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| 12 | 12 |
| Taksi u koji sam ušao bio je prava olupina i vonjao je kao da je neko maločas obavio nuždu u njemu. Večito nalećem na takve izakane taksije, kad god nekud krenem noću. Da bude još gore, sve je bilo stravično tiho i pusto, iako je bila subota veče. | THE CAB I HAD was a real old one that smelled like someone'd just tossed his cookies in it. I always get those vomity kind of cabs if I go anywhere late at night. What made it worse, it was so quiet and lonesome out, even though it was Saturday night. |
| Gotovo nikoga nije bilo napolju. Tu i tamo, mogao si da vidiš kako neki čovek i devojka prelaze ulicu, držeći se oko struka i sve, ili grupu likova opakog izgleda u društvu svojih devojaka, kako se svi uglas smeju kao hijene nečemu za šta bi mogao da se kladiš kako uopšte nije smešno. | I didn't see hardly anybody on the street. Now and then you just saw a man and a girl crossing a street, with their arms around each other's waists and all, or a bunch of hoodlumy-looking guys and their dates, all of them laughing like hyenas at something you could bet wasn't funny. |
| Njujork je grozan kad se neko smeje na ulici kasno u noć. | New York's terrible when somebody laughs on the street very late at night. |
| Čuje se miljama naokolo. Od toga se osetiš tako usamljeno, samo te još više izdeprimira. Stalno me vuklo da odem kući i popričam sa Febom. Ali posle nekog vremena u vožnji, taksista i ja smo najzad kao odvojili neki razgovor. | You can hear it for miles. It makes you feel so lonesome and depressed. I kept wishing I could go home and shoot the bull for a while with old Phoebe. But finally, after I was riding a while, the cab driver and I sort of struck up a conversation. |
| Zvao se Horvic. Bio je mnogo bolji lik od prethodnog taksiste. Sve u svemu, pomislio sam da možda on zna nešto o patkama. | His name was Horwitz. He was a much better guy than the other driver I'd had. Anyway, I thought maybe he might know about the ducks. |
| "Ej, Horvice", rekoh. "Prolazite li ikada pored one lagune u Central-parku? Dole na južnoj strani parka?" | "Hey, Horwitz," I said. "You ever pass by the lagoon in Central Park? Down by Central Park South?" |
| "Pored čega?" | "The what?" |
| "Lagune. Onog kao jezerceta. Tamo gde su patke. Znate već." | "The lagoon. That little lake, like, there. Where the ducks are. You know." |
| "Aha, pa šta?" | "Yeah, what about it?" |
| "Eto, znate one patke što plivaju po njemu? U proleće i sve? Znate li možda, kojim slučajem, kuda one odlaze preko zime?" | "Well, you know the ducks that swim around in it? In the springtime and all? Do you happen to know where they go in the wintertime, by any chance?" |
| "Ko kuda odlazi?" | "Where who goes?" |
| "Patke. Znate li možda? Mislim, dođe li neko kamionom ili nečim i odnese ih, ili one same odlete - na jug ili negde?" | "The ducks. Do you know, by any chance? I mean does somebody come around in a truck or something and take them away, or do they fly away by themselves―go south or something?" |
| Stari Horvic se okrenuo i pogledao me. Bio je krajnje nervozan lik. Ali nije bio tako loš, u suštini. "Otkud bih to ja, dođavola, znao?" rekao je. "Otkuda bih ja, dođavola, znao takve gluposti?" | Old Horwitz turned all the way around and looked at me. He was a very impatient-type guy. He wasn't a bad guy, though. "How the hell should I know?" he said. "How the hell should I know a stupid thing like that?" |
| "Dobro, nemojte da se ljutite zbog toga", rekoh. Kao da se naljutio zbog toga. | "Well, don't get sore about it," I said. He was sore about it or something. |
| "Ko se ljuti? Niko se ne ljuti." | "Who's sore? Nobody's sore." |
| Prestao sam da razgovaram s njim, kad se već pokazao tako prokleto osetljiv na te stvari. Ali on je bio taj koji je ponovo pokrenuo sve to. | I stopped having a conversation with him, if he was going to get so damn touchy about it. But he started it up again himself. |
| Okrenuo se natrag i rekao: "Ribe nikud ne odlaze. One ostaju tamo gde jesu, ribe. Tamo u prokletom jezeru." | He turned all the way around again, and said, "The fish don't go no place. They stay right where they are, the fish. Right in the goddam lake." |
