Another question for you translators out there
John W.
A one-page Japanese press release (standard content for a technology
company), translate J to E
A 1.5 page excerpt from a Japanese tech manual, targeted towards
software programmers, Translate J to E
A 1.5 page excerpt from an English tech manual, same target, translate
E to J
How long would you expect to be given to complete these three tasks,
allowing of course for appropriate rewriting time?
I was given 2.5 hours. I felt that wasn't very much, especially for a
position that isn't supposed to involve much if any translation (and
for which I was interviewing as a writer, not translator).
John W.
Scott Reynolds
> I was given 2.5 hours. I felt that wasn't very much, especially for a
> position that isn't supposed to involve much if any translation (and
> for which I was interviewing as a writer, not translator).
I wouldn't be surprised if this company does not really know exactly
what they want. They appear to be looking for some sort of Jack of all
trades. Only problem is, they are likely to end up with a "master of
none" that way.
I know you are eager to find a new position, but for your own peace of
mind and to avoid any possible misunderstandings you should probably ask
the company to narrow your job description to those tasks that you feel
capable of doing competently and with a reasonable degree of efficiency.
I sure wouldn't want to waste my time trying to translate stuff into
Japanese, for example, and I imagine that it would be very stressful.
--
_______________________________________________________________
Scott Reynolds s...@gol.com
Louise Bremner
> A one-page Japanese press release (standard content for a technology
> company), translate J to E
> A 1.5 page excerpt from a Japanese tech manual, targeted towards
> software programmers, Translate J to E
Depends on the size of the page, of course, but if these were standard
*genko yoshi* pages, I'd reckon to do them fairly rapidly (provided I
understood the subject matter and provided I wasn't given just a pencil
and paper to write with, as at one interview I attended).
> A 1.5 page excerpt from an English tech manual, same target, translate
> E to J
Uh.... I would run screaming from any company that suggested I do any
kind of E-J work....
________________________________________________________________________
Louise Bremner (log at gol dot com)
If you want a reply by e-mail, don't write to my Yahoo address!
Ryan Ginstrom
"John W." <worth...@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:73fde4f0.0307...@posting.google.com...
> Here's the assignment I was given:
>
> A one-page Japanese press release (standard content for a technology
> company), translate J to E
Pretty quick, assuming you don't have to look up any company names or the
like.
> A 1.5 page excerpt from a Japanese tech manual, targeted towards
> software programmers, Translate J to E
I imagine I could get it done within the time limit.
> A 1.5 page excerpt from an English tech manual, same target, translate
> E to J
Pretty quick: About as long as it would take to write "I don't do Ying
Yong."
--
Regards,
Ryan Ginstrom
mukade
> Here's the assignment I was given:
>
> A one-page Japanese press release (standard content for a technology
> company), translate J to E
This kind of document usually has standard a format and language. It
should not pose a problem.
> A 1.5 page excerpt from a Japanese tech manual, targeted towards
> software programmers, Translate J to E
Again, if you understand the content then it should not be a problem.
> A 1.5 page excerpt from an English tech manual, same target, translate
> E to J
E > J?
Woah horsey! We will have none of that silliness. As Ryan said, nobody
can read Ying Yong, so how do you expect us to write it?
> How long would you expect to be given to complete these three tasks,
> allowing of course for appropriate rewriting time?
I usually allow more time for rewriting than translation. I guess I
could the work within the time limit, but I probably would not be
satisfied with the end results - I never am.
Most of the translation work I do is for TV/media companies. Compared
to TV company work, deadlines for technical jobs are usually longer.
It was a trial. They probably gave you a worst case situation to test
you under pressure.
Let us know how thing went.
Mukade
Declan Murphy
> E > J?
> Woah horsey! We will have none of that silliness. As Ryan said, nobody
> can read Ying Yong, so how do you expect us to write it?
Thats one thing that's been bugging me. You, Scott, Louise and Ryan all
seem to get by without doing any E > J gigs. When I was translating
(mostly mechanical/automotive) through 93-96, each of my 3 largest
customers in turn began requesting that I provide E > J quotations and
services as part of the overall deal. It reached the point where it was
one of the factors leading me to give translation away and go back to
school. I'm not sure if it was due to my location, the strong yen at the
time encouraging companies to commercialise new imports, plain bad luck
or too narrow a customer base.
--
"Forget Spanish. There's nothing in that language worth reading except
Don Quixote, and a quick listen to the CD of Man of La Mancha will take
care of that. Who speaks it that you are really desperate to talk to?
