| Pages in topic: < [1 2 3] | a problem of old age? Thread poster: Jennifer Barnett
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Milena Bosco (X) 
Italy
Local time: 17:13
English to Italian
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| I hope I am not too late... | Oct 13, 2008 |
Jennifer I read your post a few days ago. I've been thinking about you and what to write. Today, finally, in one of my books I found what I think is perfect...
"Do we really know how we translate or what we translate?.....Are we to accept "naked ideas" as the means of crossing from one language to another?.....Translators know they cross over but do not know by what sort of bridge. They often re-cross by a different bridge to check up again. Sometimes they fall over the parapet into... See more Jennifer I read your post a few days ago. I've been thinking about you and what to write. Today, finally, in one of my books I found what I think is perfect...
"Do we really know how we translate or what we translate?.....Are we to accept "naked ideas" as the means of crossing from one language to another?.....Translators know they cross over but do not know by what sort of bridge. They often re-cross by a different bridge to check up again. Sometimes they fall over the parapet into limbo." (Firth).
Are there better words to define what happened to you?
Obviously nothing to worry about.
Have sunny days,
Milena
[Edited at 2008-10-13 14:41] ▲ Collapse
| | | | Jennifer Barnett
France
Local time: 17:13
Member (2009)
Dutch to English
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TOPIC STARTER | the poetic explanation | Oct 13, 2008 |
There had to be a poetic explanation somewhere out there.
Thank you Milena.
| | | | | Translators Are The Last To Go Senile (My Theory) | Oct 18, 2008 |
Tom In London gave good advice that I agree with, namely " I would stay away from doctors as much as possible". He also offered another good piece of advice which I summarize with "sleep on it". Leave your final proofreading until the next morning. One normally wakes up with a fresh and clear mind.
Not being sarcastic, but you mentioned "In any case I am going to ask my doctor about it. It could be a health problem that is treatable - or not!"
That sounds like you use ... See more Tom In London gave good advice that I agree with, namely " I would stay away from doctors as much as possible". He also offered another good piece of advice which I summarize with "sleep on it". Leave your final proofreading until the next morning. One normally wakes up with a fresh and clear mind.
Not being sarcastic, but you mentioned "In any case I am going to ask my doctor about it. It could be a health problem that is treatable - or not!"
That sounds like you use doctors a lot. In 2005 I bled from my nose from fatigue while attending to a translation to 8 languages with a personal group of associates that I have on the Internet. I was translating in my pair plus managing emails with all of them. The doctors put me on hypertension tablets. In December 2007 I one morning almost coughed myself to death and entered emergency after 40 minutes of non-stop coughing. When asked to lay down, which I couldn't do (because my stomach muscles had cramped) they forced me to do so. That was when I shot up and coughed out a large quantity of mucous and felt normal again. But they insisted on putting me under observation in intensive care until they felt I was safe to leave. During the few days that I was there, they told me that I'd have to have an angio and possible open heat surgery, both which I refused to agree to. I escaped on the third day when my mother-in-law passed off and provided me with the excuse to request emergency leave. They prescribed 6 different tablets daily for me and asked me to come back if I felt worse. For 3 months I was wheezing and could not walk for more than 100 yards (100 metres) without heading for the nearest bench to rest at for a few minutes. The extensive wheezing when I tried to go to sleep at night got me suspicious about the last tablet that I was taking at night. I put the tablets name plus "scam" ("xxx scam") on the search engine the next morning and found out that the wheezing was from the last tablet plus other ridiculous, useless and health worsening side effects. The next night I cut off a quarter of that tablet to avoid withdrawal effects and the wheezing stopped. I checked up on all the other medicaments with "scam" added to each name and I found that 4 of the 6 had already been identified as bull a long time ago. Over the next 2 months I reduced each tablet by 15-25% each two weeks until I stopped taking all of them. I suspected that the day I choked was because I smoked 4 cigarettes early in the morning before having had anything to eat or drink. When I mentioned it to a semi-literate friend he told me affirmatively that I should have a cup of some hot drink or even a glass or half a glass of hot water before ever smoking my first cigarette in the morning. That's to be followed with an enforced cough to clear up the throat. Well I started doing that and I was amazed at how that turned out to be so true. Not proud of it, but I'm back to smoking 60-80 cigarettes a day (I was smoking 100 daily before that for about two years and averaged maybe 60 daily for over 40 years) and my health is back to pre-2005. Though I was 62 years old then (65 now), but people always used to tell me I look 10-15 years younger than I claim to be. Well that's from avoiding most modern GM foods and foods with confirmed-to-be-bad chemical additives, flavourings and preservatives. Since coming out of hospital I tried concentrating on going heavy on greens (chopped up and mixed) and making a big omelette of it for my first meal and cutting down on lunch and replacing supper with a light snack only once I feel hungry. That brought my weight down about 10 Kg. (about 22 lbs), but all those other side effects did not disappear until I finished off with those 6 medicaments. Meat might be great, but what do chicken, cows and sheep eat? The healthy ones eat greens and grains only. So I did the same to replace eating so much meat and only ate a small piece or helping of meat when I craved for it.
