Money's story

阿邱

Now, the VOA Special English program WORDS AND THEIR STORIES.
I think people everywhere dream about having lots of money. I know I do. I would give anything to make money hand over fist. I would like to earn large amounts of money. You could win a large amount of money in the United States through lotteries. People pay money for tickets with numbers. If your combination of numbers is chosen, you win a huge amount of money – often in the millions. Winning the lottery is a windfall.
A few years ago, my friend Al won the lottery. It changed his life. He did not have a rich family. He was not born with a silver spoon in his mouth. Instead, my friend was always hard up for cash. He did not have much money. And the money he did earn was chicken feed – very little.
Sometimes Al even had to accept hand-outs, gifts from his family and friends. But do not get me wrong. My friend was not a deadbeat. He was not the kind of person who never paid the money he owed. He simply pinched pennies. He was always very careful with the money he spent. In fact, he was often a cheapskate. He did not like to spend money. The worst times were when he was flat broke and had no money at all.
One day, Al scraped together a few dollars for a lottery ticket. He thought he would never strike it rich or gain lots of money unexpectedly. But his combination of numbers was chosen and he won the lottery. He hit the jackpot. He won a great deal of money.
Al was so excited. The first thing he did was buy a costly new car. He splurged on the one thing that he normally would not buy. Then he started spending money on unnecessary things. He started to waste it. It was like he had money to burn. He had more money than he needed and it was burning a hole in his pocket so he spent it quickly.
When we got together for a meal at a restaurant, Al paid every time. He would always foot the bill, and pick up the tab. He told me the money made him feel like a million dollars. He was very happy.
But, Al spent too much money. Soon my friend was down and out again. He had no money left. He was back to being strapped for cash. He had spent his bottom dollar, his very last amount. He did not even build up a nest egg. He had not saved any of the money.
I admit I do feel sorry for my friend. He had enough money to live like a king. Instead, he is back to living on a shoestring -- a very low budget. Some might say he is penny wise and pound foolish. He was wise about small things, but not about important things.
(MUSIC)
WORDS AND THEIR STORIES, in VOA Special English, was written by Jill Moss. I’m Faith Lapidus.

芊芊玉手

现在是美国之音慢速英语词语典故。
我认为人们都梦想拥有很多钱。我知道我做的。我愿意付出任何代价去做赚大钱。我想赚取大量的钱。你有可能赢一大笔钱在美国通过彩票。人们花钱买票的数字。如果你的组合号码的选择,你赢了一大笔钱——通常在数百万。中彩票是一笔意外之财。
几年前,我的一个朋友ai买彩票中了奖。它改变了他的生活。他没有一个富裕的家庭。他出生在富贵人家。相反,我的这位朋友经常捉襟见肘。他没有很多钱。他挣的钱太少了——非常小。
有时ai甚至需要接受救济,从他的家庭和朋友的礼物。但不要误会我的意思。我的朋友没有一个赖账。他不是这种人,从来没有付过钱他欠。他只是简单地掐几便士。他总是非常小心的对待他花的钱。事实上,他经常被一个吝啬鬼。他不喜欢花钱。最坏的时刻是当他破产了,没有钱。
有一天,阿尔积攒了几美元的彩票。他以为他永远不会发财或获得很多钱意外。但他综合数字被选中后,他中了彩票。他中了头彩。他赢了一大笔钱。
艾尔是如此的兴奋。他做的第一件事就是买一个昂贵的新汽车。他挥霍在了一件事,他一般不买。然后,他开始把钱花在不必要的事情上。他开始浪费它。这就像他的钱都燃烧。他有更多的钱比他需要,这是在他的口袋烧了个洞,所以他花了它迅速。
当我们聚在一起吃了一顿饭,在饭店艾尔每次支付。他总是埋单,付账。他告诉我,钱使他觉得自己像一百万美元。他非常高兴。但是,阿尔花了太多的钱。很快我的朋友又病倒了。他没有钱了。他重新回到被资金短缺。他曾花了他最后的美元,他生命中最后的数量。他甚至没有建立一个账户。他并没有节省任何钱。
我承认,我的确觉得遗憾的是我的朋友。他有足够的钱去生活的像一个国王。相反,他回到了生活在一个拮据——一个非常低的预算。有些人可能会说他是因小失大。他对小事情很聪明,但不是对重要的事情。
(音乐)
词汇掌故,美国之音特别英语新闻报道,是由吉尔莫斯撰稿。