CHAPTER TWO

“If you believe you are enlightened, you are actually a little bit crazy.” Taisen Deshimaru “You’re slipping, Nellie,” said Hatchet¹ with a laugh. “Th at took you about thirty seconds longer than I expected.” “I did background research on a bunch of his people for the senator.” “I thought that might be the case.” “Are they the ones who are missing?” “Yup.” “And he’s the one they’re taking to the brig? “Yup.” “Yikes!” “Tell me about it,” said Hatchet with a small laugh. “He’s got to be a zillionaire.” “And then some.” Penelope’s mind raced and she felt her fingers tingle². “The heck with the other stuff. One of the world’s richest men being held by the federal government is a huge story by itself.” “Really?” Hatchet said, his voice dripping with sarcasm³. “Th at never occurred to me. You’ve got a real knack⁴ for this journalism⁵ stuff . Have you ever considered a career as a reporter?” Penelope ignored the jab and studied the picture more intently. “A man in his position and with his wealth hardly seems the type to be involved in government conspiracies⁶.” 14 Rod Pennington & Jeffery A. Martin “I wouldn’t be so sure. Walker has his fingers in a lot of pies, not only in Washington, but in Europe and the rest of the world as well. Whatever this Hermes Project is, the government cancelled it. Apparently⁷, Walker decided⁸ to bankroll the entire operation with his own funds.” “How much money are we talking here?” “You can ask him when you talk to him. But his research and development budget is larger than the gross national products of half the members of the United Nations.” “Is this Walker guy dirty?” “Never been even a whiff of scandal.” “Funny. Why haven’t I seen anything about this in the press?” “Because, Nellie, thanks to my imaginary source, you’re the only one who knows he’s been detained and knows where he is.” “I’ll leave now…” “Whoa, Nellie.” “You know I hate that.” “I know. But he may not even be there yet, besides visiting hours are over. It’s too late to get anything for tomorrow’s edition, and I don’t want this to break with an online story or to tip our hand. I want to be the only paper in America with this on its front page Sunday.” “I’ll go see him first thing in the morning.” “Until then, keep this completely under your hat.” “What about Joey?” “What about her?” “Well,” Penelope said with a glance over her shoulder in the direction of her friend. “She’s been reading the file while we were talking.” “Hi Mark!” Joey shouted again. “How come you never fix me up with any guys?” “Oh lord,” Hatchet said with a sigh. “I did mention I could get fi red over this, right? Can you keep her under control?” “Nope. Gave up trying years ago.” “Super.” “Relax. Who is she going to tell?” “You guys talking about me?” Joey demanded. “Yes,” Penelope said with a laugh. “We were just talking about how good you are at keeping your mouth shut.” “I am?” Joey answered dumbfounded. Penelope’s eyes grew big and she 15 The Fourth Awakening⁹ gave Joey a look usually aimed at an unruly two year old. Recognition exploded on Joey’s face. “I am. Absolutely. Secrets are us.” “God help me,” Hatchet said with a sigh. “Keep me posted.” Th e phone went dead. “You, young lady,” Penelope said shaking a finger in Joey’s direction, “are not getting out of my sight for the rest of the day.” “Slumber party!” . JJoey had insisted on going home to shower and change before going out for dinner. Reluctantly Penelope had agreed. Penelope took a sip¹⁰ from her chamomile tea, then typed rapidly on her laptop. She wanted to know as much as she possibly could about Michael James Walker. Up until six months ago he had been a public relations dynamo. Th ere were literally¹¹ hundreds of stories about him and his company, then absolutely nothing since last fall. “That’s odd,” Penelope muttered to herself. She checked Yahoo, MSN, and several other search engines getting more or less the same result. She printed off some background material about Walker and Walker Industries and added it to the folder¹². Picking up the photo of Walker she carefully studied his face. Strong-willed, of that she was certain. But whether he drank too much and smacked¹⁴ women around, or went gaga over kids and puppies, without more information there was no way to tell. Remembering what Mark said about 30 plus people missing, it was easy to assume the worst. Turning her focus back to her computer, Penelope clicked a bookmarked website. A request for her name and password to the FBI National Database opened. With previous stories Mark assigned her, there had been no risk of a conflict of interest between The Washington Post and the senator. This was very different and she felt her toes approaching a line she preferred not to cross. Leaning back in her chair she checked her watch and couldn’t believe