2016-12-26

【Aiden in English】

        California has provided the country with a ton of celebrities and very important people. They dominate the big screens to the news, the government to the halls of fame. Yeah, California has given or housed some of the most important figures in the present day and even history.

        Ronald Reagan was the 40th president of the United States. Being a Californian, he quickly made his way up the popularity chain. After retiring after two terms, he let his library be built in Simi Valley, CA. Because of his career and popularity, the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library has been becoming quite an attraction for tourists all around the country. A lot of money comes through tickets, so the condition and furnishings of the library are perfect. And with a little extra to spend, they can add many screens and videos to help us, tourists, along.

        Being a person who lives in America, Reagan's legacy and accomplishments are all somewhat familiar. Upon a quick racking of my brain, I can tell you off the bat that he's a good president that solved many tough issues to the country. That's about it.

        The library proved to be an enormous building for learning. After graduating from Eureka College, Reagan applied for a job as a commentator. Getting the position, he was appointed to the Chicago Cubs home games. Following his sports career, GE, an electrical company, sought him out to run shows, using his voice to broadcast commercials. In the following years, he found an ability to act and began a career in the movie industry. Hollywood took his skills, featuring him in many movies, where Reagan learned humor.

        World War II hit, and Reagan was drafted into the military. But because of his poor eyesight, he was kept out of combat. After the war, the movie industry was devastated, which basically marked the start of Reagan's political career. He began campaigning for many Californian issues, forming a committee. In the next few years, he was elected as California Governor and soon ran for the president. And that's where we are now. Even with a few bumps and bruises along the way, like an attempted assassination, Reagan settled many of the countries and even some global problems.

        All this information was all stuffed into the library, and I probably didn't tell the story very accurately, so go online to see the full story. The library also had the entire 3rd floors dedicated to a retired Air Force One, in which we promptly waited a full twenty minutes to see five minutes of the president's flying office. I must say, the movies really overdo what the plane is about. All it looks like is an Emirates First Class suite. But Reagan really was the most frequent flyer of all the presidents, praising how much the plane has given him time to answer letters from the public. However, this plane was retired in 2001 when a new plane was made and set into use.

        And this coming year, the current Air Force One will fly the rich Donald Trump around the world.

【紅霞譯文】

        加利福尼亞州已向國家輸送了大批公眾明星和炎貴要員，他們主宰電影新聞政界娛樂領域，沒錯，不僅現在如此，以往歷史上加州都曾出現過不少重量級人物。

        羅納德·里根是美國第40任總統，身為加州代表，其人氣攀升極快，兩屆任期結束之後，他又把以自己名字命名的圖書館設在加州西米谷，因其政績及知名度，羅納德·里根總統圖書館業已成為全國各地遊客心嚮往之的觀光景點。圖書館收入大多源自門票，藉之足以保障圖書館正常運營和維修費用，花點小錢安裝熒光屏和視頻，就能為遊人提供所需的服務項目。

        對於生活在美國本土的民眾來說，里根的傳奇故事及其豐功偉績可謂家喻戶曉，我稍作思索即刻脫口而出，他是一位挺不錯的總統，為國解決了許多棘手問題，大致情況確實如此。

        圖書館空間很大，有助於人們瞻仰學習。里根從尤里卡學院畢業之後便申請評論員工作，剛被錄取就參與 “芝加哥小熊”主場棒球比賽，幹了一段時間，通用電氣公司找上門要他主持節目，利用他的嗓音播報廣告。接下來幾年，里根發現了自己演戲潛質，於是又開始闖蕩電影業，好萊塢讓他在多部電影裡一展演技，從中學會了幽默。

        第二次世界大戰爆發里根應徵入伍，但因視力不好而未被派往前線。戰爭結束之後，電影業損失慘重，至此開啟里根進軍政界的新篇章。他組織團隊，為加州問題四處遊說，未來幾年當選成加州州長，不久又就任美國總統，再往後的事情大家熟知。儘管執政道路坎坷不平，其間還經歷暗殺行刺，里根為排解很多國家乃至一些全球危機做出了貢獻。

        上述內容全部收羅在圖書館內，我可能說得並不十分確切，好在網上都能查到所有信息。圖書館專門用整個三樓來展示退役的“空軍一號”，我們足足花了廿分鐘排隊，為了觀看毋需五分鐘就能瀏覽完畢的總統飛行辦公室。我必須聲明，電影把它吹噓得天花亂墜，其實裡面只不過像阿聯酋航空公司飛機一等套艙而已。里根的確是飛得最為頻繁的總統，說來當該好好夸一下這架總統專機，殊不知里根在這裡給多少國民寫過回信，然而該機在新產“空軍一號”投入使用之後已於2001年完成使命。

        明年來臨的時候，現役“空軍一號”將載着富翁唐納德·特朗普週遊世界。

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