 
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| 17 | 17 |
| Bilo je još suviše rano kad sam stigao tamo, pa sam samo seo na jednu od onih kožnih sofa, odmah ispod sata u foajeu, i posmatrao devojke. U mnogim školama raspust je već počeo i bilo je mali milion devojaka koje su sedele i stajale naokolo, čekajući da se pojave njihovi mladići. | I WAS way early when I got there, so I just sat down on one of those leather couches right near the clock in the lobby and watched the girls. A lot of schools were home for vacation already, and there were about a million girls sitting and standing around waiting for their dates to show up. |
| Devojke sa prekrštenim nogama, devojke sa neprekrštenim nogama, devojke sa neviđenim nogama, devojke sa nikakvim nogama, devojke koje su privlačno izgledale, devojke koje su izgledale kao da bi, kad ih upoznaš, bile prave veštice. Bio je to zaista lep prizor, ako znate na šta mislim. | Girls with their legs crossed, girls with their legs not crossed, girls with terrific legs, girls with lousy legs, girls that looked like swell girls, girls that looked like they'd be bitches if you knew them. It was really nice sightseeing, if you know what I mean. |
| Istovremeno je nekako i deprimirao, jer se čovek stalno pitao šta će se kog đavola desiti sa svim tim devojkama. Kad izađu iz škole i koledža, mislim. Moglo se pretpostaviti da će većina njih verovatno da se poudaje za neke mamlaze. Za likove koji večito pričaju koliko milja prelazi njihov prokleti auto sa galonom benzina. | In a way, it was sort of depressing, too, because you kept wondering what the hell would happen to all of them. When they got out of school and college, I mean. You figured most of them would probably marry dopey guys. Guys that always talk about how many miles they get to a gallon in their goddam cars. |
| Likove koji se ljute i besne kao deca kad ih pobediš u golfu ili čak u nekoj glupavoj igri kao što je ping-pong. Likove koji su jednostavno bezlični. Likove koji nikad ne čitaju knjige. Likove koji su užasno dosadni - ali tu bi trebalo da budem oprezan. | Guys that get sore and childish as hell if you beat them at golf, or even just some stupid game like ping-pong. Guys that are very mean. Guys that never read books. Guys that are very boring―But I have to be careful about that. |
| Mislim, kad kažem za neke ljude da su dosadni. Ne shvatam baš takve likove. Ozbiljno. Kad sam bio u Elkton Hilsu, jedno dva meseca sam delio sobu s nekim Harisom Meklinom. | I mean about calling certain guys bores. I don't understand boring guys. I really don't. When I was at Elkton Hills, I roomed for about two months with this boy, Harris Macklin. |
| Bio je vrlo inteligentan i sve, ali je bio jedan od najvećih daveža koje sam ikad upoznao. Imao je neki izrazito hrapav glas i bukvalno nikada nije prestajao da govori. Nikada nije prestajao da govori i, što je najgore, nikada nije govorio nešto što si hteo da čuješ. Ali umeo je jednu stvar. | He was very intelligent and all, but he was one of the biggest bores I ever met. He had one of these very raspy voices, and he never stopped talking, practically. He never stopped talking, and what was awful was, he never said anything you wanted to hear in the first place. But he could do one thing. |
| Taj skot je zviždao najbolje na svetu. Nameštao bi krevet ili kačio stvari u plakar - večito je nešto kačio u plakar, što me izluđivalo - i usput zviždao, ako nije nešto pričao tim hrapavim glasom. | The sonuvabitch could whistle better than anybody I ever heard. He'd be making his bed, or hanging up stuff in the closet―he was always hanging up stuff in the closet―it drove me crazy―and he'd be whistling while he did it, if he wasn't talking in this raspy voice. |
| Umeo je da zviždi čak i klasične stvari, ali najčešće je zviždao džez. Pokupio bi nešto vrlo džezično, kao "Bluz limenog krova" i zviždao tako lepo i lako - baš dok bi kačio stvari u plakar - da je to bukvalno obaralo čoveka. | He could even whistle classical stuff, but most of the time he just whistled jazz. He could take something very jazzy, like "Tin Roof Blues," and whistle it so nice and easy―right while he was hanging stuff up in the closet―that it could kill you. |
| Naravno, nikad mu nisam rekao kako mislim da fenomenalno zviždi. Mislim, ne možeš tek tako da priđeš nekom i kažeš mu: "Ti fenomenalno zviždiš". Ali delio sam sobu možda puna dva meseca s njim, iako me toliko gušio da sam već bio na ivici ludila, samo zato što je tako fenomenalno zviždao, najbolje od svih koje sam ikad čuo. | Naturally, I never told him I thought he was a terrific whistler. I mean you don't just go up to somebody and say, "You're a terrific whistler." But I roomed with him for about two whole months, even though he bored me till I was half crazy, just because he was such a terrific whistler, the best I ever heard. |
| Zato ne znam šta da mislim o dosadnim likovima. Možda čoveku i ne treba da bude preterano krivo kad vidi kako se neka izuzetna devojka udaje za tako nekog. | So I don't know about bores. Maybe you shouldn't feel too sorry if you see some swell girl getting married to them. |
| Oni, većinom, nikome ne čine nažao, a možda svi u potaji fenomenalno zvižde ili nešto. Ko bi to, dođavola, znao? Ja ne. | They don't hurt anybody, most of them, and maybe they're secretly all terrific whistlers or something. Who the hell knows? Not me. |
