又中又英｜To border on rudeness

Media reports have homed in recently on politeness in Hong Kong. The reports focused on Hong Kong people becoming more impolite, even bordering on rudeness. Those reports reminded me of the time before the 2019 protests and the pandemic when I was still living in Hong Kong. Tens of thousands of free-spending mainland tourists came to Hong Kong daily. Shop assistants cared only about serving them. They paid no mind to locals like me. I once asked a shop assistant about a product. She ignored me and served a mainlander instead. I gave her a piece of my mind.

To home in on something means to focus on it. To pay no mind to someone means to ignore that person. To border on rudeness means to come very close to being rude. To give someone a piece of your mind means to speak angrily to someone. Now that I have left Hong Kong and only return for visits, I can judge whenever I return if people are becoming increasingly impolite. When I last visited, I told friends people appear less happy and more impolite. They told me there are many reasons for this, including bad memories of the pandemic and Hong Kong’s bad economy.

But I also met many polite people, including a shop assistant on sneaker street whom I spoke to in Cantonese. I had to try on three different sizes before I found the right sneakers. I apologized but she smiled and said it was her job. Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu supported some Legco members who want to promote politeness. I wish them luck but feel they need to solve the underlying causes first.

最近有傳媒針對（homed in）香港的禮貌作出報道。報道聚焦於香港人變得愈來愈不禮貌，甚至近乎粗魯無禮（bordering on rudeness）。那些報道令我想起了二零一九年示威以及世紀大疫情之前，我還在香港居住的時候。每天有數以萬計出手闊綽的內地旅客訪港，零售店店員都只顧着招呼他們，對於像我這般的本地人卻毫不搭理（paid no mind）。我曾經向一名店員詢問一件貨品，她無視我，轉而招呼一位內地人。我當即斥責她（gave her a piece of my mind）。

To home in on something意指集中注意力、聚焦在某事物上。To pay no mind to someone 意指漠視那人。To border on rudeness 意思是很接近無禮。To give someone a piece of your mind 意即你嚴厲責備某人。現在我已離港，回港亦只作短遊，每當我訪港我便可以判斷人們是否愈發禮貌。上一次回港時，我跟朋友們說，人們看上去愈來愈不快樂，也愈來愈不禮貌。他們告訴我，有許多原因導致這個情況，包括疫情的不快記憶，以及香港經濟不景。

然而，我也遇見過許多彬彬有禮的人，包括在波鞋街一間店內，我用廣東話交談的一名店員。我需要試穿三個不同的尺碼，才找到適合的波鞋。我為此抱歉，她倒微笑說這是她的份內事。一些立法會議員想推廣禮貌運動，特首李家超表示支持。我祝他們好運，但他們似乎要先解決那些內在的成因。

mickchug@gmail.com
Michael Chugani褚簡寧
中譯：七刻