练习材料：

Do it yourself Part-2

              自己动手

Even men who can hardly drive a nail in straight are supposed to be born electricians, carpenters, plumbers and mechanics. When lights fuse, furniture gets rickety, pipes get clogged, or vacuum cleaners fail to operate, some woman assume that their husbands will somehow put things right. The worst thing about the do-it-yourself game is that sometimes even men live under the delusion that they can do anything, even when they have repeatedly been proved wrong. It is a question of pride as much as anything else.

    Last spring my wife suggested that I call in a man to look at our lawn mower. It had broken down the previous summer, and though I promised to repair it, I had never got round to it. I would not hear of the suggestion and said that I would fix it myself. One Saturday afternoon, I hauled the machine into the garden and had a close look at it. As far as I could see, it needed only a minor adjustment: a turn of a screw here, a little tightening up there, a drop of oil and it would be as good as new.

ˈiːvən mɛn huː kæn ˈhɑːdli draɪv ə neɪl ɪn streɪt ɑː səˈpəʊzd tuː biː bɔːn ɪlɛkˈtrɪʃənz, ˈkɑːpɪntəz, ˈplʌməz ænd mɪˈkænɪks. wɛn laɪts fjuːz, ˈfɜːnɪʧə gɛts ˈrɪkɪti, paɪps gɛt klɒgd, ɔː ˈvækjʊəm ˈkliːnəz feɪl tuː ˈɒpəreɪt, sʌm ˈwʊmən əˈsjuːm ðæt ðeə ˈhʌzbəndz wɪl ˈsʌmhaʊ pʊt θɪŋz raɪt. ðə wɜːst θɪŋ əˈbaʊt ðə ˈduːɪtjɔːˈsɛlf geɪm ɪz ðæt ˈsʌmtaɪmz ˈiːvən mɛn lɪv ˈʌndə ðə dɪˈluːʒən ðæt ðeɪ kæn duː ˈɛnɪθɪŋ, ˈiːvən wɛn ðeɪ hæv rɪˈpiːtɪdli biːn pruːvd rɒŋ. ɪt ɪz ə ˈkwɛsʧən ɒv praɪd æz mʌʧ æz ˈɛnɪθɪŋ ɛls.

lɑːst sprɪŋ maɪ waɪf səˈʤɛstɪd ðæt aɪ kɔːl ɪn ə mæn tuː lʊk æt ˈaʊə lɔːn ˈməʊə. ɪt hæd ˈbrəʊkən daʊn ðə ˈpriːviəs ˈsʌmə, ænd ðəʊ aɪ ˈprɒmɪst tuː rɪˈpeər ɪt, aɪ hæd ˈnɛvə gɒt raʊnd tuː ɪt. aɪ wʊd nɒt hɪər ɒv ðə səˈʤɛsʧən ænd sɛd ðæt aɪ wʊd fɪks ɪt maɪˈsɛlf. wʌn ˈsætədeɪ ˈɑːftəˈnuːn, aɪ hɔːld ðə məˈʃiːn ˈɪntuː ðə ˈgɑːdn ænd hæd ə kləʊs lʊk æt ɪt. æz fɑːr æz aɪ kʊd siː, ɪt ˈniːdɪd ˈəʊnli ə ˈmaɪnər əˈʤʌstmənt: ə tɜːn ɒv ə skruː hɪə, ə ˈlɪtl ˈtaɪtnɪŋ ʌp ðeə, ə drɒp ɒv ɔɪl ænd ɪt wʊd biː æz gʊd æz njuː.

甚至那些连一枚钉子都钉不直的男人都被认为是天生的电工、木匠、水管工和机械师。每当电灯保险丝烧断、家具榫头松动、管道堵塞、吸尘器不动时，有些妻子认为丈夫总有办法。自己动手的例子中最糟糕的是，有时甚至是男人尽管接连失败却还误以为自己什么都行，原因就是要面子。

    今年春天，妻子让我请人检查一下我家的割草机。那台割草机去年夏天就坏了，尽管我答应修，但一直没抽出时间，我不愿听妻子的建议，说我自己会修。一个星期六的下午，我把割草机拉到了花园里，仔细检查了一番。在我看来，只需稍加调整即可。这儿紧紧螺丝，那儿固定一下，再加几滴油，就会像新的一样了。

任务配置：L0、L3、L4

知识笔记：

单词与短语

put things right总有办法

live under the delusion that 误以为

It is a question of pride as much as anything else.原因就是要面子

had never got round to it一直没抽出时间

hear of the suggestion听从建议

would be as good as new像新的一样

练习感悟：今天的训练用时40分钟，较少，集中精力感觉效果很好。