Разговорный английский

4. HOUSEKEEPING

1

A good housewife, as a rule, rises early in the morning. First of all she makes a fire in the stove and begins to make coffee and get breakfast ready. By the time breakfast is ready, her husband and children are up, too.

Breakfast is over, but her work is not; it has only just begun. While the eldest daughter attends to the children, she tidies the rooms. She sweeps the floors, makes the beds, dusts the furniture, etc. When everything in the house is quite neat and in good order, she goes marketing and buys provisions for the day. After that she begins to prepare lunch. When she sits down to lunch at midday, she feels fairly tired, and yet the day holds some more fatigue in reserve for her. There is the dinner to be cooked, but as it happens to be washing-day, there is a bundle of clothes to be washed and dried. The ironing and mending is generally done on evenings. Now that the washing is done, there comes the dinner to be prepared. It must be ready by the time Father comes home from his work at six o’clock.

While Father smokes his pipe after dinner, she clears the table and washes up the dishes. And that is not all. In a short while the smaller children are to be washed and put to bed. It is only late in the evening that she manages to sit down in the arm-chair, but not to rest. There are the socks and stockings to be darned and the clothes to be mended. She takes out her workbox with her scissors, reels of cotton and silk thread, pins and needles, caps her middle finger with her thimble and down she gets to mending the clothes, putting on a patch here and sewing up a rent there. The evening has far advanced into the night and everything is quiet in the house. Even Father has long ago put away his evening newspaper and gone to bed, but Mother is still at work — up first, she goes to bed last.

2

A. But you musn’t get up, ma. The doctor has strictly prohibited you to do so.

M. I know, but there’s so much to do about the house, my dear.

A. You needn’t fear, Mother dear. You leave that to me.

M. Will you be able to manage the household, my dear?

A. Of course, ma. And I think I’ll be able to cook a dinner, too.

M. Yes, but you do the beds and tidy up the rooms first.

A. Yes, ma. Must I change the linen?

M. Do so, please. Tie the dirty things into a bundle and put them into the closet.

A. Shall we do any washing today?

M. No, not today. Now that I am ill we might have to give it to the laundry.

A. I’ll wash it myself tomorrow, ma.

M. We will see. Now, don’t forget to sweep the comers, Ann.

A. Yes, ma. Is this the rag to dust the furniture?

M. No, Ann, that rag is too coarse. There is a soft rag in the closet.

A. When are we going to buy a vacuum-cleaner, ma? It’s ever so much easier to dust the room with it.

M. It might be, Ann, but I’m accustomed to do it in the old way.

A. I will tell Dad to buy one. Well, ma, the rooms are done. Isn’t it time to cook dinner?

M. It is, dear. Oh, my! I forgot to tell you to mend the fire; it has gone out, I’m sure.

A. I will go and see, ma.

M. Please, do. And if the fire hasn’t gone out, poke it, put some chips and thrust a shovel of coal on top.

A. Yes, ma. (Goes out. After some time comes in.)

M. Well, Ann, has —. My! You just look at yourself in the mirror, Ann!

A. Why? Is anything the matter with me, ma?

M. You are dirty all over with soot. And look at your sleeves! What have you been doing there?

A. Well, ma, the fire was out and I had to remake it. Then the stove seemed to draw very badly.

M. You go and wash yourself and change your dress.

A. What a nuisance these kitchen stoves are, ma. Mary has such a nice gas-stove at their house; it’s so nice and clean, and then one has no need to trouble with that nasty coal and ... and get dirty.

M. Talk what you like, Ann, but I feel comfortable in our little cottage even without gas.

A. Yes, mama, but see what it leads to, this stove, I mean. I’ve —.

M. There, there, my dear. Go and wash yourself and be quick about it; there’s so much to do in the kitchen. There are the dishes to be washed up — You didn’t wash them in the morning, Ann, did you?

A. No, ma. How could I when I was out shopping?

M. Quite true, dear. Then dinner has to be ready by the time. Father comes home. Oh, my! I’ll have to get up, after all.

A. But you mustn’t, ma. The doctor —.

M. Well, I can, at least, sit there in the rocking-chair and help you by word of mouth.

VII. Meals

1.      AT THE RESTAURANT

GEORGE. Well, here we are, Tom. Let’s take off our coats. ATTENDANT. Allow me to help you off your coats, gentlemen?

TOM. It’s a snug place, isn’t it?

HEADWAITER. Where would you like to sit, gentlemen?

GEORGE. Over there in the corner, I suppose.

TOM. It’s a snug place, isn’t it?

GEORGE. Yes, and quite out of the way of people.

TOM. Let’s see what they have. (He takes up the menu.) What about an omelette?

GEORGE. I’d rather have some fish.

TOM. And afterwards a nice beefsteak?