I don't want to turn this into a medicament discussing forum or a nutritional one or one about GM etc vs. organic food, but do think for example of why an organically grown tomato costs 5 or more times as much as a non-organic one. I'll leave the rest for you to think out (with the help of the Internet and usage of added words like "scam"/"hazards"/"poisoning" when you do your search). They'll bring up a lot of articles that you do not see when you search without them and you can freely pick and choose which to believe in. Have a great future once you find out what's good for you and what isn't.
You do not mention how old you are, but I remember (you can confirm it from older people) walking into pharmacies with my mommy in the fifties of the last century and there were no more than a handful of medicines that were prescribed. Ten years later pharmacies were full of all sizes of packets in all sorts of colors with all forms of chemicals as tablets, capsules, syrups, powders, injections, suppositories, drops, ointments, creams to stick in all holes in the body plus a syringe to make extra holes wherever one liked to put medicines through. Though I'm originally an electrical engineer before becoming a translator, but I don't think science has advanced that much or can advance so much in ten years so much more than my speciality has advanced in 40-50 years or any other speciality.
I'll leave you with the rest f the homework to do. Just eat like your dad or granddad did (leaving out the sweets and large volumes of meat etc that you know isn't good for the health) and you'll be back kicking like when you were 30.
I doubt that most translators will grow to be senile. It's one of the best businesses that prevents that because the brain continues to be exercised with that profession.
And of course don't forget the daily at least one hour at least walk.
Age - Age is only a number.
How Old - A man is as old as he feels, and a woman as old as she looks.
[Edited at 2008-10-18 02:20] ▲ Collapse
| | | | Jennifer Barnett
France
Local time: 17:13
Member (2009)
Dutch to English
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TOPIC STARTER | smoking and brain function | Oct 21, 2008 |
Thank you Adi. You provide a nice tie-in with the root of my shocked reaction to my sudden poor performance.
My mother's mental faculties began to deteriorate in her 60's. After marrying she did not have an occupation to keep her brain sharp. She was however a heavy smoker and, after middle age, this caused a series of little strokes. It is highly probable that these strokes impaired her brain function leading to the appearance of being demented. There is no other history of senile ... See more Thank you Adi. You provide a nice tie-in with the root of my shocked reaction to my sudden poor performance.
My mother's mental faculties began to deteriorate in her 60's. After marrying she did not have an occupation to keep her brain sharp. She was however a heavy smoker and, after middle age, this caused a series of little strokes. It is highly probable that these strokes impaired her brain function leading to the appearance of being demented. There is no other history of senile dementia in the family so there is probably nothing for me to fear but it is still a worry.
Perhaps your mentally demanding work and good diet balances the effect of your heavy smoking to some extent but is it not better to stop smoking altogether? Very difficult but well worth the short term discomfort I would think. You surely do not want to start getting strokes!
