出处：Alan Rosenthal. "Staying Alive", an article from New Challenges for Documentary eidted by him and John Corner.
影展及论坛：
Co-financing Forum in Amsterdam (IDFA)：每年在荷兰的阿姆斯特丹举办。它也有一些对独立纪录片制作人的资助项目。其中有一个针对发展中国家的Jan Vrijman基金项目（JVF）。
International Documentary Association (IDA)：见下。
Hot Docs：加拿大国际纪录片电影节。影展期间有纪录片交易大会。
与纪录片销售有关的三本杂志：
RealScreen: 位于加拿大多伦多的一本杂志，双月刊。侧重于北美市场（如Discovery）。有很多业界动态的最新信息。电子版pdf浏览。
International Documentary：出版方是一个叫International Documentary Association的扶持纪录片制的作非营利组织，位于美国的洛杉矶。它有一个fiscal sponsorship的项目，旨在帮助独立纪录片制作人募集资金，同时它还提供各种愿意赞助纪录片制作的基金、组织的信息。
*DOX：位于丹麦，双月刊。
没找到这本杂志，倒是google到CPH:DOX纪录片论坛，每年在哥本哈根举行一次。
一个网站：
AIVF (Association of Independent Video and Filmmakers): 一个专注于独立纪录片的非营利组织。网站上有很多给独立纪录片制作者的建议和指导。
2010年7月29日星期四
2010年7月25日星期日
2010年7月21日星期三
勒·柯布西耶的一段話
You employ stone, wood and concrete, and with these materials you build houses and palaces. That is construction. Ingenuity is at work.
你採用石料、木料、水泥，你用它們建造房宮殿宇。這就是營造。你的智慧開始啟動。
But suddenly you touch my heart, you do me good, I am happy and I say: "This is beautiful." That is Architecture. Art enters in.
但是突然，你打動了我的心，我感到身心愉悅，我說：“真美啊。”於是，它就成了建築，藝術走了進來。
My house is practical. I thank you, as I might thank Railway engineers, or the Telephone service. You have not touched my heart.
我的屋子很實用。我感謝你，就像我感謝鐵路工程師和電話佈線員。但是它沒有打動我。
But suppose that walls rise towards heaven in such o way that I am moved. I perceive your intentions. Your mood has been gentle, brutal, charming or noble. The stones you have erected tell me so.
但是假設所有的牆壁都直衝雲霄，我因此而為之動容。我覺察到了你的意圖。你在建造它們的時候既溫柔又粗獷，既迷人又高貴。你讓這些石頭高高聳起，它們告訴了我。
You fix me to the place and my eyes regard it. They behold something which expresses a thought. A thought which reveals itself without word or sound, but solely by means of shapes which stand in a certain relationship to one another. These shapes are such that they are clearly revealed in light. The relationships between them have not necessarily any reference to what is practical or descriptive. They are a mathematical creation of your mind. They are the Language of Architecture. By the use of raw materials and starting from conditions more or less utilitarian, you have established certain relationships which have aroused my emotions.
你讓我執著於這塊地方，我的雙眼開始思考它，注視著它，因為它表達著一種思想。無需言語、聲音，僅憑各種相互關聯的構造，這一思想就能自我顯現。光線之下，這些構造呈現得無比清晰。它們之間的關係並不一定與實用、樸素有關。它們來自你大腦的創造，它們是建築的語言。你使用的那些原材料最初只是一堆實用的東西，但你在它們之間建立了聯繫，我的情感而因此共鳴。
This is Architecture.
這就是建築
-- 勒·柯布西耶，Towards a New Architecture (translated from French by Frederick Etchells), Architectural Press
這段表明柯布西耶對建築以及藝術的看法：
1，藝術是一種美，美是一種能打動人心、喚起人類內心情感的東西。
2，建築是一種藝術，一種美，因為它能打動人心。如果做不到這一點，一幢房子只是一堆死物，和交織的鐵路線和電話線無異。
3，要讓建築成為藝術、打動人心，建築師需要有意識地組織各種材料，用它們塑造各種形狀，並在這些形狀之間建立某種聯繫。
那麼，到底是怎麼樣的一種聯繫呢？
* 在學校圖書館搜索圖書的時候，按照作者姓氏檢索，輸入corbusier，查詢結果竟然是0。上wiki找到了柯布西耶的原名，輸進去，結果還是0。無奈，只好輸入其中一本書名，顯示的結果裏不僅有這本書，還有作者的名字le corbusier。難道le corbusier是作為整個姓氏的？輸入le corbusier，唰——滿屏都是他的書。
你採用石料、木料、水泥，你用它們建造房宮殿宇。這就是營造。你的智慧開始啟動。
But suddenly you touch my heart, you do me good, I am happy and I say: "This is beautiful." That is Architecture. Art enters in.
但是突然，你打動了我的心，我感到身心愉悅，我說：“真美啊。”於是，它就成了建築，藝術走了進來。
My house is practical. I thank you, as I might thank Railway engineers, or the Telephone service. You have not touched my heart.
我的屋子很實用。我感謝你，就像我感謝鐵路工程師和電話佈線員。但是它沒有打動我。
But suppose that walls rise towards heaven in such o way that I am moved. I perceive your intentions. Your mood has been gentle, brutal, charming or noble. The stones you have erected tell me so.
但是假設所有的牆壁都直衝雲霄，我因此而為之動容。我覺察到了你的意圖。你在建造它們的時候既溫柔又粗獷，既迷人又高貴。你讓這些石頭高高聳起，它們告訴了我。
You fix me to the place and my eyes regard it. They behold something which expresses a thought. A thought which reveals itself without word or sound, but solely by means of shapes which stand in a certain relationship to one another. These shapes are such that they are clearly revealed in light. The relationships between them have not necessarily any reference to what is practical or descriptive. They are a mathematical creation of your mind. They are the Language of Architecture. By the use of raw materials and starting from conditions more or less utilitarian, you have established certain relationships which have aroused my emotions.
你讓我執著於這塊地方，我的雙眼開始思考它，注視著它，因為它表達著一種思想。無需言語、聲音，僅憑各種相互關聯的構造，這一思想就能自我顯現。光線之下，這些構造呈現得無比清晰。它們之間的關係並不一定與實用、樸素有關。它們來自你大腦的創造，它們是建築的語言。你使用的那些原材料最初只是一堆實用的東西，但你在它們之間建立了聯繫，我的情感而因此共鳴。
This is Architecture.