The help? Your leaf blower? Study French or German, where there are at
least a few books worth reading, or if you're American, try English."
Dame Edna Everage
"If you have to explain satire to someone, you might as well give up,"
Barry Humphries
Scott Reynolds
> Thats one thing that's been bugging me. You, Scott, Louise and Ryan all
> seem to get by without doing any E > J gigs. When I was translating
> (mostly mechanical/automotive) through 93-96, each of my 3 largest
> customers in turn began requesting that I provide E > J quotations and
> services as part of the overall deal. It reached the point where it was
> one of the factors leading me to give translation away and go back to
> school. I'm not sure if it was due to my location, the strong yen at the
> time encouraging companies to commercialise new imports, plain bad luck
> or too narrow a customer base.
If your location was Australia at the time that might explain it. I
remember potential clients in the States asking me if I did E>J work,
but I have never been asked such a thing by a Japanese agency. In fact,
I cannot imagine a Japanese translation agency asking a gaijin to do E>J
work.
Of course, they see nothing questionable about asking Japanese people to
do J>E work. ;-)
Declan Murphy
> On 7/7/2003 4:07 PM, Declan Murphy wrote:
>
>> Thats one thing that's been bugging me. You, Scott, Louise and Ryan
>> all seem to get by without doing any E > J gigs. When I was
>> translating (mostly mechanical/automotive) through 93-96, each of my 3
>> largest customers in turn began requesting that I provide E > J
>> quotations and services as part of the overall deal. It reached the
>> point where it was one of the factors leading me to give translation
>> away and go back to school. I'm not sure if it was due to my location,
>> the strong yen at the time encouraging companies to commercialise new
>> imports, plain bad luck or too narrow a customer base.
>
> If your location was Australia at the time that might explain it. I
> remember potential clients in the States asking me if I did E>J work,
> but I have never been asked such a thing by a Japanese agency. In fact,
> I cannot imagine a Japanese translation agency asking a gaijin to do E>J
> work.
Maybe - I was in Oz during almost all of '94, though the two largest
clients both asked at different points in '96. Maybe the reason was
simply that I wasn't working with an agency, but instead commissioned
directly by the manufacturers? It might have been that all of the other
translation services they had contracts with were companies that
employed both native and gaigin bods. I dunno. I just found that having
to pay for proofreading reduced the margins too much for it to be
worthwhile. It wasn't the only factor in giving up translation, but
determined the timing at least.
> Of course, they see nothing questionable about asking Japanese people to
> do J>E work. ;-)
Don't be silly. That makes perfect sense. No gaigin can read Japanese.
Scott Reynolds
On 7/7/2003 5:01 PM, Declan Murphy wrote:
> Scott Reynolds wrote:
>
>> On 7/7/2003 4:07 PM, Declan Murphy wrote:
>>
>>> Thats one thing that's been bugging me. You, Scott, Louise and Ryan
>>> all seem to get by without doing any E > J gigs. When I was
>>> translating (mostly mechanical/automotive) through 93-96, each of my
>>> 3 largest customers in turn began requesting that I provide E > J
>>> quotations and services as part of the overall deal. It reached the
>>> point where it was one of the factors leading me to give translation
>>> away and go back to school. I'm not sure if it was due to my
>>> location, the strong yen at the time encouraging companies to
>>> commercialise new imports, plain bad luck or too narrow a customer base.
>>
>>
>> If your location was Australia at the time that might explain it. I
>> remember potential clients in the States asking me if I did E>J work,
>> but I have never been asked such a thing by a Japanese agency. In
>> fact, I cannot imagine a Japanese translation agency asking a gaijin
>> to do E>J work.
>
>
> Maybe - I was in Oz during almost all of '94, though the two largest
> clients both asked at different points in '96. Maybe the reason was
> simply that I wasn't working with an agency, but instead commissioned
> directly by the manufacturers?
That seems likely. It also sounds like the people who asked you to do
the E>J work were unusually open-minded in such matters.
> It might have been that all of the other
> translation services they had contracts with were companies that
> employed both native and gaigin bods. I dunno.
So in other words they might not have been expecting you to do the E>J
work yourself. That would make sense.
> I just found that having
> to pay for proofreading reduced the margins too much for it to be
> worthwhile. It wasn't the only factor in giving up translation, but
> determined the timing at least.
