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ISBN 978-83-8175-646-4 (mobi)

Wstęp

Kevin’s Konundrum to pełna humoru i niespodziewanych zwrotów akcji opowieść o poszukiwaniu miłości. Tytułowy Kevin Malone otrzymuje stanowisko na lokalnym uniwersytecie, odnawia dawne przyjaźnie i poznaje piękną młodą dziewczynę gotową na kontynuowanie znajomości. Niespodziewanie pojawiają się jednak inne kobiety, a przede wszystkim Maryann, dawna niespełniona miłość, o której Kevin nie potrafi zapomnieć. W dodatku liczne rodzeństwo Malone nie potrafi dojść do porozumienia w sprawie odziedziczonego majątku. Wkrótce okazuje się, że niemal każda osoba z otoczenia Kevina skrywa jakąś tajemnicę, a on sam musi rozwiązać niejedną zagadkę, aby wyplątać się z sieci kłamstw i intryg, a być może znaleźć prawdziwą miłość.

Żywy język powieści to wspaniała okazja do odświeżenia i poszerzenia autentycznego, używanego na co dzień słownictwa. Kanadyjski angielski pod względem leksykalnym jest bardzo podobny do amerykańskiej odmiany angielskiego, ale pisownia niektórych wyrazów (np. neighbour, theatre) jest zgodna z zasadami ortografii brytyjskiej.

Opracowany przez nas podręcznik oparty na oryginalnym tekście powieści został skonstruowany według przejrzystego schematu:

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Alfabetyczny wykaz wyrazów objaśnianych na marginesie tekstu znajduje się w słowniczku na końcu książki.

PART I

BEFORE YOU READ

Focus on the Text

1. Read the texts and fill the gaps with the words from the boxes.

What is a conundrum?

considerable   playful   different   puzzling   current

We can only make guesses about the origin of the word conundrum.

It is known that this word has been in use since the 1600s and went through (a)______ spellings like conimbrum or quonundrum, before the (b)______ form was established in the following century.

One explanation surrounding the etymology of conundrum suggests that it was initially crafted by academics at Oxford University as a form of (c)______ imitation of Latin, and later on earned (d)______ admiration for its light-hearted and amusing associations.

Although typically used to describe an unsolvable question or dilemma in the context of ethics, sociology, or economics, this term is occasionally used more casually to refer to anything mysterious or (e)______.

What is alliteration?

catchy   idiomatic   memorable   rhyme   sound   technique

Alliteration is when words begin with the same letter and (f)______. It helps in creating a specific mood or tone. Alliteration is also used to highlight certain points and making them more (g)______.

Repeating the same sounds at the beginning of words can give the text a rhythm, even when there’s no (h)______ or meter.

Alliteration is hardly ever used in the whole text. It commonly consists of a few words to make up a sentence. At times, it can be employed with just two words.

Many (i)______ expressions have alliterative spelling, like dull as dirt or pleased as punch.

Alliteration is a popular (j)______ for humor, particularly in children’s literature. Children can easily recall (k)______ phrases, so TV shows for them use names like “Bob the Builder” and “Mickey Mouse”.

2. Decide if the statements below are true or false.

A. Even today conundrum can be spelt in many different ways, such as quonundrum or konundrum.

B. Alliteration was first used around 1600.

C. Kevin’s Korner and Kevin’s Konundrum are alliterated titles.

Answers

1. a) different b) current c) playful d) considerable e) puzzling f) sound g) memorable h) rhyme i) idiomatic j) technique k) catchy

2. A. false B. false C. true

Everyday Language

A) Match the informal words from the box with their equivalents.

yeah naw whore yep jerk slut nope prick floozy schmuck nah bastard

1.

yes

yeah,

2.

no

3.

prostitute

4.

stupid guy

B) Match the idioms (1–8) with their definitions (A–H).

1. drop a bombshell

2. freak the hell out of somebody

3. get a hold of somebody

4. have a way with something

5. have the hots for somebody

6. rub something into somebody’s face

7. sad sack

8. throw somebody for a loop

A. bring up an unpleasant subject

B. desire someone sexually

C. get in touch with someone

D. inept person who unintentionally makes mistakes

E. scare someone to death

F. share unexpected shocking news

G. shock someone

H. skillfully use something

C) Read the sentences and decide what each phrasal verb means.

1. Being fed up with their housemate, Trevor and Anna quickly found a pretext to kick him out.

2. Carry on, children, you’re doing great, but we need to hurry.

3. Failing to come up with any better options for our all-inclusive holiday, we passed the time lounging around the resort.

4. Additionally, we recommend that you look into the program and course requirements.

5. Organic cocoa-coated almonds are a delicious snack when you need to give in to a sweet craving.

6. It finally dawned on me that neither of my so-called allies had been honest with me.

7. Philip’s priority was to branch out overseas, whereas his partner opted for expanding domestic markets.

8. I really don’t know how we’re going to make it up for the kids – they were promised that Disney World trip six months ago. Any hints?

A. check, explore and analyze

B. do something for somebody whom you disappointed

C. expand business activity

D. force somebody to leave

E. go on, continue

F. not resist a temptation

G. occur to somebody, spring to mind

H. spend time somewhere doing nothing

Answers

A) 1. yep 2. naw, nope, nah 3. whore, slut, floozy 4. jerk, prick, schmuck, bastard

B) 1. F 2. E 3. C 4. H 5. B 6. A 7. D 8. G

C) 1. D 2. E 3. H 4. A 5. F 6. G 7. C 8. B

Vocabulary

1.

Dr. Gordon Winslow, the ex-Dean of Arts of St. Augustine’s University in my quiet hometown of Williamstown, NB, and member of the hiring committee for the new position of Head of Kinesiology for which I had applied, and my ex-father in law, called me on a Monday morning in the summer. He sounded excited.

“Kevin,” he said, “I’m glad I caught you. Please tell me you’re still in town.”

“Hey Gord. I am.” I was staying with my one-time and now again best friend Jamie Stevenson after having been unceremoniously kicked out of my Malone family home by my ingrate of a brother Michael.

“Good. I have some exciting news,” Gord sounded elated. I was hopeful. I was really enjoying my time back in my hometown of Williamstown after a number of years spent teaching gym at a public high school up the Fundy coast in the much bigger and much dirtier Port City of Saint John.

I sat down because I knew if he was starting that way it meant my life was about to get better. So much better.

It would be a big change, for sure, leaving all my professional friends behind in the “big city” of Saint John, but a move back to Williamstown for more than just a summer visit would have many advantages.

I found a chair.

“I’m listening,” I said, trying to sound casual.

“You got the job!” he said, just as excitedly as I was feeling.

“That’s amazing, Gord! Thank you so much!”

“You will accept it, right?”

“Of course!”

“Good. There was some discussion on the committee about whether you were serious or not and even though I wasn’t in on the interview I assured them that you were, and they believed me I guess. I didn’t want to come off looking like a liar.”

“Are you kidding? This is going to be amazing!”

“You know, they are looking for a visionary, and I told them, and they sensed from the interview, that you are the right man for the job. But you have to be careful. There were a few applicants who will be pissed with the decision. A couple of them have their Ph.D.’s and you still beat them out. Your educational experience, and your coaching skills are what won it for you.”

“Thanks again. You don’t know how much I appreciate this.”

“You’re welcome, Son.”

I knew that he was feeling proud of me, and I almost started crying because nobody had called me son in that way in over five years. And Mom hardly ever called me that during the last year of her life, so it really had been even longer.

We made arrangements for me to come in and sign papers, and to start working on setting up the department. My position officially started August 15th, so there was really no time to waste. He invited me to the University Club for lunch after the signing the next day, and then we hung up.

I was thrilled. I jumped up and down and shouted out loud, realizing that since I was at Jamie’s all alone nobody would appreciate or be bothered by my enthusiasm. This was really beyond my wildest dreams.

And then I realized I had to tell someone right away. The first person who popped into my head was not my brother Michael, but Maryann Breen, the still mysterious woman whom I’d only known for a short time, but to whom I felt closer than I did to anyone in the world at the moment, but since my fight with Mikey the other day, I decided it would be best to forgo the announcement just yet. If my sister Annie had been around, I would have told her. Jamie wouldn’t be back from work for hours, so the only other person I could think of sharing this news with was my buddy Chad back in Saint John.

So what’s a guy to do in that situation? I could have called, I supposed, but this was an in person kind of piece of news, so instead I jumped in my car and hit the highway for the bigger city. I drove around Williamstown at first though, just to see if there were any for sale signs on any houses that looked like they might be in my price range. There were very few properties for sale in our little liberal arts enclave of Southwestern NB, but I did see a couple not too far from campus that had some potential. I took down the names of some real estate agents, and then headed back to the Port City.

I found Chad at Big Tide even though it wasn’t Tuesday. He was already sloshed even though it was only six pm.

“Do you ever go home?” I greeted my friend.

“If you had five kids at home and one on the way, you’d stay at a pub all evening too.”

“Your kids don’t live with you,” I said. I knew wives number one and two had full custody of their respective children and Chad only had visitation rights and support payments. Fortunately, the relatively well-to-do lawyer could afford them. Somewhat.

“True. I do have one and a really cranky pregnant wife, though.”

“Yeah.” I nodded. I’d almost forgotten about that. “What are you drinking?”

“Beer.”

“Genius.”

I ordered him another and then one for me. Kelly, the super friendly, super sexy waitress I’d had the hots for ever since I’d started coming to Big Tide when it first opened, brought it over with a smile.

“The usual for you, Kevin?” she asked.

“Sure.”

The “usual” here was a quesadilla. I wondered if I’d have a plaque with my name on it here the way I did at the Red Dragon in Williamstown, but then I realized it was more likely that Chad would get one at Big Tide.

“I got some news,” I said to Chad after watching her cute ass disappear in the kitchen.

“Oh?”

“Guess where I’m going to be living starting in August?”

He looked at me suspiciously. I realized I hadn’t really told anyone in Saint John about my plans for the SAU job. They weren’t really “plans” because I didn’t really think I had a chance, but here it was.

“The moon? No idea.”

“Williamstown.”

“What? Why?”

“You know how I love the place.”

“Only you, Kevin. Jesus, why the hell would you want to move back to that hole?”

“I love Williamstown.”

“Yeah. I know. You miss it. Blah blah blah. Did you get a teaching transfer? I thought that teachers couldn’t do transfers between districts.”

“They can’t.”

“So, what are you gonna do?”

“Teach at SAU.”

“Really? They have Phys Ed?”

“They’re going to.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m the new head of Kinesiology,” I said proudly. Just then our dinner arrived.

“What about Kinesiology?” Kelly asked.

“St. Augustine’s University has a new program,” I said.

“Oh yeah. Is that the school in Williamstown?” she asked.

“Yes indeed.”

“Cool. I always wanted to study Kinese.”

I looked her up and down. She definitely had the body for it.

“You should look into it. I know a guy who can get you in.”

“Oh?”

“Yup. You’re looking at the new Head of Kinesiology, St. Augustine’s University.”

“Wow!”

Chad was also impressed.

“Way to go, Kev,” he said.

“Thanks.”

“When do you start?”

“The fifteenth,” I said, proudly.

“It’s probably too late to apply for this year,” Kelly frowned.

“Probably. But you should put in an application for next year. I’ll put in a good word for you.”

“Cool. And we’ll miss you around here.”

“I can still come once in a while.” She was flirting, so I flirted right back, even though she was probably way too young for me.

“That would be great,” she said with a smile.

She walked off to take an order at another table. I watched her ass again, in those tight jeans, as she went.

“You don’t want that,” Chad said, following my eyes. “Trust me.”

