Life as a newspaper reporter can be aggravating. Every morning at 5 a.m. , there's a staff meeting where the managing editor goes through his agenda for the day. He's not at all agreeable in the morning. In fact, he's akin to a grouchy bear. Oh does he love to agitate us! I drink coffee to calm my nerves but sometimes it just aggravates my stomach.
"Jim, you'll be covering the recent acts of aggression in the Middle East. We can't afford to ignore this important development. You need to be airborne and on your way to the Middle East within the hour."
"Jane, come in here, you're late. Don't leave the door ajar, this is a private meeting. I need you to get a copy of that new alien alert from the Immigration Department. The aggregate number of aliens in this country is growing, but it seems to me that such an alert will only serve to alienate our own minority groups.'
"Sam, you're the most agile of us all. Use your agility to catch up with the world-class runners who are in town for maraton. Come on Sam, don't agonize your assignment, just do it. "
"Mary, the children in Central Africa are afflicted with an unknown disease. It's not just an ailment. It's something far more serious. Hey, stop looking so aghast, you don't need go there. Just find out the source of the affliction and write a report on it by this afternoon. By the way, I think you should quit drinking coffee, it does nothing to calm your nerves! "
Oh well, I guess I better get going. Can I afford to quit this wonderful job? Not today.
報社記者的生活時常相當惱人。每天早上五點有一次全體員工會議，會上主編會一一講述當天的日程安排。早上的主編根本談不上和藹可親。 實際上，他就像頭愛發(fā)脾氣的狗熊。噢，他偏偏要弄得我們狂躁不安！我喝點咖啡以鎮(zhèn)靜神經，但有時咖啡又會加劇我的胃痛。
“吉姆，你去報道最近在中東發(fā)生的侵略行為。我們可擔不起錯過這一重大進展的后果。一小時以內你必須坐上飛往中東的飛機。”
“進來，簡，你遲到了。別開著門，這是私人會議。我要你從移民局搞一份最新的外僑警報。這個國家的外僑總人數(shù)不斷增長，但我看這種警報只會疏遠本地的少數(shù)群體。”
“山姆，你是我們所有人當中最靈敏的。運用你的靈敏勁去報道城里世界級馬拉松參賽選手的最新情況。好了，山姆，用不著為這點任務弄得痛苦不堪，就動手干吧。”
“瑪麗，中非兒童正經受不明病癥的折磨。那還不是小病小恙，而是很嚴重的某種疾病。喂，你別目瞪口呆的，你又不用去中非。你只需找出痛苦的原由，然后在今天下午前寫一篇報道就行了。對了，我想你該戒掉喝咖啡的習慣，咖啡根本不能鎮(zhèn)靜你的神經。”
哎，我想我得去干活了。我能舍得辭去這份好工作嗎？今天可不行。
