Chapter 68

My sleep pattern changed. Though I rested all the time, Irarely slept longer than an hour or so at a stretch, even atnight. It was not the ceaseless motion of the sea that disturbedme, nor the wind; you get used to those the way you getused to lumps in a mattress¹. It was apprehension² and anxietythat roused me. It was remarkable³ how little sleep I got by on.
Unlike Richard Parker. He became a champion napper. Mostof the time he rested beneath the tarpaulin⁴. But on calm dayswhen the sun was not too harsh and on calm nights, he cameout. One of his favourite positions in the open was lying on thestern bench on his side, stomach overhanging the edge of it,front and back legs extending down the side benches. It was alot of tiger to squeeze onto a fairly narrow ledge⁵, but hemanaged it by making his back very round. When he wastruly sleeping, he laid his head on his front legs, but when hismood was slightly more active, when he might choose to openhis eyes and look about, he turned his head and lay his chinon the gunnel.
Another favourite position of his was sitting with his back tome, his rear half resting on the floor of the boat and his fronthalf on the bench, his face buried into the stern, paws rightnext to his head, looking as if we were playing hide-and-seekand he were the one counting. In this position he tended to lievery still, with only the occasional twitching⁶ of his ears toindicate that he was not necessarily sleeping.

1 mattress   

n.床垫，床褥

参考例句：

• The straw mattress needs to be aired.草垫子该晾一晾了。
• The new mattress I bought sags in the middle.我买的新床垫中间陷了下去。

2 apprehension   

n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑

参考例句：

• There were still areas of doubt and her apprehension grew.有些地方仍然存疑，于是她越来越担心。
• She is a girl of weak apprehension.她是一个理解力很差的女孩。

3 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

4 tarpaulin   

n.涂油防水布，防水衣，防水帽

参考例句：

• The pool furniture was folded,stacked,and covered with a tarpaulin.游泳池的设备都已经折叠起来，堆在那里，还盖上了防水布。
• The pool furniture was folded,stacked,and covered with a tarpaulin.游泳池的设备都已经折叠起来，堆在那里，还盖上了防水布。

5 ledge   

n.壁架，架状突出物；岩架，岩礁

参考例句：

• They paid out the line to lower him to the ledge.他们放出绳子使他降到那块岩石的突出部分。
• Suddenly he struck his toe on a rocky ledge and fell.突然他的脚趾绊在一块突出的岩石上，摔倒了。

6 twitching   

n.颤搐

参考例句：

• The child in a spasm kept twitching his arms and legs. 那个害痉挛的孩子四肢不断地抽搐。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• My eyelids keep twitching all the time. 我眼皮老是跳。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》