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Rain, UFOs. Simenon
Sep. 23rd, 2022 09:10 am Following on from the summer of 2022- week after week of nothing but sunshine- my heart lifts every time it rains. It rained last night- quite a lot judging by the level of the water in the bird baths- and I'm hoping it'll rain some more today. I imagine this enthusiasm for wetness will wear off with time....
Observers in Ukraine are reporting seeing great numbers of UFOs/UAPs. They come in fleets and singly- travelling at speeds no terrestrial aircraft that we know about can match. Someone seems to be taking an interest in our wars...
Pietr The Latvian is Simenon's very first Maigret story. It's atmospheric, melodramatic and written with such economy that it sometimes feels like notes for a novel rather than the finished article. The translation by David Bellos has an awkwardness that comes from fidelity to the original- elegant French turning into clumsy English (or that's my interpretation; perhaps Simenon's French is clumsy too, but that's not what the critics say.) How does one render "mon vieux"? Bellos goes with "old pal"- which is sentimental and unnatural. I've been trying out alternatives. "Mate" is too slangy, "old chap" so dated that it now sounds comical- even camp. What does it say about the two cultures that a French phrase that conveys non-sexual affection between male friends has no English equivalent?
Observers in Ukraine are reporting seeing great numbers of UFOs/UAPs. They come in fleets and singly- travelling at speeds no terrestrial aircraft that we know about can match. Someone seems to be taking an interest in our wars...
Pietr The Latvian is Simenon's very first Maigret story. It's atmospheric, melodramatic and written with such economy that it sometimes feels like notes for a novel rather than the finished article. The translation by David Bellos has an awkwardness that comes from fidelity to the original- elegant French turning into clumsy English (or that's my interpretation; perhaps Simenon's French is clumsy too, but that's not what the critics say.) How does one render "mon vieux"? Bellos goes with "old pal"- which is sentimental and unnatural. I've been trying out alternatives. "Mate" is too slangy, "old chap" so dated that it now sounds comical- even camp. What does it say about the two cultures that a French phrase that conveys non-sexual affection between male friends has no English equivalent?
