Unit Seven
Text
this article the author describes zvhat happened
to her one night and her feelings about it.
ONLY LUCK
Ruth Reichl
mind went numb when I saw the gun pointing against the car
window as we pulled out of the garage: This can't be happening to me.
Then I felt the gun, cold, against my head, and I heard my friend Jeremy
saying, "What do you want? Take my wallet, " but at the time I thought
5 of nothing.
remember being vaguely annoyed when the gunman pulled me from
the car by the hair. I remember the walk to the house - Jeremy, me, the
two men with two guns. I rernember the fear and anger in the gunmen's
voices because Jeremy was being slow, and I remember wondering why he
10 was being slow. I did not realize that Jeremy had thrown the keys into the
shrubbery. But I remember the sound of the gun hitting Jeremy's head and
the feeling as the man who had hold of my hair released me.And I remember
the split second when I realized he was looking at Jeremy, and I remember
wondering how far I could run before he pulled the trigger. But I was
15 already running, and upon reaching the car across the street, I didn't
crouch behind it but screamed instead.
remember thinking there was something absurdly melodramatic about
screaming "Help, help! " at eight o'clock on a Tuesday evening in December
and changing my plea to the more specific "Help; let me in, please let me
20 in! " But the houses were cold, closed, unfriendly, and I ran on until I
heard Jeremy's screams behind me announcing that our attackers had fled.
neighbors who had not opened their doors to us came out with
baseball bats and helped Jeremy find his glasses and keys. In a group they
were very brave. We waited for the cops to come until someone said to
25 someone else that the noodles were getting cold, and I said politely,
"Please go and eat: We're O.K. "
was happy to see them go. They had been talking of stiffer sentences
for criminals, of bringing back the death penalty and how the President is
going to clean up the country. I was thinking, they could be saying all of
30 this over my dead body, and I still feel that stiffer sentences wouldn't
change a thing. In a rush all the rage I should have felt for my attackers
was directed against these oontented people standing in front of their
warm, cozy homes talking about all the guns they were going to buy. What
good would guns have been to Jeremy and me?
35 all over the neighborhood had called to report our screams, and
the police turned out in force twenty minutes later.They were ill-tempered
about what was, to them, much ado about nothing. After all, Jeremy was
hardly hurt, and we were hopeless when it came to identification. "Typical,"
said one cop when we couldn't even agree on how tall the men were. Both
40 of us were able to describe the guns in hornfying detail, but the two
policemen who stayed to make the report didn't think that would be much
help.
cops were matter-of-fact about the whole thing. The thin one said,
"That was a stupid thing to do, throwing away the keys: When a man has a
45 gun against your, head you do what you're told. " Jeremy looked properly
sheepish.
the fat cop came up and the thin one went to look around the
outside of the house "That was the best thing you could have done, throw-
ing away the keys, " he said. " If you had gone into the house with them
50 . . . " His voice trailed off. "They would have hurt her" - he jerked his
head toward me - "and killed you both. " Jeremy looked happier. "Look, "
said the fat cop kindly, "there's no right or wrong in the situation.
There's just luck. "
that sleepless night I replayed the moment those black gloves came
55 up to the car window. How long did the whole thing last? Three minutes,
five, eight? No matter. how many hours of my life I may spend reliving it,
I know there is no way to prepare for the next time - no intelligent
response to a gun. The fat cop was right: There's only luck. The next time
I might end up dead.
60 I'm sure there will be a next time. It can happen anywhere, anytime,
to anyone. Security is an illusion; there is no safety in locks or in guns.
Guns make some people feel safe and some people feel strong, but they're
fooling themselves.
numb / a. having lost the power of feeling or
moving 失去感觉的，麻木的
garage / n. building in which a car is kept 汽车库
wallet / n. leather pocket-case for paper money,
cards, etc. 皮夹
vaguely / ad. not clearly 模糊地
vague a.
annoy / vt. make rather angry 使恼怒
guntnan n. a man armed with a gun,esp.a criminal
or terrorist 持枪歹徒
shrubbery n low bushes forming a mass or group 灌木丛
release / vt . set free 松开;释放
split /split/vt. divide into partS 劈开
split second very brief moment of time; instant
瞬间 , 一刹那
trigger / n. 扳机
crouch / vi. lower the body to the ground 蹲伏
absurdly / ad. foolishly;ridiculously 愚蠢地, 荒唐可笑地
absurd a.
melodramatic exciting in effect, often too much so
a. to be thought real 感情夸张的;闹剧式的
plea / n. asking for sth. with strong feelings
恳求
specific / a. definite; not general 明确的;具体的
flee /fli:/ v. run away (from) 逃走;逃离
baseball n. 棒球(运动) '
bat n. 球棒，球拍
cop n. ( informal ) policeman
noodle / n. (usu. pl. ) 面条
stiff / a. severe 严厉的
criminal / n. someone who has broken the law 罪犯
penalty / n. punishment 惩罚
rage / n. great anger 狂怒
contented / a. satisfied; happy 满足的
cozy / a. warm and comfortable 暖和舒适的
ill-tempered / a. (often) angry or annoyed 脾气坏的;
易怒的
ado / n. trouble and excitement 忙乱
hopeless a. giving no cause for hope; very bad or
unskilled 没有希望的;无能的
identification / n. 鉴别
identify vt.
horrlfy / vt. frighten;shock very much 使恐怖;使震惊
detail / n. small, particular fact 细节
matter-of-fact / a. concerned with the facts; practical
注重事实的；讲究实际的
sheepish / a. foolish or embarrassed by awareness of
a fault 局促不安的
trail / vi. grow gradually weaker, dimmer, etc.
jerk / vt. pull or lift suddenly 猛拉, 猛抬
replay vt play (match,recording,etc.) over again
重放
glove / n. 手套
last vi. go on
relive vt. experience again,esp.in the imagination
intelligent / a. clever; rational 聪明的 ; 明智的
response / n. action done in answer;answer 反应;回答
respond vi.
security / n. safety, freedom from danger or fear
安全, 平安
secure a.
illusion /n. false perception;( the seeing of) sth.
that does not really exist 错觉;幻觉
Phrases & Expressions
pull out (of) move out (of) (车,船等)驶出
have ( get, catch ) hold of 抓住
bring back restore, reintroduce 恢复
clean up clean thoroughly and remove anything
unwanted 彻底打扫；整肃
turn out appear; come or go out to see or do sth.
出来 , 出动
in force in large numbers 大批地 , 人数众多地
much ado about nothing a lot of unnecessary expression of
excitement about things not serious or
unimportant 无事生非; 小题大作
come to reach ( a particular point) in explaining,
etc. 谈到 ( 某一点 )
agree on have the same opinion on
in detail giving a lot of facts 详细地
trail off (voice, etc.)become gradually weal~er and
fade into silence (声音等)逐渐变弱
no way 不可能
preparer for get ready for
end up finish 结束, 告终
Proper Names
Ruth Reichl / 露丝·赖克尔
Jeremy / 杰里米（男子名）