Ground Dog Day 土拨“犬”日

"Saturday is Ground Dog Day， and so we're going to have a contest，" my third grade teacher said. "There'll be a prize on Monday for anyone who can tell me if the ground dog saw his shadow." At least that's what I think she said. I was too busy dreaming of landing a spaceship on some planet to know for sure.

"Yes？" The teacher nodded at Celia， my red-haired， smarty-pants1）， next-door neighbor.

Celia twirled her pigtails between her fingers and said， "What if we bring in a picture of him？"

The teacher smiled. "Then you get the prize and five points extra credit."

Extra credit. I didn't care about that. But， winning a prize？ I wiggled my ears and thought about it. I was certain to win. My dog， Weener， was so close to the ground that grass tickled2） his belly when he walked. He had to be a winning ground dog.

The bell rang and I tore out3） of class. My purple Reeboks flopped4）. Rounding the corner， I planned on all the things I'd do when I won. Like buy an airplane， so I could fly to school in the mornings instead of walking.

Then a terrible thought hit5） me. Our teacher hadn't told us what the prize was. "It better not be something lame6）―like a ribbon，" I said.

Reaching my house， I ran inside. "Mom， where's the camera？" I called， huffing and puffing7）. "And where's ..."

"Bark！ Bark！" Something flew off the couch， slammed into my chest， knocked me to the floor， and licked my neck.

"Umph. Glad to see you， too， Weener." I stroked8） his brown ears， then got up and started searching. I looked in the pantry9）. The camera wasn't there. Next， I checked the closet. There it sat， on the shelf.

"Come on， Weener. Let's go see your shadow and get a picture，" I said to him， grabbing the camera. As we walked outside， his shadow glided along the ground next to him.

"Weener， look at the camera and smile，" I said. He flopped on his back and stuck his paws in the air， looking like he'd been shot. The sun went behind a cloud and his shadow disappeared.

"Come on，" I said. I picked him up and put him back on his feet just as the sun came back out. I pointed the camera at him again. "Smile and say 'Cheese10）'."

Weener spun in a circle， chasing his tail and barking. Then he fell to the ground in a dizzy， yapping heap11）.

He made me so cranky12）. Here I had a ground dog of my own and he wouldn't hold still for one little picture. I lifted him up and set him on the picnic table. "Now， don't move！"

A voice behind me asked， "What are you doing， Kyle？" I turned to see Celia standing there， making weird Celia faces.

"What does it look like？ I'm getting a picture of a ground dog."

Celia flipped13） her pigtails around her fingers for a minute. Then she said， "That's a wiener dog14）."

"No fake. Shortest wiener dog in town. That's why I'll win the prize on Monday."

She scrunched15） up her nose in a know-it-all16） way. I said， "He's a great ground dog. You can't get any closer to the ground than Weener." By now， I was wishing Celia would fall into a volcano.

She started giggling， her red pigtails bobbing17） up and down.

"What's so funny？" I asked.

"It's not ground dog，" she said. "There's no such thing. It's ground hog. Groundhog Day18）."

I blinked twice. "Groundhog？ What's a groundhog？"

Celia rolled her brown eyes. "It's a large， fat rodent with short legs. And reddish fur." She thought for a second. Then she tightened the elastics19） on her pigtails. "It digs a hole to live in. Some people call it a woodchuck20）."

I crossed my eyes， pointed at my head and made circles with my finger. Celia never noticed. She said， "There's a famous groundhog called Punxsutawney Phil. If he sees his shadow on February 2， there's supposed to be six more weeks of winter."

"Uh-huh. Right." I lifted Weener off the table. "Celia， don't you have homework to do？"

"No， but I'm going to go watch the Discovery Channel，" she said， walking away and twirling her hair.

I patted Weener on the head as we walked back into the house. "Who cares about that old prize， anyway？ And no such thing as Ground Dog Day？ Don't listen to Celia Smarty-Pants. Ha！ Next thing you know， she'll be telling us there's no such thing as April Fool's Day， either."

“周六是土拨犬日，所以我们将举行一场比赛，”我三年级的老师说，“谁能在周一上课时告诉我土拨犬是否看到了自己的影子，谁就能获得一份奖品。”至少我认为她是这么说的。不过那会儿我正忙着想象把一艘宇宙飞船降落到某个星球上，所以也不太确定。

“什么事？”老师冲西莉亚点点头。西莉亚是我的邻居，一头红发，特别自以为是。

西莉亚用手指绕着自己的小辫儿，说：“要是我们带来它的照片呢？”

老师笑了。“那你们不仅能得到奖品，还能另加五个学分。”

加学分。我才不在乎这个。不过，赢得奖品？我动了动耳朵，想了想。我肯定能赢。我的狗狗韦纳就与地面贴得特别近，它走路的时候都会被小草蹭得肚皮痒痒。它一定会是只稳操胜算的土拨犬。

下课铃一响，我就冲出了教室。我的紫色锐步运动鞋“咚咚”作响。经过拐角处时，我开始计划我赢了之后要做的所有事情。比如买一架飞机啦，这样我就可以在早上飞去学校，而不用走路了。

