TBA - Suicide kings
by joon
Well, wow, I have not written here since may! Wow, it seems long but it is not that long actually!
Well anyway,
since then, I have gone back to France, changed job and got happier ! How crazy!
I spent my whole month of August, organizing my back to school-work-project.
Four years ago, I came to Portland for the first time in my life, helping Adam moving here. I looked around for some theatre/performance/anything related to live performance
And I found TBA ! I went to a couple of shows and one dance workshop which was amazing.
Then, I moved here a year later!
I was looking forward to follow TBA. Weirdly enough, I have no memories of going to any of their shows for the first two years and I remember looking at the program last year and being like, eh, nothing seemed interesting to me. I don't know if that was a result of being broke at that time so I was not able to afford anything extra at this point.
WE just came back from Europe and we had hardly enough for rent, food and trimet.
This year, I do not have a job that will bring me a lot of money, but we will be fine, but what makes a difference is I have some time ! And as I was looking for their catalalogue I found "volunteer for TBA"
So I went for their information/sign up meeting and I got to sign up for hours.
With enough hours you get a pass/ 8 shows and other stuffs!
I volunteered so far for :
- Box office
- Chat
- Volunteers lead
- Larry Krone (The lab-craft)
I will volunteer for 4 more shows and help later on!
This is great!
I met new people
I learn new things
I get to be back into the world of professional art-live performance
The first show I have seen is by the suicide kings.
And this is one of the most powerful show I have seen for a long time!
Really really good
Three guys, one musician (cello) and a very few props!
Just them and their words - poetry - story - emotions!
It feels good to go to the theatre.
I missed it so much, I did not even know. I got to feel what I always feel everytime the audience lights turn off and the stage one turns on... I feel moved, I have buterfflies, I get thirsty for stories, my eyes are wide open to look at, listen to, a human being here in front of me telling his stories, I (almost) have tears...
Posted on September 8, 2007 | Comments (0)
Sarko vs Sego or the French presidentials part 1
by joon
So I spent my whole Saturday (7:30 am to 9:30 pm) volunteering for my country! I was named assessor and basically checked people IDs and tell them what to do to vote for the first tour of the French Presidentials. When I was not doing that I was working on some small projects for my work because this whole thing was taking place at the school I work for so I was able to get some stuff done too which was pretty good.
Because I am telling you, we were not too busy!
This is the first time in history that french "expat" don't have to go to San Francisco to vote which they were not doing because who wants to fly twice in a month to go standing in line just to vote!
So they send a "consul deputy" in Portland, in Seattle and in others places in US to open a "bureau de vote" for local French immigrants! Thank you very much.
People were happy to come to vote, it was like being home. Going to a school to vote is very very traditional. Sunday is normally the day to vote in France but for the first time also, they decided to make us vote before which is pretty smart because last time people abroad knew what were the results when voting (difference of time) and so you don't vote the same that way!
Some numbers of people with French nationality in Oregon?
550 people (with French nationality) from Oregon and Idaho are registered to vote on the list of the Embassy in San Francisco (3 from Idaho)
1000 people (about) in Oregon are registered with the Embassy, according to the Honorary Consul present in Portland (Most of them can choose to vote "par procuration" in France. You basically choose someone (that you know and trust... obviously) to vote in your name in the city you are registered. This person must be registered on the same list)
2000 people would be present in Oregon without being registered to the Embassy, according to the same person. There is no way to verify this information obviously.
That would bring the numbers of people at 3000!?
550 people (with French nationality) from Oregon and Idaho are registered to vote on the list of the Embassy in San Francisco (3 from Idaho)
149 people came to vote yesterday. From whom, no Idaho voters, but some people came from as far as LaGrande and Bend!
57 votes for Sarkozy (Right)
42 votes for Royal (Socialist)
About 20 for Bayrou (right)
6 votes for Voynet (green party)
1 for Besancenot and 1 for Laguiller (communism party)
1 for Jose Bove
1 for someone that I don't remember
0 for Nihous, Shivardi, Buffet and (thank God) for LePen
2 votes were "nuls" People put two names in there!
The second tour is on May, 6th 2007. I won't be there and I will be flying from France to USA. And I will get the good or bad news when landing or maybe during my flight.
In June we will vote for the "legislative" and I will be asking someone to vote for me in France as it won't be happening here.
some people did say yesterday that it was like being in a small village and this is actually true. Having all those French people coming from all around did bring a nice feeling of community and when I think about it, if 550 people (149) do seem like a small village of "irreductibles gaulois" in Oregon.
It was really interesting to participate in this, even if it was quite difficult at the end (the four last 5 hours until we counted the votes and everything were pretty long) but we got to eat some "pains au chocolat" and "baguette sandwiches et pattisseries" delivered from one of my favourite bakery-pattisserie in Portland (St Honore). The "boulanger" (baker) delivering himself twice while coming voting is pretty cool and one of the assessor, known Wine Business man around got us some good beverage...
Feels good to be part of this community!