how late it had gotten. Checking her hair in the mirror as she reached for her car keys she noticed the book, Power of Th ought, that was lying on the nightstand by her bed. Someone in her yoga class recently was talking about the Law of Attraction and Penelope decided to check it out. “What the heck?” She thought to herself. Simply wishing for something to happen and having it magically appear sounded like New Age 16 Rod Pennington & Jeffery A. Martin poppycock, but with the bizarre things that had been happening in her life recently she was willing to give it a try. Closing her eyes, she visualized¹⁵ herself arriving at the restaurant where a premium¹⁶ parking place, one in the shade, would be waiting for her. She continued, visualizing¹⁷ herself being grateful to finish dinner and return to a car that wasn’t scorching¹⁸ inside. During the short drive to the restaurant, any thoughts about parking places were released and replaced with a thousand questions about her conversation with Mark. He had certainly piqued¹⁹ her curiosity. She pulled into the lot just as someone was pulling out of one of the few shady spots. She smiled and shook her head. Joey had sworn on her ex-husband’s grave she would be there no later than six forty-five. Since Ron Rickman was still very much alive and Joey had never been on time for anything in her life, Penelope was confi dent²⁰ she would still be the first to arrive. She was right; Joey’s car was nowhere to be seen. Penelope looked up when she heard the blare of a car horn, and watched as a fire engine red BMW roadster squealed²¹ into the front parking lot. With the top down on the sleek²² little sports car, Joey was able to fully¹³ extend her left arm and wave at the driver of a late model pickup²³ truck who was using his horn to offer a personal critique of Joey’s driving skills. Joey Rickman had two unfortunate weaknesses; a lead foot and a lousy sense of direction. She never seemed to know where she was going, but was always in a hurry to get there. Bounding from the Beamer, which was now parked straddling the white line between two sun-drenched parking spaces, Joey pushed her windblown mane of vivid red hair out of her face. Her green eyes twinkled. “I don’t believe that man has an ounce of Southern hospitality in him,” she said with a wry²⁴ smile. “You were supposed to be here 10 minutes ago,” Penelope said as she gripped the handle and pulled the restaurant door open. Joey batted her eyes. “And when have you known me not to be tastefully late?” She said breezing past her lifelong friend. “Besides, you just got here yourself.” “How do you fi gure that?” “You were still outside.” Penelope shrugged²⁵; Joey was right. In the lobby, Penelope glanced at Joey who was already getting 17 The Fourth Awakening fidgety. She had seen that look many times before and knew what it meant, nicotine²⁶ withdrawal²⁷. With Charleston’s recent ban on smoking in all public places, they would be dining on the deck today. Penelope made eye contact with the night manager Jennifer who was busy placing menus in front of a middle aged²⁸ couple in the main dining room. Penelope held up two fingers and pointed²⁹ toward the patio³⁰. Jennifer, seeing that Joey was with her, nodded to indicate she understood and turned her attention back to the table she was seating. As they passed through the bar area Joey paused and spoke³¹ to the bartender who was wearing a white blouse and black vest pinned with a name tag that said “Allison”. Like so many in Charleston’s service industry, Allison looked too young to be drinking liquor much less serving it. “Sweetheart,” Joey said sweetly. “In a few minutes you’re going to be getting an order for a dry martini. In this case, ‘dry’ means you can show it the bottle of vermouth, but don’t you dare pour any in the glass.” The part-time bartender, a full time student at the College of Charleston, was a stunning³³ beauty. She had flaxen hair and widely spaced blue-green eyes that could make any male with a pulse say and do embarrassing things. She turned her attention to Joey. “Yes, ma’am,” she said with a smile bright and warm enough that she might have been able to save the Titanic³⁴ by melting the iceberg³⁵. Joey Rickman led the way to the patio while reaching for a cigarette. “That child called me ma’am.” “So?” Penelope said as she pushed open the door to the patio. “Did you forget your Southern-to-English dictionary again? We both know ‘ma’am” means that ‘B’ word that rhymes with witch.” “I thought she was being polite and respectful of her elders.” “Elders!” Joey fanned herself. “Gracious. How old do you think I am?” “Since we were born three days apart, I have a pretty good idea. I’ll be happy to blurt³⁶ it out for you if you would like.” “That won’t be necessary, ma’am,” Joey said as she looked around to see if anyone was listening. “You know the first thing a Southern lady learns how to do is deliver an insult with a smile.” “Oh, Lord,” Penelope said. “Here we go again.” Her voice changed to a monotone. “You can say anything catty you want about someone if you smile and add, ‘bless their heart’.” “Exactly.” 