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Episode 14: Tim strikes it rich

Tim: Can I help you madam?

Customer: I’m looking for a man’s watch.

Tim: Well we have a sumptuous selection here: sports, evening, everyday watches. Do you see anything you like?
Customer: Oh, I rather like that one.

Tim: Impeccable taste, madam. Now, just take it over to the cash till there and they’ll wrap it up for you.

Customer: Thank you, goodbye.

Tim: Goodbye…..Oh, you’ve dropped something madam. Madam! Oh she's gone. Let’s see 50, 100, 150 pounds!
Well you know what they say Tim, a fool and her money……
实战语法
今天我们来看一些常用的谚语.
proverb is a well-known phrase that gives advice or says something that is generally true.

Proverbs are fixed groups of words so you can't change the wording of a proverb. For example you can say "Too many cooks spoil the broth" (a lot of people will make a mess of trying to complete a task together) but you can't say "Too many cooks spoil the soup".

Proverbs are also so well-known that we often only say the first half of them (the rest we leave unsaid because everyone knows the ending). So for example, Tim said "A fool and her money…." when the whole proverb is "A fool and his money are soon parted" which means that stupid people find it difficult to hold on to their money.

In the examples below the part in brackets is often left unsaid.

Proverbs: money
Money burns a hole in your pocket. 一有钱就想花
You spend your money too quickly.

All that glitters (is not gold). 闪闪发光物，未必尽黄金
Don't judge something by its appearance. It may look like it's worth a lot of money but it might actually be quite cheap.
Money talks. 金钱万能;有钱能使鬼推磨
People who are rich have more power and influence than people who are poor.

Don't count your chickens (before they hatch). 不要蛋未孵化先数小鸡，别过早打如意算盘
You shouldn't spend money (or make plans) based on what you expect to have (or happen) in the future.

Proverbs: work
Many hands (make light work). 众人拾柴火焰高
This is the opposite of "Too many cooks" and means that if we all work together we will complete the task more quickly than if we each work by ourselves.

A bad workman (always blames his tools). 拙匠常怨工具差，不会撑船怪河弯；劣工尤器
If you don't do a task well it's because you don't have the skills to do it not because the instruments you used weren't good enough.

You can't teach an old dog (new tricks). 教不会老狗新把戏，无法改变老人的想法，积习等
As people get older, they usually don't like to try new things or new ways of doing things.

Make hay (while the sun shines).打铁趁热
Don't wait till tomorrow to do what you can do today because tomorrow your circumstances might change and you may not be able to do it.