2010-12-28

Snowy Out There




It's snowy out there, which may mean good luck for the following days. I've just found that the China Union 3G network around the campus became fine.  Go on. 

Whatever, wish everybody a happy new year! 









- Sent from my iPhone -

2010-12-10

诺贝尔和平奖颁奖词

原始来源: 德国之声新闻聚合

Oct.12, 2010

Empty Chair is saved for Liu Xiaobo

诺贝尔和平奖网站上刊登了评委会主席亚格兰的颁奖致词。德国之声在此全文转载其中文版本。
 国王和王后陛下、阁下们、女士们、先生们:

“挪威诺贝尔和平奖委员会决定,授予刘晓波2010 年诺贝尔和平奖,以表彰他为争取和维护中国基本人权所进行的长期的、非暴力的努力。挪威诺贝尔和平奖委员会一向的观点是,人权与和平之间有着紧密的联系。人权是阿尔弗雷德•诺贝尔在其遗嘱中所提出的‘各国间友爱’的先决条件。”

我刚才所读的,是今年 10 月 8 日挪威诺贝尔和平奖委员会颁奖公告的第一段。
我们深感遗憾的是,和平奖获得者刘晓波正被隔离监禁在中国东北部的一个监狱里,不能亲自出席今天的仪式。他的妻子刘霞或其他亲属也不能前来。因此,今天我们不会颁发和平奖的奖章和证书。

这一事实本身就说明,授予刘晓波这项奖是必要的、应该的。我们对他荣获本年度诺贝尔和平奖表示衷心祝贺。

历史上,曾经有多位和平奖得主无法亲自出席颁奖仪式。事实上,最有历史意义和最具荣誉的几项和平奖中,就有好几项在颁发时都发生了这样的情况。也有很多次,虽然获奖者得以前来,却遭到了本国政府的强烈谴责。

1935 年委员会将和平奖授予卡尔•冯•奥西茨基时,就引起了轩然大波。希特勒暴跳如雷,禁止任何一个德国人前来接受任何一项诺贝尔奖。挪威的哈康国王没有出席颁奖仪式。奥西茨基也未成行,并在一年多之后去世。

安德烈•萨哈罗夫 1975 年得奖时,也是激起了惊涛骇浪。他也没有能够亲自前来领奖,而是由其夫人代为出席。1983 年和平奖得主列赫•瓦文萨也经历了同样的境遇。昂山素季 1991 年获奖令缅甸政府恼怒不堪,她也没能亲临奥斯陆领奖。2003 年,希尔琳•艾芭迪在荣获和平奖之后来到挪威。尽管伊朗政府做出了种种消极反应,伊朗驻挪威大使却出席了颁奖仪式。
诺贝尔和平奖委员会曾向南非人士颁发过四项和平奖。所有四位得主都亲临奥斯陆。但 1960 年艾伯特•卢图利和 1984 年图图主教的获奖,都引起了南非种族隔离政权的强烈不满,直到 1993 年纳尔逊•曼德拉和戴克拉克荣获和平奖,才终于博得了雷鸣般的掌声。

颁发以上这几项和平奖的目的,当然绝对不是为了侮辱任何人或任何国家。委员会的意图是通过颁奖,来凸显人权、民主与和平之间的关系。同样重要的是,我们要提醒世人,当今世界大部分地区民众所享有的权利,是有人不畏个人得失而奋斗和努力的成果。
他们是为了民众的利益而无畏奋斗的,这就是为什么刘晓波值得我们的支持。

虽然本委员会的成员从来没有与刘晓波见过面,我们却感到很了解他。我们密切地关注和审视他已经有相当长的一段时间了。

刘晓波于 1955 年 12 月 28 日出生在中国吉林省长春市。他在吉林大学获得文学学士后,于北京师范大学获硕士和博士学位,并留该校任教。他曾在奥斯陆大学、夏威夷大学和纽约的哥伦比亚大学担任访问学者。

1989 年,他回国参加正在兴起的民主运动。6 月 2 日,他和几位朋友开始在天安门广场绝食,抗议政府的戒严。他们发布了由刘晓波起草的包含六点的民主宣言,反对独裁、提倡民主。刘晓波不赞同学生与政府之间发生正面冲突,试图用一种和平的方式,来解决双方之间的紧张对峙局势。早在那时,非暴力就成为他民主理念中的一个核心因素。6 月 4 日,他和朋友们劝说学生撤退,以避免他们与军队的直接冲突。他没有能够完全扭转局势。很多人丧失了生命,大多数是在天安门广场之外。

刘晓波告诉自己的妻子,要把今年的和平奖献给“六四亡灵”。
我们完全遵从他的意愿。刘晓波曾经说:“非暴力反抗的伟大之处在于,当人类必须面对被强加的暴政及其苦难时,居然是受害者用爱面对恨,以宽容面对偏见,以谦卑面对傲慢,以尊严面对羞辱,以理性面对狂暴。”

天安门事件成了刘晓波生命的重大转折时刻。

1996 年,刘晓波以“造谣、诽谤”为由被劳动教养三年。他在 2003年到 2007 年间担任独立中文笔会会长,书写了将近 800 篇文章,其中 499篇写于 2005 年之后。他是《08 宪章》的起草人之一,而《08 宪章》是在2008 年 12 月 10 日发表的。正如宪章的引言所述,2008 年是“中国立宪百年,《世界人权宣言》公布 60 周年,‘民主墙’诞生 30 周年,中国政府签署《公民权利和政治权利国际公约》10 周年”。《08 宪章》呼吁保护基本人权,发表后已经有几千名国内外人士先后在上面签名。

2009 年 12 月 25 日,刘晓波因判决书中所称的“煽动他人推翻国家政权和社会主义制度”而构成的“煽动颠覆国家政权罪”获刑 11 年,被剥夺政治权利两年。刘晓波自始至终都坚称,这项判决既违反了中国宪法,也与基本人权的原则相悖。在中国有不少持政治异见者,他们对很多问题持有与政府不同的观点。刘晓波所获的严刑,使他不再仅仅是人权运动的一个重要代言人,几乎一夜之间,他就成了中国人权运动的民族和国际象征。

