Article 16
So let's see, what's up?I had a relapse of some of the crud that's been plaguing me this winter, so a bit enfeebled. I expect to be under the weather to some extent till the weather warms up enough to...
View ArticleArticle 15
My mother Josie, brother Ric, and I are profiled in today's El Diario (the local Spanish daily paper) for participating in the crossword puzzle tournament. It's nice to be recognized.My translation of...
View ArticleArticle 14
Off to the American Crossword Puzzle Tournament in a bit. My goals are to break the top 200 finishers, and to finish Puzzle 5.I'll report back soon.
View ArticleSuck. On. This.
Congratulations to the Mustache of Understanding, Thomas Friedman, Eschaton's Wanker of the Decade!For more on why this is such a well-deserved honor, check out one of the best takedowns of an...
View ArticleArticle 12
I finished this biography of Sigmud Freud last night, as part of the novel research, and I can happily say it's given me a lot of insight into Freud's personality, his strengths and his shortcomings....
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This is the happiest night of my life as a Mets fan. Thank you, Johan Santana!
View ArticleArticle 10
I think the new one-game wild card preliminary round of postseason play has broken me. I'm actually wearied by the idea that there are three more rounds of playoffs after this. Seriously?Maybe the...
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I got up an hour early to vote this morning, got there a bit after 7 am and it was already a mess. I was first directed to the wrong line for my district; then, when I got to the right table, they...
View ArticleArticle 8
Wow, I haven't posted since January.I am harried. My pants are Chapter 11 and looking at Chapter 7. Uri Geller has had his way with my spoons.I've been tallying the pressing matters that want my...
View ArticleEl Grito de Yara/The Cry of Yara and a peek into the translator's workshop
On another forum, I received the following query from barking_iguana:Maybe the most striking bit of political rhetoric I have ever read is from an 1868 speech by Cuban revolutionary Carlos Manuel...
View ArticleI had a good weekend.
My friend Andy from my crossword-puzzle competitor crew joined with some of his fellow young independent puzzle constructor friends to create a new crossword tournament, the Indie 500 in Washington,...
View ArticleFreud, women authors, and continuing research for the White Whale
It says something about the loss of esteem psychoanalysis as a discipline has suffered that the YA biography of Sigmund Freud I just read is subtitled "Famous Neurologist." I did learn from it,...
View ArticleWork habits, their care and feeding: a study in work avoidance
When I set out on my serious freelancing almost two months ago, I came up with a set of good work habits to adhere to.- Mornings are for translating: by which I mean not only the actual work of turning...
View ArticleBaseball anniversaries
I missed the fortieth anniversary of my very first ballgame earlier this week. June 29th, 1975: I know my mother and my late Aunt Alice (the biggest Mets fan in the family) took me but I don't remember...
View ArticleAt loose ends
Today is the first day in a while that I don't have a translation assignment to work on. I had been giving short shrift to other responsibilities in the press to Make My Deadline, even as I dithered...
View ArticleCertification testing
I'm back from taking the certification exam for the American Translators Association, which is the big professional credential for my new profession. I feel weird.It's been a Guinea worm of a week -...
View ArticleA year as a freelance
A year ago today was the first day I devoted entirely to freelance translation work. This past year has been only a modest success financially: my 2015 income was about half my 2014 income, and YTD...
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