娃做些新衣服，玛戈似乎缝得不太好。然而，安吉丽娜只是擅长缝纫。果然，这些洋娃娃的衣服很漂亮。玛尔戈的父母向安吉丽娜支付了20美元。不过，她还远远没有足够的钱购买她的那条裙子。日子过得太快了。最后一笔付款的日期到了，她感到很无助。安吉丽娜没有足够的钱买她的那件衣服。她悲伤地回到福布斯商店。这次，她看到窗户上的牌子，上面写着“一月停业”。当安吉丽娜来到女生服装部时，她又和女售货员哈丁夫人说话了。我没有足够的钱为圣诞节购买这条裙子。然后，她看到哈丁夫人的眼睛呈现出红色。她看起来像是哭着，哈丁夫人说：你知道，商店要停业了，我要失业了。我想把在这的最后的一笔生意，卖给你们俱乐部的人。你干得不错，我想让你在圣诞节时穿上这条裙子。我会付清你欠的款项，这样你就能拥有它了。
安吉丽娜想了想，自己太想要那件红色的裙子了。但她还记得，父亲在漫长的一年时间里没有工作，他是多么的担心和悲伤。她小心地措辞。你真是太好了，哈丁夫人，但我知道，你在找到另一份工作前，需要所有的钱。你确定吗？你真的确定吗？我是认真的。是的，我很肯定。好吧，我会把你留给我们的十美元订金全部退还。安吉丽娜表示感谢，用手捂住那些破旧的美元钞票。我希望你很快就能找到另一份工作。说完，她就告别了，跑出商店，跑进那冰冷的街道。在外面，一个看起来像圣诞老人的人向人们要钱帮助穷人，其他人正在敲响圣诞钟声。安吉丽娜在下雪的人行道上一动不动地站了一会儿。然后，她很突然地给了那个打扮成圣诞老人的男人几美元。哈丁夫人不是唯一一个想帮助别人的人。她突然决定，也许她可以买些布料来把那件旧的灰色羊毛连衣裙接长些。她开始计划，如何沿着领口缝上鲜红的丝带。谁知道呢，也许她能在圣诞节看起来不错。但是，无论如何，她会很开心的。毕竟，那是圣诞节嘛。安吉丽娜在十二月的寒风中转过身，回到店里。