国王和王后陛下、女士们、先生们,

在冷战期间,人们对和平与人权之间的关系一直是众说纷纭、争执不休。冷战结束后,和平研究者和政治学家们却几乎无一例外地强调了这种关系的紧密。这可能是至今为止他们所做出的最“经得起时间考验”的发现之一。民主政权会向独裁政权宣战,并且确实发动过殖民战争,但历史上恐怕找不出任何的一个民主政权向另一个民主政权发起战争的实例。

阿尔弗雷德•诺贝尔在其遗嘱中所提出的更深层的“各国间兄弟般的友情”,即真正实现和平的先决条件,在没有人权和民主的前提下是无法建立的。
世界历史上,几乎没有任何其它大国,曾经象中国那样,在如此长一段时间内取得了如此迅猛的发展。从 1978 年起,中国连年保持着 10%甚至更高的增长速度。几年前,中国的生产总值超过了德国,今年又超过了日本。由此,中国国内生产总值跃居世界第二。美国的国内生产总值仍然比中国高出三倍,但中国在继续前进,而美国却面临着重重困难。
经济发展的成果使几亿中国人摆脱了贫困。在促进减少世界贫困人口的努力中,中国的重要贡献不可磨灭。

从某种程度上,我们可以说,有着 13 亿人口的中国肩负着人权的命运。如果中国能够建立起一种彻底保障公民权利的社会主义市场经济,就将会对世界产生深远的积极影响。否则,就可能面临社会和经济危机四起的险恶局势,从而产生危及整个世界的消极后果。
历史经验告诉我们,要继续保持快速的经济增长,就需要有研究自由、思想自由和辩论自由作为前提条件。此外,没有言论自由,腐败、官权骄纵和恶治就会滋长蔓延。任何一种官权体制都必须要通过民主监督、自由的媒体和公民的批评权来加以制衡。

在不同程度上实施独裁体制的国家,可以在较长阶段保持高速的经济增长,但世界上几乎所有最富庶的国家都是民主国家这一事实并非偶然。民主能够调动更多的人力和技术资源。
在国际社会中的新地位,也意味着中国必须承担更大的责任。中国必须做好准备接受批评,并将此视为一种积极的输入,一种改进的机遇。所有权力大国和掌控大权者都必须抱有这样的态度。我们对美国在各个时代的角色都持有自己的看法。友邦和盟国都曾经因为越南战争和黑人无法充分享有公民权利而批评过美国。1964 年马丁•路德•金获得诺贝尔和平奖时,很多美国人对此都颇有贬词。但事后看来,正是由于非裔美国人群获得了应有的公民权利,美国才变得更为强大。

很多人可能会问,今日中国处处显示出强大的实力,那么,一个公民因为对国家治理表达了自己的观点而被监禁 11 年,这是否恰恰显示出了中国的弱点所在。

这种弱点在刘晓波一案判决书中暴露无遗。判决书中强调说,影响尤其恶劣的是,他在互联网上发布自己的文章。但是,畏惧技术进步的人,最该畏惧的其实就是未来。信息技术不会消亡,它只会进一步地开放社会。正如俄罗斯总统德米特里•梅德韦杰夫在对杜马的演讲里所说的那样,“新的信息技术给了我们与世界相联系的可能。即使统治阶级对此抱敌视态度,世界和社会也会变得越来越开放。”

梅德韦杰夫在说这席话时,针对的无疑是前苏联。强迫和管制民意,阻碍了这个国家参与上世纪 70 和 80 年代的技术革命。整个专制体系最终崩溃。如果能够在早期就与安德烈•萨克罗夫这样的人士开展对话,前苏联肯定会受益匪浅。
国王和王后陛下、女士们、先生们,

今天,一个民族国家或民族国家中的多数人群体都不具有无限的权力。人权约束了民族国家及其多数人群体的行为。这项原则必须适用于所有加入了《世界人权宣言》的联合国的成员国。中国签署甚至批准了联合国和国际劳工组织的多项主要国际人权公约。值得注意的是,中国还接受了 WTO 的超国家争端解决机制。

中国的宪法保障最基本的人权。《中国宪法》第三十五条规定:“中华人民共和国公民有言论、出版、集会、结社、游行、示威的自由”。第四十一条的第一句就是:“ 中华人民共和国公民对于任何国家机关和国家工作人员,有提出批评和建议的权利”。
刘晓波正是践行了他的公民权利。他的所做所为无错、无罪,因此他必须获得释放!
近 100 到 150 年以来,人权与民主在世界上的地位日益巩固,和平也随之而来。对此,欧洲的近代史就提供了一个有力的佐证,因为欧洲曾经历过多次战争的蹂躏,欧洲的殖民政府也曾经频频挑起过世界各地的战争。而今天,欧洲基本上可以称为是"和平"之洲。二战后非殖民化的进程,使一系列国家,首先是在亚洲,然后是在非洲,获得了自治和尊重基本人权的可能性。以印度为首的很多国家掌控住了这个机遇。最近十年以来,我们还目睹了拉丁美洲、中欧和东欧民主化进程的推进。很多穆斯林国家,例如土耳其、印度尼西亚和马来西亚,也在向着同样的方向发展。很多其它国家也即将改变其政治体系封闭的现状。
中国的人权活动家们所捍卫的是国际秩序和国际社会的主流。如此看来,他们不是什么异见分子,他们所代表的是今日世界的主要潮流。

刘晓波否认对中国共产党的批评等同于对中国和中华民族的侮辱。他坚称,共产党“即便是执政党,也不能等同于国家,更不能等同于民族及其文化。”中国的变革需要时间,漫长的时间,政治改革将会也应当以象刘晓波所描述的"渐进、和平、有序、可控"的方式进行。中国在历史上做过太多次革命和改良的尝试,结果造成的却是混乱。但正如刘晓波所写的:“社会已经发生了走向多元化的巨大变化,官权已经无法完全操控整个社会”。因此,他说:“无论政权及其制度的力量有多么强大,每个个体也要............力争过一种有尊严的诚实生活。”
中国政府对本年度和平奖颁奖结果的反应是,这是对中国的侮辱,还对刘晓波做出了极其消极的评价。

