Johnny (高思哲)
从新西兰回流香港,熟谙英、粤、日、法及普通话。曾担任儿童节目主持,亦参与其英语教育环节的策划,现时是日本东京电视台节目的驻港主持及环保组织Heroes2的大使。今年除继续为《反斗英语》节目于报章及网页执笔之外,亦提供全辑节目故事部份的英语资料搜集。空闲时会在自己的网志以中英对照介绍各国的最新音乐、分享烹饪心得及生活中所见所闻。

Better Safe Than Sorry

Living in a densely populated(高人口密度的)and busy city like Hong Kong, I'm sure we're all no strangers to accidents(对我们来说意外并不是陌生的事). I guess it's just a matter of whether you saw them happen or if you were involved in one. If the latter is the case(若是后者的话), I hope it wasn't anything too serious!

Despite the fact that accidents are unexpected events(突如其来的事件)that happen out of the blue(意外地), I believe that they don't necessarily have to end in tears(不一定以悲剧收场). Here are a few things that we can do to make ourselves less accident-prone:

First and foremost, SLOW DOWN!!! A lot of accidents occur simply because we're in too much of a rush(匆忙). When we're in a hurry, our awareness(警觉性)can be greatly impaired(减弱的). This often causes tunnel vision(导致视野变得狭窄), making us oblivious to the dangers around us(使我们不注意身边潜在的危险). If you're lucky, this may just mean running into someone(碰到人), but in severe cases, this could mean getting run over(被车撞到)or breaking a few bones...

Next, prevent yourself from getting distracted(别让自己分心). This means actually looking at where you're going instead of being engrossed in your smart phone games or books(全神贯注于你的智能手机游戏或书本). Also, turn down your mp3 player a couple of notches(把音乐播放器的音量调低一点). By doing so, people will no longer walk out onto the street when there's a car hurtling(飞驰)towards them at extreme high speed because they didn’t see or hear it coming (a scenario with which I'm all too familiar as a witness).

The English proverb "look before you leap" takes on a literal meaning here as many tragedies could have been averted if the victims had simply been watching where they were going. Keeping our eyes peeled(一眼关七)can also help us escape from any imminent(逼近的)dangers that may come our way.

Lastly, exercise some self-discipline(自我纪律). It's quite surprising how many lives are lost just because people fail to observe simple rules like not crossing the street when the pedestrian crossing signal is red. Self-restraint can save us from becoming roadkill, which often results from jaywalking(非法过马路). It will also prevent us from sustaining injuries caused by closing platform screen doors when rushing onto trains.

Yes, accidents are bound to happen, but some of them are avoidable(有一些是能避免的). As long as we keep our wits about us(打醒十二分精神), we have a pretty high chance of walking away unscathed(无受损伤的), or at least minimising the damage that will be caused.

Vocabulary & Phrases

densely populated – 高人口密度的
to be no stranger to (something) – 对(某事)绝不陌生
latter – 后者的
unexpected – 突如其来的
out of the blue – 意外地
to end in tears – 悲剧收场
rush – 匆忙
awareness – 警觉性
impaired – 减弱的
tunnel vision – 视野狭窄;目光狭窄
oblivious – 不以为意的;忘却的
to run into someone – 碰撞到人;碰见某人
to get run over – 被车撞到
distracted – 思想不集中的
engrossed – 全神贯注的
to turn (something) down a couple of notches – 把(某东西)的强度调低一些
to hurtle – 飞驰
to keep your eyes peeled – 一眼关七
imminent – 逼近的
self-discipline – 自我纪律
jaywalking – 非法过马路
avoidable – 能避免的
to keep your wits about you – 打醒十二分精神
unscathed – 无受损伤的

作者:高思哲