December 2005
Dear Friends and Colleagues,
As 2005 comes to an end, the phrase “Minds are like parachutes, they only function when open” comes to mind, as I reflect on the state of the world. I encountered this phrase while interpreting at a conference. Only rarely does a speaker utter something I myself so desperately want to say! Before wishing you all the best in 2006, I wanted to share this wonderful phrase with you in this, my 11th annual holiday letter.
It is hard to believe another year has gone by and I find myself sitting in my hotel room far from my home in Albany, California, writing this letter to you. Thanks to you I have this opportunity to reflect and reminisce about the past 12 months. With the end of 2005 fast approaching, I want to wish you all the best in 2006 and offer my sincere gratitude for your trust, support, friendship, and love. If I have been lax in keeping in touch with you, please accept my apologies and read this letter.
In 2005 I worked as a
simultaneous conference interpreter at 31 different conferences at various
locations from San Jose, California to San Jose, Costa Rica.
The best place I interpreted was Peter Island, British Virgin
Islands, where Morgan Freeman flies in
to have Sunday brunch. The most challenging assignment was “The Harvard
Conference on Koguryo History and Archeology.” This 2.5 day conference seemed
to last 2.5 years, with 80+ hours spent on study and research. It was the very
first conference on the ancient history of the Koguryo Kingdom held
in an English-speaking country. The most memorable assignment was in Beijing, China during
the 4th round of the 6-party talks. But the assignment that made my
mouth water was for the Almond Board of California with all the delicious
almond cooking demonstrations. The other conferences where I interpreted
covered a wide range of topics, such as consumer electronics, software, organic
farming, marketing, textiles, hepatitis B, retailer training, kiwifruit, and
salmon. As a judiciary interpreter, I
worked both in federal and state courts appearing at 111 half-day sessions.
Other types of interpreting assignments included depositions (20 full days),
psychiatric evaluations (23 hours in jail on very uncomfortable chairs),
medical appointments (5 occasions), etc. I also shared my professional
experience as one of the presenters at the Northern California Translators
Association’s workshop “Getting Started in Translation and Interpretation.” I
focused on the topic of interpretation, emphasizing the importance of being
truly bilingual and bicultural and having intellectual curiosity as an
interpreter. I explained different modes and types of interpretation and how to
prepare to become a court and healthcare interpreter. I spent 19.5 hours at
recording studios doing what I love to do, which is voiceover work. I also
worked on translating and recording of the scripts that were to be used for
Gray Line’s half-day city tour of San
Francisco. So you can still hear my
friendly voice even if I happen to be out of town – just hop on that Gray Line
tour! The tour is quite fun and informative, I might add. With quick-witted and
well-informed Garrett, my company, TransKorean Services, along with my
wonderful team of translators including Steve, and I worked on myriad
translations: employee/client surveys, government forms, websites, company
newsletters, ads, press releases, patents, newspaper articles, privacy
policies, speeches, employee rights, sexual harassment, election materials,
brochures, parents’ guides, and 5 love letters (I wish there were as
translating love letters is one of my specialties), among other topics. In less
than 3 months TKS will celebrate its 20 year anniversary. Amazing how time
flies!! This year I ran for and was
elected to the American Translators Association’s (ATA) board of directors at
their 46th annual conference in Seattle, Washington.
I have a lot to learn and will work hard not to
disappoint all the members who voted for me and offered me congratulatory
remarks and encouraging words in person and via email. Personally it was one of
the most frantic ATA conferences I attended. At the same time it was one of the
best conferences I attended: I had an opportunity to meet about 20 Korean interpreters/translators
who came from all over the United States. In order to escape from the
world of interpretation and translation I attended numerous lectures and forums
with titles like “Confucianism: Past, Present and Future,” “The Uneven Burden
of Vitality: College Rank, Class, and South
Korea’s New Generation,” and “South Korea’s
Education Fever: Origins, Impact, and Challenges.” As an ardent movie fan I saw
50 movies (Can you believe it?) in theaters and quite a few more on airplanes
while venturing to and from my assignments. To my great disappointment this
year was not a strong one for movies. There were a lot of mediocre films with
lots of hype. Among the 50 movies I saw in theatres, these left an indelible
impression on me: Hotel Rwanda and Crash (both with my favorite actor,
Don Cheadle, who should have won an Academy award for Hotel Rwanda), A History
of Violence, and The Constant Gardner.
Between assignments, movies,
and books, Robert and I were able to squeeze in mini-vacations in Austin, Texas during
cold January, New Orleans, Louisiana, and Bay St. Louis and Biloxi, Mississippi
during the hot and humid summer. I witnessed the most beautiful autumn I had
seen in many years in the northeastern part of Korea, Kangwondo. Late October
to early November found me hiking in the mountains in Korea where I could
appreciate the splendid beauty fall brings us each year with changing leaves,
high clear skies, and the perfect temperature. I still hike with my mom and her
friends Saturday mornings whenever I am in town. If you enjoy hiking and want
to join me please let me know. Also winter is here—how about some ice-skating?
Please let me know if you are interested in hitting a local rink! That’s It Folks! Thanks for
reading. Hope to hear from you. HERE’S WISHING YOU VERY HAPPY
HOLIDAYS!!! With Warm Regards, Jacki Noh :) Tel (510) 527-6300; Fax
(510) 527-6700 TransKorean Services 555 Pierce St., #845F, Albany, CA 94706-1008 USA
The most fun assignment for me was at Pixar
Animation Studios interpreting during the
facilities tour and interview with
Brad Bird, the brilliant creator of animation for The Incredibles.
Forever a kid at heart, I felt at home at the studios with all the Pixar characters.
This year I had the great pleasure of reading a couple of books written by my brilliant friends, How Much of Me Is
True Korean: Westernism Within Us by Jung-In (George) Kang, PhD (written in
Korean), and Building Mental Muscle by David Gamon, PhD. Here are other
books I highly recommend: Links by Nuruddin Farah, The Kite Runner
by Khaled Hosseini, Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books by Azar Nafisi,
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon, and All
Over but the Shoutin’ by Rick Bragg. Please share with me your favorite
books and movies.
