Part 2 Too Hot, Too Cold, Too Otaku

这天，Laura与好友Martin一起讨论校园的“御宅”现象，他们都一致认为这势必会影响大学生的身心健康，所以决定让Martin的女友Hannah去劝劝Ted。

Martin： Hey， Laura， where are you off to？

Laura： Oh hey， Martin！ ①Im heading over to the library to kick my heels up until dinner. I was thinking of picking up that new Gillian Flynn novel that everyones been talking about.

Martin： Weve got that exam for poli-sci on Friday and were dead even for marks right now. Any studying on the menu？

Laura： Nah， I usually keep up with studying so that Im not stuck cramming in the week leading up to an exam.

Martin： Smart cookie. I need to take a page out of your book.

Laura： You and Ted， both.

Martin： Hes not on the ball with his review， either？

Laura： No， not that. Sorry， just letting off a little steam. Hes turned into an unbearable 1）homebody.

Martin： Oh， man！ So thats why we havent been seeing him？ I thought maybe he was holed up with the flu or something.

Laura： Dont I wish！ The flu would probably be healthier than what hes doing. Get this： He gets his meals delivered to the dorm.

Martin： Yeah， you hadnt heard about that before？ Lots of the students are doing it.

Laura： But what the heck is the point！ Its so anti-social. The Italians are right： Its unhealthy to eat alone.

Martin： But sometimes it can be tiring to always be on. Its nice to switch off from time to time.

Laura： But all the time？ Every day？ ②Theres just no rhyme or reason to it.

Martin： Well， theres a certain kind of logic to it. I mean， cmon， Laura. Weve been busting our butts for the last 15 plus years to get here， and now some of us are a bit tired. Laura： Whats this “some of us” business？ Are you one of them？ Are you one of these otakus？

Martin： Sometimes， yeah.

Laura： ③Well isnt this a pretty kettle of fish？

Martin： But its only sometimes. It was pretty out of control for me last year， but then I started dating Hannah and she 2）whipped me back into shape. I gotta say， it feels good.

Laura： Of course it does！ Its just wrong in so many ways. Have you seen some of the girls？ Not only are they skin and bones， but theyre deathly pale. Its horribly unhealthy！ Martin： Yeah， some of them look pretty 3）ragged. But whatcha gonna do？

Laura： Get them out and about for one thing！

Martin： How？ You gonna force them like Yangzhou University and their morning running program？

Laura： At least theyre trying to tackle the issue. Theyve even got that fingerprint system.

Martin： Doesnt work. You can get fake prints on Taobao.

Laura： But theres got to be a way. ④Maybe if someone brought home the severity of the health problems this lifestyle can cause， theyd think twice.

Martin： Youd have to do more than that to motivate them. Its 4）comfy inside and “the future” is a long way away.

Laura： But its causing health problems for them even now. Ive seen some of those guys—they can barely get up a 5）flight of stairs without breathing hard.

Martin： Yeah， and the majority of students are either too skinny or too fat. Trust me， I know.

Laura： ⑤I just wish I could knock some sense into Ted， you know？

Martin： Well， Hannah helped me. ⑥Maybe Ill send her over to his dorm to give him what for.

Laura： That would be so awesome. Thanks， Martin！

Martin： No worries.

Smart Sentences

① Im heading over to the library to kick my heels up until dinner. 晚饭前我去图书馆放松下。

kick ones heels up： relax and rest（放松，休息）。例如：

The kids are out to party so I have a couple of hours to kick my heels up at home.

孩子们都出去参加派对，我可以在家放松几个小时。

② Theres just no rhyme or reason to it. 根本没道理。

no rhyme or reason： there is no reasonable explanation for sth. to happen（莫名其妙，毫无道理）。例如：

I dont know what made her say that at the meeting. Theres no rhyme or reason to it.我不知道她为啥在会上说那些话，似乎没有什么道理。

③ Well isnt this a pretty kettle of fish？ 这难道不糟糕透顶吗？

a pretty kettle of fish： a troublesomely awkward or embarrassing situation（混乱，一塌糊涂，糟糕透顶）。例如：

Last week， my brother was evicted and laid off. What a pretty kettle of fish.

我哥上周被房东赶出来，又丢了工作。真是一塌糊涂。

④ Maybe if someone brought home the severity of the health problems this lifestyle can cause， theyd think twice. 也许如果有人指出这种生活方式所带来健康问题的严重性，学生们会重新考虑这个问题。

bring sth. home （to sb.）： make sb. understand sth. more clearly（让人认识到）。例如：

The visit to the war museum brought home to the students the suffering the war had caused.

到战争博物馆参观让学生们认识到战争带来的伤害。

⑤ I just wish I could knock some sense into Ted， you know？我只是想让特德明白过来，你明白吗？

knock some sense into sb.： make sb. understand sth.（让某人明白某事）。例如：

I thought that last weeks experience would knock some sense into my parents.我觉得上周的经历会让我父母明白过来。

⑥ Maybe Ill send her over to his dorm to give him what for. 也许我可以让她到特德的宿舍去痛骂他一顿。

give sb. what for： reprimand sb. severely（痛骂某人）。例如：

My father gave me what for about my grades.

我爸爸因为我的成绩把我痛骂一顿。