Author: paulagordon
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End of the Line
And now begins a series of blog posts in which I ponder the process of dispossession, possibly also disposition. It will be wide-ranging, at times starting from how I have come into possession of the items I wish to dispose of, my disposition concerning them, their disposition in relation to me, and their eventual disposal…
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Milkmaid, Wedding Dress, Meat Grinder
No, not the inevitable trajectory of a girl’s life. Rather, three items among many that I thought would be impossible to give away. And yet, I found a willing taker for each. The milkmaid statuette is one of these preformed molds that you get when you attend a crafts event. You choose one of many…
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Twenty-three years, six months
I’ve talked before (haven’t I?) about how I found myself as a translator and editor. It was a side-effect of a decision to move back to my hometown to look after my parents, or, more accurately, to help my mom look after my dad, whose health was declining. It was the beginning of 2002; they…
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Friday, February 28, 2025
Not buying stuff is not a burden for me — I stopped buying from Amazon a while ago. The big box hardware stores are problematic when I need something “now.” But generally I can find what I need at a locally owned store or online from the manufacturer. I’m trying to avoid patronizing companies that…
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“Work from home” and “make a difference” “helping build better AI”!
Here’s but a smattering of the offers of “exciting opportunities” I’ve received over the past 15 months or so. This is what goes on behind the scenes of AI “learning.” AI models are being trained on the backs of low-paid piece-workers. Imagine, if US residents are being offered $8 an hour for query evaluation or…
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No one ever replies
Dear Paula, I’m a project manager for a mid-size agency. We often get large projects that we need translators for in a relatively short period of time. I send out messages via ATA chapters and contact translators from the ATA directory, but hardly anyone replies. And the translators who do reply don’t have the level…
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Another way to get in touch
I’ve taken down my website contact page — all I ever got there was spam — but I think I should have a way for people to reach me if for some reason their emails are not getting through. And I don’t want to rely on a social media account, not given the privacy concerns…
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Spring 2023 SlavFile, focus on South Slavic languages
Click to read or download the latest issue of SlavFile, newsletter of the Slavic Language Division (SLD) of the American Translators Association (ATA).