相隔一段时间重温以前看过的电影，有时候会有完全不同的印象。
电影当然不可能改变，于是就会发现，原来是自己改变了。
如果自己的人生是一部电影，不同的时候，对自己人生的看法也会有所改变。也许会对原本厌恶之至的一幕心生爱怜，或是在曾经令自己悲伤不已的一幕放声大笑，曾经为之着迷的女主角，也在不知不觉中淡忘了。
≪如果这世界猫消失了≫ 142页
川村元气 著 王蕴洁 译
ISBN 978-957-10-6995-1
Sunday, December 31, 2017
原来是自己改变了
相隔一段时间重温以前看过的电影，有时候会有完全不同的印象。
电影当然不可能改变，于是就会发现，原来是自己改变了。
如果自己的人生是一部电影，不同的时候，对自己人生的看法也会有所改变。也许会对原本厌恶之至的一幕心生爱怜，或是在曾经令自己悲伤不已的一幕放声大笑，曾经为之着迷的女主角，也在不知不觉中淡忘了。
≪如果这世界猫消失了≫ 142页
川村元气 著 王蕴洁 译
ISBN 978-957-10-6995-1
只有纯粹的空白
也许我的人生也一样。一部电影中包括了所有的滑稽、悲剧和喜剧，反映了我的人生，但如果想要用一张照片呈现，就只剩下一片白色的银幕。记录我人生的影片超越了喜怒哀乐，成为一部白色的电影。没有其他东西，只有纯粹的空白。
≪如果这世界猫消失了≫ 141页
川村元气 著 王蕴洁 译
ISBN 978-957-10-6995-1
Saturday, December 30, 2017
形成一个必然
生存、哭泣、叫喊、恋爱、愚蠢的事、悲伤的事、开心的事、可怕的事、可笑的事。
凄美的歌曲，令人感动落泪的情景，反胃、唱歌的人，空中飞行的飞机，奔腾的骏马，逝去的时代，令人食指大动的松饼，漆黑的宇宙，开枪的牛仔。
电影连同有关和我一起看电影的恋人、朋友和家人的回忆，一起深植在我的内心。我们曾经多次谈论电影，无数有关电影的记忆形成了我这个人，每一个回忆都美丽动人，令人忍不住落泪。 电影就像串珠般串了起来，串起、编织了人类的希望和绝望，无数的巧合结合在一起，形成一个必然。
≪如果这世界猫消失了≫ 136-137页
川村元气 著 王蕴洁 译
ISBN 978-957-10-6995-1
水母也有生存的意义
百视达和我最后来到卓别林电影的陈列架前。
“人生近看是悲剧，远观就是喜剧。”
我小声嘀咕，想起了今天早上梦见卓别林的梦。
“舞、舞台春秋。”
百视达回答。
卓别林在《舞台春秋》中饰演的小丑为了阻止一名芭蕾舞者自杀，说了很多话。
“生存是一件美好而美妙的事，水母也有生存的意义。”
没错，水母也有存在的意义。既然这样，电影、音乐、咖啡也许都有存在的意义。“可有可无”才是对这个世界而言重要的东西。无数的“可有可无”聚集在一起，形成了外形像人类的“人”。以我为例，我至今为止看过的无数电影，和这些电影相关的回忆所形成的，就是我这个人。
≪如果这世界猫消失了≫ 135-136页
川村元气 著 王蕴洁 译
ISBN 978-957-10-6995-1
对未来产生后悔
来不及看的电影、来不及吃的料理、来不及听的音乐、来不及看的风景。
从这个角度思考，在临死的时候，脑海中浮现的是对原本应有的未来所产生的后悔，对未来产生后悔这句话或许有点奇怪，但仍然会忍不住想象如果自己可以活下去的情况。更奇妙的是，所想象的每一件事都像正准备消除的电影一样，都是“可有可无的东西”。
≪如果这世界猫消失了≫ 134-135页
川村元气 著 王蕴洁 译
ISBN 978-957-10-6995-1
完全是两回事
“知道一条路，和实际走在那条路上是两回事。”
这是《黑客任务》中的某句台词。
有什么东西从这个世界消失这件事，和因此产生的现实完全是两回事，无法用数值表现的欠缺更胜于失去那样东西所产生的直接影响。
≪如果这世界猫消失了≫ 122-123页
川村元气 著 王蕴洁 译
ISBN 978-957-10-6995-1
Thursday, December 21, 2017
A Fox
A fox. A real live red fox, tiny, with a small patch of darker fur just above its left front leg. Like a beauty spot.
Its eyes are so kind I just about to burst. That same look in another human's eyes, and my soul would be theirs for sure.
I don't want it to run off. I want it to stay here forever. I want it to watch over the tent, like a sphinx, a bodyguard, a dragon.
With the fox out front, the outcasts' tent is transformed into tent of miracles.
I draws near. One step, two.
I don't have any bread, fox. But come closer anyway. Come.
Three steps, four.
