14. Calvin's Big Decision 加尔闻的重大决定

It was Calvin's birthday. His mother had made chocolate cupcakes with jelly beans on top. Mrs. Jewls passed them out to the class.

"Hey, Dana," said Leslie. "Ill trade you my black jelly bean for your red one."

"Okay," said Dana.

Everyone traded jelly beans. That was the most fun part of the party.

Bebe was very excited. "Tell everybody what you're getting for your birthday, Calvin!" she said.

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"I don't know," Calvin mumbled¹ as he stared at his yellow jelly bean.

"He's getting the best present!" said Bebe.

"What are you getting, Calvin?" asked Mrs. Jewls.

Calvin frowned. "I don't know!" he griped. "I mean, I know what it is, but I don't know what it is."

"Huh?" asked Jason.

"See, I usually get toys," Calvin tried to explain. "But they always break, or get lost, or something happens to them. But this year I'm getting something 111 never lose. I'll have it for the rest of my life."

"What is it?" asked Terrence.

"A tattoo²," said Calvin.

"Oooh, how neat!" exclaimed Maurecia.

Everyone thought it was a great present.

"You're so lucky, Calvin," said Rondi. "I wish I could get a tattoo too! Instead I got a tutu."

"I got a tutu too," said Dana.

"My parents won't let me get a tattoo," complained John.

"My parents wouldn't let me get one either," said Calvin. "Then, for my birthday, they said I could get one. But now I can't decide what to get. My dad's taking me to the tattoo parlor³ after school today! I just can't make up my mind."

"Get a snake," said Stephen.

"No, get an eagle," said Deedee. "They're the best!"

"A dead rat!" suggested Kathy.

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"I just don't know," said Calvin. "I've never had to make such a tough decision. Nothing else I do matters very much. It's not like choosing jelly beans! If you pick the wrong color jelly bean, big deal, you can always spit it out. But once you get a tattoo, you can't change your mind. You can't erase⁴ tattoos⁵. Whatever I get 111 have for the rest of my life!"

"Get a naked lady," said Jason.

Calvin shook his head. "I just don't know. I just don't know."

"Where are you going to put your tattoo?" asked Allison.

Calvin threw up his hands. "I don't know!"

"You should put it on your arm," said Myron. "That's the best place for tattoos."

"You're crazy, Myron," said Todd. "Put it on your chest, Calvin."

"I know where you should put it," said Dana. "But I can't say." She giggled⁶ like a maniac⁷. Then she whispered it in Jenny's ear. Jenny giggled too.

All day everyone had lots of suggestions for Calvin. They told him what kind of tattoo he should get, and where he should put it. A rainbow on his forehead. A flower on his cheek. An anchor on his arm.

It was easy for the others to make suggestions. They wouldn't have to live with it for the rest of their lives.

"I just don't know," Calvin repeated over and over again.

Bebe drew a lot of pictures for him, in case he wanted to choose one of those. She drew lions, tigers, buffaloes⁸, and butterflies.

"If you like one, I can draw it on your skin for you," said Bebe. "Then the tattoo man can trace over it."

"I just don't know," muttered Calvin. "I just don't know."

After school Calvin's father picked him up and drove him to the tattoo parlor.

The next day when he walked into class, everybody stared at him. They couldn't see a tattoo.

"Did you get one?" asked Maurecia.

Calvin smiled. "Yep," he said.

"Where is it?" asked Jason.

Dana gasped⁹. "I know where!" she exclaimed.

She and Jenny giggled.

"Well, what'd you get?" asked Todd.

"It was a real tough decision," said Calvin. "I almost got a leopard¹⁰ fighting a snake. But then my dad told me to think about it. He said it was sort of like getting a second nose. You may think you want another nose, because that way if one nose gets stuffed up, you can breathe through the other nose. But then he asked me, 'Calvin, do you really want two noses?' "

"Your father is very wise," said Mrs. Jewls.

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Calvin nodded. "That made me think," he said. "I decided¹¹ I didn't want a snake and a leopard fighting on my body for the rest of my life. I suddenly knew exactly what I wanted."