這就是建築
-- 勒·柯布西耶，Towards a New Architecture (translated from French by Frederick Etchells), Architectural Press
這段表明柯布西耶對建築以及藝術的看法：
1，藝術是一種美，美是一種能打動人心、喚起人類內心情感的東西。
2，建築是一種藝術，一種美，因為它能打動人心。如果做不到這一點，一幢房子只是一堆死物，和交織的鐵路線和電話線無異。
3，要讓建築成為藝術、打動人心，建築師需要有意識地組織各種材料，用它們塑造各種形狀，並在這些形狀之間建立某種聯繫。
那麼，到底是怎麼樣的一種聯繫呢？
* 在學校圖書館搜索圖書的時候，按照作者姓氏檢索，輸入corbusier，查詢結果竟然是0。上wiki找到了柯布西耶的原名，輸進去，結果還是0。無奈，只好輸入其中一本書名，顯示的結果裏不僅有這本書，還有作者的名字le corbusier。難道le corbusier是作為整個姓氏的？輸入le corbusier，唰——滿屏都是他的書。
2010年7月20日星期二
再見，阿道夫
薩賓——沒有娜——是在Cardiff學習交通、城規的德國博士生。我忘了前天是怎麼跟她提起歷史問題的。
“那段歷史我們一般場合是不講的。”薩賓一邊吃著晚飯一邊說。
“那希特勒呢？是個敏感詞嗎？”我坐在她對面，喝著剛泡好的綠茶。
薩賓呶呶嘴。“歷史課上你說這個名字、討論這個人當然沒問題。但是你要是坐在咖啡館外喝咖啡，嘴裡冒出阿道夫·希特勒這個名字，你身旁的人就會朝你白眼的。這也是我不能理解我們德國上一輩人的地方，他們總是羞於在公開場合談二戰那段歷史。像我爺爺奶奶，他們總覺得自己是罪人，好像那個戰爭責任都需要他們來擔負似的。可對於我來說，那已經過去了，我們不需要為上一代人犯的錯誤承擔罪責。雖然我這麼想，但在國內我一般也很少跟人討論這個。”
薩賓吃完了飯，洗刷了鍋碗，重新坐到桌子前。
“我聽說8在中國是個好數字？”
“對。這個數字表示錢、財富。”
“可你知不知道8在德國可是個倒霉數字？尤其是18這個數，沒人願意用。
“為什麼？”
“在字母表裡，第一個是A，第八個是H，18也就是AH，正好是他的名字縮寫。所以18這個數字是個很不好的數字，沒人願意用。”
我頓時被德國人建立在歷史學、符號學、字母學、民族心理學上的嚴密邏輯折服了。
“還比如，我的名字是薩賓·舒爾茨，首字母縮寫是SS，納粹時候有一個秘密警察組織的縮寫就是這個，所以填表格的時候別人能用縮寫，我就很鬱悶了，得把名字寫完整。”
“希特勒在德國是個常用的姓嗎？這麼說來，阿道夫這個名字還會有人取嗎？”
“其實希特勒不是德國人，他是奧地利的。但我們德國人會盡量把持自己，不再合併他們了。”薩賓朝我會心一笑，“不過，阿道夫這個名字是沒有人再用了。它算是被封起來，專供那個人使用了。”
“那段歷史我們一般場合是不講的。”薩賓一邊吃著晚飯一邊說。
“那希特勒呢？是個敏感詞嗎？”我坐在她對面，喝著剛泡好的綠茶。
薩賓呶呶嘴。“歷史課上你說這個名字、討論這個人當然沒問題。但是你要是坐在咖啡館外喝咖啡，嘴裡冒出阿道夫·希特勒這個名字，你身旁的人就會朝你白眼的。這也是我不能理解我們德國上一輩人的地方，他們總是羞於在公開場合談二戰那段歷史。像我爺爺奶奶，他們總覺得自己是罪人，好像那個戰爭責任都需要他們來擔負似的。可對於我來說，那已經過去了，我們不需要為上一代人犯的錯誤承擔罪責。雖然我這麼想，但在國內我一般也很少跟人討論這個。”
薩賓吃完了飯，洗刷了鍋碗，重新坐到桌子前。
“我聽說8在中國是個好數字？”
“對。這個數字表示錢、財富。”
“可你知不知道8在德國可是個倒霉數字？尤其是18這個數，沒人願意用。
“為什麼？”
“在字母表裡，第一個是A，第八個是H，18也就是AH，正好是他的名字縮寫。所以18這個數字是個很不好的數字，沒人願意用。”
我頓時被德國人建立在歷史學、符號學、字母學、民族心理學上的嚴密邏輯折服了。
“還比如，我的名字是薩賓·舒爾茨，首字母縮寫是SS，納粹時候有一個秘密警察組織的縮寫就是這個，所以填表格的時候別人能用縮寫，我就很鬱悶了，得把名字寫完整。”
“希特勒在德國是個常用的姓嗎？這麼說來，阿道夫這個名字還會有人取嗎？”
“其實希特勒不是德國人，他是奧地利的。但我們德國人會盡量把持自己，不再合併他們了。”薩賓朝我會心一笑，“不過，阿道夫這個名字是沒有人再用了。它算是被封起來，專供那個人使用了。”
2010年7月15日星期四
那些被革了命的漢字
本來這些字都長著不同的面孔，“花開兩朵，各表一枝”。將這些意義本不同的字簡化成同一個字後，消失的是那個意義所寄託的、一路沿承下來的歷史符號。《淮南子》有載：“昔者倉頡作書，而天雨粟，鬼夜哭。”古人敬畏文字。可能這樣說有煽情之情，但如果把下面這些字看成是有生命的個體，則那些消失的意符則是被抹去的生命。如果漢字的簡化不是刪減繁多的筆劃（如學-->学，龜-->亀），而是要破壞漢字“物種”的多樣性，這樣的簡化有什麼意義？
五四時期，魯迅說艱深的漢字乃是開啟民智的阻礙；漢字不簡化，則民族必亡。魯迅的謂之簡化是哪一種簡化？難道開啟民智、提高民族素質的根本不是普及教育嗎？
發現有必要梳理一下漢字簡化的歷史：歷次漢字簡化方案到底怎麼簡、簡化了哪些字？民國時期與共產黨執政後漢字簡化措施有哪些異同？
後：博士後
-- 經簡化--> 后
后：皇太后
游：游泳
-- 經簡化--> 游
遊：西遊記
*《西遊記》雖然裏面也有趟水渡河，但總不能把腳給整沒了吧
干：干戈、天干地支
幹：幹活、幹你老母 -- 經簡化-->干
乾：乾渴、乾柴烈火
髮：头发
-- 經簡化--> 发
發：發财
* 發簡化為发見1935年中華民國推行的《第一批簡體字表》，但次年初改革就暫緩推行了
歷：歷史
-- 經簡化--> 历
曆：日曆
雲：我的心上人會駕著雲彩來娶我
-- 經簡化--> 云
云：古人云，孫子們老想革這革那
面：面孔
-- 經簡化--> 面
麵：麵條
里：里程
-- 經簡化--> 里
裏（裡）：裏面
穀：稻穀
-- 經簡化--> 谷
谷：山谷
隻：左手一隻雞，右手一隻鴨
-- 經簡化-->只
只：我只想說，這個世界真操蛋啊
不知道黨是什麼時候簡化成党的，黑社會組織馬上變成兄弟連了。
我想起來，初中的時候去杭州參加書法比賽。臨場時突然得知，為配合簡體字推廣，比賽規定不得書寫繁體，選手拿到的命題必須用簡體字書寫。忘了我寫的是那首詩了，但記得裡面有個飛字，寫在紙上，一個“飞”，被我寫成了一隻在趴地上的蝸牛。很多平時用毛筆寫習慣了的繁體字，突然不知道該如何刪減筆劃，將它妥帖地安放在宣紙上。
方舟子，求求你還是專心打假吧：汉字简化常识
蘆笛：漢字簡化的是與非（上）、（下）
1977年12月20日中國文字改革委員會提出的《第二次漢字簡化方案（草案）》實在太他媽讓人崩潰了。不過那個時代，什麼事情幹不出來？
五四時期，魯迅說艱深的漢字乃是開啟民智的阻礙；漢字不簡化，則民族必亡。魯迅的謂之簡化是哪一種簡化？難道開啟民智、提高民族素質的根本不是普及教育嗎？
發現有必要梳理一下漢字簡化的歷史：歷次漢字簡化方案到底怎麼簡、簡化了哪些字？民國時期與共產黨執政後漢字簡化措施有哪些異同？
後：博士後
-- 經簡化--> 后
后：皇太后
游：游泳
-- 經簡化--> 游
遊：西遊記
*《西遊記》雖然裏面也有趟水渡河，但總不能把腳給整沒了吧
干：干戈、天干地支
幹：幹活、幹你老母 -- 經簡化-->干
乾：乾渴、乾柴烈火
髮：头发
-- 經簡化--> 发