18 Rod Pennington & Jeffery A. Martin “You are totally deranged,” Penelope said, then added with a fake smile, “Bless your heart.” Joey patted Penelope’s hand. “That’s the spirit.” Once seated in the wrought³⁷ iron chair, Joey tapped the end of her Benson and Hedges on the glass tabletop with one hand while fumbling³⁸ through her purse for her lighter³⁹ with the other. Penelope eyed her friend critically. “You really should give those things up.” “Oh, please,” Joey said, rolling the wheel of her solid gold lighter. “Allow me one small vice³².” “One? Ha!” Joey stuck her tongue out at Penelope. Sparks shot out from the fl int of her lighter, but there was no flame. She tried several more times before finally giving up and returning her cigarette to its package. “Why is it my lighter never seems to work when I’m with you, but works just fi ne any other time?” “Maybe because you’re always on your best behavior when we’re together?” After a short pause, the two old friends both giggled⁴⁰. For over 40 years they had been thick as thieves with “good behavior” never their default mode. “I think you’ve hexed my lighter.” “And how do you suppose I was able to do that?” “I have no idea. All I know is strange things have been happening around you since you started this yoga stuff . That has been annoying enough; I mean, why can’t you do Pilates like everyone else?” Joey said as she shoved her lighter back into her purse. Jennifer approached the table with two menus in hand, placing one in front of Joey and the other in front of Penelope. She pointed at Penelope, “Water with lemon and no ice.” Turning her gaze toward Joey, “Double Grey Goose vodka martini, dry.” Both women nodded. Joey smiled sweetly. “Could you bring me some matches?” “I’m sorry, Mrs. Rickman but they’re on back order and we’re all out.” “Of course you are,” Joey said as she gave Penelope a sideways glance. Jennifer nodded. “Your server will be Allison. She’s new, so bear with her a bit. She’s working the patio and the bar.” Joey dropped her cigarettes back into her purse and glared at her lifelong friend. “So far I’ve been supportive of your little spiritual quest for self-fulfillment, but now it’s starting to affect my day.” Joey shook a 19 The Fourth Awakening threatening finger in Penelope’s direction. “Watch it!” “Demented,” Penelope muttered as shook her head. “So what’s our plan?” Joey asked as she held the menu at arm’s length to avoid the indignity⁴¹ of having to put on her reading glasses. “What plan are you talking about?” Penelope asked as she pushed the menu aside without opening it. “How are we going to get into the brig to see this guy?” “Who is this ‘we’ you’re referring to?” “Me and you.” “Ha!” Penelope said with a laugh. “I’m going to the brig. You will be spending the day at the Piccolo Spoleto planning meeting.” Joey Rickman winced⁴². “I’d forgotten about that.” At that moment Allison appeared carrying their drinks. “Filet rare with creamy grits⁴³. House dressing⁴⁴ on the salad,” Joey announced as she folded her menu closed. “I’m feeling decadent⁴⁵. I’ll take the portabella sandwich with a side of the parmesan risotto,” Penelope said as she handed her unopened menu to Allison. The server acted as if she wanted to frown but didn’t seem to quite know how to go about it. She started flipping⁴⁶ through the handwritten notes she had tucked in her order book for quick reference. Her eyes were showing a hint of panic. “Will you excuse me for one second?” Allison turned and dashed toward the door leading to restaurant. “Was it something I said?” Penelope asked. Joey just shrugged. She had no idea what had sent the waitress/bartender scrambling⁴⁷ for help. Allison emerged through the door with Jennifer in tow. “Allison told me you wanted to order risotto?” “Yes,” Penelope answered with a smile. “You mean the creamy grits?” “No, risotto.” “Ms. Spence, we don’t have any risotto.” “Ah, sold out.” Jennifer carefully measured her words before speaking. “Are you sure you don’t mean the grits? They are very similar.” “Jennifer, I come in here twice a week and I love the risotto.” “I’ve worked here for over three years and we’ve never had risotto on the menu.” 20 Rod Pennington & Jeffery A. Martin “Just bring her the grits,” Joey said as she patted Penelope on the hand. “Having a senior moment, are we?” Joey said, as she fought to keep from laughing. “We’ve been eating in this restaurant together for the past 15 years and I’ve never seen you order risotto before.”

