Brushing Up at the Office

在办公室刷牙

陈豪在北京的ABC美国公司工作。他遇到美国同事Amy。

(Office ambience)

A: Hi Chen Hao, how are you today?

C: 还不错，你呢？

A: I'm fine, just taking a quick break.

C: 我刚才看到一件怪事。

A: What?

C: 我在走廊上遇到Todd, 他正拿着牙刷和牙膏往洗手间走。

A: He does it often, several times a day, I think. What struck you as odd?

C: 上班时间刷牙，还那么明目张胆的，你不觉得奇怪吗？

A: I have wondered why he doesn't carry his toothbrush in a small travel case or his pocket.

C: 上班时间刷牙，让我觉得很奇怪。

A: I actually applaud the idea and wish that more people did it. I keep a toothbrush and toothpaste in my desk all the time so I can brush after meals and breaks.

C: 牙医告诉我，一天早晚刷两次牙就行了。

A: That's enough if your only goal is good dental care and the prevention of problems. Brushing on the job has a different purpose.

C: 除了保护牙齿，刷牙还有其他目的？一会儿吃饭时你一定要告诉我！

A: Sure. I'll see you at the China Café.

中午吃饭时。

C: Amy, 上班时刷牙还有其他目的吗？

A: It's important for the simple reason that bad breath is offensive. Sometimes we don't realize when our mouth odor is unpleasant.

C: 噢，原来是为了防止口臭。别人真能闻到吗？

A: I had a colleague once who lost his job because of his bad breath. His clients were continually offended and several asked his boss to tell him.

C: 老板有没有找你那位同事谈话呢？

A: The boss was not eager to have that kind of conversation with an employee, but he knew that it was his responsibility.

C: 那还是谈了。那谈话没有效果吗？

A: When the complaints kept coming, my colleague was asked to resign.

C: 去刷牙太麻烦了，我嚼口香糖行不行呢？

A: That might help freshen your breath, but it is far from professional.

C: 那薄荷糖呢？

A: Breath mints don't turn people off, but they also don't do the job as well as brushing.

C: 那我用漱口水？

A: Same thing. Mouthwash is harsh and can make you smell as if you are covering up something.

C: 可我也不能一天到晚老是刷牙啊！

A: You don't have to be obsessive about it. Just pay attention to the foods you eat during the day. The garlic in our lunch is definitely going to be obvious to other people when we get back to the office.

C: 那吃完午饭刷一遍牙，就足够了吧？

A: You've started drinking a lot of coffee. Coffee leaves an odor that can be a real turn-off.