發：發财
* 發簡化為发見1935年中華民國推行的《第一批簡體字表》，但次年初改革就暫緩推行了
歷：歷史
-- 經簡化--> 历
曆：日曆
雲：我的心上人會駕著雲彩來娶我
-- 經簡化--> 云
云：古人云，孫子們老想革這革那
面：面孔
-- 經簡化--> 面
麵：麵條
里：里程
-- 經簡化--> 里
裏（裡）：裏面
穀：稻穀
-- 經簡化--> 谷
谷：山谷
隻：左手一隻雞，右手一隻鴨
-- 經簡化-->只
只：我只想說，這個世界真操蛋啊
不知道黨是什麼時候簡化成党的，黑社會組織馬上變成兄弟連了。
我想起來，初中的時候去杭州參加書法比賽。臨場時突然得知，為配合簡體字推廣，比賽規定不得書寫繁體，選手拿到的命題必須用簡體字書寫。忘了我寫的是那首詩了，但記得裡面有個飛字，寫在紙上，一個“飞”，被我寫成了一隻在趴地上的蝸牛。很多平時用毛筆寫習慣了的繁體字，突然不知道該如何刪減筆劃，將它妥帖地安放在宣紙上。
方舟子，求求你還是專心打假吧：汉字简化常识
蘆笛：漢字簡化的是與非（上）、（下）
1977年12月20日中國文字改革委員會提出的《第二次漢字簡化方案（草案）》實在太他媽讓人崩潰了。不過那個時代，什麼事情幹不出來？
2010年7月14日星期三
從前有個姓鄭的小哥去游泳
從前有個姓鄭的小哥在威爾士的卡迪夫留學，有一天他去離住處不遠的Maindy Pool游泳。
Maindy Pool是游泳館的名字，因為它在Maindy路上。游泳館裏面分男女更衣室，互不相通。但游泳池是男女共用的，池子裏有男有女，有老有少，還有不少父親或母親是帶著自己的小孩一起來的。有些小孩還只是娃娃，圓滾滾、胖嘟嘟的，像一顆顆白白嫩嫩的娃娃菜，必須套著氣墊、大人一邊陪護才行。
姓鄭小哥用自以為標準的蛙泳姿勢，在慢速泳道裏游了幾圈就上岸了。他回到男更衣室，從儲衣櫃裏取出毛巾、洗浴液，走到一排蓮蓬頭下沖澡，同時在那裏沖澡的還有一個白人大叔。洗完上身洗下身——這個時候，一般害羞的小哥會穿著泳褲洗，但姓鄭小哥是個勇敢的小哥，雖然天賦不高，他還是脫掉了泳褲，光著腚坦然面對一旁晃著巨大天賦、撮著大腿的白人大叔。
就在這個時候，令姓鄭小哥意想不到的事情發生了。
一個白人大叔領著他的女娃娃走到了蓮蓬頭下，兩個人赤條條，一前一後，有說有笑。小姑娘奶聲奶氣地要爸爸給她毛巾。蓮蓬頭的水冲下來，小姑娘歡喜地一蹦一跳，一個轉身，面朝面看到了一旁赤條條的姓鄭小哥。這個時候，姓鄭小哥再勇敢，也難為情地抓過一旁仍在地上的泳褲，遮住了他天賦不高的地方。
"Don't jump. It's slippery."爸爸拉住女娃娃的手，要她停下來。
"Sorry, but I don't think it's a good idea to bring your daughter here."姓鄭小哥開口說話了。他有些害臊，也有些慍怒，因為游泳館的工作人員——另一名小哥——就在一旁拿著皮管子沖洗更衣室。
爸爸朝姓鄭小哥笑了笑，並沒有說什麼，低下頭繼續給女兒擦身子。女娃娃伸出胖嘟嘟的手指，指了指姓鄭小哥，說了幾句姓鄭小哥沒聽懂的話。
姓鄭小哥提著泳褲，護住天賦不高的地方，怏怏地走回儲衣櫃，快速擦乾身子，套上了內衣內褲，頓時覺得有了安全感。
這個時候，爸爸和女兒也來到了儲衣櫃旁。爸爸把女兒放在了中間的石台上，女娃娃一絲不掛地站在石台上，像是顆被摘了葉子、露出芯蕊的水汪汪的娃娃菜。在這顆娃娃菜的旁邊，一個白人老大爺正在脫去衣服和褲子，不緊不慢地換上了泳褲，並笑嘻嘻地跟一旁的娃娃菜說了幾句姓鄭小哥沒明白的話。爸爸光著身子從櫃子裡取出一個包裹，來到石台給女兒擦乾身子換上衣服。游泳館的小哥還在一旁捏著皮管沖著地面。
"Now, Daddy is gonna take you to see Andy."爸爸自己換上衣服後，抱起女兒出了更衣室的門。
姓鄭的小哥有些暈乎乎，他不解地問一旁冲地的游泳館小哥，"Is it all right for fathers to bring their daughters to the changing room?"
"Oh, yes."游泳館小哥抬起頭，望著姓鄭小哥說，"if the children are under 6, parents can bring them to the oppposite-sex changing room."看到姓鄭小哥困惑的眼神，游泳館小哥繼續道，"because there are single fathers and mothers. The kids are too little to leave them alone in the room to change themselves. It's just for security reason."
姓鄭小哥想起小時候，媽媽也會領著他去絲廠女浴室的大池子洗澡，心裏有些釋然了。
Maindy Pool是游泳館的名字，因為它在Maindy路上。游泳館裏面分男女更衣室，互不相通。但游泳池是男女共用的，池子裏有男有女，有老有少，還有不少父親或母親是帶著自己的小孩一起來的。有些小孩還只是娃娃，圓滾滾、胖嘟嘟的，像一顆顆白白嫩嫩的娃娃菜，必須套著氣墊、大人一邊陪護才行。
姓鄭小哥用自以為標準的蛙泳姿勢，在慢速泳道裏游了幾圈就上岸了。他回到男更衣室，從儲衣櫃裏取出毛巾、洗浴液，走到一排蓮蓬頭下沖澡，同時在那裏沖澡的還有一個白人大叔。洗完上身洗下身——這個時候，一般害羞的小哥會穿著泳褲洗，但姓鄭小哥是個勇敢的小哥，雖然天賦不高，他還是脫掉了泳褲，光著腚坦然面對一旁晃著巨大天賦、撮著大腿的白人大叔。
就在這個時候，令姓鄭小哥意想不到的事情發生了。
一個白人大叔領著他的女娃娃走到了蓮蓬頭下，兩個人赤條條，一前一後，有說有笑。小姑娘奶聲奶氣地要爸爸給她毛巾。蓮蓬頭的水冲下來，小姑娘歡喜地一蹦一跳，一個轉身，面朝面看到了一旁赤條條的姓鄭小哥。這個時候，姓鄭小哥再勇敢，也難為情地抓過一旁仍在地上的泳褲，遮住了他天賦不高的地方。
"Don't jump. It's slippery."爸爸拉住女娃娃的手，要她停下來。
"Sorry, but I don't think it's a good idea to bring your daughter here."姓鄭小哥開口說話了。他有些害臊，也有些慍怒，因為游泳館的工作人員——另一名小哥——就在一旁拿著皮管子沖洗更衣室。
爸爸朝姓鄭小哥笑了笑，並沒有說什麼，低下頭繼續給女兒擦身子。女娃娃伸出胖嘟嘟的手指，指了指姓鄭小哥，說了幾句姓鄭小哥沒聽懂的話。
姓鄭小哥提著泳褲，護住天賦不高的地方，怏怏地走回儲衣櫃，快速擦乾身子，套上了內衣內褲，頓時覺得有了安全感。
這個時候，爸爸和女兒也來到了儲衣櫃旁。爸爸把女兒放在了中間的石台上，女娃娃一絲不掛地站在石台上，像是顆被摘了葉子、露出芯蕊的水汪汪的娃娃菜。在這顆娃娃菜的旁邊，一個白人老大爺正在脫去衣服和褲子，不緊不慢地換上了泳褲，並笑嘻嘻地跟一旁的娃娃菜說了幾句姓鄭小哥沒明白的話。爸爸光著身子從櫃子裡取出一個包裹，來到石台給女兒擦乾身子換上衣服。游泳館的小哥還在一旁捏著皮管沖著地面。
"Now, Daddy is gonna take you to see Andy."爸爸自己換上衣服後，抱起女兒出了更衣室的門。
姓鄭的小哥有些暈乎乎，他不解地問一旁冲地的游泳館小哥，"Is it all right for fathers to bring their daughters to the changing room?"
