What had happened? A list of winners sent to Mrs. Harris a few days later made it plain enough. It had been a weird week in the football leagues, with many upsets. While no one had tabbed all games correctly, quite a few had tied Mrs. Harris' effort, shrinking the cut for each one to the above figure.

One hundred and two pounds, seven and ninepence ha'penny was a sum not to be sneezed at (сто два фунта, семь /шиллингов/ и 9,5 пенсов было суммой, /которой/ не следует пренебрегать: «на которую не чихнешь»), and yet for several days thereafter (и все же на несколько дней после этого она) it left Mrs. Harris with rather a numb feeling about the region of her heart (она /сумма/ оставила миссис Харрис с некоторым чувством оцепенения в области сердца: to leave) and at night she would awaken with a feeling of sadness and unshed tears (ночью она просыпалась с чувством уныния/печали и невыплаканными слезами; to awake), and then she would remember why (и затем она вспоминала, почему).

sneeze [snJz], numb [nAm], awaken [q'weIkqn]

One hundred and two pounds, seven and ninepence ha'penny was a sum not to be sneezed at, and yet for several days thereafter it left Mrs. Harris with rather a numb feeling about the region of her heart and at night she would awaken with a feeling of sadness and unshed tears, and then she would remember why.

Once the disappointment was over (как только разочарование прошло), Mrs. Harris would have thought that the excitement of winning a hundred pounds in the football pool (миссис Харрис подумала, что радость от выигрыша сотни фунтов в футбольном тотализаторе) — a hundred pounds to be spent upon anything she liked (/от/ сотни фунтов, чтобы потратить на все, что ей нравилось) — would have put an end to her desire for the Dior dress (положило конец ее мечте о платье от Диора). Yet the contrary proved to be the case (однако, как оказалось, имело место обратное; to prove — доказывать; case — /от латинского casus "падение, выпадение"/ — случай; обстоятельство, положение; дело). Her yearning was as strong as ever (ее /острое/ желание было столь же сильным, как и раньше). She could not put it out of her mind (она не могла выбросить его из головы). In the morning when she woke up (утром, когда она просыпалась), it was to a feeling of sadness and emptiness (было некое ощущение уныния и пустоты: «/она просыпалась/ к ощущению…»), as though something unpleasant had happened to her (будто что-то неприятное случилось с ней), or something was missing which sleep had temporarily obliterated (или чего-то не хватало, что сон временно стер; to obliterate — вычеркивать, стирать). Then she would realize that it was the Dior dress (затем она понимала, что это было то самое платье от Диора), or a Dior dress (или вообще любое платье от Диора) — just one, once in her lifetime (только одно, один раз в ее жизни), that she was still craving and would never have (которое она по-прежнему страстно желала, и которого у нее никогда не будет).

disappointment ["dIsq'pOIntmqnt], yearning ['jWnIN], obliterate [q'blItqreIt]

Once the disappointment was over, Mrs. Harris would have thought that the excitement of winning a hundred pounds in the football pool — a hundred pounds to be spent upon anything she liked — would have put an end to her desire for the Dior dress. Yet the contrary proved to be the case. Her yearning was as strong as ever. She could not put it out of her mind. In the morning when she woke up, it was to a feeling of sadness and emptiness, as though something unpleasant had happened to her, or something was missing which sleep had temporarily obliterated.