Larry 到李华住的地方，去看她新领养的猫咪小雪球。今天李华会学到两个
常用语：mental和pro.

    LL： Snowball is adorable ！ She's so little and fluffy ！

    LH：就是啊，我的猫咪小雪球是很可爱，可它也够疯的。你看看它把我的家
具抓成什么样了！

    LL： Oh ， don't worry. Your cat isn't mental. All cats love to scratch
furniture. You just need to give her a scratching post to scratchinstead.
LH：你是说有办法让小雪球不再抓我的家具？噢！谢天谢地。我明天马上去买你
说的那种专门让猫抓的柱子。不然，我的家具都要完蛋了。对了，你刚才说小雪
球不是mental，那是什么意思啊？

    LL： To be "mental" means to be crazy. LH ： Mental 就是发疯，疯狂
的意思。所以你觉得小雪球很正常，一点也不疯啊？

    LL： She's just being a kitten. You need to get her a scratching post.
She also might be doing this because she's lonely when you're gone. LH
： Larry，看不出来你对猫还有一套呢！你说小雪球太孤单了，才会到处抓，你
该不是要我再领养一只猫和它做伴吧？你要真是那么想，那你可真的是mental，
疯了！

    LL： Well ， maybe you could adopt an older cat that's a little calmer.
LH：再领养一只大猫？你出什么馊主意呀！我绝对应付不了两只猫。那样，我会
被逼疯的，成了mental.

    LL： Okay ， well then try getting her something to scratch. You should
cut her claws ， too. LH：对呀！我前天是要给小雪球剪指甲，可它像疯子一
样，一直叫，一直抓我，最后还躲到床底下。

    LL： Hmmm ……maybe you need some professional help. When you take
her to the vet to get her shots ， then the vet can help you cut her claws.
LH：我也希望兽医能帮忙。我真不知道怎么帮猫剪指甲。不过我怕小雪球到时候
发疯抓人，连兽医都会受不了。

    LL： Don't worry， I'm sure the vet sees mental cats all day long.

    ******

    LH：小雪球现在好多了。我带它看过兽医，也找了几本有关养猫的书。我现
在比较懂得怎么照顾它了。

    LL： See， you're already becoming a pro. Pretty soon ， you'll be
able to handle a whole house full of cats.

    LH：哎哟！一只猫已经够我头疼的了，一屋子的猫？甭提了！你刚才说我可
以变成pro ，那又是什么意思？

    LL： Pro is short for "professional." If you say someone is a pro ，
it means that she is really good at something.

    LH：原来，pro 就是专业的意思。嗯，我还不敢说自己在这方面很专业啦！

    LL： That's understandable. You can't become a pro overnight. It takes
time and practice.

    LH：当然喽！要当专业人员可不是一天一夜的事，需要花很多时间来实践，
积累经验。

    LL： Hey， I'm sure that Yao Ming got frustrated once in a while when
he was training to become a pro basketball player.

    LH：姚明在训练过程中还会烦恼？他根本不用练球，他是一个“天生的”篮
球好手！

    LL： Hey， even naturally talented people have to work hard to become
a pro.

    LH：嗯，我从小就梦想成为职业排球运动员。能够在沙滩上打排球一定是件
很过瘾的事！

    LL： I'm sure it's not as much fun as it seems. Pro sports players
have to work hard and they travel a lot. There's a lot of pressure on
them to perform well.

    LH：是没有象我们想像的那样好玩。训练是很辛苦的，还要到处旅行，压力
好大。可是，这些职业选手能赚大钱。那些美式足球和篮球明星，年薪都上百万
呢！

    LL： Don't you wish you'd get that much money for being a pro at caring
for Snowball？

    LH：唉！专业管理宠物有什么好处？唯一的报酬就是有一只快乐健康的猫