XL REPUBBLICA - how Mika keeps himself busy ;-)

[basicamenteyo]

Oooki doki, just read the original version, and what can I say?

 

L-O-V-E-D it!

 

It's the Mika I like the most: silly, yet smart, and with a great sense of humour, joining in the same list serious subjects and crazy ideas. One of my fave columns so far!

 

And yes Mika, you are inspiring!

 

are you going to buy a canon mary????

 

 

 

and yes,THIS is the mika i like....

[dcdeb]

Hey, English in this thread, please ladies

 

And I wouldn't have translated valetto as henchman, or vice versa, either.

I was thinking more along the line of valet, or even bodyguard...

or even personal assistant.

[basicamenteyo]

Hey, English in this thread, please ladies

 

And I wouldn't have translated valetto as henchman, or vice versa, either.

I was thinking more along the line of valet, or even bodyguard...

or even personal assistant.

 

i think it´s the best explanation... it would have no sense to have a small bodyguard IMO... if you are going to hire a bodyguard,mika,be sure he is BIIIIIIG!!!!

[Nezza]

Hey, English in this thread, please ladies

 

And I wouldn't have translated valetto as henchman, or vice versa, either.

I was thinking more along the line of valet, or even bodyguard...

or even personal assistant.

 

Sorry

[Lucrezia]

Hey, English in this thread, please ladies

 

And I wouldn't have translated valetto as henchman, or vice versa, either.

I was thinking more along the line of valet, or even bodyguard...

or even personal assistant.

 

Ops, sorry

[Sarina]

Hey, English in this thread, please ladies

 

And I wouldn't have translated valetto as henchman, or vice versa, either.

I was thinking more along the line of valet, or even bodyguard...

or even personal assistant.

 

Sorry, you're right

 

About the translation: valletto is really really wrong but, reading the original column, henchman seems a lot different from personal assistant or bodyguard too IMO....can't fid the right word in italian...LOL!

It seems like someone who follows you everywhere even without thinking..like someone who's totally brainwashed and mentally enslaved by you and thinks the same way you do.

I know my english explanation sucks but it's hard to traslate! Maybe Nerys could help me

 

Could be seguace but this is a tricky word and doesnt describe the meaning well!

Edited January 12, 2011 by Sarina

[mellody]

loved reading the original, and now i also don't have the feeling anymore that he was drunk while writing this... but just his adorable self. btw, i noticed that there were some of his usual spelling mistakes in that article, didn't notice those in the other original texts - maybe his proofreader was on holiday? anyway, i love it, cause it's so typical for him.

 

so, that kind vs. nice thing, what exactly does it mean? kind isn't the same as polite, which was translated before, is it? does it mean, being kind as a part of your personality, vs. being nice as a mask you put on? it's hard for me to understand the difference between those two words, since the german translation doesn't really make a difference.

[Nezza]

Sorry, you're right

 

About the translation: valletto is really really wrong but, reading the original column, henchman seems a lot different from personal assistant or bodyguard too IMO....can't fid the right word in italian...LOL!

It seems like someone who follows you everywhere even without thinking..like someone who's totally brainwashed and mentally enslaved by you and thinks the same way you do.

I know my english explanation sucks but it's hard to traslate! Maybe Nerys could help me

 

I think you're spot on. The English word has a much more negative connotation than the Italian, it doesn't convey the full sense of the word that was originally used. When I translated 'valletto' back into English I got footman, or servant, which isn't the same.

 

I'd never noticed such big differences between the original article and translation before - maybe the usual translator was on holiday?

[robertina]

I think about '800 gentlemen of higher society...they all had a sort of shadow-servant...do you know what I mean?

 

a butler?

[robertina]

loved reading the original, and now i also don't have the feeling anymore that he was drunk while writing this... but just his adorable self. btw, i noticed that there were some of his usual spelling mistakes in that article, didn't notice those in the other original texts - maybe his proofreader was on holiday? anyway, i love it, cause it's so typical for him.

 

so, that kind vs. nice thing, what exactly does it mean? kind isn't the same as polite, which was translated before, is it? does it mean, being kind as a part of your personality, vs. being nice as a mask you put on? it's hard for me to understand the difference between those two words, since the german translation doesn't really make a difference.

 

seems he means that 'nice' is a sort of fake, superficial attitude, while 'kind' is about being a real caring person.

[Mary]

are you going to buy a canon mary????

 

 

 

and yes,THIS is the mika i like....

