zhè jiù shì wǒ men zhōng nián fù nǚ de rì cháng

这就是我们中年妇女的日常

This is an ordinary day of a middle-aged woman

wǒ bǎ zhè xiē xiǎo shì

我把这些小事

I write the trivia

dōu xiě jìn le wǒ de xīn shū le bù qǐ de zhōng nián fù nǚ lǐ

都写进了我的新书《了不起的中年妇女》里

Into my new book ‘The Great Middle-aged Women’

zhè běn shū wǒ zhǔ yào hái shì xiǎng bǎ tā kàn zuò shì yī gè

这本书我主要还是想把它看作是一个

I’m more inclined to see the book

suǒ yǒu nǚ xìng de yī gè fáng yì yù zhǐ nán shǒu cè

所有女性的一个防抑郁指南手册

As a guide to prevent depression for all women

bǎ nǐ de bù gāo xīng de shì shuō chū lái ràng wǒ kāi xīn kāi xīn

“把你的不高兴的事说出来，让我开心开心”

‘Tell me what make you unhappy to make me happy’

dàn shì bié jí wǒ men dōu shì yǒu bàn fǎ de

但是别急，我们都是有办法的

But don’t worry. We’ll find the solution

yīn wèi wǒ men shì yìng hé de zhōng nián fù nǚ

因为我们是硬核的中年妇女

Because we’re tough middle-agd women

wǒ ràng nǐ hé kè hù duì jiē kè hù zěn me shuō de

我让你和客户对接，客户怎么说的

‘I let you to contact the client. What did the client say’

wǒ ràng nǐ zuò de fāng àn ne

我让你做的方案呢

‘Where’s the plan I asked you to make’

bù néng huà gǔn huí yòu ér yuán zhòng xué

不能画，滚回幼儿园重学

‘If you can’t draw, get back to your kindergarten and learn drawing again’

wǒ gào sù nǐ men píng xīn jìng qì yī diǎn

我告诉你们平心静气一点

‘I told you to be calm’

hǎo hǎo huà bù yào zhè me bào zào

好好画，不要这么暴躁

‘Draw well. Don’t be mad’

wèi xú lǎo shī nǐ hǎo nǐ hǎo

喂，徐老师，你好你好

‘Hi, Ms. Xu. Yes. Yes’

xiàn zài dà bù fēn de zhōng nián nǚ xìng néng zuò dào wài zài de yìng hé

现在大部分的中年女性能做到外在的硬核

Now most middle-aged women look tough

hái yǒu tā qù jiě jué yī xiē kùn nán de yǒng qì

还有她去解决一些困难的勇气

And courageous to tackle problems

lìng wài yī fāng miàn zài zì jǐ de nèi zài de yī miàn

另外一方面在自己的内在的一面

But meanwhile

tā men bìng méi yǒu dá dào zhēn zhèng de yìng hé

她们并没有达到真正的硬核

They aren’t really tough inside

huì yǒu qù zuò yī xiē hěn yuàn duì de yī xiē tán huà liáo tiān

会有去做一些很怨怼的一些谈话聊天

They would complain a lot while chatting with others

wǒ zhī qián shì zuò wài mào xíng yè de

（我）之前是做外贸行业的

I used to work in the foreign trade industry

xià bān zhī hòu yòu yào zuò zì jǐ de lìng yī fèn gōng zuò jiù shì xiě zuò

下班之后又要做自己的另一份工作，就是写作

After work I had to do my part-time job which was writing

tóng shí wǒ hái yào qù zuò jiā wù

同时我还要去做家务

And at the same time, I needed to do housework

nǐ jiù huì jué dé wèi shén me suǒ yǒu de shì qíng shì wǒ lái zuò

你就会觉得为什么所有的事情是我来做

And I was like ‘Why do I have to handle all these by myself’

jiù shì yǒu hǎo duō de wèi shén me bǎ wǒ men zhōng nián nǚ xìng de sī lù gěi dǔ zhù le

