A man went into a pet shop and told the owner that he wanted to buy a pet。But，he didn't want your ordinary，garden variety pet！No，he wanted a pet that could do everything！
The shop owner suggested a faithful dog。The man replied，“Come on，a dog？”The owner said，“How about a cat？”The man replied，“No way！A cat certainly can't do everything。I want a pet that can do everything！”The shop owner thought for a minute，then said，“I've got it！A centipede！”The man said，“A centipede？I can't imagine a centipede doing everything，but okay……I'll try a centipede。”So he got the centipede home and said to the centipede，“Clean the kitchen。”
Thirty minutes later，he walked into the kitchen and……it was immaculate！All the dishes and silverware were washed，dried，and put away；the counter-tops cleaned；the appliances sparkling；the floor waxed。He was absolutely amazed。
He then said to the centipede，“Go to clean the living room。”Twenty minutes later，he walked into the living room。The carpet had been vacuumed；the furniture cleaned and dusted the pillows on the sofa plumped and the plants watered。The man thought to himself，“This is the most amazing thing I've ever seen。This is really a pet that can do everything！”
Next he said to the centipede，“Run down to the corner and get me a newspaper。”The centipede walked out the door。10 minutes later……no centipede。20 minutes later……no centipede。30 minutes later……no centipede。By this point the man was wondering what was going on。The centipede should have been back in a couple of minutes。45 minutes later……still no centipede！He couldn't imagine what had happened。Did the centipede run away？Did it get run over by a car？Where was that centipede？
So he went to the front door，opened it……and there was the centipede sitting right outside。The man said，“Hey！！！I sent you down to the corner store 45 minutes ago to get me a newspaper。What happened？”
The centipede said，“I'm goin！I'm going！I'm just putting on my shoes！”
一个男人走进了宠物店告诉店主说想买一只宠物。但是他不想要普通的宠物或是养在花园里的那种宠物。他想要一只无所不能的宠物！
店主推荐他买一只忠诚的狗。男人说：“狗？还是算了吧。”店主说：“买只猫怎样？”男人说：“才不呢！猫才不是无所不能的呢！我想要的可是无所不能的宠物！”店主想了一下说：“有啦！一条蜈蚣怎样？”男人说：“蜈蚣？我不知道蜈蚣是不是无所不能的。但是，好吧。我可以试一试。”然后他就买下了蜈蚣，说：“清理下厨房。”
三十分钟之后，他走进了厨房。一尘不染！所有的盘子，银器都洗完了，晾干了并收好了。厨房的台面也擦干净了。厨用器皿也在闪闪发光。地板也打了蜡。这个男人觉得非常吃惊。
他对蜈蚣说：“去打扫起居室。”二十分钟之后，他走进了起居室。地毯已经用吸尘器打扫过了，家居也被打扫干净了，沙发上的枕头也鼓起来了，植物也浇水了。男人心想：它真是我所见过的最使人惊叹的动物了。它真是只可以做任何事的宠物。
接下来他又对蜈蚣说到：“下楼到拐角那给我买份报纸回来。”蜈蚣走出门口。过了10分钟，蜈蚣没回来。20分钟了，还是不见蜈蚣。30分钟了，还是没见蜈蚣。到了此刻男人才开始想到底怎么回事。蜈蚣应该几分钟就回来了啊。45分钟了，蜈蚣还没回来！他简直不能想象到底发生什么了。难道蜈蚣逃跑了？还是它被车给撞了？蜈蚣到底在哪儿呢？
因此他走到前门，打开门，才发现蜈蚣还坐在门口。男人说道：“Hey，我45分钟前就叫你去给我买份报纸回来。到底发生什么了？”
蜈蚣回答道：“我已经在准备了，我已经准备去了，我只是还在穿鞋子！”
1.centipede n。蜈蚣
2.immaculate adj。洁净的，无污垢的
He had on immaculate white shoes。（他穿着一双洁白的鞋子。）
3.silverware n。银器，银制品，银餐具
4.appliance n。器具，用具，装置，设备
The kitchen is equipped with modern appliances。（这间厨房里安装了各种现代化设备。）
5.vacuum v。用真空吸尘器清扫
I vacuumed my room yesterday。（昨天我用吸尘器清扫了房间。）
1.run over 在……上驶过，（撞倒并）碾过
He was run over by a bus。（他被一辆公共汽车从身上辗过。）