You seem to be doing pretty well for yourself these days, so it sounds
like you made the right decision. I sometimes wish I'd gotten into some
line of work other than translation, but I'm pretty much stuck now
considering my age and lack of other marketable skills.
>> Of course, they see nothing questionable about asking Japanese people
>> to do J>E work. ;-)
>
> Don't be silly. That makes perfect sense. No gaigin can read Japanese.
Of course not.
Declan Murphy
> On 7/7/2003 5:01 PM, Declan Murphy wrote:
>> Maybe - I was in Oz during almost all of '94, though the two largest
>> clients both asked at different points in '96. Maybe the reason was
>> simply that I wasn't working with an agency, but instead commissioned
>> directly by the manufacturers?
>
> That seems likely. It also sounds like the people who asked you to do
> the E>J work were unusually open-minded in such matters.
I think it just came down to the fact that they were in the main
non-English speaking engineers, not people whose day-to-day work
revolved around translation & publishing etc. BTW, thats an interesting
euphemism for "clueless". I like it. Next time I see something clueless
on not usenet I'll remember to tell the poster how open-minded they are.
>> It might have been that all of the other translation services they had
>> contracts with were companies that employed both native and gaigin
>> bods. I dunno.
>
> So in other words they might not have been expecting you to do the E>J
> work yourself. That would make sense.
Possibly, though I did do some E>J translation onsite from time to time,
and even the occasional interpretation. Back then if it filled my rice
bowl I'd try it.
>> I just found that having to pay for proofreading reduced the margins
>> too much for it to be worthwhile. It wasn't the only factor in giving
>> up translation, but determined the timing at least.
>
> You seem to be doing pretty well for yourself these days, so it sounds
> like you made the right decision. I sometimes wish I'd gotten into some
> line of work other than translation, but I'm pretty much stuck now
> considering my age and lack of other marketable skills.
You sure there isn't a market for suave sophisticated gaigin hosts?
Scott Reynolds
> Scott Reynolds wrote:
>
>> On 7/7/2003 5:01 PM, Declan Murphy wrote:
>
>>> Maybe - I was in Oz during almost all of '94, though the two largest
>>> clients both asked at different points in '96. Maybe the reason was
>>> simply that I wasn't working with an agency, but instead commissioned
>>> directly by the manufacturers?
>>
>> That seems likely. It also sounds like the people who asked you to do
>> the E>J work were unusually open-minded in such matters.
>
> I think it just came down to the fact that they were in the main
> non-English speaking engineers, not people whose day-to-day work
> revolved around translation & publishing etc. BTW, thats an interesting
> euphemism for "clueless". I like it. Next time I see something clueless
> on not usenet I'll remember to tell the poster how open-minded they are.
I though about saying that it might just be that they were clueless, but
I decided not to in order to be, er, diplomatic.
>>> It might have been that all of the other translation services they
>>> had contracts with were companies that employed both native and
>>> gaigin bods. I dunno.
>>
>> So in other words they might not have been expecting you to do the E>J
>> work yourself. That would make sense.
>
> Possibly, though I did do some E>J translation onsite from time to time,
> and even the occasional interpretation. Back then if it filled my rice
> bowl I'd try it.
How did you like the interpreting? The few times I have been forced to
do it I absolutely loathed it. Part of that might be the fact that I
discovered myself to be even worse at it than I'd expected. I simply
lack the quickness of thought and glibness required, it would seem.
>>> I just found that having to pay for proofreading reduced the margins
>>> too much for it to be worthwhile. It wasn't the only factor in giving
>>> up translation, but determined the timing at least.
>>
>> You seem to be doing pretty well for yourself these days, so it sounds
>> like you made the right decision. I sometimes wish I'd gotten into
>> some line of work other than translation, but I'm pretty much stuck
>> now considering my age and lack of other marketable skills.
>
> You sure there isn't a market for suave sophisticated gaigin hosts?
I'm sure there is, but they're probably not interested in slovenly
"middle eastern looking" guys like me. ;-)
Ryan Ginstrom
"Declan Murphy" <declan...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:3F091C4C...@hotmail.com...
> Thats one thing that's been bugging me. You, Scott, Louise and Ryan all
> seem to get by without doing any E > J gigs. When I was translating
> (mostly mechanical/automotive) through 93-96, each of my 3 largest
> customers in turn began requesting that I provide E > J quotations and
If you are acting as a "full service" translation agency, rather than a
freelancer providing services to agencies or big companies with their own
translation departments, then they are going to expect a range of
services -- basically to be able to go to one contact for all their
translation needs. To them, this doesn't matter if the source language is
Japanese, English, or Estonian, or if the content is sales fluff or nuclear
physics.
