用法学习: 1. One night, Margo appears at Quentin's bedroom window with a plan to take revenge on(seek revenge on someone.) her high school friends and boyfriend, who she feels have betrayed 背叛 her. She convinces Quentin to help her as she needs a getaway 逃跑的 driver and some assistance. Margo encourages him to get out of his comfort zone more. Quentin then tells Margo to call her sister as she misses her, but Margo reveals that her sister has always been aware of her whereabouts and that they've been talking on the phone every day. tail wagging the dog 小的指挥大的 (idiomatic) A minor or secondary part of something controlling the whole. a situation in which a large group has to do something to satisfy a small group. The less important or subsidiary factor, person, or thing dominates a situation; the usual roles are reversed: the financing system is becoming the tail that wags the dog. put the cart before the horse 本末倒置 (idiomatic) To put things in the wrong order or with the wrong priorities; to put something inconsequential as more important than something more essential. ass-backwards I. (colloquial) Oriented backwards, particularly after a mishap. The car spun out of control and I ended up ass-backwards in a ditch. II. 完全搞错. 完全搞反. 完全领会错误. (idiomatic, colloquial) Hopelessly misguided; having taken the utterly wrong choice. They did the whole design ass-backwards. No wonder it doesn't work. No wonder it doesn't work. The whole design is ass-backwards. 2. rancid [ˈrænsɪd] 臭肉的, 发臭的, 肉发臭的 rancid food contains fats or oils that are no longer fresh and have an unpleasant taste and smell. It smells like rotting egg 臭鸡蛋 in front of you. cross-breed 混血(interbreed)(half-caste 杂种: an offensive word for someone who has one white parent and one black parent. A more polite expression is person of mixed race 混血(mixed ethnicity or multi-ethnic). Half-caste is a term for a category of people of mixed race or ethnicity. It is derived from the term caste, which comes from the Latin castus, meaning pure, and the derivative Portuguese and Spanish casta, meaning race, and is generally considered offensive but not always (such as in New Zealand and the Pacific Islands). The term half-caste was not merely a term of legal convenience. It became a term of common cultural discourse and appeared even in religious records..): an animal that is a mixture of two different breeds. A crossbreed or crossbred usually refers to an animal with purebred parents of two different breeds, varieties, or populations. Crossbreeding refers to the process of breeding such an animal, often with the intention to create offspring that share the traits of both parent lineages, or producing an animal with hybrid vigor( the improved or increased function of any biological quality in a hybrid offspring. ). While crossbreeding is used to maintain health and viability of animals, irresponsible crossbreeding can also produce animals of inferior quality or dilute a purebred纯种的 gene pool to the point of extinction of a given breed of animal. The term is also used at times to refer to a domestic animal of unknown ancestry where the breed status of only one parent or grandparent is known, though the term "mixed breeding" is technically more accurate. The term outcross is used to describe a type of crossbreeding used within a purebred breed to increase the genetic diversity within the breed, particularly when there is a need to avoid inbreeding. 3. butter someone up and butter up to someone 巴结, 奉承, 说好听的 to be nice to someone so that they will help or support you. to flatter someone; to treat someone especially nicely in hopes of receiving special favors. A student tried to butter the teacher up. She buttered up the teacher again. soft-soap. I. 讨好的话. 阿谀奉承. 甜言蜜语. Flattery. flattering talk; sweet talk. She's only six but she's learned how to get her way with soft soap. I don't mind a little soft soap. It won't affect what I decide, though. Don't waste my time with soft soap. I know you don't mean it. II. cajolery. to attempt to convince someone (of something) by gentle persuasion. We couldn't soft-soap her into it. Don't try to soft-soap her. she's an old battle-ax老斗牛, 老犟牛. spread something on thick I. to distribute a thick layer of something. This paint will cover well if you spread it on thick. If you spread the paint on thick, you will only need one coat. lay it on thick and lay it on with a trowel; pour it on thick; spread it on thick 夸的肉麻 Fig. to exaggerate or over-state praise, excuses, or blame. Sally