1 hatchet   

n.短柄小斧；v.扼杀

参考例句：

• I shall have to take a hatchet to that stump.我得用一把短柄斧来劈这树桩。
• Do not remove a fly from your friend's forehead with a hatchet.别用斧头拍打朋友额头上的苍蝇。

2 tingle   

vi.感到刺痛，感到激动；n.刺痛，激动

参考例句：

• The music made my blood tingle.那音乐使我热血沸腾。
• The cold caused a tingle in my fingers.严寒使我的手指有刺痛感。

3 sarcasm   

n.讥讽，讽刺，嘲弄，反话 （adj.sarcastic）

参考例句：

• His sarcasm hurt her feelings.他的讽刺伤害了她的感情。
• She was given to using bitter sarcasm.她惯于用尖酸刻薄语言挖苦人。

4 knack   

n.诀窍，做事情的灵巧的，便利的方法

参考例句：

• He has a knack of teaching arithmetic.他教算术有诀窍。
• Making omelettes isn't difficult,but there's a knack to it.做煎蛋饼并不难，但有窍门。

5 journalism   

n.新闻工作，报业

参考例句：

• He's a teacher but he does some journalism on the side.他是教师，可还兼职做一些新闻工作。
• He had an aptitude for journalism.他有从事新闻工作的才能。

6 conspiracies   

n.阴谋，密谋( conspiracy的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He was still alive and hatching his conspiracies. 他还活着，策划着阴谋诡计。 来自辞典例句
• It appeared that they had engaged in fresh conspiracies from the very moment of their release. 看上去他们刚给释放，立刻开始新一轮的阴谋活动。 来自英汉文学

7 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

8 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。

9 awakening   

n.觉醒，醒悟 adj.觉醒中的；唤醒的

参考例句：

• the awakening of interest in the environment 对环境产生的兴趣
• People are gradually awakening to their rights. 人们正逐渐意识到自己的权利。

10 sip   

v.小口地喝，抿，呷；n.一小口的量

参考例句：

• She took a sip of the cocktail.她啜饮一口鸡尾酒。
• Elizabeth took a sip of the hot coffee.伊丽莎白呷了一口热咖啡。

11 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

12 folder   

n.纸夹，文件夹

参考例句：

• Peter returned the plan and charts to their folder.彼得把这份计划和表格放回文件夹中。
• He draws the document from its folder.他把文件从硬纸夹里抽出来。

13 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

14 smacked   

拍，打，掴( smack的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He smacked his lips but did not utter a word. 他吧嗒两下嘴，一声也不言语。
• She smacked a child's bottom. 她打孩子的屁股。

15 visualized   

直观的，直视的

参考例句：

• I had visualized scientists as bearded old men. 我曾经把科学家想像成长满胡子的老人。
• "I visualized mangled and inadequate branches for my fires. 我想像中出现了砍得乱七八糟的树枝子，供不上壁炉烧的。 来自名作英译部分

