American Wife

Just finished this novel by Curtis Sittenfeld. It's some 500 pages, and I must confess I haven't for ages read a novel that long from the beginning to the end.

The story is told by the voice of Alice Blackwell, the main character of the book and who, basically, is Laura Bush in disguise. As written in the blurb: "American Wife is a work of fiction loosely inspired by the life of an American first lady. Her husband, his parents, and certain prominent members of his administration are recognizable. All other characters in the novel are products of the author's imagination, as are the incidents concerning them."

I suppose guys will find this book essentially feminine. There are detailed accounts of the psychology of a female at different stages of her life - as a child, a teenager, a young lady, a single woman, a married woman, a mother, a first lady. Alice is certainly reflective in character, perhaps because the novel is written in the first person narrative; but even readers (females) who are less of a ponderer than Alice are likely to find certain thought processes described in the book strikingly familiar - the sort of helplessness when stuck with an awkward date, the kind of shock when discovering certain truths about a family member, the estrangement when revisiting a place one used to live in, and so on - the author has done an impressive job in making Alice real.

So far so good for a book that is purely a novel, but the fact that Alice is actually based on Laura Bush gives the work a different perspective. Readers will inevitably compare the characters and incidents with the real ones under the Bush administration, but because there is only so much information available regarding public figures, it becomes impossible to judge whether a particular thing in the book is made up or not. Credit must be given to the research work done behind the scenes - the author quoted 5 reference books in her acknowledgments. However, one would ask: why write a novel based on Laura Bush? No hints are given in the author's acknowledgments, nor in the publisher's blurb. Perhaps it is just an experiment. But where political figures are involved, anything becomes political - is the author, after taking us through the life of Alice, inviting readers to review the Bush years in a more humanizing light? And to read this novel at this time, when Obama has just been elected as US President, gives it an interesting nuance.

The latter part of the book has a lot of descriptions on the frustration or irritation felt by Alice as a first lady when her statements are misquoted, or when friends betray her by revealing secrets or even untrue stories about her life. As readers start to sympathize with how difficult it is to be a first lady, the irony is, this novel may itself be an accomplice in betraying Laura Bush - I imagine the first lady will not be pleased when she reads about the various imagined incidents in the novel which, when mingled with other facts, suggest they may also be real? I hope she will take the book with good humour.

首爾驚艷

走在香港水泄不通的街上，與途人肩摩接踵，還要跟遞在面前的宣傳單張搏鬥的時候，我就像患上幽閉恐懼癥，差點沒尖叫出來。我不愛人多的地方；沒有空間使我窒息。

首爾的仁寺洞古董商街，卻令我對人多擠逼的地方另眼相看。那是一個由數條街道組成的地區，大概旺角般大小，美術館、古董店、工藝品店密集。這樣的一個沒有時裝、沒有最潮電子玩意的地方，要是放在香港，必定門可羅雀。但在首爾的周末傍晚，這樣的地區局然跟香港的旺角一般熱鬧，人來人往，像個盛大的嘉年華。

其中一棟名叫 Ssamzie Market 的建築物，內有數十家工藝品店，各樓層以斜道連接起來，本身就是一件藝術品。廣場上有畫家為遊人即場作人像素描；店鋪貨品各具特色；人們熙來攘往，不令人感到窒息，只覺目不暇給，別具氣氛。香港的西九，能同樣成功嗎？

離開古董商街時，忽見小巷外有指往畫廊的牌示；小巷內的畫廊尚能生存，足見首爾藝術行業的蓬勃。夜幕低垂，望著牌示，忽然想起：驀然回首，那人卻在、燈火闌珊處。

Mellow Autumn

Don't you just love it when you walk into the street in the morning, the air is crispy and the sky is blue? You can smell that autumn has come.

Some ten or even twenty years ago, that autumny breeze used to arrive in around September - when a new term just began, and the delightful weather seemed to give the new academic year a promising start. These days, thanks to global warming, autumn may not befall until November if there is any autumn at all.