| Najzad sam ugledao Sali kako se penje uz stepenice, pa sam joj pošao u susret. Neviđeno je izgledala. Najozbiljnije. Bila je u nekom crnom kaputu, s nekom kao crnom beretkom na glavi. Gotovo nikad nije nosila šešir ili nešto, ali ta beretka je mnogo lepo izgledala. | Finally, old Sally started coming up the stairs, and I started down to meet her. She looked terrific. She really did. She had on this black coat and sort of a black beret. She hardly ever wore a hat, but that beret looked nice. |
| Najčudnije u svemu tome bilo je što mi je došlo da se oženim njom istog trenutka kad sam je ugledao. Ja sam lud. Nije mi se čak ni sviđala toliko, pa ipak mi se iznenada učinilo da sam zaljubljen u nju i da bih se oženio njom. Stvarno sam lud, kunem se. | The funny part is, I felt like marrying her the minute I saw her. I'm crazy. I didn't even like her much, and yet all of a sudden I felt like I was in love with her and wanted to marry her. I swear to God I'm crazy. I admit it. |
| "Holdene!" rekla je. "Baš divno što te vidim! | "Holden!" she said. "It's marvelous to see you! |
| Prošla je čitava večnost" Imala je neki jak, prodoran glas, koji te dovodio u nepriliku kad god izađeš s njom. To je još i moglo da joj prođe - jer je bila tako prokleto zgodna - ali uvek me nerviralo. | It's been ages." She had one of these very loud, embarrassing voices when you met her somewhere. She got away with it because she was so damn good-looking, but it always gave me a pain in the ass. |
| "I meni je drago što tebe vidim", rekoh. Tako sam stvarno i mislio. | "Swell to see you," I said. I meant it, too. "How are ya, anyway?" |
| "Kako si, inače?" | "Absolutely marvelous. Am I late?" |
| "Apsolutno čarobno. Jesam li zakasnila?" Rekao sam joj da nije, ali kasnila je oko deset minuta, u suštini. Bilo mi je, uostalom, svejedno. | I told her no, but she was around ten minutes late, as a matter of fact. I didn't give a damn, though. |
| Sve one glupe karikature koje štampaju po časopisima i svuda, gde tipovi besne po uličnim ćoškovima zato što im devojke kasne - sve su to nebuloze. Ako devojka lepo izgleda kada dolazi na sudar, koga je briga što kasni? Nikoga. | All that crap they have in cartoons in the Saturday Evening Post and all, showing guys on street corners looking sore as hell because their dates are late―that's bunk. If a girl looks swell when she meets you, who gives a damn if she's late? Nobody. |
| "Bolje da požurimo", rekoh. "Predstava počinje u dvadeset do tri." Pošli smo niz stepenice prema taksi stanici. "Šta ćemo gledati?" rekla je. "Ne znam. Lantove. Samo sam za to našao karte." | "We better hurry," I said. "The show starts at two-forty." We started going down the stairs to where the taxis are. "What are we going to see?" she said. "I don't know. The Lunts. It's all I could get tickets for." |
| "Lantove! O, pa to je čarobno!" Rekao sam vam da će da zabalavi kada čuje za Lantove. | "The Lunts! Oh, marvelous!" I told you she'd go mad when she heard it was for the Lunts. |
| Povatali smo se malo u taksiju, na putu do pozorišta. Prvo nije htela, jer je bila nakarminisana i sve, ali nastupio sam maksimalno zavodnički pa nije imala kud. | We horsed around a little bit in the cab on the way over to the theater. At first she didn't want to, because she had her lipstick on and all, but I was being seductive as hell and she didn't have any alternative. |
| Dvaput, kad je prokleti taksi naglo prikočio, malo je falilo da padnem sa sedišta. Ti prokleti taksisti nikada ne gledaju kuda voze, kunem se. | Twice, when the goddam cab stopped short in traffic, I damn near fell off the seat. Those damn drivers never even look where they're going, I swear they don't. |
| A onda, tek da vam predstavim koliko sam lud, kad smo izlazili iz klinča, rekao sam joj da je volim i sve. Bila je to laž, naravno, ali stvar je u tome što sam tako i mislio kad sam joj to rekao. Lud sam. Stvarno sam lud. | Then, just to show you how crazy I am, when we were coming out of this big clinch, I told her I loved her and all. It was a lie, of course, but the thing is, I meant it when I said it. I'm crazy. I swear to God I am. |
| "O, dragi, i ja tebe volim", rekla je. A onda je, u istom dahu, dodala: "Obećaj mi da ćeš da pustiš kosu. Kratke frizure izlaze iz mode. A imaš tako divnu kosu." | "Oh, darling, I love you too," she said. Then, right in the same damn breath, she said, "Promise me you'll let your hair grow. Crew cuts are getting corny. And your hair's so lovely." |
| Divnu, kad bi se zezali. | Lovely my ass. |
| Predstava nije bila tako loša kao neke koje sam gledao. Ali svejedno je bila glupa. Nešto o petsto hiljada godina u životu nekog starog bračnog para. Počinje kad su oboje mladi i sve, a roditelji te devojke ne žele da se ona uda za tog mladića, ali ona se ipak udaje za njega. | The show wasn't as bad as some I've seen. It was on the crappy side, though. It was about five hundred thousand years in the life of this one old couple. It starts out when they're young and all, and the girl's parents don't want her to marry the boy, but she marries him anyway. |
| Onda postaju sve stariji i stariji. Muž odlazi u rat, a žena ima brata koji je pijanac. Nisam baš mogao da se zainteresujem za sve to. | Then they keep getting older and older. The husband goes to war, and the wife has this brother that's a drunkard. I couldn't get very interested. |