历史上有过政治领袖试图借助民族自豪感丑化持政治异见人士的诸多例子。这些异见分子转身便成了外国间谍。有时,这种指控还打着民主和自由的旗号,但后果几乎无一例外是可悲的。
这种非此即彼的推理方式,还在反恐怖主义斗争的言辞中有着异曲同工的体现:“你要么是我的朋友,不然就是我的敌人。”酷刑和未经审判的监禁等非民主手段,也以自由的名义被加以滥用。这样的说法和做法就更加剧了世界的两极分化,并削弱了反恐斗争。
虽然面临着多年的囹圄生活,刘晓波仍然是一个乐观主义者。在2009 年 12 月 23 日法庭上所做的最后陈述中,他说:“我对未来自由中国的降临充满乐观的期待,因为任何力量也无法阻拦心向自由的人性欲求,中国终将变成人权至上的法治国。”
艾萨克·牛顿曾经说过:“如果说我能看得更远一些,那是因为我站在巨人的肩膀上。”当我们在今天能够看得更远一些,那是因为我们站在了古往今来的众多先人的肩膀上,是他们无私无畏地坚持着自己的信仰,从而为我们争得了自由。

因此,在当今社会不少人忙于数点钞票,很多国家只顾及眼前的本国民族利益或对刘晓波的倡议和努力置若罔闻时,挪威诺贝尔和平奖委员会再一次决定,通过和平奖的颁发,来支持为全人类利益而奋斗的人们。

我们向刘晓波荣获 2010 年诺贝尔和平奖表示由衷的祝贺。他的观点最终会使中国变得更为强大。我们祝福他、祝福中国未来一切顺利。


2010-12-05

Get Your Eagle Eye On: 10 Tips for Proofreading Your Own Work

 
 

Sent to you by Andy via Google Reader:

 
 

via Write to Done by guest on 12/3/10

A guest post by Leah McClellan of Peaceful Planet

The best blog post I read this morning—of many—is good. Very good, actually. It flows. It's fresh. It has a rhythm that drew me in and made me want to read every word. The ideas are thought-provoking.

But how much more enjoyable would it have been if I didn't have to reread certain sections to make sure I was getting the gist of things? How much better would the post be if I didn't hesitate at it's instead of its and there instead of they're? How much intended meaning and power was lost over a lack of subject-verb agreement or commas that might have been better placed?

Tripping, stumbling, and hesitating over misspelled words or ill-placed punctuation is like watching a TV show with a shaky cable signal or trying to talk while a cell phone connection is breaking up—the reader is jostled right out of the story the writer is telling.

If the errors are too big or too many, I'm outta there.

This writer intentionally broke a lot of rules in his 1100-word article, and he broke them well. Sentence fragments clustered together as ideas to ponder, a long list of items without commas that symbolizes repetitive drivel, the same word repeated over and over in a few short sentences to pound in a point. Good stuff and well done, for the most part.

Some grammar and punctuation rules can—and should—be broken, when you know what the rules are and how to break them effectively. But the lack of solid proofreading in this piece is like cake without icing, pottery without glaze, or a fine piece of wood in need of a polish. The writer didn't step back and get his Eagle Eye on.

"Come on," you chortle. "It's hard to proofread your own work. And who notices anyway?"

Believe it or not, lots of people notice unless they're just scanning. And it's quite possible that many of those scanners might linger on every word you write if typos and bloopers and unintentionally-broken punctuation or grammar rules weren't making them stumble and wonder and lose their focus.

Typos and errors break up the "voice" that readers are trying to hear as they read your written words.

It doesn't matter whether you're a freelancer, a blogger, a student, or anyone who writes for any reason. Most of us don't have proofreaders or a skilled family member or friend to help us out on a regular basis. And if you're submitting work to an agent or publisher or a big blog for consideration, why let typos and mistakes clutter and cloud the brilliant work you want them to read?

Any time you write something, you want readers to enjoy and appreciate your masterpiece. It's your baby, an extension of yourself. Take good care of it.

Writing and editing is art. Proofreading is science.

So says Rushang Shah, President of Gramlee.com, an online editing service with editors behind the scenes constantly proofreading and copyediting. Rushang says that "all proofreading and copyediting involves the human element, and that's why computers cannot replace a proofreader."

Proofreading your own work can be challenging, it's true. You already know the story, you already have a picture in your mind of what to expect and, as a result, you tend to skim over words and groups of words. Plus, you know your own voice and, even if there are errors in your writing, you don't "hear" them or see them because you're in a hurry, and your mind fills in the blanks as you skim over things. You might be daydreaming—even if you're reading out loud.

If you have a system, though, proofreading can be like doing a quality check on an assembly line. It's just busy work, really, and not very creative at all. But it's so important.

Here are some tips to help you get your Eagle Eye on and proofread your own work like a pro.

1. Don't proofread until you're completely finished with the actual writing and editing. If you make major changes while proofreading, even if it's just within sentences, you're still in an artistic, creative mode, not a science mode.

2. Make sure you have no distractions or potential interruptions. Shut down email and social media, hide the cell phone, shut off the TV, radio, or music, and close the door. Print your document if you need to get away from the computer altogether.

3. Forget the content or story. Analyze sentence by sentence; don't read in your usual way. Focus on spelling, grammar, and punctuation. Work backwards, if that helps, or say the words and sentences out loud. Concentrate.

4. Make several passes for different types of errors. Try checking spelling and end punctuation on one pass, grammar and internal punctuation on another, and links or format on yet another pass. Develop a system.

5. Take notes. If you notice a format issue while checking spelling or if you need to look something up, make a quick note and come back to it so you don't lose your focus.

6. If you do make a last-minute change to a few words, be sure to check the entire sentence or even paragraph over again. Many errors are the result of changes made without adjusting other, related words.

7. Check facts, dates, quotes, tables, references, text boxes, and anything repetitive or outside of the main text separately. Focus on one element or several related aspects of your writing at a time.

8. Monitor yourself. If you find yourself drifting off and thinking about something else, go back over that section again. Try slapping your hand or tapping a foot in a rhythm as you examine each word and sentence out loud.

9. Get familiar with your frequent mistakes. Even the most expreienced writer mixes up their, they're, and there or too, two, and to. When I'm tried or writing fast, I right what I here in my mind and just get careless. Not a big deal. That's what proofreading is for. You caught those errors, didn't you?

10. Check format last. Every document has format, even an email, whether it's paragraph spacing, text wrap, indentations, spaces above and below a bullet list or between subheadings and text, and so on. Leave this for the end because contents may shift during handling.

You already know better than to rely on spell-check, so I won't belabor the point except to say that "wear form he untied stats" doesn't bother spell-check but it might get an American in trouble at a customs checkpoint.

