Уровень сложности: средний
A story of Joan about her journey
This trip, I felt ready for something new, but nothing could have prepared me for my Florida getaway with three boys. For five nights and six days, I lived among them — listening to their speech patterns, observing their habits, consuming salami sandwiches, and when there was nothing else to do, watching football.
As a single woman in my twenties, with most of my female friends either seriously involved or married, finding a travel companion has gotten pretty tough. The January before last, I was determined to visit Miami, but none of my girlfriends from college could make me a company. While on the phone with Dean, a male college friend who is one of my best pals, I got to talking about my dilemma, and he invited me to come along with him and Dan and Dave — also good friends from college on their trip to Florida.
Dean then set the ground rules. I would get no special treatment. The boys would not have to apologize for crude behaviour or refrain from vulgar language because I was present. Most important, they would show absolutely no mercy when it was my turn to pay at the bar. The itinerary was simple — a few days in the empty house Dean’s parents owned in Fort Lauderdale, the football game, a visit to Disney World, a drive back to Fort Lauderdale to catch our plane home. Dean would order football tickets, Dave would take care of a rental car.
We spent our first morning in Florida at a grocery store, stocking up on supplies, and for the first time since I was about seven, food shopping was actually fun. I took a much-needed break from my diet and fat-free food and rediscovered cookie and candy. If the boys weren’t going to worry about the percentage of fat in their daily food, then neither was I.
Usually on the last day of a vacation, I reach my saturation point and am ready to go home. But this time, I didn’t want the holiday to end.
Слова:
getaway — бегство
to observe — наблюдать
consume — потреблять
to be involved (with smb.) — зд. увлекаться кем-либо
tough — зд. трудно
pal — приятель,товарищ
to set the rules — устанавливать правила
ground rule — основное правило,
treatment — обращение
crude — грубый
to refrain (from) — воздерживаться (от)
mercy — милосердие, сострадание
itinerary — маршрут, путь,план маршрута
rental car — взятый напрокат автомобиль
grocery store — бакалея
stock up — запасаться
supplies — припасы,продовольствие
cookie — печенье
candy — конфеты
saturation — насыщение
