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using it to help me with my math homework a few times, but it turns out it's not so good at giving you specific answers. Plus, sometimes when you REALLY need an answer from the Magic 8 Ball, it can totally leave you hanging. Today on my way home from school, one of the Mingo kids came after me with a stick. I asked the Magic 8 Ball if I should run away or fight, and gave it a hard shake. For some reason, the Magic 8 Ball couldn't make up its mind.

有好几次我用它帮我做数学作业，结果发现它不太擅长给出具体答案。 而且，有时候你特别想从魔法八球得到答案的时候，它完全会让你盼空。 今天放学回家路上，明戈家的一个孩子拿着棍子追我。 我问魔法八球我该逃跑还是该还手，然后用力晃了晃它。 不知道为什么，魔法八球居然拿不定主意。

concentrate and ask again But the Magic 8 Ball TOTALLY made up for it later on in the day. Mom told me I've been spending too much time indoors and that I needed to go outside and get some fresh air. When Mom left the room I asked the Magic 8 Ball if I should take her advice, and its answer could not have been more clear.

请集中精神再问一次。不过这天稍晚，魔法八球彻底弥补了之前的遗憾。 妈妈说我待在室内太久了，让我出去呼吸点新鲜空气。 妈妈走出房间后，我问魔法八球我要不要听她的建议，它的回答再清楚不过了。

My reply is no So I hit out in Mom's closet, which I knew would be the LAST place she'd come looking for me. While I was waiting Mom out in there, I noticed a bunch of books on the top shelf. They were hidden behind some shoe boxes, so it was pretty clear Mom didn't want anyone to find them. At first I couldn't figure out why she was keeping all these books tucked away in her closet instead of on a shelf out in the open. When I read the titles, I totally got it.

我的答案是不 所以我躲进了妈妈的衣柜，我知道这绝对是她最后才会来找我的地方。 我在里面等妈妈来找我的时候，注意到顶层架子上有一堆书。 它们藏在鞋盒子后面，所以很明显妈妈不想让任何人找到它们。 一开始我搞不懂她为什么把这些书都藏在衣柜里，不放在外面的书架上。 当我看到书名的时候，我一下子就懂了。

These books are basically Mom's secret weapon, and she doesn't want us kids to KNOW all about them. I flipped through a few of the books, and some were really eye-opening. I found one that was about using something called "reverse psychology." The idea is that you can get your kids to do what you want by telling them to do the OPPOSITE. Now that

这些书基本上就是妈妈的秘密武器，她不想让我们这些小孩知道它们的一切。 我翻了几本书，有些书真的让我大开眼界。 我找到一本讲一种叫“逆向心理学”的书。 它的原理是，你让孩子做相反的事，就能让他们按你想的做。 现在想来

I think of it, Mom and Dad have been using that technique on us ever since I can remember. RODRICK, IT'S TIME TO GO TO BED, SO DON'T TURN OFF THE TV! When I was little, I used to BEG Mom and Dad to let me do the dishes, but they'd always tell me I was too young to help out. Finally, on my eighth birthday they let me dry the dishes, and I was so happy they might as well have given me a million dollars. Now I realize the whole

我发现，从我记事起，爸爸妈妈就一直在用这个方法对付我们。 “罗德里克，该睡觉了，不许看电视！” 我小的时候，总缠着爸爸妈妈让我洗碗，可他们总说我太小，帮不了忙。 终于，在我八岁生日那天，他们让我擦碗了，我开心得不得了，感觉他们就像给了我一百万。 现在我才意识到整件事

thing was a trick, and Rodrick must've fallen into the same trap. There were books for just about every type of situation a parent might have to deal with while raising their kids. I've always wondered where Mom gets all her advice, and now I know. When I was nine I found an inchworm crawling up our front steps, and I named him Squirm and kept him in a little jar with holes poked in the top.

根本就是个圈套，罗德里克肯定也掉进了同一个陷阱。 几乎家长养孩子会遇到的每一种情况，这些书里都有对应的办法。 我以前一直好奇妈妈的这些点子都是从哪来的，现在我知道了。 我九岁的时候，发现一只尺蠖顺着前门台阶往上爬，我给它起名叫扭扭，把它养在一个顶部扎了孔的小罐子里。