It's within a few inches of my fingertips. With its ears pricked, it looks like it's waiting for me to tell a joke.
Jane, the fox and me, P78-79
by Fanny Britt, illustrated by Isabelle Arsenault
ISBN 978-1-55498-360-5
A Laurentian Forest
Sometimes my mom invites her friends over for super.
Lenny, Marthe, Anita, Gerard, Ruth.
I lie on the the living-room floor doing my homework. With one ear, I hear their voices in the kitchen, with the other, I hear my mom's music coming from the stereo.
These days it's Kate and Anna McGarrigle over and over again.
Listening to them, I imagine myself a gorgeous stubborn singer travelling the world with hope and guitar, turning as rough and piney as a Laurentian forest.
My brothers think the McGarrigle sisters are too sappy. They'd rather listen to The Police.
They's rather lock themselves in their room with Mario Bros. And some Licorice. They are as skinny as rails, so they are allowed.
Tonight the music, Anita's and Ruth's squeals, the joy shimmering in the light from the orange-fringed lamp, the leg of lamb, all of it helps me forget that tomorrow I'll be getting on a bus to Lake Kanawana with forty kids in shorts, not one of them a friend.
Jane, the fox and me, P54-57
by Fanny Britt, illustrated by Isabelle Arsenault
ISBN 978-1-55498-360-5
A Taste of Eternity
Spring arrives and so do the flower planters on our balcony.
Barely two months of school left. A taste of eternity.
My mom stops smoking again.
Sometimes the weather's so nice I walk home from school.
I'm all flushed by the time I get home.
My hair plastered to my scalp.
I tell myself I can eat some caramels, I walked so much.
Jane, the fox and me, P30-33
by Fanny Britt, illustrated by Isabelle Arsenault
ISBN 978-1-55498-360-5
Overstayed Its Welcome
Today it's too cold for crinolines. Winter has overstayed its welcome like some rude houseguest.
Waiting for the bus on sherbrooke today is like waiting to die.
Or what I imagine it would be like.
Jane, the fox and me, P15
by Fanny Britt, illustrated by Isabelle Arsenault
ISBN 978-1-55498-360-5
Saturday, December 16, 2017
送礼物的意义
我很焦急，很想立刻把正确答案告诉她。我缓缓地原地踏步，抬头仰望电影院。
这时，我发现一件事。这和我在学生时代等待她的电话时的心情一样，无法把心意和想法马上传达给对方的焦急时光，正是思念对方的时光。就像古人写信给对方，迫不及待地等待对方回信一样。如同送礼物的意义并不在于礼物本身，而是在挑选礼物时，想象对方喜悦表情的瞬间样，那才是送礼的意义所在。
≪如果这世界猫消失了≫ 106-108页
川村元气 著 王蕴洁 译
ISBN 978-957-10-6995-1
相约也失去了意义
随着电话和手机的发明，人类不会再和别人擦身而过，相约也失去了意义。但电话打不通时的焦急，以及等待温暖的感觉，和令我浑身发抖的寒意一起，强烈地留在我的身上。
≪如果这世界猫消失了≫ 105页
川村元气 著 王蕴洁 译
ISBN 978-957-10-6995-1
正因为有结束的一天
很奇妙。刚和她谈恋爱时，难以想象有—天会和她分手。自己幸福的时候，觉得她也同样幸福，不知道什么时候，事情不再这么简单，即使自己幸福，也可能造成对方的伤心。
每段恋情必定会结束，虽然明明知道恋爱会结束，但人们还是会谈恋爱。
也许恋爱和活着一样。明知道生命终有结束的一天，但每天都会努力活下去，就像恋爱一样，正因为有结束的一天，所以才会努力让活着的每一天更加绽放光芒。
≪如果这世界猫消失了≫ 102-103页
川村元气 著 王蕴洁 译
ISBN 978-957-10-6995-1
大富翁的游戏规则
我们借由通电话，得到了可以立刻联络对方的方便性，却失去了思念、想象对方的时间，电话剥夺、蒸发了我们累积思念时间。
每个月都会收到手机账单，通话时间二十小时，账单金额为一万两千日元。
我们的谈话具有和这些金钱相同的价值吗？每一句话值多少钱？
