又中又英 | Dry January | 褚简宁

　　Hong Kong normally has a dry January. I arrived in Hong Kong about three weeks ago and it was a dry January with comfortable temperatures except for two days with a little rain. Hong Kong winters are mostly dry, but the summers are wet and humid with typhoons. But the phrase “Dry January” also has another, completely different meaning. It means not drinking alcohol every January. A New York resident invented the phrase in 2008, but the UK charity Alcohol Change UK registered the Dry January phrase as a trademark in 2013.

　　The aim is to encourage people to avoid drinking at least during January for health reasons. January was chosen because binge drinking is common in the West during the Christmas and New Year holidays in December. Many people in the West now keep Dry January. It encourages people who celebrate the holidays by binge drinking to dry out. Binge drinking means drinking four or five alcoholic drinks within just a few hours. To “dry out” used this way means to stop drinking alcohol, especially by getting expert help to stop the addiction.

　　People who are unable to completely stop drinking during Dry January choose to have far fewer alcoholic drinks in January. This is called Damp January. There are also dry countries. These are countries that do not allow the sale and consumption of alcohol. Dry countries are mostly Middle East countries with a Muslim population, such as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Afghanistan. These countries impose harsh penalties for people who drink. I don’t do Dry January because I don’t like binge-drinking. People who observe Dry January must be relieved that it is now February. Cheers!

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　　香港通常有干燥的1月（dry January）。我大约三星期前抵港，确是干燥的1月（dry January），有舒适的气温，只得两天有微雨。香港冬季普遍干燥，夏季则多雨而潮湿，还有台风。然而，Dry January这个短语还有另一个迥然不同的意思。它是说在每年1月都不喝酒。一位纽约居民于2008年发明这个短语，但英国戒酒慈善组织Alcohol Change UK于2013年将这个短语注册成商标。

　　它的目标是去鼓励人为了健康，至少在1月期间不碰酒精。他们选了1月，因为在西方12月圣诞和新年假期期间，狂饮酒（binge drinking）是很常见的。西方许多人现在都会遵行无酒精1月（Dry January）。它鼓励那些以狂欢豪饮（binge drinking）庆祝节日的人去dry out。Binge drinking是指在数小时内暴饮4至5杯酒精类饮品。To“dry out”在这里是指戒酒，尤其是找专业人士帮忙戒掉成瘾的行为。

　　那些在无酒精1月（Dry January）中未能完全不碰酒的人，会选择在1月喝较少酒，这就叫Damp January减酒1月。世上也有 dry countries，就是完全不容许售酒与喝酒的国家。禁酒国（dry countries）通常是穆斯林人口的中东国家，例如沙特阿拉伯、科威特和阿富汗。这些国家会向喝酒的人实施严厉的罚则。我不会守无酒1月（Dry January），因为我不喜欢狂饮酒（binge-drinking）。现在到2月了，那些守无酒1月（Dry January）的人应该能松一口气了吧。干杯！

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Michael Chugani褚简宁
中译：七刻