Sometimes things just don’t go as well as you expect, or even at all as you expect, even if you prepare well for them. Blame it on angry fairies, karma or your plain old dumbassness – whatever the reason, the result is that you just want to hug your pillow, crawl under the covers and have a meltdown. That’s how I feel right about now.
Today I had midterm exams for interpreting* training and I didn’t do very well. I had to interpret three speeches into English: one from French, one from Portuguese and one from Spanish, because these are the languages I work with. The speeches weren’t difficult at all but my nerves got the best of me and I couldn’t read my notes very well or remember some details, in other words, I messed up. It didn’t help that the trainers plopped a bloody microphone on the table either – we’ve never used microphones in class, did they have to start with the thing in the middle of exams?! I am told the unexpected is the norm in the profession I stubbornly attempt to enter.
Anywho, this means I have a lot – A LOT – of work to do and I will do it all if it kills me. Failure is just a sign that what you’re doing isn’t working so next you try something different. But for tonight I get to mope so I’ve got the latest episode of Dexter, some chocolate ice cream (melted and re-frozen) and a can of generic beer. The attire is Moping Classic: pajama pants, pajama top and shabby wool sweater. Socks and flip-flops? You bet.
As for you, my dear and faithful reader, I hope you enjoy these few photos I took yesterday at a beach near Lisbon. Strolling barefoot on the beach in the Fall isn’t too bad! Not so sure about what followed though. You see, after putting on my sneakers I managed to lose balance when a wave hit me by surprise, sending me down on my knees in the cold water. Nothing like Atlantic winds hitting the sopping crotch of your jeans…
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*Again: interpreting is like translating except it’s spoken, not written.
A dose of failure also makes the strong even stronger. I know that you’ll rise from this more determined and more focused than ever. It’s normal to get nervous and make mistakes and I’m sure that you did better than many people could! We’re all rooting for you, and I’m confident that you’ll pass with flying colors the next time around!
Thanks Sara :) It’s true, failure means it’s time to step up the game!
Love the pictures Ana! And I agree with Sara, you are attempting something the vast majority of people couldn’t even consider doing. Heck, I am barely proficient in English, and it’s the only language I know :) Really, I am impressed with people that can speak a second language, and here you are interpreting not just one, but three others into a fourth! Simply amazing.
They use to tell us that pain is weakness leaving the body. I told them “then I must be the weakest person on the planet.” But sometimes that bit of suffering is worth it for the result, and your faithful reader has every confidence that you will achieve whatever you desire :)
Thanks for the support! I hope to have some excellent news when my program’s done in June ;)
great supportive comments from your readers, Ana. i agree with both of them! you are working on something REALLY wonderful here, and i know you’ll try harder and succeed. GORGEOUS photos of where you’re living. that’s so good for the soul, glad you have that available to you. and next time…maybe think of the microphone as a nice penis? :) haha! or that may distract you even further, i suppose… you may deleted my comment if you’d like. ;)
love
beth
You’re freaking hilarious! We’re starting to work with mics now, in a booth. Like a glory booth I guess :p
haha! good, it’s great to work with nice…microphones. :) i look forward to hearing about your success, soon! i can feel it, i see it now.
if it’s not written, then how come you had notes?
Ah, I didn’t explain that well. In consecutive interpreting you take notes of what you’re listening to so you can remember all the details.
For example, a speaker will speak for 7 minutes about the low birth rate in the developed world, giving you a bunch of figures on the rates as well as population, death rates etc. After the speaker is done the interpreter takes on the role of speaker, pretty much giving the same speech again but in another language, making sure to cite all the numbers written down.
The interpreter’s the only one who sees his/her notes – and is usually the only one who can read them! Here are examples of interpreting students’ notes: http://www.tumblr.com/tagged/consecutive-interpreting