AATIA member Tony Beckwith is still waxing poetic about language. Here’s one of his recent rhymes:

Pink Flamingos

At the bottom of the garden
under the eaves
near the palm festooned with leaves
two pink flamingos stoop to graze
and pass the time on summer days

They watch the shadows cruising by
and muse on how it feels to fly

I’d join them if I knew the lingo.
Wish I’d learned to speak flamingo!

On Christmas Eve AATIA members Tony Beckwith and Maurine McLean will read original poetry on Writing on the Air, a radio program hosted by Lisa Scheps. The show airs 6 – 7 p.m. on KOOP Radio 91.7 FM.

In an extensive interview, Tony will talk about the creative process, interpreting and translating as they relate to writing and acting, and how to be ready when inspiration strikes.

Austin’s own Therapy Sisters will round out the program with their special take on holiday music.

Update: Listen to the show:

The Summer 2008 issue of ATA’s new online version of Source, the Literary Division newsletter, is now available.

Don’t miss Tony Beckwith’s cover-page cartoon and By the Way: My LitSIG column, plus a fascinating look at Computer Game Localization and Literary Translation by Frank Dietz.

Potential contributors to the Fall issue should email submissions to Source Editor Michele Aynesworth.

AATIA will observe World in Translation Month at the member meeting on Saturday, May 10, 1:00 p.m., at the Austin History Center, 9th & Guadalupe, according to Maurine McLean, Director of Professional Development.

Tony Beckwith will share insights on translating tangos, with musical examples. Marian Schwartz will point out some key Internet sites for literary translators.

In addition, Frank Dietz will demonstrate how to use RSS feeds from the new AATIA blog, walking us through the process of connecting to this valuable resource.

Refreshments and networking round out the meeting. Language-loving guests are welcome.

Ingrid Lansford has been busy, and here’s what she’s been up to, in her own words:

Three of my short story translations just came out, all in the spring 2008 issue of the journal Metamorphoses. This is almost weird, but for two years the editor ran special issues, so my contributions stacked up:

• “Down to the Lake with Flemming and his Pump Gun” from Jeg er stadig bange for Caspar Michael Petersen by Jan Sonnergaard (Gyldendal 2003)
• “Sidi el Barduk and Zuleima” from Kærlighedshistorier Fra Mange Lande (1867) by Meir Aron Goldschmidt
• “Pulling up Fishtraps” from Das Los unserer Stadt (Olten,1959) by Wolfdietrich Schnurre

In January I received a grant of $824 from the Danish government agency Kunststyrelsen for translating five short stories into English.

In other literary translation news, Michele McKay Aynesworth has edited the latest edition of Beacons, a publication of the Literary Division of the American Translators Association. Liliana Valenzuela and Tony Beckwith were also involved in this production: they collaborated on the translation into Spanish of some short fiction from the book Unlucky Lucky Days by Daniel Grandbois.

Localization is a crucial element in the process of translation because it involves the precise understanding of meaning. This is obviously a factor when communicating a message from one language to another. But it also comes into play within languages, for example from one region to another. As in this story about a chance encounter.

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A new cartoon by Tony Beckwith illustrates an article by Fabiano Cid, "The Best Breed of Project Managers: How to make the most of your feline or canine features when managing a project," in GALAxy, the newsletter of the Globalization and Localization Association.

Some may think of cats as smart and superior beings, while others consider them self-centered and unreliable. The same occurs with dogs: they may look stupid and subservient to cat lovers, but cynophiles consider them loyal, sociable and dependable. Project managers can also have either characteristic when performing their daily work. The trick is to balance your feline and canine qualities to make sure the most important goal is achieved: client satisfaction and retention.

A preview of Tony Beckwith’s latest wordplay:

They say if we bring the kit, they’ve got the kaboodle.