然后，我突然想到一件糟糕的事儿。我们老师还没有告诉我们奖品是什么。“奖品最好别太逊――像是丝带什么的。”我说。

到家了，我跑进屋里。“妈妈，相机在哪里？”我喘着粗气大喊，“相机在哪……”

“汪！汪！”有什么东西从沙发上冲下来，一下撞进我怀里，把我撞倒在地，还舔了舔我的脖子。

“噢，我也很高兴见到你，韦纳。”我摸摸它棕色的耳朵，然后站起身来开始找相机。我看了看食品储藏室，相机不在那里。接着，我又检查了壁橱，相机就待在那里的架子上。

“过来，韦纳，我们出去看看你的影子，然后拍张照片。”我一边对它说，一边抓过相机。我们向屋外走时，韦纳的影子就紧挨着它沿着地面移动。

“韦纳，看镜头，笑一笑。”我说。可它却猛地四脚朝天躺在地上，看上去就像中枪了似的。这时太阳跑到了一朵云后面，韦纳的影子不见了。

“拜托。”我说。我把它抱起来，让它站好，太阳这时刚好又出来了。我再一次把镜头对准它。“笑一笑，说‘茄子’。”

韦纳开始转圈，追着自己的尾巴汪汪叫。之后，它倒在地上，晕头转向地呜呜乱叫。

它可真令我气急败坏。明明我自己就有一只土拨犬，可它就是不愿意乖乖站好让我拍一张小小的照片。我把它拎起来放在野餐桌上。“现在别动！”

我身后传来一个声音问：“凯尔，你在干嘛？”我转过身来，看到西莉亚站在那里，做着怪异的西莉亚式鬼脸。

“这个看起来怎么样？我在拍土拨犬的照片呢。”

西莉亚用手指绕了一会儿自己的小辫儿，然后说：“那是一只腊肠犬。”

“没错，是镇上最矮的腊肠犬，所以周一我一定会赢得奖品。”

她皱了皱鼻子，一副自以为无所不知的德性。我说：“它是一只很棒的土拨犬。你不可能找到比韦纳走路更接近地面的狗。”到这会儿，我都希望西莉亚会掉进火山里。

她咯咯地笑起来，红色的小辫儿上上下下地晃来晃去。

“有什么好笑的？”我问。

“不是土拨犬，”她说，“这样的东西不存在。是土拨鼠。土拨鼠日。”

我眨巴了两下眼睛。“土拨鼠？什么是土拨鼠？”

西莉亚翻了翻她那棕色的眼珠。“土拨鼠是一种又大又肥的啮齿目动物，四肢短小，皮毛是淡红色的。”她想了一会儿，然后紧了紧辫子上的皮筋儿。“它自己挖洞住。有些人叫它美洲旱獭。”

我做了一个对眼儿，用手指着我的头画圈圈。西莉亚一直没注意到。她说：“有一只著名的土拨鼠，名叫蓬格斯苏塔维尼・菲尔。如果它在2月2日那天看到自己的影子，就说明冬天还会持续六个星期。”

“啊哈，对。”我把韦纳从桌上抱了下来，“西莉亚，难道你没有作业要做吗？”

“没有，但是我要去看探索频道了。”她说完，用手指绕着头发离开了。

我与韦纳回屋时，我拍了拍它的头。“说到底，谁在乎那破奖品啊？没有土拨犬日这回事？别听自以为是的西莉亚瞎说。哈！你看吧，接下来她又会告诉我们根本没有愚人节这回事了。”

1. smarty-pants： [用作单] 自作聪明的人，自以为是的人，自以为百事通的人

2. tickle [?t?kl] vt. 轻触使觉得痒

3. tear out： 飞跑而出，冲出

4. flop [fl?p] vi. 发出扑通声；猛然坐下（或躺下，跪下）

5. hit [h?t] vt. 被……想起

6. lame [le?m] adj. 差劲的，蹩脚的

7. huff and puff： （因劳累而）呼吸重浊；显出吃力的样子

8. stroke [str??k] vt. （温柔地）抚摸

9. pantry [?p?ntri] n. 食品（储藏）室

10. say cheese： 笑一笑，摄影师拍照时为让人们摆出笑脸所说的话，此处cheese相当于中文中的“茄子”。

11. fall in a heap： 控制不住地哭叫

12. cranky [?kr??ki] adj. 暴躁的，脾气坏的

13. flip [fl?p] vt. 使急速转动

14. wiener dog： 腊肠犬，是一种身长腿短的猎犬，可被驯养来追踪、捕杀獾类及其他穴居动物。

15. scrunch [skr?nt?] vt. 缩紧；揉皱

16. know-it-all： 自以为无所不知的

17. bob [b?b] vi. 上下快速摆动

18. Groundhog Day： 土拨鼠日，是北美地区的一个传统节日，其日期为每年2月2日。按照传统的说法，在这一天，冬眠的土拨鼠会从洞里出来预测春天是否到来。如果这一天阳光灿烂，土拨鼠能看到自己的影子，那么冬天还将延续六个星期。如果这一天天气不好，土拨鼠看不到自己的影子，就说明春天快要到了。

19. elastic [??l?st?k] n. 橡皮带

20. woodchuck [?w?dt??k] n. 【动】美洲旱獭