◎ 冬日可爱 夏日可畏

冬日可爱？冬天可爱，春天、夏天、秋天就不可爱了？很多人因为丰子恺的这幅画而知道了“冬日可爱”，但实际上早在《左传》中就有出现。

《左传》中分别用“冬日之日”和“夏日之日”形容两个不同的人。魏晋时期的杜预在注释《左传》时这样解释：“冬日可爱，夏日可畏。”

所谓“冬日可爱”是指，冬天的太阳使人感到温暖，比喻为人和蔼可亲。夏日可畏指像夏天酷热的太阳那样使人可怕，比喻为人严厉，令人敬畏。

as warm as the sun in winter

as frightening as the scorching sun in summer

◎ 等米下锅

等着米来下锅烧饭；比喻生活困难，缺少钱用。

出自清·曹雪芹《红楼梦》第九十九回：

“我在这衙门内已经三代了，外头也有些体面，家里还过得，就规规矩矩伺候本官升了还能够，不象那些等米下锅的。”

“My family has served in this yamen for three generations; I’ve got a decent position here, I manage to make an honest living. I don’t mind going by the book until this Intendant gets promoted and moved somewhere else. I’m not like that beggarly lot who’ve just left.”

live on a shoestring

◎ 女生外向

1. 女子长大后终须出嫁。汉班固《白虎通．卷三．封公侯》：「男生内向，有留家之义；女生外向，有从夫之义。」

When a girl grows up, she has to get married.

2.女子的心向着丈夫家。《儿女英雄传．第三三回》：「老爷理他呢！他自来是这么女生外向。」

The married woman sides with her husband.

◎ 酒店猛狗

出自《晏子春秋·内篇问上》：

有一个卖酒的人，使用的器皿很清洁，挂出的招牌也很醒目，但他卖的酒因卖不出去而发酸。向附近邻里询问其中的原因。邻居说：“您家的狗很凶，别人拿着酒器进入，当买您家的酒时，狗就迎上来咬他，这就是您家的酒会卖不出去而发酸的原因啊。”

Once there was a man who sold wine. His tools were clean and his signboard was eye-catching. But the wine turned sour because no one came to buy it. He went to ask his neighbors why no one would buy it. A neighbor told him that his terrifying dog would bite the customers when they went into the shop to buy wine.

酒店猛狗寓言告诉我们：“猛狗”不远离，再好的“酒”都会变酸，一个英明的领导要注意“审择左右”，亲贤臣远小人，以趋利避害。

bad courtiers

◎ 爱惜羽毛

珍惜自己的名声，谨慎。

出自汉·刘向《说苑·杂言》。

be careful about one’s reputation