“Seriously?”

“Oh yeah. Bad news.”

“Come on. You’re full of it.”

He blinked.

“You’re right. It’s just wishful thinking.”

I breathed a sigh of relief.

“So, you’re really doing it? Moving back to Williamstown?”

“Of course. It’s an amazing job.”

“Take a leave of absence.” The ever-professional Chad was back. Always on the ball with the good ideas. “Just in case things don’t work out.”

“Cool. Thanks, man.”

“I’m proud of you, Kev. It sounds like a wonderful job for you.”

“I think so too. And I’ll be running the soccer program too.” Chad and I had played together at SAU.

“Awesome. And you can finally rub it into Mikey’s face. You have just as good a job as him. Maybe better because you’ll be the department head, right?”

That hadn’t even occurred to me, but he was right. Mike had a Ph.D. and more years in, but probably my teaching years would count towards experience, and I knew from Mom’s time as Department Head that there were perks for that. Including more money.

“Hey, you need to help me find a house.”

“What?”

“Or at least do the legal work for me.”

Chad had done the deed when Diane and I bought our place on Lower West. And he got us out of it when we divorced.

“Of course. I can help you to look too. I’ve wanted to buy a summer place outside Williamstown for a while now. Oak Bay maybe. Or Oak Haven.”

These were two tiny “suburbs” of our hometown.

“You have?”

“Nah, just kidding. But maybe now I can.”

We continued drinking late into the evening. When I got home that night, back to my apartment, I had a number of texts. Some from Maryann. One from Mike. And a couple from Ottawa. Luckily, I didn’t return any in my drunken state. Everything would have to wait until morning. I fell asleep in my clothes on the couch with the TV on Sportsnet.

2.

My cell phone ringing woke me. It was a local number, but not one I recognized. It was only 1 am. Who the hell was calling me at this hour, I wondered?

“Hello,” I answered, groggily.

“Hi, Kevin?”

“Yeah.”

“It’s Kelly. From Big Tide?”

“Hey Kelly.” I didn’t remember giving her my cell number.

“How are you?”

“Fine. How are you?” I sat up and blinked trying to wake up the rest of the way. My head was surprisingly relatively clear after my nap.

“Fine. I just… I have your wallet here.”

“What?”

“Your wallet. It’s here at the restaurant.”

“Oh?”

I felt around my pockets and my jacket. Sure enough, it wasn’t where it was supposed to be. How had I gotten home?

“Wow,” I said. “I’m glad you found it.”

“Yeah. I wondered if you were still Uptown?”

“No, Kelly, I’m sorry. I’m at home.”

“Oh. Too bad.” There was a long and uncomfortable pause.

“Did you want me to bring it over to your house?” she said at last.

My mind started racing. Was she asking what I thought she was asking or was she just being nice?

“You don’t have to do that, Kelly.”

“But did you want me to?”

“Of course.”

“Cool. I have your address here on your driver’s license. I’ll be there shortly. I actually live near you.”

“Oh good.”

Ten minutes later she was knocking on my door.

“Hey,” she said with a bright smile as I let her in the door. I had tidied the place up a bit in the ten minutes, but since I hadn’t been there for a while it wasn’t too big of a mess. A little dusty, maybe. She was holding my wallet in her long slender fingers. “Can I come in?”

“Of course.”

I let her into my apartment and into my life.

It was a bit of an inconvenient turn of events, actually. I mean, Kelly was spectacular. She had to be all of twenty-five, I think, but was the fittest woman I’d ever been with. I don’t know how many times we managed to do it that first night, but based on how tired I was at the end, I figured it was more than I’d ever done before in a single night. She was almost insatiable. I guess that must be what it’s like when you’re fit and in your twenties.

The next morning, at six-thirty, while she made breakfast and I lounged around in my underwear, I just sort of watched her move, as if not affected by the exertions of the night before. She was a lithe spirit.

“Morning,” she sang out when she saw that I was awake. “Breakfast?”

“Yes,” I said, getting myself out of bed. “I’m ravenous.”

She laughed. She was making French Toast. “I hope you don’t mind.”

“No. Carry on. I’m just going to wash up.”

“Sure. I can’t stay long.”

I cleaned myself up in the bathroom and then came back into the living room.

“Coffee?” I asked her.

“Yes. It’s made.”

I got our coffees ready and took my spot at the dining room table, waiting to be served, but really just sort of sitting there, stunned.

“You alright?” she asked when she served the food.

“Yeah.”

“Sorry if that was sudden and unexpected,” she said, sitting across from me, very comfortably like she belonged there.

“No, not at all. I mean, unexpected, yes. But no need to be sorry.”

She laughed and stuffed her little mouth with a huge chunk of the bread. I tried mine. It was delicious.

“Thanks for this,” I pointed to the food.

“I’m glad you like it. It’s my favourite breakfast.”

“Not bacon?”

“Never. Just French toast.”

“What do you have to do today? Why can’t you stay long?”

She hesitated for a moment, and looked at me with her piercing blue eyes.

“I’ve gotta pick up my kid.”

This was a stunning revelation. I had no idea that she had a child. It didn’t occur to me that was even a possibility.

“Your kid?”

“Yeah. My son. He’s with his Dad. But today is the day we switch.”

“Oh.”

“Sorry. I thought you knew.”

“No.”

“OK.”

She finished her food in about two minutes and chugged her coffee.

“I really have to run. I hate to, but the childcare arrangement is pretty specific.”

“Sure.”

“I’ll see you tonight, though?”

“Tonight?”

“Trivia.”

“Oh yeah. Yes. I’ll try to be there.” I knew I had to get to Williamstown to sign those papers, but I’d hate to miss out on an evening of my usual, and possibly nearly last, trivia night, and Kelly of course.

I was stunned again. She was a whirlwind and she was gone. I finished my food slowly and mulled over how I had ended up in this situation.

My cell woke me from my reverie. It was just the soft bing of a text message, but it was enough to get me back to reality. I was shocked to see it was Ayida, the mysterious and exotic woman I had shared a wonderful whirlwind summer romance with. There were seven messages from her, actually. Five from Maryann, the other, and completely different in every way, woman that I’d been sleeping with these days, and my brother Michael’s sort of ex girlfriend. There were also two messages from him. And two from my youngest sister, Annie. And another one from my ex-wife, Diane.

What the hell was going on?

I decided to shower first and then get at the messages in order.

Ayida’s were pretty short. Mostly “hi how are you and can we talk.” Number seven though, sent eighteen hours after number one, was pretty insistent. “Call Me. Now.” was what it said. So I did.

“Hello?” I said when she picked up.

“Hi.”

“What’s going on? You keep texting.”

“Yeah. I have some news.”

I wondered if she was coming for a second trip to the east coast this summer. I didn’t think I had it in me after that first one which had been epic. Suddenly I felt like the playboy of the East Coast.

“What is it, Ayida? Actually, I have some news too.”

“You do?” This seemed to stop her in her tracks. “What’s yours?”

“No, you tell me yours. Apparently, it’s important,” I tried to joke.

“I think so.”

“Well?”

“I’m late.”

“Oh, do you want to call me later then?”

“No, you idiot. I’m not late for work. I’m late for… well… my period.”

I let this sink in for a minute because I’d never heard words like that from anyone before and I certainly didn’t expect to hear them from Ayida.

“What?” I managed lamely at last.

“I’m late. I’m never late. I told you how regular I am, right? Very regular. I’ve been on the pill since I was fifteen. Never missed. The last ten years my periods are exactly twenty-seven days. I’m two days late.”

“Oh,” I sighed. I didn’t yet realize how serious this was.

“This is serious,” she continued, as if reading my mind.

“OK.”

“You know what I’m saying here, don’t you, Kevin?”

“Well,” I was returning to my wits and senses, “you should do a test.”

“Yes, genius, I know that. I just wanted to talk to you before I did it.”

“Why?”

“Because… I don’t know. It’s a big deal, I guess.”

“Did you talk to your other boyfriend about it too?”

“Other boyfriend?”

“The one-date wonder?” She’d told me about this other guy she’d been seeing in Ottawa while we were on our trip.

“Oh. Yeah, no. I haven’t seen him since I got back from Newfoundland.” We’d traveled around Newfoundland on our trip earlier that summer.

“Right, but you were seeing him before you came for our trip, right?”

“Yes.”

“Well?”

“I suppose.”

“Well, I think you should do the test.”

“I will tomorrow.”

“Why tomorrow?”

“It has to be first thing in the morning.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah. I just thought you should know.”

“OK. What time do you get up?”

“Six.”

“I’ll be waiting for a call.”

“Thanks. What was your news?”

“What?”

“You said you had news too.”

“Oh yeah. I got a new job.”

“Oh? I didn’t know you were looking.”

“Yeah. It’s still teaching, but at a university.” I gave her the details.

“That’s amazing, Kevin. Congratulations. Really.”

“Thanks.”

We exchanged a few more pleasantries and hung up. I couldn’t believe this news. Was I really about to be a father? I mean what was Ayida going to do about being pregnant with a guy who was not even her boyfriend? This was a mess, or certainly had the potential to be so. But if she was pregnant, and since she was including me in this call, I figured she would let me be part of her decision making about a potential pregnancy. Well, I supposed, not everything in my life could possibly be going well at the same time. Shit. This was huge.

I decided it was best to be systematic. I checked off the other messages on my phone. Michael’s first was a brief “congratulations.” His second just said, “I told the girls.” So, Annie’s were also congratulatory in nature. And so was Diane’s. “We can be colleagues now,” was how hers ended. A couple of Maryann’s also had to do with my new job. It was amazing how quickly word of something like this spread through a small town. Her other ones were about how I was doing and when she’d be seeing me again. And her last one said: “I heard about you and Mike. Call me.”

My big fight with my brother, that ended up with me being kicked out of our family home, was about her, so I wasn’t entirely surprised that Mikey had told her about it.

I was sick of messages from women asking me to call them, but I still gave in to her request because her gorgeous body and face flashed into my mind.

“Hi,” she greeted me with her usual excitement. But then her enthusiasm faded “can I call you back?”

“OK.”

“I’m just in the middle of class,” she added. She was teaching a summer music camp, I remembered.

“Oh. Sure. When are you done?”

“Four.”

“OK. I’ll be here.”

“Are you still in town?”

“Not at the moment. I’m back in Saint John. Had to get some things. Start packing. But I’ll be there this afternoon.”

“OK. I’ll call you at four.”

I hung up and looked around the apartment. In the years I’d lived here since the divorce from Diane I’d managed to collect a lot of junk. Luckily, I was not the kind of person to get too attached to stuff, so I knew a lot of it could be tossed. I grabbed some totes from my closet, some garbage bags from the kitchen, and a suitcase or two from under my bed, and started packing and sorting. It wouldn’t take me too long, but I figured I might as well begin and still make it to the signing of papers which was scheduled right before lunch.

There were a number of bings of texts congratulating me on the new job and some emails outlining the first days of my job. Basically, I’d be starting right away and I’d have to get all the paperwork done this afternoon. There was some sort of orientation for new employees as well which would be tomorrow. I started making notes of all this and that got me packing up some of my work-related gear. My personal laptop, my diplomas, any files I had, my Master’s textbooks, coaching texts, and so on. As I was going through it all, I realized I was going to be saying goodbye to one phase of my life and starting something completely different. This was exciting and scary at the same time. I looked around this small apartment I’d lived in for five years now, and realized quickly that I wouldn’t miss it. I was ready for a new adventure, and I was excited for it. I certainly hoped that this new adventure would not include a kid that was on the way in Ottawa, though.

