The otter stood up on his hind legs, and made a show of dusting himself off. "Hi there, pa'dner!" he said, his electronic voice dripping with adorable carnivalesque. "My name is Jeffrey Otter and I bet we're going to be friends!"
Feelings of loss and aloneness overwhelmed me. "Hi," I said. "Hi, Jeffrey."
"Hi there, yourself!" the otter said. "Now I'm going to ask you some friendly questions for statistical purposes only. If you don't want to answer a question, just say, 'I don't want to answer this question.' Remember, I'm here to help you! Okay, then. Let's start simple. What's your name and Social Security Number?"
I looked around. People were urgently whispering things to their otters. "Leonard or Lenny Abramov," I murmured, followed by my Social Security.
"Hi, Leonard or Lenny Abramov, 205-32-8714. On behalf of the American Restoration Authority, I would love to welcome you back to the new United States of America. Look out, world! There's no stoppin' us now!" A bar from the McFadden and Whitehead disco hit "Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now" played loudly in my ear. "Now tell me, Lenny. What made you leave our country? Work or pleasure?"
"Work," I said.
"And what do you do, Leonard or Lenny Abramov?"
"Um, Indefinite Life Extension."
"You said, 'effeminate life invention.' Is that right?"
"Indefinite Life Extension," I said.
"What's your Credit ranking, Leonard or Lenny, out of a total score of sixteen hundred?"
"Fifteen hundred twenty."
"That's pretty neat. You must really know how to pinch those pennies. You have money in the bank, you work in 'effeminate life invention." Now I just have to ask, are you a member of the Bipartisan Party? And if so, would you like to receive our new weekly äppärät stream, 'Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now!'? It's got all sorts of great tips on readjusting to life in these United States and getting the most bang for your buck."
"I'm not a Bipartisan, but, yes, I would like to get your stream," I said, trying to be conciliatory.
"Okey-dokey! You're on our list. Say, Leonard or Lenny, did you meet any nice foreign people during your stay abroad?"
"Yes," I said.
"What kind of people?"
"Some Italians."
"You said 'Somalians.'"
"Some Italians," I said.
"You said 'Somalians,'" the otter insisted. "You know Americans get lonely abroad. Happens all the time! That's why I never leave the brook where I was born. What's the point? Tell me, for statistical purposes, did you have any intimate physical relationships with any non-Americans during your stay?"
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Protože mám dneska všech spojených států plný zuby. Plný zuby toho, jak se na mě prodavač v železářství dívá spatra, protože neumím správný slovíčko pro tmel, plný zuby hodinových hovorů s automatem na lince, plný zuby invazivní reklamy a zdvořilého nezájmu. Proto tahle fikční, nedaleká budoucnost, ve které jde přece jen nakonec o lásku. Gary Shteyngart (mám trochu problémy s touhle transkripcí, ehm) je spisovatel, který by vám měl uvíznout trochu v paměti. Kniha je břitká, vtipná a o smutné lásce. To je pro dnešek z osamělých amerických států všechno, jdu si povídat s Alicí.
2 komentářů:
to jméno si ale nemůžu zapamatovat, nemohli mu rodiče dát do vínku něco více evropského?
hanele: můžeš si to zapsat do sešítku :) Myslím, že tobě by se tahle konkrétní mohla líbit.
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