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2020年9月8日星期二

余光中《國殤》節錄

天安門已陷落,女神像已推倒 // 一小撮老頭子很不喜歡 // 她高揚火把的那種手勢 // 當她的潔白墜地解體 // 碎了,孩子們仰慕的心情 // 八十歲跟二十歲的對話裡 // 誰的雄辯比機槍更流利?// 什麼回答比坦克更具體?// 而無論你接不按受,孩子 // 同伴們已一排排躺下

2020年9月3日星期四

rough pavement

Hong Kong Museum of History will undergo renovation soon. It may reopen for a short period after the third wave COVID-19 and before the renovation. The gift shop, passage, will close up officially in September. The other branches of passage at Hong Kong Heritage Museum, Xiqu Center and Hong Kong Space Museum will probably gradually reopen after the third wave. As a member of this shop around 2019, I built up a sense of belonging with the colleagues and the place. Although the working pressure was much higher than that in CUHK bookstore, my working experience grew quickly here. At the end of 2019, I became an employee at the gift shop at Hong Kong Space Museum. Because of the impact of large scale demonstrations and COVID-19, gift shops under government facilities has to be closed temporarily and compulsively. Our business is largely hindered. Due to the rearrangement of human resources, I started working at Chung Hwa Bookstore (Tsuen Wan) in September. My main duty is stock management. I will be the helper of non-book business and cashier. Yesterday, I tried filling new Chinese books into the shelves. If I can handle the above workload, my supervisor will choose some categories of Chinese books for me to be in charge. What a challenging job!

https://www.museums.gov.hk/documents/10347444/10348411/MH_HK-Story-Floor-Plan(shop)_MBDs.jpg

Diagon Alley

tap: to strike lightly especially with a slight sound

mumble: intransitive verb: to utter words in a low confused indistinct manner

indistinct: not clearly recognizable or understandable

beak: the bill of a bird

bill: the jaws of a bird together with their horny covering

scramble: to move with urgency or panic

jerk: to propel or move with or as if with a quick suddenly arrested motion

swoop: to move with a sweep

flutter: to flap the wings rapidly

fiercely: in a fierce or vehement manner

fierce: violently hostile or aggressive in temperament

vehement: marked by forceful energy

savage: to attack or treat brutally

brutally: severe

pellet: a usually small rounded, spherical, or cylindrical body (as of food or medicine)

humbug: British: a hard usually peppermint-flavored candy

gotta: used for "got to" in informal speech and in representations of such speech

goblin: an ugly or grotesque sprite that is usually mischievous and sometimes evil and malicious

sprite: a disembodied spirit

gleam: to shine with or as if with subdued steady light or moderate brightness

subdued: lacking in vitality, intensity, or strength

enchantment: a magic spell

vault: a room or compartment for the safekeeping of valuables

summat: dialectal variant of somewhat

bungler: to act or work clumsily and awkwardly

awkward: lacking social grace and assurance

blimey: chiefly British: gorblimey

gorblimey: used to express amazement, surprise, or perplexity

clamber: to climb awkwardly or with effort especially by using both the hands and the feet

passerby: one who passes by

pant: to breathe quickly, spasmodically, or in a labored manner

crikey: used as a mild oath

canary yellow: a light to a moderate or vivid yellow

vivid: of a color :very strong :very high in chroma

parchment: the skin of a sheep or goat prepared for writing on

witchcraft: the use of sorcery or magic

sorcery: the use of power gained from the assistance or control of evil spirits especially for divining

robe: a long flowing outer garment

garment: an article of clothing

cloak: a loose outer garment

transfiguration: a change in form or appearance

potion: a mixture of liquids (such as liquor or medicine)

wand: a slender rod used by conjurers and magicians

conjurer: wizard

cauldron: a large kettle or boiler

pewter: (especially) a dull alloy with lead formerly used for domestic utensils

phial: vial: a small closed or closable vessel especially for liquids

get stuck in: to start doing something with a lot of energy

bustling: busily astir

grubby: dirty

peculiar: characteristic of only one person, group, or thing

shabby: inferior in quality

bald: lacking a natural or usual covering (as of hair, vegetation, or nap)

beam: to smile with joy

flutter: a state of nervous confusion or excitement

delighted: obsolete : delighful

stammer: to make involuntary stops and repetitions in speaking

vampire: the reanimated body of a dead person believed to come from the grave at night and suck the blood of persons asleep