I left at ten for the paper signing at eleven. I did all the paperwork at the university, and then went out to lunch at the University Club with Gord. He was very welcoming and warm. As a surprise, he brought Diane along. She had been spending the summer in Williamstown. It was actually nice to see her after a long while. We had a nice catch-up session and promised we’d see each other more in the future. Our failed marriage was far enough in the past that we were able to be more than just civil, and probably actually manage to be friends.

“Not like we’ll be going to any of the same conferences, but we are both university professors now, so I guess we can hang out,” she said with her characteristic sarcasm.

Of course, in the next few days, I also eagerly awaited the results of Ayida’s test in Ottawa. Strangely, though, she didn’t message me that day, or the next day, or the day after that. I harangued her with messages and phone calls, but she didn’t answer. With every unanswered text message, email and telephone ring, I got more and more worried, but there really wasn’t too much more than I could do. I mean I wasn’t about to jump on a plane and fly to Ottawa. Though, frankly, it was very tempting.

One of the worst parts about the situation was that I had no one to talk to about it. Annie was still away with my our other older sisters, Mike and I didn’t talk about that kind of stuff, or anything at all at the moment, Chad and Jamie were already helping me with house hunting and moving, so it was just another thing I didn’t want to burden them with, and for some reason my other teacher friends in Saint John were just not people I could talk to about something like that.

But I did talk to Diane. It was after our lunch with her Dad, after I’d tried unsuccessfully to reach Ayida, and she noticed that I was distressed.

“What’s eating you, Kevin?” she asked as we strolled along the Main, as the long pathway from the University Club to the Upper Campus is called at SAU.

“Oh, nothing much.”

“Come on. I know you better than that. I mean you were appropriately excited at dinner about your new job, and you were just as testy with me in our verbal sparring as you usually are, but I can tell that you’re also somewhere else.”

“Yeah, I guess.”

“See, there you go again.”

“I know. Look, it’s not something I really want to talk about.”

“So, there is something.”

“Yes, Di. You do know me well. We were married long enough that you can tell. You happy?”

“No. Are you?”

I realized that her no was not just a response to my question whether she was happy with the fact that she figured out something was wrong with me even though I had been trying to hide it, but also that she was just answering the general question about her happiness. This threw me for a loop. I mean, when someone you used to be married to is quite obviously unhappy, there may be a tendency towards feeling some sort of Schadenfreude, but I was not one for that emotion. I was far more sympathetic than that. I cared about Diane, not as a partner does anymore, but as a friend.

“Yes. I’m happy,” I said. It was only partially true. “But you’re not.”

“We’re talking about you now,” she said, deflecting.

“OK, but you just dropped quite a bombshell here, Diane. I am not just going to let that go.”

“We can circle back to that. Let’s focus on you right now.”

“Why me first?”

“Because.”

“Because why?”

“Because I said so.”

That was an old routine we had. She always won out.

“OK.”

“Wanna go to the Dragon and get wasted?”

“Sure. Like old times.”

“Yes.”

So, we ended up in my special booth, Kevin’s Korner, at my hometown local, the Red Dragon. My home away from home in Williamstown for a long time. And Diane’s too, in fact. Heads from some of the older regulars turned as we sat down because people knew about our divorce, of course.

“What’s going on?” she asked after ordering her usual.

I figured in some ways she was the best person to talk to about my big problem. I outlined it as best and succinctly as I could. I tried to stick to the facts and not embellish. It still took half an hour. Diane listened attentively and only interrupted with pertinent questions.

When I finished, she had a concerned look on her face.

“I hope she’s not pregnant. Or that it’s not yours.”

“I know. Me too.”

“Sorry. This must be tough.”

“Do you think it serves me right, though?”

She considered that carefully.

“Why would you think that?” she said at last.

“Well, I feel like maybe I’m being punished for my promiscuity.”

“Really? Kevin. Seriously. You’re not a kid. And you can’t be that Catholic after all these years.”

“What do you mean ‚that Catholic’?”

“You know what I mean. You don’t believe that sex before marriage is wrong. You don’t believe homosexuality is a sin. You don’t believe that thinking about sex is as bad as having it. Do you?”

“No, I guess not.”

“So, why would you think that this pregnancy scare, and let’s be honest here, this could be nothing but a scare, for whatever reason, or even if Ayida is pregnant, it could be someone else’s, right? So why would you think that this is some kind of cosmic punishment for you just being a regular single guy?”

“You think what I’m doing is OK?”

“Of course!”

“But I have multiple sexual partners at the same time,” I said, realizing I sounded like a confused teenager or something instead of a nearly forty-year old man.

“Oh please. We live in the twenty-first century in Canada. This isn’t a Sharia law country. It’s not even the old world. It’s not the Bible Belt. I mean, sure, Charlotte County, New Brunswick is hardly the progressive capital of the world, but our town is still a relatively liberal place. And Saint John is even more so, in some ways because it’s a city. Are you being dishonest? Of course. Is this a horrible crime? No. Not anymore. Did you ever tell any of these women you were being exclusive with them? No. Are any of them being exclusive with you? It doesn’t sound like it. So why are you beating yourself up over this?”

I had to think about that. I looked deep into her dark brown eyes.

“Because I’m one of the good guys.”

“Ah. There it is. Your existential crisis. Yes, Kevin, you are one of the good guys. But you cheated on me. And we were married. And I cheated on you. And it doesn’t mean you’re not one of the good guys.”

This was a paradox I was having a hard time with indeed. I thanked her for her insight and then we turned to her troubles.

“In a nutshell,” she said, “Phil is not the guy I thought he was.”

Phil was the university professor who was the direct cause of my divorce from Diane, since he’d been sleeping with her for some time.

“Oh?”

“Yeah.”

“Who did you think he was?”

“I thought he was the man I wanted to be with because I thought he had the same expectations for life that I did. He doesn’t.”

“How so?”

“He doesn’t want to just be with me. He has someone else in his life. And he’s not willing to give him up.”

This was another bombshell. I think I gasped.

“Wow.”

“I know, right?”

“Yeah. Wow. I’m sorry, Diane.”

“Yeah. Me too. I really liked him, you know?”

“I know. So, what are you going to do about it?”

“I don’t know. I think I might come spend more time in Williamstown, actually. Phil hates this town. He never comes here. I may also start applying for jobs elsewhere. Maybe I need a change from Saint John, or maybe even New Brunswick, you know?”

“So, you guys are breaking up?”

“At least taking a break.”

“Yeah. Wow.”

“Yup.”

“But you’re OK?”

She gave me a sympathetic look.

“Sure. I think I’ll be fine. I just need to get my head on straight again, you know?”

“I guess I do.”

“What a couple of…”

“…sad sacks.” I finished the thought for her.

She laughed.

“I was going to say losers, but sad sacks is better. Your Mom, right?”

“Yeah.”

“She had a way with words.”

“Yeah.”

“I miss her.”

“Me too.”

And so we wrapped up our conversation about serious things. We drank more and ate some more and chatted with some old friends who were also at the bar on that gorgeous summer afternoon in August, and things were OK for a little while. I even forgot about trying to reach Ayida again for a bit. And four o’clock came and went and Maryann never did call back.

***

I headed back to Saint John to make it for trivia at Big Tide at seven. After trivia, I did get a chance to talk to Kelly. After her shift was done, Big Tide closed at midnight, she came over to my table where I was the only remaining member of Smarty Pints sitting there and closing the place. Even Chad had left for O’Leary’s by then. I lingered because I wanted to talk to her again, I guess.

“Hey,” she said, sitting down and smiling a very tired smile at me.

“You must be beat,” I said, trying to sound sympathetic.

“I am.”

“But you’re done now?”

“Yeah.”

“Wanna get out of here?”

“Desperately.”

“Pizza?”

“God, no! I just need bed.”

“Why are you so tired?”

“I had a busy day, and it was a busy night, Kevin. Or hadn’t you noticed.”

“Yes, of course. I’m sorry. I didn’t realize how hard this work is.”

“It’s fucking exhausting.”

“Do you want a drive home?”

“Nah, I have my car.”

“Oh. OK.”

“You stayed around to chat? You have something on your mind?”

“No, it’s OK. No big deal. I’m sorry.”

“You were checking your phone an awful lot. Not during trivia, mind you, I was happy to see that. So was Aaron.”

There was a no cell-phones rule at trivia for obvious reasons and Aaron was the Trivia host and phone nazi.

“Yeah, no. It’s not a big deal.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah.”

“OK. Look, I’m sorry. I’ll make it up to you, though.”

“No. You don’t owe me anything.”

“OK. Thanks. Goodnight.”

And she got up and left. I wanted to go after her, but then I decided it was pointless. I mean I wasn’t going to tell her about Ayida anyway. Kelly and I had just had a one night stand, I was only making it out to be something much bigger than it was. I did like her, but was this just another Maddy? Thinking this way made me really start to think that I’d need to go to Ottawa. If I didn’t hear anything by Friday, I really would just go ahead and fly up there just for the weekend. I mean I needed to know, right? I had to have some sort of answer, didn’t I? But that was still a few days away. Maybe she’d have called me by then.

3.

The next few days were a whirlwind. I traveled to Williamstown with one load of my stuff after another, but since I had nowhere to put it yet, I just left it all in Jamie’s garage. On each trip I also went looking at houses with either Jamie or Chad, but I didn’t have very much luck. And, of course, I was learning my new job. I was a department head. It was a tiny department, but as the head I’d still have some people reporting to me. One of those was the soccer coach who had started a few weeks earlier. He and I got on very well. We’d actually known each other back in my playing days. Chris Turner was a year younger than me, but we had played a couple of seasons together, including the championship-winning one. He had gone on to work for some European football clubs and had really become a highly-accomplished coach in the short time since university. He was going to be able to do what needed to be done to get the team to be competitive again. We still needed to hire a women’s soccer coach, and a couple of professors for the new department. We were only launching with first and second year kinesiology courses, but I wasn’t able to teach all of them and be the department head, so several more people had to be hired, and we had the budget for it, somehow.

On Thursday of that week I found a house in Williamstown. It was not just a coincidence either; it was the kind of good karma that you hear about happening to good people. It just worked out. Jamie’s fiancée Ola was back from Poland and getting things ready for their wedding. One day, though, she broke down in tears while she and Jamie were planning the seating arrangement for the reception dinner. I was with them when it happened. He’d invited me for supper – barbecue and beer that I was paying for because he’d promised me a free moving van for when it was time to move my furniture down from Saint John. He knew a guy with a truck. Actually, he was a guy with a truck. Stevenson’s Transport was mostly a people moving company, but they also had a cube van and a larger truck that they occasionally used. Jamie figured it would be good to branch out in the business, especially since university students coming to SAU often needed something and someone to move their furniture.

So, that day after dinner we were sitting down and doing up the seating plan for the wedding – the wedding was big: 200+ people. It was going to be under a giant tent on the Grand Parade at the university. It had been difficult to arrange this since it was the end of Frosh Week as well, but Jamie was very well-liked and respected in the community and the university president herself made sure this would go ahead. Conveniently, the tents were already going to be on site because the night before there would be a big concert as part of Frosh Week, so that worked out well. As we started placing Ola’s relatives, the poor girl started crying.

“Olu, what’s wrong?” Jamie, the bear, showed his most teddy-bear-like side.

“I was just thinking about my Babcia,” she was saying through very dramatic Eastern European sobs. “And how sad I was that she wouldn’t be here. And of course, that got me thinking about Mama too.”

Ola’s mother had been killed in a car crash three years earlier.

“I’m sorry, sweetheart. I didn’t know this would be so difficult for you.”

“We should have maybe just had a small wedding. In my parents’ backyard.”

