又中又英——Over My Dead Body

　　It’s been three weeks since I left Hong Kong for the US. I have a return ticket for mid-October but will return over my dead body unless the government changes its inane (extremely silly) and unscientific quarantine rules. The expression “over your dead body” is used when you oppose something and will do all you can to prevent it from happening. It is inane for the government to insist I must quarantine for three weeks when I return even though I am fully vaccinated and did a test that showed I have a high antibody count.
　　Being quarantined in a small hotel room with no fresh air is worse than being in prison. Prisoners are allowed to exercise, breathe fresh air, and eat meals with other inmates (prisoners). Prolonged quarantine is like being in solitary confinement. The expression “solitary confinement” refers to prisoners who are locked in a small prison cell with no natural light or fresh air. They eat by themselves and have no contact with other people. In some developed countries such prisoners are allowed once in a while to breathe fresh air or exercise in a tiny area. Solitary confinement is mostly used to punish violent prisoners who threaten others.
　　During my three weeks in the US I have been to Los Angeles, San Diego, Austin in Texas, and am now in Atlanta in Georgia where my siblings, their spouses, and I are having a family reunion. I last lived in the US many years ago and am now getting used to life here and rediscovering places I went to before. While in Austin my younger brother took me to Lake Travis with a multi-level outside restaurant overlooking the lake. I’ve been there before. We had margaritas, nachos with salsa, and Tex-Mex food. The expression “Tex-Mex” means a blend of Texas and Mexican food. The drinks were great but as usual in the US, the food portions were too large. I will further explain Tex-Mex food in my next column.
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　　我离开香港前往美国已经三个星期了。我订了十月中回程的机票，但除非政府改变它极度愚蠢（inane）又不科学的隔离检疫措施，否则我死也不会（over my dead body）回港。当你反对某事，会竭尽所能阻止其发生时，就可以用上习语“over your dead body”。即使我已接种了两剂疫苗，亦做了测试证明我有高的抗体水平，但政府仍坚持我回港时必须隔离检疫三周，这实在愚蠢透顶（inane）。
　　在一间狭小、没有新鲜空气的酒店房间内接受隔离，比坐牢还恶劣。监狱也容许囚犯去做运动，呼吸新鲜空气，以及跟其他囚友（inmates）进膳。延长的隔离期就像单独囚禁（solitary confinement）。习语 solitary confinement是指囚犯被拘禁于狭小的囚室，没有阳光也没有新鲜空气；他们单独进膳，不能跟其他人接触。在一些已发展国家，会容许这些囚犯偶尔在细小的范围内呼吸新鲜空气和健身。单独囚禁（solitary confinement）多是用来惩罚那些有暴力行为、会威胁到其他人的囚犯。
　　我在美国这三个星期，到了洛杉矶、圣地牙哥、德州的奥斯汀，现在则身处乔治亚州的亚特兰大，与我的兄弟姊妹及其配偶享受家庭重聚。我上次住在美国已是许多年前，现已渐渐习惯这儿的生活，也重新发现那些我以前去过的地方。在奥斯汀的时候，我弟弟带了我去崔维斯湖，那儿有一间多层户外餐厅，可饱览整个湖的景致。我以前也曾去到访过。我们享用玛格丽塔酒、点莎莎酱的墨西哥粟米片，以及德墨（Tex-Mex）料理。习语“Tex-Mex”即德州跟墨西哥混合的菜式。饮品都很棒，但一如美国惯常的情况，食物份量都太大了。我会在下一篇文章中，进一步讲解德墨（Tex-Mex）菜。[email protected]
中译：七刻
Michael Chugani 褚简宁