1.Bosss idea
When my printer‘s type began to go faint, I called a repair shop where a friendly man told me that the printer probably needed only to be cleaned.
Because the shop charged 50 pounds for such cleanings, he told me, it would be better for me to read the printer‘s directions and try the job myself.
Pleasantly surprised by his words, I asked, “Does your boss know that you discourage business?”
“Actually it‘s my boss‘s idea,” the employee replied. “We usually make more money on repairs if we let people try to repair things themselves first.”
翻譯
老板的主意
由于我的打印機不能打印出清晰的字來，我就打電話給維修部。電話是一位非常和藹的男人接的，他說我的打印機也許只是需要清理一下。
他還說，如果讓維修部清理的話要交50英鎊的清理費，讓我最好看看使用手冊自己試著清理。
當時我真的被他的話感動了，就問他：“你們老板知道你這樣拒絕生意么？”
“事實上，這就是我們老板的主意，”雇員答道：“因為如果我們讓用戶先自行修理打印機的話就能掙更多的錢。”
2.Talking on the Telephone
Each Sunday the minister called the children to the front of the church while he told them a story. Once he brought a telephone to better illustrate the idea of prayer.
“You talk to people on the telephone and don‘t see them on the other end of the line, right?” he began.
The children nodded yes. “Well, talking to God is like talking on the telephone. He‘s on the other end, but you can‘t see him. He is listening though.”
Just then a little boy piped up and asked, “What‘s his number?”
翻譯：
在電話中交談
每個星期天牧師都會把孩子們叫到教堂前面，然后給他們講一個故事。一天，他為了更好地闡述祈禱的含義，帶來了一臺電話機。
“你們和別人在電話里交談，并沒有看到電話線另一端的人，對嗎？”他開始問道。孩子們點頭稱是。“好的，和上帝交談就象通過電話交談一樣。他就在另一端，雖然你看不見他，但是他正在聆聽你的心聲。”
就在這時，一個小男孩尖著嗓子問道：“那他的電話號碼是什么？”
3.The Name of a Poet
Our teacher was telling us about a new system of memory training being used in some schools today． It works like this, she said. Suppose you wanted tore member the name of a poetRobert Burns, for instance. She told us to think of him as Bobby Burns. Now get in your head a picture of a London policeman, a bobby in flames. See? Bobby Burns! I see what you mean, said the class know it all. But how can you tell that it‘s Not Robert Browning?
翻譯：
詩人的名字
我們的老師正在給我們介紹現在某些學校使用的一種新的記憶訓練系統。這個系統是這樣的，她說，假定你要記住一個詩人的名字，例如，要記住羅伯特·彭斯的名字。她告訴我們把他當作博比·彭斯，讓你的腦海里閃現出一個倫敦警察的形象，燃燒著的警察。明白嗎？警察燃燒！ 我明白你的意思，班上的萬事通說，但是你怎么能說那就不是羅伯特·布朗寧呢？
4.Who owe money
A lawyer‘s dog, running about unleashed, beelines for a butcher shop and steals a roast. Butcher goes to lawyer‘s office and asks, “If a dog running unleashed steals a piece of meat from my store, do I have a right to demand payment for the meat from the dog‘s owner?” The lawyer answers, “Absolutely.” “Then you owe me $8.50. Your dog was loose and stole a roast from me today.” The lawyer, without a word, writes the butcher a check for $8.50. Several days later, the butcher opens the mail and finds an envelope from the lawyer: $250 due for a consultation.
翻譯：
誰欠誰錢
律師的狗，沒有拴而到處閑逛，它來到一家肉店，偷走了一塊 烤肉。店主來到律師的辦公室，問道“如果一條沒栓的狗從我的商店里偷了塊肉，我有權利從狗的主人那里要回損失嗎？律師答道：“完全可以”，“那你欠我 8.50美元，你的狗沒栓而且今天從我的店里頭了塊肉”，律師什么都沒說，馬上給他寫了一張支票。一些天后，店主打開郵箱，發現一封來自律師的信，信上寫 道：咨詢費250美元。
