Random Thoughts

I have had some second thoughts about my post on translation tools. One of the fun things about visiting foreign lands is that they seem strange and exotic. Yet these tools are going to take away some of this intrigue. It is bad enough that McDonalds, Starbucks and Hard Rock Cafe's are popping up around the world. It would be even worse if all of the signs could be seen in English and all of the conversations could be heard in English. It would be more and more like any other American city.

On the other hand, one can feel very isolated, lonely and confused in a foreign land. It can be very frustrating trying to communicate with someone if you do not know thier language. It can even be dangerous if you desperately need something, but cannot communicate it to anyone. In these cases, it would be really nice to have one of these gadgets.

Like most new technology, it can be very helpful or it can be abused.

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On Thursday, the Sentinel had a blurb about our work on the Wilder Ranch Path. It was on page D3. The on-line article can be accessed here (down at the bottom of the article). In the paper is a picture of a mother and her daughter working on the trail. The picture does not appear in the on-line article. Also, the blurb mentions that over 20 people helped. I am not sure where everyone was, I only saw 10 or so. My post is here.

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Are You a Yankee or a Rebel? I thought this survey was kind of fun. If you are interested, my score was "19% Dixie - You are a Duke of Yankeedom!"