| Mislim, nisam se preterano uzbuđivao kad bi neko u toj porodici umro ili nešto. Svi su bili samo gomila glumaca. Muž i žena su bili sasvim pristojan stari par - vrlo duhoviti i sve - ali nisam mogao preterano da se zainteresujem za njih. Pre svega, stalno su pili čaj ili nešto, tokom čitave proklete predstave. | I mean I didn't care too much when anybody in the family died or anything. They were all just a bunch of actors. The husband and wife were a pretty nice old couple―very witty and all―but I couldn't get too interested in them. For one thing, they kept drinking tea or some goddam thing all through the play. |
| Kad god bi se pojavili, neki batler je postavljao pred njih čaj ili ga je žena sipala nekom. I svi su neprestano ulazili i izlazili - da ti se zavrti u glavi dok ih gledaš kako stalno sedaju i ustaju. Alfred Lant i Lin Fonten su igrali stari par i bili su veoma dobri, ali nisu mi se mnogo dopali. | Every time you saw them, some butler was shoving some tea in front of them, or the wife was pouring it for somebody. And everybody kept coming in and going out all the time―you got dizzy watching people sit down and stand up. Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne were the old couple, and they were very good, but I didn't like them much. |
| Ipak, bili su drukčiji, moram da priznam. Nisu se ponašali kao obični ljudi, a nisu se ponašali ni kao glumci. Teško je to objasniti. Ponašali su se više kao da znaju da su neke veličine. Mislim, dobri su bili, ali previše dobri. Kad bi jedno od njih izgovorilo svoj tekst, ono drugo bi odmah nešto reklo. | They were different, though, I'll say that. They didn't act like people and they didn't act like actors. It's hard to explain. They acted more like they knew they were celebrities and all. I mean they were good, but they were too good. When one of them got finished making a speech, the other one said something very fast right after it. |
| To je trebalo da izgleda kao kad ljudi stvarno razgovaraju i upadaju jedno drugom u reč i sve. Problem je što su previše ličili na ljude koji razgovaraju i upadaju jedno drugom u reč. | It was supposed to be like people really talking and interrupting each other and all. The trouble was, it was too much like people talking and interrupting each other. |
| Ponašali su se, donekle, kao što stari Erni, tamo u Vilidžu, svira klavir. Kada nešto previše dobro radiš, onda, posle nekog vremena, ako ne paziš, postaneš razmetljiv. | They acted a little bit the way old Ernie, down in the Village, plays the piano. If you do something too good, then, after a while, if you don't watch it, you start showing off. |
| A onda već nisi tako dobar. Ali, sve u svemu, oni su bili jedini u predstavi - Lantovi, mislim - koji su delovali kao da imaju nešto u glavi. To moram da priznam. | And then you're not as good any more. But anyway, they were the only ones in the show―the Lunts, I mean―that looked like they had any real brains. I have to admit it. |
| Posle prvog čina izašli smo sa svim ostalim mamlazima da popušimo cigaretu. Kakav je to prizor bio. U životu niste videli toliko foliranata, svi su pušili da im uši otpadnu i laparali o predstavi tako da svako može da ih čuje i ukapira koliko su oštroumni. | At the end of the first act we went out with all the other jerks for a cigarette. What a deal that was. You never saw so many phonies in all your life, everybody smoking their ears off and talking about the play so that everybody could hear and know how sharp they were. |
| Neki glupi filmski glumac stajao je pored nas i pušio. Ne znam mu ime, ali večito glumi u ratnim filmovima, tipa koji ispadne kukavica baš kad zagusti ili nešto. Bio je sa nekom zanosnom plavušom i oboje su se trudili da budu maksimalno blazirani i sve, kao da on pojma nema da ga ljudi gledaju. | Some dopey movie actor was standing near us, having a cigarette. I don't know his name, but he always plays the part of a guy in a war movie that gets yellow before it's time to go over the top. He was with some gorgeous blonde, and the two of them were trying to be very blasé and all, like as if he didn't even know people were looking at him. |
| Neviđeno skroman lik, nema šta. Baš me razgalio. Sali nije mnogo pričala, osim nekih izliva ushićenja namenjenih Lantovima, jer je uglavnom krivila vrat naokolo i trudila se da izgleda šarmantno. Onda je, najednom, na drugoj strani foajea ugledala nekog mamlaza kojeg je poznavala. | Modest as hell. I got a big bang out of it. Old Sally didn't talk much, except to rave about the Lunts, because she was busy rubbering and being charming. Then all of a sudden, she saw some jerk she knew on the other side of the lobby. |
| Nekog tipa u jednom od onih tamnosivih flanelskih odela s kariranim prslukom. Strogo u stilu ekskluzivnih koledža. Jaka stvar. | Some guy in one of those very dark gray flannel suits and one of those checkered vests. Strictly Ivy League. Big deal. |
| Stajao je uza zid i pušio kao sumanut, delujući kao da umire od dosade. Sali je samo ponavljala: "Taj mladić mi je odnekud poznat." Uvek je nekog znala, kud god da odeš s njom, ili je bar mislila da zna. | He was standing next to the wall, smoking himself to death and looking bored as hell. Old Sally kept saying, "I know that boy from somewhere." She always knew somebody, any place you took her, or thought she did. |
| Ponavljala je to, sve dok me nije totalno ugušila pa sam joj rekao: "Što ne odeš i poljubiš ga onako od srca, ako ti je poznat? | She kept saying that till I got bored as hell, and I said to her, "Why don't you go on over and give him a big soul kiss, if you know him? |