电话可以让我们连续聊好几个小时，但就连电话也无法再把我们联结在一起。当我们来到大富翁游戏城外面的世界，终于发现，我们之间的关系只靠大富翁的游戏规则来维系。
我们之间早就没有了恋啊爱啊之类的感情，只是在固定的游戏规则中，继续玩这场游戏而已。在布宜诺斯艾利斯的那几天，我们立刻发现了这种游戏规则毫无意义。
≪如果这世界猫消失了≫ 97-98页
川村元气 著 王蕴洁 译
ISBN 978-957-10-6995-1
Sunday, December 10, 2017
就会有所失去
尤其是最近，早晨一醒来到睡觉之前，都在玩手机。醒着的时候，有一半的时间都很在意手机，阅读书籍的量大为减少，也不再看报纸，很想看的电影也都没看。
搭电车时，几乎每个人都变成了低头族。即使在看电影、吃饭时，也惦记着手机。一到午休时间，第一件事就是拿出手机。和高丽菜在一起时，也常常拿着手机，不陪它玩，我厌恶沦为手机奴隶的自己。
手机在问世短短二十年，就只配了人类。即使消失也无所谓的东西，在短短二十年后，仿佛变成不可或缺的东西般支配了人类。人类发明手机的同时，也发明了没有手机的不安。
话说回来，书信出现的时候，情况搞不好也差不多。网络也一样。人类创造一样东西，就会有所失去。从这个角度思考，似乎能够理解上帝同意接受魔鬼的提议的意义。
≪如果这世界猫消失了≫ 64页
川村元气 著 王蕴洁 译
ISBN 978-957-10-6995-1
Sunday, December 3, 2017
我在自己身上看到了人类龌龊的本性
照理说，我已经接受了不久于人世的命运，但想到有可能多活几天，无论是多么荒唐的交易，仍然抱着一线希望。我原本告诉自己，死的时候干脆一点，心平气和，安详地死去。我做好了这样的打算，也认为自己可以做到。但是，死到临头时，我就想要抓住救命稻草（魔鬼）。我在自己身上看到了人类龌龊的本性。
≪如果这世界猫消失了≫ 45页
川村元气 著 王蕴洁 译
ISBN 978-957-10-6995-1
Saturday, December 2, 2017
可有可无
阿罗哈说得没错，人类在数百年的时间内，创造了无数废物，即使让某些东西消失，也不会造成任何人的困扰，世界反而可以变得更简单，大家一定会感激我。
我目前做的工作也在逐渐消失，搞不好十年后就不存在了。但是，仔细想一下就发现，这个世界上所有的东西都处于“可有可无”的边缘，搞不好人类本身也是如此。我们就是生活在这样乱七八糟的世界。
≪如果这世界猫消失了≫ 34-35页
川村元气 著 王蕴洁 译
ISBN 978-957-10-6995-1
Saturday, November 18, 2017
抹茶盐
“小石，能给我拿点抹茶吗？”妙放下筷子，转向小石。
“现在就喝抹茶吗？还有菜还没上呢。”小石回头问。
“不是，我的意思是给我拿点抹茶粉。”
“是要做抹茶盐吗？”鸭川流端着白瓷酒杯从厨房里走出来。
“不愧是流先生，立刻就明白了。”
“应该一开始就给您准备好。”流把酒杯放在涂着黑漆的木质方盘旁边。
“也许是我的错觉，今天野菜的苦味有点单调。”来栖妙把抹茶和盐混在一起，夹起荚果蕨蘸了一下，送入口中。
……
≪鸭川食堂≫［土豆炖肉］162-163页
柏井寿 著 史诗 译
ISBN 978-7-5306-7210-5
Sunday, November 12, 2017
光照菊
“看起来像电灯的东西，我想大概是光照菊。”
“光照菊？”异口同声的明日和小石不禁看了彼此。
“那是渥美半岛的名物，或者说是名产。在温室里种菊花，整晚都点着红色的灯，据说这样就可以调整开花的时间，看上去就像漂亮的夜景。”流的手指划过平板电脑的屏幕，展示光照菊的照片。
≪鸭川食堂≫［番茄意大利面］151页
柏井寿 著 史诗 译
ISBN 978-7-5306-7210-5
要不要再来一碗？
看到流消失在厨房里，须也子把胡椒煮牡蛎放在饭上，倒上茶水，用力搅拌了一通。她时不时夹一口山葵拌鸡胸脯肉，把饭吃得一粒不剩。
“要不要再来一碗？”流走出厨房，伸出托盘。
“已经足够了。让您看见这么粗俗的吃法，真是不好意思。”须也子脸颊绯红，觉得对方注意到自己在吃茶泡饭。
“吃饭不分什么粗俗还是优雅，按照喜欢的方式吃就是最好的。”流撤下餐具，边搽桌子边说。
≪鸭川食堂≫［炸猪排］107页
柏井寿 著 史诗 译
ISBN 978-7-5306-7210-5
Saturday, November 11, 2017
右边数第二条
“对了。我还想问你呢，你做了七条寿司，为什么要切从右边数第二条呢？”
“我做的那七条里，醋的多少和青花鱼的腌制程度都各有不同，从右边数第二条是最好吃的。人啊，无论怎么解释这是过去的味道，只要不好吃，就不会满足。正因为好吃才会觉得，啊，和那时的味道一样。”
“也就是说，老爸，今天晚上我们只能吃不怎么好吃的青花鱼寿司了？”
“这只是相对而言，其实每条都不错。对了，我在土佐买了好酒，叫醉鲸和南，好像很不错。”
≪鸭川食堂≫［青花鱼寿司］99页
柏井寿 著 史诗 译
ISBN 978-7-5306-7210-5
Sunday, November 5, 2017
时间也属于味道的一部分
信子和妙边吃边聊，悠然自得。看到她们吃得差不多了，流搭话道：“就算是同一道炖牛肉，两个人的味道也不同。”
“什么意思？”妙用餐巾擦嘴。
“信子女士和妙女士不同，用餐前等待了三十分钟，那段时间也属于味道的一部分。今天，那份叫作回忆的香料肯定也发挥了作用。”流温柔地注视着信子。
≪鸭川食堂≫［炖牛肉］62页
柏井寿 著 史诗 译
ISBN 978-7-5306-7210-5
Saturday, November 4, 2017
水是不会变的
“两个都是普通的水，但Ａ更好喝，口感更圆润。”洼山举起贴有Ａ标签的杯子。
“Ａ是桝方商店街附近的豆腐店使用的井水，Ｂ是秀山先生的故乡御影的造酒商使用的宫水。秀先生，看来你已经习惯了京都的水。人们不是常说水土不服吗，不适应水土可不行，因为水是不会变的，做菜也要考虑到水的味道。等你到了高崎，也必须适应那里的水。”流语气干脆。
≪鸭川食堂≫［锅烧乌冬面］29页
柏井寿 著 史诗 译
ISBN 978-7-5306-7210-5
Sunday, October 22, 2017
声音记忆
检查结果发现，并不是感冒。
脑肿瘤，第四期。
这是医生告诉我的诊断结果。我最多只能活半年，但是没人能够保证一个星期后，我还能够活在世上。虽然医生提议我可以接受放射线治疗、抗癌剂治疗、进安宁病房等各种选择，但是我完全听不进去。
小时候，我曾经在暑假期间去游泳池。普通一声，跳进凉冰冰的蓝色游泳池。嘴里吐着泡泡，身体沉入水中。
“要先热身啊。”
我听到老妈说话的声音，但是，在水中听到的声音很模糊，听不清楚。如今，遗忘已久的“声音记忆”突然在耳边苏醒。
≪如果这世界猫消失了≫ 11-12页
