Yesterday, I decided to get my pants altered.
昨天,我决定去裁缝店改裤子。
I had $200 in my wallet, which was more than enough for the alteration.
我钱包里有200美金,改条裤子是绰绰有余了。
Foolishly however, I got lost taking an alternate route to the tailor shop.
但我在另选路线去裁缝铺时竟傻巴拉叽的迷路了。
Fortunately, I had aspirin to alleviate my headache.
幸好我带着阿司匹林,头痛才得以减轻。
Walking further, I noticed a red balloon aloft, rising to the higher altitude.
往前走不远,我注意到一只红气球飘在空中,它越飞越高。
It distracted me, causing me to bump into two young brothers.
我盯着气球出神,不小心跟两个小兄弟撞了个满怀。
They look alike but seemed opposite in personality.
他们长的很像,但性格迥异:
One was clearly aloof but the other appeared to be an altruistic individual.
一位是明显的不关心,另一位看起来则是个利他主义者。
He could sense I was lost and happily gave me directions.
他能感到我迷路了,便欣然为我指路。
Such altruism is so rare there days.
这种利他主义现在实属罕见。
What an ally he can be to a lost person!
对一位迷途者而言,他可谓盟友了!
The contrast in their personalities reminded me of the biblical allegory of Cain and Abel.
二人性格的反差让我想起来《圣经》里该隐和亚伯的寓言。
But it would be too hasty to allege such a contrast given that I didn't really know them.
不过,我并不真正了解他们,所以当下断言二人性格如该隐和亚伯那般迥异未免过于草率。
I continued on my way but was allured into a bike shop by a windown photo of a lovely girl on a mountain bike.
我继续往前走,不一会儿,我在一家自行车商店的橱窗里看见一张骑山地车的美女照片。
Below the photo, it said, "ride rough, ride real," a clever alliteration.
在照片的诱惑下,我走进了这家商店。照片下有一行字:“骑山地才是真我体验。”很聪明的押头韵嘛。
I felt there was no alternative but to enter the shop.
我觉得除了走进商店外无别的选择。
The ower was an alumnus from my university.
店主是我所在大学的校友。
He alluded that the best bike for me would be the $200 bike that was displayed in the window photo.
他暗示到,最适合我的自行车就是橱窗照片上价值200美元的那辆。
It was made out of a special lightweight alloy.
它用一种特殊的轻型合金制成。
He also offered to adjust my tire alignment for free.
他还提出为我免费调整轮胎,使之成直线排列。
Well, I didn't make it to the tailor that day.
这样一来,那天我就没能去成裁缝店。
But I did ride home on a new bike.
不过,我确实骑着一辆崭新的自行车回家。
As for my pants?
至于我得裤子嘛,
Well, the bike shop owner cut the pant legs off for free.
自行车店的店主免费帮我剪短了。
Now I have a cool pair of shorts for riding.
现在我就有了一条骑车时的酷酷短裤啦!