12月9日午间英语新闻：暖心！北京酒店推出50元房 让快递小哥冬夜里有家

Hotel offers deliverymen a warm place on cold winter nights

暖心！北京酒店推出50元房 让快递小哥冬夜里有家

After noticing that couriers were being forced to sleep in their vehicles during Beijing's cold winter nights, Liu Yiying, who owns a small hotel, decided immediately to do something, offering them beds at an extremely low rate.

在看到快递小哥们在寒冷的冬夜被迫睡在快递车里后，北京一家酒店的老板刘伊盈立刻产生了为他们做些什么的想法。于是，她决定让小哥们用极低的价格住到酒店。

Due to the COVID-19 epidemic measures imposed to curb the ongoing outbreak, the homes of many deliverymen have become high-risk areas or have been temporarily locked down. To be able to continue working, many have felt they had no other choice but to rough it out by sleeping in their vehicles.

由于北京新一轮新冠疫情的爆发，很多快递小哥们的家都被划定为高风险区或者成为了临时管控区。为了能继续工作，很多小哥别无选择，只能睡在车里勉强度日。

"One night, I walked past a courier depot on my way home. Some of the deliverymen were sleeping in the depot while others were sleeping in their vehicles. I had no idea that was how they were spending their nights, especially when it was so cold outside. I knew immediately that I had to do something for them," said the owner of Wugan Hotel in Xicheng district.

“一天晚上，我下班回家，路过一个快递站点，看到快递小哥有的睡在站里，有的睡在快递车里。” “我从没想到快递小哥晚上是这么休息的，尤其是在这么冷的天，我立刻就想着要为他们做些什么，就是这么简单。”刘伊盈说。

The next day, Liu announced on her social media account that deliverymen could stay at her hotel for just 50 yuan ($7.12) per night, compared to the cheapest available room rate of 200 yuan.  "You can't find a rate like that anywhere in central Beijing and it doesn't even cover costs. But I just want to make it affordable for hardworking deliverymen whose contribution is often underestimated," Liu said.

第二天，她在自己的社交媒体账号上宣布——酒店以每人每晚50元的价格，接待因疫情暂时无法回家的外卖、快递小哥，而最便宜的房间也要200元左右。“这个价格在北京市中心是不可能找到的，也是低于成本很多的。我只是想定个小哥们能接受的价格。人们往往会低估吃苦耐劳的小哥们对城市的贡献，”她说。

The hotel has less than 30 rooms, so she didn't advertise but relied instead on word-of-mouth to get the message across. So far, over 40 deliverymen have stayed at the hotel when they have not been able to go home. The hotel's story touched many on social media over the weekend, with people writing that the decision brought them comfort and should be encouraged.

这家酒店只有不到30间房，刘伊盈也没有宣传途径，就靠周围人的口口相传让小哥们知道酒店的活动。目前，一共有40多个小哥在无法归家的情况下到店居住过。这个周末，这家酒店的所作所为在社交媒体上感动了很多人。大家都说这种点滴的温暖让他们感到很欣慰，并认为应该鼓励这种行为。

"At the same time, some have questioned my motives and claimed that it's all publicity. In fact, my hotel has been offering free hot drinks and a place to rest for those who need it, including deliverymen, since it opened about a year ago. I just want to show people that we can all do something to help each other, no matter how trivial, especially during the epidemic," Liu said.

“与此同时，也有人质疑我的动机，说这都是为了商业宣传。其实，自从酒店营业以来，我们一直为有需要的人提供免费的热饮料和休息区，包括小哥们。我只是想让大家知道在疫情期间我们都可以用行动帮助和温暖彼此，不管我们能做的事有多微小。”她说。

重点词汇：

1.courier

英[ˈkʊriə(r)]

美[ˈkʊriər]

n.信使; (递送包裹或重要文件的)通讯员; 专递公司; (旅游公司的)导游;

vt.信使发送; 使者运送;

2.publicity

英[pʌbˈlɪsəti]

美[pʌbˈlɪsəti]

n.宣传; (媒体的)关注; 报道; 宣传业; 广告宣传工作; 传播工作;

More Americans taking on 'side hustles' to make ends meet

更多美国人从事副业维生

With inflation soaring in the US this year, more Americans are increasingly taking on side jobs to make ends meet. According to Labor Department data released recently, the US economy added 263,000 jobs in November, above economists' average forecast of 200,000. Lurking behind the figures, however, was an increase of 165,000 in the number of people with multiple jobs.

随着今年美国通胀率的飙升，越来越多的美国人开始从事副业以维持生计。据美国劳工部近期发布的数据，11月份美国新增就业岗位26.3万个, 高于经济学家平均预测的20万个。然而，隐藏在这些数据背后的是拥有多份工作的就业人数增加了16:5万人。

Bill Adams, chief economist at Comerica Bank, said the increase in the number of people holding multiple jobs was the highest in six months and well above the 60,000 average monthly increase over the past six months. In order to pay for necessities, Americans are increasingly relying on their savings and racking up credit card debt.

美国联信银行首席经济学家比尔·亚当斯表示从事多份工作的人数增幅为半年以来的最高水平，远高于过去半年6万人的月度平均增幅。为了支付生活必需品，美国人越来越依赖他们的储蓄，信用卡的债务也累积得越来越多。

The personal savings rate plunged to 2.3 percent in October, the lowest level in 17 years, according to Commerce Department data released last week. In addition, US household debt grew at its fastest pace since 2008 in the third quarter, with credit card balances surging 15 percent, according to the Federal Reserve.

据美国商务部上周公布的数据，10月份美国个人储蓄率降至2.3%，为17年来的最低水平。此外，美联储的数据显示今年第三季度美国家庭债务增速为2008年以来最快，信用卡欠款飙升15%。

重点词汇：

lurk

英[lɜːk]

美[lɜːrk]

n.诡计; 妙计; 花招;

v./n.潜伏; (尤指为做不正当的事而)埋伏; 潜在; 隐藏着; 潜水”; 隐身(在聊天室等阅读在线讨论但自己不参与其中);