was laying it on thick when she said that Tom was the best singer she had ever heard. After Bob finished making his excuses, Sally said that he was pouring it on thick. Bob always spreads it on thick. There's no bending you. There's nowhere around you 说不服你, 立场坚定, 立场明确. take a shine/fancy/liking to sb 一见就喜欢 be captivated by, have a crush on, find attractive, have a thing about, start to like, start to fancy, grow attracted to informal to like someone immediately. to develop a fondness or a preference for someone or something. "Seems to me you've taken quite a shine to her." He took a shine to jazz. John began to take a fancy to Sally late last August at the picnic. I've never taken a liking to cooked carrots. I think my teacher has taken a shine to me. I think he's taken a bit of a shine to you. whoopsy (informal) A mistake or blunder. Am I missing something or have Telstra made a whoopsy? 4. Malt beer 麦芽糖啤酒 is a sweet, low-alcohol beer (0%–2.5% ABV) that is brewed like regular beer but with low or minimal fermentation. To keep the alcohol content low, one of two methods may be used: either the yeast is added at about 0 °C (resulting in an alcohol content of under 0.5% ABV) or fermentation is halted at the desired alcohol content (usually in the range of 1 to 2% ABV). Karamalz - the German malt drink that invigorates the body and mind. Quenching your thirst the healthy way, Karamalz Malt Drink contains no alcohol, yet is brewed under the Germany Purity Law giving you a the authentic German Malt taste. 面试时什么可以问: Asking questions about your health or requesting that you undergo a pre-employment medical check, is lawful says McRostie, but employers need to be very cautious 小心行事的. Questions about your health must be related to the potential health risks associated with the job or the industry, and your ability to perform the specific elements of the job. Employers can run credit checks on you 核查信用问题 if there is a legitimate reason for doing so, for example, if the job involves dealing with things such as money, accounts, or financial administration. However, you need to provide your consent before a credit check is undertaken. Generally, your age is irrelevant, says McRostie, but where age does pertain to the specific requirements of the job, such as the service of alcohol, questions about age can be asked. Once you've secured the role, an employer will need to know your date of birth for taxation, superannuation and remuneration entitlement reasons, which is perfectly lawful. Father and son fight to dissolve adoption so they can marry: With legal gay marriage seemingly far off 遥不可及, 遥遥无期(remote in time or space. "a far-off country". A time that is far-off, is a long time before or after the present: some point in the far-off future. A far-off place is a great distance away: a far-off land.), adoption was "the most legitimate thing available to us" to secure inheritance rights, Mr Bosee said. "We thought we were getting ahead of the game 超前," he said. When gay marriage was legalised in Pennsylvania in May 2014, they set about annulling the adoption. But a state judge said he could not annul the adoption unless it related to fraud. 骗瞎子的钱: When pedestrians are faced with a blind man holding a $50 note and asking for change, the results are a sad reflection of human behaviour. Wearing dark glasses and using a cane, the prankster holds out $50 and asks for change from a five dollar note. The social experiment sees a disappointing number of passers-by completely happy to take a blind person's money. While some offer lesser notes in return, one callous individual just takes the fifty and walks away. Although the video does leave a sour taste in your mouth 让人唏嘘不已, 让人不是滋味 at the poor behaviour, it also features those who quickly point out Mr Gee's error and try to help. 气不过的模特: Model Jourdan Dunn has given the public a tiny peek behind the curtain of air kisses and glitter that is the Victoria's Secret show, hastily tweeting - and then deleting - a dig 挖苦, 讽刺 at the fashion event overnight. Dunn, who has walked in the VS show since 2012, wasn't cast 没入选 this year, with some speculating that she was dropped to make space for Kendall Jenner. Whatever the case, we know that Victoria's Secret has little patience for those who bite the hand that feeds them忘恩负义的人. Aussie model Jess Hart has not been seen on the VS runway since she commented that Taylor Swift had been an odd choice to perform at the 2013 fashion extravaganza, saying, "to me, she didn't fit".