"Oh, yes."游泳館小哥抬起頭，望著姓鄭小哥說，"if the children are under 6, parents can bring them to the oppposite-sex changing room."看到姓鄭小哥困惑的眼神，游泳館小哥繼續道，"because there are single fathers and mothers. The kids are too little to leave them alone in the room to change themselves. It's just for security reason."
姓鄭小哥想起小時候，媽媽也會領著他去絲廠女浴室的大池子洗澡，心裏有些釋然了。
2010年7月12日星期一
Ji Zhaohua and His Drawings
This article is written by Lao Liu, nickname of Zhang Lixian (张立宪), editor of Book Reservoir (读库, Duku) . You can read the original article on his blog. I translated some parts of it into English.
Eleven years ago when I was working for a magazine, a little boy would often come to our house to hang around and see what we were doing. If there was an article that needed illustrations, he would pick up a sheet of paper by hand and draw the pictures for us.
That little boy is called Ji Zhaohua (姬炤华). Eleven years later, he contacted me. He has got a family and career, and become Mr. Ji.
We had that reunion which came after eleven years through emails. I had a feeling from our correspondence that he was calm and peaceful, sturbbon and straightforward, with an air of old-fashioned manner . He was no longer the little boy eleven years ago indeed.
He contacted me for the matter of his teacher's manuscript. I asked him how his career as an illustrator was. He replied that he hadn't published comic drawings for many years, and that he wasn't optimistic about this field in China. He only attended international competitions occasionally and had done alright.
For these recent years, Ji Zhaohua and his wife have beeing exploring in children's literature. They write as well as draw ilustrations for some publishing houses in Taiwan. In March 2008, their first drawing book No! That's Wrong was published in the USA. The frist edition of that book has been sold out. Now they are working on their second book.
I asked him to draw bookplates (ex-libris) for Book Reservoir, and he sent me a couple of drawings he had done before, each of which was of different style. I picked one and used it in the 0803 issue of Book Reservoir.
Soon after the New Year of 2009, I received an e-mail from Ji Zhaohua. In it was a new bookplate dedicated to Book Reservoir. A pile of books fell off his hands when a poor intellectual was moving them. The page of one falling book was transparent, which reflected the man's sleeve like a glass, in which the sleeve was brand new and decorated with beatiful patterns. The illustration was both classic and surreal.
The technique he used in that drawing was fine and meticulous strokes which can be found in traditional Gongbi. The paper he used was handmade watercolour paper made in Britain. "The drawing is sort of a combination of Sino-Western elements. The surface of the paper is not smooth, which gives it a fantastic texture. Drawing on it has a quality of fresco." explained Ji Zhaohua.
I was so fond of it that I phoned him and asked him if he could make the bookplates a series, so that I could use them for this year's 6 issues of Book Reservoir.
He said yes.
A friend in Shanghai wanted to introduce Zhang Dachun's novels into Peopel's Republic of China, and she needed some one who could do the illustrations for them. I recommened Ji Zhaohua to her, and showed her that drawing. It is so vivid as if the person was alive. She praised
Later I phoned Ji Zhaohua and asked him if he was interested. Please give me some time to think about it. He answerd.
The next day he replied, Can I drop it? I just have the fear that too many tasks could reduce the quality of my drawings.
I passed on his reply to my friend, who said, I really hope he can be an established figure in drawing some day. He's very careful about what he should not do. I really admire that.
* To see more drawings by Ji Zhaohua, you can go to his blog: 黑云翻墨未遮山
Caesar kicked away a bundle of maps, shouting: "More!" Within a blink, millions of lives turned into white bones. From that moment on, things on that land, underneath which lied the wrongly smitten souls, were changed: ethnics, langauges, words, architecture, painting, music... such a change is upside-down and irrevocable. Today, we call the result of that change "tradition", and the process of that change "merging".
Eleven years ago when I was working for a magazine, a little boy would often come to our house to hang around and see what we were doing. If there was an article that needed illustrations, he would pick up a sheet of paper by hand and draw the pictures for us.
That little boy is called Ji Zhaohua (姬炤华). Eleven years later, he contacted me. He has got a family and career, and become Mr. Ji.
We had that reunion which came after eleven years through emails. I had a feeling from our correspondence that he was calm and peaceful, sturbbon and straightforward, with an air of old-fashioned manner . He was no longer the little boy eleven years ago indeed.
He contacted me for the matter of his teacher's manuscript. I asked him how his career as an illustrator was. He replied that he hadn't published comic drawings for many years, and that he wasn't optimistic about this field in China. He only attended international competitions occasionally and had done alright.
For these recent years, Ji Zhaohua and his wife have beeing exploring in children's literature. They write as well as draw ilustrations for some publishing houses in Taiwan. In March 2008, their first drawing book No! That's Wrong was published in the USA. The frist edition of that book has been sold out. Now they are working on their second book.
I asked him to draw bookplates (ex-libris) for Book Reservoir, and he sent me a couple of drawings he had done before, each of which was of different style. I picked one and used it in the 0803 issue of Book Reservoir.
Soon after the New Year of 2009, I received an e-mail from Ji Zhaohua. In it was a new bookplate dedicated to Book Reservoir. A pile of books fell off his hands when a poor intellectual was moving them. The page of one falling book was transparent, which reflected the man's sleeve like a glass, in which the sleeve was brand new and decorated with beatiful patterns. The illustration was both classic and surreal.
The technique he used in that drawing was fine and meticulous strokes which can be found in traditional Gongbi. The paper he used was handmade watercolour paper made in Britain. "The drawing is sort of a combination of Sino-Western elements. The surface of the paper is not smooth, which gives it a fantastic texture. Drawing on it has a quality of fresco." explained Ji Zhaohua.
I was so fond of it that I phoned him and asked him if he could make the bookplates a series, so that I could use them for this year's 6 issues of Book Reservoir.
He said yes.
A friend in Shanghai wanted to introduce Zhang Dachun's novels into Peopel's Republic of China, and she needed some one who could do the illustrations for them. I recommened Ji Zhaohua to her, and showed her that drawing. It is so vivid as if the person was alive. She praised
Later I phoned Ji Zhaohua and asked him if he was interested. Please give me some time to think about it. He answerd.
The next day he replied, Can I drop it? I just have the fear that too many tasks could reduce the quality of my drawings.
I passed on his reply to my friend, who said, I really hope he can be an established figure in drawing some day. He's very careful about what he should not do. I really admire that.
* To see more drawings by Ji Zhaohua, you can go to his blog: 黑云翻墨未遮山
Bookplate for the 0905 issue of Book Reservoir
Caesar kicked away a bundle of maps, shouting: "More!" Within a blink, millions of lives turned into white bones. From that moment on, things on that land, underneath which lied the wrongly smitten souls, were changed: ethnics, langauges, words, architecture, painting, music... such a change is upside-down and irrevocable. Today, we call the result of that change "tradition", and the process of that change "merging".
