The rest of the world of course thought him queer, but she, she only, knew how, and above all, why, queer. (H. James)

3. He liked however the open shutters; he opened everywhere those Mrs.Muldoon had closed, closing them as carefully afterwards, so that she shouldn’t notice: he liked – oh this he did like, and above all in the upper rooms. (H. James)

a pretty kettle of fish – an awkward state of affairs

1. “Well, sir,” said the constable, “he’s the man we were in search for, that’s true; and yet he’s not the man we were in search for. For the man we were in search of was not the man we wanted, sir, …” “A pretty kettle of fish altogether!” said the magistrate. (Th. Hardy)

2. When she had gone, Soames reached for the letter. “A pretty kettle of fish,” he muttered. “Where it’ll end, I can’t tell!” (J. Galsworthy)

3. “It may be very stupid but I can’t make head or tail out of what you’re saying.” “This is a pretty kettle of fish,” he said. (W.S. Maugham)

topsy-turvy – in confusion; upside down

1. Before his facile perils and ready laugh, life was no longer an affair of serious effort and restraint, but a toy, to be played with and turned topsy-turvy… (J. London)

2. They say there are great things going on in Russia today, that the people have stood the old upside-down world on its feet again and are building a new life which is no longer topsy-turvy… (R. Fox)

He was still young and had not seen much of the world – his English years had been properly arid; therefore the reserved conventions of the Moreens struck him as topsy-turvy. (H. James)

to hope against hope – to hope even when there is little or no reason for hope

1. …he waited on, hoping against hope to get a customer or two… (J. Galsworthy)

You admit you never thought we’d get this far. I’ll tell you the truth, I never did either. I just kept hoping against hope, that’s all. (M. Wilson)

3. “For a while,” said Erik, “I’ve been hoping against hope that the devil would overcome me, but nobody even wanted to buy my soul.” (M. Wilson)

to make one’s mouth water – to fill one with desire or envy

1. “I’m going to find a place for lunch and see what you’ve got tucked away in that building haversack you’re eyeing so hungrily.” “I’d like that! Your mouth has watered every time you’ve looked at it for the past half-hour.” (D. Cusack)

2. … the delicious sniffs, of salt and vinegar and frying fat made our mouths water. (A. Sillitoe)

to have (be) something on one’s mind – to be anxious or worried about something

1. “Now, let’s talk.” “Yes,” she said very quietly… “It’s time we did, Arnie. There’s been something on my mind for a long, long time.” (M. Wilson)

2. His voice became gentle, but still insistent. “What’s on your mind, Gorin?” (M. Wilson)

3. There was something on Savina’s mind, and Erik could almost sense it growing. (M. Wilson)

to get wind of – to hear a rumour about; to begin to suspect

1. There was no escaping it. Operation successful. Local newspapers got wind of it. (J. London)

2. Bellew has either got wind of our watching him, or someone must have put him up to it. (J. Galsworthy)

3. Yes, people had got wind of it! He knew they would. (J. Galsworthy)

Dialogue

A: Margaret, stop crying and tell me what’s the matter. Nothing serious, I hope.

B: Oh, Jane, everything has gone wrong. I’d been trying to do my best but yesterday the manager told me that if they had to fire somebody it would be me. But I’m still hoping against hope that everything will be fixed up somehow or rather.

A: Why is the manager so hard on you? I suppose as far as the interests of the business are concerned you are putting them above all. And you are very experienced. I just can’t put two and two together.

B: Jane, take my word for it, the main problem is not me. At the moment our firm has got some problems. So they can’t pay enough money to all of us. And if they fire somebody they’ll get out of this topsy-turvy situation.

A: How did you manage to learn it?

B: I’ve just got wind of it. I know that at heart the manager doesn’t like the idea of getting rid of me. In a way he does it in spite of himself. But sometimes we can’t cope with the circumstances. As I’ve got the largest salary and for a long period after leaving the job I’ll be able to live without trying to make both ends meet I’m the best person for it.

A: You’re talking nonsence! Where will they get such a brilliant specialist then?

B: Oh, as far as this is concerned, it’s not a problem at all. They’ll find a young person with the same knowledge, but without any experience of work. In this case her salary will be much less. And the problem is solved. It seems to me that the manager is having this idea on his mind.

A: May be you are right. It’s a pretty kettle of fish. But take it easy. I’ve just come across some advertisements in the column “Wanted”. I`m sure some of them will make your mouth water. Let me bring the newspaper.

B: OK. I`ll wait for you.

I. Translate into Russian

1. I find this, in a way, hard to understand. (I. Murdoch)

2. There was real passion in his voice, and in spite of myself I was impressed. (W.S. Maugham)

3. He was hard on himself, hard on Haviland, and his preoccupation made him hard on Savina too. (M. Wilson)

4. What I need, you know, above all things, is criticism. (J. London)

5. But Nan could be relied upon to turn the place topsy-turvy before a holiday. (I. Murdoch)

I had hoped against hope that he would have gone before she returned. (Gr. Greene)

7. “Now, just look at those black grapes!” she said. “They make your mouth water.” (D. Lawrence)

8. Henry sensed at once that she had something on her mind. (A. Cronin)

9. It seemed they had got wind at last of where I was hiding. (R. Fox)

10. …of course, if she were to find out about Berenice, she would probably turn to Tollifer for advice. And then it would be a matter of having to buy them off. A pretty kettle of fish! (Th. Dreiser)