Word Puzzlers

And Then There Were None

择书如择友。 Zé shū rú zé yǒu. Choose an author as you choose a friend. 温特沃思·狄龙 (Wentworth Dillon)

明信片 (Postcard)

Lost & Found

即使失去了一切，你还有未来。
Jíshǐ shīqùle yīqiè, nǐ hái yǒu wèilái.
When all else is lost, the future still remains.

Artwork © gotosumeet

Life is not just matter

你很努力，别人不一定放在眼里；你若不努力，别人一定放在心里。 Nǐ hěn nǔlì, biérén bù yīdìng fàng zài yǎn lǐ; nǐ ruò bù nǔlì, biérén yīdìng fàng zài xīnlǐ. When you work hard, people don’t always pay attention to it, but if you slack off, they will surely bear it in mind.

Nothing Personal

如果他们没有真正的了解你，不要放在心上。
Rúguǒ tāmen méiyǒu zhēnzhèng de liǎojiě nǐ, bùyào fàng zàixīn shàng.
If they don’t know you personally, don’t take it personal.

Queer as folk ... a flock of ghost scarecrows in Norfolk, England. Photo: Tom Cox.

The Importance of Not Being Arcovazzi

沟通最重要的是听出弦外之音。
Gōutōng zuì zhòngyào de shì tīng chū xiánwàizhīyīn.
The most important thing in communication is to hear what isn’t being said.

Artwork © FeliDae84

No One Is Perfect

我的生命中充满了一次又一次的失败，也因为如此，我才得以成功。 Wǒ de shēngmìng zhòng chōngmǎnle yīcì yòu yīcì de shībài, yě yīnwèi rúcǐ, wǒ cái déyǐ chénggōng. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed. 麥可·傑弗里·喬丹 (Michael Jeffrey Jordan)

Michael Jeffrey Jordan
Artwork © Doctor-Pencil

No Thanks, I’m Only Looking

学会在说不之后不解释自己。
Xuéhuì zài shuō bu zhīhòu bù jiěshì zìjǐ.
Learn to say “NO” without explaining yourself.

Artwork © mehrmeer

Like Father Like Sons

不要告诉我他们说了我些什么。告诉我为什么他们喜欢和你说这些。 Bùyào gàosù wǒ tāmen shuōle wǒ xiē shénme. Gàosù wǒ wèishéme tāmen xǐhuān hé nǐ shuō zhèxiē. Don’t tell me what they said about me. Tell me why they were so comfortable to say it around you.

Artwork © chickenCanFly

Short Spider Straddles

逃避问题的最佳方法是去解决它。
Táobì wèntí de zuì jiā fāngfǎ shì qù jiějué tā.
The best way to escape from a problem is to solve it.

Artwork © ryky

The Importance of Not Being Arcovazzi

就算暂时的幸福也好过永恒的痛苦。
Jiùsuàn zhànshí de xìngfú yě hǎoguò yǒnghéng de tòngkǔ.
Even temporary happiness is much better than permanent misery.

劉勃麟 (Liú Bólín), Hiding in the City – Ballon, 2012
Photo courtesy of the artist and the Klein Sun Gallery

A Matter of Principle

即使人人都反对，对的依然是对的；即使人人都赞成，错的依旧是错的。 Jíshǐ rén rén dōu fǎnduì, duì de yīrán shì duì de; jíshǐ rén rén dōu zànchéng, cuò de yījiù shì cuò de. Right is right even if everyone is against it. And wrong is wrong even if everyone is for it.

劉勃麟 (Liú Bólín), Target – Future, 2015
Photo courtesy of Boxart Gallery, Verona

After all, nobody’s perfect

我从不去后悔我做过的事，而是为那些我还没做过的事感到后悔。 Wǒ cóng bù qù hòuhuǐ wǒ zuòguò de shì, ér shì wèi nàxiē wǒ hái méi zuòguò de shì gǎndào hòuhuǐ. I do not regret the things I have done, but those I did not do.

