Too much stuff
物质主义和简约主义
Do you have too many pairs of shoes or old gadgets lying around your home? I'm sure many of us have too much stuff that we don't really use and when it starts getting out of hand, it really is time to do some spring cleaning to de-clutter our lives.
你家里是不是有太多鞋子或者旧的小玩意?我相信我们很多人都有很多并不真正使用的东西。当这些东西侵占了太多的生活,我们该做做大扫除了。
However, deciding which items to get rid of can be tricky especially if you are materialistic, believing that physical possessions are the most important thing in life. Also, some people are sentimental about letting go of their personal property. But if you haven't got room in your house to move, it's time to evaluate what is really important to you and decide what are your prized possessions and what is just junk.
然而,决定扔掉哪些东西并非易事,尤其对于唯物主义者来说。他们相信物质财富是生活中最重要的东西。此外,有些人对放弃自己的个人财产很伤感。但是如果你的屋子已经堆满,那么是时候评估一下哪些才是真正重要而珍贵的东西,而哪些只是垃圾。
Instead of just chucking it away and filling up landfill sites, items could be recycled or given to a charity to re-sell. You could also make some money by using websites where people are willing to pay for second-hand goods. Some people have taken a minimalist approach, deliberately trying to keep life simple. Bea Johnson, author of Zero Waste Home, has done this. She says "we've asked really true questions, and evaluated every single thing that we have. There is nothing that we overlooked. I even came to look at my vegetable peeler for example and asked myself, 'do I really need that vegetable peeler'?"
我们不只可以把不需要的物品扔进垃圾堆,还可以回收或捐给慈善机构重新出售。你也可以通过二手商品网站重新出售卖钱。有些人采取了极简主义的方法,特意让生活保持简单。《零废物家园》一书的作者比娅·约翰逊就是这么做的。她说:“我们提出了非常真实的问题,并评估了我们所拥有的每一件物品,不忽略任何东西。例如,我甚至拿着我的蔬菜削皮器问自己,‘我真的需要这个吗’?”
Of course, if you're a shopaholic or a fashion-victim it's hard to stop buying and shopping online makes purchasing stuff very easy. James Wallman is a writer and journalist - he questions what we actually need. He says "I'm not anti-stuff - stuff is good. I'm anti too much stuff and I'm anti the wrong stuff. Don't go out and buy that labelled good that you think is going to make people think something more of you. That's not going to make you happy."
当然,如果你是购物狂或追求时尚的人,是很难改掉购物习惯的,加之网上购物让购物变得非常容易。詹姆斯·沃曼是一名作家兼记者,他质疑我们到底需要什么。他说:“我不反对物质——物质是好的。我反对很多东西,反对不是真实需要的东西。不要去买那些你认为会让别人对你有好感的名牌商品。你不会因此变得开心的。”
This sounds like good advice. It's good to take stock of what we have and what we really need. But there are still some things I just can't face parting company with; my CD collection, even though I now download my music, and my childhood teddy bear. What about you - have you got something that you just can't throw away?
这建议听起来不错。我们确实要盘点一下我们拥有的和真正需要的东西。但还是会有不舍得扔掉的东西;我舍不得扔我收藏的光盘和陪我长大的泰迪熊,即使现在听音乐都通过下载实现。你呢?你有什么不能随便扔掉的东西吗?
词汇表
getting out of hand
失去控制
spring cleaning
彻底打扫,大扫除
de-clutter
整理,清除杂物
get rid of
扔掉、丢弃
materialistic
追求物质的,拜金的
sentimental
感情用事的,多愁善感的
prized possessions
珍贵的财产、物品
junk
垃圾、没用的东西
chucking it away
把它扔掉
landfill sites
垃圾填埋场
recycled
回收利用的
minimalist
简约主义的
overlooked
忽略了,没有考虑到的
shopaholic
购物狂
fashion-victim
盲目追求时尚的人
labelled
贴了(名牌)标签的
take stock
仔细考虑,作出判断
parting company
与…分离