G20峯會貝盧斯科尼欲抱米歇爾遭拒
Silvio Berlusconi is the 5ft 6ins ladies' man with the flair for the tactless remark, Michelle Obama is the 5ft 11ins tough cookie First Lady with a determination as steely as her arms.
The meeting between the pair at the opening reception for the G20 summit in Pittsburgh bore all the hallmarks of a classic US-European impasse, with the American president in the middle, looking daggers at his Italian counterpart.
While Mrs Obama exchanged hugs and kisses with Browns, the Sarkozys, the Medvedevs and Germany's Angela Merkel, she didn't appear to want to come too close to Mr Berlusconi.
The Italian prime minister came alone to the reception at the Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Garden, primarily because his wife is divorcing him.
He has been embroiled in a series of scandals involving call girls and a lingerie model, and even his staff have suggested he is a sex addict. Mr Berlusconi's mastership of the public gaffe has also been extended to President Obama, whom he memorably described as "young, handsome and tanned".
Mrs Obama may have decided that if any woman was going to be snapped with Mr Berlusconi on Thursday night, it wasn't going to be her.
A handshake, delivered with the caution of someone feeding a dead mouse to a crocodile, was all the Italian president got from her despite his best efforts to turn on the Latin charm.
As Barack Obama gestured to his wife in introduction, Mr Berlusconi threw up his arms in apparent delight.
It is not clear whether he was merely appraising her appearance or encouraging her to come to him for a hug but a severe-looking Mr Obama clearly wanted to move him along, dispatching Mr Berlusconi with a series of back pats which probably in no way made up for the one that he didn't get from the First Lady.
Fresh from reports that he was snubbed by the American leader at the United Nations in New York, Mr Brown looked delighted as he and his wife, Sarah, were pictured, smiles all round, in a line-up with the Obamas.
Mr Berlusconi missed a second chance to eke a warmer greeting from Mrs Obama as the First Lady whisked off the leaders' spouses for a separate dinner at a farm where they ate food raised through sustainable agriculture.
他身高5英尺6英寸（1米68），爲人風流，向來口無遮攔；她是第一夫人，身高5英尺11英寸（1米8），意志如她的臂膀一樣堅定。
（意大利總理）西爾維奧•貝盧斯科尼和米歇爾·奧巴馬在匹茲堡召開的G20峯會開幕晚宴上的會面充分體現了經典的歐美關係僵局。當時美國總統奧巴馬站在兩人中間，對這位意大利元首“怒目而視”。
儘管奧巴馬伕人與布朗夫婦、薩科奇夫婦、梅德韋傑夫夫婦以及德國總理安吉拉•默克爾都大方地互相擁抱親吻，但她似乎不想和貝盧斯科尼走得太近。
身爲意大利總理的貝盧斯科尼孤身一人出席在菲普斯溫室植物園舉辦的招待晚宴，這主要是因爲他的妻子正和他鬧離婚。
貝盧斯科尼身陷一系列性醜聞，女主角涉及數名應召女郎和一名內衣模特，甚至他的手下也暗示他是個性癮者。貝盧斯科尼一向“語出驚人”，就連奧巴馬也難逃他的“毒舌”，他曾評價奧巴馬“年輕、帥氣、皮膚黝黑”，這一評價實在令人“難忘”。
也許奧巴馬伕人早已想好，絕不能在週四的晚宴上被拍到她與貝盧斯科尼在一起。
儘管貝盧斯科尼全力展現其拉丁魅力，但他從奧巴馬伕人那裏得到的僅僅是一個握手而已，而且這個握手的動作之謹慎就像是給鱷魚喂一隻死耗子。
當奧巴馬介紹夫人時，貝盧斯科尼張開雙臂，顯得非常高興。
不知道貝盧斯科尼只是在評價米歇爾的打扮，還是鼓勵她上前擁抱一下，但表情嚴肅的奧巴馬顯然想把他弄走，他拍了拍貝盧斯科尼的背，但這可能也無法彌補貝氏沒能從第一夫人那得來的擁抱。
最新報道稱，英國首相布朗在紐約聯合國總部受到了奧巴馬的冷遇，但他在與夫人莎拉和奧巴馬伕婦的合照上則顯得很開心，照片上的每個人都笑臉盈盈。
之後米歇爾和首腦夫人們隨即趕往一家農場出席在那裏舉行的一個單獨晚宴，她們品嚐的食物都是可持續農業生產出來的。因此貝盧斯科尼再次失去與奧巴馬伕人熱情會面的機會。
Vocabulary:
ladies' man: a man who strives especially to please women and to attract their attention and admiration（喜好與女性打交道的男子，討好女性的男子）
flair：a natural talent, aptitude, or ability（天賦，才能）
tactless：lacking tact; showing no tact; undiplomatic; offendingly blunt（不老練的，不得體的）
tough cookie：a tough person（一個決定了做什麼事，就非常堅決地去做的人，並且總能成功，甚至是在困難的情況下。）
hallmark：any distinguishing feature or characteristic（特點）
impasse：a position or situation from which there is no escape; deadlock（僵局）
looking daggers：to look at someone with a furious, menacing expression（對某人）怒目而視
gaffe：a social blunder; faux pas（出醜，失態）
in no way:怎麼樣也不；決不
snub：to treat with disdain or contempt, esp. by ignoring（冷落，故意怠慢）
eke：to increase; enlarge; lengthen（補充，增加）
sustainable agriculture:可持續農業
