趣文赏析
本文作者： 21ST
钻戒藏太好 自己找不到 AN AMERICAN woman, Marlene Kiraly asked her husband to hide a 3 1/2 karat, uninsured diamond ring. Her mother had given her the ring just before she died 23 years ago. The problem was, he did such a good job that no one could remember where it was. That was until the new owner of the house, John Kilcooley was renovating a bathroom last month. Tucked away in a bag, behind a light fixture, Mr. Kilcooley found a 3 1/2 karat diamond ring. Instead of keeping it, he tracked down the home's previous owner who sold the house in 2004. His wife called Mrs. Kiraly and asked if she lost something during the move. "She started crying and said her mother's ring," Mr. Kilcooley said. The Kiralys unsuccessfully searched the house before they moved and had tried numerous ways to jog their memory. As a reward, the Kiralys said they would fix the Kilcooleys' hurricane-damaged outdoor screens. 23年前，玛琳基拉伊从母亲那里继承了一枚3.5克拉的钻戒。不知出何考虑，玛琳当年未给钻戒上保险，而是让丈夫将其藏到一个最隐秘、最安全的地方。丈夫出色地完成了任务，可随着时间的推移，他们两人竟忘记了放钻戒的确切地点。2004年，夫妇俩搬家之前曾无数次回想可能存放戒指的地方并搜遍了整座房子，可最终也未见戒指踪迹。 今年2月，新房主约翰基库勒在装修卫生间时，意外地在壁灯后发现了这枚包裹在纸团里的钻戒。基库勒夫妇辗转找到了前任房主，并打电话询问对方是否在搬家时遗落了东西。玛琳一听此言，在电话那端便哭着说，自己丢了母亲遗赠的钻戒。 作为回报，基拉伊夫妇决定为基库勒夫妇修理因受台风袭击而破损的庭院。 老人仍健在 政府偏不信 AN 81-year-old American, Myron Manders, wants the US Social Security Administration to know that he still is alive in Cleveland, Ohio. The problem is, it doesn't seem to be listening. Last November, Manders was preparing to leave a hospital where he was treated for pneumonia when a social worker said his insurance company would not pay the bill because it believed Manders died on September 1.Manders sought to clear up the problem by showing up at a Social Security office. The in-person appearance did not help. The Department of Veterans Affairs, recognizing that Manders served in the Army during World War II, notified Eunice that she is a beneficiary on his Veterans Affairs (VA) life insurance policy and that Social Security had notified the VA of Myron's death. The latest correspondence from Social Security addressed to Eunice, advised that she is entitled to monthly widow's benefits. 美国俄亥俄州81岁的老人迈伦曼德斯如今依然健康地和老伴生活在克里夫兰市，可当地社保机构却执意认为他已离开人世。 这啼笑皆非的故事源于去年11月。当时曼德斯因患肺结核住院治疗，病愈办理出院手续时，他突然接到“噩耗”:社保部门登记表明，他已于去年9月份辞世，故保险公司不能进行赔付。 无奈之下，曼德斯亲自跑到社保部门以澄清自己过世的讹传，可依旧无法纠正这个错误。 不仅如此，社保部门还将曼德斯去世的消息通知了当地的退伍军人事务部，让他们按月给这位二战老兵的老伴发放补贴。近日他老伴收到社保部门的回信，信中再度确认她有权享受寡居福利。 古典音乐打击犯罪？ RESIDENTS of one Hartford neighbourhood, in Connecticut, US hope Beethoven and Mozart will help drive drug dealers and prostitutes out of a local park. Activists propose playing recordings of classical music in Barnard Park in hopes of annoying petty criminals so much that they'll leave. They also hope the music will make the park more pleasant for other people once it is cleaned up. But to University of California-Los Angeles musicologist Robert Fink, the plan makes Hartford's crime-fighting efforts look desperate. "Beethoven is not going to save you," he said. "It's ironic that some of the greatest composers in history are now being viewed as some kind of bug spray or disinfectant." 为有效控制犯罪活动，美国康涅狄格州哈特福市的居民向市政府建议，在本市巴纳德公园播放贝多芬和莫扎特的钢琴曲，希望那些徘徊于公园的毒贩和妓女在音乐的“感化”下能自动撤离，还当地市民一片休闲、娱乐的“净土”。 不过，加州大学音乐史专家罗伯特芬克却很不赞同这个提议。他说:“这些罪犯就如同随处肆虐的细菌和病毒，这种方式怎么能控制得了？如果古典音乐真能打击犯罪的话，那音乐大师们的作品岂不是在起消毒剂的功效吗？” --------------------------------- 本版块为“趣文赏析”英汉双语栏目，为大家介绍世界各地的时事趣闻，希望能帮助读者开阔视野、提高英语阅读能力，也希望能给大家带去一些轻松与欢笑。 |  |
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