Dialogue 1

Jingjing and Mark are chatting after work.
下班后，京晶和馬克在聊天。
Jingjing: Good to see you, Mark. Are you getting into the yuletide spirit?
京晶：很高興見到你，馬克。你是否已經進入了Yuletide Spirit（圣誕氣氛）？
Mark: Huh? Are you talking about Christmas?
馬克：什么？你是在說圣誕節嗎？
Jingjing: Yeah! Don't you know: yuletide comes from a German month, Jéola, in wintertime. The ancient Germanic peoples had celebrations of their own, which merged with Christmas when it was introduced. Don't you use the phrase, yuletide, a lot?
京晶：對！難道你不知道“Yuletide”這個詞來自日耳曼語“Jéola”，表示冬季的一個月嗎？古代日爾曼人曾經有過自己的類似節日，后來，圣誕節引入后，這兩個節日就融為一體。你們很少用“Yuletide”這個詞嗎？
Mark: Sure, I guess. I just knew it had to do with Christmas coming. It doesn't surprise me that the word comes from German, as it doesn't sound Latin or Greek.
馬克：我感覺確實不怎么用。我只知道這個詞肯定與圣誕節有關。它來自日耳曼語，我一點也不覺得驚訝，因為它聽起來既不像拉丁語，也不像希臘語。
Jingjing: You know about yule logs, don't you?
京晶：那你肯定知道“Yule Log”（圣誕柴），是吧？
Mark: Yeah, that one's a little more obvious. Again, I just thought that yule had to do with Christmas time. And a yule log is a big piece of wood, partially burned in the fireplace in a family home, and then kept for a year to light next year's yule log—which is supposed to last the 12 days of Christmas.
馬克：是的，這個詞就更明顯些了。我就是因為這個詞才覺得“Yule”肯定與圣誕節有關。而，圣誕柴是一種人們家中壁爐里未完全燃燒的大塊木頭，這種大木塊會被保存下來，用于點燃來年圣誕節的圣誕柴——圣誕柴應該在圣誕節期間燃燒12天。
Jingjing: Is Christmas Day—December 25—the first or the last of those 12 days?
京晶：這12天是從12月25日圣誕節當天算起，還是12天假期的最后一天算起?
Mark: It's the first day. So the twelfth day would be January 5th of the following year.
馬克：圣誕節的當天算起。所以，第12天就是次年的1月5日。
Jingjing: I like the song, "the Twelve Days of Christmas".
京晶：我喜歡《圣誕節的十二天》這首歌。
Mark: Yeah, that's a catchy tune, and fun to sing in a group. Hey, do you know what boughs of holly are, from the line, "deck the halls with boughs of holly"?
馬克：沒錯，這首歌的曲調挺朗朗上口的，而且合唱的效果不錯。嘿，你知道“deck the halls with boughs of holly”（出自歌曲《Deck The Halls》）這句歌詞里的“boughs of holly”是什么嗎？
Jingjing: Well, holly is an evergreen tree with leaves instead of needles. And boughs are leafy branches.
京晶：知道啦，“Holly”就是冬青樹，它是一種非針葉的常青樹。“Bough”就是它的葉枝。
Mark: Is there anything you don't know?
馬克：關于圣誕節，你還有什么不知道的嗎？
Jingjing: Hmm, I guess you could tell me what makes a jingle bell a jingle bell, rather than just a bell.
京晶：嗯，我想你可以告訴我究竟什么是圣誕鈴鐺，它與普通鈴鐺有什么區別。
Mark: Ha ha. That's easy, if you've seen them. You know how most bells are, well, bell-shaped? Jingle bells are round. Whenever they shake—or jingle—they ring a little.
馬克：哈哈。這很簡單，你看到圣誕鈴鐺就明白了。你肯定知道大多數鈴鐺都是鐘形的吧？而圣誕鈴鐺卻是圓形的。每當有振動或搖動時，它就會發出不太大的鈴聲。
Jingjing: So, rather than being struck, they jingle.
京晶：所以，不用擊打它，它也會叮當響。
Mark: Yeah, that's it in a nutshell.
馬克：沒錯，簡單說就是這樣。

New words: 習語短語

yuletide 圣誕季
Christmas season
merge 融合，合并
come/bring together
catchy tune 朗朗上口的旋律
a melody that is pleasant and easy to remember
boughs 粗樹枝
leafy branches
evergreen 長青的
a tree that stays green all year round
in a nutshell 簡言之，一言以蔽之
a summary (often an oversimplification)