川村元气 著 王蕴洁 译
ISBN 978-986-5706-44-9
Saturday, October 21, 2017
A Plastic Baby Jesus
Rosca de Reyes
(three Kings men ring cake)
Dia de los Reyes (Three Kings Day), on 6 January, marks the arrival of the 'Three Wise Men' bearing gifts for baby Jesus. Rosca de Reyes is a crown shaped sweet bread decorated with jewel like fruit. Traditionally, a plastic baby Jesus is hidden in the dough before it is cooked. If you cut the piece with the doll, you must host the next festivity!
(three Kings men ring cake)
Dia de los Reyes (Three Kings Day), on 6 January, marks the arrival of the 'Three Wise Men' bearing gifts for baby Jesus. Rosca de Reyes is a crown shaped sweet bread decorated with jewel like fruit. Traditionally, a plastic baby Jesus is hidden in the dough before it is cooked. If you cut the piece with the doll, you must host the next festivity!
my abuela's table, P112
Daniella Germain
ISBN 978-1-742-70174-5
Sunday, October 15, 2017
Day of the Dead Bread
Pan de Muertos
(Day of the Dead bread)
2 November is the Day of the Dead. Souls of the departed return to join their families and friends in the land of the living. It is a joyous time, without tears which can make the return pathway slippery.
(Day of the Dead bread)
2 November is the Day of the Dead. Souls of the departed return to join their families and friends in the land of the living. It is a joyous time, without tears which can make the return pathway slippery.
my abuela's table, P111
Daniella Germain
ISBN 978-1-742-70174-5
Saturday, October 14, 2017
Spicy Leg of Lamb
Pierna de borrego con especias
spicy leg of lamb
This traditional dish is known as 'Barbacoa'-barbecue Mexican style. It is traditionally cooked in a pit in the ground half a metre deep. The lamb is wrapped in banana leaves, covered in hot coals and left overnight. The following day, the meat is taken out, banana leaves removed and the meat is ready to eat.
spicy leg of lamb
This traditional dish is known as 'Barbacoa'-barbecue Mexican style. It is traditionally cooked in a pit in the ground half a metre deep. The lamb is wrapped in banana leaves, covered in hot coals and left overnight. The following day, the meat is taken out, banana leaves removed and the meat is ready to eat.
my abuela's table, P59
Daniella Germain
ISBN 978-1-742-70174-5
Little Fat Ones
Gorditas
'Gorditas' translates to literally mean 'little fat ones'. Traditionally made with lard, they are an indulgent to be enjoyed in moderation.
'Gorditas' translates to literally mean 'little fat ones'. Traditionally made with lard, they are an indulgent to be enjoyed in moderation.
my abuela's table, P49
Daniella Germain
ISBN 978-1-742-70174-5
Sunday, October 8, 2017
Mole
Mole
Mole is a common offering to dead loved ones during Day of the Dead (Dia de los Muertos) on 2 November. Mole has a complex and special flavor.