News-Knight and His One-Man's Newspaper
To define journalism is as impossible as to define a person. But be it print journalism or on-line journalism, be it press journalism or citizen journalism, they all have one thing in common: truth. The path to journalism is the path to truth.
-- Zhai Minglei (翟明磊)
"I hereby resign as a journalist of South Weekend. For the past three years, I have never used South Weekend as a tool to build my own fortune, or promote myself to a higher position. I came here for journalism. Now I'm leaving also for journalism. "
"It was insufferable to see your story be killed because it criticized the local government. It was an insult to the journalists who had made great efforts to write the story, and an insult to the integrity of journalism." Zhai Minglei explained in his resignation letter, "I had never seen such a thing happen in South Weekend before , and it was more than I could bear. "
The aborted story aforementioned was about the government's insufficient protection of Mingxiao Mausoleum, a royal cemetery of Ming Dynasty, in Nanjing. His colleagues had prepared for the story to be printed on the newspaper, but the new Chief Editor ordered it to be taken off for the reason that the news had targeted at the municipal authorities. Zhai Minglei protested. Then he was suspended. At last, he resigned.
"I hate to work in an environment where the news room was like bureaucratic institute and where news was not about truth. I must leave because I'm a knight of news." When recalling this incident, Zhai Minglei didn't seem to be reminiscent of the "glorious" time he had at South Weekend, "I'm not a nostalgic person. Past is dead history. When I look at that past, I was as if reading another person's story. Some people might sigh and say to me, 'What a pity. You should have dealt with it in a strategic way instead of confronting the newspaper and resigning.' It is a rational saying, but I'm an individualist. I can't just bend myself and play by the unfair rules."
Born in 1973, Zhai Minglei lived through the last 3 years of Cultural Revolution in his childhood. It was a time when the craziness of the country was waning, new thoughts were blooming and the first one-child generation was formed. The whole period of 1980s-- before the students' demonstration and government's crack-down on them in Tian'anmen Square in 1989-- was free, a time of "Enlightenment". Universities were permeated with liberated minds and freedom. Students would have dance party after class. Posters of different political views could be seen on the walls on campus. "I studied journalism at university, but I didn't spend much time in studying. I even sold my text books for beer because all that was written in the text books could be summarized in one sentence: do journalism under the party committee." Although learning little from the books, Zhai Minglei launched a newspaper for his class, called Mirror. He also went to the Department of Chinese Language, and published an article by his schoolmate "Reflection on Cultural Revolution". The school later order it to be removed. Upon graduation, he wrote "The Forth Power in the United States" as his dissertation, but no teacher wanted to grade it. "Individualism is rooted in my nature." said Zhai Minglei. "I studied little at university, but I developed my character, which always views the individual above everything."
After leaving college, Zhai Minglei didn't actually want to choose journalism as his career. However, he slowly realized that he couldn't fight against his nature. "I'm a freedom-lover, and a truth-teller. I'm full of curiosity and energy. So I ended up being a journalist soon after that because it suited me."
However, when submiting his resignation letter, Zhai Minglei had made his mind that he would not work for any press organization any more. There were two things he had learned from his work experiences: for a young man, if he wants to make some achievements, he must do it outside the "box"; and he must do it by starting with the little things.
Jumping out of the "box", Zhai Minglei established an NGO group Green Root Power together with his friends in 2003. "I didn't simply want to be a critic or challenger of the authorities. I also wanted to be a builder, to build citizenship in our society." The group was funded on the 80,000 yuan Zhai Minglei and his three other friends gave out. Their job was to train people how to do social work. Group members came from all walks of life. Zhai Minglei thought that by staying away from government and politics-- because it was "non-governmental"-- he could gain more freedom and do more things at a civil level. However, his training classes were under the police's supervision. Secret police followed their whereabouts, and even invited Zhai Minglei for "a cup of tea [2]". In 2005, Green Root Power was banned.
Nonetheless, Zhai Minglei didn't stop his effort in raising civil awareness among the grassroots and realizing his individualism. In that year, with the help from Sun Yat-Sen University, he launched the magazine Civil (民间). He was the chief editor and coordinator. "I could write any story I wanted because the magazine was independent and non-profit. It allowed me to interview the most ordinary people whose stories I had overlooked when I worked for the newspaper." As its name indicates, the magazine was all about the civil activities in China. Zhai Minglei wrote stories about young volunteers teaching in the village, about lawyers offering help to poor people, about animal activists trying to save bears from people's inhumane treatment. Again, the magazine got on the authorities' nerves. After several warnings and attempted suppressions, on November 29, 2007, police came into Zhai Minglei's home in Shanghai, searched his house, confiscated all the copies of the magazine, and took away the hard-drive from his computer. The two-year old magazine was officially claimed dead. "When I was involved in Green Root Poewr and Civil, I actually wanted to evade politics. But then I said to myself, Can I just report civil society and events of public interests? As it turns out-- No. Anything can go wrong when there is no democracy but dictatorship. No one can evade politics. One must have political awareness unless he wants to separates himself from civil life."
Right after the magazine was banned, Zhai Minglei decided to launch his own newspaper. "I didn't want to bring trouble to my friends any more. So I said, OK, I'm going to take the responsibilities on my own." He created a personal blog as an on-line newspaper-- "1bao", meaning One-Man's Newspaper, and became a citizen journalist. "1bao" carries on the style of the magazine Civil. It continues to focus on the ordinary people, whose voices are rarely heard or silenced. In its first edition, Zhai Minglei wrote on his "newspaper":
What China lacks is a healthy individualism. Therefore, "1bao" will be a medium of individualism. It may have prejudices or even arbitrariness, but it will never have lies.
When asked what significance it makes to be a citizen journalist under the harsh political situation in China, Zhai Minglei said what he feared was not the one-party dictatorship, nor the lack of democracy, but the declining pursuit of civil justice and civil morality. "I can't see that happen to our civil life. If nobody pursues those things, if nobody tells the truth, our country will die out." But three months after its launching, "1bao" was blocked in China. Although he has a mirror page of "1bao" on www.my1510.cn, the biggset platform of China's citizen journalists, Zhai Minglei still saw pieces of his news removed from the website because they didn't pass the censorship. How could he practise citizen journalism and spread his civil ideas then, when many people in China have no direct access to his blog and news on the mirror page is under censorship? "So long as a citizen journalist finds the topics of public interests and issues that people really care about, blockade or censorship won't be a problem. I remember once I wrote about Robert's Rules of Order on '1bao'. Surprisingly, a community civil rights activist contacted me and asked me for more means to break the blockade. I was so happy. When my articles are deleted from the website, I would try every way to break through, like when my story of Xu Zhiyong [3] was removed, I used docs.google.com to disseminate the artilce. I even put on free ads of google's tool to let more people know. A citizen journalist is totally dependent on himself. He writes what the mainstream media don't write, which proves that China has individuals. As long as individuals survive, we can make it, because the seeds of hope are sown in people's hearts."
But Zhai Minglei confessed that he was not always that upbeat. Sometimes he would also be hopeless and speechless, and stop updating his blog for weeks. His fear was mostly from the police's abusive use of power. "After I was questioned by the police for the first time, I was so paranoid that I would check the windows and door time after time at home." That's why Zhai Minglei wants to introduce citizen journalism to more people and make them join him. He compares every single citizen journalist to a wave. When enough waves are converging, the sea will emerge. That's when changes happen. "It's not complicated to practise citizen journalism. Everybody who wants to tell truth can do it. "
However, citizen journalism is different from press journalism. Sometimes simply the difference in names means difficulty. As a citizen journalist, Zhai Minglei is denied of interviews with government officials more than when he worked for South Weekend. "But I keep on trying. I offer the opportunity and my honesty to them. Identity isn't that important. Even if you are a student, tell them who you are. They might accept your interview request. Not all the interviewees judge you by whether you're useful to them or not." Sometimes the difference means flexibility. In the September of 2007, the local government in Longquan issued a notice to the farmers that their farmland would be taken back by the government together with their crops that were ready for harvest. Tension was increasingly high between two sides, and a conflict was on the edge of break. "1bao" then played as a participant in that incident when Zhai Minglei was following the story. He helped two sides arrive at negotiation. A bloody conflict was prevented from happening. "I think a citizen journalist should also be a participant in our civil life." commented Zhai Minglei, "In that sense, a citizen journalist changes the traditional understanding of a journalist."