劉勃麟 (Liú Bólín), Angels, 2010
Photo courtesy of NYUAD Art Gallery

加班 (Overtime)

感觉身体被掏空 上海彩虹室内合唱团 啊 啊 啊 啊 啊 夜幕已笼罩朝阳公园 广场舞单瑟已经准备完毕 看着窗外的树影 难道这就是我的青春 当花瓣离开花朵 有一个老板叫做大卫 下午六点出现眼神恰似黑背 手里端着一壶热腾腾的咖啡 嘿嘿嘿我们要不要来开个会 我说这样不好吧 我要去机场接我年迈滴爸爸 两千多年没见啦 他来自遥远的西伯利亚 明明白天没事做 我还看见你在玩直播 难道你就没有家 求你不要说出那句话 宝贝 加班吧 感觉身体被掏空 我累得像只狗 我才不累 不累 十八天没有卸妆 月抛戴了两年半 作息紊乱我却越来越胖 我来征战北五环 我家住在龙回砚 沙发是我港湾 肚子空空画饼做梦 如何放轻松？ 天天KPI 不如现在 收起你的匠人情怀 听我说 我热爱工作 我真的好喜欢工作 工作让我进步 我喜欢学习 超快乐 我真的要去接我爸爸回家 哈哈哈哈哈哈哈哈 怎么样的老板 辞职以后拉黑他 不要加班~不要加班~不要加班 I feel drained 上海 (Shànghǎi) Rainbow Singers Ah ah ah ah ah Night has fallen in Cháoyáng Park Square dancers are all ready I look at the shadows through the window Is this my youth? When the petals fall from flowers There is a boss named David He appears at 6 P.M., with eyes of a black-backed jackal and a pot of hot coffee in his hand Hey, hey, shall we have a meeting? I say, this is not right I’m heading to the airport to pick up my old dad I haven’t seen him for a century And he came from remote Siberia I know you have nothing to do all day long I saw you playing on your smartphone Don’t you have a home? Please don’t say anything Honey, just work overtime I feel drained Tired like a dog No, I’m not tired Eighteen days without makeup The same monthly lenses for one year and half I’m getting fatter and unrested Everyday out to the Fifth Ring Road Everyday back to Huílóngguān The sofa is my haven I eat dreams to satisfy my empty stomach How do I relax? Key Performance Indicators never sleep You better save your geek soul Hear me out I love to work I am a workaholic It helps me to make progress I love to learn – super happy But I just must pick up my dad Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha So what now, boss? If I quit here, are you going to be blacklisted? No more overtime! No more overtime! No more overtime!

Very free translation by Holden Caulfield

Kind Hearts and Coronets

没有泥，就没有莲花。
Méiyǒu ní, jiù méiyǒu liánhuā.
No mud, no lotus.

A bee collects honey from a lotus flower in 洛阳 (Luòyáng), China. The lotus flower has many symbolic associations across Asia. Photo: 新华通讯社 (Xīnhuá News Agency)/Landov/Barcroft Media.

Opening & Closing Doors

生命的萎缩或开拓与一个人的勇气成正比。 Shēngmìng de wěisuō huò kāità yǔ yīgè rén de yǒngqì chéng zhèngbǐ. Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage. 阿内丝·尼恩 (Anaïs Nin)

Photo © Les-Diables

The Importance of Not Being Arcovazzi

珍惜你拥有的，即使你有的不多， 因为有许多一无所有的人，仍然尝试着保有微笑。 Zhēnxī nǐ yǒngyǒu de, jíshǐ nǐ yǒu de bù duō, yīnwèi yǒu xǔduō yīwúsuǒyǒu de rén, réngrán chángshìzhe bǎoyǒu wéixiào. Be happy with the little you have. There are some people with nothing who still manage to smile.

Idomeni, Greece: Children attend an English language lesson at a makeshift cultural centre in a refugee camp near the Macedonian border. Photo: Kostas Tsironis/EPA.

Time Never Dies

作为一个学生，只要你还有东西要学习，这就是你人生的全部。 Zuòwéi yīgè xuéshēng, zhǐyào nǐ hái yǒu dōngxī yào xuéxí, zhè jiùshì nǐ rénshēng de quánbù. Be a student as long as you still have something to learn, and this will mean all your life. 亨利·莱瑟姆·多尔蒂 (Henry Latham Doherty)

劉勃麟 (Liú Bólín), Hiding in the City No. 77 – Arena, 2008
Photo courtesy of Klein Sun Gallery

The Wind Is Never Gone

将得到的总会比失去的好。 Jiāng dédào de zǒng huì bǐ shīqù de hǎo. What is coming is better than what is gone. 阿拉伯谚语 (Arabic proverb)

Photo © KrisVlad