When you need Japanese language services, I sweat the details for you.
Welcome! This pinned post is where you can find links to my COVID-19 playlists.
Read on to learn about the playlist initiative and what you’ll find in each list, or boldly click on one of these quick links to start listening.
Sacred #SongsOfComfort: YouTube | Sacred #SongsOfComfort: Spotify | Secular #SongsOfComfort: YouTube
My last post, 8 Movies to Distract You from COVID-19, was about catching up on classic movies to distract yourself during this crisis. Distraction is a valuable mental health tool, because it gives us the space to not be anxious all the time. And movies seemed like a good bet, because they only take a couple of hours, which is great for those of us who still don’t have much free time.
But what if you don’t have access to Netflix or Amazon Prime? What if you need something fun and interesting that’s free?
Well, my friend, there is plenty out there to explore. Here are a few audio & visual options from your friendly neighborhood audiovisual translator.
Do you need a safe, fun distraction from the global pandemic engulfing all of us? I think we all do, and I love that so many artists are doing their part from within their areas of expertise.
Orchestras around the world are offering free live concerts online. Cellist Yo-Yo Ma has started a #SongsofComfort initiative. Art historian Ada Palmer has popularized the hashtag #SomethingBeautiful on Twitter. And in the crowdsourcing domain, readers of The Guardian have put together a recommended reading list.
As a film & TV translator, the first thing that occurs to me is, why not catch up on some classic movies you’ve always meant to get around to, or revisit your favorites?
So, here’s a list of classics to watch on Amazon Prime and Netflix while you’re quarantined or self-isolating. (…Okay, maybe the sushi documentary isn’t a classic, but sushi is classic, am I right?)
Enjoy!
Welcome to the holidays: a season full of good food, wonderful concerts, and crazy, epic stress.
Many translators and other computer-based workers are chained to our desks, muscles tight, practically vibrating with the stress of December’s usual insane deadlines. Me, I’m freaking out a little more every time I look at my email accounts… the business one or the personal one.
Maybe we’re managing our stress with exercise, as this blog has discussed before, or maybe we’re using another coping method, or maybe we’re just choosing to fling ourselves recklessly into the void. Hey, I’m in no place to judge. But I think most of us are probably experiencing some seasonal increase in stress.
Unfortunately, with stress often comes pain.
So, today I’d like to share my simplest pain control technique–something that regularly helps me both at my desk and while I’m standing on one leg in the yoga studio. It’s simple, you can do it sitting down, and all you need is 20 seconds and the tongue in your mouth.
The whiteboard pictured above made its appearance at this year’s American Translators Association conference, and it kept us entertained all weekend long:
My dog usually walks me three times a day #LifeAsAFreelance #DOGtool https://t.co/XMG5YfrNtN
— Transcripsi (@Transcripsi) October 25, 2018
Mi héroe es el/la que puso crying and breaking things https://t.co/8YB6Hi3lwH
— Evelyn Antelo (@eveantelo) October 25, 2018
As you can see, a lot of us weighed in. There are many gems in there–I’m partial to the one about running from court to jail and back–but the whole thing got me thinking about how this is a really important question. How do we stay healthy and manage our stress?
The number of serious responses both on the whiteboard and on Twitter clue us in to the fact that exercise really does work:
My productivity definitely went up when my physical therapy started including regular exercise. The time it takes us much less than the time gained through the increased energy. https://t.co/hheiMvadeH
— Ada Palmer (@Ada_Palmer) October 25, 2018
We’re all different, but we all need to get this whole fitness thing done somehow. So I figured I’d share the set of tools I personally use to get the job done. Here we go… Continue Reading →