As for your advice, yes I did 'sleep on it' - thus the shock that I was still word blind.
I also eat organic as much as is affordable, grow a modest amount of my own fruit and vegetables, forage for wild food, do not eat prefab. food, (make own bread, cakes etc.) follow the blood type diet, prefer acupuncture over standard Western medical practice, practice Chi Kung (well, not enough), avoid medicines where possible etc., etc.. So doing all the right stuff to avoid the usual Western lifestyle health problems. And I have never smoked except passively as a child from sharing home and car with two heavily smoking parents.
Since launching this thread, I have realised that having an injured foot must have taken its toll on my whole system. Indeed I have not slept that well since it happened at the beginning of Sept. but I did not begin to feel quite tired all day until 2 weeks ago. Now physiotherapy has started so pain is back with increased sleep disturbance. On the basis of this, I am refusing any 'same day' or urgent jobs for the time being.
It is difficult to remember/accept that the aged body is not as resilient as it was but I hope to have learnt the lesson. My known limits have been lowered a notch.
Thanks again everyone for taking the time to reassure me. ▲ Collapse
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Jennifer Barnett
France
Local time: 17:13
Member (2009)
Dutch to English
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TOPIC STARTER | Update: original problem now diagnosed | Aug 26, 2010 |
Gosh, 2 years later already...
In April 2009, 6 months after I posted this, it became apparent what the underlying problem was. The turning point involved a stolen bag with EVERYTHING in it at a foreign railway station during a fuzzy moment. The fuzzy brain condition had become more frequent and worse, allied with an alarmingly rapid weight loss. It turned out that I had a congested liver and sludged up gall bladder and was on the verge of malnutrition because food wasn't being dige... See more Gosh, 2 years later already...
In April 2009, 6 months after I posted this, it became apparent what the underlying problem was. The turning point involved a stolen bag with EVERYTHING in it at a foreign railway station during a fuzzy moment. The fuzzy brain condition had become more frequent and worse, allied with an alarmingly rapid weight loss. It turned out that I had a congested liver and sludged up gall bladder and was on the verge of malnutrition because food wasn't being digested properly. There seems to be reduced stomach acid as well.
I have had a problem with fats and dairy food digestion all my life but the preceding 2 years of yummy French food in combination with ageing led to a crisis. A diet of mostly steamed al dente vegetables, olive oil and lemon juice has slowly reduced the symptoms and I've had to be more strict with what, how much and when I eat: a small price to pay for wanting to keep my gall bladder. Sure does keep the weight down!
The most useful information was found with Google rather than at the doctor's.
Anyhow, this is to finish the story and to alert females that this condition is relatively common amongst middle aged women. The condition is difficult to diagnose in the early stages as symptoms are very diverse and often vague up until the condition reaches a crucial stage (lipid tipping point?) when discomfort is felt directly in the liver/gall bladder areas.
I am now going to appeal for a second chance with that translation test.
So look after your liver and thanks again for all the supportive comments! ▲ Collapse
| | | | | If I was ever wrong I would be the first to notice ... | Aug 26, 2010 |
The eroding of confidence brought on by aging is something worth fighting, I've been doing it for years.
Don't worry Jennifer: If at first you don't succeed ...
Probably just a temporary lapsus brought on by tiredness, workload or whatever.
Counteract signs of errors by extra proofreading, etc.
Jack Doughty's words above are worth noting.
| | | | Nesrin
United Kingdom
Local time: 16:13
English to Arabic
+ ...
| Hurrah for Google | Aug 26, 2010 |
That is good to hear, Jennifer. It's crazy to think of the amount of things that can go wrong in our bodies, which often go undiagnosed by our doctors. Actually it's quite understandable, come to think of it - what a complex system the human body is!
In that respect, I'm grateful to the internet - even though it does often cause unnecessary worry.
| | | | | a problem of old age? | Aug 26, 2010 |
Jennifer Barnett wrote:
I have just had a deep shock which has greatly shaken my confidence. Usually I am eagerly advising others but now I am asking for help.