16 premium   

n.加付款；赠品；adj.高级的；售价高的

参考例句：

• You have to pay a premium for express delivery.寄快递你得付额外费用。
• Fresh water was at a premium after the reservoir was contaminated.在水库被污染之后，清水便因稀而贵了。

17 visualizing   

肉眼观察

参考例句：

• Nevertheless, the Bohr model is still useful for visualizing the structure of an atom. 然而，玻尔模型仍有利于使原子结构形象化。
• Try to strengthen this energy field by visualizing the ball growing stronger. 通过想象能量球变得更强壮设法加强这能量场。

18 scorching   

adj. 灼热的

参考例句：

• a scorching, pitiless sun 灼热的骄阳
• a scorching critique of the government's economic policy 对政府经济政策的严厉批评

19 piqued   

v.伤害…的自尊心( pique的过去式和过去分词 )；激起（好奇心）

参考例句：

• Their curiosity piqued, they stopped writing. 他们的好奇心被挑起，停下了手中的笔。 来自辞典例句
• This phenomenon piqued Dr Morris' interest. 这一现象激起了莫里斯医生的兴趣。 来自辞典例句

20 dent   

n.凹痕，凹坑；初步进展

参考例句：

• I don't know how it came about but I've got a dent in the rear of my car.我不知道是怎么回事，但我的汽车后部有了一个凹痕。
• That dent is not big enough to be worth hammering out.那个凹陷不大，用不着把它锤平。

21 squealed   

v.长声尖叫，用长而尖锐的声音说( squeal的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He squealed the words out. 他吼叫着说出那些话。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The brakes of the car squealed. 汽车的刹车发出吱吱声。 来自《简明英汉词典》

22 sleek   

adj.光滑的，井然有序的；v.使光滑，梳拢

参考例句：

• Women preferred sleek,shiny hair with little decoration.女士们更喜欢略加修饰的光滑闪亮型秀发。
• The horse's coat was sleek and glossy.这匹马全身润泽有光。

23 pickup   

n.拾起，获得

参考例句：

• I would love to trade this car for a pickup truck.我愿意用这辆汽车换一辆小型轻便卡车。||The luck guy is a choice pickup for the girls.那位幸运的男孩是女孩子们想勾搭上的人。

24 wry   

adj.讽刺的；扭曲的

参考例句：

• He made a wry face and attempted to wash the taste away with coffee.他做了个鬼脸，打算用咖啡把那怪味地冲下去。
• Bethune released Tung's horse and made a wry mouth.白求恩放开了董的马，噘了噘嘴。

25 shrugged   

vt.耸肩（shrug的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• Sam shrugged and said nothing. 萨姆耸耸肩膀，什么也没说。
• She shrugged, feigning nonchalance. 她耸耸肩，装出一副无所谓的样子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

26 nicotine   

n.(化)尼古丁，烟碱

参考例句：

• Many smokers who are chemically addicted to nicotine cannot cut down easily.许多有尼古丁瘾的抽烟人不容易把烟戒掉。
• Many smokers who are chemically addicted to nicotine cannot cut down easily.许多有尼古丁瘾的抽烟人不容易把烟戒掉。

27 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

28 aged   

adj.年老的，陈年的

参考例句：

• He had put on weight and aged a little.他胖了，也老点了。
• He is aged,but his memory is still good.他已年老，然而记忆力还好。

29 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

30 patio   

n.庭院，平台

参考例句：

• Suddenly, the thought of my beautiful patio came to mind. I can be quiet out there,I thought.我又忽然想到家里漂亮的院子，我能够在这里宁静地呆会。
• They had a barbecue on their patio on Sunday.星期天他们在院子里进行烧烤。

31 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

32 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

33 stunning   

adj.极好的；使人晕倒的

参考例句：

• His plays are distinguished only by their stunning mediocrity.他的戏剧与众不同之处就是平凡得出奇。
• The finished effect was absolutely stunning.完工后的效果非常美。

