Turning Japanese
Jun. 5th, 2006 08:50 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
akujunkanMy new bosses are better than the old ones. I'm stuck doing the ALT thing, but at least the new guys are trying to justify the fact that I'm nominally a CIR. I received a call at yochien today before we headed out to the cattle ranch (more on this later), asking me to be back in city hall by 3:00, as they wanted me to interpret for the president of the sister city's Chamber of Commerce. Nani?!
A little after 3:00pm I'm led into the mayor's office with a coterie of local business and government bigwigs to meet the CoC president, his wife, and their company interpretor. He did most of the interpreting (and thank god, because my brain was still set on kindergarten-level Japanese). Anyway, it was fascinating, because I got to formulate what I would have said while listening to the mayor, and then hear how it should be said in proper, formal Japanese when Yoshida-san interpreted it. I know about 98% of the vocabulary he used, but just need to work on getting it to fall out of my mouth like English does. So that was a confidence booster.
I even got to do a bit of interpreting myself toward the end. I handled such subjects as why Mr. Cherry received a tie with drawbridges on it; that the scarf his wife received was dyed locally with tulips (the prefecture flower); and even got a few tough ones—the length of the mayor's term and a semi-in depth discussion about his occupation before he was elected. I think I actually managed the appropriate keigo too.
I also realized to just what extent my borg has been assimilated.
The Chamber of Commerce prez brought the requisite gifts for the mayor—a silk cherry blossom tie and pins from the mayor's and governor's offices, which he proceeded to hand to our mayor with one hand while sitting down, talking all the while. There I sat on the sidelines experiencing mute horror at his horrendous lack of manners. My muscles were positively clenching by the time he started pulling out the commemorative cherry blossom print, tapping the poster tube on the floor and tugging roughly with his hands. How utterly ungraceful.
And then I experienced more mute horror when I realized that I was thinking like the Japanese people in the room.
The mute horror tripled as I realized why the prez and his wife were staring at me like an alien as my supervisor and I saw them off on the first floor--because I was bobbing up and down in formal bows just like my coworker instead of shaking hands like any normal westerner.
And even when I'd realized, I couldn't bring myself to stop doing it, because bowing was what felt correct, since they were guests leaving my turf.
Woah.
That will be all.
A little after 3:00pm I'm led into the mayor's office with a coterie of local business and government bigwigs to meet the CoC president, his wife, and their company interpretor. He did most of the interpreting (and thank god, because my brain was still set on kindergarten-level Japanese). Anyway, it was fascinating, because I got to formulate what I would have said while listening to the mayor, and then hear how it should be said in proper, formal Japanese when Yoshida-san interpreted it. I know about 98% of the vocabulary he used, but just need to work on getting it to fall out of my mouth like English does. So that was a confidence booster.
I even got to do a bit of interpreting myself toward the end. I handled such subjects as why Mr. Cherry received a tie with drawbridges on it; that the scarf his wife received was dyed locally with tulips (the prefecture flower); and even got a few tough ones—the length of the mayor's term and a semi-in depth discussion about his occupation before he was elected. I think I actually managed the appropriate keigo too.
I also realized to just what extent my borg has been assimilated.
The Chamber of Commerce prez brought the requisite gifts for the mayor—a silk cherry blossom tie and pins from the mayor's and governor's offices, which he proceeded to hand to our mayor with one hand while sitting down, talking all the while. There I sat on the sidelines experiencing mute horror at his horrendous lack of manners. My muscles were positively clenching by the time he started pulling out the commemorative cherry blossom print, tapping the poster tube on the floor and tugging roughly with his hands. How utterly ungraceful.
And then I experienced more mute horror when I realized that I was thinking like the Japanese people in the room.
The mute horror tripled as I realized why the prez and his wife were staring at me like an alien as my supervisor and I saw them off on the first floor--because I was bobbing up and down in formal bows just like my coworker instead of shaking hands like any normal westerner.
And even when I'd realized, I couldn't bring myself to stop doing it, because bowing was what felt correct, since they were guests leaving my turf.
Woah.
That will be all.
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no subject
on 2006-06-05 07:48 pm (UTC)But you're still a dork for the lyrics... *shakes head*
no subject
on 2006-06-08 03:02 am (UTC)And btw, once you get caught up with the Bleach manga--I translate each week's chapter for a friend of mine. If you'd like to be in on those, just let me know.
no subject
on 2006-06-08 03:42 am (UTC)Thank my lucky starsI was just too young tohave to suffer throughappreciate it at the time.OOOoOOooOOOhhhHHhhh... psh! Like you have to ask. Granted it will take me awhile to collect them all but yes, of course I want in! I have to say though, reading through vol. 2 I'm not really impressed with the English translations done here. Not that I would know or anything but I've seen some of the fansubs and I know it could be done much better. *cough* But that's just me.
no subject
on 2006-06-11 03:08 am (UTC)no subject
on 2006-06-06 03:14 am (UTC)Sounds like you had fun, even with the mute horror.
no subject
on 2006-06-08 03:03 am (UTC)no subject
on 2006-06-08 07:32 am (UTC)and that's on a good day. Nice when I can bring it *up* to that level;)