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An Oliver's Twisted Tale
Once upon a time in Translatoria, there was a lone translator known as Oliver (twisted but, apart from the title, that's of no importance in our story).
She was always working hard, long hours and weekends, alone in front of the screen, on documents cruel and unfit for any man's mind and eyes (let alone a young, joyous woman's mind and pretty eyes). She was constantly striving for perfection, but in the dark hours of night, doubts were creeping in her exhausted mind and she frequently exclaimed:
Perfect Isn't Easy
- Bette Midler
Late one night while rubbing her tired eyes, she accidentally clicked on a rogue (magical?) link and stumbled upon Lexilogia, the best translators' forum out there. Amazed at what she saw, she continued rubbing her eyes, with sheer disbelief now. What a treat that was, what a sight for sore eyes (and sound for sore ears, too)! She had finally found her place in the cyberjungle, a haven for all good-natured translators and linguists with a sense of humour and the desire to help each other make it through the long and tiresome hours that their difficult but (in the very, very, very long run) rewarding profession requires. She saw at once she was in
Good Company
She immediately became a registered member and started posting like mad (twisted, rather), making her presence felt in the community. At first, everyone was surprised by her openness, her kindness and sense of humour, but very soon that initial surprise and the natural wariness towards strangers faded and they decided she was a really good egg and opened their arms to greet her. Seeing how well she was received and that everyone tried to help her even in the most difficult of her queries (of course, she was always doing her best to help others, too), Oliver decided to change her personal motto to:
Why Should I Worry?
- Billy Joel
On her first birthday as a regular member of the forum, the other members wished her many happy returns and all the best, each one in his or her own way, and the party started (albeit on screen) with much rejoicing and hullabaloo. You see, all Lexilogists were
Party People
After many ventures (not capital, but that's an altogether different story), adventures, good and bad times (that will be recounted on the next Oliver's birthday episodes), they all lived happily ever after in the promised land, consisting of mountains of ...
(please insert your favourite food), lakes of milk, rivers of honey, springs of crystal clear hard liquor, an endless sea of wine (complete with old-fashioned wooden ships, sailors and their songs and shanties
and
Streets of Gold
- Ruth Pointer
Χρόνια πολλά, Δώρα και για χρόνια, πολλά δώρα!