The general way people handle this is by becoming agents themselves -- i.e.
farming out the work they are not comfortable with/don't have time for, and
taking a percentage to cover their own costs, quality assurance, marketing,
etc. Naturally this entails an entire new set of issues, one that I am
trying hard to avoid.
--
Regards,
Ryan Ginstrom
Declan Murphy
> I though about saying that it might just be that they were clueless, but
> I decided not to in order to be, er, diplomatic.
naruhodo
> How did you like the interpreting? The few times I have been forced to
> do it I absolutely loathed it. Part of that might be the fact that I
> discovered myself to be even worse at it than I'd expected. I simply
> lack the quickness of thought and glibness required, it would seem.
The worst thing about interpreting was that the client would always
diverge from the briefing notes, stray - without so much as a by your
leave - into their company or field's senmongobbledygookyougo, never
provide sufficient time for you to finish interpreting something before
continuing their spiel, and expect you to keep going all day sans breaks.
In short I detested it. I hated it with a vengeance. I wanted to smash
my head through the nearest plate glass window midway through meetings
just to see if it would make the meeting seem to go better.
That is not to say, that I don't admire (awesomely) those who can interpret.
> I'm sure there is, but they're probably not interested in slovenly
> "middle eastern looking" guys like me. ;-)
A niche market opportunity. I'm sure somewhere some girl has a slovenly
"middle eastern looking" guy fetish. Perhaps its time to hang out your
shingle.
So to speak.
Scott Reynolds
> The worst thing about interpreting was that the client would always
> diverge from the briefing notes, stray - without so much as a by your
> leave - into their company or field's senmongobbledygookyougo, never
> provide sufficient time for you to finish interpreting something before
> continuing their spiel, and expect you to keep going all day sans breaks.
>
> In short I detested it. I hated it with a vengeance. I wanted to smash
> my head through the nearest plate glass window midway through meetings
> just to see if it would make the meeting seem to go better.
>
> That is not to say, that I don't admire (awesomely) those who can
> interpret.
As do I. I think there is nothing quite like trying to do a particular
job -- and failing miserably -- to give one an appreciation of those who
can do that job well.
> Scott Reynolds wrote:
>> I'm sure there is, but they're probably not interested in slovenly
>> "middle eastern looking" guys like me. ;-)
>
> A niche market opportunity. I'm sure somewhere some girl has a slovenly
> "middle eastern looking" guy fetish. Perhaps its time to hang out your
> shingle.
>
> So to speak.
You may be right, but I already have my girl. I'd like to think she
chose me for some other quality than being slovenly or middle eastern
looking, but who knows.
John W.
> On 7/7/2003 5:01 PM, Declan Murphy wrote:
>
> >
> > Maybe - I was in Oz during almost all of '94, though the two largest
> > clients both asked at different points in '96. Maybe the reason was
> > simply that I wasn't working with an agency, but instead commissioned
> > directly by the manufacturers?
>
> That seems likely. It also sounds like the people who asked you to do
> the E>J work were unusually open-minded in such matters.
>
language do the translating. Not that foreigners can't read/write just
as perfectly, but I've read and rewritten quite a few translations by
Japanese professionals, and the English was subpar. But, then, that
was my experience with English natives as well to some extent.
John W.
Rindler Sigurd
> freelancer providing services to agencies or big companies with their own
> translation departments, then they are going to expect a range of
> services -- basically to be able to go to one contact for all their
> translation needs. To them, this doesn't matter if the source language is
> Japanese, English, or Estonian, or if the content is sales fluff or
nuclear
> physics.
>
This is not entirely true since any established translation agency
specializes somewhat according to the language pairs they can offer and the
background of their translators. For instance, I will offer translation in
the automotive field for all European languages, but only French and German,
when it comes to complicated stuff on chemistry and biotech stuff. Others
deal with IT related translations only...
Sigi
______________________________________________________________________
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Louise Bremner
> > Possibly, though I did do some E>J translation onsite from time to time,
> > and even the occasional interpretation. Back then if it filled my rice
> > bowl I'd try it.
>
> How did you like the interpreting? The few times I have been forced to
> do it I absolutely loathed it.
Ditto.
> Part of that might be the fact that I
> discovered myself to be even worse at it than I'd expected. I simply
> lack the quickness of thought and glibness required, it would seem.