| Oduševiće se." Naljutila se kad sam to rekao. Na kraju, mamlaz je ipak uočio, pa je prišao i pozdravio je. Trebalo je videti kako se njih dvoje pozdravljaju. | He'll enjoy it." She got sore when I said that. Finally, though, the jerk noticed her and came over and said hello. You should've seen the way they said hello. |
| Čovek bi pomislio da se dvadeset godina nisu videli. Pomislio bi da su se kupali u istoj kadi ili nešto kad su bili deca. Stare drugarčine. Muka da ti pripadne. Najsmešnije u svemu tome bilo je što su se verovatno sreli samo jednom, na nekom folirantskom žuru. | You'd have thought they hadn't seen each other in twenty years. You'd have thought they'd taken baths in the same bathtub or something when they were little kids. Old buddyroos. It was nauseating. The funny part was, they probably met each other just once, at some phony party. |
| Na kraju, kad su prestali da afektiraju, Sali nas je upoznala. Zvao se Džordž nešto - čak se i ne sećam - i studirao je u Endoveru. Jaka, neviđeno jaka stvar. Trebalo je videti tog tipa kad ga je Sali pitala kako mu se dopao komad. | Finally, when they were all done slobbering around, old Sally introduced us. His name was George something―I don't even remember―and he went to Andover. Big, big deal. You should've seen him when old Sally asked him how he liked the play. |
| Bio je od onih foliranata kojima je izgleda potreban prostor kada odgovaraju na nečije pitanje. Zakoračio je unazad i zgazio pravo na nogu neke dame iza sebe. Verovatno joj je svaki prst polomio. | He was the kind of a phony that have to give themselves room when they answer somebody's question. He stepped back, and stepped right on the lady's foot behind him. He probably broke every toe in her body. |
| Rekao je da komad sam po sebi nije remek-delo, ali da su Lantovi, naravno, apsolutni anđeli. Anđeli. Isuse. Anđeli. To me dotuklo. Onda su Sali i on počeli da pričaju o masi ljudi koje su oboje poznavali. To je bio najisfoliraniji razgovor koji ste ikad čuli. | He said the play itself was no masterpiece, but that the Lunts, of course, were absolute angels. Angels. For Chrissake. Angels. That killed me. Then he and old Sally started talking about a lot of people they both knew. It was the phoniest conversation you ever heard in your life. |
| Oboje su se utrkivali da se sete što više raznih mesta, a onda bi se setili nekog ko tamo živi i pominjali njegovo ime. Malo je falilo da povratim pre nego što smo se vratili u salu. Najozbiljnije. | They both kept thinking of places as fast as they could, then they'd think of somebody that lived there and mention their name. I was all set to puke when it was time to go sit down again. I really was. |
| A onda, kad se završio i drugi čin, nastavili su svoj ubistveno dosadni razgovor. I dalje su se prisećali novih mesta i novih imena ljudi koji su tamo živeli. Što je najgore, taj klipan je govorio krajnje isfoliranim glasom, baš kao likovi iz takvih koledža, nekim vrlo umornim, snobovskim glasom. | And then, when the next act was over, they continued their goddam boring conversation. They kept thinking of more places and more names of people that lived there. The worst part was, the jerk had one of those very phony, Ivy League voices, one of those very tired, snobby voices. |
| Zvučao je baš kao neka devojka. Ni najmanje nije oklevao da se nabacuje mojoj ribi, strvina. Na trenutak sam pomislio da će čak i da uđe u naš taksi kad se predstava završila, jer je išao čitava dva bloka s nama, ali trebalo je da ode s gomilom nekih foliranata na koktel ili negde. | He sounded just like a girl. He didn't hesitate to horn in on my date, the bastard. I even thought for a minute that he was going to get in the goddam cab with us when the show was over, because he walked about two blocks with us, but he had to meet a bunch of phonies for cocktails, he said. |
| Lepo sam mogao da ih vidim kako sede u nekom baru, u tim prokletim kariranim prslucima, i kritikuju predstave, knjige i žene tim umornim, snobovskim glasovima. U stanju su da me dotuku, takvi likovi. | I could see them all sitting around in some bar, with their goddam checkered vests, criticizing shows and books and women in those tired, snobby voices. They kill me, those guys. |
| Do ulaska u taksi već sam kao zamrzeo staru Sali, posle deset sati slušanja tog isfoliranog endoverskog skota. | I sort of hated old Sally by the time we got in the cab, after listening to that phony Andover bastard for about ten hours. |
| Bio sam spreman da je odvedem kući i sve - najozbiljnije - ali rekla je: "Imam čarobnu ideju!" Ona je večito imala neke čarobne ideje. "Slušaj", rekla je. "Kada treba da ideš kući na večeru? Mislim, da li strašno žuriš ili nešto? Moraš li da budeš kod kuće u neko određeno vreme?" | I was all set to take her home and all―I really was―but she said, "I have a marvelous idea!" She was always having a marvelous idea. "Listen," she said. "What time do you have to be home for dinner? I mean are you in a terrible hurry or anything? Do you have to be home any special time?" |
| "Ja? Ne. Ni u kakvo određeno vreme", rekao sam. Ljudi moji, nikad veća istina nije izgovorena. "Zašto?" | "Me? No. No special time," I said. Truer word was never spoken, boy. "Why?" |
| "Hajdemo na klizanje u Radio Siti!" Takve su uvek bile njene čarobne ideje. "Na klizanje u Radio Siti? Misliš odmah?" | "Let's go ice-skating at Radio City!" That's the kind of ideas she always had. "Ice-skating at Radio City? You mean right now?" |
| "Samo na sat vremena. Zar ne želiš? Ako ne želiš..." | "Just for an hour or so. Don't you want to? If you don't want to―" |