“There’s barely enough room there for twenty people, Honey.”

“I know. But that’s what I mean. Maybe that’s all we needed. Now that poor house, sitting there, abandoned. I feel bad about it, too.”

And she wept again.

This was all just a bit too dramatic for my taste. The Malones were dramatic, but these Polish people took the cake.

“Honey, while we’re talking about it, I really think you need to just let go of that house,” Jamie said, in what I thought was a somewhat inopportune moment.

The crying stopped on a dime. Ola gave her husband-to-be a very nasty look that I didn’t want to be on the end of. Ever.

“What do you mean, ‚let go’?”

“I mean it’s time to sell it, Honey. You haven’t lived there for two years. Your brother and sisters haven’t lived there in six or seven. Your Mom is gone. Your Dad has moved back to Poland. He’s not coming back. You’re not going to live there with me, because we have this place, so why are you hanging on to it?”

Ola’s beautiful moonlike face looked like it was going to break down in tears again, but then she composed herself for a minute and took a deep breath.

“You’re right,” she said, with astonishing calm.

“Good.”

“But it has to go to a good person.”

“What?”

“I mean, I don’t want to just sell it on the open market, you know? Besides, think about it: if we can sell it without using an agent, we can get more money.”

“If only you knew someone who was looking for a house,” I said, sarcastically, to my former best friend and host.

“Yeah.”

And then it seemed to dawn on him.

“Kevin! My God! Honey, Kevin could move in there!”

And Ola’s face turned from watery moon to a bright sunshine.

“Of course! And Kevin is a really good guy, isn’t he? Kevin, would you consider it?”

I tried very hard to remember the house, but I hadn’t known the Kowalskis that well, so I wasn’t even sure where they lived. It could have been a dump, for all I knew.

“I could take a look,” I ventured.

“Oh, it would be perfect! You’re a good guy, and we could still come and visit, and I bet you’d look after the garden, wouldn’t you?”

“Yeah, sure,” I stuttered.

“Let’s go. Let’s go right now.” I realized Polish people got excited as dramatically as they got upset.

Before I really knew what was happening, we were in Jamie’s cab and driving across town to the Kowalski place. They lived in a newer part of town, but not the newest part. Williamstown had four distinct districts: Old Town, which was Uptown, Downtown and the University; New Town, more affectionately, though unoriginally, known as “The Peninsula” which was up the hill towards the Goddard place and the famous cookie factory, and back down the other side of the hill towards the tip of a peninsula on which Williamstown is located; West Side, which is a fancy name for a slightly more rural section of town on the way towards our nearest neighbouring town, St. Stephen; and East Side, which was also a fancy name for what was the newest part of town, along the banks of Oak Bay to the north of town, towards Oak Haven and Oak Bay itself which were two more adjacent communities. Jamie’s place, like mine, was in Old Town, and the Kowalskis’ was on the way up the hill towards the Goddard place. It was on Pine Street, off Hannah Road, just about on the dividing line between Old Town and New Town.

“Here we are,” Ola said, as Jamie pulled into a shady driveway next to a mid-twentieth-Century handsome two-story house. It was built in the style of the older houses in Old Town, but clearly was not built in the nineteenth or early twentieth century, but probably in the 1950s or early 60s. It was grey shingled and had a new-looking roof. There was a small glassed-in porch in front, and what looked like a larger one in the back, next to the garage which was at the end of the driveway. Jamie parked just beside the house in front of the garage. There was a handsome brick chimney on that side of the house.

“Come on in,” Ola said, jumping out of the passenger seat.

We walked up to the front door – not the usual way of entering a house in Williamstown as most people used each other’s side or back doors since those tended to lead straight into the kitchen, the traditional gathering place for family, friends, and neighbours. It was just at that moment that I realized I’d been played by my friends. They had been planning this all along, and they were giving me a real estate agent’s tour of the property. I sighed, but I played along.

The front door was an old and heavy red door, but quite recently painted. Inside the house had a fairly standard design – a staircase on the right, a narrow hallway straight ahead, and to the left of the stairs, and a gorgeous French door to the left of that, which opened into quite a sizeable living room, which then led to the dining room. Beyond that, reachable through the dining room, and down the hall from the front door, was the large country kitchen, the back door of which in turn led through a mudroom to the back porch, deck, and good-size backyard. Upstairs, which was reachable both from the front stairs, and a second stairway by the kitchen, there were three bedrooms and two bathrooms. The ensuite in the master bedroom had been recently updated and had a large soaker tub and a fancy glassed-in shower. The other two rooms were smaller, but decently sized, and the second bathroom was also updated. Overall, it was a great starter house, nicely and recently painted, with gorgeous wood floors, and new windows.

The backyard was the showpiece of the place. It was huge for one in town (double lot, Ola informed me), and relatively flat, despite being on the hillside, with mature trees and a sizeable and well-kept up vegetable garden on the right side of the yard. It was fenced-in, and there was plenty of room for a pool, as Jamie pointed out, and the deck was large enough to install a hot tub on it and still have tons of room left over for an outdoor grilling and dining set. In fact, it reminded me of the newly refurbished deck at Michael’s house, as I was now calling my old family home.

“This is amazing, you guys,” I said at the end of the tour. “Olga, how did you live here with a brother and two sisters?”

“The house used to have four bedrooms.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah, there was no master bathroom. That was added after we left the house. And by added, I mean my room was turned into a bathroom.”

I hadn’t figured that out upstairs. It was very well done.

“Did your Dad do all the work himself?” I asked, remembering suddenly that her father was in fact a carpenter.

“Most of it. Oleg helped him a little.” Her slightly older brother, a good friend of Annie’s, liked to tinker at D-I-Y stuff as well.

“Nice. It’s amazing, Olga. Really is. I doubt I can afford it.”

“We can talk money later. We just wanted you to see it. And love it.”

“I do. It would be a perfect house for me,” I had to admit.

“Amazing,” Jamie exclaimed. “And it’s like it’ll be staying in the family!”

“Yeah…” I mumbled.

“We love you like a brother,” Ola said. “You know, Jamie is an only child, so this will be lovely for him.”

Jamie was not, in fact, an only child. He had an older sister, and a few older brothers, but they were quite a few years older, so Jamie had grown up almost like an only child.

“I’ll be happy to be part of the extended family. Especially because I don’t know that many people here anymore.”

“That’s true. And do you think you could even babysit for us sometimes?”

This was yet another bombshell. I was getting too many of those at the moment.

“What?”

“Well, we weren’t going to tell anyone before the wedding, but since you’re family.”

Olga was glowing. She also wasn’t drinking. Now I understood why. It also freaked the hell out of me. I felt like saying, “sure, I’ll babysit for you, if you babysit for me.”

“Congratulations, you guys! How far along are you?” I said instead.

“Only three months.”

“Well, that’s amazing. And how is it possible?” I did the math. She must have gotten pregnant while she was in Poland, but surely, she couldn’t have cheated on Jamie?

“Remember when I went to visit her in Poland?” Jamie calmed my fears.

“Oh, yeah.”

“Yeah. It was quite a fun visit. I saw none of Poland,” he laughed. His intended blushed.

I looked at them with a smile. They really were becoming like family. I was moved that they were including me in this moment.

“That’s awesome, you guys. Congratulations. Who else knows?”

“Nobody. Well, my Dad,” Olga was explaining giddily, “but not even my brother or sisters.”

In addition to Oleg, she also had older twin sisters who were living in Montreal or Toronto now, I seemed to remember.

“You’ll tell them at the wedding?”

“Yes. I’ll probably be showing at least a bit by then, so yeah.” I thought that was highly unlikely considering the wedding was only a few weeks away, but I let her have the moment.

“OK. Well, that’s really quite a turn of events.”

“We knew you’d be happy for us.”

“I am.”

“There’s something else we wanted to ask,” Olga prodded her bearlike fiancé.

“Yeah, Kevin, I know we haven’t been super close these last few years. Hell, probably the last decade or so, but before that we were best friends. I `would love for you to be my best man.”

I thought this was quite late in the planning to ask that question, but I didn’t pry. Perhaps I was a second or third choice, but I didn’t care. I’d never been a best man to anyone before, and since Michael and I were so cold towards one another I didn’t think I’d ever get the chance to be.

“Yes, of course. I’d be honoured.”

“Thank you, Lil’ Brother.” He gave me another of his trademark bear-hugs. “I appreciate it.”

Things were developing quickly. And somewhere in the back of my mind there was that nagging feeling of “what if I’m about to be a Dad too?”

I suddenly realized I had to get a hold of Ayida. And quickly, too. Or else book a flight to Ottawa for Saturday morning.

After you’ve read

Vocabulary Focus

Nature Idioms

“In a nutshell,” she said, “Phil is not the guy I thought he was.”

In a nutshell oznacza w skrócie. Oto jeszcze kilka idiomów z roślinami w roli głównej:

be at the top of the tree – być na najwyższym szczeblu w karierze, być u szczytu kariery

be out of the woods – mieć najgorsze za sobą; wyjść na prostą; przezwyciężyć kłopoty, wyjść z tarapatów

beat about the bush – owijać w bawełnę; mówić aluzyjnie, ogródkami, niejasno, nieprecyzyjnie; unikać powiedzenia czegoś wprost, krążyć wokół tematu

can’t see the wood for the trees – nie zauważać istoty problemu z powodu skupiania się na szczegółach

nip something in the bud – zdusić coś w zarodku

push up the daisies – (pot.) wąchać kwiatki od spodu, być martwym

shrinking violet – osoba bardzo nieśmiała

Kawałek

I spent a good chunk of time chatting with all of them together.

Chunk (lub hunk) to kawałek, kawał – na ogół spory i o nieregularnym, nieokreślonym kształcie. Kawałki i porcje możemy nazwać na wiele sposobów:

bit bardzo mały kawałek, lump/scrap kawałeczek czegoś (o nieokreślonym kształcie), bar bela, baton, block blok, polano, cube sześcian, kostka, slab długi, szeroki i płaski kawałek, crumb okruch, dollop porcja papki, porcja czegoś kleistego, gałka lodów, scoop gałka lodów, grain ziarenko, odrobina czegoś sypkiego, morsel kęs, kąsek, kawałek, pinch szczypta, odrobina czegoś bardzo sypkiego, shred kawałek posiekanego pożywienia, pasek, slice plasterek, kromka, titbit (BrE)/tidbit (AmE) kąsek, kawałek przysmaku, także w znaczeniu nagrody dla zwierzęcia/dziecka

Grammar Focus

Progressive and non-progressive form: verbs changing meaning

Look!

Was she just being nice? | Was the lecture interesting?
I was thinking about you. | What do you think of his latest novel?

How do the meanings of be and think change depending on the progressive/non-progressive use?

Niektóre czasowniki zmieniają znaczenie w zależności od tego, czy użyjemy ich w czasach ciągłych czy prostych. Dla przykładu – czasownik think w znaczeniu sądzić, uważać, mieć zdanie (na jakiś temat) może występować tylko w czasach prostych, natomiast think w znaczeniu myśleć, rozmyślać może mieć również formę ciągłą.

Te różnice przedstawia tabela.

