50th Annual ATA Conference: Day 1

I took the opportunity to sleep in this morning, and then to wander Manhattan's streets in zig-zag fashion on my way from 2nd Avenue & 45th to Times Square. Although I grew up in Queens, just across the East River, I left New York more or less permanently a quarter century ago, so in a way, all of what I've seen today seems new and fresh to me.

I managed to show up at the Association's meeting in time to cast my vote (I'm a certified and hence, voting member), and attended a useful presentation on the use of verbs ("verbing") in translation, which I am sure sounds dull as beach sand to the uninterested bystander, but the meeting room was packed, and the presenter knew his stuff. I'm ambivalent about the subject, as I think verbing weirds communication.

Afterward, I grabbed lunch at one of those Japanese run-in-quick places before the afternoon's main event, 12th Annual Susana Greiss Lecture, which this year was given by Pavel Palazhchenko on the subject of Translation and Interpreting in a Pragmatic Age. The talk was well-received, as was the presentation that followed, on Internet resources for translators.

Completely unrelated to the ATA, I called my old Russian professor, who works in Manhattan, but my planning was poor and I shall have to do better next time. Before cutting the connection, my old prof did turn me on to a wonderful store that sells writing instruments (pens) - Arthur Brown on 45th Street just west of 5th Avenue - where I met a breathtakingly knowledgeable saleswoman when I stopped by on the way back to the hotel.

I plans hold, I will be dining with a couple of friends who are also here at the conference, so I should go get dressed. It's been a good day.
Cheers...