{"id":4,"date":"2009-06-03T19:00:16","date_gmt":"2009-06-03T19:00:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/e-straus.net\/?p=4"},"modified":"2012-12-16T08:44:25","modified_gmt":"2012-12-16T08:44:25","slug":"some-random-thoughts-from-an-overworked-translatorinterpreterpm","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/e-straus.net\/?p=4","title":{"rendered":"Some random thoughts from an overworked translator\/interpreter\/PM"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><meta http-equiv=\"Content-Type\" content=\"text\/html; charset=utf-8\" \/><meta name=\"ProgId\" content=\"Word.Document\" \/><meta name=\"Generator\" content=\"Microsoft Word 11\" \/><meta name=\"Originator\" content=\"Microsoft Word 11\" \/>\n<link href=\"file:\/\/\/C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CJanez%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtml1%5C01%5Cclip_filelist.xml\" rel=\"File-List\" \/><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>  <w:WordDocument>   <w:View>Normal<\/w:View>   <w:Zoom>0<\/w:Zoom>   <w:PunctuationKerning\/>   <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas\/>   <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false<\/w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>   <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false<\/w:IgnoreMixedContent>   <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false<\/w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>   <w:Compatibility>    <w:BreakWrappedTables\/>    <w:SnapToGridInCell\/>    <w:WrapTextWithPunct\/>    <w:UseAsianBreakRules\/>    <w:DontGrowAutofit\/>   <\/w:Compatibility>   <w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4<\/w:BrowserLevel>  <\/w:WordDocument> <\/xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>  <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState=\"false\" LatentStyleCount=\"156\">  <\/w:LatentStyles> <\/xml><![endif]--><\/p>\n<style><!--  \/* Style Definitions *\/  p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal \t{mso-style-parent:\"\"; \tmargin:0cm; \tmargin-bottom:.0001pt; \tmso-pagination:widow-orphan; \tfont-size:12.0pt; \tfont-family:\"Times New Roman\"; \tmso-fareast-font-family:\"Times New Roman\";} @page Section1 \t{size:612.0pt 792.0pt; \tmargin:72.0pt 90.0pt 72.0pt 90.0pt; \tmso-header-margin:36.0pt; \tmso-footer-margin:36.0pt; \tmso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 \t{page:Section1;} --> <\/style>\n<p><!--[if gte mso 10]>\n\n\n\n<style>  \/* Style Definitions *\/  table.MsoNormalTable \t{mso-style-name:\"Table Normal\"; \tmso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; \tmso-tstyle-colband-size:0; \tmso-style-noshow:yes; \tmso-style-parent:\"\"; \tmso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; \tmso-para-margin:0cm; \tmso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; \tmso-pagination:widow-orphan; \tfont-size:10.0pt; \tfont-family:\"Times New Roman\"; \tmso-ansi-language:#0400; \tmso-fareast-language:#0400; \tmso-bidi-language:#0400;} <\/style>\n\n <![endif]--><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\">Too much hygiene is not good for you. Keep your brain unwashed.<o:p><\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\"><o:p>\u00a0<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\">I&#8217;m in favour of using gender-neutral language wherever it makes sense. When I&#8217;m feeling particularly brave I&#8217;ll even use singular they. Yeah, I do that. <o:p><\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\"><o:p>\u00a0<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\">I happen to know what a language register is. And most of the time I know which one fits best. But I reserve the right to have some fun with them when an opportunity arises. I\u2019m a professional translator and I need to do this from time to preserve my sanity. <o:p><\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\"><o:p>\u00a0<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\">I&#8217;m more brave than polite and I&#8217;ve been doing my best to reverse that order since I was a teen. So please bear with me; I\u2019m getting there. Slowly.<o:p><\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\"><o:p>\u00a0<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\">Sticks and stones. Holds true for me. Though I try not to presume other people feel the same.<o:p><\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\"><o:p>\u00a0<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\">Still, I do think people are becoming way too sensitive. It\u2019s funny in a way. Apparently we can ignore the worst kind of things going on in the world. <o:p><\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\">(And the flat next door \u2013 not that I\u2019m particularly in favour of spying on one\u2019s neighbours, but come on! They beat their kid to death and nobody heard or knew anything?!) <o:p><\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\">But when we hear or read something that even slightly offends our sensibilities we\u2019re suddenly in our battle mode. C\u2019mom. Save your fighting spirit for things that actually do matter.<o:p><\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\"><o:p>\u00a0<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\">The best way to unwind after a day of being surrounded by folks too darn sensitive for your taste is to call some of your most politically incorrect (and probably quite intelligent) friends over and enjoy a session of gallows humour.<o:p><\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\"><o:p>\u00a0<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\">Follow your own advice. Or at least consider abstaining from giving it to others oh-so-willingly. Unless you really enjoy people laughing behind your back.<o:p><\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\"><o:p>\u00a0<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\">A wise thought I found in one of those e-mail forwards, \u201cIf something I said can be interpreted in two ways, and one of them offends you, I meant the other one.\u201d Adapted for interpreters it would read, \u201cIf something your client said can be interpreted in two ways, and one of them might offend the other party, please do choose to convey the other one.\u201d<o:p><\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\">The people you\u2019re interpreting for will have enough opportunities to get into a fight if they want to; they don\u2019t need your help with this.<o:p><\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\"><o:p>\u00a0<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\">If you think a language is not pretty, you might consider firing your translator.<o:p><\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\"><o:p>\u00a0<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\">A CAT tool is like a smart person who occasionally does something incredibly dumb. When you least expect them too. The problem is their blunders are much more likely to fly under your radar than those made by not-so-bright individuals (as perceived by you). <o:p><\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\"><o:p>\u00a0<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\">A word of advice to fellow translators: find someone to check your translation if you&#8217;re just learning to use a new CAT tool. <o:p><\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\"><o:p>\u00a0<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\">CAT tools are pretty much like high heels. They keep you on your toes for reasons already mentioned. With them you may seem more attractive to passers-by. <span>\u00a0<\/span>But only those who&#8217;ve tried wearing them will understand what a nuisance they can be. <o:p><\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\"><o:p>\u00a0<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\">A word to end buyers. Be nice to your language project managers and send them some flowers sometimes. You have no idea, and I mean no idea what they have to go through to get you your perfect translation (more or less) on time. <o:p><\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\"><o:p>\u00a0<\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-GB\">Pa \u0161e ena domaca: Bolj\u0161 prav cajt zajebat kot pa prepozn prav nardit.<o:p><\/o:p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Too much hygiene is not good for you. Keep your brain unwashed. \u00a0 I&#8217;m in favour of using gender-neutral language wherever it makes sense. When I&#8217;m feeling particularly brave I&#8217;ll even use singular they. Yeah, I do that. \u00a0 I happen to know what a language register is. And most of the time I know &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/e-straus.net\/?p=4\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Some random thoughts from an overworked translator\/interpreter\/PM<\/span> <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8,4,15],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-english","category-rambling-smartassing","category-translation"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/e-straus.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/e-straus.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/e-straus.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/e-straus.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/e-straus.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/e-straus.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/e-straus.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/e-straus.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/e-straus.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}