Czasownik

Znaczenie – forma Simple

Znaczenie – forma Continuous

be

być, mieć jakieś cechy

She’s clever.

zachowywać się (jakoś)

You’re being silly.

look

wyglądać

He looks ill. He’s looking ill.

wyglądać (jak)

They say I look just like my mum.

patrzeć

What is she looking at?

think

uważać, sądzić

What do you think of my new shoes?

myśleć

She’s been thinking about their holiday plans.

have

mieć, posiadać

I don’t have anything to add.

inne użycia

(have a bath, have a meeting, have a chat)

I’m having a shower.

appreciate

cenić, doceniać

I appreciate your help.

zyskiwać na wartości

State bonds were appreciating in value.

see

widzieć

He saw something weird.

widzieć się (z kimś), spotykać się

I’m seeing my friends on Sunday.

smell

pachnieć

The roses smell wonderful.

wąchać

The girl was smelling flowers.

taste

smakować, mieć smak

The sauce tasted lovely!

kosztować, smakować, próbować (smak)

The cook is tasting the sauce.

measure

mieć określoną miarę, mierzyć (ileś)

What does the length of our kitchen table measure?

mierzyć (coś)

The carpenters are measuring the roof.

weigh

mieć określoną wagę, ważyć (ileś)

What do you weigh?

ważyć (coś)

I’m weighing the flour and sugar – I don’t want to spoil the cake.

feel

czuć się

I feel a little seedy today.

I’m feeling a little seedy today.

być (jakimś) w dotyku

The fabric felt smooth.

uważać sądzić

I feel you should stay at home.

Exercises

1. Match the verbs with correct prepositions to make phrases.

a. get married

to

with

for

from

somebody

b. fall in love

c. propose

d. break up

e. divorce

f. fall

g. fall out of love

h. make out

i. split up

j. hook up

k. flirt

l. get engaged

2. Fill in the gaps with the words from the box in the correct form.

chunk crumb dollop grain x2 lump pinch slice titbit

a. The elderly man was feeding birds with bread______.

b. There’s quite a ______ of that French cheese in the fridge.

c. Add a ______ of salt to the dough.

d. Daddy, can we have some ice cream? Oh, just a ______ each!

e. I always carry some ______ for my dog – I’m trying to teach him obedience.

f. If you put one ______ of wheat on the first square of the chessboard, and double the number of ______ on every subsequent square, how many do you get on square 64?

g. A few ______ of coal was all the family had left.

h. This pineapple is delicious. Can I please have another ______?

3. Choose the correct option.

a. There was something scribbled on that scrap/slab of paper, but one would never make it out without a magnifying glass.

b. I can see something is bothering you, so stop beating about the woods/bush and tell me what’s up!

c. There was only a morsel/slab of bread in the boy’s bundle.

d. These roses smell/are smelling lovely.

e. She moved the glass, ice cubes/lumps tinkling gently in her scotch.

f. Now that she’s at the top of the tree/her voice, Catherine feels really satisfied.

Answers

1. a. to b. with c. to d. with e. from f. for g. with h. with i. with j. with k. with l. to

2. a. crumbs b. chunk c. pinch d. dollop e. titbits f. grain, grains g. lumps h. slice

3. a. scrap b. bush c. morsel d. smell e. cubes f. the tree

Słowniczek

A

a bunch dużo, często

a storm dużo, mnóstwo; -> be doing up a storm

abandoned opuszczony

abject skrajny, opłakany, żałosny

abruptly nagle, gwałtownie

acquire otrzymać, zyskać

add up składać się w całość, trzymać się kupy

adjoining przylegający, sąsiedni

admit przyznać

affected by dotknięty (czymś)

affectionately tkliwie

aftermath następstwa, skutki

aghast osłupiały

agitation wzburzenie, poruszenie

agony cierpienie

ahem hm

alas niestety

alien obcy, nieznany

alimony alimenty

all in all w każdym razie, w sumie

all the while cały czas

ally sojusznik

ammo = ammunition amunicja, tu: argumenty

ancient stary

angelic anielski

answer the door otworzyć drzwi

apparent widoczny

apparently widocznie

appropriately stosownie, właściwie

approve aprobować, zaakceptować

arrangement umowa

artsy artystyczny

as far as sb/sth is concerned jeśli chodzi o…

as of począwszy od

assault zaatakować, napadać

assemble zgromadzić, zebrać

assume zakładać

at the top of one’s voice na cały głos

attached to przywiązany do

attendee obecny, gość

attentively uważnie

awkward niezręczny; niejasny

awkwardness niezręczność

B

back and forth w tę i z powrotem

bagel bajgiel

ball up zacisnąć, zwinąć

bang walić, uderzać

barely ledwie

barge przepychać się gdzieś, pakować się

bastard kutas, palant

bawling wrzaski, ryki

BBA = Bachelor of Business Administration

be a dear bądź tak dobry

be a go podjąć próbę, spróbować

be bad news sprowadzać kłopoty, oznaczać kłopoty

be beside oneself wychodzić z siebie

be doing (e.g.be cooking) up a storm robić coś (np. gotować) pełną parą/z całych sił

be done skończyć (coś robić)

be due (back) mieć przybyć/wrócić

be in one’s element być w swoim żywiole

be in the mood for mieć nastrój na

be lax about sth nie przykładać się do czegoś

be no match for sb nie dorównywać komuś

be on the pill brać pigułkę antykoncepcyjną

be over sb zapomnieć o kimś, przestać o kimś myśleć

be up shit creek być po uszy w gównie, mieć przesrane

becoming twarzowy, stosowny

behoove wypadać, być stosownym

bellow ryczeć, wrzeszczeć

beneficiary spadkobierca

benefits dodatki, świadczenia

bereft opuszczony, osamotniony

best man świadek, drużba

bewildered oszołomiony, zdumiony

Bible Belt miejsce zamieszkane przez pobożnych ludzi

bing ping (sygnał w telefonie)

bipolar dwubiegunowy

Birkenstocks sandały

bizarre dziwaczny

blink zamrugać

block odległość między dwiema przecznicami

blow up at sb wściec się na kogoś, nawrzeszczeć na kogoś, wybuchnąć

blow spartaczyć

blurry zamazany, niewyraźny

blurt out wypalić

blush zarumienić się

BMus = Bachelor of Music

board a flight wsiadać na pokład samolotu

boarding school szkoła z internatem

bob kołysać się

boobies cycki

booth odgrodzony kącik w restauracji

branch out rozszerzać działalność

brat kid bachor

brazen bezczelny, bezwstydny

break sth in użyć czegoś po raz pierwszy, wypróbować coś,

bride-to-be przyszła panna młoda

brothel dom publiczny, burdel

brush away zetrzeć

bubble bańka

buddy przyjaciel, kumpel

budge poruszyć się, drgnąć

buffer bufor; zderzak

bullshit bzdury

bummer cholera

burden sb with sth obarczać czymś kogoś

burst (burst, burst) into tears  wybuchnąć łzami

butt tyłek

buzz bzyczeć

by design celowo, umyślnie

by way of tytułem czegoś, w charakterze

C

cackle chichotać, rechotać

cancel out znosić się, równoważyć się

cannot for the life of me nie móc (sobie przypomnieć) za nic na świecie

card sprawdzać dokument w celu potwierdzenia pełnoletności

carding policy zasada sprawdzania pełnoletności gości

carry on kontynuować

catch on załapać

catch one’s breath nabrać tchu

catch sight of zauważyć, dostrzec

catch up nadrabiać zaległości, dowiadywać się, co słychać

catch up to sb dogonić kogoś

catch-up session rozmowa z „nadrobieniem zaległości”

cater dostarczać, przywozić

cautious ostrożny

cease przestać

celebratory świąteczny

centrepiece główna dekoracja, atrakcja, gwóźdź programu

CEO = Chief Executive Officer  dyrektor generalny

chagrin smutek

chair przewodniczyć (zebraniu)

Chancellor kanclerz

charade gra pozorów, farsa, komedia

chase with tu: popić

cheesy tandetny, tani

chick dziewczyna

childcare opieka nad dzieckiem

childish dziecinny

chime in włączać się, popierać, wtórować

chug wypić jednym haustem, połknąć

chunk kawałek

civil grzeczny, uprzejmy

clearing polana

clenched zaciśnięty

coat of arms herb

coat rack wieszak na płaszcze

cockamamie niedorzeczny

coherent spójny

coincidence zbieg okoliczności

coincidentally przypadkowo, zbiegiem okoliczności

collapse zemdleć; doznać zapaści

combined połączony

come clean wyznać coś, wreszcie do czegoś się przyznać

come off ustąpić, odejść

come to one’s senses odzyskać zmysły

command rozkazać, nakazać

committed relationship zdeklarowany związek

commute dojeżdżać do pracy lub szkoły

competitive ambitny, rywalizujący

competitor konkurent; współzawodnik

compose oneself uspokoić się

concede przyznać

concerned zatroskany, przygnębiony

concierge pracownik hotelu zajmujący się obsługą gości

conclude dojść do wniosku, postanowić

condescending protekcjonalny

condescension protekcjonalność

confess wyznać

confirm potwierdzić

confuse pomylić

confused zmieszany, zdezorientowany

confusion dezorientacja, pomieszanie

conga tańczyć w wężu

conga line wąż (wspólny taniec)

consider rozważać

considerate liczący sie z innymi, taktowny

console pocieszać

conspiratorially konspiracyjnie

contagious zaraźliwy

contingent grupa, reprezentacja, delegacja

conundrum łamigłówka, zagadka

conveniently dogodnie, szczęśliwie

convince przekonać

Coocoo rodzaj ciasta z mąki kukurydzianej i okry

cool as a cucumber opanowany, spokojny

cornmeal mąka kukurydziana

counterpart odpowiednik

court zalecać się, starać się o 

cover for sb zastąpić kogoś

coyly nieśmiało, skromnie

cranky nieznośny, gderliwy

crass grubiański, beznadziejny

crawl czołgać się, pełzać

crew (group of people); załoga

crumble ciasto owocowe z kruszonką

crushed przygnieciony

cube van ciężarówka skrzyniowa

cuckoo głupi, rąbnięty

curriculum program nauczania

curse zakląć

cut it out przestań, skończ z tym

cut-offs obcięte dżinsy

Cystic Fibrosis mukowiscydoza

D

dashboard deska rozdzielcza

dawn on sb zaświtać komuś, przyjść komuś na myśl

D-Day dzień rozpoczęcia akcji

dead-beat leniwy

Dean Emeritus emerytowany dziekan

dean dziekan

decently przyzwoicie

deck taras

dedicate poświęcić

dedicated zaangażowany

deed notarialny akt własności

deflect dać odpór, zmienić kierunek

dehydrated odwodniony

deliberate przemyślany, celowy, zamierzony

deliberately naumyślnie, celowo

delve wgłębiać się

demurely wstydliwie, skromnie

deposit dostarczyć, oddać, złożyc

deranged obłąkany

descent wjazd

digging zbieranie informacji

dignitary dygnitarz

dim ściemnić się, przygasnąć

dinky car resorak

dip wejście do wody

disarm sb rozbroić kogoś

dismay przerażenie, konsternacja

dismiss odprawić

diss krytykować, disować

dissipate rozpraszać się

distracting dostarczający rozrywki, odciągający uwagę

distraction zakłócenie, odwrócenie uwagi

distressed zdenerwowany, przygnębiony

dive podły bar

D-I-Y = Do It Yourself zrób to sam, majsterkowanie

domestic domowy

double-check sprawdzać dwukrotnie

double-take reakcja z opóźnieniem

drag sb away odciągać kogoś

draw to a close zbliżać się do końca

drop a bombshell wywołać sensację

drop sb off podrzucić, wysadzić

dude facet, koleś

due to z powodu

duffel rodzaj mocnej tkaniny

dumbfounded osłupiały

dummy głupek

dump dziura, nora; porzucić, rzucić

E

eagerly niecierpliwie, chętnie

eavesdrop podsłuchiwać

echo powtórzyć

effusiveness wylewność

elaborate wyrafinowany, misterny

elated uniesiony, szczęśliwy

eloquence elokwencja, rozwinięta wypowiedź

embark on rozpoczynać

embellish upiększać

embroil in wdać się, wplątać się

enclave enklawa

enrollment zapis

ensuite = bathroom en suite łazienka obok sypialni

entire cały

entirely całkowicie

entirety całość, całokształt

eon eon

establish a precedent stworzyć precedens

establishment zakład, placówka

estate majątek

eternity wieczność

eventually w końcu

exasperated rozdrażniony

exclusive na wyłączność

exertion wysiłek

exhausting wycieńczający

exploits wyczyny, podboje

exquisite wykwintny, wyśmienity

extended family dalsza rodzina, rodzina wielopokoleniowa

extension przedłużenie

extramarital pozamałżeński

extravagant obfity

F

factual rzeczowy

faculty wydział

fade słabnąć

fall for zakochać się w 

fancy wyszukany

fate los

feebly słabo, nieudolnie

feel black czuć się przygnębionym

feel nauseous odczuwać mdłości

feel out of one’s element czuć się jak ryba bez wody

feign udawać

fierce wściekły, szalejący

fight, flight or freeze walcz, uciekaj, zamarznij – trzy typowe reakcje na zagrożenie

