又中又英 | Old man yells at cloud | 褚简宁
Birdwatching is a popular hobby among people interested in nature. Former Chief Executive Donald Tsang Yam-kuen is an enthusiastic birdwatcher. I remember asking him about some bird sounds I hear every spring when he was the chief executive. Birdwatching, or birding, means patiently and quietly observing birds in natural surroundings, usually with binoculars, to identify different types of birds and study their movements. I don't have the patience for birdwatching, but I sometimes enjoy cloud watching, also called cloud spotting.
It means sitting down in a comfortable place and observing the clouds, which have different shapes and colours depending on the weather and if they are high, medium, or low altitude clouds. I like clouds that look like cotton balls on a sunny day. Low and dark clouds often bring rain. Cloud spotting is a relaxing hobby, but have you ever seen an old man yell at a cloud? I am sure you haven't because the expression is just a meme. A meme is a humorous, political, or cultural picture, video, or piece of text that is rapidly spread by internet users.
The meme “old man yells at cloud” is used to describe a person, usually an older man, who is angrily complaining about something unimportant, unavoidable, or beyond his control. It originated from an episode of the animated TV series The Simpsons which has a picture of old Grampa (grandpa) Simpson shaking his fist angrily and yelling at a cloud. Some critics of 79-year-old President Donald Trump have used the meme to describe him for always angrily complaining about things, such as what he claims is fake news about his declining popularity.
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在那些对大自然有兴趣的人当中，观鸟（birdwatching）是一个很流行的嗜好。前特首曾荫权就是一个热情的观鸟爱好者（birdwatcher）。我记得他当特首的时候，就问过他每年春天我听到的一些雀鸣声。Birdwatching或birding是指在自然环境中很有耐性和安静地观鸟，通常用望远镜，去分辨不同种类的雀鸟，研究他们的动态。我没有耐性去观鸟（birdwatching），但我有时享受cloud watching，也被称为cloud spotting。
它的意思是坐在舒适的地方观云，而云朵根据天气以及高、中、低的海拔高度，会有不同的形状和颜色。我喜欢阳光普照的日子，那些像棉花球的云。低层和乌黑的云通常会带来雨水。观云（cloud spotting）是个使人放松的嗜好，但你可曾见过老头子对着一朵云咆哮（old man yell at a cloud）？我敢肯定你没有见过，因为这个习语只是一个meme。A meme就是被网民疯传的梗图（meme），通常是幽默的、有关政治或文化的一幅图、影片又或一段文字。
而「老头子向云咆哮」（old man yells at cloud）这幅梗图（meme）是用来形容一个人，尤其是一个老人，在愤怒地投诉某样无关重要、无可避免又超出其控制范围的事。它来自动画电视剧《阿森一族》的其中一集，有一幅图是辛普森爷爷愤怒地挥动拳头，向一朵云咆哮（yelling at a cloud）。现年79岁的美国总统当劳．特朗普的一些批评者，就用了这幅梗图（meme）去形容他常怒气冲冲地投诉这投诉那，例如他声称他下滑的民望是假新闻。
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Michael Chugani褚简宁
中译：七刻