| "Ribe - to je drukčije. Riba je drugo. Govorim o patkama, rekoh. | "The fish―that's different. The fish is different. I'm talking about the ducks," I said. |
| "Šta je tu drukčije? Ništa tu nije drukčije", rekao je Horvic. Što god govorio, zvučalo je kao da se zbog nečeg ljuti. "Teže je ribama, kad je zima, nego patkama, Isuse. Mućni malo glavom." | "What's different about it? Nothin's different about it," Horwitz said. Everything he said, he sounded sore about something. "It's tougher for the fish, the winter and all, than it is for the ducks, for Chrissake. Use your head, for Chrissake." |
| Ćutao sam malo. Onda sam rekao: "U redu. Šta onda rade te ribe, kad čitavo jezerce postane čvrst ledeni blok, s ljudima koji se klizaju po njemu i sve?" | I didn't say anything for about a minute. Then I said, "All right. What do they do, the fish and all, when that whole little lake's a solid block of ice, people skating on it and all?" |
| Stari Horvic se ponovo okrenuo. "Kako to, dođavola, misliš, šta one rade?" dreknuo je na mene. "Ostaju tamo gde su, Isuse." | Old Horwitz turned around again. "What the hellaya mean what do they do?" he yelled at me. "They stay right where they are, for Chrissake." |
| "Ne mogu one tek tako da ignorišu led. Ne mogu tek tako da ga ignorišu" | "They can't just ignore the ice. They can't just ignore it." |
| "Ko ga ignoriše? Niko ga ne ignoriše!" rekao je Horvic. Tako se prokleto uzbudio, da sam se prepao da će tresnuti taksijem pravo u banderu ili negde. | "Who's ignoring it? Nobody's ignoring it!" Horwitz said. He got so damn excited and all, I was afraid he was going to drive the cab right into a lamppost or something. |
| "One žive usred prokletog leda. Takva im je priroda, Isuse. One ostanu zamrznute u istom položaju čitavu zimu." | "They live right in the goddam ice. It's their nature, for Chrissake. They get frozen right in one position for the whole winter." |
| "Je l'? A šta jedu, onda? Mislim, ako su čvrsto zamrznute, onda ne mogu da plivaju naokolo i traže hranu i ostalo." | "Yeah? What do they eat, then? I mean if they're frozen solid, they can't swim around looking for food and all." |
| "Njihova tela, Isuse - šta je tebi? Njihova tela upijaju hranu i sve, direktno iz proklete morske trave i drugog smeća u tom ledu. | "Their bodies, for Chrissake―what'sa matter with ya? Their bodies take in nutrition and all, right through the goddam seaweed and crap that's in the ice. |
| Pore su im sve vreme širom otvorene. Takva im je priroda, Isuse. Shvataš li o čemu govorim?" Ponovo se skroz okrenuo da me pogleda. | They got their pores open the whole time. That's their nature, for Chrissake. See what I mean?" He turned way the hell around again to look at me. |
| "Aha", rekoh. Odustao sam. Plašio sam se da ne slupa prokleti taksi ili nešto. Osim toga, bio je toliko osetljiv da nije bilo nikakvo uživanje razgovarati o bilo čemu s njim. "Jeste li raspoloženi da stanete negde i popijete sa mnom piće?" rekoh. | "Oh," I said. I let it drop. I was afraid he was going to crack the damn taxi up or something. Besides, he was such a touchy guy, it wasn't any pleasure discussing anything with him. "Would you care to stop off and have a drink with me somewhere?" I said. |
| Međutim, nije mi odgovorio. Pretpostavljam da je još razmišljao. Ipak, ponovo sam ga upitao. Bio je prilično dobar lik. Sasvim zabavan i sve. | He didn't answer me, though. I guess he was still thinking. I asked him again, though. He was a pretty good guy. Quite amusing and all. |
| "Nemam ja vremena ni za kakvo piće, šefe", rekao je. "Koliko ti uopšte imaš godina? Zašto nisi kod kuće u krevetu?" | "I ain't got no time for no liquor, bud," he said. "How the hell old are you, anyways? Why ain'tcha home in bed?" |
| "Nisam umoran." | "I'm not tired." |
| Kad sam izašao ispred 'Ernija' i platio vožnju, stari Horvic se ponovo vratio na ribu. Videlo se da mu se mota po glavi. "Slušaj", rekao je. | When I got out in front of Ernie's and paid the fare, old Horwitz brought up the fish again. He certainly had it on his mind. "Listen," he said. |