I told myself, firmly, that this is a Good Thing. But I still admire
those who can interpret so effortlessly.
Louise Bremner
> You, Scott, Louise and Ryan all
> seem to get by without doing any E > J gigs.
As the others have said, this is possibly because all my translation
experience is in Japan. Agencies have never asked me to do E-J. A couple
of less-than-clueful private clients have suggested I try it, but I
quickly persuaded them not (maybe not quite as tactfully as I should).
Akkerchally, I did interview for a company that translated technical
press releases both ways, some years ago. The test was all J-E (that was
the one with paper and pencil), but the interviewer hinted that they
expected all their translators to work in either direction if there's a
rush, with lots of mutual help if necessary. That sounded interesting,
but I didn't get that job.
Kevin Wayne Williams
> Scott Reynolds <s...@gol.com> wrote:
>
>
>> I simply
>>lack the quickness of thought and glibness required, it would seem.
>
>
> I told myself, firmly, that this is a Good Thing. But I still admire
> those who can interpret so effortlessly.
My favorite Doonesbury strips were the set where Duke was the U.S.
Ambassador to China, and Honey was acting as his interpreter. Her
interpretations included such gems as "He has concluded his joke now,
and you are expected to laugh."
KWW
Scott Reynolds
> Scott Reynolds <s...@gol.com> wrote:
>>Part of that might be the fact that I
>>discovered myself to be even worse at it than I'd expected. I simply
>>lack the quickness of thought and glibness required, it would seem.
>
> I told myself, firmly, that this is a Good Thing. But I still admire
> those who can interpret so effortlessly.
The irony of course is that the better an interpreter is, the easier
they make it seem. Perhaps this is why many people seem to have the
impression that interpreting ought to be easy for anyone who can get by
in more than one language.
Scott Reynolds
> My favorite Doonesbury strips were the set where Duke was the U.S.
> Ambassador to China, and Honey was acting as his interpreter. Her
> interpretations included such gems as "He has concluded his joke now,
> and you are expected to laugh."
I've heard that interpreters really do say things like this sometimes.
Not quite in those words, perhaps, but they might interject something
along the lines of, "That comment contained an untranslatable pun, and
was only intended as a joke."
Scott Reynolds
> Or narrow. I would much prefer to have a native speaker in the end
> language do the translating. Not that foreigners can't read/write just
> as perfectly, but I've read and rewritten quite a few translations by
> Japanese professionals, and the English was subpar. But, then, that
> was my experience with English natives as well to some extent.
Indeed. Being a native speaker of the target language is no guarantee of
being a good writer.
Ryan Ginstrom
"Rindler Sigurd" <srin...@da2.so-net.ne.jp> wrote in message
news:3f09e9d7$1...@news.uncensored-news.com...
> > If you are acting as a "full service" translation agency, rather than a
> > freelancer providing services to agencies or big companies with their
own
> > translation departments, then they are going to expect a range of
> > services -- basically to be able to go to one contact for all their
> > translation needs. To them, this doesn't matter if the source language
is
> > Japanese, English, or Estonian, or if the content is sales fluff or
> nuclear
> > physics.
>
> This is not entirely true since any established translation agency
> specializes somewhat according to the language pairs they can offer and
the
> background of their translators. For instance, I will offer translation in
> the automotive field for all European languages, but only French and
German,
> when it comes to complicated stuff on chemistry and biotech stuff. Others
> deal with IT related translations only...
This is true, to an extent. But only with clients who are fairly
sophisticated about the translation business. This is what I mean by
"translation departments" -- not departments that perform translation
(necessarily), but departments that coordinate it, and know how to handle
translators.
Of course, in some cases even a smallish company will only have one type of
document/field to be translated, in which case they can find a specialist
(maybe, although if they don't know a lot about translation they will
probably go to a generalist agency anyway).
But there are what, 2,000 translation agencies in Tokyo alone? So there is
plenty for every type of need, I suppose.
And even with sophisticated clients, I've seen cases where they start asking
the agency to provide other languages/fields, until they are handling all
that client's work. One agency that sends a bit of work my way started out
doing only "niche" languages like Russian and Vietnamese. But their clients
liked their work so much that they started asking them to do English as
well. Now They handle something like 20 languages, including the major
European ones.
--
Regards,
Ryan Ginstrom
Rodney Webster
Scott Reynolds <s...@gol.com> wrote:
> The irony of course is that the better an interpreter is, the easier
> they make it seem. Perhaps this is why many people seem to have the
> impression that interpreting ought to be easy for anyone who can get by
> in more than one language.
