I am feeling down in the dumps. This means I am feeling sad, depressed or gloomy. I started feeling down in the dumps last week after reading about the middle class in the media. Hong Kong people were asked in a survey by the Bauhinia Foundation Research Centre（center in American English）to define（describe exactly）the meaning of middle class. The result of the survey depressed me because it showed I am not part of the middle class. Financial Secretary John Tsang Chun-wah said on a radio show last February that people who drink coffee and watch French movies are part of the middle class. Ever since he said that "I have been drinking coffee even though I prefer tea and watching French movies even though I find them boring. "
B
ut after so many months of drinking coffee and watching French movies, the survey result showed that Tsang Chun-wah's definition of middle class was wrong. I am really peed off（slang for angry）with him. Over 90 percent of the people who participated（took part）in the survey said people must own a flat （apartment in American English）to belong to the middle class. More than 57 percent of them said the flat must be worth between $2 million and $8 million. I do not own an apartment and cannot afford to buy one.
The survey result also showed that people must be well-educated to join the middle class. I never went to university because I loved writing so much that I became a journalist after secondary school. Since I don't have a flat and am not well-educated, I am shut out of（cannot enter）the middle class forever unless I win the Mark Six. The more I think about this, the more pissed off（same as peed off）I am with Tsang Chun-wah. I have been wasting time drinking coffee and watching French movies. I have to find a way to stop feeling down in the dumps. I think the best way is for Tsang Chun-wah to kowtow（bow）to me and pay me back all the money I spent on coffee and French movies.
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我感到很憂鬱（down in the dumps）。自上星期在媒體讀到有關中產的報道，我便開始感到很憂傷（down in the dumps）。智經研究中心（Centre，美式串法為center）於調查中問及香港人如何定義（define）中產。調查結果令我心灰意冷，因為它說明了我不屬於中產階層。財政司司長曾俊華二月時曾在電台節目上談及，喝咖啡和看法國電影的人是中產之一。自他這樣說以來，我便在喝咖啡，即使我偏好喝茶；我也有看法國電影，即使我認為它們相當沉悶。
但在我經過多個月咖啡和法國電影的洗禮後，調查結果卻顯示曾俊華對中產的定義（definition）是錯誤的。我真的很氣（peed off）他。超過九成參與（participated）調查的人表示，要做中產必先擁有一個居住單位（flat，美式英文是apartment）。超過五成七的受訪者更說，那個單位（flat）的價值必須介乎二百萬至八百萬之間。我一個單位也沒有，也買不起一層樓。
那項統計結果更表示，人必須受過高等教育，方能成為中產。我從來沒有讀過大學，因為我太熱愛寫作，中學畢業後便立即做記者。我既沒有居住單位（flat），更沒有受過高等教育，因此我便永遠被拒於（shut out of）中產大門之外，除非我中六合彩吧。我愈是這樣想，便愈發現對曾俊華生氣（pissed off，與peed off一樣）。我實在枉費了喝咖啡和看法國電影的時間。我得找個方法去令自己不再悲傷（down in the dumps）。我認為最好的方法是叫曾俊華向我叩頭（kowtow），而且奉還我所有花在咖啡和法國電影上的錢。
mickchug@gmail. com
中譯:七刻
Michael Chugani 褚簡寧
Source: http://news.hkheadline.com/dailynews/headline_news_detail_columnist.asp?id=253843§ion_name=wtt&kw=126