| "Da si riba, majka priroda bi se pobrinula za tebe, zar ne? Jesam li u pravu? Ne misliš valjda da ribe samo umru kad dođe zima, a?" | "If you was a fish, Mother Nature'd take care of you, wouldn't she? Right? You don't think them fish just die when it gets to be winter, do ya?" |
| "Ne, ali..." | "No, but―" |
| "Prokleto si u pravu da ne umiru", rekao je Horvic i odvezao se kao da ga đavoli gone. Bio je možda najosetljiviji lik koga sam ikad video. Ljutio se na sve što mu kažeš. | "You're goddam right they don't," Horwitz said, and drove off like a bat out of hell. He was about the touchiest guy I ever met. Everything you said made him sore. |
| Iako je već bilo tako kasno, kod starog Ernija je bilo prepuno. Većinom mamlazi iz srednjih škola i koledža. Gotovo sve proklete škole na svetu raspuštaju se za božični raspust ranije od škola u koje ja idem. Jedva je bilo mesta za kaput u garderobi, toliko je bilo puno. | Even though it was so late, old Ernie's was jam-packed. Mostly with prep school jerks and college jerks. Almost every damn school in the world gets out earlier for Christmas vacation than the schools I go to. You could hardly check your coat, it was so crowded. |
| Unutra je, međutim, bilo prilično tiho, jer je Erni svirao klavir. To je kao trebalo da bude nešto sveto, Isuse, kad on sedne za klavir, jer niko nije toliko dobar. Još neka tri para, osim mene, čekala su na sto, i svi su se gurali i dizali se na prste da vide starog Ernija dok svira. | It was pretty quiet, though, because Ernie was playing the piano. It was supposed to be something holy, for God's sake, when he sat down at the piano. Nobody's that good. |
| Ispred klavira je imao neko veliko ogledalo i veliki reflektor uperen u njega, tako da svako može da posmatra njegovo lice dok svira. Niste mogli da mu vidite prste - samo njegovu veliku matoru facu. Jaka stvar. | About three couples, besides me, were waiting for tables, and they were all shoving and standing on tiptoes to get a look at old Ernie while he played. He had a big damn mirror in front of the piano, with this big spotlight on him, so that everybody could watch his face while he played. You couldn't see his fingers while he played―just his big old face. Big deal. |
| Nisam baš siguran kako se zvala pesma koju je svirao kad sam ušao, ali šta god da je bilo, on je to zaista mrcvario. Ubacivao je sve one glupe, razmetljive krivine u visoke note, i masu drugih kerefeka od kojih stvarno može muka da vam pripadne. | I'm not too sure what the name of the song was that he was playing when I came in, but whatever it was, he was really stinking it up. He was putting all these dumb, show-offy ripples in the high notes, and a lot of other very tricky stuff that gives me a pain in the ass. |
| Trebalo je, međutim, čuti onu gomilu kad je završio. Povratili biste. | You should've heard the crowd, though, when he was finished.You would've puked. |
| Pali su u delirijum. Bili su identični moroni kao i oni što se u bioskopu cerekaju kao hijene stvarima koje uopšte nisu smešne. Kunem se, da sam ja pijanista ili glumac ili nešto, i da svi ti glupani misle da sam fenomenalan, zgadilo bi mi se. Ne bih želeo čak ni da mi tapšu. | They went mad. They were exactly the same morons that laugh like hyenas in the movies at stuff that isn't funny. I swear to God, if I were a piano player or an actor or something and all those dopes thought I was terrific, I'd hate it. I wouldn't even want them to clap for me. |
| Ljudi uvek tapšu pogrešnim stvarima. Da sam pijanista, svirao bih u prokletom plakaru. Sve u svemu, kad je završio, i svi tapšali kao sumanuti, stari Erni se okrenuo na stolici i poklonio se, onako krajnje dvolično, kao skromno i sve. | People always clap for the wrong things. If I were a piano player, I'd play it in the goddam closet. Anyway, when he was finished, and everybody was clapping their heads off, old Ernie turned around on his stool and gave this very phony, humble bow. |
| Kao da je neki neviđeno skroman tip, i pored toga što je fenomenalan pijanista. To je bilo krajnje dvolično - kad je već toliki snob i sve. Na neki čudan način, međutim, bilo mi ga je nekako žao kad je završio. Mislim da on čak više i nije znao da li dobro svira ili ne. | Like as if he was a helluva humble guy, besides being a terrific piano player. It was very phony―I mean him being such a big snob and all. In a funny way, though, I felt sort of sorry for him when he was finished. I don't even think he knows any more when he's playing right or not. |