34 titanic   

adj.巨人的，庞大的，强大的

参考例句：

• We have been making titanic effort to achieve our purpose.我们一直在作极大的努力，以达到我们的目的。
• The island was created by titanic powers and they are still at work today.台湾岛是由一个至今仍然在运作的巨大力量塑造出来的。

35 iceberg   

n.冰山，流冰，冷冰冰的人

参考例句：

• The ship hit an iceberg and went under.船撞上一座冰山而沉没了。
• The glacier calved a large iceberg.冰河崩解而形成一个大冰山。

36 blurt   

vt.突然说出，脱口说出

参考例句：

• If you can blurt out 300 sentences,you can make a living in America.如果你能脱口而出300句英语，你可以在美国工作。
• I will blurt out one passage every week.我每星期要脱口而出一篇短文！

37 wrought   

v.引起；以…原料制作；运转；adj.制造的

参考例句：

• Events in Paris wrought a change in British opinion towards France and Germany.巴黎发生的事件改变了英国对法国和德国的看法。
• It's a walking stick with a gold head wrought in the form of a flower.那是一个金质花形包头的拐杖。

38 fumbling   

n. 摸索,漏接 v. 摸索,摸弄,笨拙的处理

参考例句：

• If he actually managed to the ball instead of fumbling it with an off-balance shot. 如果他实际上设法拿好球而不是fumbling它。50-balance射击笨拙地和迅速地会开始他的岗位移动，经常这样结束。
• If he actually managed to secure the ball instead of fumbling it awkwardly an off-balance shot. 如果他实际上设法拿好球而不是fumbling它。50-50提议有时。他从off-balance射击笨拙地和迅速地会开始他的岗位移动，经常这样结束。

39 lighter   

n.打火机，点火器；驳船；v.用驳船运送；light的比较级

参考例句：

• The portrait was touched up so as to make it lighter.这张画经过润色，色调明朗了一些。
• The lighter works off the car battery.引燃器利用汽车蓄电池打火。

40 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》

41 indignity   

n.侮辱，伤害尊严，轻蔑

参考例句：

• For more than a year we have suffered the indignity.在一年多的时间里,我们丢尽了丑。
• She was subjected to indignity and humiliation.她受到侮辱和羞辱。

42 winced   

赶紧避开，畏缩( wince的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He winced as the dog nipped his ankle. 狗咬了他的脚腕子，疼得他龇牙咧嘴。
• He winced as a sharp pain shot through his left leg. 他左腿一阵剧痛疼得他直龇牙咧嘴。

43 grits   

n.粗磨粉；粗面粉；粗燕麦粉；粗玉米粉；细石子，砂粒等( grit的名词复数 )；勇气和毅力v.以沙砾覆盖（某物），撒沙砾于( grit的第三人称单数 )；咬紧牙关

参考例句：

• The sands [grits] in the cooked rice made my tooth ache. 米饭里的砂粒硌痛了牙。 来自辞典例句
• This process also produces homing and corn grits. 此法也产生玉米麸(homing)和玉米粗粉。 来自辞典例句

44 dressing   

n.(食物)调料；包扎伤口的用品，敷料

参考例句：

• Don't spend such a lot of time in dressing yourself.别花那么多时间来打扮自己。
• The children enjoy dressing up in mother's old clothes.孩子们喜欢穿上妈妈旧时的衣服玩。

45 decadent   

adj.颓废的，衰落的，堕落的

参考例句：

• Don't let decadent ideas eat into yourselves.别让颓废的思想侵蚀你们。
• This song was once banned, because it was regarded as decadent.这首歌曾经被认定为是靡靡之音而被禁止播放。

46 flipping   

讨厌之极的

参考例句：

• I hate this flipping hotel! 我讨厌这个该死的旅馆！
• Don't go flipping your lid. 别发火。

47 scrambling   

v.快速爬行( scramble的现在分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞

参考例句：

• Scrambling up her hair, she darted out of the house. 她匆忙扎起头发，冲出房去。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• She is scrambling eggs. 她正在炒蛋。 来自《简明英汉词典》