United States Declaration of Independence. Image from US Library of Congress My maiden name is Helen Slack. James Slack is a direct ancestor of my paternal grandfather. He helped George Washington cross the Delaware River and win the Battle of Trenton on Christmas Eve of 1776. He was the operator of the Johnson Ferry House, and [...]
This was the second year I spoke at the Congreso San Jerónimo, hosted by the Feria Internacional del Libro (International Book Fair) in Guadalajara. My session was well received and I enjoyed developing relationships with colleagues and potential clients. This is also a Book Fair. The second largest in the world. Guadalajara pulls all the [...]
Who is Helen Eby, at Gaucha Translations? I am a translator and an interpreter. I cover a lot of territory, but I have background in a lot of areas. These are my specialties. Bio I am a member of the ¡Al rescate del español! , a team writing a blog on how to improve Spanish [...]
Today’s post is guest written by my husband, David. He has watched me in action over the years, and this is the story of some things he has learned. In 25 years of marriage to Helen, I’ve learned a lot about my unconscious biases. I was raised on an entirely family-run farm in Oregon. When my [...]
How did I start interpreting? Years ago, I was on a ship. I was thoroughly bilingual in all four skills: reading, writing, listening and speaking. I had gone to med school for a couple of years, gone to secretarial school for a year, graduated from college in Argentina as an elementary school teacher, and I [...]
On April 16 three OSTI interpreters interpreted for Dr. Rigoberta Menchu at Portland Public Schools. What was so cool about this? I had been in Guatemala, Nicaragua and El Salvador back in 1987, one year after the Civil War officially ended in Guatemala. I remembered the trucks running around with military weapons in “democratic” El [...]
Check out this video, “Qué difícil es hablar el español” with English subtitles. 5000 words… the frustrations of unreasonable deadlines for translators. Es preferible reír que llorar. You just have to take life with a grain of salt! Catherine Tate, the 7-language interpreter…