就是有好多的“为什么” 把我们中年女性的思路给堵住了

There’re so many whys getting in the way and interrupt our train of thought

zhōng nián rén zhè gè qún tǐ zì dài le yī zhǒng hēi sè yōu mò

中年人这个群体自带了一种黑色幽默

Middle-aged people have a kind of black humor

yī zhǒng zì hēi de yī zhǒng qiáng dà de néng lì

一种自黑的一种强大的能力

A strong ability to mock at themselves

zhōng nián fù nǚ zhī jiān jiāo yǒu yǒu yī gè hěn zhòng yào de yuán zé

中年妇女之间交友有一个很重要的原则

One important principle of the friendship of middle-aged women

gè zì hēi lǎo gōng bǐ cǐ kuā hái zi

各自黑老公+彼此夸孩子

Is mocking at their own husbands and praising others’ children

nǐ lǎo gōng ne

你老公呢

‘Where’s your husband’

wǒ lǎo gōng sòng hái zi qù le

我老公送孩子去了

‘He sends our child to the school’

nǐ lǎo gōng kě zhēn hǎo yòu jiē yòu sòng de

你老公可真好，又接又送的

‘That’s nice of him. Your husband sends and picks up your child’

nǎ xiàng wǒ men jiā nà gè lǎo gōng tiān tiān bù shì chū chà jiù shì jiā bān

哪像我们家那个老公，天天不是出差就是加班

‘Look at my husband. He either goes away on a business trip or works overtime’

yī diǎn yòng chù dōu pài bù shàng

一点用处都派不上

‘I married him for no reason’

zěn me méi yòng a

怎么没用啊

‘Nonsense’

nǐ kàn nǐ lǎo gōng shù lǐ huà zhè me hǎo hái néng fǔ dǎo fǔ dǎo

你看你老公数理化这么好，还能辅导辅导

‘Your husband excels in math, chemistry and physics. He can coach your child’

wǒ men jiā nà wèi lián pīn yīn dōu bù rèn shí

我们家那位连拼音都不认识

‘My husband doesn’t even know alphabet’

nǐ lǎo gōng hǎo nǐ lǎo gōng hǎo

你老公好，你老公好

‘Your husband is better.’ ‘Your husband is better.’

rú guǒ nǐ de hái zi shì yī gè xué zhā

如果你的孩子是一个学渣

If your child is a poor student

bié de mā mā huì xǐ huān hé nǐ liáo tiān

别的妈妈会喜欢和你聊天

Then other mothers would like chatting with you

yīn wèi gēn nǐ yī duì bǐ

因为跟你一对比

Because compared with your child

tā jué dé tā de hái zi hái kě yǐ

她觉得她的孩子还可以

Her child seems okay

wá zhā rén yuán hǎo

娃渣人缘好

A mother whose child performs poorly in school is popular

shū duō yǒu shén me yòng mǎi huí lái dōu shì zhǎn xīn de cóng lái dōu bù kàn de

书多有什么用，买回来都是崭新的，从来都不看的

‘It’s no use having so many books. They’re still new because they’ve never been read’

nǐ kàn kàn nǐ zhè hái zi zhè me jiǎn dān de tí dōu néng zuò cuò

你看看你这孩子，这么简单的题都能做错

‘Look, the child even gets such a simple question wrong’

zhōng nián rén zài hái zi shēn shàng xiāo fèi kě yǐ shuō shì yī zhì qiān jīn yǎn dōu bù zhǎ de