| Nije sve njegova krivica. Dobrim delom su krivi svi ti glupani što tapšu kao sumanuti - takvi bi svakog upropastili, samo ako im se pruži prilika. | It isn't all his fault. I partly blame all those dopes that clap their heads off―they'd foul up anybody, if you gave them a chance. |
| Sve u svemu, od toga sam se ponovo osetio bedno i potišteno, pa je prokleto malo falilo da uzmem kaput i vratim se u hotel, ali još je bilo rano, a nisam bio raspoložen da ostanem potpuno sam. | Anyway, it made me feel depressed and lousy again, and I damn near got my coat back and went back to the hotel, but it was too early and I didn't feel much like being all alone. |
| Na kraju su mi našli neki šugavi sto, prislonjen uza zid i baš iza prokletog stuba, odakle ništa nije moglo da se vidi. | They finally got me this stinking table, right up against a wall and behind a goddam post, where you couldn't see anything. |
| Bio je to jedan od onih stočića kod kojih, ako ljudi za susednim stolom ne ustanu da vas propuste - a oni to nikad ne rade, strvine - bukvalno morate da se pentrate do stolice. | It was one of those tiny little tables that if the people at the next table don't get up to let you by―and they never do, the bastards―you practically have to climb into your chair. |
| Naručio sam viski sa sodom, što je moje omiljeno piće, osim ledenih rum-koktela. Kod Ernija si mogao da dobiješ piće čak i ako ti je, recimo, šest godina, toliko je lokal bio mračan i sve, a niko, osim toga, nije mario koliko imaš godina. | I ordered a Scotch and soda, which is my favorite drink, next to frozen Daiquiris. If you were only around six years old, you could get liquor at Ernie's, the place was so dark and all, and besides, nobody cared how old you were. |
| Mogao si da budeš čak i neki narkoman, niko ne bi mario. | You could even be a dope fiend and nobody'd care. |
| Bio sam okružen bolidima. Najozbiljnije. Za susednim stočićem, odmah s leve strane, bukvalno na meni, sedeo je neki tip čudnog izgleda s devojkom čudnog izgleda. Bili su otprilike mojih godina, ili možda nešto stariji. | I was surrounded by jerks. I'm not kidding. At this other tiny table, right to my left, practically on top of me, there was this funny-looking guy and this funny-looking girl. They were around my age, or maybe just a little older. |
| Komično je što se videlo kako stravično paze da ne popiju prebrzo onaj minimum pića. Slušao sam neko vreme njihov razgovor, jer nisam imao šta drugo da radim. Pričao joj je o nekom ragbi-meču koji je gledao tog popodneva. | It was funny. You could see they were being careful as hell not to drink up the minimum too fast. I listened to their conversation for a while, because I didn't have anything else to do. |
| Opisao joj je svaku prokletu akciju u čitavoj igri - bez zezanja. Bio je najdosadniji lik koga sam ikad čuo. A lepo se videlo da njegovu devojku čak i ne zanima prokleti meč, ali ona je još čudnije izgledala od njega, pa je valjda morala da sluša. Ružnim devojkama stvarno nije lako. | He was telling her about some pro football game he'd seen that afternoon. He gave her every single goddam play in the whole game―I'm not kidding. He was the most boring guy I ever listened to. And you could tell his date wasn't even interested in the goddam game, but she was even funnier-looking than he was, so I guess she had to listen. Real ugly girls have it tough. |
| Ponekad mi ih je zaista žao. Ponekad ne mogu čak ni da ih gledam, pogotovo ako su sa nekim mamlazom koji im prepričava čitav prokleti ragbi-meč. S moje desne strane vodio se, međutim, još gori razgovor. | I feel so sorry for them sometimes. Sometimes I can't even look at them, especially if they're with some dopey guy that's telling them all about a goddam football game. |
