LL: What? Oh no! I ruined them. They're stuck to the bottom of the pot. I blew it!
LH: 你在说什么啊!你是把猪排烤焦了,又没有吹坏什么东西!你怎么说blow it呢?
LL: When I said "I blew it", I meant that I ruined the whole dish. To "blow it" means to make a mistake that leads to total failure, or ruins a good opportunity.
LL: Well, the other day I was playing pool with Jack. I was just two shots away from winning, but then I blew it: I sunk the eight ball and lost.
LH: 哈哈! 你玩台球输给Jack! 八成是你太有自信,所以才会在最后关头输掉。
LL: And last week, I finally got a date with that girl from my international relations class, but I blew it. I took a nap, overslept, and showed up at her place an hour and a half late.
LL: No, no, Li Hua, I said we have to wing it. That means, we'll have to do the best we can with limited time and resources.
LH: 噢,原来to wing it是说在有限的时间和条件下尽量拼凑。好吧!那你有什么好办法?
LL: Let me see, what do you have in the fridge? (sound of fridge opening) Hmm, there's some tofu in here, and some green onions. And there's all these jars of weird Chinese sauces. Maybe we can wing it by making some kind of tofu dish.
LL: O.K., let's get to work. (sound of sink/cooking sounds). This is a great idea. People will love it, and no one will even notice that we're winging it.
LH: 没人会看出我们是临时凑出这道菜的。所以Larry, to wing it是不是只能用在临时把东西放在一块儿,就像做菜?
LL: Not always. For instance, when I covered for Jack and taught his history 101 students last week, I didn't have time to prepare for the class, so I just winged it.
LH: 你替Jack上课,可是事前没有时间备课。咦?那你是怎么临时备好课的呢?
LL: I read the reading assignment just an hour before class began. The students knew I was winging it, but they were very understanding.
LH: 上课前一小时看看指定阅读些什么材料你就去上课啦!那学生当然知道你是在凑合咯!
LL:Li Hua, pay attention to your cooking, don't blow it this time!