It is amazing how weather affects the mood of a city. In summer, when it feels like a steaming kitchen outside but a freezing icebox indoors, our tempers are probably as fluctuating as the varying temperatures - it is easy to hover between the extremes of summer craziness and laziness. Once autumn is here, the mood changes - the city calms down and quietens; the city-dwellers' impatience disappears with the heat, and fine apparels replace loud summery attire.

I can still remember that autumn in Hokkaido, as I walked down the street, my senses fully absorbing the beautiful blue sky, the sweet crispy air and the autumn leaves - my heart was filled with both content and a wisp of inexplicable sadness that is generally associated with the season and, for a moment, I thought that life never felt so concrete before.

教化

上文談及港鐵喋喋不休的廣播後，竟即在龍應台寫在二十多年前的《野火集》裏讀到一篇文章， 控訴台灣當時的文字污染，可說是非常應景！其中一些精彩段落摘錄如下 ：

「道路， 是讓人走的，可是有人覺得路也要發揮宣導教化的功能。於是我們走路時， 眼睛還得忙碌地吸收知識；直的標語、橫的口號，像鞭子一樣抽打在眼睛上 ：尊師重道、消除髒亂、兩個孩子恰恰好……。火車，是讓人乘坐從甲地到乙地的，可是一坐下來，眼睛才閉上，耳朵就開始受訓：我們要團結合作、自立自強、努力奮鬥、自新向上，我們要……。信封，是用來裝信郵寄的，一翻過來，跳入眼裡就是『保我民族文化，還我民族自由』、『中國一定強』，我不知道寄張平信與中國一定強有甚麼關係。餐廳，是讓人享受食物的地方，可是一面喝湯，一面就躲不過紅柱上的貼條 :『注重食品安全，講究衛生習慣』，『大聲喧嘩，擾人安寧』。

......

「好，那麼到青翠的郊外走走吧！ 郊外沒有『寫』的污染。 看看遠山，啊，遠山上赫然有幾個巨大的字，由草木剪排而成，不是學校名稱就是偉人的名字。 看山不是山，看水不是水。 那麼看看近樹吧！ 近樹，被剪成魚，剪成鳥、兔、烏龜，反正就不是樹。 那麼走到岩邊遠眺吧！ 岩邊有個水泥作的涼亭，鮮紅的亭柱上，有字 : 萬惡淫為首，百善孝為先。 到空曠的海邊去吧，海邊應該只有水天無際。 不，海邊有個花枝招展的小廟，廟柱上的文字要人及早覺醒，回頭是岸。

「字字字字字字字，為什麼沒有人抗議字的污染，山不是山，水不是水，樹不是樹。 山、水、樹，對於某些人，似乎都只是宣傳道德思想的工具。......」

— 龍應台 · 《天羅地網》（原載於1986年5月17日自立晚報，後編入《野火集》）

龍先生對台灣愛之深，責之切；二十多年前已高瞻遠矚，抗議文字污染，拒受當權者的教化，提醒大眾留白空間和思想自由的重要。香港實應引以為戒，萬勿走上歐威爾社會之路！

Stop the stupid announcements!

There is no escape once stepping into an MTR station -

"When using the escalator, hold the handrail, stand firm, and don't walk."

(But everyone walks down the escalator during rush hours! Also, there are signs asking people to stand on the right to let the others walk on the left.)

Immediately followed by:
"Please use the lift if you are carrying baggage."

And without a pause, the jabbering continues to say:
"Eating or drinking is not allowed on trains or in the paid areas of stations."

And one or more of the above will be repeated non-stop in Cantonese, Mandarin and English as one journeys down to the platform, leaving no space for any peace or quiet.

It does not get better on the platform. "The train for Sheung Wan is arriving. Please let passengers exit first." (The train arrives; people crowd in and passengers cannot exit.) "Please stand back from the doors." "Please do not block the train doors when they are closing." and so on and so forth.

It was the last straw when they tried to spice things up - a simple message to hold the handrail on the escalator became "Be my friend and hold me tight.". Who is my friend?! Whom am I supposed to hold tight on my way to work on a Monday morning?! It did not come across clearly at all that passengers were meant to "befriend" the handrail by holding it tight. It is a relief that they seem to have stopped using this version of the announcement now.

