馬年講馬
有關「馬」偏旁的字，非常多，多到容易忘記。據說曾經有190多個，現代常用的漢字剩下不到60個。交通運輸的字就不計其數：駕、駛、馭、馳、駙..... 這些很容易聯想，畢竟很長一段時間內，人類生活跟馬息息相關，甚至延續到口語裡，譬如即刻要做到的，就是「馬上」。
馬上，就是立刻，現在，不想等。
看了好看的劇，不想等，馬上要看下一集，串流平台早就實現了，為什麼要等待下週？
一段畫面一句話，不超過十秒就被劃走，早就是生活常態，有了短影音，誰還想讀《百年孤寂》呢？
馬做為人類文明的幫手，橫跨了古今中外千年之久，我們太渴望「馬上」能得到的一切，包含了食物，資源，土地，權力，慾望與未知。
在很短很短的時間內，我們好像突然什麼都能馬上得到了。現在，想知道一件事，不需要讀萬卷書，手指敲敲就馬上得到答案，沒有過程，只有終點。
練武術唯一不能就是“馬上”
練拳時最“驚駭”的，莫過於只看終點，馬虎過程。站穩，沈下，鬆透，擰旋，轉胯，鬆肩，擦身......哪一個不比出拳重要呢？但能被看到的，只有最後那一拳是否擊中目標而已。
有一個感覺，我們接下來這一年要發生的變化，可能超過過去千年的變化速率總和。人工智能很有可能真正要變成人工智慧，這種改變已經不是用馬上可以形容了。所有的，一切的，曾經的與未知的都會變成一個起點與終點，這也是第一次，我們不知道怎麼預測一年後的未來。
十年前最流行的是知識焦慮，現在最前沿的是Ai焦慮。
快捷旅館流行的年代，夜奔把古老的四合院改造，叫你慢慢走到胡同最深處；短頻快的普及，夜奔出一本書慢慢講故事給你聽；快時尚的環境，夜奔找出最傳統的服裝，重新設計，請你體驗一下慢慢磨蹭穿衣服的感受。
從第一件通明扣被設計出來之後，我們在各種社交媒介上看過無數類似的留言：「穿好就天黑了/有一種發明叫拉鍊/穿好就躁鬱/為什麼要折磨自己......」。
我們從來不去反駁，你說的都對。但是我就想要抵抗一下快時尚，我想要有一件衣服，讓我每天多花兩分鐘關注一下自己的身體，我想要在這安靜的兩分鐘，只屬於自己。
所以我們一直不停的在穿扣之間，找出屬於自己的身體美學。
這一次，請你把腳步放慢，走進台北最老的街區：大稻埕。請推開大門進到一間百年老屋，放掉所有的緊湊，試一試那個「很麻煩」的通明扣。
如果你還願意，也可以在大稻埕的夜晚，嘗試一下武術的魅力。如果你願意紮根自己，請在每週一晚上來練埋伏拳；如果你想要開闊自己的身體與內心，請在每週三來甩劈掛掌；如果你想體驗身體的感知與敏銳，請在週五晚上來打螳螂拳。
這些都「很麻煩」，效果也都不會「馬上」出現。
但可能是馬年給自己最好的一份禮物。
預祝大家，馬年健康快樂，每個人都能找到最真實的自己。
夜奔文創 野馬奔槽
Year of the Horse: A "Long" Story Short
There are a ridiculous number of Chinese characters with the "Horse" radical (馬). So many, in fact, that we’ve forgotten most of them. Rumor has it there were once over 190; today, we barely use 60. Most are related to transportation—driving, riding, galloping—which makes sense. For the longest time, human survival was hitched to the horse. This legacy even gallops into our daily slang: when we want something done "immediately," we say "On the Horse" (馬上).
"On the Horse" means now. Right now. No waiting.
Finished a great show? You don't wait; you "On the Horse" the next episode. Why wait a week when streaming exists? A ten-second clip doesn't grab you? Swipe. Gone. In an era of short-form video, who actually has the patience to read One Hundred Years of Solitude(Cien años de soledad)?
As humanity’s long-term sidekick, the horse helped us chase everything we craved: food, resources, land, power, and the unknown.
And suddenly, in a blink of history, we can get almost anything "On the Horse." Want to know something? No need to read ten thousand books. Just tap your screen and—boom—there’s your answer. No process, just the finish line.
But there is one thing you absolutely cannot do "On the Horse": Martial Arts.
The most "horrifying" mistake in Kung Fu is obsessing over the finish line while treating the process like a joke. Standing firm, sinking the weight, loosening the joints, spiraling the waist, dropping the shoulders... every single one of these "invisible" details is more important than the punch itself. But of course, the world only sees whether that final punch hit the target.
I have a feeling that the changes coming this year will outpace the total progress of the last millennium. Artificial Intelligence is finally becoming "Intelligence," and "On the Horse" doesn't even begin to describe the speed. Everything—the past and the unknown—is collapsing into a single point. For the first time, we have no clue how to predict the future even one year out.
Ten years ago, the trend was "Knowledge Anxiety." Today, it’s "AI Anxiety."
In the era of budget express hotels, Fly by Knight renovated an ancient courtyard house and told you to walk slowly to the deepest corner of the alley. While everyone else is pivoting to "Short & Fast" content, we published a book to tell you stories, slowly. In a world of fast fashion, we dug up the most traditional garments and redesigned them, inviting you to experience the "annoyance" of dressing at a snail’s pace.
Since we designed our first Thorough Loop (通明扣) shirt, we’ve seen endless comments on social media:
"By the time I finish buttoning this, it’ll be dark." * "Ever heard of a zipper?" * "I’m getting anxiety just watching you dress." * "Why do you hate yourself?"
We never argue. You’re absolutely right. But we want to resist fast fashion. I want a piece of clothing that forces me to spend two extra minutes paying attention to my own body. I want those two quiet minutes to belong entirely to me.
So, we keep obsessing over the space between the button and the loop, searching for a personal aesthetic of the body.
This time, I invite you to slow down. Walk into Taipei’s oldest district: Dadaocheng. Push open the doors of a century-old house, drop the urgency, and try on those "annoyingly complicated" buttons.
And if you’re up for it, stay for the magic of Martial Arts in the Dadaocheng moonlight. If you want to ground yourself, come on Mondays for Ambush Fist (埋伏拳). If you want to open up your heart and body, come on Wednesdays for Pigua Zhang (劈掛掌). And if you want to sharpen your perception, join us on Fridays for Praying Mantis (螳螂拳).
All of these things are "troublesome." None of the results will appear "On the Horse."
But perhaps, that is the best gift you can give yourself in the Year of the Horse.
Wishing you all a healthy and happy Year of the Horse. May everyone find their truest self.
— Fly by Knight Design