獨立節儉的美國年輕人
黃月亮紅月亮按：幾天前在《美國中文網》看到一篇“在紐約節儉生活全攻略”的文章，從文中主角的名字“瑪麗安娜(Mariana)”和中英文並存的形式來看，我想這可能是一箇中國人翻譯一個美國人的文章。這篇文章從另一個角度來看，也說明了美國年輕人的自立意識。
有感於國內的“啃老一族”，對比美國年輕人敢於走出父母蔭庇的勇氣，不知道他們讀了此文後感想如何？又該怎麼做？！
節儉是種美德，即使是在“物質極大豐富”的美國亦然。
當22歲的女兒瑪麗安娜(Mariana)告訴我們她打算從家裏搬出去、獨自在紐約市生活的時候，我們告訴她日子會很艱難。
When our then-22-year-old daughter told us in the fall of 2008 that she intended to move out of our house and live in New York City on her own, we told her it would be tough。
她不相信我們的勸告。
She didn't believe us。
女兒最終證明我們錯了。她不僅憑着她那份年薪不到三萬美元的出版工作在紐約生存了下來，而且在短短一年內還攢下了5,000美元。此外，她還爲自己的401(k)退休金帳戶存入了約1,000美元。
Mariana proved us wrong. She not only lived in New York on a salary of less than $30,000 from a publishing-industry job, she managed to save $5,000 over the course of a year. On top of that, she stashed about $1,000 in her 401(k) account。
在全球生活成本最高的城市之一紐約，她是如何辦到的？
How was that possible in one of the most expensive cities in the world?
她和另外三個年輕人合租一套公寓，主要交通花費是每個月89美元的地鐵乘車卡，她的三餐以豆子和米飯爲主。
She shared an apartment with three other youths, her main transportation expense was an $89-a-month subway card, and she ate a lot of beans and rice。
此外，她還冒過幾次小險，比如把一瓶葡萄酒偷偷帶進夜店，沒花多少錢就和朋友們一起狂歡了一晚。都是些現在的孩子們在大學裏學到的東西。
Oh, and she pulled a few stunts like smuggling a bottle of wine into a nightclub to enjoy a cheap night out with her friends. The things kids learn in college these days。
勤儉持家的能力是項非常寶貴的才能，我很高興女兒年紀輕輕就在這方面顯示出了一定的功夫，即使並非她所有的做法我都贊同。瑪麗安娜把攢錢看作是一種遊戲而不是沉重的負擔。
The ability to live cheaply is a very valuable skill, and I'm glad my daughter has shown some mastery of it at a young age, even if I can't endorse all her tactics. Mariana views saving money 'as a sort of game' instead of something oppressive。
節儉度日總是要從限制大的開銷開始。對我們大多數人來說，最大的開銷是住。在房地產危機期間，瑪麗安娜和她的三個朋友得以用每月3,100美元的租金租下了布魯克林高檔公園坡區的一套四居室公寓。然後瑪麗安娜自願住進了最小的一間臥室(還有一個小工作室，這樣她就可以畫畫了)，這樣她每個月的房租只有750美元。
Cheap living always starts with keeping the big expenses small. For most of us, that means housing. Amid the real-estate crisis, Mariana and three friends were able to lease a four-bedroom apartment in the upscale Park Slope section of Brooklyn for $3,100 a month. Mariana then volunteered to take the tiniest bedroom (plus a small studio so she could paint)， so her share came to only $750 a month。
她的第二大開銷是吃。她加入了附近的一個食品合作社，以便減少食品開銷。當她出去吃飯時，會選擇便宜的飯館。有一次，她在當地一家以份量大、價格低出名的燒銬連鎖店點了一整隻雞，只要9.99美元。然後她把雞骨頭打包回家，做成了湯。
Her next biggest expense was food. She joined a nearby food cooperative to slash her bill. When she did go out, she'd hit cheap restaurants. Once she ordered a $9.99 whole chicken at a local BBQ chain renowned for its big portions and cheap prices. She then took the chicken bones home and made soup out of them。
瑪麗安娜說，有那麼幾次，她發現當地一家市場正在扔掉包裝很好的大袋麪包，她還把麪包揀了回去。不過大部分時間，她的省錢之道都是從食品合作社買大量全麥、豆子、小扁豆、花生醬和新鮮蔬菜來吃。她每週會吃幾次肉。
A couple of times, Mariana says, she did some Dumpster-diving when she spotted a local market throwing out 'big bags of bread perfectly packaged.' But for the most part, she saved money by eating lots of whole grains, beans, lentils, peanut butter and fresh vegetables from the food co-op. She ate meat a couple of times a week。
年輕人常常在娛樂上花很多錢。與此相反，瑪麗安娜說她在紐約的大部分時間都是去享受免費的東西。她會去建議參觀者捐款的博物館，而不是有固定門票價格的博物館。
Young people often spend big bucks on entertainment. By contrast, Mariana says she spent most of her time in New York doing things that were free. She went to museums that have suggested donations, not a fixed admission price。
她說，我最享受的一些東西並不非常貴，我最喜歡在紐約四處閒逛。
'The things I enjoy most aren't very expensive,' she says. 'The thing I love most about New York City is walking around.'
