1.        and we cut enough wood to just about make it through the heating season.
(=The phrase “make it” means “succeed.” The meaning of this part is “With thewood we cut, the family can succeed in getting through the cold winter.”)

2.        Soon Jim, 16 and Emily, 13, the youngest of our four children, will helpme make some long-overdue improvements on the outdoor toilet that supplementsour indoor plumbing when we are working outside.
Analyze thestructure of the sentence.
(=The structure of this sentence is complicated.
1) “The youngest of our four children” is in apposition to “Emily, 13.”
2) “that supplements our indoor plumbing when we are working outside” is an attributive clause modifying “the outdoor toilet.”)
Translate the sentence into Chinese.
(=过些时候，16岁的吉米和四个孩子中最小的13岁的埃米莉，会帮着我一起把拖了很久没修的室外厕所修葺一下。我们在室外干活时，这个厕所便成了室内卫生设备的补充。)

3.        There is, as the old saying goes, no rest for the wicked on a place likethis — and not much for the virtuous either.
Tell the class the origin of the saying “There is no rest for the wicked.”
(=The saying comes from the Bible, Isiah 57:21, “… no peace, saith my god, tothe wicked.” It is used in a jocular manner, meaning “there’s no time forrelaxation; someone is kept busy all the time.”)
Translate the sentence into Chinese.
(=正如老话说的那样，在这种情形之下，坏人闲不着——好人也歇不了。)

4.        While one storm after another blasted huge drifts up against the houseand barn, ...
Translate this part of the sentence into Chinese.
(=暴风雪肆虐，一场接着一场，厚厚的积雪覆盖着屋子和谷仓…)

5.        When spring came, it brought two floods.
(=The first flood refers to the overflow of the river covering their land whilethe other refers to agricultural produce.)

6.        Then the growing season began, swamping us under wave after wave of produce.
What’s the function of the phrase “swamping us under wave after wave ofproduce”?
(=This v-ing form is one of the non-finite verbs (非谓语动词). It serves as an adverbial in thesentence and it indicates another action by the subject of the sentence.)
Paraphrase the sentence.
(=Then the growing season came and it brought us a lot of agriculturalproducts.)
What attitude of the author can we infer from this sentence towards his countrylife?
(=We can see that he was very satisfied with it and enjoyed the harvest.)

7.        It was amazing.
What can we infer from the sentence?
(=The big harvest was beyond expectation. He was filled with joy because of thebig harvest.)

8.        The timing was terrible.
What’s the meaning of this sentence in Chinese?
(=时机选得实在太差。)
Why does the author think so?
(= 1) He had to pay the expensive tuition for his two girls.
2) He had only a few thousand dollarsin the bank.)

9.        The answer, decidedly, was no, and so — with my employer’s blessings andhalf a year’s pay in accumulated benefits in my pocket — off I went.
Why did the author decide to quit his job even though it was a terrible timing?What could be the reasons for the author’s decision to leave the city?
(=Though it was a terrible timing, the author was clear that there would be no“good” timing at all. Possible reasons for his decision are as follows:
A) He didn’t think his job was good.
B) He longed for risks and changes in his life.
C) He was attracted by the good harvest his family had got the year before.
D) He was fascinated by the hectic, self-reliant and colorful life in thecountryside.)

10.    It picks up 80% of the costs beyond that.
What does the word “that” in the sentence refer to?
(=It refers to “the first $500 the family pays.” Suppose the medical fee is $1,000,the family has to pay $500 while the insurance company will pay $400.)

11.     and we are covered againstcatastrophe.
Translate this part into Chinese.
(=而且我们给自己投了巨灾险。)

12.    Extravagant Christmases are a memory, and we combine vacations with storyassignments …
What can we infer from this part of the sentence?
(=We can infer that the family used to spend much more money on Christmases.)

过得去                                     get by

寻觅心灵的满足                       find contentment

一种自力更生的生活                a self-reliant sort of life

大地回暖的气息                       the smell of the earth warming

艰苦的生活                              a tough life

日常的家务                              usual household routine

正如老话说的那样                    as the old saying goes

温馨快乐每一分钟                    love/enjoy every minute of sth.

过冬                                         get through the winter

常春藤联合会学校                    Ivy League schools

带着某人的祝福                        with sb.’s blessings

总的来说                                   on balance

担任全职工作                            be employed full time

贷款按揭                                   mortgage payments

至于…                                       When it comes to ...

除…以外                                    apart from ...

外出吃饭                                    dine out

降低生活标准                            lower the standardof living / living standard

弥补收入差额                             make up the difference inincome

听歌剧、看芭蕾演出                  attend the opera and ballet

耐得住寂寞                                a tolerance for solitude

手头紧                                        be on a tight budget

自给自足                                    self-sufficiency

抵制诱惑                                    resist the temptation to dosth.

怆然离去                                    leave with a feeling of sorrow

自豪感                                        a sense of pride

一旦形势好转                             once economic conditionsimprove

赚钱                                           earn money

1. Laterthis month, we’ll spray the orchard, paint the barn, plant the garden and cleanthe hen house before the new chicks arrive.

(=这个月晚些时候，我们要给果树喷洒药水，要油漆谷仓，要给菜园播种，要赶在新的雏鸡运到之前清扫鸡舍。)

2. I’mnot making anywhere near as much money as I did when I was employed full time,but now we don’t need as much either.

(=我挣的钱远比不上全职工作时的收入，可如今我们需要的钱也没有过去多。)

3.When it comes to insurance, we have a poor man’s major-medical policy.

(=至于保险，我们买了一份低收入者的主要医疗项目保险。)

4.Once economic conditions improve, however, demand for farms like ours should bestrong again.

(=但是一旦经济形势好转，对我们这种农场的需求又会增多。)

5. 在作物生长季节，根本就没工夫参加社交活动。

(=Duringthe growing season there is no time for socializing anyway.)

6. 了解这些变化所带来的影响也许有助于我们改善家庭生活。

(=Becomingaware of the effects of those changes may help us improve family life. )

7. 而单亲家庭的数量在过去三十年中急剧增长。

(=Andthe number of single-parent homes has mushroomed in the last thirty years. )

8. 这些孩子会不会失去童年时期应有的一些重要东西？

(=Arethese children missing out on an important part of childhood?)