During the few opportunities I have had to interpret, I have found it
best not to be worried about transfering the actual meaning from one
language to another, but better to try to maintain a smooth flow of
conversation in both languages, and keep the general emotions of both
parties in synch.
If one party should become aggravated, or angry, the interpreter should
do their best to make the other party angry as well, so as to maintain
the harmony.
--
Rodney Webster
http://knot.mine.nu/
Bryan Parker
>On 7/8/2003 8:53 AM, Kevin Wayne Williams wrote:
>
>> My favorite Doonesbury strips were the set where Duke was the U.S.
>> Ambassador to China, and Honey was acting as his interpreter. Her
>> interpretations included such gems as "He has concluded his joke now,
>> and you are expected to laugh."
>
>I've heard that interpreters really do say things like this sometimes.
>Not quite in those words, perhaps, but they might interject something
>along the lines of, "That comment contained an untranslatable pun, and
>was only intended as a joke."
It even happened to a former King of Sepponia here
in Japan. After using the same old worn out joke
at a university (graduation?) speech, Jimmy Carter
got the biggest laugh he had ever received.
Afterwards, he asked the interpreter to tell him
exactly how he told the joke so he could use his
translation in the future. It took a while before
the interpreter finally admitted that he had just
told the crowd, "Former President Carter just told
a joke. Please laugh."
--
Bryan
gaijenerous -
adjective: more than adequate (Example: "A slab of
gaijenerous proportion")
adjective: willing to give and share unstintingly
(Example: "A gaijenerous ejaculation")
adjective: not petty in character and mind (Example:
"Unusually gaijenerous in his judgment of people")
John W.
> On 7/8/2003 2:21 AM, John W. wrote:
>
> > Or narrow. I would much prefer to have a native speaker in the end
> > language do the translating. Not that foreigners can't read/write just
> > as perfectly, but I've read and rewritten quite a few translations by
> > Japanese professionals, and the English was subpar. But, then, that
> > was my experience with English natives as well to some extent.
>
> Indeed. Being a native speaker of the target language is no guarantee of
> being a good writer.
Unfortunately, very few people seem to realize this. I've known many
Japanese businessmen that will hire an Eikaiwa teacher to edit
something, assuming that because they can 'teach' English they must be
able to write it. This is also a problem in US companies (and
elsewhere, I imagine); very few of my managers (outside of the one
agency I worked with) truly understand that writing is in fact 'work'
(as much as art).
John W.
John W.
>
> It was a trial. They probably gave you a worst case situation to test
> you under pressure.
>
> Let us know how thing went.
No job for me, unfortunately, which really irks me because I was under
the very clear impression that I was being hired to rewrite
translation, not translate. But the company was Nintendo, and that
would have been a very cool company to work for (or at least TELL
people I work for).
Actually I figure a VP or some such asked why they were even
interested in me in the first place, when surely there are local
candidates that require no relocation. I would not have been
interested in me, regardless of my qualifications, since relocating me
would have cost a pretty penny. Wish they would have just said that.
John W.
John W.
powerful people in the world. A comedian once said that comedians
could never be interpreters, saying stuff like "I'm not sure, sir, but
I think he said you're a major asshole."
John W.
Michael Cash
<rgw_n...@knot.mine.nu> belched the alphabet and kept on going
with:
In one of Robert Whiting's books on baseball in Japan he includes a
section on the poor souls who are assigned to be interpreters for the
gaigin players. One who stands out in my mind was a guy who worked in
the office for a company related to, but separate from, the baseball
team. I forget exactly, but something like a guy working for Seibu
department stores, for example. Anyway, the baseball team needed an
interpreter and it was known around the company that the guy was
attending eikaiwa.....BOOM!....he's the interpreter.
One guy was turning into an absolute nervous wreck because he was
attempting to filter the bile out of the exchanges between one player
and manager. No matter how rude their comments, he translated what was
said in a polite way. One day he finally decided he was tired of
developing an ulcer this way and would start passing the bile along
unfiltered. He remarked that both player and manager were shocked by
this but very quickly realized what was going on. And they also
started being much more civil in their comments to each other.
--
Michael Cash
"There was a time, Mr. Cash, when I believed you must be the most useless
thing in the world. But that was before I read a Microsoft help file."
Prof. Ernest T. Bass
Mount Pilot College