What if you don't quite know what you're looking for while proofreading?

Do you know basic comma rules, how to use a semi-colon, or when to use who or whom? You might have an excellent sense of what things should look like or sound like, especially if you're an avid reader, but if you don't know basic grammar and punctuation rules, proofreading might be guesswork, at best, with doubtful results, at worst. Why not make your life easier and your writing better? Take some time to learn basic rules from some online resources I consult when I need help:

Grammar Girl: Quick and Dirty Tips

Purdue Online Writing Lab: General Writing Resources

Oxford Dictionaries: Better Writing

GrammarBook.com

You can also download a free copy of The Handy-Dandy Everybody's Guide to Proofreading over at my blog, Peaceful Planet.

Don't let mistakes tarnish your work of art, whether it's a research paper, a blog post, a query letter, or business communication. And remember, proofreading is not the same as writing and editing. It's not about creativity; it's a science that needs a system. Follow these tips and create your own system, and you'll have your Eagle Eye on in no time.

Leah McClellan is a freelance writer, copyeditor, proofreader, gardener, vegetarian, and animal lover who dreams of world peace and writes about communication at Peaceful Planet.


 
 

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2010-11-06

如何找到你的人生目标

via 译言-每日精品译文推荐 by 秋月白 on 4/25/10

原作者:
来源How to Find Your Purpose in Life?
译者秋月白

我们大多数人在无意识地生活。每天的日常工作使我们的大脑忙忙碌碌,总有下一个假期或聚会要期盼。然后某一个星期天的午后,当我们懒懒洋洋地靠在床上,一个念头突然出现:我的人生目标是什么?对有些人,当他们陷于无意义的工作或无出路的生活境遇中时这个问题就会出现。
在生活中有一个实实在在的目标会真的令人满意,但是要找到明确你人生的确切目标并不是那么简单的。大多数人找出一个目标只是闹着玩而已,随后他们首先就发现自己并不是真的热心于此。
在你坐下来寻找你的人生目标之前,对实相或生活的现实性有一个完全的了解是有帮助的。这里有几条建议可以在这一过程中帮到你。
检查一下你是否已经有一个目标了?如果你认为现在的生活豪无目的,那么只要再看一下。在整个生命长河中没有什么目标是太小或太大的。甚至一个扫大街的也在实现他生命中最重要的目标。即使你在一家小公司工作,你也在通过所提供的服务实现一个与人生有关的重大目标。
可能你正在维持一家生计或养育孩子,这是相当重要的目标。如果你觉得目前生活毫无意义,这只表示你没有真正地重视你目前的角色。
你内心真正的呼唤不需要高大宏伟?有些人真的名声显赫而有些人却过着默默无闻的生活,这两者之间没有什么实质的差别,每个人都在完成一个特定的角色,没有一个角色比另一个更重要。
你与生俱来的天分可能正好可以确定你的人生目标?令人惊讶的是有多少人具有令人难以置信的天分却终其一生没有将其转换成事业或服务。如果你有一种天分,那是生命赐予你的礼物。努力找到可能的最佳方法把你的天分转换成可为人们提供服务的东西。没有比通过天生的才能为了一个目标生活和赚钱更好的方式了。
听从你的心而不是脑?心和脑只是比喻。心表示你的直觉而脑来自你的条件作用模式。聆听你内心深处的声音,看心底是否有深埋的渴望正在苏醒,可能一直以来你忽视了这个渴望。
你的脑可能会找到几个借口,告诉你你的心所想要的是不切实际的,但那恰是你的条件作用在说话。你心的声音永远是真实的,它指出你内心深处的向往。
写篇短文详细描述你想过什么类型的生活?令人惊异的是通过写下你的想法可以使你获得多少深刻的见解。每天有数百万的想法匆匆穿行于大脑,很难把所有的都弄懂。当你坐下来写的时候,那些想法变的更有条理了。无需太多忙乱,只要开始键入或写下你真正想过的是什么类型的生活。只是自由地写,不要过多地把大脑卷进来,让字句由你的潜意识产生。你可能要写上几分钟才能真正地进入最佳状态。
写上几个小时是有帮助的,即使你的大脑停止了大量产生想法。这正是你的大脑放弃了而心开始说话的时候。当你读这篇短文时,你可以在一些发自下意识的词句之间找到你的人生目标。
让答案从宁静中来?我们的智能在两个层面上运作,一个是聒噪的大脑,另一个是我们内心的无声的宁静空间。宁静空间比被制约的大脑要聪明得多,这已被几个有创新精神的天才证明了,他们谈到在创作最杰出的作品前进入无意识状态。
要进入宁静空间,只要以放松姿势坐着,感知你的身体内在。当你把注意力放到身体内在时,大脑趋向于停止运作,感到感觉和精神穿过你的身体。过一会所有这些感觉都会消退,让位于宁静。在这种宁静的状态下询问你的目标,不要指望从你大脑里得到一个口头的答案。
有时你可能从突然出现的直觉中立即得到答案或者以后在梦中或醒着时得到答案。
跟着直觉走?无论何时你直觉要做什么事,就跟着做。有时冒些险来寻找人生的真正目标是很重要的。只是要确定在做出这些决定时要与你的直觉协调一致。到最后不会有失败这回事,这只是一个学习的机会。
可能要经过几次失败的尝试和困境,你才能最终偶然发现你人生的真正目标。如果你感知直觉的内在声音,你或许会少犯些错误。永远记住你身体感觉到的情感才能正确地指出你对自己决定的真实感受,而不是你头脑中的想法。
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相关文章:
  约翰·戈达德:世界上最伟大的目标实现者
  我的时间哪儿去了?简化生活中的承诺
  九步以确定你的人生目标和制定达到目标的计划


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2010-10-26

How to Lift Your Writing to new Heights – in Just 10 Minutes

Sent to you by Andy via Google Reader:

via Write to Done by Mary Jaksch on 10/26/10


By Mary Jaksch

Want to Write Better? I mean, a lot better – in just ten minutes. I'm not talking about some kind of writing Voodoo; I want to show you a no-fail way that can improve your writing dramatically in minutes.
Let's start at the beginning. And that means starting with the brain, because that's the main machine we use for writing. Whether it's having great ideas, or choosing a structure, or dancing with words – it's all to do with brainpower. So a simple way to write better is to boost the performance of your brain.
How to boost brainpower in only 10 minutes?
Here's what made me consider this question:  I was recently in Las Vegas at Blogworld where I spent 5 days in canned air with piped muzak. I tried to write – but my imagination was sluggish and my focus scattered.
When I got back home to New Zealand, I inhaled the pure air deep into my lungs. And I got really excited about raising my fitness. After all, as a writer I tend to sit at my desk a lot. Maybe you do too?
I started an 8-week Fitness Challenge and wrote a post, called Want to be Fit, or even Ultra-Fit? Join the 8-Week Challenge People are joining in droves. (Leo Babauta joined too and is super helpful in the Challenge forum).
As soon as I started cranking up my fitness, my creativity flooded back. It's not only the oxygen that sharpens our skills, what makes a difference is that exercise is a circuit breaker that lifts us out of the writing rut.