The announcements become pointless as they are generally ignored. They certainly do not stop people from running down escalators, blocking train doors or eating and drinking on trains. On the other hand, their unnatural tones and repetition like nagging parents may actually defy disobedience. If I were a tourist in Hong Kong, I would question the sophistication of the city - do the people here really need such non-stop reminders for simple things like holding the handrail? A sign will do. In fact, I do not remember the undergrounds of other cities having similar repetitive announcements.

It's time to stop and let passengers have some peace!

即棄（附筆）

昨天談及壽司店停用即棄木筷，今天讀報竟見到相關報道，真巧。元綠「轉用可再洗筷子後，初步發現成本減半 」，這真令人興奮。
http://www.mingpaonews.com/20081013/gom1.htm

即棄

最近乘飛機，航空公司是我之前從未光顧過的，想不到竟遇到一個小驚喜。無他，只因這公司的飛機餐所附的餐具，並非即用即棄的那種。

即棄餐具的普及，常令我覺得很苦惱。在這個污染嚴重、廢物過盛的年代，卻有越來越多食肆的堂食都轉用紙杯木筷，實在是一個諷刺。有人說，即棄木筷經過消毒，比較衛生。但即棄木筷普及之前，倒不大見有人因筷子不潔而中毒啊。況且，許多即棄木筷都被驗出含有對健康有害的化學物質呢。

又有人說，即棄餐具不需清洗，可省點水。可是，那點水跟即棄餐具每天造成的大量廢物，大概不可比擬吧。日積月累，堆填區只有更快填滿。扔一對筷子容易，廢物卻是不會自動消失的。

曾幾何時，飛機餐都是附上可再用餐具的；九一一事件後，人人變成驚弓之鳥，於是飛機都轉用膠刀叉，卻顯得矯枉過正。飛機上可用來襲擊的東西，又何止區區餐具。

最近，地球之友成功游說一些連鎖壽司店，不再用即棄木筷，實是一喜訊。希望未來有更多食肆響應！

Under the Name

"Once upon a time, a very long time ago now, about last Friday, Winnie-the-Pooh lived in a forest all by himself under the name of Sanders.

('What does "under the name" mean?' asked Christopher Robin.

'It means he had the name over the door in gold letters and lived under it.' ...)"

-- A. A. Milne, Winne-the-Pooh

***
Sometimes, I guess we just shouldn't ask too much. Say when we learn something entirely new, or when we listen to a story - too many questions can be quite obstructive. On the other hand, it strikes me that I never challenged the expression "under the name" - perhaps we shouldn't have taken certain things for granted either!

「一個城市和他的書店」

由梁文道以國語主講。

由於時間關係，沒有留足全場。梁的觀察，現略作筆記如下：

· 一個城市的二手書市場是否蓬勃，往往跟那城市的年齡有關。在歷史較悠久的城市如倫敦、東京，二手書市場很具規模。年輕城市如深圳，則只有大書城，卻未見二手書市場。

· 在書量特大的書店，如紐約的Strand，人只能「碰」到一本書，很難去找一本書。

· 一間書店本身就是一座城市 -- 高崇的書架就如摩天大廈，店內的書就如城市的文化縮影。

· 臺灣的誠品，能二十四小時營業，在其他城市並不多見，成為一個話題。誠品甚至是越夜越擠。有些旅客特地兩三點才去逛誠品，因為在其他城市不能半夜逛書店。梁最喜歡誠品的木地板。

· 深圳的書城給人的感覺像Walmart，書是很多，但排列的形式，卻令人覺得書種貧乏。反而「二樓書店」，能反映主人的性格。

北海道札幌一家書店的一隅

Crossover?

There is currently an exhibition at the Hong Kong Visual Arts Centre featuring oil paintings by Chinese artist Chen Lianjun (陳連軍). The paintings are of various Chinese landscapes, in particular autumn scenes. There are also some portraits of Chinese villagers.

