Weekend in America
In the United States Monday is the beginning of the workweekit is the day most Americans like leastIt is not surprising then that the day they like most is SaturdaySaturday is the end of the workweekit is the beginning of the weekend
Life is different on the weekendmost Americans take care of their housecar or gardenThey sleep later in the morningThey enjoy the feeling that the time seems to move more slowlyThe week is for things you have to dothe weekend is for things you want  to doSome people may get in a car and go for a drive in the countryThey like to take part in a sports activity outdoorsAnd on Saturday night they might go to a public eating place or a movie
The idea of the weekend is a recent inventionIn 1870s  wealthy people began to speak of spending weekends in the country visiting friendsFor most people back thenhoweverthe workday was six days longIt ended at about noon or later on Saturday
Automobile maker Henry Ford was the first major employer in the United States to establish a workweek of daysHe did that in 1926.Henry Ford thought that if the working people had more free time they would spend more moneysomething good for the economyBy 1940 it had become common for most Americans to work hours a  day,5 days a weekToday the lives of most Americans are organised that way:5days of work or school followed by days of restFor many people Saturday night is the highpoint of the weekend and the weekIt is the night for going out and having fun
Anything and everything can happen on Saturday nightPeople go dancingthey visit
friends and have partiesidea是什么意思英语翻译They drink too much alcoholThey get killed or kill other peopleThey sleepwatch televisionand sometimes fall in lovePeople do these same things on other nights of the week toobut they do them more often and with more emotion and purpose on Saturday night
On Saturday night movie theaters sell more admission ticketsIt also is the biggest night for places that sell alcoholic drinksThat is one reason why Saturday night witnesses
most murdersfights and deadly car accidents
In a town in Indiana there is a Saturday night custom called “cruising”Cruising means to spend the evening driving your car slowly up and down the town's main streetPeople who are cruising talk from car to carThey exchange greetingsjokes and friendly insultsCruising is most popular in small towns where there is not much else to do
Many people spend the Saturday night at home with friendsThey have dinner    togetherPerhaps they watch a movie on a video cassette recorderOther people go on a  dateA date usually involves two peoplePeople on a date might go to a public concertyet they talk only to each other
Is there anything people do not like about the weekendA study of 1000Americans found that half would gladly trade a paid workday for an extra day of free timeThe only thing wrong with the weekendthey thinkis that it does not last longer
美国的周末
在美国,星期一是工作周的开始;大多数美国人最不喜欢这一天。难怪他们最喜欢的一天是星期六,星期六是工作周的结束,周末的开始。
周末的生活不尽相同;大多数美国人料理他们的家、汽车和花园。早上他们起得比平时晚。他们喜欢那种时间好像比平时走得慢的感觉。一周里的事情是你必须做的;周末的事情是你想做的。有的人可能乘车去郊外兜风。他们喜欢参加室外体育活动。星期六晚上他们也许去一家餐馆或电影院。
周末的概念是近期才出现的。19世纪70年代,有钱人开始谈论去郊外度周末,看望朋友。然而对于当时的大多数人来说,工作日是6天。星期六中午或下午工作才结束。
汽车制造商亨利·福特是第一个创立5天工作周的美国大雇主。他是在1926年实施此法的。福特认为如果工人有更多的空闲时间,他们就会花更多的钱,这对经济有好处。到1940年,大多数美国人一天工作8小时,一周工作5天已经变得司空见惯。如今多数美国人的生活都是依此来安排的:5天工作或上学,然后是2天休息。对许多人来说,星期六晚上是一周和周末的高潮。此晚是外出和玩乐的时间。
星期六晚上任何事都可能发生。人们跳舞、访友、举办聚会。他们喝过多的酒。他们被杀或杀人。他们睡觉,看电视,有时还相爱。这些事人们在一周的其他晚上也做,但在星期六晚上他们做得更勤,情感更投入,目的性也更强。
星期六晚上电影院卖出的票比往日多。对于卖酒的地方,这也是赢利最高的夜晚。这也正是星期六晚上谋杀、打架和恶性车祸发生率最高的原因之一。
在印第安纳州的一座小城镇,有一个叫做滑车的星期六夜晚习俗。滑车的意思是整个晚上在城镇的主要街道上来来回回地慢速驾车行驶。滑车人与另一辆车里的人聊天、相互寒暄、开玩笑、说俏皮话。滑车在没有什么事情可做的小城镇里十分盛行。
许多人星期六晚上和朋友一起呆在家里。他们共进晚餐,也许看录相电影。有的人则赴约会。约会通常有两个人。约会的人可以去听音乐会,但他们只是在两人之间交谈。
人们对周末有没有不喜欢的地方呢?对1000名美国人的调查发现,一半的人乐于用可以赚钱的一天去换一天自由的时间。他们认为周末的惟一缺陷就是它太短暂。
                                             
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