"This Dating Stuff Is a Piece of Cake!"

约会，有什么了不起！

My first car was a baby blue Chevy convertible.1 It was only three years old when I bought it, and I thought I was hot stuff, driving around with the top down, looking to see who was lookin g at me.2

For a long time I' d had my eye on Karen.3 My shyness, though, had kept me from saying much more than "hi" to her.4 But owning that convertible seemed to give me courage, so I asked her to go to the drive-in5 with me. She said yes!

It was my first date.

When the big6 night arrived, I was nervous. Very! I ironed7 my shirt. Twice. I' d ressed carefully, checking and rechecking8 my wallet to make sure I had my money. Finally, I picked up9 Karen and we headed for the drive-in.

The night was shaping up to be the perfect date.10 Karen wore a pale blue dress that almost matched my car. Her blond hair blew in the wind as we wound throught he streets of Jackson, Michigan. I felt powerful. Confident. This dating stuff is a piece of cake,11 I thought, as we pulled into our place at the drive-in. Slowly the sky darkened and soon the movie began. Karen stretched out her long legs and leaned back in the seat to watch. I began to think that maybe ?nbsp;just maybe ?nbsp;I would reach over and take her hand.12

By the middle of the movie I was still trying to figure just how to do that. "I' m thirsty," Karen said suddenly.

"I' ll get us something!"I said, almost leaping out of the car.13 I wound throug h the dark rows to the concession stand thinking, I' ll show her that I' m no cheap skate. So I bought Cokes and popcorn and M&Ms. My arms loaded with the goodies, I turned to head back to my car.14

And that' s when I realized...I had no idea where my car was! A sea of automobiles surrounded me.15 In the dark, they all looked alike. I couldn' t even remember which direction I' d come from!16 So I began walking around looking for a baby blue Chevy convertible. Aisle after aisle. Dead end after dead end.17 Then...could it be? Yes! I headed for the blue convertible, hoping the Cokes weren' t too warm o r the popcorn too cold for Karen' s liking.18 I flung open the door of the car --- only to discover a couple engaged in some serious necking in the back seat.19 The good news is it wasn' t Karen. The bad news is it wasn' t my car. "Sorry," I muttered, spilling popcorn as I banged the door shut.20

Finally, after bumping about in the dark so long that I ate the popcorn myself a nd downed both Cokes, I found the car.21 Karen glanced over at me, her eyes icy22 . "Where' s my drink?"she asked.

I tossed23 her the M&Ms. "This is all they had."

I slid into my seat,24 and we watched the rest of the movie in silence. (Actually, the credits were rolling by that time.25)

I never went out with Karen again, although one time she did ask to borrow my car. (I said no.) And the next time I took a date to the drive-in, I took an extra pack of M&Ms with me...and dropped them all the way to the concession stand, just so I could find my way back.

1. 我的第一辆车是辆淡蓝色的雪佛莱敞篷。baby blue: 婴儿蓝（一种柔和的浅蓝）。conv ertible: 敞篷汽车。

2. 我买这车时，它的车龄只有三年，所以我觉得自己很威风，放下车篷四处兜风，看看谁在注视我。hot stuff: <口>了不起的人。

3. 很久以来，我一直暗恋着卡伦。have one's eye on: 看中，想要得到。

4. 然而，我的羞怯使我除了“你好”之外没向她说过别的什么。

5. drive-in: <主美>（顾客无需下车即可得到服务的）“免下车”剧场（或餐馆、银行、邮 局等）。

6. big: 重大的。

7. iron: 熨，烫。

8. recheck: 重新检查。

9. pick up: 把……载上车。

10. 那晚看来会是个完美的约会。shape up: <口>进展良好。

11. 约会简直就是小菜一碟。a piece of cake: <口>容易（或轻松愉快）的事情。

12. 卡伦伸直她的长腿，靠在椅背上看电影。我开始想也许——只是也许——我可以伸手过 去握住她的手。

13. “我去买点东西！”我说着，几乎是跳出了车外。

14. 我绕过黑乎乎的一排排车到了货摊，心想，我不能让她觉得我是个吝啬鬼。我买了可乐 、爆米花和M&M豆。我抱着满满一兜好吃的，转身往自己的车返回。wind: 曲折而行；conces sion: <美>租地营业商摊；cheapskate: <美口>吝啬鬼（尤指逃避付费的人）；goodie: <口 >好吃的东西。

15. 茫茫一片车海围绕着我。

16. 我甚至记不得我从哪个方向来的！

17. 一排接着一排，一条死路接着一条死路。aisle/ail/: 过道；dead end: 死路。

18. 希望就卡伦的喜好来说，可乐还不算太热，爆米花也不算太冷。

19. 我猛地打开车门——不料发现一对恋人正在后座上沉醉在亲吻中。fling:（用力地）扔 ；only: 不料，结果却；necking: <美口>搂脖子亲嘴。

20. “对不起”我咕哝说，关车门时把爆米花撒了一地。

21. 最后，在吃完了爆米花，喝光了两瓶可乐，在黑暗中碰碰撞撞了很久以后，我终于找到了我的车。bump: 碰，撞。

22. icy: 冷冰冰的。

23. toss: 扔，抛。

24. 我悄悄地移到座位上。

25. 其实，屏幕上已经开始播片尾字幕了。credits:　（电影或电视片等的）片头（或片尾）字幕。