英语 英语 日语 日语 韩语 韩语 法语 法语 德语 德语 西班牙语 西班牙语 意大利语 意大利语 阿拉伯语 阿拉伯语 葡萄牙语 葡萄牙语 越南语 越南语 俄语 俄语 芬兰语 芬兰语 泰语 泰语 泰语 丹麦语 泰语 对外汉语

儿童英语读物 The Pizza Mystery CHAPTER 5 The Lady in the Red Hat Comes Back

时间:2017-07-26 07:41来源:互联网 提供网友:qing   字体: [ ]
特别声明:本栏目内容均从网络收集或者网友提供,供仅参考试用,我们无法保证内容完整和正确。如果资料损害了您的权益,请与站长联系,我们将及时删除并致以歉意。
    (单词翻译:双击或拖选)

Each day brought several new customers to Piccolos’ Pizza. The Aldens were sure many more would follow once the restaurant started serving its big pizzas again. Finally the day came when the gas company was going to fix the broken gas line to the Piccolos’ brick oven.

Henry could hardly wait for the truck to arrive. “I wonder what’s keeping them,” he said to the Piccolos. “They were supposed to be here at eight.”

By nine o’clock, everyone was beginning to wonder. After all, Mr. Piccolo had gone ahead and made enough dough1 to fill most of their large-sized pizza pans. The Aldens had even handed out flyers saying the big pizzas would be back on the menu.

Henry picked up the phone. “I’m going to see what’s holding up that truck,” Henry said. He dialed the gas company number. “The repair truck was supposed to be here an hour ago,” Henry told someone at the other end of the line.

“Canceled!” Henry cried out a minute later. “Of course we didn’t cancel. The Piccolos have been waiting over two weeks for the gas line to be repaired.”

When Henry hung up, he looked confused and angry. “They said a woman called to cancel the appointment for the repairs. Can you believe it? Anyway, they finally agreed to radio the truck. It should be here in a couple of minutes.”

No one was sure what to do next. Mr. Piccolo didn’t know whether to divide the big pans of pizza dough into small ones. Mrs. Piccolo wondered if she should put back the extra tomato sauce she had taken out of her deep freezer.

Benny had a breadstick problem. “Should I put these extras back, Jessie?” he asked his sister. “They might get stale if we don’t get enough customers.”

“No, don’t do that,” Jessie cried from the front door. She was on the lookout2 for the repair truck. “They’re here! Maybe they can get the big oven fixed3 before lunchtime.”

The children ran out to the truck and waved it down.

“Follow me,” Henry told the two workers who climbed out of the truck.

Mr. Piccolo followed them out back, too. Now that the repair people were here, everyone wanted to make sure nothing went wrong.

“Let’s make small pizzas, just to be on the safe side,” Jessie said. “We can keep an eye on the repairs from the upstairs kitchen. If the brick oven is fixed in time, we’ll just roll out some more dough.”

The children and Mrs. Piccolo looked out at the backyard. They saw Mr. Irons march out from the factory building to see what was going on. Jessie opened the window so everyone could hear what was happening.

“What are you doing on Mighty4 Mufflers property?” Mr. Irons asked the workers.

One of workers pulled out a clipboard and held it up for Mr. Irons to see. “We work for the gas company and we’re here for repairs.”

“Well, all right,” Mr. Irons said. “Just stay out of the way of my muffler workers and get off my property as soon as you’re done.” He turned on his heel and marched back to his office.

A half hour later, one of the repair people shouted up from the backyard. “All set! Your oven should work now.”

“None too soon, either,” Violet said. “I’ll get out more flour and run some warm water. We’ll be needing lots more dough this lunch-time.”

By the time the noon factory horn sounded, both the apartment oven and the restaurant oven were going full blast. The little restaurant was warm and filled with good smells. Upstairs, Jessie was in charge of the Personal Pizzas. Downstairs, the rest of the Aldens helped the Piccolos make large-sized pizzas for customers with bigger appetites.

“Something for everyone,” Mr. Piccolo said to the Aldens when they came downstairs. “From dieters to hungry folks.”

“I’m one of the hungry folks!” Benny joked.

The Piccolos and Aldens barely had time to talk once the lunchtime customers came in. Henry had handed out a huge pile of flyers and coupons5 that morning. It seemed that every person who got one decided6 to come in at the same time. There were so many customers, people had to wait for tables. It took a while for Jessie to notice Tom Morgan standing7 in line right behind The Lady in the Red Hat.

