It's the end of one year and the start of another. You've probably been considering New Year's resolutions and you may have decided to take up something new for the year ahead. Perhaps, like Debbie Gustig, you could start ballet classes. At the age of 53, Debbie stepped into the dance studio, where, for a while, it feels like 'the outside world is on pause'. 

这是一年的结束，也是另一年的开始。您可能一直在考虑新年决心，并决定为来年做一些新的事情。也许，你可以像黛比·古斯蒂格一样，开始芭蕾舞课程。53岁的黛比走进了舞蹈室，有一段时间，她感觉“外面的世界暂停了”。 

Hobbies are a way for us to keep busy and take our minds off the realities of work and life. People crave time to pursue interests that are valuable and satisfying. Humans have indulged in pastimes since the beginning of time, from drawing on cave walls to playing video games. Some hobbies involve collecting things. That means acquiring, possibly cataloguing, and then displaying or storing something precious, whether that be stamps, antiques or comic books. 

兴趣爱好是我们保持忙碌、摆脱工作和生活现实的一种方式。人们渴望时间去追求有价值和令人满意的兴趣。人类自古以来就沉迷于消遣，从在洞穴墙壁上画画到玩电子游戏。有些爱好涉及收集东西。这意味着获取、可能编目，然后展示或存储一些珍贵的东西，无论是邮票、古董还是漫画书。 

Linda de Ruiter turned her hobby into a job. She is a yarn maker and now the owner of a small business. After helping out a friend with a stand at a craft market, she realised she wanted a stand for herself. She told the BBC she always thought yarn making would just be 'a glorified hobby' for her, but she's glad to have been proven wrong and says she is "having a ball". 

琳达·德鲁伊特 (Linda de Ruiter) 将她的爱好变成了工作。她是一名纱线制造商，现在是一家小企业的老板。在工艺品市场帮助朋友摆摊后，她意识到自己想要一个摊位。她告诉英国广播公司，她一直认为纱线制作对她来说只是“一种光荣的爱好”，但她很高兴事实证明她错了，并说她“玩得很开心”。 

People often pursue hobbies as a way of de-stressing. In Canada, axe throwing is on the rise. In fact, there is even an axe-throwing league with branches across the country and more than 1,500 members. League founder Matt Wilson told the BBC that it's "a zen sort of experience because it's really not about power, but there is definitely something cathartic about the activity". 

人们常常将追求爱好作为缓解压力的一种方式。在加拿大，扔斧头活动正在兴起。事实上，甚至还有一个扔斧头联盟，其分支机构遍布全国，成员超过1500人。联盟创始人马特·威尔逊 (Matt Wilson) 告诉 BBC，这是“一种禅宗体验，因为它实际上与权力无关，但这项活动绝对具有宣泄作用”。 

So, ballet, collecting stamps, yarn making, axe throwing? What will you pursue in the new year? 

那么，芭蕾、集邮、纱线制作、扔斧头？新的一年你会追求什么？ 

词汇表

resolution 决心
take up 开始（工作，活动）
ballet 芭蕾舞
take someone's mind off 转移某人的注意力，让某人暂时忘记忧虑之事
pursue 追求
indulge in 沉溺于
pastime 休闲娱乐，消遣
collect 收集，收藏
acquire 购得，获取
catalogue 记录，分类
display 展示，陈列
store 储存，储藏
yarn maker 纺纱人
stand （零售）摊位
a glorified hobby 一个被美化的爱好，一个听起来比实际上更有意思的爱好
have a ball 极为享受，非常尽兴
de-stress 解压
axe throwing （休闲运动）扔斧头
zen 令人放松的
cathartic 宣泄情绪的