Posted on April 22, 2007 | Comments (1)
French elections in Portland
by joon
A "bureau de vote" will be open in Portland for inhabitants from Idaho and Oregon. What is convenient for me and my coworkers is that only this is taking place in Portland, but this is taking place at my school on SW Corbett avenue. I will be volunteer there half day on Saturday, April 21rd
French living abroad will be voting one day before than in France.
In France, you vote on Sundays and schools are where everything happens. For the "presidentielles", you vote twice. The first Sunday is called : Premier tour, and you by voting for one candidate, it narrows the choice for the "deuxieme tour" to two candidates.
"Le deuxieme tour" always takes place two weeks later, the first Sunday of May.
When going there you show you ID, and your "carte d'electeur" (voter's card), you take one envelop and one or several paper with the name of the candidates and you go hide yourself in a "cabin" where you can choose to put your favourite guy's name in the envelop and throw the rest away.
Then you get out and go to the table where you are going to put your envelops in the box while someone says : "a vote"
Unfortunately, this year I won't be able to vote at the "deuxieme tour" and that sucks because that is the important one. Ironically, I will be in France at the time, or more precisely on a plane to here.
I was not able to ask someone to vote for me as I registered here and they don't do that or anyway I don't remember but that was a complicated story with administration stuffs and if I start, we will be still here after the "deuxieme tour"
Well, Francais, Francaise, let's do that right! Some pretty wicked candidate are out there to take "freedomland" over. oh, oh, I heard that somewhere.... Let me start over, let's get someone not too bad to keep France from becoming worse and a place that we won't be proud of!
As we say in France : "C'est pas gagne!"
Posted on April 13, 2007 | Comments (2)
Contest : Where does it come from? / Concours : D'ou ca vient?
by joon
Dear bloggers, readers, friends and family...
You are welcome to participate in my contest :
"Where does that expression come from?"
Because living in another country makes me juggling between two languages all the time, at home, at work, with my friends, I am always amazed when I hear an expression in french that I have not heard for a while. All of a suden, it sounds new and I am like:"where the h...is that coming from? this is so weird of an expression"
In English, something different happens. I hear a new word or expression, I ask what it is, track it unconsciously in all conversations. My brain makes a list of situation or ways to use the word or expression and one day out of nowhere, it will get out of my mouth naturally and 90% of the time in its proper use. It is always exciting and often makes people crack up because my accent makes the expression sounds funny sometimes and not natural.
But then, it becomes a part of my vocabulary and everything is normal. I usually overuse it for a while. I guess this is the way my brain accepts it as its own.
So anyway, recently, I used "smarty pants". I have been using this for a while now but I realized again how funny was that expression.
"SMART-Y PANTS"
If you translate that in french, this is the most ridiculous thing you have ever heard: Le pantalon intelligent. Ok, right....! We would say more : " tu te crois intellingent" - so you think you're smart.
So for people non familiar with the expression, it means in an ironic way: So you think you're smart !
So I am asking you : Where do you think it come from?
I am aware of the fact that there is probably any real answer but I am just asking you:
Make it up! Let your imagination create the first time a human being use that expression. Who he-she was, what context?
French side:
"Pour une raison inconnue au bataillon" - Bataillon was how "troops" was called a long time ago. when they were still walking together in line and kneeling in line to fight and shoot their "guns"
"For a reason remained unknown to the troops"
Alors amis et famille, comment et quand pensez-vous que cette expression fut cree et utilisee pour la premiere fois?
Posted on February 11, 2007 | Comments (4)
Perdu dans traduction or lost in translation
by joon
CAUTIONS
All the game chess/gameball/dice contains in this product are objective for game using not candy
Please must keep away from kids biting or eating
This is from a user's guide we got with a chess/backgammon stand table two years ago for christmas. I put this note away and found few months ago. I got it out to show to a friend with whom I am working on offering translation services. I found it fun and wanted to share it with everybody. Don't worry, I will not translate from french to english and I will keep this in mind as a constant reminder that you can easily get lost in translation.
Well, please for the year to come, keep yourself away from kids biting and/or eating!
Attentions
tous les jeux echec/jeux de balle/des contient dans le produit sont objectif pour les jeux utilisant pas des bonbons
S'il vous plait devez garder loin des enfants mordant ou mangeant
Ceci est un extrait d'une notice d'instruction d'une table qui fait table de jeux d'echec/backgammon que nous avions recu pour noel il y a deux ans. Je l'avais gardee de cote et l'ai retrouvee il y a quelques mois. Comme nous travaillons une amie et moi sur un projet d'offre de services de traduction, j'ai trouve amusant de lui montrer et maintenant de partager ce petit tresor avec vous. Pas d'inquietude, je ne traduirais rien du francais vers l'anglais et je ferai en sorte de garder cette petite traduction comme rappel qu'il est facile d'etre "lost in translation"
Oh et pour la nouvelle annee qui vient je voudrais vous mettre en garde contre les enfants qui mordent et /ou mangent.
Posted on December 29, 2006 | Comments (3)