White nights, and other stories — Page 3
That is how it is that we almost bow to each other, especially when we are both in good humour.
So kommt es, dass wir uns fast gegenseitig verbeugen, besonders wenn wir beide guter Laune sind.
The other day, when we had not seen each other for two days and met on the third, we were actually touching our hats, but, realizing in time, dropped our hands and passed each other with a look of interest.
Neulich, als wir uns zwei Tage lang nicht gesehen hatten und uns am dritten begegneten, griffen wir tatsächlich an unsere Hüte, aber wir besannen uns noch rechtzeitig, ließen die Hände sinken und gingen aneinander vorbei mit einem Blick des Interesses.
I know the houses too.
Auch die Häuser kenne ich.
As I walk along they seem to run forward in the streets to look out at me from every window, and almost to say: "Good-morning! How do you do? I am quite well, thank God, and I am to have a new storey in May," or, "How are you? I am being redecorated to-morrow;" or, "I was almost burnt down and had such a fright," and so on.
Wenn ich vorbeigehe, scheinen sie in den Straßen vorzutreten, um mich aus jedem Fenster anzuschauen, und fast zu sagen: „Guten Morgen! Wie geht es Ihnen? Mir geht es sehr gut, Gott sei Dank, und ich bekomme im Mai ein neues Stockwerk," oder: „Wie geht es Ihnen? Morgen werde ich neu gestrichen;" oder: „Ich wäre fast abgebrannt und hatte einen solchen Schrecken," und so weiter.
I have my favourites among them, some are dear friends; one of them intends to be treated by the architect this summer.
Ich habe meine Lieblinge unter ihnen, einige sind mir liebe Freunde; eines von ihnen beabsichtigt, sich diesen Sommer vom Architekten behandeln zu lassen.
I shall go every day on purpose to see that the operation is not a failure.
Ich werde jeden Tag eigens hingehen, um zu sehen, dass die Operation kein Misserfolg wird.
God forbid!
Gott behüte!
But I shall never forget an incident with a very pretty little house of a light pink colour.
Aber ich werde niemals einen Vorfall mit einem sehr hübschen kleinen Haus von hellrosa Farbe vergessen.
It was such a charming little brick house, it looked so hospitably at me, and so proudly at its ungainly neighbours, that my heart rejoiced whenever I happened to pass it.
Es war ein so reizendes kleines Backsteinhaus, es schaute mich so gastfreundlich an und seine unförmigen Nachbarn so stolz, dass sich mein Herz freute, wann immer ich zufällig daran vorbeikam.
Suddenly last week I walked along the street, and when I looked at my friend I heard a plaintive, "They are painting me yellow!"
Plötzlich ging ich letzte Woche die Straße entlang, und als ich meinen Freund ansah, hörte ich ein klagendes: „Sie streichen mich gelb!"
The villains! The barbarians!
Die Schurken! Die Barbaren!
Vocabulary
- dass
- That; subordinating conjunction introducing a clause
- fast
- Almost, nearly
- gegenseitig
- Mutually, reciprocally, to each other
- verbeugen
- To bow, to bend forward respectfully
- besonders
- Especially, particularly, above all
- beide
- Both; referring to two persons or things
- Laune
- Mood, humor; emotional state at a given time
- Neulich
- Recently, the other day, not long ago
- begegneten
- Met, encountered; past tense of 'begegnen'
- griffen
- Grabbed, reached; past tense of 'greifen'
- tatsächlich
- Actually, indeed, in fact
- Hüte
- Hats; plural of 'Hut'
- besannen
- Reconsidered, came to senses; past tense of 'besinnen'
- rechtzeitig
- In time, on time, not too late
- sinken
- To sink, to drop downward
- aneinander
- Past each other, by one another
- vorbei
- Past, by; indicating passing a point
- Blick
- Glance, look, gaze
- Interesses
- Of interest; genitive of 'Interesse'
- vorbeigehe
- Walk past, go by; first-person singular of 'vorbeigehen'
- scheinen
- Seem, appear; also to shine
- vorzutreten
- To step forward, to move to the front
- anzuschauen
- To look at, to gaze upon
- sei
- Be; subjunctive form of 'sein'
- Dank
- Thanks, gratitude
- bekomme
- Get, receive; first-person singular of 'bekommen'
- Stockwerk
- Floor, story; a level of a building
- gestrichen
- Painted, coated; past participle of 'streichen'
- wäre
- Would be; subjunctive form of 'sein'
- abgebrannt
- Burned down; past participle of 'abbrennen'
- solchen
- Such a; demonstrative pronoun in inflected form
- Schrecken
- Fright, horror, terror
- weiter
- Further, onward, continuing
- Lieblinge
- Favorites, darlings; plural of 'Liebling'
- einige
- Some, several, a few
- beabsichtigt
- Intends, plans; third-person singular of 'beabsichtigen'
- Architekten
- Architect; designer of buildings in dative/genitive form
- behandeln
- To treat, to handle, to work on
- eigens
- Especially, specifically, expressly for that purpose
- hingehen
- To go there, to walk over to a place
- Operation
- Operation; surgical or planned procedure
- Misserfolg
- Failure, lack of success
- behüte
- God forbid, protect; subjunctive of 'behüten'
- niemals
- Never, at no time
- Vorfall
- Incident, occurrence, event
- hübschen
- Pretty, cute; adjective in inflected form
- hellrosa
- Light pink; a pale shade of pink
- Farbe
- Color, paint; hue or pigment
- vergessen
- To forget, to fail to remember
- reizendes
- Charming, delightful; adjective in neuter nominative form
- Backsteinhaus
- Brick house; building constructed of baked clay bricks
- schaute
- Looked, gazed; past tense of 'schauen'
- gastfreundlich
- Hospitable, welcoming to guests
- unförmigen
- Misshapen, ungainly; adjective in inflected form
- Nachbarn
- Neighbors; plural of 'Nachbar'
- stolz
- Proud, proudly; feeling or showing pride
- freute
- Rejoiced, was glad; past tense of 'freuen'
- zufällig
- By chance, accidentally, randomly
- daran
- On it, at it, past it; locative pronoun
- vorbeikam
- Came by, passed; past tense of 'vorbeikommen'
- Plötzlich
- Suddenly, all at once, abruptly
- entlang
- Along; preposition indicating movement beside something
- ansah
- Looked at; past tense of 'ansehen'
- klagendes
- Lamenting, plaintive; adjective in neuter nominative form
- streichen
- To paint, to coat; also to stroke or delete
- gelb
- Yellow; the color of sunlight or lemons
- Schurken
- Villains, scoundrels, rascals
- Barbaren
- Barbarians; uncivilized or brutal people
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