Here is how to lift your writing to new heights in 10 minutes

  1. Exercise briskly for 10 minutes
    If possible, exercise outside so that you have a change of environment. Once you're outside, walk briskly or run. If you can't go outside, use whatever is at hand for exercise. For example,  a staircase is a great exercise tool. Run or walk up one flight of stairs. Then take some deep breaths and repeat.
  2. Raise your pulse rate
    It's important to raise your heart rate substantially. When you do that, the mind lets go of worries and preoccupations and focuses on the exercise itself. This means that you can return to writing with a clear mind.
  3. Get out of breath
    Being out of breath is good! Use it as your benchmark for brisk exercise.  When you are 'out of breath' you are gulping huge amounts of oxygen which will refresh your brain.
  4. Be mindful
    When you exercise, leave mp3 player and phone behind. Focus on your present experience. Notice the color of the sky, the ground under your feet, and the sounds around you. When we are mindful (which is really a form of meditation), the mind becomes expansive and open.
  5. Drink water
    At the end of the 10 minutes exercise, drink a couple of glasses of water.  Hydration also helps your brain to function well.
Taking ten minute breaks like this is a great habit. Not only does exercise boost brainpower,   it also acts like a circuit breaker. This is especially helpful if you get stuck with the piece you're writing, or if progress is sluggish.
Once you get back to your desk, remember to sit upright. Good posture helps your mind to focus. That's why most forms of meditation include instructions for upright posture. When the spine is aligned, random thoughts die down and you are less likely to get caught in endless cycles of 'what if' or 'if only' thought patterns, and can open up to your full creativity.
Mary Jaksch is Chief Editor of Write to Done. Read more on her blog Goodlife ZEN. Together with Leo Babauta, Mary runs the A-List Blogger Club, an ongoing training for bloggers that members rave about:
6 months ago my blog and writing was nowhere. Enter the A-List Blogger Club. Since then I've gotten guest posts on big sites (including on Zen Habits), totally rebranded and simplified my site, have begun making money from affiliate sales, launched an ebook, and today my subscriber numbers are over 1,500! When I joined I was at 120. So thank you. You are making dreams come true. – Scott Dinsmore: 'Reading For Your Success'.
Tip: the A-List Blogger Club will close the doors in 5 days time until the end of the year. If you're keen, get in quick.

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2010-10-22

It's Still Raining Out There

If it was the last day in your life, what will you do?
Maybe nothing. As long as not be in a cybercafe.
While, it is a big problem that how to enjoy your remaining life rather than just waste it.
Take easy, but not lazy.
You're not the man. You are just yourself. Not BE normal, but it is just normal. Do things you do as usual.
Leave your mind alone. Don't be in mood. Recollect the past beautiful days you lived with the people you love. Forgive & forget the people & things you hated.
... ...
No, you just think too much.
Believe you have a better life in future. There's never an end. Everyday is the begin of your life.

- Sent from my iPhone -

2010-09-05

Find Stillness to Cure the Illness

 
 

Sent to you by Andy via Google Reader:

 
 

via article.yeeyan.org on 9/4/10

find stillness to cure the illness

找寻宁静来治愈疾病

"Silence is a source of great strength." ~Lao Tzu

"静是巨大力量的源泉。"——老子

It's a busy day, and you're inundated by non-stop emails, text messages, phone calls, instant message requests, notifications, interruptions of all kinds.

这是繁忙的一天,你被淹没在无休无止的电子邮件、短信、电话、即时信息要求、通知和各种各样的打断中。

The noise of the world is a dull roar that pervades every second of your life. It's a rush of activity, a drain on your energy, a pull on your attention, until you no longer have the energy to pay attention or take action.

这个世界的噪声是低沉的咆哮充斥了你生活中的每一秒钟。这是一种动的忙乱、一种对你能量的消耗和对你注意力的牵扯,它永不停息一直到你不再有精力去注意或采取行动。

It's an illness, this noise, this rush. It can literally make us sick. We become stressed, depressed, fat, burnt out, slain by the slings and arrows of technology.

这种噪声,还有这种忙乱,是一种疾病。它能真正地让我们患病,使我们变得紧张、抑郁、肥胖和精疲力竭,最后被现代技术的投石器和箭头残杀。

The cure is simple: it's stillness.

治疗的方法很简单:宁静。

Pause

暂停

Take a minute out of your busy day to do this little exercise: pause in the middle of all you have to do, all that's going on around you. Close your eyes, and sit still. Breathe in, and breathe out, and pay attention to your breath as it comes in and goes out. Just sit still, for about a minute.

在你繁忙的一天中花一分钟做个小练习:在你所有不得不做的事情和所有正围绕着你进行的事情中间暂停下来,闭上眼睛,安静地坐下来。吸气,然后呼气,当气体吸进去和呼出去时把注意力都集中在你的呼吸上。仅仅静静地坐着,坐大约一分钟。

This stillness might seem like inaction, which we're taught is a bad thing. It's lazy, it's passive, it's against our Puritan work ethic. And yet, this simple inaction can change our world.

也许这种静坐象是一种不作为,而不作为被告知是糟糕的事情。它是懒惰、消极的行为,是违背我们清教徒的工作规范的行为。然而事实是,这种不作为可以改变我们的世界。

Stillness calms us. It gives us a small oasis of quiet that allows us to hear our thoughts, that allows us to catch our breath, that gives us room to breathe at all. It is the antibody to the stress and rush we feel daily.

