Sábado, Janeiro 02, 2010

shift, as necessary

“Genji’s Rokujō estate was finished in the eighth month. […] He had the existing hills and lake shifted about as necessary, changing the shapes of mountains and waters to suit each resident’s wishes.
The southeast quarter boasted high hills, every tree that blossoms in spring, and a particular lovely lake; and in the near garden, before the house, he took care to plant not only five-needled pines, red plums, cherry trees, wisteria, kerria roses, and rock azaleas, all of which are at their best in spring, but also, here and there, discreet touches of autumn. In
[the southwest] quarter he planted the hill already there with trees certain to glow in rich autumn colors, turned springs into clear streams, added rocks to the brook to deepen its voice, and contrived a waterfall, while on the broad expanse of his new-laid meadow, flowers bloomed in all the profusion of the season. The result was an autumn to put to shame the moors and mountains of Saga and Ōi. The northeast quarter, with its cool spring, favoured summer shade. Chinese bamboo grew in the near garden, to freshen the breeze; tall groves offered welcoming depths of shade, as in a mountain village; the hedge was of flowering deutzia; and among the plantings of orange, fragrant with the past, of pinks and roses and peonies, there also grew spring and autumn flowers. The east hedge of this quarter was divided off into a riding ground with a pavilion and surrounded by a woven fence. Sweet flag had been induced to grow thickly beside the water, for the games of the fifth month, and the nearby stables housed the most superb horses. The northwest quarter’s northern sector was given over to rows of storehouses. Along the dividing fence grew a dense stand of pines intended to show off the beauty of snow. There was a fence entwined with chrysanthemums to gather the morning frosts of early winter, a grove of deep-hued oaks, and a scattering of nameless trees transplanted from the fastnesses of the mountains.”

Murasaki Shikibu, Genji Monogatari [The Tale of Genji], circa 1007-1008

Quarta-feira, Dezembro 30, 2009

[des]acordo

Entrando o novo ano, nesta paisagem (e pese embora um recorrente pendor anglófilo e, pontualmente, francófilo), o português continuará a escrever-se com consoantes mudas.
Ou seja, continuaremos a ficar com os pés húmidos sempre que, activa, factual e, por vezes, espectacularmente, os metamos na poça…

Segunda-feira, Dezembro 28, 2009

note to self [14]

“I like to have my morning newspaper ironed before I read it. I like to have my shoes boned before they are polished. I like to sit in the back of the car and be driven. I like beds to be made, dish to be washed, grass to be cut, drinks to be served, telephones to be answered, and common tasks to be dealt with invisibly and efficiently so that I can devote my time to major decisions like the choice of wines for dinner…”

Peter Mayle, Acquired Tastes

Com os actuais papeis e técnicas de impressão, temos algumas dúvidas quanto aos jornais passados a ferro... no entanto, tudo o resto está de facto na nossa wishlist para 2010.

Quinta-feira, Agosto 27, 2009

[263] hunting costumes


"Hunting costumes - Clove-tan. Soft white silk. Red-purple weave. Pine-leaf green. Leaf green. Cherry blossom. Willow. Also, green wisteria.
Men wear all manner of colours."

Sei Shōnagon, Makura no sōshi [The Pillow Book], circa 1000
Trad. Meredith McKinney, Penguin Classics, 2007

[50] carriage runners and escort guards


"Carriage runners and escort guards should be trim, slightly on the thin side. This is how serving men in general ought to be, especially when they're young. Very fat ones look as though they're half-asleep on their feet."


Sei Shōnagon, Makura no sōshi [The Pillow Book], circa 1000

Segunda-feira, Agosto 24, 2009

[242] things that no one notices

"Things that no one notices - All the inauspicious days.
The ageing of people's mothers."

Sei Shōnagon, Makura no sōshi [The Pillow Book], circa 1000
Trad. Meredith McKinney, Penguin Classics, 2007

[241] things that just keep passing by

"Things that just keep passing by - A boat with its sail up. People's age.
Spring. Summer. Autumn. Winter."

Sei Shōnagon, Makura no sōshi [The Pillow Book], circa 1000
Trad. Meredith McKinney, Penguin Classics, 2007

Quinta-feira, Agosto 20, 2009

[55] young people and babies

"Young people and babies should be plump. Provincial Governors and suchlike people who have some authority should also be on the portly side."
["for if they are lean and dessicated, one suspects them of being ill tempered."]

Sei Shōnagon, Makura no sōshi [The Pillow Book], circa 1000
Trad. Meredith McKinney, Penguin Classics, 2007
[o corolário aparece na tradução de 1967 de Ivan Morris, publicada pela Columbia University Press]

[3] though it's the same it sounds different

"Though it's the same it sounds different - The language of priests; Men's language; Women's language.
Commoners always use too many words when they speak."

Sei Shōnagon, Makura no sōshi [The Pillow Book], circa 1000
Trad. Meredith McKinney, Penguin Classics, 2007

Segunda-feira, Julho 27, 2009

holiday mathematics

as férias, segundo as equações irónicas da more new math de Craig Damrauer

Quarta-feira, Julho 15, 2009

on the other hand...


"One is never too rich or too thin."

Dizia Wallis Simpson, née Warfield, depois Spencer antes de Simpson e, mais tarde, Duquesa de Windsor, que igualmente defendia que, não sendo nada de especial ao olhar, só lhe restava vestir-se melhor do que toda a gente...

Sábado, Julho 11, 2009

chá e simpatia...

"Filha, a partir de uma certa idade, não se pode emagrecer em demasia. [pausa] É que ainda se fica a parecer... pobre!"

Dito assim, de forma lapidar, na mesa ao lado, entre tragos de earl grey e dentadinhas nos petit fours...

Quarta-feira, Julho 08, 2009

note to self [13]

The saddest part of a broken heart
Isn't the ending so much as the start.
The tragedy starts from the very first spark
Losing your mind for the sake of your heart.

Feist, Let it die, o mood do dia.

Quarta-feira, Julho 01, 2009

some day

The man I love, nos Cravos [Nelken] de Pina Bausch.

when i am laid in earth...


... [...] remember me, remember me, but ah! forget my fate.

Lembrando Pina Bausch com o lamento de Dido, de Purcell, no Café Müller.