figment of sb’s imagination wytwór czyjejś wyobraźni

figure zrozumieć, rozkminić

final touches ostatnie poprawki, ostatnie pociągnięcie

flabbergasted osłupiały, zszokowany

flabby obwisły, sflaczały

flash into sb’s mind pojawić się przed oczami (w wyobraźni)

flatter oneself pochlebiać sobie

flick pstryknąć

flirtatiously flirciarsko

floor wprawiać w osłupienie

floozy prostytutka, zdzira

flustered podenerwowany, podniecony

fold oneself zgiąć się, schylić się

folks kochani, ludzie

folksy przyjazny, swojski

food cart stoisko z jedzeniem

for sb’s sake ze względu na kogoś

for that matter tak samo, również

forgo obywać się bez, rezygnować z 

foundation fundament

fraction ułamek

frame rama

frazzled przemęczony, wyczerpany

freak the hell out of sb okropnie kogoś wystraszyć

French door drzwi francuskie

fretfully niespokojnie, z rozdrażnieniem

frosh = freshman student/ka pierwszego roku

frown upon krytykować, nie pochwalać

frown zmarszczyć brwi

full custody pełna opieka (nad małoletnim)

G

gaggle grupa rozgadanych ludzi

gall czelność, tupet

gamble ryzyko

gasp nabrać powietrza

gear shift dźwignia zmiany biegów

gear przybory, narzędzia; bieg w samochodzie

geez o jeny

gent pan

genuine prawdziwy

genuinely naprawdę, autentycznie

get a hold of skontaktować się, złapać kogoś

get sth straight wyjaśnić, zrozumieć

get up to zmajstrować coś, zrobić coś

get wasted upić się

giddily radośnie, beztrosko

giddy podchmielony

gig posada

giggle chichotać

girl-on-girl lesbijski

give credit chwalić, wyrażać uznanie

give in to sth ulec czemuś

give sb thumbs up kciuki w górę

give up zrezygnować z, porzucić

glance zerkać

glare piorunować wzrokiem

glowing rozpromieniony, entuzjastyczny

go out of one’s mind wariować ze zmartwienia

god forsaken zapomniany, na odludziu

goings-on dziwne sprawy, sprawki, poczynania

gotta = have got to

grab zgarnąć, chwycić

graciously łaskawie, miło

grave poważny

gregarious towarzyski, stadny, gościnny

groggily w przymuleniu, zamulony

groin krocze

groom pan młody

groove dobrze się bawić, poruszać się w rytm

grumble buczeć

gut trzewia

gyrate kręcić się

H

haddock plamiak, łupiak (ryba)

hang on to sth zatrzymywać coś

hangover kac

harangue with zasypywać, zalewać

hard of hearing słabosłyszący

Hardy Har Har postać z kreskówki Lippy the Lion and Hardy Har Har

have a lot on one’s plate mieć dużo na głowie

have a point mieć rację

have a soft spot for sb mieć do kogoś słabość

have a tell dać wskazówkę

have a thing for sb czuć coś do kogoś

have a way with sth umieć sobie z czymś radzić, być biegłym w czymś

have got nothing on sb odpadać z kimś w przedbiegach

have sth in common mieć ze sobą coś wspólnego

have the hots for sb być na kogoś napalonym

headliner główna gwiazda

heart-to-heart szczera bliska rozmowa

height of szczyt (czegoś)

her highness jej wysokość

high-end z najwyższej półki, luksusowy

highlights najważniejsze punkty

highly-accomplished znakomity

high-pitched piskliwy, przenikliwy, wysoki

hilarious wesoły

hint domieszka, ślad

hips biodra

hit a nerve trafić w czuły punkt, nadepnąć komuś na odcisk

hit on uderzać do, podrywać

hold court brylować, wieść prym

hold up czekać

holdover relikt

hook up with spotykać się z, chodzić do łóżka z

hook-up seks randka w celach wyłącznie erotycznych

hoop koło, obręcz

humble skromny, pokorny

hurrah zabawa

hyena hiena

I

I beg to differ pozwolę się nie zgodzić

immature niedorzały

impudence bezczelność

in a nutshell w skrócie

in disbelief z niedowierzaniem

in flagrante delicto (łac.) na gorącym uczynku

in good shape w dobrym stanie

in one gulp jednym haustem

in retrospect z perspektywy czasu

in the meantime tymczasem

in time w samą porę, na ostatnią chwilę

inadequate niewiele wart, gorszy

inadvertently niechcący

inane czczy, głupi, bezsensowny

inappropriate niewłaściwy, nieodpowiedni, nie na miejscu

including włącznie z

incoherent mówiący bez ładu i składu

incoherently nieskładnie

inconceivable niewyobrażalny, niepojęty

inconsolable niepocieszony

inconvenient niedogodny

incredulous niedowierzający

indicate wskazywać

indiscretion wybryk

inexplicable niewytłumaczalny, nie do wyjaśnienia

ingenious pomysłowy

ingrate niewdzięcznik

inheritance spadek

innocence niewinność

inopportune nie w porę

inquest dochodzenie, pytania

insatiable nieposkromiony, nienasycony

insight zrozumienie, trafne spostrzeżenie

insistent natarczywy, nieustępliwy

instantly momentalnie

intended narzeczona

intently uważnie

interior wnętrze

intimidate onieśmielać

investigate prowadzić dochodzenie

investigation dochodzenie

it hit me zrozumiałem

J

jackal szakal

jaw szczęka, zęby

jerk gnojek

jest żart

jet strumień; wlew wody

jock sportowiec

join (each others’ lives) in Holy Matrimony związać się węzłem małżeńskim

junk graty, śmieci

K

keep track of sb pilnować, mieć oko na kogoś

kick in właczać się, zaskoczyć

kick off zaczynać

kinesiology kinezjologia

knock sb over przewrócić kogoś

knock sb up być sprawcą czyjejś ciąży

L

Labour Day Święto Pracy

labour poród

lady of the night prostytutka

lame słaby, niewiarygodny

lamely słabo, nieporadnie, nieprzekonująco, niezręcznie

land well zostać dobrze przyjętym (np. o żarcie)

lap-dance erotyczny taniec na czyichś kolanach

launch uruchamiać, rozpoczynać

lavish wystawny, obfity

layer warstwa

layout rozkład

leave of absence urlop

lecturer wykładowca

legal work kwestie prawne

let on zdradzić, dać poznać

let sb off the hook odpuścić komuś

liberal arts sztuki wyzwolone

Lieutenant-Governor wicegubernator

lighthearted beztroski

limo limuzyna

linger zwlekać, ociągać się

liquidate likwidować

literally dosłownie

lithe giętki, elastyczny

lone wolf samotny wilk, samotnik

long time no see dawno się nie widzieliśmy

long-winded rozwlekły, nużąco gadatliwy

look away odwrócić wzrok

look into zbadać, sprawdzić

look out for sb dbać o kogoś

look who’s talking i kto to mówi, przyganiał kocioł garnkowi

loonie dolar kanadyjski

loop around zatoczyć pętlę wokół

lot działka

lounge around błąkać się z kąta w kąt

lounge hol hotelowy, poczekalnia

low blow cios poniżej pasa

M

M.C. = Master of Ceremonies mistrz ceremonii

maid of honour druhna

maiden dziewica, panna

make a mental note zapamiętać coś

make an assumption zakładać, że, robić założenie

make out całować się

make sth out przedstawiać coś fałszywie

make sth up to sb wynagrodzić coś komuś

make up zmyślać

man of his word człowiek słowny

managerial menedżerski, dotyczący zarządzania

marital małżeński

marking system system oceniania

mass msza

master = master bedroom główna sypialnia

mature dojrzały

mediocre słaby, marny

meet a requirement spełniać wymagania

megarage megawściekłość

menacing groźny, przerażający

mention wspominać o 

mere zaledwie

mic = microphone mikrofon

midsection talia, brzuch

mildly lekko

mimick przedrzeźniać

mission statement oświadczenie

mock udawany

mock-complain udawać, że się narzeka

mock-salute niby-salutować

mollify łagodzić, uspokajać

momentarily na chwilę

momentary przelotny, przejściowy

moot point kwestia sporna, kwestia do dyskusji

morbid niezdrowy

mortgage-free bez obciążenia hipotecznego

motion ruch, gest

mouth wypowiadać bezgłośnie

mudroom sień

mull over sth zamyślić się nad czymś, rozmyślać o czymś

multiple wielu

mumble mamrotać

mumbling mamrotanie

muse rozmyślać, snuć rozmyślania

muster up zebrać

N

nagging dokuczliwy, męczący

nah nie

nap drzemka

nasal nosowy

nasally nosowo

nasty wstrętny

nauseous cierpiący na mdłości

needy potrzebujący

negligee negliż, szlafrok z cienkiej tkaniny

never mind nie mówiąc o 

nightcap kieliszek przed snem

no matter what niezależnie od wszystkiego

no offence taken bez obrazy, nie obrażam się

no strings attached bez zobowiązań

nod skinienie głową, skinąć głową, potakiwać

non-judgmental nieoceniający

nontenured niemający zatrudnienia na czas nieokreślony

not by any means w żadnym razie

not hold a candle to sb nie móc się z kimś równać

not in the least w najmniejszym stopniu

O

oblige zobowiązać się; podporządkować się

obscure nieznany, bliżej nieokreślony

occur to sb przyjść komuś do głowy

off and on z przerwami

off the beaten path na uboczu, w rzadko odwiedzanym miejscu

off the hook zwolniony (z obowiązku); wolny

old wives’ tale zabobon

on a dime sprawnie

on a monthly basis co miesiąc

on sb’s account przez wzgląd na kogoś

on the ball czujny, baczny

on the house na koszt firmy

on the off chance na wszelki wypadek

on the other hand z drugiej strony

on the spot od razu

on the verge of sth o krok od czegoś

once in a while czasami

one-night stand numer na jedną noc

onramp wjazd (np. na autostradę)

originally pierwotnie

ostensibly pozornie, rzekomo

out of earshot poza zasięgiem słuchu

out of the blue niespodziewanie, nagle

out wyjście, wymówka

outline przedstawiać w zarysie

overlook mieć widok na, wychodzić na

overqualified ze zbyt wysokimi kwalifikacjami

P

palpable namacalny, wyczuwalny

pang ukłucie

partially częściowo

pass out zasnąć, odpaść; stracić przytomność

paternally ojcowsko

pathetic żałosny

patron stały klient

patronizing protekcjonalny

pay attention to zwracać uwagę na

pee zrobić siku

peninsula półwysep

period okres, miesiączka

periodically okresowo

perks dodatkowe świadczenia; dodatki

perplexed zmieszany, zdezorientowany

personage osobistość

pertinent mający związek z tematem

piercing przeszywający (o spojrzeniu)

