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儿童英语读物 The Clue in the Recycling Bin CHAPTER 4 Tamales and Tea

时间:2017-12-20 04:39来源:互联网 提供网友:qing   字体: [ ]
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That evening Grandfather and the children went out to Tío’s Tacos for dinner.

Grandfather parked the car, and the five of them walked two blocks to the restaurant.

“Look,” said Jessie as they neared the restaurant. “There’s Jonah’s Jewelry1 Store. It’s right across the street from Tío’s Tacos.”

“I didn’t know you were interested in jewelry,” Grandfather said to Jessie, who was already looking at the jewelry in Jonah’s window.

“I’m interested that Jonah’s Jewelry Store got robbed a few weeks ago,” Jessie explained. “I never noticed the store before.”

Violet and Henry and Benny looked in the window, also.

“I like Kayla’s jewelry better,” said Violet.

“Me too,” said Henry. “And it’s recycled.”

“I like Tío’s Tacos,” said Benny, looking across the street at the restaurant.

“Okay, okay,” Grandfather said with a laugh. “Let’s all cross the street.”

After they crossed the street, Benny stopped in front of the door to Tío’s Tacos. Even though the Alden family visited Tío’s Tacos often, Benny sometimes didn’t pay attention to signs. This time he noticed a sign in the window. Because Benny was just learning to read, he wanted to read it. “Open,” he read. “Until. One a.m.” Benny frowned. “What does a.m. mean?” he asked.

“That means that Tío’s Tacos is open very late,” explained Grandfather.

“One a.m. is one hour past midnight,” said Henry.

Benny’s eyes opened wide. “Do people eat that late?” he asked.

“Some people do,” said Grandfather. “People who work in places that close at ten o’clock or eleven o’clock might want to eat after they leave work.”

“Sí, that is correct,” said Tío as he came to their table. His real name was Miguel, but he insisted that his customers call him Tío, which means uncle in Spanish.

Tío shook hands with Grandfather and each of the children, calling them by name. “I could not help but overhear2 what you were saying,” he explained. “People who work the evening hours, they need a place to eat after work. The people who work in the jewelry store, for example. Their store closes at nine o’clock. Tío’s Tacos is open, and those good people come here to eat good food.”

“We’re here to eat good food, too,” said Benny.

Tío smiled at Benny. “Yes,” he said. “You and your family come here often. I am glad to see you again.”

“I’m happy to hear that your business is good,” Grandfather said. “That makes it worth staying open so late.”

Tío scratched his chin. “It is good, but it is slow after midnight. Only Mrs. Wickett comes in, and sometimes the man who used to work at the jewelry store.” Tío seemed lost in thought. “It would be good if three or four more people came in after midnight.”

“Look!” said Benny suddenly, pointing toward the ceiling. “You have new pi?atas!”

Everybody looked upward, where five new pi?atas were hanging from the ceiling.

“You have two fish, a star, a llama, and a donkey,” said Benny.

“You are a very observant ni?o,” Tio said. “And do you know why I have new pi?atas?” he asked.

Benny shook his head. Tío looked to the other children.

“New pi?atas are pretty,” said Violet. “Their colors are very bright.”

“That is it exactly!” said Tío, beaming with pleasure. “The old pi?atas, they became dusty on top. And their colors faded from the sun. So I bought new ones.”

“The new ones are beautiful,” said Violet.

Jessie and Henry and Grandfather all agreed.

“I am happy to hear that you like my new decorations,” said Tío. “I changed them a few days ago, and that made one customer very angry.”

“Why was that?” asked Henry.

Tío shrugged3. “Who knows. He said he liked the old ones and didn’t like the new ones.”

“Are the pi?atas filled with prizes?” Benny asked. “Games and cookies and candy?” he added.

Tío smiled. “That is a secret.”

“Why is it a secret?” Benny asked.

“Because if I told you the pi?atas were filled with something, I think you would want to break one open just to see.”

Benny looked at the pi?atas. He thought it would be fun to break one open. He was going to say something, but just then manycustomers came in at once, and Tío had to seat them.

Violet looked at the people who had come into the restaurant. One of the people was Ethan, who was still wearing running shorts and a tank top.

“Look,” said Violet to her sister and brothers. “I wonder if Ethan is going to eat here.”

Jessie, Henry, and Benny all watched Ethan.

“Who’s Ethan?” asked Grandfather.

Henry explained that Ethan was a volunteer at the recycling center.

“Ethan is buying two bottles of Doo-Dah Tea from the front of the store,” said Benny.

“Mint-flavored Doo-Dah Tea,” said Violet, who could see that both labels were green.

The children watched as Ethan paid for his tea, said goodbye to Tío, and left.

A server came to take their dinner orders. As they waited for their food, the children and Grandfather talked.

“I’ll bet my bull4 pi?ata used to be in Tío’srestaurant,” said Benny. “I’ll bet Tío took it to the recycling center and Kayla found it in the Other Stuff bin5 and then I took it home. When we get home I’m going to break it open and see what’s inside!”

“Well,” said Grandfather, “it’s your pi?ata and you may break it open if you want to. But usually people save pi?atas for special occasions.”