“I guess I’ll just have to get a take-out pizza,” Tom said when Jessie finally spotted8 him in the crowd.

She gave Tom a big smile. “Well, we just ordered a good supply of take-out boxes. Big ones and little ones. What size would you like, Tom?”

“Plenty big,” Tom answered. “I’m bringing back some lunch for my helpers.”

“Helpers,” Jessie said, out of breath. “That’s what we could use right now. For once, four Aldens aren’t enough.”

Tom looked around the dining room. “Isn’t Nick back yet? I haven’t seen him around since he got sick. He must be better by now.”

“I wish,” Jessie sighed. She handed Tom a take-out menu. “Mrs. Piccolo called him yesterday, but he wouldn’t say when he was coming back. If things stay as busy as they are today, we’ll definitely need an extra pair of hands around here.”

“Not to mention your delivery service,” Tom reminded Jessie. “Henry came by the station for bike parts. He said he wanted to build a delivery box on top of the bike so he could take pizzas to people’s homes.”

Tom pointed9 to the large Pizza Supreme10 listed on the take-out menu. “Here’s what I’d like. My mouth has been watering for one of these for weeks now,” Tom told Jessie. “Well, it looks as if you kids have already made a difference with your good ideas.”

Jessie wanted to keep chatting with Tom, but there were onions to be chopped, cheese to be grated, and sausage to be fried. There weren’t enough Aldens and Piccolos to get everything done.

“Boy, did that go by fast,” Benny said after the last customer had finally left two hours later.

“Everything was a blur11, but a nice blur,” Violet said with a smile.

She and the other children sat down with the Piccolos to take a welcome break.

Henry checked the restaurant clock. “I guess we’d better get the dining room set up for the dinner crowd.”

“You mean we have to do this all over again tonight?” Benny said in amazement12.

Everyone laughed so hard, they didn’t hear the bell on the front door jingle13. When they finally looked up, they saw their steadiest customer, The Lady in the Red Hat, standing in the restaurant.

Only this time, she was The Lady with No Hat. “Excuse me,” the young woman called out nervously14. “Did I leave my hat here?”

Benny ran to the Lost and Found box under the cash register! “Here it is!” he cried when he held up the woman’s red knit hat. “Now you’re The Lady in the Red Hat again!”

This made the young woman smile. “I’m also Laurie Baker15,” she told Benny. “Thank you for finding my hat.”

“I wish I could find the menu that was at your table yesterday,” Benny said. “It’s lost.”

The young woman’s smile instantly disappeared. She turned to leave.

“Come back,” Mrs. Piccolo called out. “Share a cup of tea with us.”

The woman looked pale and nervous. She didn’t seem too interested in staying.

“Please, Miss Baker,” Mrs. Piccolo said. “It’s cold out. We’d like to thank you. You’re one of the few customers who came to the restaurant in the last few weeks when everything was so slow.”

“Sit,” Mr. Piccolo insisted, and the young woman finally did.

While Mr. Piccolo got up to put on the kettle, Mrs. Piccolo sat down next to the young woman. “We would have lost our business without people like you who came even when things were not so good.”

“I see you’re busy now,” Laurie Baker said. “Today I even had to wait for a seat.”

“Ah, yes, yes,” Mr. Piccolo said when he came back with a cup of tea for the woman. “Almost too busy.” He nodded at the Aldens. “Of course, we have the best workers in Silver Falls. But even their busy hands and feet won’t be enough if we have more hectic16 days like this one.”

Miss Baker seemed to be thinking hard about something. She clinked her teaspoon17 nervously. “Would you be looking for someone extra to help out?” she asked the Piccolos. “My parents used to have a restaurant before it went out of business. I worked there after school and during the summers. I can cook and wait on tables.” Just then she dropped her teaspoon on the floor and bent18 quickly to pick it up.

The Aldens looked at each other but didn’t say anything. They didn’t have to; they were all thinking the same thing. None of them could picture this nervous, unsteady person talking to customers or balancing heavy trays.

The Aldens could see that the Piccolos didn’t feel any of this. The faces of the couple were full of trust. “Ah, how we could use an experienced person like you in the coming days. After all, the Aldens won’t be able to stay forever!” Mrs. Piccolo said.

The Aldens tried to be happy for the Piccolos. They weren’t sure about Laurie Baker. But if the Piccolos liked her, then the Aldens would learn to like her too!
 