| "Nisam rekao da ne želim", rekoh. "Zašto da ne. Ako se tebi ide." | "I didn't say I didn't want to," I said. "Sure. If you want to." |
| "Stvarno tako misliš? Nemoj da govoriš ako tako i ne misliš. Mislim, meni je sasvim svejedno, kako god ti hoćeš." | "Do you mean it? Don't just say it if you don't mean it. I mean I don't give a darn, one way or the other." |
| Svejedno, kad bi se zezali. | Not much she didn't. |
| "Tamo mogu da se iznajme one slatke male suknjice za klizanje", rekla je. "Žinet Kale je to uradila prošle nedelje." | "You can rent those darling little skating skirts," old Sally said. "Jeannette Cultz did it last week." |
| Zato je toliko navalila da ide. Htela je da vidi sebe u jednoj od tih suknjica koje jedva pokrivaju dupence i ostalo. | That's why she was so hot to go. She wanted to see herself in one of those little skirts that just come down over their butt and all. |
| I tako smo otišli, pa su nam tamo dali klizaljke, a onda je Sali dobila tu malu plavu vrcoguzu haljinicu. Stvarno je neviđeno izgledala u njoj, moram da priznam. | So we went, and after they gave us our skates, they gave Sally this little blue butt-twitcher of a dress to wear. She really did look damn good in it, though. I have to admit it. |
| I nemojte misliti da to nije znala. Stalno je išla ispred mene, tako da mogu da vidim kakvo zgodno dupence ima. I jeste bilo zgodno, priznajem. | And don't think she didn't know it. She kept walking ahead of me, so that I'd see how cute her little ass looked. It did look pretty cute, too. I have to admit it. |
| Smešno je bilo, međutim, što smo bili najgori klizači na čitavom prokletom klizalištu. Mislim, stvarno najgori. A bilo je i mahera, nema šta. Gležnjevi stare Sali toliko su se povijali, sve dok bukvalno nisu polegli po ledu. | The funny part was, though, we were the worst skaters on the whole goddam rink. I mean the worst. And there were some lulus, too. Old Sally's ankles kept bending in till they were practically on the ice. |
| Ne samo što su stravično glupo izgledali, već su verovatno i stravično boleli. Znam da su moji boleli. | They not only looked stupid as hell, but they probably hurt like hell, too. I know mine did. |
| Ubijali su me. Mora da smo čarobno izgledali. A da bude još gore, bilo je bar nekoliko stotina pacijenata koji nisu imali druga posla osim da stoje naokolo i gledaju svo to lomatanje. | Mine were killing me. We must've looked gorgeous. And what made it worse, there were at least a couple of hundred rubbernecks that didn't have anything better to do than stand around and watch everybody falling all over themselves. |
| "Hoćeš da sednemo malo unutra i popijemo neko piće ili nešto?" najzad sam joj rekao. | "Do you want to get a table inside and have a drink or something?" I said to her finally. |
| "To je najdivnija ideja koju si danas smislio", rekla je. Bukvalno je izdisala. Bilo je brutalno. Stvarno mi je bilo žao. | "That's the most marvelous idea you've had all day," she said. She was killing herself. It was brutal. I really felt sorry for her. |
| Skinuli smo proklete klizaljke i ušli u taj bar gde si mogao da uzmeš piće i posmatraš klizače, sedeći samo u čarapama. Čim smo seli, Sali je skinula rukavice, a ja joj dao cigaretu. | We took off our goddam skates and went inside this bar where you can get drinks and watch the skaters in just your stocking feet. As soon as we sat down, old Sally took off her gloves, and I gave her a cigarette. |
| Nije presrećno izgledala. Prišao je kelner pa sam naručio koka-kolu za nju - jer nije pila - a viski sa sodom za sebe, ali skot je odbio da mi ga donese, pa sam i ja uzeo koka-kolu. | She wasn't looking too happy. The waiter came up, and I ordered a Coke for her―she didn't drink―and a Scotch and soda for myself, but the sonuvabitch wouldn't bring me one, so I had a Coke, too. |
| Onda sam kao počeo da palim šibice. Radim to prilično često kad sam u određenom raspoloženju. Pustim ih kao da gore dokle god mogu da ih držim, a onda ih bacam u pepeljaru. Neka nervozna navika, šta li. | Then I sort of started lighting matches. I do that quite a lot when I'm in a certain mood. I sort of let them burn down till I can't hold them any more, then I drop them in the ashtray. It's a nervous habit. |
| Najednom, Sali je rekla: "Slušaj. Moram da znam. | Then all of a sudden, out of a clear blue sky, old Sally said, "Look. I have to know. |
| Dolaziš li ili ne dolaziš da mi pomogneš da okitim jelku za Božić? Moram da znam." Još je bila nadrndana zbog svojih gležnjeva na klizanju i svega. | Are you or aren't you coming over to help me trim the tree Christmas Eve? I have to know." She was still being snotty on account of her ankles when she was skating. |
| "Pisao sam ti da hoću. Pitala si me to već dvadeset puta. Naravno da hoću." | "I wrote you I would. You've asked me that about twenty times. Sure, I am." |
| "Mislim, moram da znam", rekla je. Počela je da gleda naokolo po čitavoj prokletoj prostoriji. | "I mean I have to know," she said. She started looking all around the goddam room. |
| Iznenada sam prestao da palim šibice i kao nagnuo se ka njoj preko stola. Motalo mi sve i svašta po glavi. "Ej, Sali", rekoh. | All of a sudden I quit lighting matches, and sort of leaned nearer to her over the table. I had quite a few topics on my mind. "Hey, Sally," I said. |
| "Šta?" rekla je. Gledala je neku devojku na drugoj strani prostorije. | "What?" she said. She was looking at some girl on the other side of the room. |