| Desno od mene sedeo je lik koji je izgledao kao student sa Jela, u sivom flanelskom odelu, s jednim od onih šminkerskih kariranih prsluka. Svi ti skotovi iz ekskluzivnih koledža liče jedni na druge. | On my right, the conversation was even worse, though. On my right there was this very Joe Yale-looking guy, in a gray flannel suit and one of those flitty-looking Tattersall vests. All those Ivy League bastards look alike. |
| Moj otac hoće da idem u Jel, ili možda u Prinston, ali kunem se, ni mrtav ne bih išao u neki od tih koledža. | My father wants me to go to Yale, or maybe Princeton, but I swear, I wouldn't go to one of those Ivy League colleges, if I was dying, for God's sake. |
| Sve u svemu, taj što je izgledao kao student sa Jela bio je sa neviđeno zgodnom devpjkom. Ljudi moji, kako je dobro izgledala. Ali trebalo je čuti razgovor koji su vodili. | Anyway, this Joe Yale-looking guy had a terrific-looking girl with him. Boy, she was good-looking. But you should've heard the conversation they were having. |
| Kao prvo, oboje su bili malo cvrcnuti. Šta je taj radio - privatavao je ispod stola, a istovremeno joj pričao o nekom liku iz njegovog koledža koji je pojeo čitavu bocu aspirina i gotovo ubio sebe. A devojka je samo ponavljala: "Kako je to grozno... Nemoj, dušo. | In the first place, they were both slightly crocked. What he was doing, he was giving her a feel under the table, and at the same time telling her all about some guy in his dorm that had eaten a whole bottle of aspirin and nearly committed suicide. His date kept saying to him, "How horrible ... Don't, darling. |
| Molim te, nemoj. Nemoj ovde." Zamislite da privatavate neku ribu i usput joj pričate o liku koji vrši samoubistvo! To me dotaklo. | Please, don't. Not here." Imagine giving somebody a feel and telling them about a guy committing suicide at the same time! They killed me. |
| Počeo sam zbilja da se osećam kao konjska guzica, sedeći tako sam samcit. Nije bilo ništa drugo da se radi osim da se puši i pije. Šta sam, ipak, uradio - rekao sam kelneru da pita starog Ernija da li je raspoložen da popije sa mnom piće. | I certainly began to feel like a prize horse's ass, though, sitting there all by myself. There wasn't anything to do except smoke and drink. What I did do, though, I told the waiter to ask old Ernie if he'd care to join me for a drink. |
| Rekao sam mu da kaže Erniju da sam D.B.-ov brat. Ali mislim da mu uopšte nije preneo poruku. Ti skotovi nikad nikom ne prenose vaše poruke. | I told him to tell him I was D.B.'s brother. I don't think he ever even gave him my message, though. Those bastards never give your message to anybody. |
| Iznenada, prišla mi je jedna devojka i rekla: "Gle, pa to je Holden Kolfild!" Zvala se Lilijan Simons. Moj brat D.B. izlazio je neko vreme s njom. Imala je velike sise. | All of a sudden, this girl came up to me and said, "Holden Caulfield!" Her name was Lillian Simmons. My brother D.B. used to go around with her for a while. She had very big knockers. |
| "Zdravo", rekao sam. Pokušao sam, naravno, da ustanem, ali to je bilo prava umetnost, ustati na takvom mestu. Bila je s nekim pomorskim oficirom koji kao da je progutao motku. | "Hi," I said. I tried to get up, naturally, but it was some job getting up, in a place like that. She had some Navy officer with her that looked like he had a poker up his ass. |
| "Baš divno što te vidim!" rekla je stara Lilijan Simons. Totalni folirant. "Kako je tvoj veliki brat?" To je sve što je u stvari želela da zna. "Nije loše.U Holivudu je." | "How marvelous to see you!" old Lillian Simmons said. Strictly a phony. "How's your big brother?" That's all she really wanted to know. "He's fine. He's in Hollywood." |
| "U Holivudu! Božanstveno! Šta radi?" "Ne znam. Piše", rekoh. | "In Hollywood! How marvelous! What's he doing?" "I don't know. Writing," I said. |
| Nisam bio raspoložen da razgovaram o tome. Lepo se videlo kako ona misli da je to mnogo jaka stvar, što je on u Holivudu. Skoro svi tako misle. Uglavnom ljudi koji nikad nisu pročitali nijednu njegovu priču. To me stvarno izluđuje. | I didn't feel like discussing it. You could tell she thought it was a big deal, his being in Hollywood. Almost everybody does. Mostly people who've never read any of his stories. It drives me crazy, though. |
