Kayo Shiraishi Wood

USA Freelancing without a Parachute #6 – Exciting, Yet Hazy Future

I. Prologue It was pure white. The kind of white that seemed inconceivable for a human face. On it, there were swirls of red in every direction. As the Kabuki actor Nakamura Hashigo continued to r...

USA Freelancing without a Parachute #5 – Interpreting Word for Word

Antipasto (Before the Meal) For me, part of the allure of becoming an interpreter was the opportunity to help bridge the gap. It is very fulfilling to be able to give two people or groups of peopl...

USA Freelancing without a Parachute #4 – Freefall

Jump on the count of three. One... Life is funny. Hard to predict. Just when you think you have it all figured out, something comes your way that you weren’t expecting. You see, the first week ...

USA Freelancing without a Parachute #3 – Please Fasten your Seat Belts

START YOUR ENGINES What happens when you have trained for years to be a conference interpreter, but the job that falls in your lap is all about technical translation? In a word, panic!! And wha...

USA Freelancing without a Parachute #2 – Around the world in 80+ Days

ON YOUR MARK The branches whipped into the car furiously knocking my elderly friends off their seats. The brake’s harsh squeal was matched only by the piercing horn, alerting onlookers to step asi...

USA Freelancing without a Parachute #1 – Unpredictable Beginnings

Overture It seems to me that big changes often happen in your life when you least expect it. For me, it was when I arrived at the campus of the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). I was ...