PART 1 Summary
Chapter 10 A Young Man's Long, Awkward, Occasionally Tragic and Frequently Humiliating Education in Affairs of the Heart, Part 1: Valentine's Day
When the first Valentine's Day at H.A jack was approaching, Trevor was egged on by other kids to ask Maylene, the only colored girl in school, to be his girlfriend. Although Trevor had no crush on Maylene, he was told that Maylene had a thing for him and he liked the idea of being liked. Therefore, he began to chase Maylene. Things went on smoothly. Maylene liked him, they kissed and Trevor was overwhelmed with the excitement of having a valentine. He prepared flowers, a teddy bear and a card, in which he wrote a poem with Maylene's name. The Valentine's Day rolled around, Trevor waited for Maylene to show up, only to be told that she chose a good-looking white boy over him and she ditched him on the spot.
Chapter 11: Outsider
Trevor started eighth grade at Sandringham High School, a mix of government and private school which drew kids from all over. Still, as the only mixed kid in the school, Trevor didn't fit in any group. Besides, he was strapped and couldn't even afford buses. The predicament was broken down when people started to approach him, paying him to buy snacks for them from the tuck shop. The rich white kids saved their break time and Trevor made a big a fortune from the errands. More importantly, Trevor learnt to move seamlessly between different groups and found his niche by sharing his sense of humor.
PART 2 Expressions
1.A group of us would leave school together every afternoon, each kid peeling off and going their separate way when we reached their house.
peel off: 离群
Two motorcycles peeled off from the line.
peel sth off: 脱衣服
Tom peeled off his wet T-shirt and shorts.
2. She said it so matter-of-factly that I had no idea how to process it.
matter-of-fact: showing no emotion when you are talking about sth exciting, frightening, upsetting etc
Jan was surprisingly matter-of-fact about her divorce.
Use a matter-of-fact tone when disciplining your children.
3. He’d upset the balance of everything by asking out the only colored girl in school.
upset: (v.) to change a plan or situation in a way that causes problems
The chemicals upset the balance of the environment.
其他含义:
to make sth fall eg. He upset a bowl of soup.
upset one's stomach: to affect your stomach and make you feel sick
The soup was revolting and upset my stomach.
4.People would pitch up and offer to help.
pitch up: to arrive somewhere, = turn up
Wait a bit longer -- Bill hasn't pitched up yet.
5. It was a running joke.
a running joke/ battle: an argument or joke that continues or is repeated over a long period of time
a running gag: a joke, situation or line that repeats. The 1980 movie,Airplane!, has Leslie Neilson's character, Dr. Rumack, creating a running gag with the line, "Don't call me Shirley." For example, a character named Ted Striker says to Dr. Rumack, "Surely, you can't be serious." Dr. Rumack replies, "I am serious...and don't call me Shirley."
6. Give me a list of what you want, give me a percentage of what you’re going to spend, and I’ll buy your food for you.
percentage: a share of the profits
She gets a percentage for every record sold.
7. I’d found my niche.
niche 本意是“壁龛”的意思
find/create one's niche: find a job or activity that is very suitable for you
He's managed to create a niche for himself in local politics.
Amanda soon found her niche at the club.
8. I never overstayed my welcome. I wasn’t popular, but I wasn’t an outcast.
Outstay/ overstay your welcome: to stay at sb’s house longer than they want you to
Outcast: sb who is not accepted by the people they live among, or who has been forced out of their home
Smokers often feel as though they are being treated as social outcasts.
PART 3 Thoughts
You protect yourself by opening up. You don‘t ask to be accepted for everything you are, just the one part of yourself that you're willing to share. For me it was humor. I learned that even though I didn't belong to one group, I could be a part of any group that was laughing. I'd drop in, pass out the snacks, tell a few jokes. I'd perform for them. I'd catch a bit of their conversation, learn more about their group, and then leave.
高中时有一个朋友，她每次遇到不开心的事或者别人遇到不开心的事都会用幽默去化解。有一次我语文考试没考好，她对我说，“亲爱的，我觉得朱自清的《荷塘月色》写得不真实，大黑夜的，荷花不应该看上去像一个亭亭玉立的美人，应该是一根竹竿上挂着一只臭袜子。” 就这样，我因为考试低落的心情瞬间就消散了。幽默是最好的治愈良药，也是打开别人心扉最容易的途径之一。刘墉有一篇文章叫做《幽人生一默》，里面有这样一段话:"幽幽地，不明说；默默地，不多说。人生多少悲愁，都从正面看，认了，接了，不强求，不怨怼，甚至当作身外事，都付笑谈中。" 快乐很多时候是一种选择，人生不如意之事十之八九，但若懂得幽人生一默，就没有什么是过不去的、放不下的。