Mole is a common offering to dead loved ones during Day of the Dead (Dia de los Muertos) on 2 November. Mole has a complex and special flavor.
my abuela's table, P25
Daniella Germain
ISBN 978-1-742-70174-5
Saturday, October 7, 2017
很寂寞
有心事的人很寂寞，
因为他把自己封锁起来。
关心他的人也很寂寞，因为他无能为力，
只能痛心的在外面默默等待那人回来。
≪有熊真好≫ —— 白白与你相遇的每一天 80-81页
Darylhochi 著
ISBN 978-957-10-6995-1
因为他把自己封锁起来。
关心他的人也很寂寞，因为他无能为力，
只能痛心的在外面默默等待那人回来。
≪有熊真好≫ —— 白白与你相遇的每一天 80-81页
Darylhochi 著
ISBN 978-957-10-6995-1
Sunday, October 1, 2017
就像调味料一样
和那人的回忆就像调味料一样，
身边和他有关的事物
都因此顿时添加了新意义。
以前没留意过的，
现在每天都不自觉地留意到；
以前觉得平淡无奇的，
现在变得别具意义；
以前喜欢的，现在因为那人而变得更喜欢。
但是味道会随着关系和思念
变得时甜时酸、时苦时涩，
也因为这人的出现，
改变了原本添加的味道。
≪有熊真好≫ —— 白白与你相遇的每一天 72-73页
Darylhochi 著
ISBN 978-957-10-6995-1
身边和他有关的事物
都因此顿时添加了新意义。
以前没留意过的，
现在每天都不自觉地留意到；
以前觉得平淡无奇的，
现在变得别具意义；
以前喜欢的，现在因为那人而变得更喜欢。
但是味道会随着关系和思念
变得时甜时酸、时苦时涩，
也因为这人的出现，
改变了原本添加的味道。
≪有熊真好≫ —— 白白与你相遇的每一天 72-73页
Darylhochi 著
ISBN 978-957-10-6995-1
Saturday, September 30, 2017
连吃东西也特别有滋味
生病时要深切记着当时辛苦的感受，
痊愈后便会更珍惜健康所带来的自由，
连吃东西也特别有滋味。
≪有熊真好≫ —— 白白与你相遇的每一天 48页
Darylhochi 著
ISBN 978-957-10-6995-1
痊愈后便会更珍惜健康所带来的自由，
连吃东西也特别有滋味。
≪有熊真好≫ —— 白白与你相遇的每一天 48页
Darylhochi 著
ISBN 978-957-10-6995-1
这样的晚上
天气冷了，人也累了，
这样的晚上，可以盖着被子，
躺在沙发上，感受着被子从冷变暖，
最后在这温暖的被窝里看看电视，
然后睡着，多幸福。
≪有熊真好≫ —— 白白与你相遇的每一天 42页
Darylhochi 著
ISBN 978-957-10-6995-1
这样的晚上，可以盖着被子，
躺在沙发上，感受着被子从冷变暖，
最后在这温暖的被窝里看看电视，
然后睡着，多幸福。
≪有熊真好≫ —— 白白与你相遇的每一天 42页
Darylhochi 著
ISBN 978-957-10-6995-1
Sunday, September 24, 2017
He wasn't Handsome at All
Ostra felt she had snapped like a willow stem. She turned from the village and lay on the clifftop on the warm breast of the earth, weeping, weeping. The day waned and the sky changed colour and still she wept. There Wolvas found her and pulled her roughly to her feet.
"Ostra," he said, "you have no family and no protection. Now surely you must take me as your husband."
Ostra wiped her eyes and looked at him. For the first time she saw that he wasn't handsome at all: that he had a nasty, hard mouth; that his eyes were like a dead fish's, and his muscly body was rather stringy and cold. So when a beautiful brown hare popped his head out of the undergrowth and started to say,
"He's wi..."
Ostra interrupted the creature,
"I know, I know!" she told the hare. "But I've got no more excuses!"
... ...
The White Hare, P24-26
by Nicola Davis
Illustration Anastasia Izlesou
ISBN 978-1-9108-6248-3
The Big Silence of the Stars
Weaving pots was a winter job. In spring and summer willow stems loose their bendiness and become snappy and brittle. So, on winter evenings, after it was dark and her father was back from the sea, Ostra walked up the cliff to the marshy willow bed on the edge of the woods to cut the willow stems and weave them. She worked by the light of the moon or of a little rush lantern, yellow flamed and trailing the stink of animal fat. In the cold, in the wind, in the rain.
Ostra liked the work, because it was peaceful and solitary and gave her time to be quiet.
The rhythm of bending and binding the stems to make the big, open shape of the crab pt pleased her. Sometimes she sang quietly to herself, but more often she sat quietly listening to the sounds of the winter night, the screaming vixens, the owl hooting, the wolves howling and, above all the sound of Earth, to the big silence of the stars. Listening in the cold, winter silence is how she came to hear animals speaking to her.
