上个月,如果你漫步于伦敦街头,你或许会发现一些古怪的事情。
IF you walked around London last month, you might have noticed something a little strange.
越来越多的年轻人喜欢炫耀嘴角边这些染成凝灰岩色的小胡子。
More and more young people were sporting tuffs of hair on their lips.
但是,这是有原因的。
But there was good reason for this.
因此上个月可不是单纯的11月,而是Movember月(每年11月,在澳大利亚有个世界性的慈善募捐活动,叫movember, 寓指每年的11月份,以男性志愿者蓄留(小胡子)为主题的慈善募款活动,募得的款项捐助给男性疾病研究机构。)。
Last month wasn't November - it was Movember.
Movember 是胡子和11月这两个单词的混合词,它要求男性留着胡子筹集资金为调查男性健康慈善机构募捐。
Movember, which combines the words for "moustache" and the 11th month, asks men to grow a moustache to help raise money and awareness for various men's health charities.
Movember基金会自2004年发起以来,波及整个西方国家。
The Movember Foundation has organized the event across the West since 2004.
去年,我也被邀请留着胡子为Movember募款。
Last year, I was asked to grow a moustache for Movember.
我谢绝了邀请,因为我知道如果我这么做了我会是什么样,这也太荒唐了。
I declined the offer, as I knew how
ridiculous I would look if I did.
虽然如此,我的几个朋友还是留了胡子,我也非常乐意赞助他们。
But several of my friends grew one anyway, and I was happy to
sponsor them.
然后他们把钱给慈善机构寄去。
They then passed on the money to
charity.
尽管如此,留胡子从笑话到时尚还有很长的路要走。
However, the moustache still has some way to go until it becomes a serious fashion statement instead of a joke.
此时,胡子至少在年轻人当中,表示一种讽刺。
At the moment, the moustache - at least among young people - tends to be an ironic statement.
在伦敦北部一个特别时尚区域,叫作秀尔迪契的地方,年轻人炫耀自己的胡子的现象十分普遍。
In one particularly trendy corner of north London, called Shoreditch, it is common to spot young men sporting a tache.
在这个古怪的时尚背后,隐藏着扭曲的逻辑。
There is a twisted logic behind this slightly odd fashion statement.
以艺术优雅闻名于这个区域的音乐家、演员和作家对 "cool"的定义通常与我们普通人的理解大相径庭。
In an area
renowned for its
artistic types - musicians, actors and writers - "cool" is often defined
differently than how us normal people understand it.
事实上,留胡子仍被许多年轻人认为老旧的和过时的,但它至少能代表独立和创意。
Indeed, because the moustache is still considered by most young people as old-fashioned and outdated, growing one can be a
symbol of independence and
originality.
但是后来,或许因为越来越多的人留了胡子,因此越来越多的人接受它也是迟早的事情。
But then perhaps the more people who grow moustaches, the more accepted it will become.
我还记得曾经跟一个留着胡子的朋友的谈话,他和他的所有同事都为 Movember留了胡子。
I remember talking to one friend who had grown one - along with all his work colleagues - for Movember.
我告诉他,你看起来十分可笑。
"You look utterly
ridiculous," I told him.
"确实,"他承认了,"但是,至少其他人也都这么做。"
"True," he admitted, "but at least everyone else does as well."
关键字:
双语新闻生词表: