L46-2: Do it yourself
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.
electrician /ɪˌlekˈtrɪʃn/ 电工
carpenter /ˈkɑːrpəntər/ 木匠
plumber /ˈplʌmər/ 水暖工;管子工;铅管工
mechanic /məˈkænɪk/ 机械师;
fuse /fjuːz/ 保险丝短路
rickety /ˈrɪkəti/ 摇摇欲坠;不结实的，要散架的、晃动的
clog /klɑːɡ/ 堵塞
vacuum /ˈvækjuːm/ 真空;真空状态 vacuum cleaner 真空吸尘器
vacuum cleaner fail to operate 吸尘器不工作
assume /əˈsuːm/ 假定;假设;认为;
delusion /dɪˈluːʒn/ 错觉
lawn mower /lɔːn ˈmoʊər/ 割草机
previous /ˈpriːviəs/ 上一次的, 上一个的;以前的, 先前的
get round to 抽出时间、抽空
I would not hear 我不愿意听
minor /ˈmaɪnər/ 少数的;轻微的;较小的
adjustment /əˈdʒʌstmənt/ 调整;调节;
screw /skruː/ 螺丝钉;螺丝;
今天把全文学完了，还是有点囫囵吞枣。
