Jim Brown knew he was in trouble before his mother finished asking the question. 'Am I a better cook than your wife?' she asked, calmly stirring a pot on the stove in her kitchen. 母亲还未问完这个问题,吉姆·布朗(Jim Brown)就知道自己麻烦来了。“我的厨艺是不是比你妻子的更好?”母亲在厨房里一边平静地搅拌着炉灶上锅里的食物,一边问道。 With his wife, Joy, standing next to him, Mr. Brown stammered and stuttered. He prayed -- 'for a trap door to appear,' he says. Finally, he did the only thing he could think to do: Tell the truth. 'I said that my wife is a better cook,' the 50-year-old owner of a Duncanville, Texas, auto-repair shop says. 吉姆支支吾吾不愿回答,因为当时妻子乔伊(Joy)就站在旁边。他说当时自己祈祷着“地上能出现一道缝”。最终,他做了当时他能想到的唯一一件事:实话实说。他说:“我当时答道妻子的厨艺更好。”现年50岁的吉姆是得克萨斯州邓肯维尔(Duncanville)一家汽修店的老板。 The fallout? 'Biblical,' he says. 'There was wailing. Gnashing of teeth.' Even his wife got mad -- telling him that he had been insensitive to his mother. 结果呢?他说:“糟糕透顶。母亲气得咬牙切齿,并对我大声数落。”甚至连妻子都非常生气,说他不顾母亲的感受。 Sadly, the scene wasn't new to the Browns, who had been married seven years. The strain between his wife and his mother -- and his position, stuck in the middle -- was taking a toll on all three relationships. His mom criticized his wife for her parenting style and for not getting a job. His wife cried and complained to him. He retreated from both women. |