Sweep Account, Melbourne Cup Sweeps, Office Sweeps, Offset Account: 1. A sweep account is an account set up at a bank or other financial institution where the funds are automatically managed between a primary cash account and secondary investment accounts. A sweep account combines two or more accounts at a bank or a financial institution, moving funds between them in a predetermined 实现决定好的, 事先定好的 manner. Sweep accounts are useful in managing a steady cash flow between a cash account used to make scheduled payments, and an investment account where the cash is able to accrue a higher return.
Many banks and financial institutions offer a sweep account service for
personal customers and small business owners. It has also become part of the arsenal of services ( I. a large collection of things you can use to achieve a particular purpose. arsenal of: In its arsenal of evidence, the government has more than 1,000 hours of taped phone calls. II. 弹药库. a large collection of weapons and military equipment. an arsenal of guns/ammunition/nuclear weapons. ) offered by credit card companies.
In a sweep account: A cash account is set up first and a lump sum of
money is deposited into that account. A financial advisor and the client
will discuss and determine an average balance
that should be kept in this account. Depending on the institution's
service, this amount may be pre-determined. Most of the extra cash above
the average balance will be invested into a money market, CD, or some
other form of investment that can be easily liquidated. When the balance in the cash account falls below the pre-determined average balance, some of the investment is liquidated and the proceeds get deposited into the cash account, thus maintaining the average balance. If the initial calculations are done correctly, the interest on the cash and returns on the investments should yield a large enough return that will increase the total value of the sweep account. 2. In offset account 对冲账号 is a transaction account that can be linked to your home or investment loan. The credit balance of your transaction account is offset daily against your outstanding loan balance, reducing the interest payable 可支付的 on that loan. Offset
accounts enable you to make the most of your income and other funds to
reduce the interest payable on your home loan, thereby reducing your
loan term. 3. Melbourne Cup Sweeps: A sweep is when a number of people pay to purchase a set of tickets, each representing a horse. The tickets are given out randomly, and each ticket costs the same (usually $1 – $10), so there is no skill element involved, and odds 赔率 are ignored completely. The prize pool is made up of the receipts exclusively, and is divided out to the holders of the tickets for winning horses. Typically, first place will win about half of the prize pool, with the remainder divided on a sliding scale to second, third, and sometimes fourth place. There may even be some money given to last place, considering the random nature of a sweep. Office sweeps are exceptionally popular in Australia for the Melbourne Cup, and as a social event the sweep becomes the focus of the day's festivities. Daily newspapers such as the Sydney Morning Herald include full colour lift-outs with images of each horse which can be cut up and used as tickets, as well as instructions on running the sweep, and space to record the names of who has each ticket. In 2007 the Victorian TAB and the Victoria Racing Club launched My Cup Sweep which is a completely online Melbourne Cup Sweep site. In New Zealand office based sweeps are equally popular. Similarly to in Australia, major news such as the New Zealand Herald include full page sweeps pull outs. There is a non-profit online Melbourne Cup Sweep Generator at www.thesweepgenerator.com which allows sweep organisers to enter their entrants names and the programme will produce a random sweep which can be printed or saved online. 4. Office sweep: A betting pool, sports lottery, sweep, or office pool if done at work, is a form of gambling, specifically a variant of parimutuel betting influenced by lotteries, where gamblers pay a fixed price into a pool (from which taxes and a house "take" or "vig" (Vigorish, or simply the vig, also known as juice, the cut or the take, is the amount charged by a bookmaker, or bookie, for taking a bet from a gambler. In the United States, it also means the interest on a shark's loan. ) are removed), and then make a selection on an outcome, usually related to sport. In an informal game, the vig is usually quite small or non-existent. The pool is evenly divided between those that have made the correct selection. There are no odds involved; each winner's payoff depends simply on the number of gamblers and the number of winners. (True parimutuel betting, which was historically referred to as pool betting, involves both odds calculations and variable wager amounts.).
