A good use of pen and paper.

Forget Halpern, I have started writing a book. It will be titled somewhere along the lines of "Translating Cultural Connotations." I know that titles should be underlined, but I dont know how to underline on the blogger format. One other minor snag. I dont really know how to translate cultural connotations, but those were some of the best words I could think of.
Here is a fun little translating story. Dispite claiming to hate foreigners, I still have a tendency to ask them if they need help when I see them standing around. I recently helped some people, and this is what happened: The asked me what something said, and I read it for them in Japanese. They asked, "What does that mean in English?" Well, does it reall mean anything in English? It isnt English, so it doesnt really mean anything in English. So, I said the closet English equivalent. Is the closest English equivalent really the meaning? No. If you look a word up in a Japanese (or anyother language for that matter) dictionary, the meaning is not a word in English, so it doesnt really mean anything in English, does it? There are words that relate to the same things, but those arent the meanings are they? How should I properly go about translating things like that. Is translating even the proper word? I have never really liked the word interpreter because it sounds like you interpretive dance. Taking actions and turning them into words. Is translating the right word for words to words?

oh well, Im off to write.

Peter