中年人在孩子身上消费，可以说是一掷千金，眼都不眨的

When middle-aged people spend money for their children, they splash out on them without blinking

wǒ gāng cóng fǎ guó huí lái hǎo lèi a

我刚从法国回来，好累啊

‘I just came back from France. The trip was so tiring’

yòu qiǎng le liǎng kuǎn xiàn liàng kuǎn de bāo bāo

又抢了两款限量款的包包

‘I snapped two limited-edition bags up’

nǐ kàn wǒ de xīn xuē zi líng fá la hǎo kàn ma

你看我的新靴子灵伐啦（好看吗）

‘Look at my new boots. Aren’t they gorgeous’

jīng pǐn bān yīng yǔ bān ào shù bān shū fǎ bān hán jiǎ quán kē tái quán dào yóu yǒng bān huá xuě bān biān chéng gāng qín xiǎo tí qín guó huà yóu huà dōng lìng yíng

精品班：35000 英语班：26000 奥数班：28000 书法班：16000 寒假全科：32000 跆拳道：16000 游泳班：22000 滑雪班：35000 编程：21000 钢琴：24000 小提琴：22000 国画：36000 油画：36000 冬令营：32000

Advanced Course：35000 English Course：26000 Mathematical Olympiad Course：28000 Calligraphy Course：16000 Comprehensive Course for Winter Vacation：32000 Taekwondo Course：16000 Swimming Course：22000 Skiing Course：35000 Programming Course：21000 Piano Course：24000 Violin Course：22000 Chinese Painting Course：36000 Oil Painting Course：36000 Winter Camp：32000

nǐ kàn wǒ zhè kè líng fá

你看我这课，灵伐？

‘Look at my courses. Aren’t they nice’

yǒu hěn duō zhōng nián fù nǚ tā kě néng bái tiān hái shì yī gè bào fā hù

有很多中年妇女她可能白天还是一个暴发户

There’re lots of middle-aged women who are super rich in the daytime

dàn shì dào le wǎn shàng jiù lún wèi le kùn nán hù

但是到了晚上就沦为了困难户

But go bankrupt in the evening

yīn wèi tā xià bān de shí hòu yòu gěi hái zi bào le yī gè bān

因为她下班的时候又给孩子报了一个班

Because they sign up for a new course for their children after work

zì hēi shì shì huái shì qiáng dà de biāo zhì

自黑，是释怀，是强大的标志

Self-mockery is a sign of letting go and being strong

qí shí yǒu hěn duō de pèi ǒu tā bìng méi yǒu bāng dào máng wèi shén me

其实有很多的配偶他并没有帮到忙，为什么

In fact, lots of husbands don’t really help. Why

yīn wèi tā gēn běn jiù méi yǒu chū xiàn

因为他根本就没有出现

Because they don’t even show up

tā shì zài yún duān

他是在云端

He’s in the cloud

tā yī zhí zài chū chà tā yī zhí zài jiā bān

他一直在出差，他一直在加班

He’s always on a business trip or works overtime

yún pèi ǒu jiù shì dài biǎo le zhè me yī zhǒng xiàn xiàng

云配偶就是代表了这么一种现象

Cloud Spouse is the word for such a phenomenon

wǒ zǒu le

我走了

‘I’m leaving’

wǒ shǒu shù shí jiān dìng le xià zhōu yī

我手术时间定了，下周一

‘My surgery is scheduled for next Monday’

xià zhōu yī wǒ yào chū chà xià zhōu yī jǐ diǎn

下周一我要出差，下周一几点

‘I will go on a business trip next Monday. What time?’

shàng wǔ bā diǎn

上午八点

‘8:00 am’

fēi jī shì shàng wǎn shàng diǎn

飞机是上晚上7点

‘My flight is at 7:00 pm’

nà tài hǎo le nǐ hái néng lái gěi wǒ qiān gè zì

那太好了，你还能来给我签个字

‘That’s great. You can come and sign for me’

zhī qián de huà wǒ kě néng huì jué dé

之前的话我可能会觉得

Before I might think

nǐ yīng gāi fàng qì yī qiè zài jiā lǐ péi lǎo pó zuò shǒu shù de

你应该放弃一切在家里陪老婆做手术的

‘You should put everything aside and accompany your wife through the surgery’

