The cover of Decision Points. Former US president George W. Bush says he made a swift transition from White House pampering to picking up his pet's poop. |
Former US president George W. Bush says he made a swift transition from White House pampering to picking up his pet's poop, according to a news report Wednesday. Bush told a packed university lecture hall in his home state of Texas on Tuesday that, shortly after leaving Washington, he faced a decidedly un-stately moment when his dog Barney relieved himself on a neighbor's lawn. "Ten days out of the presidency, there I was with a plastic bag in my hand, picking up that which I had been dodging for eight years," he was quoted as saying by the Tyler Morning Telegraph in remarks confirmed by his office. The former president has mostly shied from the limelight since leaving office -- except for a high-profile stint raising money to help Haiti recover from a devastating earthquake -- and kept a low political profile. But Bush now plans a round of interviews to coincide with the November 9 release of his book about his time in office, "Decision Points." "This will come as a shock to some people in our country who didn't think I could read a book, much less write one," joked the former president, who left office deeply unpopular amid the US economic crisis. "It's not a judgmental book," he told some 2,000 people on the campus of the University of Texas at Tyler. "It's not a 'Bush is cool' (book)." The former president spared a little bit of nostalgia for his eight years in office, telling the audience: "I miss being pampered; I miss Air Force 1; I miss being commander in chief of an awesome (military)." The former president's book is expected to have a first run of 1.5 million copies, along with an e-book version containing a video message from the former president and his home movies, Crown publishers said earlier this month. The huge print run is equivalent to that for former Democratic president Bill Clinton's book, "My Life," which was a runaway hit. (Read by Nelly Min. Nelly Min is a journalist at the China Daily Website.) (Agencies) |
本周三最新報道稱,美國前總統(tǒng)喬治?W?布什表示自己很快適應(yīng)了角色轉(zhuǎn)變——從“養(yǎng)尊處優(yōu)”的美國總統(tǒng)到撿拾自家寵物糞便的普通人。 布什于本周二在家鄉(xiāng)得克薩斯州的一所大學(xué)發(fā)表演講,禮堂內(nèi)座無虛席。他稱離任后不久,愛狗巴尼在鄰居家草坪上“隨地大小便”,使他不得不面對明顯讓自己丟份兒的時刻。 《泰勒電訊早報》向布什辦公室證實后引述他的話稱:“離任才10天,我就開始手提塑料袋收拾狗糞,我已經(jīng)8年沒干過這活兒了?!?/p> 前總統(tǒng)布什自離任后極少公開露面,一直保持低調(diào)的政治姿態(tài),但在海地強震后曾為幫助募集善款高調(diào)亮相。 但為了配合11月9日將出版的講述其白宮歲月的書籍《抉擇時刻》,他計劃接受一系列采訪。 布什開玩笑說:“這可能讓很多美國人感到震驚,他們認為我連讀書都不會,更別說寫書了?!辈际搽x任時恰逢美國經(jīng)濟危機,支持率很低。 布什對得克薩斯大學(xué)泰勒分校的大約兩千名觀眾說:“這本書既沒有動輒指責別人,也沒有自我夸耀?!?/p> 這位前總統(tǒng)還分享了一些對8年白宮生活的留戀之情,他對觀眾說:“我懷念在白宮養(yǎng)尊處優(yōu)的生活;懷念‘空軍一號’;懷念擔任一個強大軍隊統(tǒng)帥的感覺?!?/p> 發(fā)行商皇冠出版社本月早些時候表示,《抉擇時刻》預(yù)計首印150萬冊,同時還將發(fā)行含有布什視頻信息及其家庭錄像的電子書版本。 首版印刷量可比肩前民主黨總統(tǒng)比爾?克林頓當年熱銷的書籍《我的生活》。 相關(guān)閱讀 (中國日報網(wǎng)英語點津 Julie 編輯:馮明惠) |
Vocabulary: pampering: treated or gratified with extreme or excessive indulgence, kindness, or care(縱容的,嬌養(yǎng)的) un-state: to deprive (a person) of office or rank(使失去尊嚴或地位) stint: a period of time spent doing something(從事某項工作或活動的時間) nostalgia: a yearning for the return of past circumstances, events, etc.(懷舊之情,鄉(xiāng)愁) runaway: easily won, as a contest(巨大的勝利) |