星期六的夜晚，任何事都可能发生

绘◎也 圆

在美国，星期一是工作周的开始；大多数美国人最不喜欢这一天。难怪他们最喜欢的一天是星期六，星期六是工作周的结束，周末的开始。

星期六晚上任何事都可能发生。人们跳舞、访友、举办聚会。他们喝过多的酒。他们被杀或杀人。他们睡觉，看电视，有时还相爱。这些事人们在一周的其他晚上也做，但在星期六晚上他们做得更勤，情感更投入，目的性也更强。

In the United States Monday is the beginning of the workweek①; it is the day most Americans like least. It is not surprising then that the day they like most is Saturday. Saturday is the end of the workweek; it is the beginning of the weekend.

Anything and everything can happen on Saturday night.People go dancing; they visit friends and have parties.They drink too much alcohol. They get killed or kill other people.They sleep, watch television, and sometimes fall in love. People do these same things on other nights of the week too, but they do them more often and with more emotion and purpose on Saturday night.

On Saturday night movie theaters sell more admission tickets②. It also is the biggest night for places that sell alcoholic drinks③.That is one reason why Saturday night witnesses④most murders,fights and deadly car accidents.

In a town in Indiana there is a Saturday night custom called"cruising⑤". Cruising means to spend the evening driving your car slowly up and down the town's main street. People who are cruising talk from car to car. They exchange greetings, jokes and friendly insults. Cruising is most popular in small towns where there is not much else to do.

Many people spend the Saturday night at home with friends. They have dinner together.Perhaps they watch a movie on a video cassette⑥recorder. Other people go on a date.A date usually involves⑦two people.People on a date might go to a public concert, yet they talk only to each other.

Is there anything people do not like about the weekend? A study of 1000 Americans found that half would gladly trade⑧a paid workday for an extra day of free time. The only thing wrong with the weekend, they think, is that it does not last longer.

星期六晚上电影院卖出的票比往日多。对于卖酒的地方，这也是赢利最高的夜晚。这也正是星期六晚上谋杀、打架和恶性车祸发生率最高的原因之一。

在印第安纳州的一座小城镇，有一个叫作“滑车”的星期六夜晚习俗。滑车的意思是整个晚上在城镇的主要街道上来来回回地慢速驾车行驶。滑车人与另一辆车里的人聊天、相互寒暄、开玩笑、说俏皮话。滑车在没有什么事情可做的小城镇里十分盛行。

许多人星期六晚上和朋友一起待在家里。他们共进晚餐，也许看录像电影。有的人则赴约会。约会通常有两个人。约会的人可以去听音乐会，但他们只是在两人 之间交谈。

人们对周 末有没有不喜欢的地方呢？ 对 1000 名美国人的调查发现，一半的人乐 于用可以赚钱的一天去换一天自 由的时间。他们认为周末的唯 一缺陷就是它太短暂。

① workweek 英 ['wɜːkwiːk] 美 ['wɝkwik] n. 一周工作时间

②admission ticket 门票；准考证；入场券

③alcoholic drinks 酒精饮料

④ witness 英 ['wɪtnɪs] 美 ['wɪtnɪs]n. 证人；目击者；证据vt. 目击；证明；为……做证 vi. 做证人

⑤ cruising 英 ['kruːzɪŋ] 美 ['krʊzɪŋ] adj. 巡航的 n. 巡航

⑥ cassette 英 [kə'set] 美 [kə'sɛt]n. 盒式磁带；暗盒；珠宝箱；片匣

⑦ involve 英 [ɪn'vɒlv] 美 [ɪn'vɑlv]vt. 包含；牵涉；使陷于；潜心于

⑧trade 英 [treɪd] 美 [tred] n. 贸易，交易；行业；职业vi. 交易，买卖；以物易物 vt. 用……进行交换