| "Da li se ikad zasitiš svega?" rekoh. "Mislim, da li si se ikad uplašila da će sve da ode dođavola ako ne preduzmeš nešto? Mislim, voliš li ti školu i sve te stvari?" | "Did you ever get fed up?" I said. "I mean did you ever get scared that everything was going to go lousy unless you did something? I mean do you like school, and all that stuff?" |
| "Užasno je dosadna." | "It's a terrific bore." |
| "Mislim, da li je mrziš? Znam da je užasno dosadna, ali da li je mrziš, to sam mislio." | "I mean do you hate it? I know it's a terrific bore, but do you hate it, is what I mean." |
| "Pa sad, nije baš da je mrzim. Ti večito moraš da nešto..." | "Well, I don't exactly hate it. You always have to―" |
| "E pa ja je mrzim. Ljudi moji, kako je mrzim", rekoh. "Ali nije samo to. | "Well, I hate it. Boy, do I hate it," I said. "But it isn't just that. |
| Nego sve. Mrzim život u Njujorku i sve. | It's everything. I hate living in New York and all. |
| Taksije i autobuse sa Medison avenije, s vozačima koji se večito deru da je izlaz na zadnja vrata, i upoznavanja s nekim folirantima koji za Lantove kažu da su anđeli, i vožnje gore-dole liftovima kada samo želiš da si napolju, i tipove koji ti stalno uzimaju meru za pantalone kod 'Bruksa', i ljude koji večito..." | Taxicabs, and Madison Avenue buses, with the drivers and all always yelling at you to get out at the rear door, and being introduced to phony guys that call the Lunts angels, and going up and down in elevators when you just want to go outside, and guys fitting your pants all the time at Brooks, and people always―" |
| "Ne viči, molim te", rekla je Sali. Što je zaista bilo smešno, jer uopšte nisam vikao. | "Don't shout, please," old Sally said. Which was very funny, because I wasn't even shouting. |
| "Uzmi samo kola", rekoh. Rekao sam to veoma tihim glasom. | "Take cars," I said. I said it in this very quiet voice. |
| "Uzmi većinu ljudi, ludi su za kolima. Pate se ako ih malo ogrebu negde i večito pričaju o tome koliko milja prelaze s galonom benzina, i čim nabave nova kola, već misle kako da ih zamene za neka još novija. | "Take most people, they're crazy about cars. They worry if they get a little scratch on them, and they're always talking about how many miles they get to a gallon, and if they get a brand-new car already they start thinking about trading it in for one that's even newer. |
| Ja ne volim čak ni stara kola. Mislim, uopšte me ne interesuju. Radije bih imao nekog konja. Konj je bar human. Konja bar možeš..." | I don't even like old cars. I mean they don't even interest me. I'd rather have a goddam horse. A horse is at least human, for God's sake. A horse you can at least―" |
| "Ne znam o čemu ti uopšte govoriš", rekla je Sali. "Samo skačeš s jedne..." | "I don't know what you're even talking about," old Sally said. "You jump from one―" |
| "Znaš šta?" rekoh. "Ti si verovatno jedini razlog što sam sada u Njujorku. Da ti nisi ovde, verovatno bih bio negde bestraga daleko. Negde u šumama ili ne znam gde. Ti si bukvalno jedini razlog što sam ovde." | "You know something?" I said. "You're probably the only reason I'm in New York right now, or anywhere. If you weren't around, I'd probably be someplace way the hell off. In the woods or some goddam place. You're the only reason I'm around, practically." |
| "Sladak si", rekla je. Ali videlo se kako bi volela da promenim prokletu temu. "Trebalo bi da odeš u neku mušku školu. Probaj jednom", rekoh. | "You're sweet," she said. But you could tell she wanted me to change the damn subject. "You ought to go to a boys' school sometime. Try it sometime," I said. |
| "Prepune su licemera i samo učiš ne bi li naučio da budeš dovoljno bistar kako bi jednog lepog dana bio u stanju da kupiš prokleti 'kadilak', i stalno moraš da se praviš kako ti je teško ako je ragbi-tim izgubio, i po ceo dan pričaš samo o devojkama, piću i seksu, i svi su izdeljeni u te odvratne male klike. | "It's full of phonies, and all you do is study so that you can learn enough to be smart enough to be able to buy a goddam Cadillac some day, and you have to keep making believe you give a damn if the football team loses, and all you do is talk about girls and liquor and sex all day, and everybody sticks together in these dirty little goddam cliques. |
| Likovi koji igraju košarku drže se za sebe, katolici se drže za sebe, prokleti intelektualci se drže za sebe, likovi koji igraju bridž drže se za sebe. | The guys that are on the basketball team stick together, the Catholics stick together, the goddam intellectuals stick together, the guys that play bridge stick together. |
| Čak se i likovi koji pripadaju prokletom klubu Knjige meseca drže za sebe. Ako pokušaš da vodiš neki iole inteligentan ray..." | Even the guys that belong to the goddam Book-of-the-Month Club stick together. If you try to have a little intelligent―" |
| "Slušaj sad", rekla je Sali. "Mnogim mladićima škola pruža mnogo više od toga." | "Now, listen," old Sally said. "Lots of boys get more out of school than that." |
| "Slažem se! Slažem se da im pruža, nekima od njih! Ali to je sve što meni pruža. Shvataš li? U tome je poenta. Baš u tome je prokleta poenta", rekoh. "Meni teško da se bilo šta pruža. U lošem sam stanju. U očajnom sam stanju." | "I agree! I agree they do, some of them! But that's all I get out of it. See? That's my point. That's exactly my goddam point," I said. "I don't get hardly anything out of anything. I'm in bad shape. I'm in lousy shape." |
| "Vidi se." | "You certainly are." |
