美国国家公共电台 NPR--How an ice cream truck became a core memory for these two sisters

How an ice cream truck became a core memory for these two sisters

Transcript¹

On StoryCorps, two sisters growing up in an Ohio farmhouse² get a visit from an ice cream truck.

RACHEL MARTIN, HOST:

Time now for StoryCorps. Today, we'll hear from two sisters who grew up in rural Ohio in the 1980s. Amy McNally and Emily Fortner were raised by a single mom in an old farmhouse where they didn't cross paths with many neighbors. Here, Amy tells Emily about a specific childhood memory.

AMY MCNALLY: We lived in the middle of some cornfields at the end of our long gravel³ driveway. It was very neither here nor there.

EMILY FORTNER: Yeah.

MCNALLY: In Archie Comics, people would come door to door and sell encyclopedias⁴ and things like that, but that never happened to us. And Mom hated everybody, so we didn't have a lot of people ever come over to the house. She was really hard to deal with because she was an abusive alcoholic⁵. I remember she had gray roots and a round face with a little scar⁶ by her mouth where she got dragged by horses as a kid. But Mom could be a very generous spirit, and she had access to this childlike joy and wonder that a lot of grown-ups never seemed to understand.

One time we were in the house. And Mom heard it first. There was this tinny music that reminded me kind of like a carnival⁷ calliope. And it was an ice-cream truck. I remember Mom ran to her purse and just handed us fistfuls of dollars and change, whatever she could scrounge from the bottom of it. And she said, run - this will never happen again.

FORTNER: (Laughter).

MCNALLY: I remember my feet pounding on the grass in the front yard. And I don't remember what I got, but it was cold and sweet. You know, there is nothing like ice cream to a kid, but there's also nothing like an unexpected treat to a poor kid. And so as an adult, one of the great things about living in a neighborhood now is that I see ice-cream trucks coming down my street sometimes, and I realized I hadn't for a while.

So I called the first one I found, and he said, we're not going out a lot because of the high gas prices, but we do do events. Well, my birthday was 10 days away. I said, great, please show up. And so the ice-cream truck came. My favorite part of my birthday was when the neighbor kids came running 'cause they heard the music. And I got to say, the ice cream is free. I don't know if I've ever felt wealthier.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

MARTIN: Amy McNally talking with her sister, Emily Fortner. Their interview will be archived at the Library of Congress.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 farmhouse   

n.农场住宅（尤指主要住房）

参考例句：

• We fell for the farmhouse as soon as we saw it.我们对那所农舍一见倾心。
• We put up for the night at a farmhouse.我们在一间农舍投宿了一夜。

3 gravel   

n.砂跞；砂砾层；结石

参考例句：

• We bought six bags of gravel for the garden path.我们购买了六袋碎石用来铺花园的小路。
• More gravel is needed to fill the hollow in the drive.需要更多的砾石来填平车道上的坑洼。

4 encyclopedias   

n.百科全书， （某一学科的）专科全书( encyclopedia的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• However, some encyclopedias can be found on the Web. 同时，一些百科全书能也在网络上找到。 来自互联网
• Few people think of encyclopedias as creative enterprises; but they are. 鲜少有人想到百科全书是创意的工作，但它确实是。 来自互联网

5 alcoholic   

adj.（含）酒精的，由酒精引起的；n.酗酒者

参考例句：

• The alcoholic strength of brandy far exceeds that of wine.白兰地的酒精浓度远远超过葡萄酒。
• Alcoholic drinks act as a poison to a child.酒精饮料对小孩犹如毒药。

6 scar   

n.伤疤，伤痕，创伤

参考例句：

• This scar is from the bite of a dog.这是狗咬后留下的伤疤。
• The tragedy left a scar on her mind.这个悲剧给她造成精神上的创伤。

7 carnival   

n.嘉年华会，狂欢，狂欢节，巡回表演

参考例句：

• I got some good shots of the carnival.我有几个狂欢节的精彩镜头。
• Our street puts on a carnival every year.我们街的居民每年举行一次嘉年华会。