Are you crazy? You can't break up with Anita by text!
Why not? That's how I asked her out on our first date. She thought it was cool.
But breaking up is different. You can't do that by text.
So what do you suggest?
Take her somewhere quiet. Talk with her face to face.
So she can cry and yell at me?
Well, yes, if that's how she responds.
But that's what I'm afraid of. So I think sending a text will be much easier. If I send a text, I won't need to see her reaction.
What are you, a coward? Don't hide from her reaction - face it! Help her cope with the news. Don't you care about her at all?
Well, not as much as she cares for me. (Joey's phone beeps.)
Hold on. I have a new text. (Joey looks at his phone. He then looks up at Tim in shock.)
What's wrong, Joey? What does the text say?
It's from Anita. She just broke up with me!
Info Cloud
There are other fish in the sea.
Hello, friends. Welcome back to Info Cloud. Anne Marie, do you ever get questions from your students that you don't like to answer?
Hmm. Well, sometimes my students like to ask me about what my dating life was like before I got married. And it's kind of embarrassing to talk about.
I can understand that. What kind of advice do you give them?
When a friend or a student comes and tells me that someone broke up with them, I like to use an idiom to help them have the right perspective: There are other fish in the sea.
Oh, that's a good one. Students, we aren't actually talking about fish here. We're talking about people.
That's right. Fish represents people here, and the sea represents the world.
This is a phrase you use to tell people not to worry about finding someone to date or marry. There are plenty of options.
For example, Paul thought that Karen was the one he wanted to marry. But she broke up with him. I reminded him that there are plenty of other fish in the sea.
You know, this phrase has been in use for a really long time since the 1500s.
That's probably because people will always need to be encouraged that there are other options out there, other fish in the sea.
年輕人常常會碰到談戀愛失敗的問題，這個時候我們可以用: There are other fish in the sea. 「大海裡有其他的魚」的這句話來安慰他們，意思就是「天崖何處無芳草」，你還有很多的選項，可能會有更適合你的人會出現。Don’t be sad. There are other fish in the sea. 別難過，你還有其他的機會可以選擇其他人。
當然把戀愛的對象比喻成大海裡的魚相當有趣，英文有許多這種相當有創意的用語來表達一些很特別的觀念，There are other fish in the sea. 這個話早在十六世紀就已經出現了，用來安慰一些失去愛情的人。
Language Lab
respond v. 做出反應
to do something as a reaction to something that has happened or been done
- If you are going to respond to people’s greetings with that mean look on your face, people might stop talking to you.
如果你要用那兇惡的表情來回應人家對你的問候，以後可能就沒有人想理你。
to say or write something as an answer to a question or request : reply 回答
- How did your boss respond when you asked him to pay you more?
當你跟你的老闆說要加薪，他怎麼回答你?
response n. 回答、回應、反應
something that is said or written as a reply to something
- People asked Becky what she wanted for her birthday, and her response surprised everyone.
每個人都問Becky她想要什麼生日禮物，而她的回應卻讓大家感到驚訝。
- I have sent a message to Eddie, but he hasn’t given a response.
我有給Eddie傳簡訊，但是他還沒有回。
reaction n. (感覺、動作方面的) 反應
the way someone acts or feels in response to something that happens, is said, etc.
🔺reaction 跟 response 有一點類似，但是reaction 是指因為某件事情而直接產生的感覺或動作。
- What was Anthony’s reaction when he saw the scratch on the door of his car?
Anthony看到他車門上的刮痕時，有時麼反應。
- The crowd’s angry reaction was understandable because they had all paid a lot of money to see the concert, but the performance was horrible.
觀眾憤怒的反應是可以理解的，他們花了那麼多錢來觀賞演唱會，可是表演卻很糟糕。
medical : an occurrence in which your body is affected by a drug, food, etc., in usually a bad way 過敏反應
- I did put on some sunscreen, but now my skin is having an allergic reaction.
我有擦防曬乳，但是我的皮膚現在有過敏反應。
a chemistry : a chemical change that occurs when two or more substances combine to form a new substance [count] 化學反應
- If you don’t know what these chemicals are, you shouldn’t mix them because you don’t know what kind of chemical reaction it might cause.
如果不清楚這些化學反原料是什麼，就不可以隨便把他們倒在一起，因為不知道會起什麼化學反應。
coward n. 懦夫、膽小鬼
someone who is too afraid to do what is right or expected : someone who is not at all brave or courageous
- Noah might seem like a tough guy but he’s really a coward and can’t handle difficult problems.
Noah 也許看起來像一個硬漢，但他是一個無法面對問題的懦夫。
- Mark turned into a coward when he saw the giant cockroach.
Mark 一看到大蟑螂就變成一個膽小鬼。
cowardly adj.膽小的、懦弱的
afraid in a way that makes you unable to do what is right or expected : lacking courage
- The security guard acted cowardly and ran away when he saw the thief climb into the building through a window.
當警衛看到竊賊從窗戶爬進屋內時，他就很膽小地跑走。
- Instead of staying with his family during those difficult years, Tom made the cowardly decision to run away.
Tom 在他家人最困苦的時候，不但沒有陪著他們，反而還做了懦弱的選擇背棄他們。
cope v. 處理、對付、應付困難的情況
/ˈkoʊp/
to deal with problems and difficult situations and try to come up with solutions
- It’s been hard for the secretary to cope with all the changes going on in her company.
那位秘書因為工作最近有很多改變而讓他很難處理事情。
- Shelly has a stressful job, a sick parent, and a failing marriage to cope with.
Shelly 得同時對付她壓力很大的工作、生了病的長輩以及一個搖搖欲墜的婚姻。
- I cannot help you because I have too many things to cope with right now.
我無法幫你，因為我現在有太多東西要應付。
