Q:I am in my late 20s and feel I have wasted a lot of time. Is it too late for me to achieve something worthwhile?
A:
Too late for what?
做什么太晚了呢?
If you slept through your 26th birthday, it's too late for you to experience that. It's too late for you to watch "LOST" in its premiere broadcast. (Though, honestly, you didn't miss much.) It's too late for you to fight in the Vietnam War. It's too late for you to go through puberty or attend nursery school. It's too late for you to learn a second language as proficiently as a native speaker. It's probably too late for you to be breastfeed.
如果你是在睡梦中错过了你的26岁生日,对于你来说再去体验26岁生日就是太晚了。看“lost”的首映太晚了。(虽然,诚实的来说,你没有错过多少)。它是太晚了对于你来说在越南战争里面激战。它是太晚了对于你去渡过你的青春期还有幼儿园。它是太晚了对于你去学会第二门语言和说母语的人同样流利。它有可能也太晚了对于你来进行母乳喂养
It's not too late for you to fall in love.
你坠入爱河是不晚的
It's not too late for you to have kids.
拥有一个孩子也是不晚的
It's not too late for you to embark on an exciting career or series of careers.
从事一个令人兴奋或神秘的职业生涯是不晚的
It's not too late for you to read the complete works of Shakespeare; learn how to program computers; learn to dance; travel around the world; go to therapy; become an accomplished cook; sky dive; develop an appreciation for jazz; write a novel; get an advanced degree; save for your old age; read "In Search of Lost Time"; become a Christian, then an atheist, then a Scientologist; break a few bones; learn how to fix a toilet; develop a six-pack ...
读完莎士比亚;学习电脑编程;学习舞蹈;环球旅行;去当医生;成为一位技艺精湛的厨师;跳伞;发展对爵士乐的鉴赏能力;写一本小说;获得高级学位;挽救你的老年生活;阅读“寻找迷失的时间”;成为一名基督徒;或一名无神论者;或一名科学论者;一些骨头的骨折;学习如何通马桶;开发一个六包等等
Honestly, I'm 47, and I'll say this to you, whippersnapper: you're a fucking kid, so get over yourself. I'm a fucking kid, too. I'm almost twice your age, and I'm just getting started! My dad is in his 80s, and he wrote two books last year.
说实话,我现在47岁,然后我要告诉你的是,傲慢的家伙:你是fck小孩,所以克服自己。我也是一个fck小孩。我几乎是你年龄的两倍,我也刚刚开始!我父亲活在自己的80后,他去年已经写了两本书。
You don't get to use age as an excuse. Get off your ass!
你不能把你的年龄当借口。把你的屁股从椅子上挪开去干!不要偷懒!
Also, learn about what economists call "sunk costs." If I give someone $100 on Monday, and he spends $50 on candy, he'll probably regret that purchase on Tuesday. In a way, he'll still think of himself as a guy with $100—half of which is wasted.
另外,学习什么是经济学家称之为“沉没成本”。如果周一你给了某人100美元,他花费了50美金购买了糖果,他可能周二就会后悔这次购买行为。在某种程度上,他还仍然认为他拥有100美金--一半已经花掉了。
What he really is is a guy with $50, just as he would be if I'd handed him a fifty-dollar bill. A sunk cost from yesterday should not be part of today's equation. What he should be thinking is this: "What should I do with my $50?"
他真的也就拥有50美金,当我将50美元的账单交给他。一个昨天的沉没成本不能是今天的一部分。他应该这么想:“我能拿剩下的50美元去做什么”。(向前看,过去的已经过去了)
What you are isn't a person who has wasted 27 years. You are a person who has X number of years ahead of you. What are you going to do with them?
你是不是一个浪费了27年的人?你是一个在你前面还有X年的人。你要拿这些时光怎么做呢?