[영어신문] 할머니와 갔던 맥도널드

Visiting McDonald’s With My Grandmother

기사 이미지: nytimes.com

Summary

1. The writer's grandmother was Korean. She traded opulence for independence after getting divorced with her husband who was a destined-to-be-successful but gave her steady stream of infidelity.

2. After settiling down in America, she had to work for living, which she had never done before, but  improbably she was happy and enjoyed the independence by smoking with abandon, eating whatever she wanted, and gambling with men. However, her earning put her under the poverty line.

3. She ofthen went to McDonald's for many reasons: she couldn't cook, it was cheaper. She made the writer go deranged over going to McDonald's as frequently as their wallets and waistband would allow.

4. After the writer's grandmother passed away, McDonald's is no longer a special to her, but whenever the writer finds it, it triggers a flood of memories of her grandmother.

Voca

stretch a dollar: save money

As a kid, I was in awe of my grandmother's ability to stretch a dollar when it came to food.

to derange: to make crazy / to confuse / to disconnect

I went temporarily deranged over going to McDonald's as frequently as our wallets and waistbands would allow.

to scrimp: to economize / to cut back / to skimp / to save

While her daughters helped her out where tey could, she had to scrimp.

Sentences

She would walk me some mornings.

We'd attack the Big Breakfast from either side.

She was Korean, and the assortment of separate little dishes known as banchan in central to Korean food.

Wealth insulated her from certain kinds of discomfort but didn't guard against her husband's steady stream of infidelities.

It is astonishing that my grandmother had any appetite for fast food after working on a chicken disassembly line.

My grandmother loved McDonald's in a way that only someone who hadn't grown up with it could.

The grave sites become more elaborate and expensive the higher you go up the hill, suggesting that in Los Angeles, inequality persists even after death.

It will never be as special to me as it was to her.

Seeing this chain restaurant everywhere is a bit like seeing her everywhere.

A chain restaurant that triggers a floods of memories can be enough.

Question

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