THIRTY YEARS OF PICKUP BASKETBALL街头篮球三十年

⊙By Peter Breslow ⊙ 翻译：思苇

THIRTY YEARS OF PICKUP BASKETBALL街头篮球三十年

⊙By Peter Breslow ⊙ 翻译：思苇

老记者Peter和他的球友对街头篮球情有独钟，他们每逢星期三晚上就会一起打球，这一打就是三十年，是不是有点不可思议？尽管大家早已不复当年勇，你腿脚不便，我跑不起来，一不小心摔倒还把周围的年轻人吓得够呛，但是那又何妨呢？每周一次的挥洒汗水，快乐就是如此简单。

Every Wednesday night over the decades,a group of guys has come together to run full-court in a rented gym.We’ve had journalists,carpenters,doctors,1)locksmith [΄lɒksmɪθ] n.锁匠locksmiths,IT guys,2)military [΄mɪlɪtərɪ] adj.军事的，军队的militaryguys,lawyers,and at least one top White House staffer.This is D.C.,after all.Often,we know little about each other’s personal lives and would never recognize each other with long pants on.

Bernard Ohanian(Player): You know,when it’s really3)click [klɪk] v.<口>成功，进行顺利clicking,it’s like a jazz symphony.And most of the time,it’s like a bad4)garage band 车库乐队，业余摇滚乐队garage band.

That’s Bernard Ohanian.He’s one of the almost-originals and among the few5)graybeard [΄greɪbɪəd] n.<美>白胡子老人graybeardsleft in our group.He says the game6)endure [ɪn΄djʊə（r）] v.持久，继续（存在）enduresbecause everyone’s friendly,plays hard,and…

Bernard:You know,the friendships and the relationships that you build up over a number of years,it just feels right.It feels like part of my life.

John Ydstie(Player): Every now and then,I do something that feels like it felt when I was 20 years old,and it just feels so great.And I…you,you realize you were once really good at this thing,and I’m not very good at it anymore,I mean…but it’s still fun.It’s just,just great fun.

For John Ydstie,retirement is not an option—not yet.

John:You know,I keep thinking…I suppose there’s a time will come when we’ll have to hang it up,but it’s not next week.And I don’t think it’s next year.Yeah,I don’t know,I think…just keep going till I can’t go anymore.

Over the years,I’ve broken my nose,cracked my7)rib [rɪb] n.肋骨ribs,8)tear [teə（r）] v.撕开，撕裂，过去分词为torn。tornmuscles and sprained ankles.My jump shot percentage is approaching that of low-fat milk.And yet,I keep playing,because the game I’ve practiced since I was nine years old keeps toying with me.I’ll have a great night—or at least a great game.I’ll hit most of my shots,maybe even a game-winner.And then I know I’ll be back next Wednesday night.

And yet,I keep playing,because the game I’ve practiced since I was nine years old keeps toying with me.

我们都知道，toy作名词用时意为“玩具”，所以当它改变词性时，我们不难推断出这个动词的意思是“玩弄”，常与with搭配，表示“漫不经心地摆弄，戏耍，轻率对待”，如：

· Stoptoying withyour food! （别老拨拉你的食物！）

· Frank is justtoying withher affections.（弗兰克只是在玩弄她的感情。）

· Georgetoyed withthe idea of buying a car.（乔治动过买车的念头——只是随便想想而已。）

参考译文

几十年来，有一群人每逢星期三晚上就会约到一起，在一个租来的体育馆里打全场。我们当中有记者、木匠、医生、锁匠、IT技术人员、军人、律师，至少有一个白宫高级官员——毕竟这里可是华盛顿特区。我们通常对彼此的个人生活知之甚少，一旦穿上长裤，就谁也认不出谁了。

伯纳德·瓦尼安（球手）：你瞧，打得特别好的时候，那感觉就像爵士交响曲那么和谐——不过，我们在大多数时候更像一支糟糕的车库乐队。

这位是伯纳德·瓦尼安，他几乎是最初那批元老了，是我们这群人当中极少数还在玩的老头子之一。他说，这游戏之所以如此耐玩，是因为大家都很友善，努力打球，而且……

伯纳德：你知道，这种花好几年时间建立起来的友谊与关系，那感觉太棒了，它是我生活的一部分。

约翰·伊斯蒂（球手）：我偶尔会做出一些动作，那种感觉就像20岁时一样，实在太棒了。我……你意识到篮球曾经是自己的强项，而我早就不像过去打得那么好了，我的意思是……但打球还是很有趣，让人特别开心。

约翰·伊斯蒂压根没考虑退役——还没到退役的时候。

约翰：你瞧，我总是在想……我们终有一天不得不告别球场，但那不会是下周，也不会是明年。是啊，我也不晓得，我想……就这样打下去，直到跑不动为止吧。

这些年来，我试过弄伤鼻子，撞裂肋骨，也试过撕裂肌肉，扭伤脚踝。我的跳投得分率就和低脂牛奶的脂肪率差不多。不过哪怕这样，我依然坚持打球，因为我从九岁开始练篮球，至今我还乐在其中。我会度过一个尽兴的晚上——或者至少能享受一场精彩的比赛。我的大部分投球都能命中，甚至可能投出致胜的一球。而且我确信——下星期三晚上，我会再来的。