dàn wǒ xiàn zài fǎn ér méi yǒu zhè yàng de gǎn jué

但我（现在）反而没有这样的感觉

But now I don’t feel it that way

wǒ jué dé wǒ méi yǒu bì yào yīn wèi yī diǎn diǎn xiǎo shì

我觉得我没有必要因为一点点小事

I think there’s no need to tie my partner down

qù qiān zhì zhù lìng wài yī gè rén de shí jiān

去牵制住另外一个人的时间

Because of some trifle

zhè jiù shì zhōng nián fù nǚ de yī zhǒng kuān róng huō dá

这就是中年妇女的一种宽容豁达

This is the tolerance and open mind of a middle-aged woman

hé duō nián xiū liàn chū lái de yī zhǒng chéng guǒ

和多年修炼出来的一种成果

It’s the result of years’ practice

yǒu yī xiē rén tā shì pái chì shuō zhōng nián fù nǚ zhè gè cí

有一些人他是排斥说“中年妇女”这个词

Some people dislike the phrase ‘middle-aged woman’

yīn wèi zài wǒ men de zhǔ guān yìn xiàng zhōng

因为在我们的主观印像中

Because in the stereotype

tā bù shì nà me zài cháo qì péng bó bù shì nà me yáng guāng xiàng shàng

它不是那么再朝气蓬勃，不是那么阳光向上

It’s not so energetic and positive

bù nà me jīng zhì yě bù nà me qiú shàng jìn

不那么精致，也不那么求上进

And it’s not so exquisite and aspirant

zhěng tiān jiù shì zài chái mǐ yóu yán lǐ dǎ gǔn

整天就是在柴米油盐里打滚

She’s only busy with household chores every day

wǒ xiàn zài xiǎng xiě zhè běn shū

我现在想写这本书

Now I write the book

jiù shì xiǎng gěi zhōng nián fù nǚ qún tǐ zuò yī gè zhèng míng

就是想给中年妇女群体做一个正名

With the intention to rectify the misconception of middle-aged women

bǎ tā de qún tǐ de dìng yì gěi tā niǔ zhuǎn yī xià

把它的群体的定义给它扭转一下

And to change the definition of the group

suǒ yǐ wǒ bǎ tā jiào zuò le bù qǐ de zhōng nián fù nǚ

所以我把它叫做了不起的中年妇女

So I name the book The Great Middle-aged Women

wǒ yǒu yī gè péng yǒu gěi le wǒ yī gè hěn hǎo de shì fàn

我有一个朋友给了我一个很好的示范

One of my friends offers a good example

bǎ zì jǐ de zhào piàn yòng chéng le zì jǐ de shǒu jī píng bǎo

把自己的照片用成了自己的手机屏保

She uses a picture of her own as the wallpaper for lock screen on her mobile phone

zài nà zhāng zhào piàn shàng tā shì sù yán

在那张照片上她是素颜

She wears no make-up in that picture

yǎn jiǎo kāi shǐ chū xiàn le zhòu wén yú wěi wén

眼角开始出现了皱纹、鱼尾纹

And you can see wrinkles and crow’s feet on her face

wǒ men wú fǎ gǎi biàn zhè xiē jiāo lǜ wú fǎ gǎi biàn zhōng nián wēi jī

我们无法改变这些焦虑，无法改变中年危机

We’re not able to change those anxieties and middle-age crisis

dàn shì wǒ men kě yǐ tōng guò gǎi biàn zì jǐ duì zhè gè shì jiè de rèn zhī

但是我们可以通过改变自己对这个世界的认知

But we can change our recognition of the world

lái gǎi biàn nǐ zì jǐ nèi xīn de zhè zhǒng dǔ dìng

来改变你自己内心的这种笃定

And change our mind

nǐ kě yǐ dàn dìng dì cóng róng dì qù jiē shòu zì jǐ de nián líng

你可以淡定地从容地去接受自己的年龄

Then we will be able to accept our age calmly