Ｈｏｗ Ａｍｅｒｉｃａｎｓ Ｓａｖｅ Ｔｉｍｅ

In China many people love to live an easy life.They do not want to hurry themselves.But in the United States，most people try to save time.

In many families，both the husband and wife work full-time，so their free time is very important to them. They look for quick and convenientways to do their shopping and other things they want to do.

Many years ago，people had to go to many places to buy fish，meat，chicken，fruit and bread.Now most people go to just one place.They can buy fruit，bread，meat，fresh vegetables and foods and beer at the nearby supermarket.They can also buy things for their house，such as pots， brooms and other things.They can even buy socks，shoes，clothes and sunglasses at supermarkets.

When Americans eat out，they often go to fast-food restaurants.Breakfast，lunch and dinner arealways ready there.People buy their meals at the counter and wait for their food just a few seconds or minutes.Then they carry the food to a table，eat it，and throw their trash away.It takes only 20 minutes or so to eat a meal at a fast-food restaurant.

You can see that supermarkets and fast-food restaurants are very important to people in the United States.They are quick and convenient，and that’swhat people want when they are always looking for ways to save time.

譯文：

在中國，人們喜歡安逸的生活，他們不想每天都行色匆匆。但在美國，大部分人都盡力去節約時間。

在很多家庭，丈夫和妻子都干著全職工作，所以，空閑時間對他們來說就顯得特別重要。他們會尋找快捷、方便的方式購物以及做其他想做的事情。

多年以前，人們不得不去許多不同的地方買魚、肉、雞、水果和面包。現在，大部分人只去一個地方，在附近的超市里就可以買到水果、面包、肉、魚、新鮮蔬菜等食物和啤酒。他們同樣在此能買一些其他家用的東西，像鍋、掃帚等。他們甚至還可以在超市里買到襪子、鞋、衣服和太陽鏡。

美國人在外面吃飯經常會去快餐店。在那里，早餐、午飯和晚飯都是現成的。人們在柜臺上買飯，只需等上幾秒或幾分鐘，然后，他們把這些食物端到桌子上食用。吃完以后，只需把垃圾扔掉就行了。在快餐店吃飯，大概花20分鐘左右就能吃完。

你現在知道了，超市和快餐店對于美國人來說是多么重要，它們既快捷又方便，這正是那些一直尋找省時途徑的人們所需要的。