pint duże piwo

pissed wkurzony

pit dół, ciężki okres

pitch ton

plaque tabliczka

play sb grać kimś, zwodzić kogoś

plead błagać, prosić

pleading błagalny, proszący

pleadingly prosząco, bagalnie

pleasantries uprzejmości

pleased as punch zadowolony, uszczęśliwiony

pocket łuza

pointedly dobitnie

pool cue kij bilardowy

pop in zajrzeć do

pop into sb’s head wpaść komuś do głowy

porta-potty przenośna toaleta typu toi-toi

pot umieścić

pound tłuc, walić

pour nalać

pout dąsać się, mieć kwaśną minę

pouty nadąsany

power lock zamek centralny

power outage przerwa w dostawie prądu

predict przewidzieć

preferential preferencyjny

preposition przyimek

presumptuous zarozumiały, bezczelny

prick gnojek

prime główny

process przetworzyć, np. dane

prod szturchnąć

profusely wylewnie, obficie

prominent rzucający się w oczy, widoczny

promiscuity rozwiązłość

prop rekwizyt

proprietary władczy, zaborczy

pry wścibiać nos, wtrącać się

puke wymiociny

pull away odjechać

pull oneself together wziąć się w garść

pull up podjechać (samochodem)

punch sth in wklepać, wbić (np. numer telefonu)

punch uderzenie pięścią; uderzyć, szturchnąć

punk śmieć, gnojek

purr mówić miękkim głosem

put out urażony

put the pieces together łączyć kropki, składać elementy w całość

puzzled zdumiony, zdezorientowany

puzzlingly zagadkowo

Q

quagmire bagno, trzęsawisko; tarapaty

R

rabbit hole sytuacja niemal bez wyjścia

radiant promienny

rage wściekłość, furia; wściekać się, szaleć

raise a toast wznieść toast

rapt zaabsorbowany, zasłuchany

rash szereg, lawina

ravenous wygłodniały

real estate agent agent nieruchomości

reappear pojawić się znowu

rebrand zmienić markę, zmienić profil

rec program zajęcia sportowe

reception dinner przyjęcie weselne

recline opuszczać oparcie

refer to nawiązywać do

refrain from sth powstrzymywać się od czegoś

refurbished odnowiony

regain odzyskać

regular stały klient/gość

reluctant niechętny, oporny

remotely daleki od, prawie nie

rental property mieszkanie lub dom na wynajem

request prośba, żądanie

resist oprzeć się czemuś, odeprzeć

resolve postanowić, rozwiązać, ustalić

respective odpowiedni

resume podsumowanie

retire kłaść się, iść odpocząć

return to one’s wits and senses  powracać do zmysłów

revelation odkrycie

reverie zaduma

revert skierować się ku, odwołać się do, uciec się do

rich śmieszny, niedorzeczny

Right Honourable parlamentarzysta

ring any bells/a bell przypominać coś komuś

roar ryczeć, wrzeszczeć

roll one’s eyes przewracać oczami

roll out rozwijać

roundabout rondo

rub sb the wrong way drażnić kogoś, działać komuś na nerwy

rub sth in wypomnieć coś komuś

rub sth into sb’s face wypomnieć coś komuś, udowodnić coś komuś

rumbling szmer

run into wpaść na, spotkać przypadkiem

run sth by sb przedstawić coś komuś z prośbą o opinię lub ocenę

S

sack wyrko

sad sack ofiara losu

safe and sound cały i zdrów

save the day uratować sytuację

sb’s mind races mieć gonitwę myśli

sb’s mind snapped ktoś postradał zmysły

sb’s strong suit czyjąś mocna strona

sb’s two cents czyjeś zdanie, czyjeś trzy grosze

scald oparzyć

scattered rozsiany, rozproszony

Schadenfreude (niem.); radość z cudzej porażki

schedule planować, wyznaczać czas wydarzenia

scheme podstęp, intryga

schmuck gnojek, palant

scold zbesztać

scramble gramolić się, zbierać się

scratch faulować

screw sb over oszukać kogoś, naciąć kogoś

scuff szurać, pocierać

scuffling szamotanina, szarpanina

secretarial pool sekretarze

seed money pieniądze na start

self-righteous przekonany o własnej nieomylności

self-sufficient samowystarczalny

set one’s mind on sth bardzo czegoś chcieć, uprzeć się na coś

set the precedent stworzyć precedens

shack up żyć bez ślubu

shady zacieniony

Sharia law prawo szariatu

shenanigans sztuczki, intrygi

shift zmiana (w pracy)

Shinerama kanadyjska instytucja pozyskująca fundusze na rzecz walki z muskowiscydozą

shingled kryty gontem

short notice krótki czas

shove pchać, wpychać

show sb the ropes wprowadzić kogoś w coś, pokazać komuś, o co chodzi

show up przyjść, pokazać się

showpiece model do naśladowania, wzór

shrewd przebiegły, sprytny

shrug (one’s shoulders) wzruszyć ramionami

shuffle out wymiksować się

sick and tired zmęczony, wykończony

significant other druga połowa

sink in dotrzeć do kogoś, stać się zrozumiałym

sink wbić, umieścić

sip łyk

sizeable spory

sky opened up zaczęło lać

slap klepać

sleep sth off odespać coś

slender smukły

slightly odrobinę

slip-up potknięcie

slobber bełkotać

slobbery śliniący się

sloshed zawiany

slump opaść, przygarbić się

slut dziwka

smoking hot seksowny, wystrzałowy

snag usidlić

snap pęc, złamać się

sneak (snuck; snuck) off wymknąć się

sneak (snuck; snuck) sb out ukradkiem kogoś wyprowadzić, „przemycić” kogoś

snicker rżeć ze śmiechu

snort prychnięcie, parsknięcie

soaking wet przemoczony

sob łkać, chlipać

sobs łkania

solids bile „całe”

sore spot przykry temat

sparring sparing, pojedynek

speakeasy melina

specific konkretny, szczególny, określony

spectacular olśniewający, zjawiskowy

spin (span, spun) kręcić się, obracać się

spinny wirujący

split second ułamek sekundy

spray rozpylić, rozpryskać

spread (spread; spread) rozprzestrzeniać się

spread like wildfire rozchodzić się lotem błyskawicy

spring (sprang; sprung) sth on sb powiedzieć coś lub zadać pytanie z zaskoczenia

squad oddział, brygada

squander sth away roztrwonić

squint patrzeć z przymrużonymi oczami

squirm kręcić się, wiercić się

stag party wieczór kawalerski

stand out być widocznym, wyróżniać się

steering wheel kierownica

stick to the facts trzymać się faktów

stick with sb trzymać się kogoś, trzymać się z kimś

stop sb in their tracks wziąć kogoś z zaskoczenia

storm off wybiec okazując wściekłość, wyparować

storm out wypaść; wybiec

straight heteroseksualny

strapped for money bez pieniędzy, potrzebujący pieniędzy

strike while the iron is hot kuć żelazo póki gorące

strip uprawiać striptiz

stripes bile połówki

stripper striptizer/ka

stroll spacerować, przechadzać się

stuff napychać, wypychać

stumble potykać się, zataczać się

stunned oszołomiony, osłupiały, oniemiały

stunning oszałamiający, szokujący, wprawiający w osłupienie

stupor zamroczenie, odurzenie

stutter jąkać się

subside ustępować

succinctly zwięźle, lapidarnie

sugar daddy sponsor

suitor zalotnik

supervise nadzorować

suspend zawieszać

swamp zmoczyć, zalać

sway kołysać

sweltering skwarnie, upalnie

swig haust, łyk

switch przełącznik; zmiana

switch wymieniać się

T

take (some) credit przyjać pochwały, przyjąć wyrazy uznania

take advantage of sb wykorzystać kogoś

take in obejmować, chłonąć

take into account brać pod uwagę

take one’s chance ryzykować

take sb aback zaskoczyć kogoś

take sth in stride przejść nad czymś obojętnie

take sth up zrobić coś z czymś, rozwiązać coś

take the cake przechodzić ludzkie pojęcie

taken aback zaskoczony

taken with oczarowany, zauroczony

tattle-tale skarżypyta

tease żartować, drażnić

teem with roić się od

tempted kuszony,

tempting kuszący

tenant najemca; lokator

tension napięcie

tenure etat, posada

tenure-track na czas określony, ale z możliwością stałego zatrudnienia (o stanowisku na uczelni)

terminate pregnancy przerwać ciążę

testily z irytacją

testy rozdrażniony, poirytowany

there’s no way in hell nie ma mowy, po moim trupie

think less of sb  stracić do kogoś szacunek, stracić o kimś wysokie mniemanie

thoroughly doskonale

thrilled szczęśliwy, zachwycony

throng tłum

throw sb a party urządzić komuś przyjęcie

throw sb for a loop wprawić kogoś w osłupienie

throw up wymiotować

timely w porę

tinker at majdrować przy, dłubać przy

tits cycki

tongue-tied oniemiały

top dollar dużo pieniędzy; słono (zapłacić, kosztować)

toss wyrzucić

tot szkrab

tote = tote bag szmaciana torba na zakupy

trademark znak firmowy

trail off umilknąć, zawiesić głos

trepidation niepokój

trickle in schodzić się

triple-kiss trzykrotny pocałunek w policzki

trivia quiz z wiedzy ogólnej

turbulent gwałtowny

turn of events rozwój wydarzeń

turn out okazywać się

turn sb down odrzucić kogoś

tux smoking

twinned podwójny

U

unannounced niezapowiedziany

unbearable nie do zniesienia

uncomfortable niezręczny

uncomprehending nierozumiejący

unconsciously nieświadomie

under one’s breath pod nosem

under the weather lekko chory, niezdrowy

undermine podważać

understatement niedopowiedzenie, eufemizm

un-dude niemęski

uneventful spokojny, nudny, rutynowy

unresolved nierozwiązany

unruly niesforny, naruszający ład

untimely nie w porę

unverifiable nieweryfikowalny

upperclassmen studenci starszych lat

upstanding uczciwy, prawy

utmost najwyższy, wielki

utter całkowity, zupełny

V

vacant wolny

vacated zwolniony

vaguely niewyraźnie, słabo

vanish zniknąć, przepaść

venture odważyć się, zaryzykować

venue miejsce (wydarzenia)

verbal werbalny, słowny

vista widok, sceneria

vividly żywo

vow przysiąc

vulnerable wrażliwy

W

wasted pijany, zalany

waterfront nabrzeże, wybrzeże

wave sth off machnąć na coś ręką

well-stocked dobrze zaopatrzony

well-to-do zamożny

wharf nabrzeże, przystań

what’s eating you? co cię gryzie?

wheel away odjechać

whine pojękiwanie, skomlenie, skomleć

whiny marudny

whirlwind trąba powietrzna, huragan

wiggle kołysać, kręcić

will testament

wind (wound, wound) down zwijać się, kończyć się, spocząć

wink mrugnąć

winningest zwycięski

without any preliminaries bez zbędnych wstępów

womb łono

wrap up kończyć, zamykać

wring (wrung, wrung) sth out wyżymać

Y

yup tak, ta

Z

zip up zapiąć zamek błyskawiczny

dean: (the head of a faculty of a university); dziekan

[Powrót]

kinesiology: (the sytudy of anatomy and mechanics in relation to body movement); kinezjologia

