英语博客:An escaped Gecko in the house!

Beginners.

A couple of years ago, we bought a Leopard¹ Gecko for our oldest son, Hudson. He didn't want any toys, just an animal. He is fascinated with reptiles² and has read many books about them. So, we went to the pet shop and immediately found what we were looking for. A young, spotty, pretty Leopard Gecko, cool and dry to the touch, and easy to look after. It is surprising what you learn through your own children. I researched the Geckos a little, to make sure that his environment was as it should be. They need a ten to twenty gallon glass or plastic cage. They need a place to hide, some kind of paper or rock on the ground, a humid bed, a heat lamp, and several crickets or worms to eat every few days. They are nocturnal, so if you want to see them hunt and eat, it is best to feed them just before you go to bed. They are so interesting to watch when they hunt. They dart³ about, chasing their prey⁴. They also lick the air to help them find the insects. After they have eaten, they will lick their lips, and their eyeballs! It sounds gross, but they are actually cute. As a pet owner, you can carry them around the house; they like the warmth of our bodies. However, they do move very fast, so it is best to keep them in their cages for safety. Another interesting fact about them is that they shed their skin and eat it! It supplies them with calcium⁵. They are a very popular pet because they are very easy to take care of, they are quiet, and considered exotic because they come from Afghanistan, India, Iran, and Pakistan.

Grammar notes.

Expressions: it is/ was as it should be, to dart (about), prey.

Exs:

The wedding was just as it should be, elegant, happy, and beautiful.

The fish dart about in the water; it is hard to see them when they move so fast.

The lion was looking for prey. It went down to the water hole and spotted⁶ a zebra.

Advanced.

Leopard Geckos are certainly fun to watch. It's just not much fun when one of them escapes in your house! Yesterday, I had decided⁷ to get some reading done. I have signed up for a college course which requires quite a bit of reading. A little girl friend had come over to play with my daughter, so I thought, while they played, I could read. A few minutes into their play, I got the sneaky feeling that they were up to no good; it was too quiet. Suddenly, breathlessly, Domini comes downstairs and says that Anthony, the Gecko, had got out of his cage. "What?" I exclaimed, "And how on earth did that happen, Domini?"  "I don't know, Mum," she said, shrugging her shoulders and looking guilty. I raced upstairs and to my horror found that the cage was on the floor with the lid off, and that the bedroom door was open. He could be anywhere! Great! He's probably under my bed! I could just imagine hearing scratching in the middle of the night, and seeing him run across the floor, or worse, my bed! Well, I tried to control my imagination, and I got on with the job of looking for him. My son's bedroom was a terrible mess, so I had to pick everything up carefully, and tidy up very gently, keeping my eyes open for a little spotted head or tail. And, by the way, they drop their tails when they are scared. So I shuddered⁹ at the thought of finding a Gecko tail in my son's dirty laundry or in his pile of Pokemon cards. After an hour of moving furniture, and tidying up, I found the poor little thing, in a corner, behind some shelves. Because he was away from the heat lamp, he was cold and sleepy, so I could easily catch him. Thank Goodness! I can walk around barefoot in my house again. I'll have to read some other time.

Grammar notes.

Common expressions: to get a sneaky feeling, how/ what on earth?, to shrug⁸ one's shoulders.

Exs:

I got a sneaky feeling that the water was left running all night. I checked, and the whole of downstairs had flooded!

How on earth are we going to replace that broken window tonight? It's freezing cold and snowing. What on earth were you thinking about playing golf inside the house?

The children didn't want to answer the question, so they kept shrugging their shoulders, as if they had no clue what was being asked.

 

1 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。

2 reptiles   

n.爬行动物，爬虫( reptile的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Snakes and crocodiles are both reptiles. 蛇和鳄鱼都是爬行动物。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Birds, reptiles and insects come from eggs. 鸟类、爬虫及昆虫是卵生的。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

3 dart   

v.猛冲，投掷；n.飞镖，猛冲

参考例句：

• The child made a sudden dart across the road.那小孩突然冲过马路。
• Markov died after being struck by a poison dart.马尔科夫身中毒镖而亡。

4 prey   

n.被掠食者，牺牲者，掠食；v.捕食，掠夺，折磨

参考例句：

• Stronger animals prey on weaker ones.弱肉强食。
• The lion was hunting for its prey.狮子在寻找猎物。

5 calcium   

n.钙(化学符号Ca)

参考例句：

• We need calcium to make bones.我们需要钙来壮骨。
• Calcium is found most abundantly in milk.奶含钙最丰富。

6 spotted   

adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的

参考例句：

• The milkman selected the spotted cows,from among a herd of two hundred.牛奶商从一群200头牛中选出有斑点的牛。
• Sam's shop stocks short spotted socks.山姆的商店屯积了有斑点的短袜。

7 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。

8 shrug   

v.耸肩(表示怀疑、冷漠、不知等)

参考例句：

• With a shrug,he went out of the room.他耸一下肩，走出了房间。
• I admire the way she is able to shrug off unfair criticism.我很佩服她能对错误的批评意见不予理会。

9 shuddered   

v.战栗( shudder的过去式和过去分词 )；发抖；（机器、车辆等）突然震动；颤动

参考例句：

• He slammed on the brakes and the car shuddered to a halt. 他猛踩刹车，车颤抖着停住了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I shuddered at the sight of the dead body. 我一看见那尸体就战栗。 来自《简明英汉词典》