當她和朋友出去玩時，她會慫恿朋友們在出去之前先喝瓶葡萄酒，這樣她在夜店裏就不會太想喝酒了。不錯，有幾次她把葡萄酒藏在外套裏偷偷帶進了夜店，而不是在那裏買酒喝。夜店店主們：我向你們道歉。這就是我養大的女兒。
When she did go out with friends, she would encourage friends to share a bottle of wine before so she wouldn't feel like drinking much at the club. And, yes, a couple of times she smuggled in a bottle of wine under her coat instead of buying drinks. Nightclub owners: You have my apologies. This is the daughter I raised。
瑪麗安娜這樣節儉地度日會感到缺少點什麼嗎？沒有。她甚至還進行了兩次旅行，一次是去荷蘭，一次是去俄勒岡州波特蘭市，兩次都是住在朋友家裏，一共花了她2,000美元。
Did Mariana feel deprived by living on the cheap? Not really. She even managed to take a couple of trips, one to the Netherlands, the other to Portland, Ore., staying with friends both times. The two trips cost her a total of $2,000.
我雖然對瑪麗安娜的節儉引以爲豪，卻並不想讓大家把她當作榜樣。由於獎學金豐厚，加上父母的資助，她大學畢業的時候無債一身輕。而很多年輕人必須借錢才能完成學業，這就意味着他們畢業的時候必須賺更多的錢。
While I'm proud of Mariana's thrift, I'm not trying to hold her up as a model for the masses. She came out of college with no debt, thanks to some big scholarships and help from Mom and Dad. Many youths can only get through by borrowing money, and it means they have to earn more money when they graduate。
其他一些同齡的年輕人已經結婚生子了，而瑪麗安娜的遊戲計劃對他們也不適用。不管怎麼說，她節儉度日的能力讓她有更大的自由來做自己想做的事。
Other young adults her age already have started families, and Mariana's game plan wouldn't work for them either. Nonetheless, her ability to live cheaply gives her more freedom to do what she wants to do。
或許她的自由太多了。幾個月前，瑪麗安娜知會我們她打算辭去出版工作，這樣她就能搬到北卡羅來納州埃什維爾了，在那兒她仍是與一個朋友合用一個房間。她的房租每月只有350美元。她發現，通過做兼職和動用積蓄，她能把更多的時間放在自己新的愛好──畫畫上。她認爲，在埃什維爾比在競爭高度激烈的紐約藝術圈更容易展示自己的才能。
Perhaps too much freedom. A couple of months ago, Mariana informed us she planned to quit her publishing job so that she could move to Asheville, N.C., where she will share a room with a friend. Her rent: just $350 a month. She figures by working part-time and drawing on her savings, she can devote more time to her new passion: painting. And she thinks it will be easier getting showings in Asheville than in the hypercompetitive New York art scene。
我和妻子都告訴她，在衰退正當頭之際辭去一份有健康保險的工作是瘋狂的做法。不過，瑪麗安娜再次追隨自己的夢想。事情就是這樣。孩子們要過他們自己的生活，而不是我們希望他們過的生活。
Both my wife and I told her it was crazy to quit a job with health insurance in the middle of the recession. But once again, Mariana is following her own star. That's the way it goes. Our kids live their lives, not the ones we want them to live。
至於瑪麗安娜，自12月初辭職以來，她只有一個變化。她說，因爲沒了收入，我過得更加節儉了。
As for Mariana, she has already made one change since quitting her job in early December. 'I'm living more cheaply since I don't have an income,' she says。
真不愧是我的女兒。
That's my girl。
重點單詞查看全部解釋cooperative[kəu'ɔpərətiv]想一想再看
adj. 合作的，共同的
n. 合作社
想一想再看
adj. 節約，節儉
n. 節儉，節約
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n. 保險，保險費，安全措施
聯想記憶X單詞insurance聯想記憶：insure（vt 給…保險；確保） entertainment[ə'teinmənt]
想一想再看
n. 娛樂
聯想記憶X單詞entertainment聯想記憶：enter在中間+tain拿住+ment→在[工作]中間拿→娛樂，款待 intended[in'tendid]
想一想再看
adj. 故意的，有意的；打算中的 n. 已訂婚者 v.
聯想記憶X單詞intended聯想記憶：in內+tend伸展+ed→故意的；打算中的 valuable['væljuəbl]
想一想再看
adj. 貴重的，有價值的
n. (pl.)貴
val強壯+uable→因爲強壯，所以有價值→有價值的 oppressive[ə'presiv]
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adj. 壓迫的，沉重的，壓抑的
contrast['kɔntræst,kən'træst]想一想再看
n. 差別，對比，對照物
v. 對比，成對照<
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vt. 鼓勵，促進，支持
聯想記憶X單詞encourage聯想記憶：courage（n 勇氣） nonetheless[.nʌnðə'les]
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adv. 儘管如此(仍然)
