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Americans plan parties for many reasons.
美國人舉行派對緣由諸多。
As in other cultures, many Americans attend parties for weddings and religious and national holidays.
同其他的文化一樣，很多美國人也會在婚禮上，宗教節(jié)日和法定假日里舉辦派對，
But some parties are especially American.
但也有一些派對很美國化。
For example, a group of neighbors may gather on their street to eat food,play music and visit with one another.
例如，鄰里之間可能會聚在街道上，一起吃東西，玩音樂并相互問候閑聊，
This is called a block party.
這就是所謂的街頭派對。
A woman might invite a group of women to a party called a baby shower for a friend who is about to give birth.
而女性則可能會邀上一幫同性朋友來參加她為準(zhǔn)備當(dāng)媽媽的好友舉辦的送禮派對，
Guests bring presents for the new baby.
客人們都會給即將誕生的寶寶帶來祝福的禮物。
Americans also attend tailgate parties.
美國人也參加車尾野餐會。
A tailgate is the back end of a truck or other vehicle that opens down.
后擋板是指卡車或其他車后端那塊可以打開翻下來的尾板。
Tailgating parties are a big part of sports culture in the United States.
車尾聚餐會可是美國體育文化的一個重要組成部分。
Friends bring food and drinks to a sports event.
朋友們把食物和飲品帶到賽場，
They eat together in the parking area of the sports stadium.
然后在體育館的停車區(qū)里圍著后擋板一起分享。
They gather around the tailgate to eat hotdogs and hamburgers cooked on a grill. There is a good chance that these tailgaters will also be drinking beer.
他們會吃些烤過的熱狗和漢堡，通常也會喝些啤酒。
Birthday parties are also very popular.
生日派對也十分盛行。
Many parents organize a party for their child around a theme.
很多父母為其孩子組織主題派對。
We asked a spokesman for a party supplier called the Oriental Trading Company what the most popular parties are right now.
我們向一家名為新華行公司的派對用品供應(yīng)商了解時下最流行什么樣的派對。
She says rock star parties are very popular for young girls and boys.
根據(jù)該公司的代言人透露，搖滾明星派對非常受年輕女孩男孩的歡迎，
And she says Luau parties with Hawaiian decorations and clothing are very popular with adults.
而配有夏威夷裝飾品和服飾的夏威夷派對則非常受成年人歡迎。
Birthday parties usually include gifts and a birthday cake with candles.
通常，生日派對上會有禮物，生日蛋糕和生日蠟燭。
In many parts of the United States,cupcakes have become a popular replacement for cakes.
在美國很多地方，大家喜歡用杯形蛋糕代替生日蛋糕。
Cupcakes are individual sized cakes topped with a layer of sweet icing.
杯形蛋糕是按照一人分量制作的小蛋糕，上面還有一層糖霜。
Birthday parties can be low cost or very costly.
舉辦生日派對豐儉由人。
Some parents take their children's birthday parties very seriously,even when the child is too young to fully understand the celebration.
一些父母會鄭重其事地為孩子們辦生日派對，即使孩子還很小，尚未完全理解慶生的意義。
One group of parents started a Web site called Birthdays without Pressure.They decided that some parents were under too much social pressure to plan costly parties for their children.
鑒于一些父母在社會壓力的重負之下，無法為孩子舉辦豪華的派對，一對父母創(chuàng)建了一個名為“生日無壓力”的網(wǎng)站。
The group sees this movement as an example of America's culture of "too much stuff."
這對父母把這場運動視為體現(xiàn)“簡約主義”這一美國文化的范例。
The group's Web site gives suggestions on how to keep birthday celebrations simple, meaningful and fun without spending a lot of money.
該網(wǎng)站對怎樣舉辦簡單而有意義，有趣且花錢少的生日派對提供了很多建議，
Their advice may be all the more helpful during this period of economic recession.
而這些建議在這個經(jīng)濟不景氣的時期顯得特別有用。