静坐可以使我们镇静下来,它能够给予我们一块小小的安静的绿洲,在那里我们可以倾听自己的思想,可以捕捉我们的呼吸。它能够给予我们一个空间完全地进行呼吸。它是我们日常感受到的压力和匆忙的抗体。

"Activity conquers cold, but stillness conquers heat." ~Lao Tzu

"躁胜寒,静胜热"——老子

The Strength of Stillne

宁静的力量

Stillness has a calming effect on the world around us as well. By becoming still, we cause others to pause, to pay attention. Our quiet also quiets others. We set the mood for those who work and otherwise interact with us.

在这个世界上,在我们周围,静有一种镇静的效用。因为变得安静,我们会使其他人暂停下来,开始注意。我们的安静可以使其他人也安静下来。我们为那些工作的人们设定静的情绪,或者同我们一起相互影响以静下来。

When we rush and set a frenetic pace, it stresses others and inspires them to rush frenetically too. Stillness has the opposite effect. It slows the world down, allows us to focus, gives us time for contemplation, for what matters most.

当我们忙乱着和设定一种发狂的节奏时,这会带给他人压力并促使他们也发狂地忙乱起来。宁静却有着相反的作用,它使世界慢了下来,允许我们集中注意,给我们时间去沉思什么是最要紧的。

It takes strength to be still when others rush. It takes courage to be different, to go against the stream. But while others might think us weird at first, that's OK. Sometimes it's the weird ones that make the most difference. And soon, as our stillness inspires others to find stillness of their own, we won't be the weird ones — we'll be the ones with wisdom.

当其他人很忙乱时要想静下来是需要花力气的。它也需要勇气来做得不同于其他人,去逆潮流而行。如果最初其他人认为我们奇怪时,没有关系。有时候正是这些奇怪的行为才能创造出最不同的东西。很快,当我们的宁静开始激励他人去找寻他们自己的宁静时,我们就不是奇怪的人了——我们是智慧的人。

It takes strength to find stillness when the world around us is a chaos of activity, but it's a strength that's in us, and we need only to find it. Paradoxically, it's stillness that will allow us to find that strength. Be still, look within, and it'll be there.

当我们周围的世界是一种动的混乱状况时,要找寻宁静是需要力量的。但是这是一种在我们内心里的力量,我们所需要的只是找到这种力量。相反的是,正是宁静会使得我们找到这个力量。安静下来,向内寻找,力量就在那里。

Finding Stillness

找寻宁静

It's pretty simple, really, and you don't need me to tell you to do this: to find stillness, you just need to take the time to sit still, every day that you can.

这非常简单,真的,你不需要我来告诉你怎么做,要找寻宁静,你只需要花时间静静地坐下来,每天你都能找到宁静。

Find a time in the morning, when the world is still fairly quiet, to sit still. Don't do anything, don't plan your day, don't check email, don't eat. Just sit, and learn to be comfortable being still.

在早晨找一个时间,当世界还相对安静的时候,安静地坐着,不要做任何事,不要计划你一天的行动,不要检查你的邮件,也不要吃东西,仅仅坐着,学会怎样舒服地静坐不动。

In practice, we'll gradually find that comfort, and we'll become good at it. If mornings are no good, find time during your lunch break, or after work, or just before you go to bed.

事实上,我们会渐渐发现那种舒适的,我们还会变得擅长这种舒适地静坐。如果早晨不合适的话,在你午休时找找时间,或者下班后,或在你睡觉前。

Find a place to be still. It can be a chair in your house, or a front porch, or the roof. It can be a park bench, or the beach, or a path in the woods. Let this be a ritual that you come to look forward to.

找到一个地方适合你静坐。这样的地方可以是你房子里的一把椅子,或你屋子前的门廊,也可以是房顶上。公园里的长凳、海滩、或树林里的小径。让它成为一个习惯,这样你会变得期待去做它。

From this small place of stillness, calm will carry to the rest of your day, radiating like a soothing force. You'll be calmer throughout the day, and learn to find little pockets of stillness everywhere: when you first start your workday, when you are ready to sit down and create, when you're about to eat, when you are ready to exercise, during a meeting, even.

从这个宁静的小地方开始,平静会在一天中剩下的时间里跟随着你,就象一种安慰的力量在辐射着你。你在整整一天中都会镇静多了。学会四处去找寻这个宁静的小口袋吧,当你刚开始你的工作日时,当你准备坐下来创造时,当你要开始进食时,当你准备锻炼时,甚至,当你在开会中间时。

Practice, regularly. Practice, and learn. Practice stillness, and the stillness becomes a canvas upon which you can paint the masterpiece of your life.

有规律地练习吧。练习,然后学习。练习静坐,那么静坐会成为一块画布,在它上面你可以描绘出你自己生活的杰作。

"Let us be silent, that we may hear the whispers of the gods." ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

"让我们安静下来吧,那样我们或许可以听到上帝的耳语。"——拉尔夫.沃尔多.爱默生


 
 

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江伊涵~ F CUP BABY






























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2010-09-02

Why You Should Shoot Adverbs on Sight




By Mary Jaksch


Yes, I’m declaring open season on adverbs. What is an adverb exactly? Erm… it’s the word I just used: exactly. So I’ll cull it and write instead ‘What is an adverb?’

An adverb modifies a verb, an adjective or a phrase. It answers questions such as ‘how’, ‘when’, ‘where’, or ‘how much’. Such details may be important, but we need to understand the dynamics of information versus pace.

Information versus pace




‘Pace’ identifies the speed at which readers can devour your text. Long sentences and detailed descriptions slow down the pace. Lean sentences and short paragraphs speed it up.

The more detailed information you give, the slower the pace. If you use words that are redundant, the reader may start to skip and even leave.

What does redundancy mean in terms of writing? Test the two definitions I found on the Internet. Which one slows your reading down?

  1. Redundancy means words that are superfluous.
  2. Redundancy means the superfluity of a linguistic feature due to its predictability within the overall structure.



Just imagine reading a whole article in the style of the second example. I bet you couldn’t click away fast enough!

Now that we’ve got that redundancy thing cleared up, let’s take a look at the implications.

The redundancy test




How do you know when a word is superfluous? It’s simple. If the meaning stays the same without the word, then you’re faced with a ‘superfluity of a linguistic feature’.

He hurriedly scribbled the number down on a pad

In this case the adverb ‘hurriedly’ is superfluous because the word scribbling already implies writing fast. The sentence ‘He scribbled the number down on a pad’ is leaner and stronger.