[Powrót]

ingrate: (someone ungrateful); niewdzięcznik

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elated: (excitedly happy); uniesiony, szczęśliwy

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come off: (step down); ustąpić, odejść

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pissed: (angry); wkurzony

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thrilled: (extremely happy); szczęśliwy, zachwycony

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pop into sb’s head: (occur to sb); wpaść komuś do głowy

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forgo: (do without); obywać się bez, rezygnować z 

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buddy: (friend, pal); kumpel

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liberal arts: (university studies giving general knowledge and skills); sztuki wyzwolone

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enclave: (a distinct unit or hiding place); enklawa

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real estate agent: (a person who buys and sells buildings professionally); agent nieruchomości

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sloshed: (drunk); zawiany

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full custody: (full charge and control); pełna opieka (nad małoletnim)

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respective: (here: belonging to each person mentioned); odpowiedni

[Powrót]

well-to-do: (well-off); zamożny

[Powrót]

cranky: (fussy, unpredictable); nieznośny, gderliwy

[Powrót]

have the hots for sb: (desire sb sexually); być na kogoś napalonym

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plaque: (a flat piece of metal or wood with sb’s name on it); tabliczka

[Powrót]

SAU = St. Augustine’s University

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look into: (explore, check); zbadać, sprawdzić

[Powrót]

yup: (yes); tak, ta

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frown: (draw one’s eyebrows together); zmarszczyć brwi

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once in a while: (from time to time); czasami

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blink: (shut one’s eyes for a moment); zamrugać

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leave of absence: (time off work); urlop

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on the ball: (able to think quickly); czujny, baczny

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rub sth into sb’s face: (bring up an unpleasant subject, prove you’re right while your opponent is wrong); wypomnieć coś komuś, udowodnić coś komuś

[Powrót]

occur to sb: (spring to mind); przyjść komuś do głowy

[Powrót]

perks: (extra things you get from your job, such as car, meals, etc.); dodatkowe świadczenia; dodatki

[Powrót]

legal work: (things related to law); kwestie prawne

[Powrót]

deed: (signed document stating sb’s property); notarialny akt własności

[Powrót]

nah: (no); nie

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groggily: (weakly, unsteadily, half-consciously); w przymuleniu, zamulony

[Powrót]

nap: (short sleep); drzemka

[Powrót]

uncomfortable: (awkward, unpleasant); niezręczny

[Powrót]

slender (slim): smukły

[Powrót]

inconvenient: (uncomfortable, unsuitable); niedogodny

[Powrót]

turn of events: (change, development); rozwój wydarzeń

[Powrót]

spectacular: (awesome, incredible); olśniewający, zjawiskowy

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figure: (get to understand); zrozumieć, rozkminić

[Powrót]

insatiable: (impossible to satisfy); nieposkromiony, nienasycony

[Powrót]

lounge around: (move about aimlessly); błąkać się z kąta w kąt

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affected by: (influenced by); dotknięty (czymś)

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exertion: (forceful activity); wysiłek

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lithe: (flexible); giętki, elastyczny

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ravenous: (starving); wygłodniały

[Powrót]

carry on: (continue, go on); kontynuować

[Powrót]

stunned: (surprised); oszołomiony, zdziwiony

[Powrót]

stuff: (put much of sth somewhere); napychać, wypychać

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chunk: (irregular piece of sth); kawałek

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piercing: (as if looking and seeing through); przeszywający (o spojrzeniu)

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stunning: (shocking); szokujący, wprawiający w osłupienie

[Powrót]

revelation: (discovery); odkrycie

[Powrót]

switch: (exchange); wymieniać się

[Powrót]

chug: (to drink sth up in one gulp); wypić jednym haustem, połknąć

[Powrót]

childcare: (relating to taking care of a child); opieka nad dzieckiem

[Powrót]

arrangement: (deal); umowa

[Powrót]

specific: (particular); konkretny, szczególny, określony

[Powrót]

trivia: (general knowledge quiz); quiz z wiedzy ogólnej

[Powrót]

whirlwind: (a person in constant motion and agitation); trąba powietrzna, huragan (również o osobie)

[Powrót]

mull over sth: (think deeply about sth); zamyślić się nad czymś, rozmyślać o czymś

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reverie: (being lost in thoughts); zaduma

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bing: (short sharp sound); ping (sygnał w telefonie)

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insistent: (obstinate, persuasive, persevering); natarczywy, nieustępliwy

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stop sb in their tracks: (make sb stop doing sth by surprising or frightening them); wziąć kogoś z zaskoczenia

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period: (time of menstrual bleeding); okres, miesiączka

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sink in: (become comprehensible); dotrzeć do kogoś, stać się zrozumiałym

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lamely: (feebly, clumsily); nieprzekonująco, niezręcznie

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be on the pill: (take contraceptive pills); stosować pigułkę antykoncepcyjną

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return to one’s wits and senses: (become fully conscious and able to think clearly); powracać do zmysłów

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pleasantries: (nice banal words); uprzejmości

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spread (spread; spread):  (move and affect larger and larger areas); rozprzestrzeniać się

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entirely: (wholly); całkowicie

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give in to sth: (to stop trying to stop oneself from doing sth); ulec czemuś

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request: (demand); prośba, żądanie

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flash into sb’s mind: (suddenly pop into sb’s head): pojawić się przed oczami (w wyobraźni)

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fade: (to weaken); słabnąć

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junk: (useless stuff); graty, śmieci

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attached to: (emotionally involved); przywiązany do

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toss: (throw away): wyrzucić

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grab: (catch, get); zgarnąć, chwycić

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tote = tote bag: (large bag with long handles); torba na zakupy (np. płócienna)

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schedule: (plan for a particular time); planować, wyznaczać termin wydarzenia

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outline: (describe in general points); przedstawiać w zarysie

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gear: (equipment); przybory, narzędzia

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catch-up session:  (conversation about each other’s life after some time); rozmowa z  „nadrobieniem zaległości”

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civil: (polite); grzeczny, uprzejmy

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eagerly: (impatiently); niecierpliwie, chętnie

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harangue with: (flood with, attack with); zasypywać, zalewać

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tempting: (irresistibly attractive); kuszący

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burden sb with sth: (load sb with sth unpleasant); obarczać czymś kogoś

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distressed: (upset); zdenerwowany, przygnębiony

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what’s eating you?: (why are you annoyed?); co cię gryzie?

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stroll: (walk leisurely); spacerować, przechadzać się

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appropriately: (suitably, proportionately); stosownie, właściwie

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testy: (irritable, easily annoyed); rozdrażniony, poirytowany

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verbal: (expressed in words); werbalny, słowny

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sparring: (battle); sparing, pojedynek

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throw sb for a loop: (make sb amazed or shocked); wprawić kogoś w osłupienie

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Schadenfreude: (feeling happy because of sb’s failure); radość z cudzej porażki

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partially: (not fully); częściowo

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deflect: (change direction, turn sth in a different direction); dać odpór, zmienić kierunek

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drop a bombshell: (share unexpected shocking news); wywołać sensację

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get wasted: (get drunk); upić się

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booth: (enclosed seating area between two benches); odgrodzony kącik w restauracji

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regular: (regular customer); stały klient, stały gość

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succinctly: (clearly expressed in few words); zwięźle, lapidarnie

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stick to the facts: (make things appear as they are); trzymać się faktów

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embellish: (make sth look better than it really is); upiększać

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attentively: (with attention); uważnie

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pertinent: (relating to sth); mający związek z tematem

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concerned: (worried); zatroskany, przygnębiony

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consider: (think about sth); rozważać

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promiscuity: (having many sexual partners); rozwiązłość

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multiple: (many); wielu

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confused: (perplexed); zmieszany, zdezorientowany

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Sharia law: (Islamic law based on Koran); prawo szariatu

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Bible Belt: (referring to southern U.S. area inhabited by highly religious Bible-oriented people or to an area marked by religious ardency):  miejsce zamieszkane przez pobożnych ludzi

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exclusive: (not shared); na wyłączność

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insight: (clear understanding of sth); zrozumienie, trafne spostrzeżenie

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in a nutshell: (in short); w skrócie

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gasp: (take a deep breath); nabrać powietrza

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sad sack: (inept person who unintentionally makes mistakes); ofiara losu

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have a way with sth: (be good at using sth); umieć sobie z czymś radzić, być biegłym w czymś

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wrap up: (finish); skończyć

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shift: (time at work); zmiana

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linger: (stay behind, wait); zwlekać, ociągać się

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exhausting: (extremely tiring); wycieńczający

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make sth up to sb: (to do sth one should have done before for sb); wynagrodzić coś komuś

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highly-accomplished: (very skilled); znakomity

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competitive: (striving for success); ambitny, rywalizujący

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launch: (start); uruchamiać, rozpoczynać

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coincidence: (event caused by chance); zbieg okoliczności

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reception dinner: (special dinner held after the wedding ceremony); przyjęcie weselne

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cube van: (van with a storage unit); ciężarówka skrzyniowa

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branch out: (add up many different things to one’s original business); rozszerzać działalność

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frosh = freshman: (student in his or her first year at university); student/ka pierwszego roku

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conveniently: (suitably); dogodnie, szczęśliwie

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sobs: (tears, sounds of weeping); łkanie

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abandoned: (left behind); opuszczony

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take the cake: (be worse than one can imagine); przechodzić ludzkie pojęcie

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inopportune: (badly timed); nie w porę

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on a dime: (easily); sprawnie

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nasty: (unpleasant, angry); wstrętny

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hang on to sth: (keep sth); zatrzymywać coś

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compose oneself: (regain peace of mind); uspokić się

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dawn on sb: (occur to sb); zaświtać komuś, przyjść komuś na myśl

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dump: (disorderly place); dziura, nora

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venture: (have the courage to say or try sth); odważyć się, zaryzykować

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stutter: (to speak in a disruptive way); jąkać się

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affectionately: (with warm feelings); tkliwie

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peninsula: (piece of land surrounded by water from three sides); półwysep

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fancy: (elaborate, snobbish); wyszukany

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shady: (protected from sunlight); zacieniony

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shingled: (covered in tiny pieces of wood); kryty gontem

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play sb: (manipulate sb, deceive sb); grać kimś, zwodzić kogoś

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French door: (door with glass panes); drzwi francuskie

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sizeable: (spacious); spory

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mudroom: (room designed to leave dirty shoes and wet clothes); sień

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deck: (flat roofless area adjoining the building); taras

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ensuite = bathroom en suite: (bathroom adjoining bedroom); łazienka obok sypialni

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decently: (quite well); przyzwoicie

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showpiece: (good example of sth); model do naśladowania, wzór

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lot: (piece of land); działka

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mature: (not young anymore); dojrzały

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refurbished: (renovated); odnowiony

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tinker at: (deal with); majdrować przy, dłubać przy

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D-I-Y = Do It Yourself: zrób to sam, majsterkowanie

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mumble: (speak unclearly); mamrotać

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extended family: (family including distant relatives); dalsza rodzina, rodzina wielopokoleniowa

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glowing: (radiant, enthusiastic); rozpromieniony, entuzjastyczny

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freak the hell out of sb: (really frighten sb); okropnie kogoś wystraszyć

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intended: (fiancée); narzeczona

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blush: (become red in the face); zarumienić się

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giddily: (excitedly, happily); radośnie, beztrosko

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prod: (poke); szturchnąć

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best man: (man who helps the groom during the wedding); świadek, drużba

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pry: (try to get to know details); wścibiać nos, wtrącać się

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trademark: (special sign or name marking a product); znak firmowy

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nagging:  (annoying); dokuczliwy, męczący

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get a hold of: (get in touch with); skontaktować się, złapać kogoś

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