The White Hare, P7-9
by Nicola Davis
Illustration Anastasia Izlesou
ISBN 978-1-9108-6248-3
Sunday, September 17, 2017
Doing and Un-doing and Doing Again
I realised, though I was on Earth, I had been living this past year as I had always lived. I was just thinking I could carry on, moving forward. But I was not me any more. I was a human, give or take. And humans are about change. This is how they survive, by doing and un-doing and doing again.
I had done some things I couldn't undo, but there were others I could amend. I had become a human by betraying rationality and obeying feeling. To stay me, I knew there would come a point when I would have to do the same again.
Time passed.
Squinting, I looked again to the sky.
The Earth's sun can look very much alone, yet it has relatives all across this galaxy, stars that were born in the exact same place, but which were now very far away from each other, lighting very different worlds.
I was like a sun.
I was a long way from where I started. And I have changed. Once I thought I could pass through time like a neutrino passes through matter, effortlessly and without stopping to think, because time would never run out.
The Humans, P288
Matt Haig
ISBN 978-0-85786-876-3
Sunday, September 10, 2017
Advice for a Human
Advice for a human
1. ... ...
2. Don't worry about your abilities. You have the ability to love. That is enough.
3. Be nice to other people. At the universal level, they are you.
... ...
7. Irony is fine, but not as fine as feeling.
8. ... ...
9. Sometimes, to be yourself you will have to forget yourself and become something else. Your character is not a fixed thing. You will sometimes have to move to keep up with it.
... ...
13. You shouldn't have been born. Your existence is as close to impossible as can be. To dismiss the impossible is to dismiss yourself.
14. Your live will have 25,0000 days in it. Make sure you remember some of them.
... ...
25. There is only one genre in fiction. The genre is called 'book'.
... ...
29. If there is a sunset, stop and look at it. Knowledge is finite. Wonder is infinite.
... ....
33. You are not the most intelligent creature in the universe. You are not even the most intelligent creature on your planet. Yhe tonal language in the song of a humpback whale displays more complexity than the entire works of Shakespeare. It is not a competition. Well, it is. But don't worry about it.
... ...
38. Walt Whitman was right about at least one thing. You will contradict yourself. You are large. You contain multitudes.
... ...
41. Your brain is open. Never let it be closed.
42. In a thousand years, if humans survive that long, everything you know will have been disapproved. And replaced by even bigger myths.
... ...
46. A paradox. The things you don't need to live - books, art, cinema, wine and so on - are things you need to live.
47. ... ...
48. No two moralities match. Accept different shapes, so long as they aren't sharp enough to hurt.
... ...
51. Alcohol in the evening is very enjoyable. Hangovers in the mornings are very unpleasant. At some point you have to choose: evenings, or mornings.
... ...
60. Obey your head. Obey your heart. Obey your gut. In fact, obey everything except commands.
61. One day, if you get into a position of power, tell people this: just because you can, it doesn't mean you should. There is a power and a beauty in unproved conjectures, unkissed lips and unpicked flowers.
... ...
65. Don't think you know. Know you think.
... ...
74. A quark is not the smallest thing. The wish you have on your death-bed - to have worked harder - that is the smallest thing. Because it won't be there.
75. Politeness is often fear. Kindness is always courage. But caring is what makes human. Care more, become more human.
76. In your mind, change the name of every day to Saturday. And change the name of work to play.
... ...
81. You can't find happiness looking for the meaning of life. Meaning is only the third important thing. It comes after loving and being.
82. If you think something is ugly, look harder. Ugliness is just a failure of seeing.
83. ... ...
84. Your are more than the sum of your particles. And that is quite a sum.
85. ... ...
86. To like something is to insult it. Love it or hate it. Be passionate. As Civilisation advances, so does indifference. It is a disease. Immunise yourself with art. And love.
... ...
90. But know this. Men are not from Mars. Women are not from Venus. Do not fall for categories. Everyone is everything. Every ingredient inside a star is inside you, and every personality that ever existed competes in the theatre of your mind for the main role.
... ...
94. You don't have to be an academic. You don't have to be anything. Don't force it. Feel your way, and don't stop feeling your way until something fits. Maybe nothing will. Maybe you are a road, not a destination. That is fine. Be a road. But make sure it's one with something to look at out of the window.
... ...
97. I love you. Remember that.
The Humans, P271-277
Matt Haig
ISBN 978-0-85786-876-3
Saturday, September 9, 2017
Penguin
Ben ignored Penguin.
Penguin ignored Ben.
So Ben fired Penguin into outer space ...
Penguin came back to Earth without a word.
