A farmer and his son，traveling by horse and buggy up a narrow lane，met a motorist going the other way。There was no room to pass for two miles in either direction。The motorist，in hurry，honked his horn。
“If you don’t back up”said the farmer，rolling up his sleeves，“I won’t like what I am going to have to do。”The surprised driver put his car in reverse and backed up two miles，allowing the horse and buggy to go by。
“What was it you wouldn’t have liked to have done back there？”asked the farmer’s son。
“Back up two miles”replied the farmer。
退后两英里
一位农夫和他的儿子乘坐轻便马车来到一段窄路，他们遇到一个开车的人向相反的方向去。两个方向的两英里以内都没有地方可以使他们相擦而过。驾车人甚是着急，按响了喇叭。
“如果你不后退，”农夫说着撸起了袖子，“我可不喜欢我将不得不做的事。”司机吃惊不小，挂上倒档，向后退了两英里，让轻便马车先过去。
“刚才在那儿你说过的你不喜欢要做的事是什么？”农夫的儿子问道。
“退后两英里，”农夫回答道。
buggy[bgi]n。小机动车；婴儿车；轻便马车
例：She put her little daughter in the buggy。她把小女儿放在婴儿车里。
lane[lein]n。小路，小巷；车道，行车线；分道，跑道；泳道；航道，航线
例：A winding lane led down towards the river。一条弯弯曲曲的小路通向河边。
honk[hk]n。雁叫声；汽车的喇叭声vt。＆vi。（使）发出雁叫似的声音；鸣（喇叭）；按（喇叭）
例：He honked his horn as he went past。他经过时按响了汽车喇叭。
reverse[riv：s]vt。＆vi。（使）反转；（使）颠倒；（使）翻转；推翻，取消n。相反
例：Please reverse the positions of two pictures。请把两张图片的位置倒转过来。
习惯用语blow one’s own horn
blow one’s own horn从字面解释就是“吹自己的喇叭”，含义是“自吹自擂”。如：I can’t stand the guy-he’s always blowing his own horn about how much money he makes，how good he is at sports，even how the grass on his lawn is greener than his neighbor’s。（自己实在受不了这个家伙，因为他老吹嘘自己赚了多少钱，又夸自己如何擅长运动，甚至还说自家的草地比邻家来得绿。）这个习惯用语历史悠久。最初起源于两千年前的古罗马人，约是150年前流传到英语中来的。
回忆过去岁月的习惯用语：horseandbuggy days
buggy是四轮的轻便马车。在火车、汽车和飞机还没发明之前，美国人运输通常就靠这种马拉的车子。从大约1790年起，人们开始用horseandbuggy days来指以往的岁月。如：Some people look back to the horseandbuggy days as a better time than now。But remember those were the days before we had movies，TV，modern medicine and all the other things that make life a lot easier。（有些人怀旧，老是觉得今不如昔。但是你可别忘记那时人们是没有电影、电视、现代医药以及种种生活便利设施的。）
