The Gift of the Magi

Which is always a tremendous task, dear friends --- a mammoth task.
Within forty minutes her head was covered with tiny close-lying curls that made her look wonderfully like a truant schoolboy.
She looked at her reflection in the mirror long, carefully, and critically.
"If Jim doesn't kill me," she said to herself,

tremendous : すさまじい、（大きさ・量が）とても大きい
task : 仕事、任務
mammoth : 途方も鳴く大変な
close-lying : ぴっちりと並んだ
truant : 学校をズル休みする
critically : 批評的に、批判的に