John got up and walked restlessly to the window.

Here, the word ‘restlessly’ is redundant because the restlessness is already shown in the action.

Some writers like to use not only one, but two adverbs. For example: She really, truly cared for him. In this case, consider culling one of the adverbs, or even both. Here, you would end up with: She cared for him.



In a recent guest post pitch I found this sentence: As writers it’s normal to jump both mentally and actually from one project to another.

That’s a very athletic sentence … which would benefit from some brutal editing.



Should we let some adverbs live?




According to Master Editor Sol Stein in his book Stein on Writing there are two rules for letting adverbs live:

  1. Keep an adverb that supplies necessary information. Example: He tried running faster and fell. If he’s already running, you must keep ‘faster’. If you remove the adverb the sentence means that he fell as soon as he started running.
  2. Keep and adverb that helps the reader visualize the precise image you want to project. Example: She drove crazily, frightening the oncoming traffic.



Pace is better than pretty


Many writers try to improve their writing by making it ‘pretty’. They try to stuff their text full of colorful adverbs and adjectives. Wrong! Lean sentences that heighten the pace keep readers from falling off the page.

Improve your writing now


A simple way to improve your writing is to take a piece you’ve written and highlight all adverbs. Then try to delete as many as possible. Your readers will thank you.

Have YOU got examples of how killing an adverb strengthens writing? Please share them with us in the comments.

Mary Jaksch is the Chief Editor of Write to Done. Enjoy more of her stuff on Goodlife Zen. And check out the A-List Blogger Club that Leo Babauta and Mary run jointly.




Original: http://writetodone.com/2010/08/30/shoot-adverbs/


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2010-08-20

仙剑奇侠传Ⅲ 电视剧版第38集


  景天连叫了三句“我不想走”后,就倒下了,雪见扶着他,笑嘻嘻的说:“菜牙,别装了,给我起来!”景天没有反应,只是两眼无神的看着天空,这时雪见有点急了,喊道:“菜牙,本小姐命令你起来,你敢不起来!快起来呀!”景天依然毫无反应,这下雪见是彻底慌了,带着哭腔喊道:“菜牙,你怎么了,你别吓我啊,菜牙,我们好不容易才走到一起的,菜牙,菜牙……花楹,你快过来啊,花楹!”屋里,花楹急忙化成人形,跑到永安当们门口:“主人,怎么了?你怎么哭了?景天怎么倒在地上啊?”雪见抹了抹眼泪,道:“花楹,你快救救景天,快!”“哦。”感觉有点莫名其妙花楹回答一声后,就走向景天,开始施法。没多久,就见花楹一脸失望的停了下来。“怎么样了?”雪见焦急的问道,花楹摇了摇头道:“主人,对不起,花楹尽力了,但景天是自然死亡,体内所有东西都好好的,就是魂魄已经不在了,对不起,主人。”听到花楹的话,雪见无力的靠着门柱,脸上没有一丝表情,有的,只有眼泪。

      “景老板!”屋里传来了赵文昌的声音,“哎呀,景老板,你这是怎么啦,老板娘,景老板他怎么啦?”雪见没有理他,只是靠着门柱,两眼无神的看着躺在地上的景天,泪水不住的往下流着。这时,花楹略带哭腔的说道:“景天他,他死了……”“什么?”赵文昌一听,傻了,“哎哟,我说景老板呐,你可别吓我哟,你怎么能这样就走了啊,你说说,你认识蜀山上那么多人,蜀山上有那么多宝贝,哎哟,看来现在是没辙了啊……”这时,雪见突然回过神来,嘴里默念了句:“蜀山。”只见她一把扶起景天,就向外跑去。“主人,你要去哪,不要扔下花楹!”花楹立刻变成五毒兽跟了上去,只留下在那里鬼嚎的赵文昌,也不知道他是心疼景天还是心疼那些还没见过面得宝贝。

        蜀道上,一个红衣女子,背着一个男子,正艰难的往上爬着,身后还有位穿黄色衣服的小姑娘在不停的帮着忙。“菜牙,坚持住,本小姐一定要把你送上蜀山,长卿大侠一定有办法救你,所以,你要坚持住啊,要是你敢放弃,本小姐,本小姐就马上嫁给其他人,你听见了吗,菜牙……”雪见的声音明显带着哭腔,但她说的话,除了花楹,又有谁能听到呢?

       夜晚,蜀山无极阁里,长卿和常胤正在商量事情,突然听到门外有响动,于是他们便走到门前,这不看不知道,一看吓一跳啊,俩人一土豆齐刷刷的躺在门前。“常胤,快,叫人扶他们去休息,然后到后山取些仙土,将花楹安置在里面”长卿看着这一幕急急的说到。“是,掌门师兄。”常胤说完后就立马去安排了。

      “菜牙,不要离开我,不要啊!”雪见从梦中惊醒,她立马起床,跑出房间,直奔无极阁。到无极阁前,雪见刚想推开门,就听见里面有人在商量着什么,似乎是关于救景天的,于是她便停了下来,仔细的听着。

      “掌门师兄,难道真的没有办法救景兄弟了吗?他可是我们蜀山的大恩人啊,就算要用我的命去换他的命,我也愿意!”常胤焦急的问道。而长卿却摇了摇头道:“常胤,不是没有办法,办法的确也是一命换一命,但只有一人的命能换回景兄弟的命,那就是千年圣果所化的雪见……”

      雪见悄悄离开无极阁,来到景天的房间,她拉着景天的手,放在自己的脸上,这一刻,她觉得无比温馨,似乎自己已经得到了解脱。没过多久,雪见缓缓闭上眼睛,她的身影渐渐变淡,到最后完全消失,而空中赫然漂浮着一个圣果,圣果飘到景天头上,散发着柔和的光芒,渐渐的,圣果便景天合二为一了,最后,只听见从渐渐虚淡的圣果中传来一句:“菜牙,我们再也不会分开了……”

      无极阁中,长卿似乎感觉到了什么,大叫:“不好!”只见他转身便向景天的房间跑去,来到景天房间,长卿坐在床边,喃喃道:“哎,宿命啊,刚刚和常胤只一心想着如何救景兄弟了,居然没有发现雪见姑娘在门外,哎……景兄弟,你叫我如何向你交待啊……”常胤来到长卿身边,道:“掌门师兄,难道雪见姑娘她……”长卿默默的点点头:“常胤,你吩咐人到忘情湖取些忘情水来”说完,长卿便转身离开了。

