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Harris could not help harboring a suspicion gleaned from the precarious task of the living of daily life and making a go of things that it might not be all that easy. To crave something exquisite but useless, a luxury wholly out of one's reach, to pin one's faith in getting it on a lottery and to draw immediately the winning number, this was storybook stuff.
Still, it did seem to happen to people from time to time (все же это, однако, случалось с людьми время от времени). One kept reading of such events in the newspapers every other day (о таких событиях можно было прочитать в газетах время от времени: «каждый другой день»). Well, there was nothing to do but wait until Wednesday (что ж, не оставалось ничего делать, как ждать среды). But there was no gainsaying the facts and figures (но не было опровержения фактов и цифр), or that she was a winner (или того, что она была победителем), for she had checked them over time and time again (потому что она проверяла их снова и снова). The Dior dress would be hers (платье от Диора будет ее), and perhaps much, much more (и, возможно, больше, много больше), even when she split with Mrs. Butterfield (даже когда она поделится с миссис Баттерфилд). A top pool had been known to yield as much as a hundred and fifty thousand pounds (наибольший /выигрыш/ в лотерею, /как/ было известно, составил сто пятьдесят тысяч фунтов: «был известен собрать так много как 150 тысяч фунтов»; to yield — приносить урожай, давать плоды; давать такой-то результат, приводить к чему-л.).
gainsay [geIn'seI], figure ['fIgq], perhaps [pq'hxps]
Still, it did seem to happen to people from time to time. One kept reading of such events in the newspapers every other day. Well, there was nothing to do but wait until Wednesday. But there was no gainsaying the facts and figures, or that she was a winner, for she had checked them over time and time again. The Dior dress would be hers, and perhaps much, much more, even when she split with Mrs. Butterfield. A top pool had been known to yield as much as a hundred and fifty thousand pounds.
Thus she dithered for three days until Wednesday morning (так она волновалась в течение трех дней до утра среды), when the fateful telegram from the pool headquarters arrived (когда судьбоносная телеграмма от руководства лотереи прибыла; headquarters — главный орган управления какими-л. структурами; штаб; штаб-квартира). It was the measure of her affection for her friend (мерой ее привязанности к своей подруге было то) that she did not tear it open at once to learn its contents (что она не распечатала ее сразу, чтобы узнать ее содержание), but held back until she was fully dressed and could run over to Mrs. Butterfield (но сдержалась, пока не полностью оделась и смогла подбежать к миссис Баттерфилд), who sat herself braced in a chair for the big moment (которая села в напряженном ожидании на стул, приготовившись к такому важному моменту; to brace — охватывать, окружать, опоясывать; собирать себя в кулак, концентрироваться), fanning herself with her apron (обмахивая себя своим фартуком; fan — веер, опахало), crying (крича): "For the Lor's sake, love, open it (ради Бога, дорогая, открывай ее /телеграмму/; /our/ Lord — Господь). I'm like to die of excitement (я /сейчас/ умру от волнения; excitement — возбуждение, волнение)."
measure ['meZq], learn [lWn], apron ['eIprqn]
Thus she dithered for three days until Wednesday morning, when the fateful telegram from the pool headquarters arrived. It was the measure of her affection for her friend that she did not tear it open at once to learn its contents, but held back until she was fully dressed and could run over to Mrs. Butterfield, who sat herself braced in a chair for the big moment, fanning herself with her apron, crying: "For the Lor's sake, love, open it. |
