【走遍美国精讲笔记】第3课：祖父的行李箱 ACT 1 - 1

ACT 1-1 “我们要去车站接他吗？”

【故事梗概】

早上，在Stewart家的厨房，Ellen和Marilyn正在厨房里准备早饭。她们兴奋地谈到祖父即将从佛罗里达州到达的事并决定上楼去为他布置房间。这时Richard和Robbie走进了厨房。

Ellen: Marilyn, you want coffee or tea?
Marilyn: Coffee, please.
Ellen: I am so excited! At this time tommorrow morning Grandpa will be sitting in the kitchen with us.
Marilyn: When does he arrive?
Ellen: At six o'clock this evening.
Marilyn: By plane?
Ellen: No, by train.
Marilyn: Are we picking him up at the station?
Ellen: Not Grandpa. He doesn't want anybody picking him up. He likes to be independent.
Marilyn: Huh.
Ellen: Oh, let's go upstairs and prepare Grandpa's room.
Marilyn: Great! Let's do it!
Richard: Good morning, Mom.
Robbie: Morning.
Ellen: Well, hi, fellas.
Richard: Hello.
Marilyn: Hi, honey.
Richard＆Robbie: Morning, Marilyn.
Marilyn: We're going upstairs to set up Grandpa's room. There's coffee ready.

【语言点精讲】

1. You want coffee or tea?
你要咖啡还是要茶？是"Do you want coffee or tea?"的非正式说法。
这是选择疑问句。注意Ellen使用了先升后降的语调，即连词or前面的部分用升调，后面的部分用降调。

2. At this time tommorrow morning Grandpa will be sitting in the kitchen with us.
will be sitting: 将坐在。动词的将来进行时可表示在将来某一时刻或某段时间正在进行的动作。

3. When does he arrive?
他什么时候到？一般现在时可表示安排或计划好的将来的动作（常用come, go, arrive, leave等动词）。

4. By plane? -- No, by train.
by plane，乘飞机。by train，乘火车。用介词by表示交通方式，又如: by boat（乘船），by bus（乘公共汽车），by taxi（乘出租汽车）。

5. Are we picking him up at the station?
我们要去车站接他吗？
pick sb. up: 用车来接某人。pick up是短语动词。短语动词是由动词与介词或副词组成的固定词组，又如后文出现的set up（准备，收拾）也是短语动词。

6. Well, hi, fellas.
fella（小伙子，孩子，伙计），是fellow的非正式场合的用语。