Staying true to its word 说话算话, 说到做到, 信守诺言! Abercrombie and Fitch follows through on promise to curb its overtly-sexual ads as brand debuts modest campaign featuring its first Indian model: In April, Abercrombie and Fitch vowed to stop using shirtless models and hypersexualized imagery to sell its products, and the brand's new toned down campaign proves the company has stayed true to its promise. Neelam Gill, 20, the retailer's first Indian model, is the face of the latest editorial, which debuted on Tuesday and features a minimalist look with noticeably fewer brand logos – and far less skin on show. Abercrombie has also overhauled the look and feel of its website, with e-commerce shots featuring demure ( a demure woman is quiet and shy and always behaves well. If you describe someone, usually a young woman, as demure, you mean they are quiet and shy, usually in a way that you like and find appealing, and behave very correctly. 仪态万方的, 娴静的; 端庄的 温柔娴静的. 贤淑的. 贤惠的. She's very demure and sweet. She smiled demurely. Demure clothes do not reveal your body and they give the impression that you are shy and behave correctly. 落落大方的, 大方得体的, 端庄得体的. ...a demure high-necked white blouse. She was demurely dressed in a black woollen suit. ) models showing little skin. In addition to its sexualized imagery and marketing ploys such as shirtless Hollister 'lifeguards' or Abercrombie 'models' standing outside its stores, the brand has been criticized for not featuring diverse models in any of its campaigns. Craig hopes to change that by enlisting fresh new faces like Neelam, who worked on the floor at Hollister for two years before getting noticed by head honchos(The person in charge; the highest-ranking person in an organization. The head honcho is hard to reach because he's so busy. ). 'Although we are still on a journey of change, we feel that we have made developments in our brand creative, and this shoot starring Neelam Gill has been a step forward for us,' said Craig. The brand had once benefited from using naked models in its campaigns and lookbooks, but the strategy began falling flat over the past several seasons.
Why hasn't film's sexist 'casting couch' mentality been obliterated? In 2015, one would like to imagine that the "casting couch" mentality (The casting couch, casting-couch syndrome or casting-couch mentality is the trading of sexual favors by an aspirant, apprentice employee or subordinate to a superior in return for entry into an occupation, or for other career advancement within an organization. The term "casting couch" originated in the motion picture industry, with specific reference to couches in offices that could be used for sexual activity between casting directors or film producers and aspiring actors. It is not to be confused with the adult entertainment industry where such actions may be a prerequisite, although many pornographic films and pornographic websites play on the casting couch theme and allude to similarities one may find in casting couch scenarios in the film industry. The term is now often used to refer to other industries besides entertainment, though careers which are highly desirable and traditionally difficult to break into, such as the movie, television and music industries, have been the subject of casting couch stories in popular culture. Such trading of favors can be an abuse of power—possibly even statutory rape—and can become a wider sex scandal if deemed newsworthy. A quickie refers to a brief or spontaneous episode of sexual activity, with the act finishing in a very short amount of time. In a 2010 interview with Access Hollywood, actress Lisa Rinna said a producer had asked her for "a quickie" when she was a 24-year-old candidate for a role on a prominent television series.) – that vaguely apocryphal ( [əˈpɒkrəf(ə)l] probably not true, but believed by a lot of people to be true. ) entertainment industry occurrence, memorably 让人记忆犹新的 noted in Julia Phillips' ripsnorter (One that is remarkable for strength, intensity, or excellence. something exceedingly strong, exciting, etc.: a ripsnorter of a storm.) You'll Never Eat Lunch In This Town Again, that leads producers and casting agents to expect sexual favours from aspiring performers (and vice versa) – is dead and buried 一去不复返( gone forever. That kind of old-fashioned thinking is dead and buried.). After all, the biz is abuzz with talk of gender equality in funding quotas and investigations into sexist hiring practices; things are changing, right? Well, sort of. The entertainment business may well be stepping tentatively into a new era, but as a number of prominent actresses have found, there are certain aspects of film and TV industry sexism the biz is not so keen to have brought into the open. Rose McGowan took to Twitter earlier this year to decry