| "Kako je to uzbudljivo", rekla je stara Lilijan. Onda me predstavila pomorcu. Zvao se kapetan Blop ili tako nešto. | "How exciting," old Lillian said. Then she introduced me to the Navy guy. His name was Commander Blop or something. |
| Bio je jedan od onih likova koji misle da će da ispadnu pederi ako vam ne polome bar četiri prsta kad se rukuju. Isuse, kako mrzim takve fazone. "Zar si ovde potpuno sam, lutko?" upitala me stara Lilijan. | He was one of those guys that think they're being a pansy if they don't break around forty of your fingers when they shake hands with you. God, I hate that stuff. "Are you all alone, baby?" old Lillian asked me. |
| Blokirala je čitav prokleti promet u prolazu između stolova. Lepo se videlo da uživa kad totalno blokira promet. | She was blocking up the whole goddam traffic in the aisle. You could tell she liked to block up a lot of traffic. |
| Kelner je čekao da mu se skloni s puta, ali ona ga nije čak ni primetila. Komično je bilo. Videlo se da je kelner ne voli baš mnogo, videlo se da je čak ni taj kapetan ne voli baš mnogo, i pored toga što izlazi s njom. | This waiter was waiting for her to move out of the way, but she didn't even notice him. It was funny. You could tell the waiter didn't like her much, you could tell even the Navy guy didn't like her much, even though he was dating her. |
| A ni ja je nisam preterano voleo. Niko je nije voleo. Na izvestan način, morao si nekako da je žališ. | And I didn't like her much. Nobody did. You had to feel sort of sorry for her, in a way. |
| "Zar nemaš devojku, lutko?" pitala me. Tada sam već stajao, a nije mi čak ni rekla da sednem. Bila je od onih koje bi vas satima pustile da stojite. | "Don't you have a date, baby?" she asked me. I was standing up now, and she didn't even tell me to sit down. She was the type that keeps you standing up for hours. |
| "Zar nije lep?" rekla je tom svom kapetanu. "Holdene, ti svakog minuta postaješ sve lepši." Onda joj je kapetan rekao da pođu. | "Isn't he handsome?" she said to the Navy guy. "Holden, you're getting handsomer by the minute." The Navy guy told her to come on. |
| Rekao joj je da su blokirali čitav prolaz. "Pridruži nam se, Holdene", rekla je Lilijan. "Ponesi svoje piće." | He told her they were blocking up the whole aisle. "Holden, come join us," old Lillian said. "Bring your drink." |
| "Baš sam se spremao da krenem", rekoh. "Trebalo bi da se nađem s nekim." Lepo se videlo da samo pokušava da mi se dodvori. Tako da ja posle pričam D.B.-u o tome. | "I was just leaving," I told her. "I have to meet somebody." You could tell she was just trying to get in good with me. So that I'd tell old D.B. about it. |
| "Dobro, ti mali, da ne kažem šta. Nek ti bude. Reci svom velikom bratu da ga mrzim, kad ga vidiš." | "Well, you little so-and-so. All right for you. Tell your big brother I hate him, when you see him." |
| Onda je otišla. Taj njen kapetan i ja rekli smo jedan drugom da nam je drago što smo se upoznali. | Then she left. The Navy guy and I told each other we were glad to've met each other. |
| To me uvek obara. Večito govorim: "Drago mi je što smo se upoznali" nekome za koga mi uopšte nije drago što sam ga upoznao. Ali moraš da govoriš takve stvari ako hoćeš da ostaneš živ. | Which always kills me. I'm always saying "Glad to've met you" to somebody I'm not at all glad I met. If you want to stay alive, you have to say that stuff, though. |
| Pošto sam joj rekao kako treba da se nađem s nekim, nije mi preostalo ništa drugo nego da odem. Nisam čak mogao da ostanem ni toliko da čujem starog Ernija kako svira nešto bar donekle pristojno. | After I'd told her I had to meet somebody, I didn't have any goddam choice except to leave. I couldn't even stick around to hear old Ernie play something halfway decent. |
| Ali ni u kom slučaju ne bih seo za sto sa starom Lilijan Simons i njenim kapetanom, da umrem od dosade. | But I certainly wasn't going to sit down at a table with old Lillian Simmons and that Navy guy and be bored to death. |
| I tako sam otišao. Iznerviralo me, ipak, kad sam uzimao kaput. Ljudi vam uvek sve pokvare. | So I left. It made me mad, though, when I was getting my coat. People are always ruining things for you. |