But how can a citizen journalist tell a truthful story while he plays a role in it? "Avoid being tangled in the different groups of interests." said Zhai Minglei. "When I was reporting in Longquan, I paid for all my travels and accommodations. Although I was in a poor financial state, I must pay these fees myself. Only by doing so could it be possible for me to report objectively. Also because of my noninterested stance, both the government and farmers trusted me." Touching upon the money issue, I asked Zhai Minglei how he managed to handle it while working for his own newspaper. "I don't make money from my blog. It's just something I enjoy doing. I earn money from short-term jobs. I have academic contract with Hong Kong University, and I'm also a guest lecturer at South China Normal University. Other incomes are from writing and training programme."
As Zhai Minglei describes himself, he is a very simple person who lives a simple life. "I'm not an ambitious man who wants to make history, neither am I a decisive or calculating person. Every time I speak out because I can't keep it to myself-- I must say it. I act simply out of a citizen's conscience. I reported the news and I felt I did justice to my moral sense. When my stories get down to the readers, my mission is completed."
* This article is based on email interviews with Zhai Minglei, his resignation letter and two autobiographical articles, and another article about him written by Huang Jinfen. *Interview with Zhai Minglei conducted by Danwei: Youtube Video
[1] Project Hope (希望工程) is a Chinese public service project organized by the China Youth Development Foundation (CYDF) and the Communist Youth League (CYL) Central Committee. Started in October 30 1989, it aims to bring schools into poverty-stricken rural areas of China, to help children whose families are too poor to afford it to complete elementary school education.
[2] "to have a cup of tea" (喝茶) is a Chinese euphemism for secret police's interrogation.
[3] Xu Zhiyong (许志永) is a lecturer at the Beijing University of Post and Telecommunications. He was one of the founders of the NGO Open Constitution Initiative and an active rights lawyer in China who helped those underprivileged. In 2009, July 29, he was arrested at his home, and detained by Chinese authorities on charges of tax evasion.
2010年7月11日星期日
An Innocent Poem
The poem is originally titled Me and Woman, which is addressed in the first person (I/me), written by Yang Haisang (杨海桑). I came across the adapted version of the poem in Lao Liu's blog, adapted in a sense that the first person is changed into Man. The poem is said to be a perfect choice to read at a wedding ceremony. I translated it into English as follows:
Man and Woman
Man likes woman, man likes
to see woman
Man sees good in a good woman,
which turns his heart into a river of kindness
Every woman is a lovely thing
If God nods, she can
grow a lovely face, bear a lovely name and have a lovely voice
because she comes into the world
not to live, but to have a story
completed-- silently, to have it unfolded in her
She doesn't need the whole world, she only needs a man
who sees her and utters her name
Man knows that he comes from a woman
and between him and a woman
there lies the most innocent thing
When a man sees a hundred or a thousand women grow in beauty
he only hugs one, kisses her and marries her
what a romantic thing it is
simply to think of it makes me happy
男人和女人 （摘自老六的博客）
男人喜欢女人，男人喜欢
看见女人
男人看见很好的女人很好
于是他的心，善良如水
每一个女人都是一件可爱的事物
如若神点头示意，她就会
模样可人，名字好听，声音清纯
因为她来到这个世界上
不是为了生存，是为了一个故事
静悄悄，从她身上开始
她不需要整个世界，她只要一个人
看见她，念她的名字
男人从女人那里来，男人知道
他和女人之间
有一件最清白无邪的事
