Essex street Market:辞旧迎新写展望：老张用英语聊家常谈杂想

Time really flies, and we’ve already come to the end of another year.

时间过得真快，2011年就这样不知不觉过去了。

My business in 2011 has stayed pretty much the same. I think it’s all about my attitude: I take my business as it comes and don’t stress myself out looking for more clients when there’s a lull. My wife teases me that I’m too content about where I’m now, but I think the work-life balance is very important.

2011年我的生意和以前一样，不好不坏。这可能跟我的态度有关：我通常是有生意就做，没生意也懒得去开发。老婆奚落我不求上进，小富即安，但我觉得工作与生活的平衡很重要。

There were no major events in 2011, but two important things did happen. Firstly, under the urging of my own and my wife’s parents, my wife and I were successful in conceiving a baby. My wife fell pregnant 4 months ago, and if all goes well she will give birth to our child sometime after May. We never planned on having a baby after getting married, not because we don’t like children but mainly because we were already past the most suitable age. Furthermore, in truth we didn’t want our child to be exposed to problems such as tainted milk, illegally recycled cooking oil, air pollution and school bus crashes.

2011年没做什么大事，但做了两件有意义的事。首先是在双方父母的强烈要求下，我和老婆“造人”成功。老婆怀孕4个月了，一切顺利的话小张5个月后出生。我和老婆结婚后一直没打算要小孩。不是不喜欢小孩，主要是因为我们已经过了最佳生育年龄，再就是我们实在不想让我们的孩子将来面对毒牛奶、地沟油、空气污染和校车问题。

The second important thing that happened in 2011 was that I brought my paternal grandparents to live in Shanghai for a time. I’ve always dreamed of allowing them to experience Shanghai before they pass away, as well as giving them the chance to fly by plane for the first time in their lives. My relatives and friends all thought that this would never be possible because of my grandfather’s heart problems, which make it dangerous for him to travel by air. What’s more, my grandmother’s bound feet make walking very difficult for her. But, I’ve always believed that if you can dream it, you can achieve it. After my grandparents surmounted all the obstacles before them, in the end my dream came true - and they have been very happy in Shanghai.

第二件有意义的事就是我把爷爷奶奶接到上海住了一段时间。我一直有个单纯的梦想，就是能让他们在有生之年逛逛大上海，坐一次飞机。我的亲戚朋友们都觉得这是一个不可能实现的梦想，因为爷爷心脏不好，坐飞机会很危险，再就是奶奶是小脚，走路有很大困难。但我总认为，只要有梦想就能实现。在克服种种困难后，我的梦想最终完美实现，爷爷奶奶在上海玩得很开心。

I don’t have many particular plans for 2012, but making money to provide milk powder for ‘Xiaozhang’ will be my first priority. I will certainly keep blogging, even if I don’t get the chance to update it very often. In any case, I will keep my weibo updated, so please keep checking it. Please remember: whether it be blogging or weibo, I’m here to share English – rather than to teach it.

2012年没有太多打算，但为小张挣奶粉钱将是首要任务。当然博客我会坚持写下去的，虽然可能不会频繁更新。但我会经常更新微博，建议大家多看一下我的微博。请记住，无论是写博客还是“织围脖”，我只是在和大家分享英语而不是在教英语。

Wishing you a very happy and prosperous New Year!

祝大家新年快乐，大吉大利！
 

以上内容来自老张侃英语博客