{"id":40891,"date":"2022-08-10T05:50:42","date_gmt":"2022-08-10T05:50:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/welty-with-a-pulitzer-the-new-york-times\/"},"modified":"2022-08-10T05:50:42","modified_gmt":"2022-08-10T05:50:42","slug":"welty-with-a-pulitzer-the-new-york-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/welty-with-a-pulitzer-the-new-york-times\/","title":{"rendered":"Welty with a Pulitzer – The New York Times"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Applying the instruction to turn the given entries into questions \u2014 by mentally adding an interrogative, upward inflection \u2014 made the joke click for me. Rereading 20A as a question, for instance, made me visualize a server at a restaurant offering guests a beverage, asking, \u201cMINERAL WATER?\u201d In response, my imaginary restaurant boss, who is not a fan of the stuff, might respond, \u201cWELL, ACTUALLY.\u201d As in, \u201cI would prefer WELL water, ACTUALLY.\u201d<\/p>\n

The same server might then ask how the boss prefers the steak: \u201cMEDIUM RARE?\u201d To which the boss might reply, \u201cWELL, ACTUALLY,\u201d which can be interpreted here to mean: \u201cI would prefer my steak WELL done, ACTUALLY.\u201d And, to finish the meal, the server might ask the restaurant boss (who is now full of WELL water and WELL-done steak and looks a bit queasy), \u201cFEELING ILL?\u201d To which the boss might respond, \u201cWELL, ACTUALLY.\u201d<\/p>\n

I should note that this restaurant scene played out entirely in my head. <\/span>Thank you, Ms. Lurie, for this hilarious reinterpretation of a phrase more typically associated with a patronizing tone and an unsolicited explanation. Let’s hear from her about the inspiration.<\/p>\n