所以 男人看见一百个一千个女人美好地生长
只抱住其中一个，亲亲她，娶她为妻……
这件事啊，如此浪漫
只想一想，就是幸福
Man and Woman
Man likes woman, man likes
to see woman
Man sees good in a good woman,
which turns his heart into a river of kindness
Every woman is a lovely thing
If God nods, she can
grow a lovely face, bear a lovely name and have a lovely voice
because she comes into the world
not to live, but to have a story
completed-- silently, to have it unfolded in her
She doesn't need the whole world, she only needs a man
who sees her and utters her name
Man knows that he comes from a woman
and between him and a woman
there lies the most innocent thing
When a man sees a hundred or a thousand women grow in beauty
he only hugs one, kisses her and marries her
what a romantic thing it is
simply to think of it makes me happy
男人和女人 （摘自老六的博客）
男人喜欢女人，男人喜欢
看见女人
男人看见很好的女人很好
于是他的心，善良如水
每一个女人都是一件可爱的事物
如若神点头示意，她就会
模样可人，名字好听，声音清纯
因为她来到这个世界上
不是为了生存，是为了一个故事
静悄悄，从她身上开始
她不需要整个世界，她只要一个人
看见她，念她的名字
男人从女人那里来，男人知道
他和女人之间
有一件最清白无邪的事
所以 男人看见一百个一千个女人美好地生长
只抱住其中一个，亲亲她，娶她为妻……
这件事啊，如此浪漫
只想一想，就是幸福
2010年7月5日星期一
踢点球要从娃娃抓起
戴夫说他小时候曾是西汉姆联队青训队的队员，后来因为膝盖受伤才退出。“没准我现在已经是职业球员，在踢英超呢。”
所以这两天看球，听他在一旁讲，也注意到了以前从未留意的细节。看阿根廷比赛，除了对马拉多纳的英式仇恨外，看到德米凯利斯、海因策，戴夫也总是嗤之以鼻。“这些南美人，总喜欢飘一头长发。后卫怎么能留那么长的头发呢！”
“留长发怎么了？”我问。
“头球时不容易控制。而且他们不仅头发长，还油腻腻的，球会打滑的。你看德米凯利斯的头发，呃！”一个厌恶的声音从戴夫的喉咙里跳了出来。“我们在学校踢球，一律光头。你看英格兰的后卫，不是光头就是短发。”
“头发长短对头球影响真有那么大？”
“也不绝对。但你看那些南美球员的头发，太油腻了啊，用发箍箍也箍不住！”
阿根廷被德国屠杀后，戴夫开怀无比，“手球队，活该！这让我对英格兰的失败感觉好多了。”
“马拉多纳那个手球真得那么不可饶恕吗？要说那也是裁判的责任啊。换作谁也不会自己主动跟裁判说，刚才那个是手球，不该算进。”
“不不。那不一样，马拉多纳是个骗子(cheater)，他一开始就不应该伸手去打那个球。我没指望他当场主动承认。但你一开始就手球，那就是个骗子。”
看到乌拉圭的苏亚雷斯在球门线上挡出加纳队的射门时，戴夫大叫到：“手球！骗子！红牌！他应该被额外禁赛。”
我不知道是因为马拉多纳的上帝之手给英格兰人造成了沉重的心理创伤，还是真的因为不列颠人对诸如诚实、公平看得比什么都重。
乌拉圭和加纳的比赛最终还是要通过点球的方式一决胜负。
“噢，上帝。干嘛要踢点球呢。真受不了这样的结果方式。”戴夫用手蒙住了眼睛。
“不是很刺激嘛。再说这两支队跟我们又没关系。”
戴夫摇摇头：“我们受不了点球。这是我们文化的一部分，我们害怕点球。”
你书念多了吧？这点球恐惧跟文化有什么关系？我心想。
“我们在学校踢球，如果一场比赛打平，但又要分胜负的时候，会算点数，比如谁角球数多、射门次数多就算赢，不踢点球，那实在是要人命的事。所以英格兰踢点球，脚发抖，踢一回栽一回。没办法，足球学校里没这个。”
原来如此。
萨宾——没有娜——是住楼下的博士生，德国人。说起德国队，她一直用enjoy这个词，“他们是在享受(enjoy)比赛啊。你看穆勒、厄齐尔踢球，真是在玩游戏(enjoy the game)，我特别喜欢这种状态。”
“现在德国队里有一半人不是‘纯粹’的德国人，里面有波兰后裔、土耳其后裔，甚至还有加纳来的，你们不会觉得别扭？”
“不会。多种族融合(multi-nationalism)不是一个很好的趋势吗？而且像厄齐尔这样的土耳其后裔为德国队踢球，会提高土耳其人社区在德国的知名度，让他们更有社会地位。”
同样的问题我也问过另一个德国姑娘，她眼神有些诧异地看着我，“但他们都是德国籍啊！只要是德国籍的，代表德国踢球会有什么问题呢？”
这两天看到一些支持德国队的朋友的签名档，满是“意志”、“日耳曼”、“战车”这样的字眼。我一直觉得我们这个不会反省历史的民族，再来一场文革之类的运动，差的只是有人在天安门城楼振臂一挥。
所以这两天看球，听他在一旁讲，也注意到了以前从未留意的细节。看阿根廷比赛，除了对马拉多纳的英式仇恨外，看到德米凯利斯、海因策，戴夫也总是嗤之以鼻。“这些南美人，总喜欢飘一头长发。后卫怎么能留那么长的头发呢！”
“留长发怎么了？”我问。
“头球时不容易控制。而且他们不仅头发长，还油腻腻的，球会打滑的。你看德米凯利斯的头发，呃！”一个厌恶的声音从戴夫的喉咙里跳了出来。“我们在学校踢球，一律光头。你看英格兰的后卫，不是光头就是短发。”
“头发长短对头球影响真有那么大？”
“也不绝对。但你看那些南美球员的头发，太油腻了啊，用发箍箍也箍不住！”
阿根廷被德国屠杀后，戴夫开怀无比，“手球队，活该！这让我对英格兰的失败感觉好多了。”
“马拉多纳那个手球真得那么不可饶恕吗？要说那也是裁判的责任啊。换作谁也不会自己主动跟裁判说，刚才那个是手球，不该算进。”
“不不。那不一样，马拉多纳是个骗子(cheater)，他一开始就不应该伸手去打那个球。我没指望他当场主动承认。但你一开始就手球，那就是个骗子。”
看到乌拉圭的苏亚雷斯在球门线上挡出加纳队的射门时，戴夫大叫到：“手球！骗子！红牌！他应该被额外禁赛。”
我不知道是因为马拉多纳的上帝之手给英格兰人造成了沉重的心理创伤，还是真的因为不列颠人对诸如诚实、公平看得比什么都重。
乌拉圭和加纳的比赛最终还是要通过点球的方式一决胜负。
“噢，上帝。干嘛要踢点球呢。真受不了这样的结果方式。”戴夫用手蒙住了眼睛。
“不是很刺激嘛。再说这两支队跟我们又没关系。”
戴夫摇摇头：“我们受不了点球。这是我们文化的一部分，我们害怕点球。”
你书念多了吧？这点球恐惧跟文化有什么关系？我心想。
“我们在学校踢球，如果一场比赛打平，但又要分胜负的时候，会算点数，比如谁角球数多、射门次数多就算赢，不踢点球，那实在是要人命的事。所以英格兰踢点球，脚发抖，踢一回栽一回。没办法，足球学校里没这个。”
原来如此。
萨宾——没有娜——是住楼下的博士生，德国人。说起德国队，她一直用enjoy这个词，“他们是在享受(enjoy)比赛啊。你看穆勒、厄齐尔踢球，真是在玩游戏(enjoy the game)，我特别喜欢这种状态。”
“现在德国队里有一半人不是‘纯粹’的德国人，里面有波兰后裔、土耳其后裔，甚至还有加纳来的，你们不会觉得别扭？”
“不会。多种族融合(multi-nationalism)不是一个很好的趋势吗？而且像厄齐尔这样的土耳其后裔为德国队踢球，会提高土耳其人社区在德国的知名度，让他们更有社会地位。”
同样的问题我也问过另一个德国姑娘，她眼神有些诧异地看着我，“但他们都是德国籍啊！只要是德国籍的，代表德国踢球会有什么问题呢？”
这两天看到一些支持德国队的朋友的签名档，满是“意志”、“日耳曼”、“战车”这样的字眼。我一直觉得我们这个不会反省历史的民族，再来一场文革之类的运动，差的只是有人在天安门城楼振臂一挥。
姓屠夫的人
搬到了新屋，Tewksbury路103号。往西走两条街是一片巨大的公墓，那里埋葬着上辈的尸骨和有关他们的记忆。一张枯旧的长椅被安放在那里，与林立的墓碑相望。