courtyard: a court or enclosure adjacent to a building (such as a house or palace)

grin: smile

hag: an ugly, slatternly, or evil-looking old woman

quiver: to shake or move with a slight trembling motion

wriggle: to move or advance by twisting and turning

cobbled: paved with cobblestones

plump: having a full rounded usually pleasing form

apothecary: one who prepares and sells drugs or compounds for medicinal purposes

hoot: to make the natural throat noise of an owl or a similar cry

emporium: a place of trade

tawny: of a warm sandy color

screech: a high shrill piercing cry usually expressing pain or terror

barn: a usually large building for the storage of farm products or feed and usually for the housing of farm animals or farm equipment

barrel: a round bulging vessel of greater length than breadth that is usually made of staves bound with hoops and has flat ends of equal diameter

tottering: lacking firmness or stability

quill: the hollow horny shaft of a feather

burnish: to make shiny or lustrous especially by rubbing

swarthy: of a dark color

engrave: to form by incision (as on wood or metal)

heed: attention

scribble: to write or draw hastily or carelessly

ledger: a book containing accounts to which debits and credits are posted from books of original entry

cram: to pack tight

hurtle: to move rapidly or forcefully

rattle: to make a rapid succession of short sharp noises

steer: to direct the course (as of a ship or automobile)

plunge: to become pitched or thrown headlong or violently forward and downward

stalactite: a deposit of calcium carbonate (such as calcite) resembling an icicle hanging from the roof or sides of a cave

stalagmite: a deposit of calcium carbonate like an inverted stalactite formed on the floor of a cave by the drip of calcareous water

billow: sentence example: a field of burning grass billowing thick black clouds of smoke into the sky

mound: pile

ravine: a small narrow steep-sided valley that is larger than a gully and smaller than a canyon and that is usually worn by running water

groan: to utter a deep moan indicative of pain, grief, or annoyance

scruff: the back of the neck

infernal: of or relating to hell

mauve: a moderate purple, violet, or lilac color

drawl: to utter in a slow lengthened tone

gamekeeper: a person in charge of the breeding and protection of game animals or birds on a private preserve

sneer: to smile or laugh with facial contortions that express scorn or contempt

contort: to twist into or as if into a strained shape or expression

scorn: open dislike and disrespect or mockery often mixed with indignation

contempt: lack of respect or reverence for something

duffer: an incompetent, ineffectual, or clumsy person

curse: a prayer or invocation for harm or injury to come upon one

bewitch: to influence or affect especially injuriously by witchcraft

revenge: to avenge (oneself or another) usually by retaliating in kind or degree

rot: deteriorate

unicorn: a mythical, usually white animal generally depicted with the body and head of a horse with long flowing mane and tail and a single often spiraled horn in the middle of the forehead

glitter: to shine by reflection with many small flashes of brilliant light

scoop: the amount contained by a scoop

outta: non-standard contraction of ‘out of’, used in representing informal speech

rustle: to act or move with energy or speed

flickering: moving or shining irregularly or unsteadily

gruff: rough, brusque, or stern in manner, speech, or aspect

brusque: markedly short and abrupt

stern: having a definite hardness or severity of nature or manner

spindly: of a disproportionately tall or long and thin appearance that often suggests physical weakness

prickle: a prickling or tingling sensation

willow: an object made of willow wood

creepy: producing a nervous shivery apprehension

mahogany: the wood of any of various chiefly tropical trees

pliable: supple enough to bend freely or repeatedly without breaking

yew: evergreen gymnospermous trees and shrubs

shuffle: to move about, back and forth, or from one place to another

flit: to pass quickly or abruptly from one place or condition to another

crumple: to press, bend, or crush out of shape

snatch: to attempt to seize something suddenly

whippy: unusually resilient

 ebony: a hard heavy blackish wood yielded by various tropical chiefly southeast Asian trees

supple: capable of being bent or folded without creases, cracks, or breaks

swish: to move, pass, swing, or whirl with the sound of a swish

whoop: to utter a whoop in expression of eagerness, enthusiasm, or enjoyment

bravo: a shout of approval —often used interjectionally in applauding a performance

applaud: to express approval especially by clapping the hands

gawk: to gape or stare stupidly

laden: carrying a load or burden

https://www.merriam-webster.com