Just wanted to have a chat, you know, see what's happening.The Trip · 2011 — Chapter 7 of 20 · 5'10" · B2
Telling Steve He's Living the Dream, Explained: living the dream
Someone tells Steve, "You're living the dream, Steve." The chat sounds like a compliment, but it will not stay sweet. Another line says to wake up and smell the coffee, someone jokes about being 41 for three years, and the tortoise and the hare turns speed into a warning. Praise and cold water share the same minute.
What happens
In this stretch of talk, someone tells Steve he is living the dream. The lines around that compliment are less cozy. One voice says to wake up and smell the coffee. Someone claims, "I've been 41 for three years." The tortoise and the hare gets used as a picture of slow and steady against a quick start. Another reply lands as "I admire your restraint."
Listen for
living the dreamsmell the coffeethe tortoise and the haregame over
00:00 / 05:10Space play · ← → lines · R repeat
Now
Tap a line to replay it
Phrase of the scene
living the dream
enjoying the life you always wanted
马特在电话里给史蒂夫打气，说他正在过梦想中的生活，史蒂夫却一肚子别扭，这句话于是成了反讽。
He keeps posting holiday photos with the caption living the dream.
Also in this scene
- smell the coffee
to wake up and face reality
- the tortoise and the hare
the fable of the slow, steady winner
- game over
it's finished, there's no way back
Everything marked in this scene
30 notes across 107 lines
Just wanted to have a chat, you know, see what's happening.So give me a call when you can, right?Ha-ha. Hey, Matt. How you doing?I'm doing good, man. How are you?Would you be up for a bit of...would for a tentative request
Would you be up for a bit of...could I interest you in some rather salacious sort of...get you, as it were, going, if I...He doesn't do it for me.liaison
He doesn't do it for me.the fable of the slow, steady winner
You know, it's like I keep telling you, it's like the tortoise and the hare, all right?keep + gerund for repetition
You know, it's like I keep telling you, it's like the tortoise and the hare, all right?Speaking of boiled eggs, I'm not wearing any pajama bottoms.Ah, you saucy boy.Ah, you saucy boy.I wish I'd gotten hold of Steve Coogan when he was 35."liaison
I wish I'd gotten hold of Steve Coogan when he was 35."it's finished, there's no way back
I thought, " Crikey, is that it? Is it game over?"present perfect for a continuing state
I've been 41 for three years.It's a good time for you, you know?So get your ass back here.I want to do mainstream movies.All the brothers want a piece of Coogs.All the brothers want a piece of Coogs.to wake up and face reality
Wake up. Smell the coffee, all right?weak form
Wake up. Smell the coffee, all right?I don't think I'll talk to you later, but at some point, okay?I am glad you didn't. I admire your restraint.Please, Christ.Telling Steve He's Living the Dream, explained
What's really going on
Someone tells Steve the life is already a dream, and the lines around it will not let that stand. One full sentence is "Wake up. Smell the coffee, all right?" and another is "The dream is happening right now." Naming the dream and giving that kitchen order puts praise and a cold splash in the same breath. The age gag does the same job with a number. A person claims to have been 41 for three years, which cannot be true, so the laugh is the point: better to stall the clock than answer a straight question about getting older. Calling it the tortoise and the hare turns that stall into a picture of speed against lasting, with no winner announced. The softest line in the stretch thanks someone for holding back. Gladness and admiration share one reply, and both are about a thing that did not happen.
Theme
DreamsSomeone calls this life a dream while another line tells the listener to smell the coffee. Naming the dream lets the chat doubt it.
Dark humor"I've been 41 for three years" and "I admire your restraint" turn age and a thing not done into jokes instead of straight answers.
What you'll learn
- Living the dream as pep or irony
- Game over as a career death sentence
- Smell the coffee to snap someone out
Listen for
- do it — liaison
- hold of — liaison
- Smell the coffee — weak form
I've been 41 for three years.A joke, not a birthday. The speaker claims three extra years at the same age, so everyone can hear the refusal to get older.
You're living the dream, Steve.Said to Steve, this calls his life the dream people want. It is praise, and the coffee line plus the age joke keep that praise from sitting comfortably.
The dream is happening right now.It answers the dream talk in the present tense. Whatever the dream was, this line plants it in the current moment rather than in some later success.
I am glad you didn't. I admire your restraint.Relief first, compliment second, both about something that did not happen. The speaker is pleased the other person held back, and the praise still has room for a smirk.
Questions about this scene
Why does someone tell Steve he is living the dream?
The line hands Steve a finished success story. In a chat that also says to smell the coffee and jokes about being 41 for three years, that compliment is there to be leaned on and doubted.
Is "I've been 41 for three years" meant to be believed?
No. Nobody stays 41 for three years. The line is a joke about stalling age, told so the lie is obvious and nobody has to answer a straight question about getting older.
What was the person restrained from doing?
The lines never name it. "I am glad you didn't" only says something was not done, and "I admire your restraint" praises that holding back. The gap is left open on purpose.
Does the tortoise and the hare line crown a winner?
It is a picture, not a verdict. The hare stands for a fast start and the tortoise for lasting. The speaker can claim patience without saying who in the room is which animal.
Is this stretch a real fight?
No charge gets filed. The lines stay inside a dream, coffee, a fable, a fake age, and a small bow to restraint. The sting is that each joke still grades how well a life is going.
The Trip · 20 chapters
All chapters →
Up next · Chapter 8method in my madnessSteve and Rob at Greta Hall
Chapter 1have someone down asSteve and Rob Set Off
Chapter 2part of its charmSteve and Rob Share a Room
Chapter 3take a long, hard look in the mirrorThe Michael Caine Impression Duel
Chapter 4in a troughSteve Calls From the Trough
Chapter 5put someone on the back footCalls on the Road to Cartmel
Chapter 6the king of understatementBond Impressions Over Dinner
Watching · Chapter 7living the dreamTelling Steve He's Living the Dream
Chapter 8method in my madnessSteve and Rob at Greta Hall
Chapter 9contend withSteve and Rob Rank Their Careers
Chapter 10not unlikeTurned Away at Dove Cottage
Chapter 11at first lightSteve and Rob's Costume Drama
Chapter 12not a lot of people knowThe Michael Caine Impressions
Chapter 13Cut to the chaseSteve Takes His Agent's Call
Chapter 14don't come running to meShushed on the B Roads
Chapter 15a wee bitA Phone Call by the Lake
Chapter 16an albatross around my neckCoogan and Brydon Compare Careers
Chapter 17as empty experiences goDad Phones Joe About Drinking
Chapter 18stick the knife inMock Eulogy at the Grave
Chapter 19if push came to shoveHiring Divers for the Gesture
Chapter 20as broad as it's longSteve Leaves His ParentsChapter 7 of 20 · about 67 min to go