a casting note for an unspecified Adam Sandler film that requested actresses wear "black (or dark) form fitting tank that shows off cleavage (push up bras encouraged)", evidently par for the course 稀松平常, 常见的, 见怪不惊的(what is normal or expected in any given circumstances. If a type of behaviour, event, or situation is par for the course, it is not good but it is normal or as you would expect: The school budget is going to be cut again this year, but then that's par for the course. "looking gorgeous is par for the course with her") for many castings; days later, she was dropped by her agency, Innovative. While a number of other prominent actresses echoed McGowan's outrage at the time, it's perhaps more telling to look at how the industry treats emerging actresses, the women who don't have the benefit of half a million Twitter followers or powerful managers to back them up. Horror stories from the audition circuit abound到处都是; it seems every actress has at least one story about an audition, screen test or casting note that made their skin crawl 肉皮发麻, 起鸡皮疙瘩. When I asked a group of actresses for their worst nightmares, tales shared – on condition of anonymity – ranged from aspiring actresses being asked to submit naked photos for a role (the casting notice was posted on Facebook) to an established 站稳脚跟的 actress who was asked to simulate masturbation during an audition for an "award-winning director". Then there are the more subtle, but still insidious 丑陋的, forms of industry sexism; one actress reported receiving a casting note for an advertisement that sought either a male or female lead. "The woman had to be 'late twenties to late thirties' but the guy could be 'thirties to mid forties'." And nearly all of the actresses, regardless of their age, experience level or body type, had encountered casting notes that required them to wear a swimsuit or tight-fitting clothes to "show the body", regardless of the role (one of which included a suburban mum shopping in a supermarket). "After submitting my first self tape [a video audition] to my now former manager, she told me I needed to be fit and trim," recalls Jean Grant, an actress and writer based in New York. "Every time we'd speak on the phone, she's never let me forget how my body was unacceptable in that first self tape and how necessary it was for me to be 'stunt' ready. By the end of our time working together, she replaced 'stunt' with 'bikini' ready." Grant later decided to speak up after she was sent a casting note she felt was a bridge too far 太过分了, and that she could no longer follow the "put up and shut up" approach she'd tried to maintain. "I obeyed that statement for six months until I refused to audition for the most sexist and misogynist independent feature film. That refusal got me fired by my representation," she says." The industry can be especially difficult to navigate for younger actresses, who may find themselves pressured into casting situations they find uncomfortable. "It is paramount to dress appropriately for the given character at an audition, however, as I am merging from children's [TV] to adult drama, I am feeling the pressure to dress older than I feel," says Australian actress Lana Golja, who starred in ABC3's Worst Year Of My Life, Again. "At 20 years old, I have been encouraged to wear skin tight clothing, to display cleavage, and even wear bikinis, merely for a first round audition. The expectation to look flawless and have a defined figure is pressure enough, but to be told my audition will not be considered because I am not exposing the majority of my body is vexing, to say the least." Like many of the other actresses I spoke to, Grant and Golja have experienced seemingly arbitrary requests for "sexy" or skimpy clothing at auditions for roles that don't necessarily fit the "sexy" bill. "Initially, I felt the freedom of being able to audition for a diverse range of roles, from tomboy to 15-year-old fairy princess," Golja recalls, "until I was advised a pretty floral top was not 'sexy' enough for a fairy." Inspired by McGowan's activism, Grant made a point of writing about her experiences in an essay that was, in turn, shared by McGowan herself. And both Grant and Golja agree that change must also come from within the industry, from the screenplay up. "I never want any woman to go through the sexist and degrading bullshit trenches as I did," Grant says. "The inside of the industry needs to shift from its content, more female executive producers, writers, directors and creative roles. "After I was fired from my manager, I went back to writing and now am beginning to direct my own work. I won't sit back and wait for Hollywood to make it happen, nor should other women. The stronger community and network women have, the stronger the shift in the industry."