Penguin
Polly Dunbar
ISBN 978-1-4063-7331-8
Sunday, September 3, 2017
True Love Had Its Name for A Reason
I briefly toyed with the idea that I should try to convince her that nothing I had told her was true. That we were more magical realism than science fiction, specifically that branch of literary fiction that comes complete with an unreliable narrator. That I wasn't really an alien. That I was a human who'd had a breakdown, and there was nothing extraterrestrial or extramarital about me. Gulliver might have known what he had seen, but Gulliver had a fragile mind. I could easily denied everything. A dog's health fluctuates. People fall off roofs and survive. After all, humans - especially adult ones - want to believe the most mundane truths possible. They need to, in order to stop their worldviews, and their sanity, from capsizing and plunging them into the vast ocean of incomprehensible.
But it seemed too disrespectful, somehow, and I couldn't do it. Lies were everywhere on this planet, but true love had its name for a reason. And if a narrator tells you it was just a dream, you want to tell him he has simply passed from one delusion into another one, and he could wake from this new reality at any time. You had to stay consistent to life's delusions. All you had was your perspective, so objective truth was meaningless. You has to choose a dream and stick with it. Everything else was a con. And once you had tasted truth and love in the same potent cocktail, there had to be no more tricks. But while I knew I couldn't correct this version of things with any integrity, living with it was hard.
The Humans, P263-264
Matt Haig
ISBN 978-0-85786-876-3
Sunday, August 27, 2017
Molecules Within The Beast
He sighed and shook his head. "No, I do not think that," he said, in a voice which was mine but deeper, somehow, and flatter. "I do not see a separation. I have lived with a human for only a few days, but I have seen violence and hypocrisy that runs through this species."
"Yes, but there is good in them. A lot of good."
"No. I don't see it. They can sit and watch dead human bodies on TV screens and feel nothing at all."
"That's how I saw it at first, but-"
"They can drive thirty miles every day and feel good about themselves for recycling a couple of empty jam jars. They can talk about peace being a good thing yet glorify war. They can despise the man who kills his wife in rage but worship the indifferent soldier who drops a bomb killing a hundred children."
"Yes, there is a bad logic here, I agree with you, yet I truly believe-"
He wasn't listening. He stood up now, state at me with determined eyes as he paced the room and delivered his speech. "They believe God is always on their side, even if their side is at odds with the rest of their species. They have no way of coming to terms with what are, biologically, the most import events that happen to them - procreation and death. They pretend to know that money can't buy happiness, yet they would choose money every time. They celebrate mediocrity at every available opportunity and love to see other's misfortune. They have lived on this planet for over a hundred thousand generations and yet they still have no idea about who they really are or how they should really live. In fact, they know less now than they once did."
"You're right, but don't you think there is something beautiful in these contradictions, something mysterious?"
"No. No, I do not. What I think is that their violence will has helped them dominate the world and 'civilize' it, but now there is nowhere left for them to go, and so the human world has turned in on itself. It is a monster that feats on its own hands. And still they do not see the monster, or if they do, they do not see that they are inside it, molecules within the beast."
... ...
The Humans, P248-249
Matt Haig
ISBN 978-0-85786-876-3
Sunday, August 20, 2017
A Hard Thing to Get It Right
She had stuff to give, but it was ungiven; it was locked away.
And I felt an incredible excitement at being able to witness the love reemerge inside her, because it was a total, prime-of-life love. The kind that could only be possible in someone who was going to die at some point in the future, and also someone who had lived enough to know that loving and being loved back was a hard thing to get right, but when you managed it, you could see forever.
Two mirrors, opposite and facing each other at perfectly parallel angles, viewing themselves through the other, the view as deep as infinity.
Yes, that was what love was for. (I may not have understood marriage, but I understood love, I was sure of it.) Love was a way to live forever in a single moment, and it was also a way to see yourself as you had never actually seen yourself, and made you realize - having done so - that this view was a more meaningful one than any of your previous self-perceptions and self depictions. Even though, the big joke was, indeed the very biggest joke in the universe was, that Isobel Martin believed I had always been a human called Andrew Martin who had been born 100 miles away in Sheffield, and not in fact 8,653,178,431 light years away.
The Humans, P208-209
Matt Haig
ISBN 978-0-85786-876-3
Saturday, August 19, 2017
Tug of War
Skittles and Neil raced around the classroom. They knocked over paints and scattered the books.
Skittles grabbed Miss Wing's green hat. Then Neil grabbed the other side.
Miss Wing shouted at the birds but they didn't listen, they just kept playing tug of war with her hat!
Polly looked at Ronita.
Ronita looked at Polly.
And they both started to laugh!
Polly and the Puffin, The New Friend, P52-53
Jenny Colgan
ISBN 978-1-5102-0090-6
Not So Easy
Polly looked at Ronita. Ronita looked at Polly.
It's not so easy to make friends just like that. They didn't talk to each other for a little while.
"I hve dungarees," said Ronita finally.
"Oh," said Polly. "I have a bird. At home."
"I have a bird!" said Ronita.
"No you don't," said Polly. "I have a bird."
"Yes I DO!" Ronita raised her voice.
"No you DON"T!" Polly raised hers back.
... ...
