#just translator things

[cosmogyros]

I like to journal in German (I call it "Gernaling") to practice actively using vocabulary that I don't often get a chance to use in day-to-day conversations. This does sometimes mean, however, that I find myself laughing when re-reading entries, due to the linguistic choices I made on a given day.

Excerpt, start of the entry:

Hab mich grad beim Gedanken ertappt, "Ich muss meinen inneren Noel Gallagher finden und befreien." Um Gottes Willen, werde ich nie von diesem furchtbaren Mann erlöst werden? Wieso hat er sich so bequem in meiner Psyche eingerichtet?

Rough translation:

Just caught myself thinking, "I need to find and free my inner Noel Gallagher." For God's sake, will I never escape [in the sense of: "be delivered from" - or if you know the song "I Shall Be Released", it's kinda like that] this dreadful man? How has he managed to make himself so comfortably at home in my mind?

[samoililja]

i really enjoy translating fairytale board games for kids in finnish 😄 you're just brewing chocolate mint tea in the kitchen when you suddenly think of the perfect equivalent with quadruple alliteration and rush back to your screen to write it down

[cosmogyros]

Ranting and raving with Cinnamon yesterday about dubbing

[mylittlecrazedpen]

I go showering and my mind starts to translate... 🤔

[mylittlecrazedpen]

Lately living in synonym dictionaries

[darkelfchicksick]

"Horses have so much fucking terminology."

tumblr user @eisbecherovka

[cosmogyros]

Complaining with my work buddies in the group chat again as usual. R doesn't like how much Germans talk about "passion" and "attractiveness", so I accused him of being British and he had to admit it.

[cosmogyros]

Ahhhh this made me so happy I have to post about it :D

I started reading "I Am a Cat" by Natsume Sōseki today, and I am enjoying it so far. I posted this excerpt from the introduction on Facebook, knowing my fellow translators would appreciate it.

An acquaintance of mine who's a professional Japanese-English translator and has lived in Japan for years commented on the post, agreeing that Sōseki's work is hard to translate (as he knows from experience). And I, with the confidence of total cluelessness, responded by offering my suggestion for a translation of the title: "My Highness, The Cat". He approved, and I am now on cloud nine!