VOA慢速英语:Gambling -- And Losing

Many people believe that money makes the world go around. Others believe that money buys happiness. I do not agree with either idea. But I do admit that money can make people do strange things. Let me tell you about a person I once knew who liked to play card games for money. He liked to gamble. 
很多人认为，金钱能让世界围着你转。也有人认为金钱可以买到幸福。这两点我都不同意。但我承认，金钱可以让人做出千奇百怪的事情。让我告诉你一个我曾经认识的人的故事，他喜欢玩牌赌钱。

My friend Bob had a problem because he liked to gamble at all costs. He would play at any time and at any price. To take part in a card game such as poker, my friend would have to ante up. He would have to pay a small amount of money at the beginning of the game.
我朋友鲍勃有个毛病，他喜欢赌博乃至不惜代价（at all costs）。无论什么时间，什么价码他都会赌。参加纸牌赌博时，鲍勃需要先押注（ante up）。他在每局纸牌开始时押上点钱。

Bob always played with cold, hard cash --only coins and dollar bills. Sometimes my friend would clean up. He would win a lot of money on one card game. He liked to tell me that one day he would break the bank. What a feeling it must be to win all of the money at a gambling table!
鲍勃只赌现金——硬币或是美钞。有时他会赢钱（clean up）。他喜欢告诉我，有一天他会赢得比庄家还要多的钱（break the bank），也就是说，他会赢得赌桌上所有钱。

Other times my friend would simply break even. He neither won nor lost money. But sometimes Bob would lose his shirt. He would lose all the money he had. He took a beating at the gambling table.  When this happened, my friend would have to go in the hole. He would go into debt and owe people money.
有时候，鲍勃不赢不输（break even）。但有时候，他会输个精光（lose his shirt），他在赌桌上损失惨重（took a beating）。这时，他就会陷入财政困难（in the hole），背上债务。

Recently, Bob turned to crime after losing all his money. In his job, he kept the books for a small business. He supervised the records of money earned and spent by the company. Although my friend was usually honest, he decided to cook the books. He illegally changed the financial records of the company. This permitted him to make a fast buck. My friend made some quick, easy money dishonestly.
最近，鲍勃在输光了他所有的钱后开始干起了犯罪的勾当。鲍勃是一家小型公司的会计员。他负责监督这家公司赚来的钱和花掉的钱的记录。虽然，我的朋友通常都很老实，但他这次决定做假账。他非法篡改了这家公司的财务记录。这种投机倒把让他赚了一笔不义之财。我的朋友通过欺诈的手段轻易地赚了一大笔钱。

I never thought Bob would have sticky fingers. He did not seem like a thief who would steal money. But, some people will do anything for love of money.
我从没想过鲍勃会去做小偷。他看起来不像是一个会偷钱的人。但是，有些人会为了钱不惜做出任何事。

Bob used the money he stole from his company to gamble again. This time, he cashed in. He made a lot of money. Quickly he was back on his feet. He had returned to good financial health. His company, however, ended up in the red. It lost more money than it earned. The company was no longer profitable.
鲍勃用这些从公司偷来的钱又去赌博。这次，他终于把筹码都换成了现金，赢了很多钱。很快他便脱离了困境，恢复了良好的财政状况。然而他的公司却遭受赤字，亏的钱比赚的钱要多得多。这家公司不再盈利了。

It did not take long before my friend’s dishonesty was discovered. The company investigated and charged him with stealing. Bob tried to pass the buck. He tried to blame someone else for the deficit. His lie did not work, however. He ended up in jail. Today, I would bet my bottom dollar that my friend will never gamble again. I would bet all I have that he learned his lesson about gambling.
没过多久，我朋友的欺诈行为就被发现了。这家公司对我朋友进行了调查并且指控他偷窃。鲍勃试图推卸责任，企图把公司的亏损归咎于另一个人。然而，他的谎言没起作用，最后还是被关进了监狱。现在，我敢用我全部身家打赌，我朋友他绝对不会再赌了，他肯定从中吸取教训了。

(MUSIC)