Recently I sent off a test translation and text revision to an agency. To my surprise, they replied that my work was so poor that they would not be adding me to their books. This is the first time I have had this experience. Upon reading the corrections and comments on the tests I had to agree with them but it was also shocking to see how careless and inconsistent my work was - not like me at all. It was as if I had not checked and I certainly had done so. The texts were challenging and I enjoyed the task - just cannot understand what happened. Since doing these tests I have completed another small project which went well. Did I have 'bad word' days at a bad time? Was I over confident?
I have always suffered from the occasional 'word blindness' and comprehension blind spot but this is within the bounds of normality. My short term memory is certainly getting worse (I am 57 years old). After this experience I am very afraid that I am losing ability or at best becoming a liabilty due to inconsistency just when I am trying to become a full time freelance translator after carrying out occasional projects over many years.
What to do?
My first thought was to ask for another chance but that would just show that my work quality is unreliable so why would they bother to waste more time on me? It would also sound pathetic especially as I have no good reason for such an apparent drop in quality. Honesty can work against you. Perhaps I should have asked my translation buddy to check the texts but this is surely cheating and also creates greater expectations than one could always live up to for agency work, not to mention the extra expense.
In any case I am going to ask my doctor about it. It could be a health problem that is treatable - or not!
Have any other seniors (or juniors) had this experience? If so, how do you work around it?
Or perhaps I am being hysterical, it was just a blip and I should put it behind me and move on?
Thanks God, I never had such problem (I have a similar age), but I do not think it is an age problem. I would not worry about, but I would consult a doctor, if only as a preventive measure. But, after that, forget it and move on. We all have bad days in wich things do not run as expected...
Another measure to prevent such kind of things is to use a CAT tool (as it has been already said here adn CAT tools are not very forgetful) or to use the for-eye principle.
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Inga Petkelyte
Portugal
Local time: 16:14
Lithuanian to Portuguese
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| Not age, just days, I think | Aug 26, 2010 |
Dear Jennifer,
I would fully agree with Laura Gentili - it happens to all of us, no matter the age. I was 27 when my contractor wondered: Inga, the first part was so brilliant, and what is this ? And those were two parts of the same document delivered witha break of one week !
Thus, the example above illustrates well, I guess, that you shouldn't worry too much about the happening, unless you notice that on more occasions.
Keep your confidence, go forward, t... See more Dear Jennifer,
I would fully agree with Laura Gentili - it happens to all of us, no matter the age. I was 27 when my contractor wondered: Inga, the first part was so brilliant, and what is this ? And those were two parts of the same document delivered witha break of one week !
Thus, the example above illustrates well, I guess, that you shouldn't worry too much about the happening, unless you notice that on more occasions.
Keep your confidence, go forward, the road is not always smooth ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Deformation in writing style | Aug 27, 2010 |
Jennifer Barnett wrote:
Recently I sent off a test translation and text revision to an agency. To my surprise, they replied that my work was so poor that they would not be adding me to their books. This is the first time I have had this experience. Upon reading the corrections and comments on the tests I had to agree with them but it was also shocking to see how careless and inconsistent my work was - not like me at all. It was as if I had not checked and I certainly had done so. The texts were challenging and I enjoyed the task - just cannot understand what happened. Since doing these tests I have completed another small project which went well. Did I have 'bad word' days at a bad time? Was I over confident?
I am in your age range. My 38-year translation history tells me about evolution of translation. In former days, I worked nearly under monopolistic system. Now I have many competitors both local and abroad. Some of my wordings and writing styles are old-fashioned. The reason is that we have continuous changing school education curricula, TV, Internet and the like. I am not as quick as the youngsters to absorb new vocabulary, slangs, idioms and others, in particular, the Internet-based shorthand writing. My conservative writing style is hardly acceptable with regard to marketing document translation. I may be better to concentrate on technical document translation where a strict pattern is maintained. I do jocking daily to take care of my blood circulation and brain functions to keep youngness.
Soonthon Lupkitaro
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