| A onda, najednom, sinula mi je ideja. | Then, all of a sudden, I got this idea. |
| "Slušaj", rekoh. "Evo šta sam smislio. Da li bi volela da odeš bestraga odavde? Evo šta sam smislio. Znam jednog tipa u Grinič Vilidžu od koga možemo da uzmemo auto na nekoliko nedelja. Išli smo u istu školu i još mi duguje deset dolara. | "Look," I said. "Here's my idea. How would you like to get the hell out of here? Here's my idea. I know this guy down in Greenwich Village that we can borrow his car for a couple of weeks. He used to go to the same school I did and he still owes me ten bucks. |
| Šta bismo mogli da uradimo - da se sutra ujutro odvezemo gore do Masačusetsa i Vermonta i svuda naokolo, znaš. Tamo gore je užasno lepo. Najozbiljnije." Počeo sam stravično da se uzbuđujem, što sam više mislio o tome, i pružio sam kao ruku i uhvatio Sali za ruku. | What we could do is, tomorrow morning we could drive up to Massachusetts and Vermont, and all around there, see. It's beautiful as hell up there. It really is." I was getting excited as hell, the more I thought of it, and I sort of reached over and took old Sally's goddam hand. |
| Kakva sam budala bio. "Bez zezanja", rekoh. "Imam oko sto osamdeset dolara u banci. | What a goddam fool I was. "No kidding," I said. "I have about a hundred and eighty bucks in the bank. |
| Mogu da ih podignem kad ujutro otvore, a onda mogu da odem po taj auto. Bez zezanja. Smestićemo se u neki bungalov tamo u nekom kampu ili negde, dok nam traju pare. | I can take it out when it opens in the morning, and then I could go down and get this guy's car. No kidding. We'll stay in these cabin camps and stuff like that till the dough runs out. |
| A onda, kad nam nestane para, mogu da nađem neki posao, pa bismo mogli da živimo uz neki potok ili negde, a kasnije bismo mogli da se venčamo ili nešto. Zimi bih mogao da nacepam koliko god nam treba drva i svega. Fantastično bi nam bilo, kunem se! | Then, when the dough runs out, I could get a job somewhere and we could live somewhere with a brook and all and, later on, we could get married or something. I could chop all our own wood in the wintertime and all. Honest to God, we could have a terrific time! |
| Šta kažeš na to? Hajde, reci! Šta kažeš na to? Hoćeš li da pođeš sa mnom? Molim te!" | Wuddaya say? C'mon! Wuddaya say? Will you do it with me? Please!" |
| "Ne možeš tek tako da uradiš takvu stvar", rekla je Sali, kao da se užasno iznervirala. | "You can't just do something like that," old Sally said. She sounded sore as hell. |
| "Zašto? Zašto, dođavola, ne možeš?" | "Why not? Why the hell not?" |
| "Nemoj da urlaš na mene, molim te", rekla je. Što je bila glupost, jer uopšte nisam urlao. | "Stop screaming at me, please," she said. Which was crap, because I wasn't even screaming at her. |
| "Zašto ne možeš? Zašto?" | "Why can'tcha? Why not?" |
| "Zato što ne možeš, i gotovo. Pre svega, oboje smo bukvalno još deca. I da li ti je ikad palo na pamet šta bi radio ako ne bi našao posao kad ti nestane novca? Umrli bismo od gladi. Čitava stvar je takva fantazija da nije čak ni..." | "Because you can't, that's all. In the first place, we're both practically children. And did you ever stop to think what you'd do if you didn't get a job when your money ran out? We'd starve to death. The whole thing's so fan tastic, it isn't even―" |
| "Nije fantazija. Naći ću posao. Ne brini za to. Nemoj da brineš za to. U čemu je stvar? Zar ne želiš da ideš sa mnom? Reci ako ne želiš." | "It isn't fantastic. I'd get a job. Don't worry about that. You don't have to worry about that. What's the matter? Don't you want to go with me? Say so, if you don't." |
| "Nije to. Uopšte nije to", rekla je Sali. Počinjao sam već da je mrzim, šta li. "Imaćemo koliko god hoćeš vremena za takve stvari - za sve te stvari. Mislim, kad završiš koledž, i ako se venčamo i sve. Biće bezbroj čarobnih mesta kuda može da se ode. Ti si samo..." | "It isn't that. It isn't that at all," old Sally said. I was beginning to hate her, in a way. "We'll have oodles of time to do those things―all those things. I mean after you go to college and all, and if we should get married and all. There'll be oodles of marvelous places to go to. You're just―" |
| "Ne, neće biti. Uopšte neće biti bezbroj mesta kuda može da se ode. Sve će biti potpuno drukčije", rekoh. Ponovo sam postajao užasno potišten. | "No, there wouldn't be. There wouldn't be oodles of places to go to at all. It'd be entirely different," I said. I was getting depressed as hell again. |
| "Šta?" rekla je. "Ne čujem te. Prvo urlaš na mene, a onda..." | "What?" she said. "I can't hear you. One minute you scream at me, and the next you―" |
| "Rekao sam ne, neće biti čarobnih mesta kuda može da se ode kad završim koledž i sve. Aktiviraj malo uši. Sve će biti totalno drukčije. | "I said no, there wouldn't be marvelous places to go to after I went to college and all. Open your ears. It'd be entirely different. |
| Moraćemo da se spuštamo liftovima, sa koferima i ostalim glupostima. Moraćemo da telefoniramo svima živima i da se ispozdravljamo s njima i šaljemo im razglednice iz hotela i sve. | We'd have to go downstairs in elevators with suitcases and stuff. We'd have to phone up everybody and tell 'em good-by and send 'em postcards from hotels and all. |
