The Dating Game

約會遊戲How much dating should people do before marriage? 婚前應有多少約會經驗？by Pam Osment and Ruth Devlin

Conversation:
Wendy and Emma are talking over coffee.

Wendy: Did you get Selena's wedding invitation?

Emma: I sure did. Can you believe she's marrying her high-school sweetheart?

Wendy: What's wrong with that? They both graduated from university last spring and are ready for marriage.

Emma: But Selena has never dated anyone but Josh. She's missed out on the chance to get to know a loft of guys.

Wendy: Maybe she doesn't need to. She's found a guy she loves. She can trust and depend on him, and he shares her values.

Emma: But how can she be sure of that unless she dates a lot? I'm only 22, and I've had six boyfriends already. I'm still trying to figure out who's right for me.

Wendy: You don't' have to date a lot to find Mr Right. The more you date the more you have to deal with break-ups, and that's always hard.

Emma: True. But break-ups make you a stronger person, and you learn more about good and bad relationships.

Wendy: That isn't true for everyone. Many people aren't emotionally prepared to handle the feelings of rejection that go along with break-ups.

Emma: Well, it seems to me there are more positives than negatives when it comes to dating several people.

Wendy: I'm not sure about that. The negatives when it comes to dating several people. For example, Did you know there's a link between serial dating and the high divorce rate in the U.S. .. for instance? Dating lost of people equals lots of break-ups.

Emma: How are they related?

Wendy: Each time you end one romance and start another one it becomes easier to leave a relationship. Unfortunately, that attitude leads to throw away manages which leads to a throwaway approach to people.

Emma: But don't you have to date a lot to learn about acting appropriately with the opposite sex?

Wendy: Right. You can figure that out by interacting with people in group settings.Personally, I think you should focus on your own life goals before marriage instead of being involved in complicated romantic relationships.

Emma: Ok, Ok. So you believe it's best not to date lots of guys if it distracts you from your own plans? Have lots of friendships but save the serious relationships until you're finally ready for Mr. Right. Is that it?

Wendy: That's about it! Now how about some cake with our coffee?

Grammar Tips:
Many people aren't emotionally prepared to handle the feelings of rejection that go along with breakups.
"to go along with" = " be a part of ", " be connected to"
" to go along with" - is
When we calculated our travel cost, we forgot to add the airport taxes that went along with our airplane tickets.
Sarah likes her new uniform, but she doesn't like the belt that goes along with the outfit.

Vocabulary Tips:
value- 價格,價值values-價值觀( 通常用複數) what you believe in, the way of you thinking , doing or living..
*Sarah and Bob come from similar backgrounds, so they share the same values. 相同的價值觀.
*The traditional values of the tribal people are unshakable.
*The value of the yen has been rising lately. 價格
figure out something or somebody (idiom) -猜,想,推論出某人是什麽樣的人. figure out 想出,算出,推理出, 猜出
*I can't figure out his reasons for being so mean.
*David is a mysterious guy. I can't quite figure him out.
rejection- unwanted.被拒絕,被退回. "re" - "囘來"之意. reject- 拒絕.
*Helen's fear of rejection caused her always to try to please others.
*Fanny applied to several schools, but all she got were rejection letters.
divorce-離婚.
*The celebrity couple's marriage ended in divorce. 這對名人的婚姻最後以離婚收場。
*Theo's parents' divorce had a serious impact on him.
divorce (v) -使離婚，
* Alexia is divorcing her husband. 正與她丈夫辦離婚。
throwaway- 用過隨丟的，隨時凖備丟棄的。使放棄，throw away-放棄，丟棄
*The restaurant stopped using throwaway utensils years ago.
*People don't appreciate fine crafts in the throwaway society we live in. 不懂得欣賞精細的手工藝品。。。在今天我們所処的這用過即丟的社會裏。
complicate- 複雜的，難懂的，難以了解的。complicated.-使複雜，令人難懂的
*French grammar is quite complicated.
*You need to read those complicated business contracts carefully before signing them.
serial- something done in the same way repeatedly.
"I am not sure about that" is a soft way to say that you disagree. (very useful)
link - connect, connection, related to, here don't use "cause". cause is "too strong".
setting- one by one or go out in group, one by one setting or group setting.
talk over coffee / talk over dinner - talk or discuss during the tie of drink coffee or eating dinner.
sweetheart- someone you fall in love with. someone is you loved very much.
break-up : end of romance relationship.

Chat Room:
They both graduated from university last spring.
graduate (v)- 畢業于
"graduate college " is wrong, it should be " graduate from college." graduate + "from" + obj.
He will graduate from college next year.
graduate (n)-畢業生 （注意發音 dua -d“wue")
He is a graduate of Harvard University.
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date- 日子dating-約會
date someone -約會某人。
to date someone -與某人約會
go steady with someone -與某人固定交往。
steady boyfriend / steady girlfriend - 固定男/女朋友。
double date -兩對情侶一起約會
date-古老的日期，年代。（過期，古老，落伍的）
That song really dates you. 你唱的歌透露了你的年齡，時代背景。