       第二天,景天房中,景天伸了个大大的懒腰,睁开眼睛道:“咦?难道地府的房间这么雅致??怎么搞的跟白豆腐的房间一样??”这时,常胤端着一杯水走了过来:“景兄弟,你醒了啊。”“咦??常交叉??怎么你也挂了??恩,不对,难道我在白豆腐的地盘??是你们救了我??”常胤将那杯水放在桌上,道:“不是我们救的你,掌门师兄吩咐我把这个给你,这是忘情湖的水,喝了过后你就会忘记今世最珍贵的东西,我想,说道这里,你应该知道是谁救了你吧”只见景天先是一愣,然后一把抓住常胤的衣领,大声喊道:“猪婆呢,雪见呢,为什么,你们为什么不阻止她,告诉我为什么!”常胤缓缓拿开景天的手道:“景兄弟,你冷静点,该发生的一定会发生,你也知道雪见姑娘的性格,她决定的事,我们能阻止一时,但我们能阻止一世吗?桌上的忘情水喝不喝由你自己决定,师兄已经在忘情水里加了药,你喝完后会昏睡,醒来后就会忘掉这一切的,希望你要理解掌门师兄的好意。”听完这些,景天并没有做出想象中暴走的姿态,而是无力的坐下,拿起那杯忘情水一饮而尽,然后就倒在床上。常胤看着景天摇了摇头,便走出了房间。

       就在常胤走出房间不久,本应熟睡的景天缓缓起身,将刚刚喝的忘情水全都吐了出来,喃喃道:“白豆腐,我知道你是在为我好,但我不想忘掉猪婆,放心,我会好好活下去,快快乐乐的活下去,因为,我的这条命,是猪婆给的,我会好好珍惜的…..”景天说着说着,泪水不住的滑落了下来…… 

       无极阁里,长卿正对着一个造型别致的盒子说这话,如果仔细看的话,这个盒子赫然就是之前装邪剑仙的盒子。“徐大哥,哥哥他真的没事了吗?”一个女子焦急的问道。“应该没事了吧,常胤说,景兄弟已经喝下了忘情水,现在正在熟睡,好了,你不要说话,这个盒子有与外界隔绝的功能,你还是赶快进去吧,如果你被天界发现,就不好办了。”说完,长卿就将盒子给盖了起来。

        就在离蜀山不远的一座山峰上,一男一女正看向无极阁。“你,真的决定了吗,要是你这样做的话,你的命就不长了。”神秘女子对男子说道,男子拉着女子的手说道:“你不也是吗,不要以为我不知道你昨天把妖后的位置急急忙忙传下去是为什么,我现在又不是以前那个什么都不懂的深山野人,你死了,我活着也没什么意思,所以,还不如将我体内的神龙之息给那个姜国公主,成全她对她哥哥的千年之情,这样我们就能一起去见菱纱了……”

       神界,神树旁,夕瑶看着自己手上那一团散发着柔和光芒的光团,看着里面不停闪现的雪见的记忆喃喃道:“为什么,为什么会这样……”说完,夕瑶便双手连动,手上的光团也渐渐变成一块玉石。就在这时,一颗红色的流星落到了神树旁。“重楼??你来干嘛??”夕瑶看着重楼,问道。重楼看着神树,说道:“飞蓬,哦,不对,现在应该是景兄弟,他是我唯一的对手,也是我唯一的朋友,所以…….”刚刚说到这里,重楼便将夕瑶震开,将手放在神树上,只见神树上渐渐亮起了刺眼的光芒,树枝上,以肉眼可见的速度开始开花,结果……“重楼,你这又是为何呢,这样的话,你在未来的100年里就会成为一个普通人啊……”重楼没有回答,只是一心的向神树输送着自己的元气。夕瑶默默的看着这一切,眼泪不觉的滑落,喃喃道:“飞蓬,景天,看见了吗,你们唯一的对手……重楼,谢谢你,谢谢……”
      一个月后,渝州永安当,守一和守忠带着一个女子来到这里。“哇,守一,守二,你们怎么来了??是不是白豆腐被人欺负了,叫你们来搬救兵的啊??”景天嘻嘻哈哈的问道。守一和守忠相视笑了一下,道:“景兄弟说笑了,我们这次来时奉掌门之命来向景兄弟引见一个人,和讨要一件东西的。”“哎哟哟,没想到白豆腐也会缺东西啊,告诉我,是什么??”“广袖流仙裙。”守一和守忠同时说道。“啊??广袖流仙裙??你们蜀山都是大男人要这个干嘛??这可是文物,很贵的。”景天莫名其妙的说道。这是门外突然传来一个声音:“哥哥,难道给龙葵广袖流仙裙还要徐大哥付钱吗??”站在门口的不是龙葵是谁??“妹妹!!”景天立马跑了过去,一把抱住龙葵,道:“怎么是你,你不是已经……”“投胎了是吧??呵呵,龙葵舍不得王兄,所以,当日龙葵离开剑后并没有去地府,而是去了蜀山,哥哥,你不会怪我吧……”说到这里,龙葵的声音已经和蚊子差不多了,景天摸了摸龙葵的头道:“傻丫头,哥哥怎么会怪你呢,回来就好……”

       天界。“天帝,这样真的合适吗??”“呵呵,众卿不必多说,龙葵现在就算是我也无权干涉她啊,他已经跳出轮回了,而且景天体内有千年圣果,他的生死也不是我们能管得。”“这…….陛下,景天的事情我们倒还能理解,但龙葵……”殿下众仙家议论纷纷。“众卿家,不必怀疑,现在的龙葵身上具有龙神之息,而且是已在不周山沉睡了近千年的上古神龙,衔烛。

       一年之后,渝州永安当,发雪纷飞,景天呆呆的站在门外,嘴里重复着两个字:“猪婆……”“哥哥,吃饭了”屋内,龙葵喊道。“来了”景天转身正准备进屋,突然听到背后有人在问:“这里是永安当吗?”“这不废话吗??这里当然就是我,大名鼎鼎的……”刚说到这里,景天似乎察觉到了什么,他立刻转过头去,时间仿佛就在这一刻停止了,两人对视许久,然后飞快的向对方跑去,相拥雪中……
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