He pulled up his left pant leg. There was a small tattoo just above his ankle.

Everyone crowded around to look at it.

"A potato!" exclaimed Leslie. "How stupid!"

"That's the worst tattoo in the world!" said Mac.

They all thought it was a dumb tattoo.

"Anything is better than a potato!" said Jason.

"It's a pretty potato," said Bebe, trying to be nice. "I wish I could draw potatoes that good." But even Bebe thought it was a dumb tattoo.

"I like potatoes," said Calvin.

"I would hope so," said Mrs. Jewls.

Calvin could tell Mrs. Jewls didn't like his tattoo either.

"I would have gotten an eagle," said Deedee, "soaring across the sky!"

"Not me," said Terrence. "I would have gotten a lion!"

"I would have gotten a kangaroo," said Leslie.

All day everyone told Calvin what they would have gotten: a fire-breathing dragon, a lightning bolt, a creature from outer space.

None of them said they would have gotten a potato.

But Calvin knew better. He knew it was easy for his friends to say what would they have gotten, be-

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cause they really hadn't had to choose. He was the only one who really knew what It was like to pick a tattoo. Even Mrs. Jewls didn't know that.

He looked at his potato. He smiled. It made him happy.

He was sure he had made the right choice.

At least he was pretty sure.

1 mumbled   

含糊地说某事，叽咕，咕哝( mumble的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He mumbled something to me which I did not quite catch. 他对我叽咕了几句话，可我没太听清楚。
• George mumbled incoherently to himself. 乔治语无伦次地喃喃自语。

2 tattoo   

n.纹身，(皮肤上的)刺花纹；vt.刺花纹于

参考例句：

• I've decided to get my tattoo removed.我已经决定去掉我身上的纹身。
• He had a tattoo on the back of his hand.他手背上刺有花纹。

3 parlor   

n.店铺，营业室；会客室，客厅

参考例句：

• She was lying on a small settee in the parlor.她躺在客厅的一张小长椅上。
• Is there a pizza parlor in the neighborhood?附近有没有比萨店？

4 erase   

v.擦掉；消除某事物的痕迹

参考例句：

• He tried to erase the idea from his mind.他试图从头脑中抹掉这个想法。
• Please erase my name from the list.请把我的名字从名单上擦去。

5 tattoos   

n.文身( tattoo的名词复数 )；归营鼓；军队夜间表演操；连续有节奏的敲击声v.刺青，文身( tattoo的第三人称单数 )；连续有节奏地敲击；作连续有节奏的敲击

参考例句：

• His arms were covered in tattoos. 他的胳膊上刺满了花纹。
• His arms were covered in tattoos. 他的双臂刺满了纹身。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 giggled   

v.咯咯地笑( giggle的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The girls giggled at the joke. 女孩子们让这笑话逗得咯咯笑。
• The children giggled hysterically. 孩子们歇斯底里地傻笑。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 maniac   

n.精神癫狂的人；疯子

参考例句：

• Be careful!That man is driving like a maniac!注意！那个人开车像个疯子一样！
• You were acting like a maniac,and you threatened her with a bomb!你像一个疯子，你用炸弹恐吓她！

8 buffaloes   

n.水牛（分非洲水牛和亚洲水牛两种）( buffalo的名词复数 )；（南非或北美的）野牛；威胁；恐吓

参考例句：

• Some medieval towns raced donkeys or buffaloes. 有些中世纪的城市用驴子或水牛竞赛。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Water buffaloes supply Egypt with more meat than any other domestic animal. 水牛提供给埃及的肉比任何其它动物都要多。 来自辞典例句

9 gasped   

v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要

参考例句：

• She gasped at the wonderful view. 如此美景使她惊讶得屏住了呼吸。
• People gasped with admiration at the superb skill of the gymnasts. 体操运动员的高超技艺令人赞叹。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

10 leopard   

n.豹

参考例句：

• I saw a man in a leopard skin yesterday.我昨天看见一个穿着豹皮的男人。
• The leopard's skin is marked with black spots.豹皮上有黑色斑点。

11 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。