Dialogue 2

the next day
第二天
Jingjing: You again, Mark? Are you doing any Christmas shopping?
京晶：馬克，又見面了！你開始圣誕采購了嗎？
Mark: Well, you know me: I prefer to buy something when I see a good deal, or when I know what will make someone's day. I don't like buying stuff just because it's Christmas season.
馬克：呃，你是了解我的——我更喜歡在遇到劃算的，或者當我知道這件東西會讓別人開心時，才去把它買下來。我太不喜歡只因為圣誕季去買東西。
Jingjing: But you are going to give gifts this year, aren't you?
京晶：但你今年要送禮物，不是嗎？
Mark: I guess I should start shopping. Did you ask Santa for anything special this year?
馬克：我想我應該開始去采購了。你沒要求圣誕老人今年送點特別的禮物嗎？
Jingjing: Um, I haven't sat on St Nick's lap since I was eight or nine. Actually, I can't think of anything I need. Some new furniture would be great. But I don't think Santa will be putting much of that on his sleigh. What about you?
京晶：嗯，八九歲以后，我就再沒坐在“圣誕老人”的大腿上要過禮物了。實際上，我都想不出我需要什么。幾件新家具會很不錯。但我覺得圣誕老人的雪橇上應該放不下那么多東西。你呢？
Mark: Santa could throw some money into my iTunes account. That'd be enough.
馬克：圣誕老人可以直接向我的iTunes帳戶里打點錢。這就足夠了。
Jingjing: That sounds like a pretty good stocking stuffer. I should think of something more along those lines, when people ask.
京晶：這圣誕節小禮物聽起來相當不錯哦。我也應該沿著這樣的思路想想禮物的事情，有人問起時好回答。
Mark: Hey, I wasn't suggesting that you put money in my account! I'm just glad we can touch base sometimes.
馬克：嘿，我并不是暗示你給我賬戶打錢啊！我就是挺樂意與你交流交流想法。
Jingjing: How about we just get each other some chocolate? We both like it. Take it easy when you go shopping.
京晶：我們就互相給對方買點巧克力當禮物怎么樣？我們倆都喜歡吃巧克力。這樣，你去采購圣誕禮物時，就可以放輕松點兒了。
Mark: Sweet! I'll get you a Snickers bar and you can give me a Godiva assortment. Sound good?
馬克：真貼心！那我就給你買一根士力架巧克力棒，你可以給我買一盒歌帝梵巧克力。聽起來不錯吧？
Jingjing: Uh, that sounds a little lop-sided. You're kidding, right?
京晶：嗯啊，聽起來不太公平。你在逗我，對吧？
Mark: You bet. I'll pick up something nice. Don't worry. It won't be anything too big.
馬克：當然啦。我會給你挑選一件不錯的禮物。不過，別擔心，它不會太大的。
Jingjing: If I can, I'll get you a chocolate Santa Claus.
京晶：如果可以的話，我會給你買一個巧克力圣誕老人。
Mark: Hey, that's just what I was thinking of. Except it's kind of weird to eat Santa.
馬克：嘿，我們想到一塊了。就是吃圣誕老人感覺有點奇怪。
Jingjing: You know what I've always wanted? A gingerbread house.
京晶：你知道我一直想要什么嗎？一個姜餅屋！
Mark: Yeah those are cool. I always see them around Christmas time, and have never actually had one.
馬克：不錯，這東西很酷。我總能在圣誕節期間看到它，可實際上我從來沒吃過。
Jingjing: Well, there's an idea!
京 晶：好嘞，我有主意了！

New words: 習語短語

make someone's day 做了讓某人開心快樂的事
do something that will make someone feel happy for the rest of their day
Santa Claus 圣誕老人
Father Christmas
St Nick 圣誕老人的另外一個名字
Another name for Father Christmas, short for Saint Nicholas
sleigh 雪橇
a kind of car with skis instead of wheels, which Santa rides
stocking stuffer 圣誕節的小禮物
a small gift given at Christmas time
along those lines 根據這個主意，按這個思路
according to an idea
lop-sided 不公平
uneven, unfair
gingerbread house 姜餅屋
a small house made out of a kind of hard cake, flavored with sugar and ginge