Polly and the Puffin, The New Friend, P29-30
Jenny Colgan
ISBN 978-1-5102-0090-6
Shoes are Expensive
The walked along the harbour wall, but Polly didn't jump up on it as she usually did. Instead, she dragged the toes of her shoes on the cobbles.
"I also think," said Polly, "you should not have another baby while I am at school."
"OK, I won't do that," said Mummy.
"Good," said Polly. "Because, you know. You already have me and Neil. And that is Quite Enough."
"I agree," said Mummy. "Also, shoes are expensive."
Polly and the Puffin, The New Friend, P18-19
Jenny Colgan
ISBN 978-1-5102-0090-6
Sunday, August 13, 2017
Heaven is a Place where Nothing Ever Happens
Heaven is a Place where Nothing Ever Happens
I was back at home, on Vonnadoria, and it was exactly how it had always been. And I was exactly how I had always been, among them, the hosts, feeling no pain and no fear.
Our beautiful, warless world, where I could be entranced by the purest mathematics for all eternity.
Any human who arrived here, gazing at our violet landscapes, might well have believed they had entered Heaven.
But what happened in Heaven?
What did you do there?
After a while, didn't you crave flaws? Love and lust and misunderstandings, and maybe even a little violence to liven things up? Didn't light need shade? Didn't it? Maybe it didn't. Maybe I was missing the point. Yes, to exist with an absence of pain. Yes, maybe that was the only aim you needed in life. It certainly had been, but what happened if you'd never required that aim because you were born after that goal had been met? I was younger than the hosts. I did not share their appreciation of just how lucky I was. Not anymore. Not even in a dream.
The Humans, P174
Matt Haig
ISBN 978-0-85786-876-3
Saturday, August 12, 2017
Flying Lemurs
Don't worry. You don't have to jump. There are lots of other things you're good at.
You're really good at having the fluffiest ever tail ...
You're brilliant at playing the tambourine ...
And you're fantastic at throwing custard pies.
Flying Lemurs
Zehra Hicks
ISBN 978-1-4472-8665-3
Sunday, August 6, 2017
Once It Started to Slip It Gained Mass
... ... . Human life, I realised, got progressively worse as you got older, by the sound of things. You arrived, with baby feet and hands and infinite happiness, and then the happiness slowly evaporated as your feet and hands grew bigger. And then, from the teenage years onwards, happiness was something you could lose your grip of and once it started to slip it gained mass. It was as if the knowledge that it could slip was the thing that made it more difficult to hold, no matter how big your feet and hands were.
The Humans, P117
Matt Haig
ISBN 978-0-85786-876-3
Sunday, July 30, 2017
The pleasure of Counting without Realising You were Counting
This primitivism struck me as funny. And so was the idea that the music had anything whatsoever to do with those dead planets. But it seemed to soothe Newton a little bit, and I must admit one or two parts of it had some kind of effect on me, a kind of electrochemical effect. Listening to music, I realised, was simply the pleasure of counting without realising you were counting. As electrical impulses were transported from the neurons in my ear through my body, I felt - I don't know - calm. It made that strange unease that had been with me since I had watched Daniel Russell die on his carpet settle a little.
The Humans, P99
Matt Haig
ISBN 978-0-85786-876-3
Saturday, July 29, 2017
Because of It
There are other questions, too, that humans have in bookstores. Such as, as it one of those books they read to feel clever, or one of those they will pretend never to have read in order to stay looking clever? Will it make them laugh, or cry? Or will it simply force them to stare out of the window watching the tracks of raindrops? Is it a true story? Or is it a false one? Is it the kind of story that will work on their brain or one which aims for lower organs? is it one of those books that ends up acquiring religious followers or getting burned by them? Is it a book about mathematics or - like everything else in the universe - simply because of it?
Yes, there are lots of questions. And even more books. So, so many. Humans in their typical Human way have written for too many to get through. Reading is added to that great pile of things - work, love, sexual prowess, the word they didn't say when they really needed to say them - that they are bound to feel a bit dissatisfied about.
The Humans, P18-19
Matt Haig
ISBN 978-0-85786-876-3
Sunday, July 23, 2017
比赛
颁奖的音乐奏起时，我觉得好尴尬。
第一名的人，兴奋得休克，送医院急救无法来领奖。
第二名的人，不甘心输了，拒绝领奖。
第四名的人说：“因为不是前三名，没有脸领奖。”
第五名的人说：“第四名都不想领奖了，我也不好意思领奖。”
第三名的我好寂寞，这明明是个快乐的时刻……
第一名的人，兴奋得休克，送医院急救无法来领奖。
第二名的人，不甘心输了，拒绝领奖。
第四名的人说：“因为不是前三名，没有脸领奖。”
第五名的人说：“第四名都不想领奖了，我也不好意思领奖。”
第三名的我好寂寞，这明明是个快乐的时刻……
明明只是个小小比赛嘛！
人生的竞赛还多着呢！
人生的竞赛还多着呢！
≪照相本子≫ 62-63页
几米 作品
ISBN 978-986-213-745-1
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