I am no expert in oil paintings, but I find Chen's works very refreshing. It seems to me that he is good at handling light and shade. The reflections in rivers and lakes are convincing too. Also, the combination of oil paintings with Chinese landscapes is creative (although I am not sure if he is the first person to try it) - brush and ink drawings would be more common in this context.

However, there is another artistic "crossover" in the exhibition that is more unusual. Teddy bears are on display there. They are of an English brand called Merrythought. The company produces collectible antique teddy bears. Many of those on display are priced several thousand dollars. A few of them are even open for bidding. The receipts go to charity. A company chief from Merrythought sits at a counter in the exhibition to sign autographs (presumably on the bears).

This is the first time I come across teddy bears for sale in an oil paintings exhibition! A strange combination indeed...

精緻

「我在倫敦半工半讀的那七八年裏，生活中最有趣的一環是靜靜觀察英國小資產階級社群裏的文化與文風。那是脆弱如青瓷、靈巧如玉雕、深邃如哈瓦那雪茄的一種修省，源遠流長，遠觀而悅目，近狎則喪志。······」

— 董橋 · 《鄧永鏘的螢火蟲》

Brunch

Caffe Vergnano 1882 now serves brunch sets on Sundays. The price is HKD88, which is attractive when compared with their a la carte menu items. Also, there is so much to eat in the set! A choice among pan fried chicken, grilled tenderloin and deep fried fish fillet, plus ALL of the following: pasta salad, egg (scrambled or sunny side up), grilled tomato, asparagus, hash brown, fruit juice.

I abandoned the original plan to have just sandwich and coffee, and ordered a brunch set instead. It proved to be rather disappointing. The food wasn't hot enough - that might vary by chance though. Also, they used a bit too much oil, I think. The pasta salad wasn't quite what I expected.

Still, Vergnano is a nice alternative to Starbucks when you want some different food but in a similar atmosphere. Caffe Habitu is nice too.

The even more original plan of that day, however, was to have savoury crepe at the Brunch Club. Sadly, it was full. It occurs to me that we don't seem to have enough crepe eateries here. But I like crepes - I can smell a business opportunity!

卡通

看過一部電影，名為《感人至深小故事》。是由多個國家的動畫短片，拼湊而成的雜錦。

我印象最深刻的一段，是韓國的作品。故事裏，為著某些原因，城市的一區要清拆，主角沒有及時搬走，房子連人被起重機拔起；然後，又因為某些原因，工程暫停，起重機亦煞停，主角的房子在半空「吊吊揈」，真夠諷刺。

想是因為城市租貴，主角沒錢搬遷，故繼續住在半空。風涼水冷，她還有心情俯瞰腳下的無敵市景。坐廁通空，排泄物直跌往幾百呎下的街上。要上班或買東西，她就從家裏輕輕一躍，跳到起重機的巨型吊臂上，然後沿鋼梯爬下至地面。有時，一陣風吹來，房子在半空搖搖欲墜。城市人的無奈，生動的展現在觀眾眼前。

然後，那好不久才出現在她身邊的男友終於來看她了；他是一頭穿西裝的直立的會說話的貓。當然，他其實是人，但他每次來就只會吃光她的食物，並且很兇，故在她眼中，他是一頭有尖爪的貓（或者是老虎）。這自然教人想起卡夫卡筆下那個變成大蟲的打工仔。天馬行空的幻想，以圖畫活生生地呈現時，效果是挺震撼的。這時卡通的好處。

貓男友大吃一頓後，飽暖思淫欲，蠢蠢欲動要接近女友。女的惱他冷落已久，自是不願。只怪這貓太胖，他正要踏前，吊在半空的房子受其體重影響，重心移動，如海盜船般傾側。女友身手敏捷，立即跳到房間的另一邊，房子的重心總算平衡過來。貓男友再嘗試接近，房子又要傾側了，女的又立刻跳到對面平衡。如此往來數回，雙方對峙未能分出高下。以這種形象的比喻，表達都市男女關係的張力，令人感覺新鮮。

故事的結局，現在記不起了。那活潑的幾幕，卻還記憶猶新。感人至深，不一定是哭哭啼啼，也可以是一針見血，令人會心微笑。