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 dough hkbzg     
n.生面团;钱,现款
参考例句:
  • She formed the dough into squares.她把生面团捏成四方块。
  • The baker is kneading dough.那位面包师在揉面。
2 lookout w0sxT     
n.注意,前途,瞭望台
参考例句:
  • You can see everything around from the lookout.从了望台上你可以看清周围的一切。
  • It's a bad lookout for the company if interest rates don't come down.如果利率降不下来,公司的前景可就不妙了。
3 fixed JsKzzj     
adj.固定的,不变的,准备好的;(计算机)固定的
参考例句:
  • Have you two fixed on a date for the wedding yet?你们俩选定婚期了吗?
  • Once the aim is fixed,we should not change it arbitrarily.目标一旦确定,我们就不应该随意改变。
4 mighty YDWxl     
adj.强有力的;巨大的
参考例句:
  • A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
  • The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。
5 coupons 28882724d375042a7b19db1e976cb622     
n.礼券( coupon的名词复数 );优惠券;订货单;参赛表
参考例句:
  • The company gives away free coupons for drinks or other items. 公司为饮料或其它项目发放免费赠券。 来自辞典例句
  • Do you have any coupons? 你们有优惠卡吗? 来自英汉 - 翻译样例 - 口语
6 decided lvqzZd     
adj.决定了的,坚决的;明显的,明确的
参考例句:
  • This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
  • There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。
7 standing 2hCzgo     
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的
参考例句:
  • After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
  • They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。
8 spotted 7FEyj     
adj.有斑点的,斑纹的,弄污了的
参考例句:
  • The milkman selected the spotted cows,from among a herd of two hundred.牛奶商从一群200头牛中选出有斑点的牛。
  • Sam's shop stocks short spotted socks.山姆的商店屯积了有斑点的短袜。
9 pointed Il8zB4     
adj.尖的,直截了当的
参考例句:
  • He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
  • She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。
10 supreme PHqzc     
adj.极度的,最重要的;至高的,最高的
参考例句:
  • It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
  • He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。
11 blur JtgzC     
n.模糊不清的事物;vt.使模糊,使看不清楚
参考例句:
  • The houses appeared as a blur in the mist.房子在薄雾中隐隐约约看不清。
  • If you move your eyes and your head,the picture will blur.如果你的眼睛或头动了,图像就会变得模糊不清。
12 amazement 7zlzBK     
n.惊奇,惊讶
参考例句:
  • All those around him looked at him with amazement.周围的人都对他投射出惊异的眼光。
  • He looked at me in blank amazement.他带着迷茫惊诧的神情望着我。
13 jingle RaizA     
n.叮当声,韵律简单的诗句;v.使叮当作响,叮当响,押韵
参考例句:
  • The key fell on the ground with a jingle.钥匙叮当落地。
  • The knives and forks set up their regular jingle.刀叉发出常有的叮当声。
14 nervously tn6zFp     
adv.神情激动地,不安地
参考例句:
  • He bit his lip nervously,trying not to cry.他紧张地咬着唇,努力忍着不哭出来。
  • He paced nervously up and down on the platform.他在站台上情绪不安地走来走去。
15 baker wyTz62     
n.面包师
参考例句:
  • The baker bakes his bread in the bakery.面包师在面包房内烤面包。
  • The baker frosted the cake with a mixture of sugar and whites of eggs.面包师在蛋糕上撒了一层白糖和蛋清的混合料。
16 hectic jdZzk     
adj.肺病的;消耗热的;发热的;闹哄哄的
参考例句:
  • I spent a very hectic Sunday.我度过了一个忙乱的星期天。
  • The two days we spent there were enjoyable but hectic.我们在那里度过的两天愉快但闹哄哄的。
17 teaspoon SgLzim     
n.茶匙
参考例句:
  • Add one teaspoon of sugar.加一小茶匙糖。
  • I need a teaspoon to stir my tea.我需要一把茶匙搅一搅茶。
18 bent QQ8yD     
n.爱好,癖好;adj.弯的;决心的,一心的
参考例句:
  • He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
  • We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。
本文本内容来源于互联网抓取和网友提交,仅供参考,部分栏目没有内容,如果您有更合适的内容,欢迎点击提交分享给大家。
------分隔线----------------------------
顶一下
(0)
0%
踩一下
(0)
0%
最新评论 查看所有评论
发表评论 查看所有评论
请自觉遵守互联网相关的政策法规,严禁发布色情、暴力、反动的言论。
评价:
表情:
验证码:
听力搜索
推荐频道
论坛新贴