“Yes,” said Jessie, “like a birthday.”

“Or a party with friends,” said Henry.

“Can we have a party soon?” asked Benny.

The children talked about whether or not to have a party, but they never reached a decision. Their food arrived, and soon they forgot about everything except the delicious tacos, tamales, and beans and rice.

As they were finishing their meal, Henry looked up as the restaurant door opened. He saw Mrs. Wickett walk in. She was dressed up. Henry saw a sparkling6 pin on her blouse.

She spoke7 to Tío, who was at the cash register. Tío turned to the cooler alongside8 the wall, opened it, and took out six bottlesof Doo-Dah Tea. Henry noticed that all bottles had red labels. Mrs. Wickett sure likes raspberry-flavored tea, thought Henry. He watched as she paid for the tea and Tío put the plastic bottles into a paper bag.

As she turned to go, Mrs. Wickett looked toward the Aldens’ table. She stared for a minute, then walked over to them.

“Hello,” she said to Henry and Violet. “Didn’t I see you this morning outside the recycling center?”

“Yes,” said Henry. He introduced Grandfather, Jessie, Violet, Benny, and himself to Mrs. Wickett.

“Tío told us that you’re a good customer of his,” said Grandfather.

“Yes,” she answered. “Tío serves wonderful food. When I leave work, the first thing I smell is the wonderful aroma9 from Tío’s Tacos. So naturally, I come here.” Mrs. Wickett patted the bag she was holding. “And Tío always has my favorite tea on hand.”

“You must work at Jonah’s Jewelry Store,” said Grandfather with a smile.

Mrs. Wickett looked surprised. “Why, yes,” she said, “but how did you know that?”

“Oh,” said Grandfather, “I’ve learned a few detective skills from my grandchildren.”

Mrs. Wickett looked confused.

“Jonah’s Jewelry Store is the only store that’s open late in this two-block area,” Grandfather explained.

“Ahhh!” said Mrs. Wickett. “Very good. I’m their bookkeeper. I could work days, but I prefer to work nights. Everything is quiet then so I can concentrate on the numbers. Well, it’s so nice to have met you, but I must get back to work.”

The Aldens said good-bye to Mrs. Wickett and watched her walk out the door and down the block.

“Did you notice the jewelry she was wearing?” Violet asked. “She had a diamond pin on her blouse and three diamond rings on her fingers.”

Grandfather smiled at Violet. “You make it sound suspicious,” he said. “But Mrs. Wickett works at a jewelry store. Maybe she’s supposed to wear jewelry while she works there.”

“Or maybe she can buy it because the store gives her a big discount,” said Jessie.

“Or maybe she’s not wearing diamonds,” said Henry. “Maybe she’s wearing glass that looks like diamonds.”


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 jewelry 0auz1     
n.(jewllery)(总称)珠宝
参考例句:
  • The burglars walked off with all my jewelry.夜盗偷走了我的全部珠宝。
  • Jewelry and lace are mostly feminine belongings.珠宝和花边多数是女性用品。
2 overhear 3Kqxy     
vt.无意中听到,偷听到
参考例句:
  • I happened to overhear what he said.我碰巧听到他说的话。
  • They stepped aside so that their child could not overhear their conversation.他们走到一边去,不让孩子听见他们的谈话。
3 shrugged 497904474a48f991a3d1961b0476ebce     
vt.耸肩(shrug的过去式与过去分词形式)
参考例句:
  • Sam shrugged and said nothing. 萨姆耸耸肩膀,什么也没说。
  • She shrugged, feigning nonchalance. 她耸耸肩,装出一副无所谓的样子。 来自《简明英汉词典》
4 bull jshzd     
n.公牛,买进证券投机图利者,看涨的人
参考例句:
  • It's only a hair off a bull's back to them.这对他们来说,不过九牛一毛。
  • Many dogs closed around the bull.很多狗渐渐地把那只牛围了起来。
5 bin yR2yz     
n.箱柜;vt.放入箱内;[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件
参考例句:
  • He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
  • He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。
6 sparkling xvYwy     
adj.发火花的,闪亮的;灿烂的,活泼的;闪闪发光的,闪烁的;起泡沫的v.闪光,闪耀(sparkle的现在分词)
参考例句:
  • the calm and sparkling waters of the lake 平静的波光粼粼的湖水
  • Other sparkling wines are often considered the poor relations of champagne. 其他起泡的葡萄酒通常被认为较香槟酒为次。 来自《简明英汉词典》
7 spoke XryyC     
n.(车轮的)辐条;轮辐;破坏某人的计划;阻挠某人的行动 v.讲,谈(speak的过去式);说;演说;从某种观点来说
参考例句:
  • They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
  • The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。
8 alongside XLWym     
adv.在旁边;prep.和...在一起,在...旁边
参考例句:
  • There was a butcher's shop alongside the theatre.剧院旁边有一家肉店。
  • Alongside of him stood his uncle.他的身旁站着他叔叔。
9 aroma Nvfz9     
n.香气,芬芳,芳香
参考例句:
  • The whole house was filled with the aroma of coffee.满屋子都是咖啡的香味。
  • The air was heavy with the aroma of the paddy fields.稻花飘香。
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