見見老鼠凱薩琳和大象馬克。凱薩琳非常勇敢又喜歡冒險，但馬克的個性十分害羞，對許多事情都感到害怕。不過，朋友都喜歡黏在一塊兒，所以凱薩琳走到哪兒，馬克就會跟到哪兒。有時候，他們也會碰上非常棘手的情況...
Mark the brave 勇敢的馬克
Mark and Kathleen were strolling through the town when Kathleen noticed a sign. The local newspaper was running a competition in the local park to find the bravest elephant in the town. The winner would receive unlimited chocolate cake for the rest of their life. “Wow, that looks amazing. Can you imagine anything better than unlimited chocolate cake?” asked Kathleen. “You’re right, but I’m not a brave elephant. I’ll have no chance,” said Mark sadly. “Don’t be silly. It will be easy — last year’s winner just had to ride a horse. The competition has already started. Let’s go!”
When they arrived at the park, the competition was just about to start. The MC picked up the microphone and began talking. “Ladies, gentleman and elephants. In today’s competition, each elephant will have to complete three tasks. The elephant who finishes the most tasks will become the champion!”
For the first task, the elephants had to do a bungee jump from a 200m high bridge. One by one the elephants jumped off the bridge, but when it came to Mark’s turn he just couldn’t do it. For the second task, they had to walk over hot coals. Again, the other elephants did it, but Mark thought it looked too painful. The third task was a parachute jump. Mark sat in the back of the plane, and watched as the elephants jumped out. When it was his turn, he was just too nervous to let go.
When the plane landed, Kathleen came running over to him. “I’m so proud of you! You did your best and that’s the important thing. Who cares about some silly chocolate cake?” Just then, a thief ran onto the stage and grabbed the trophy from the MC. “Somebody stop that thief at once!” yelled the MC… (john phillips, staff writer)
馬克和凱薩琳這天在市區街上閒晃時，凱薩琳看到一個牌子。當地報社在市公園舉辦了一場比賽，要找出全市最勇敢的大象。優勝者將可獲得下半輩子無限量的巧克力蛋糕。凱薩琳問：「哇，看起來真棒。世界上還有什麼比無限供應的巧克力蛋糕更棒的事嗎？」馬克憂傷地說：「妳說得對，但我不是一隻勇敢的大象。我不可能贏的。」「別傻了！比賽輕鬆得很，去年的冠軍只是騎個馬就贏了。比賽已經開始了，我們走！」
當他們抵達公園時，比賽才正要開始。司儀拿起麥克風，開始講話：「各位女士，各位先生，以及各位大象。在今天的比賽中，每位大象都將挑戰三項任務。完成最多任務的大象就是今天的冠軍！」
第一項任務，大象們必須在一座兩百公尺高的橋上高空彈跳。大象一隻接著一隻跳下橋，但輪到馬克時，他無論如何就是不敢跳。第二項任務，他們得走過炙熱的木炭。同樣地，其他大象都完成了，但馬克覺得那看起來太痛苦了。第三項任務是跳傘。馬克坐在機艙後方，看著其他大象跳出機外。當輪到他的時候，他緊張地不敢放手。
飛機降落時，凱薩琳跑向他說：「你真讓我驕傲！你盡了全力，那就是最重要的事了。誰在乎什麼愚蠢的巧克力蛋糕啊？」就在此時，一個小偷跑上台，從司儀手中搶走獎盃。司儀大喊：「馬上抓住那個小偷！」 （翻譯：袁星塵）
If you think you’re cool and know all the latest trends, then here’s a question for you: What does the word “brat” mean? If you said something like, “a child who behaves badly or is annoying or rude,” you might not be as hip as you think. This four-letter word now has a new definition that has become quite popular. Its popularity caught the eye of Collins Dictionary, which crowned it as “Word of the Year 2024.” According to this new meaning of brat, it is used as an adjective to describe someone who has a confident, independent, and hedonistic
A: Seeing as the 2025 Michelin Guide extended to New Taipei City and Hsinchu City and County, it’s hard to believe that none of the restaurants won a Michelin star. B: Some fine establishments — like Hsinchu’s A Cut steakhouse — surely deserve the honor. A: Michelin-starred restaurants have good quality food, but some of them are so pricey. B: I once had barbeque pork at a starred restaurant that set me back NT$4,800. That’s even higher than my weekly food budget. A: No wonder several of them have closed down recently, as high prices and the tariff war are scaring off
A: The Michelin Guide Taiwan announced the 2025 Bib Gourmand eateries and starred restaurants last week. B: What were the highlights this year? A: In addition to Taipei, Taichung, Tainan and Kaohsiung, New Taipei City and Hsinchu City and County were included for the first time. B: As a New Taipei resident, I can’t wait to try all the awarded local delicacies. Should we start from the more affordable Bib Gourmand selection? A: Sure, New Taipei and Hsinchu each boast 15 Bib Gourmand eateries now, including some famous establishments such as San Tung restaurant. A: 2025《米其林指南》近日公布「必比登推介」和星級餐廳。 B: 今年的名單有哪些亮點？ A: 除了台北、台中、台南、高雄，今年加入新北、新竹縣市！ B: 身為新北人，我真想吃遍當地的美食，我們要不要從平價的必比登先開始？ A: 好啊新北、新竹各有15家入選必比登，像山東小館等知名餐廳都有上榜唷。 （By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times／台北時報張迪）
Continued from yesterday（延續自昨日） https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang Interestingly, one of the words Collins Dictionary discarded was selected by Oxford University Press (OUP) for its own Word of the Year. On its Web site, the publishing house of the University of Oxford stated it had conducted a public poll in which over 37,000 people participated. The voters, along with OUP’s language experts, settled on the term “brain rot.” One main reason for the decision was the vast amount of interest in the noun during 2023 and 2024, with its usage increasing by 230 percent. In fact, brain rot is not a new term by any
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