| A ja ću raditi u nekoj kancelariji, pravicu gomilu para i voziću se na posao taksijem i autobusima s Me-dison avenije i čita'u novine i redovno ću igrati bridž i odlaziću u bioskop i gledaću masu glupih dokumentaraca i najava za buduće filmove i žurnale. | And I'd be working in some office, making a lot of dough, and riding to work in cabs and Madison Avenue buses, and reading newspapers, and playing bridge all the time, and going to the movies and seeing a lot of stupid shorts and coming attractions and newsreels. |
| Žurnale. Isuse svemogući. Uvek neka glupa konjska trka, i neka dama koja razbija flašu o brod, i neki šimpanza u pantalonama koji vozi prokleti bicikl. Uopšte neće biti isto. Ti uopšte ne shvataš na šta mislim." | Newsreels. Christ almighty. There's always a dumb horse race, and some dame breaking a bottle over a ship, and some chimpanzee riding a goddam bicycle with pants on. It wouldn't be the same at all. You don't see what I mean at all." |
| "Možda i ne shvatam! Možda ni ti ne shvataš", rekla je Sali. Oboje smo do tada već zamrzeli jedno drugo. Videlo se da nema nikakvog smisla pokušavati da vodiš neki inteligentan razgovor. Bilo mi je stravično krivo što sam uopšte započeo sve to. | "Maybe I don't! Maybe you don't, either," old Sally said. We both hated each other's guts by that time. You could see there wasn't any sense trying to have an intelligent conversation. I was sorry as hell I'd started it. |
| "Hajde, idemo odavde", rekoh. "Dosadna si kao stenica, ako baš hoćeš da znaš." | "C'mon, let's get outa here," I said. "You give me a royal pain in the ass, if you want to know the truth." |
| Ljudi moji, kako je pogodilo kad sam to rekao. Znam da to nije trebalo da kažem, i verovamo joj ne bih ni rekao da me nije toliko deprimirala. Obično nikad ne govorim tako grube stvari devojkama. Ljudi moji, kako je to pogodilo. | Boy, did she hit the ceiling when I said that. I know I shouldn't've said it, and I probably wouldn't've ordinarily, but she was depressing the hell out of me. Usually I never say crude things like that to girls. Boy, did she hit the ceiling. |
| Izvinjavao sam se kao sumanut, ali nije prihvatala moja izvinjenja. Čak je i plakala. | I apologized like a madman, but she wouldn't accept my apology. She was even crying. |
| Što me malo uplašilo, jer sam se pribojavao da će da ode kući i kaže svome ocu kako sam joj rekao da je dosadna kao stenica. Njen otac je bio jedan od onih velikih ćutljivih skotova, a ionako nije bio preterano lud za mnom. Jednom joj je rekao da previše galamim. | Which scared me a little bit, because I was a little afraid she'd go home and tell her father I called her a pain in the ass. Her father was one of those big silent bastards, and he wasn't too crazy about me anyhow. He once told old Sally I was too goddam noisy. |
| "Najozbiljnije. Žao mi je", govorio sam joj. | "No kidding. I'm sorry," I kept telling her. |
| "Žao ti je. Tebi je žao. To je jako smešno", rekla je. I dalje je kao plakala, i najednom mi je zaista bilo nekako žao što sam to rekao. | "You're sorry. You're sorry. That's very funny," she said. She was still sort of crying, and all of a sudden I did feel sort of sorry I'd said it. |
| "Hajde, otpratiću te kući. Ozbiljno." | "C'mon, I'll take ya home. No kidding." |
| "Mogu i sama da odem kući, hvala ti. Ako misliš da bih tebi dozvolila da me pratiš kući, onda si stvarno lud. Nijedan mladić mi nikad u životu nije rekao tako nešto." | "I can go home by myself, thank you. If you think I'd let you take me home, you're mad. No boy ever said that to me in my entire life." |
| Čitava je stvar, na neki način, bila pomalo komična, kad se bolje razmisli, pa sam najednom uradio nešto što nije trebalo. Nasmejao sam se. | The whole thing was sort of funny, in a way, if you thought about it, and all of a sudden I did something I shouldn't have. I laughed. |
| A ja se smejem baš onako glasno, nekim glupavim smehom. Mislim, kad bih nekim slučajem sedeo iza sebe u bioskopu ili negde, verovamo bih se nagnuo napred i rekao sebi da umuknem već jednom. To ju je izludelo više nego išta. | And I have one of these very loud, stupid laughs. I mean if I ever sat behind myself in a movie or something, I'd probably lean over and tell myself to please shut up. It made old Sally madder than ever. |
| Muvao sam se još neko vreme oko nje, izvinjavajući se i pokušavajući da je navedem da mi oprosti, ali nije htela. Samo mi je govorila da odem i ostavim je na miru. | I stuck around for a while, apologizing and trying to get her to excuse me, but she wouldn't. She kept telling me to go away and leave her alone. |
| Što sam na kraju i uradio. Otišao sam u garderobu, uzeo cipele i ostalo i otišao bez nje. To nije trebalo da uradim, ali sam do tada bio već prokleto sit svega. | So finally I did it. I went inside and got my shoes and stuff, and left without her. I shouldn't've, but I was pretty goddam fed up by that time. |
| Ako baš hoćete da znate, ne znam čak ni zašto sam pokrenuo čitavu tu stvar s njom. Mislim, to da odemo negde, u Masačusets i Vermont i sve. | If you want to know the truth, I don't even know why I started all that stuff with her. I mean about going away somewhere, to Massachusetts and Vermont and all. |
| Verovamo je ne bih ni vodio, čak i da je htela da pođe sa mnom. Ona stvarno nije bila neko s kim bi trebalo otići. | I probably wouldn't've taken her even if she'd wanted to go with me. She wouldn't have been anybody to go with. |
| Međutim, najstrašnije u svemu tome bilo je što sam ozbiljno mislio kad sam je pitao. To je ono najstrašnije. Stvarno sam lud, kunem se. | The terrible part, though, is that I meant it when I asked her. That's the terrible part. I swear to God I'm a madman. |