Shoe Dog

Dawn

I drank a cup of coffee, wolfed down a piece of toast, put on my shorts and sweatshirt, and laced up my green running shoes. ”

devour food greedily

He struck me as a very serious but friendly person.

给人...印象，让...觉得

造句：(Beijing) strikes (me) as (a place where everything is expensive.)

I feel like I haven't experienced anything of life. Least of all its temptations and excitements.

尤其是，表示进一步的否定

I could't think of one time I'd cut loose, done the unexpected. 

摆脱影响，摆脱束缚

It's all in how you frame it, how you sell it to yourself.

sell someone an idea or proposal，表示说服、推销。

造句：You have to sell yourself at a job interview.

1962

When I broached the subject with my father, when I worked up the nerve to speak to him about my Crazy Idea, I made sure it was in the early evening. 

work up the nerve/enthusiasm/courage to do sth

I’d written a research paper about shoes, and the paper had evolved from a run-of-the-mill assignment to an all-out obsession. 

 run-of-the-mill: 平凡的、普通的 ordinary

all-out: 竭尽全力的，不择手段的 using all available means or resources

I’d also toyed with the notion of making an exotic detour on my way to and from Japan. 

不太认真地考虑，稍稍有点想法

Before I died, became too old or consumed with everyday minutiae, I wanted to visit the planet’s most beautiful and wondrous places.

造句：I'm always consumed with guilt.

Of course I wanted to taste other foods, hear other languages, dive into other cultures, but what I really craved was connection with a capital C.

long for/yearn for/ thirst for/hunger for

He was the publisher of the Oregon Journal, a solid job that paid for all the basic comforts.

dependable/reliable/firm

造句：My mother wants me to have a solid job, like working in a state-owned company.

Talking sports was how I distracted myself, soothed myself, in times of stress.

模仿：Cooking and baking are how I distract myself, sooth myself, in times of stress.

Fat chance

slim/slight/slender/big/good/excellent/strong/once-in-a-lifetime/ chance

What a swell idea!

What an excellent/great/fantastic idea!

No matter how deftly or forcefully I managed to deliver the key phrases drilled into us during our brief training session.

(drill something into) cause (someone) to learn something by repeating it regularly

造句：My English teacher had drilled into me the importance of recitation.

It was my first real awareness that not everyone in this world will like us, or accept us, that we’re often cast aside at the very moment we most need to be included.

以后就别写It was my first time to realize that了

I staggered home and holed up in my room.

躲进房间里

I did some research and found that this job had two things going for it.

go for：努力争取

造句：There's one reason I must go for the first prize.