我已经在这片街区住了9个月了，可还是分不清那些街道和街道两旁的房子。这里跟U2的那首歌正好相反——it's where the streets do have names。这里的路大多取自于人名：罗伯特、弗洛伦蒂娜、布鲁斯、斯班瑟、范妮，但是他们长着千篇一律的面孔：连成片的房子一户挨着一户，颜色、门窗的尺寸和屋子造型都像是遵循了一个标准，唯一能区别它们的是门牌号上的数字以及住久之后的直觉。
我的隔屋住着一个叫屠夫的英格兰人——他的姓是Slaughter。“可能我们的祖辈是杀猪的吧。”戴夫笑着说。盖在他一米九零身体上的是一头橘红的头发。“我爸妈一个金发、一个黑发，奇怪的是生下三个小孩都是红头发。”
戴夫说他三岁那年参加了父母的婚礼。“我爸妈一直拖着，想看看带着我是不是能过日子。结果又怀上了我妹妹，再也拖不下去了，终于把我一道拖去参加了他俩的婚礼。”
戴夫念的是中世纪欧洲研究。我问他有没有想过去做研究或是教书，他说他不想，因为教书不赚钱。“很多人都觉得我这个专业出来就是当老师，但我要证明这样的想法是错的。钱能让我高兴，所以我要做能赚钱的工作。可能跟我劳动阶级的家庭出身有关吧，呵呵。”
我大致能体会清苦的家庭出身会让人对金钱有一种强烈的渴望，更何况金钱、权力这一类东西的魔力是不分阶级、肤色和种族的。但劳动阶级这四个字——确切的说是working class这个词——一开始也让我将戴夫与另外一些词发生了联系：勤俭、持家、善于家务。
我们这幢屋子住了5个人，共用一个卫生间。卫生间在二楼，进门的绳子负责亮灯和开动排风扇。头一次戴夫洗完澡出来，我进去后发现电灯亮着、排风扇嗡嗡吹着，我想那是他一时疏忽吧。第二次戴夫洗完澡出来，我进去后发现电灯和排风扇还是开着，我想可能是他赶时间一时失手吧。第三次我进去发现电灯和排风扇依旧开着，而那时戴夫正在屋里休闲地上网，我终于剪断了持家和他劳动阶级的联系。
戴夫早晨洗完澡，便去体操房健身。他现在是学校橄榄球队的队员，一个月之后是校际比赛，为此他还特地买来了蛋白质冲剂（protein shake）给自己长肌肉。“这玩意儿用牛奶泡，吃起来特别恶心。我眼一闭，嘴一张，咕咚一口就吞下去。”我来英国后一直很纳闷的一点是，为什么很多人那么不正经吃饭还能长那么大个？见到很多胖姑娘，也没见她们怎么吃一日三餐，很多时候一包薯片就是一顿中饭，但一身的赘肉就像是给肉联厂打的广告。戴夫的身体自然健壮，毕竟每天往健身房跑，但他的主食基本就是超市买的现成的牛肉汉堡，拿回家放烤炉一烤，就对付了。刚搬来这里的第二天，戴夫专门回到旧所给一个同住的哥们儿告别。“他人特别好，每回煮东西都给我留一份。”我来这里两个礼拜，有三回晚饭也给他“留了一份”，他高兴地直夸我人好。我问他为什么不自己煮饭呢，挺简单的一件事情，特别是你们英国人，开水里滋一下就能吃。“我妈不让我学。”戴夫回答说，“小时候去厨房做，她就说这也不对，那也不对，后来干脆就让我站一旁看了。”可现在你妈不在身边，你不是有煮饭的自由了？“从超市买省事嘛。”考虑原先认识的Mark还有宿舍楼上的另一个美国小哥也都是劳动阶级出身，但都是耍刀弄锅的好手，于是我对这样一个劳动阶级出身的英国小哥着实另眼相待。
出于感激之情，吃完饭戴夫都会主动要求洗碗。但是我见过他洗的碗，上面的洗洁精泡沫没冲掉，就直接放碗架里了。我想提醒他，“哎，泡沫得洗掉啊。”但这就好像提醒一个挖过鼻子的人脸上粘着鼻屎，让我很难开口。前两次我都谢绝了，第三次拗不过，碗还是让他洗了。他把碗从漂浮着洗洁精泡沫的水槽里撩出来，往架子上一放，就上楼了。我看着闪着七彩光的碗，泡沫一点一点地褪去，于是又拿过来用水冲了一遍。后来我发现他连自己的水壶都是这么处理的，于是很担心这劳动阶级一家子的身体健康。
戴夫的爷爷
“我爷爷是二战老兵，但在他死之前，我们都只知道他参加过那场战争，除此之外别无所知。他也闭口不谈，每回讲到那个年代，他都立即沉默，所以我们也不好再问。我奶奶那时跟我讲，我爷爷从战场上回来后，就几乎变了个人，因为看到了太多可怕的事情。我爷爷死后，我们从他的遗物里发现了他当兵时的军衔和番号，根据这些信息我们在档案馆找到了他当兵时的资料，原来他上过前线，去过敦克尔克，在德国的集中营解救过犹太人。战争对于胜利一方也毫无光荣可言，所以我一直是个和平主义者。”
我已经在这片街区住了9个月了，可还是分不清那些街道和街道两旁的房子。这里跟U2的那首歌正好相反——it's where the streets do have names。这里的路大多取自于人名：罗伯特、弗洛伦蒂娜、布鲁斯、斯班瑟、范妮，但是他们长着千篇一律的面孔：连成片的房子一户挨着一户，颜色、门窗的尺寸和屋子造型都像是遵循了一个标准，唯一能区别它们的是门牌号上的数字以及住久之后的直觉。
我的隔屋住着一个叫屠夫的英格兰人——他的姓是Slaughter。“可能我们的祖辈是杀猪的吧。”戴夫笑着说。盖在他一米九零身体上的是一头橘红的头发。“我爸妈一个金发、一个黑发，奇怪的是生下三个小孩都是红头发。”
戴夫说他三岁那年参加了父母的婚礼。“我爸妈一直拖着，想看看带着我是不是能过日子。结果又怀上了我妹妹，再也拖不下去了，终于把我一道拖去参加了他俩的婚礼。”
戴夫念的是中世纪欧洲研究。我问他有没有想过去做研究或是教书，他说他不想，因为教书不赚钱。“很多人都觉得我这个专业出来就是当老师，但我要证明这样的想法是错的。钱能让我高兴，所以我要做能赚钱的工作。可能跟我劳动阶级的家庭出身有关吧，呵呵。”
我大致能体会清苦的家庭出身会让人对金钱有一种强烈的渴望，更何况金钱、权力这一类东西的魔力是不分阶级、肤色和种族的。但劳动阶级这四个字——确切的说是working class这个词——一开始也让我将戴夫与另外一些词发生了联系：勤俭、持家、善于家务。
我们这幢屋子住了5个人，共用一个卫生间。卫生间在二楼，进门的绳子负责亮灯和开动排风扇。头一次戴夫洗完澡出来，我进去后发现电灯亮着、排风扇嗡嗡吹着，我想那是他一时疏忽吧。第二次戴夫洗完澡出来，我进去后发现电灯和排风扇还是开着，我想可能是他赶时间一时失手吧。第三次我进去发现电灯和排风扇依旧开着，而那时戴夫正在屋里休闲地上网，我终于剪断了持家和他劳动阶级的联系。
戴夫早晨洗完澡，便去体操房健身。他现在是学校橄榄球队的队员，一个月之后是校际比赛，为此他还特地买来了蛋白质冲剂（protein shake）给自己长肌肉。“这玩意儿用牛奶泡，吃起来特别恶心。我眼一闭，嘴一张，咕咚一口就吞下去。”我来英国后一直很纳闷的一点是，为什么很多人那么不正经吃饭还能长那么大个？见到很多胖姑娘，也没见她们怎么吃一日三餐，很多时候一包薯片就是一顿中饭，但一身的赘肉就像是给肉联厂打的广告。戴夫的身体自然健壮，毕竟每天往健身房跑，但他的主食基本就是超市买的现成的牛肉汉堡，拿回家放烤炉一烤，就对付了。刚搬来这里的第二天，戴夫专门回到旧所给一个同住的哥们儿告别。“他人特别好，每回煮东西都给我留一份。”我来这里两个礼拜，有三回晚饭也给他“留了一份”，他高兴地直夸我人好。我问他为什么不自己煮饭呢，挺简单的一件事情，特别是你们英国人，开水里滋一下就能吃。“我妈不让我学。”戴夫回答说，“小时候去厨房做，她就说这也不对，那也不对，后来干脆就让我站一旁看了。”可现在你妈不在身边，你不是有煮饭的自由了？“从超市买省事嘛。”考虑原先认识的Mark还有宿舍楼上的另一个美国小哥也都是劳动阶级出身，但都是耍刀弄锅的好手，于是我对这样一个劳动阶级出身的英国小哥着实另眼相待。
出于感激之情，吃完饭戴夫都会主动要求洗碗。但是我见过他洗的碗，上面的洗洁精泡沫没冲掉，就直接放碗架里了。我想提醒他，“哎，泡沫得洗掉啊。”但这就好像提醒一个挖过鼻子的人脸上粘着鼻屎，让我很难开口。前两次我都谢绝了，第三次拗不过，碗还是让他洗了。他把碗从漂浮着洗洁精泡沫的水槽里撩出来，往架子上一放，就上楼了。我看着闪着七彩光的碗，泡沫一点一点地褪去，于是又拿过来用水冲了一遍。后来我发现他连自己的水壶都是这么处理的，于是很担心这劳动阶级一家子的身体健康。
戴夫的爷爷
“我爷爷是二战老兵，但在他死之前，我们都只知道他参加过那场战争，除此之外别无所知。他也闭口不谈，每回讲到那个年代，他都立即沉默，所以我们也不好再问。我奶奶那时跟我讲，我爷爷从战场上回来后，就几乎变了个人，因为看到了太多可怕的事情。我爷爷死后，我们从他的遗物里发现了他当兵时的军衔和番号，根据这些信息我们在档案馆找到了他当兵时的资料，原来他上过前线，去过敦克尔克，在德国的集中营解救过犹太人。战争对于胜利一方也毫无光荣可言，所以我一直是个和平主义者。”
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