 

Yep. And ask Johnny Depp to...erm...light my fire.

 

[robertina]

I think about '800 gentlemen of higher society...they all had a sort of shadow-servant...do you know what I mean?

 

a butler?

 

or another version of Dobby?

 

[Mary]

loved reading the original, and now i also don't have the feeling anymore that he was drunk while writing this... but just his adorable self. btw, i noticed that there were some of his usual spelling mistakes in that article, didn't notice those in the other original texts - maybe his proofreader was on holiday? anyway, i love it, cause it's so typical for him.

 

so, that kind vs. nice thing, what exactly does it mean? kind isn't the same as polite, which was translated before, is it? does it mean, being kind as a part of your personality, vs. being nice as a mask you put on? it's hard for me to understand the difference between those two words, since the german translation doesn't really make a difference.

 

seems he means that 'nice' is a sort of fake, superficial attitude, while 'kind' is about being a real caring person.

 

Yep, that's how I interpreted it too.

[A. Clay]

http://videodrome-xl.blogautore.repubblica.it/2011/01/12/mika-pop-up-2/

 

"You’ve obviously realised by now that this issue is about Glam. By the time you’ve finished reading this magazine (or just looking at the pictures) you would have had enough bright coloured lipstick, smeared sequins and alter egos to last you the rest of 2011.

Imagine if you had woken up in the early hours of 2011 lying on the floor, dressed in a blue catsuit with glitter in your hair and a puddle of drool under the corner of your mouth. Well that mess was me on the 1st of Jan and the Glam rock themed new years party which preceded this ugly scene was to blame. That is the reason why I don’t feel like writing about Glam. Instead this article will be far more traditional; the ultimate new years resolution list. Trust me, I need one.

Resolution Number ONE; I shall find myself a canon. After the death of the legendary american writer Hunter S Thompson, his ashes were exploded out of a canon on top of a mountain in Colorado. None other than Johnny Depp lit the taper. This is a very very good way to go. Forget Johnny Depp tho, I don’t know him. Why spend so much money on a burial plot when a story like that will travel for so far and for so long. Please note, my resolution makes no implication that I will die in 2011, I just want a canon. A little post life theatre can’t be a bad thing.

Resolution Number TWO; Be Kind Not Nice. Who likes Nice? Nice isn’t sexy nor is it honest. People are only nice when they want something or when they just want to get you out of the way. Being nice is like being drunk too many times in a week. You feel tired, anaesthetised and very angry underneath. Kind, is sincere and takes more effort. The plus side is that you don’t have to do it as often. It does take a lot more control however, and that takes discipline. But we all know that discipline makes you feel better about yourself. So, being nice makes you feel like **** and being kind makes you feel good and zen like. Be careful to not be too pious however, then everyone thinks your just a self satisfied prick.

Resolution Number THREE; Embrace The Posse. I went to see a play about Onassis recently and one thing struck me. Very rarely during the two hour show was he ever shown without an entourage. He reminded me of my Arab friends who always go out it groups, or of rappers who’s entourage impose a sense of importance and inconvenience on everyone around them, which is the point I think. I come from a Lebanese background, with a big and very close family. Hardly ever do I go anywhere for work or play, where I am not surrounded by at least 3 or four people. Often this entourage has made me feel uncomfortable. As if, more could be achieved or observed If I were more subtle in my movements. This year I shall embrace my crew. Even if my entourage is not as cool as a rapper’s or as powerful as Onassis’, I shall walk walk around with my sisters, friends, dog, a couple 80 year old family members and of course my mother, all in line and with our heads held high.

Resolution Number FOUR; Find A Henchman. Ok so this is a bit of a continuation of number three but still merits its own resolution. I want a chinese looking, quiet and elegant, quite small gentleman, in a suit and tie, preferably in his mid thirties, to follow me around, everywhere. He shouldn’t say to much but must have a doctorate in something obscure, like the behaviour of a subspecies of amazonian red ant. He will be my confidant, the other part of my brain, my filter to people I cross. He will frighten the seedy and reassure the wise. Aplications welcome.

Resolution Number FIVE; Work All The Time. You know those self help guides that tell you to take lots of holiday and spend time away from work? Well, their bull****. Those guides are written by self promoting workaholic who want you to buy their books, feel crap again and then buy another one. When you don’t work enough you fell like terrible. The things that you used to look forward to, like a drink after work or a favourite TV show, no longer have the same appeal. The more you work the more you value everything and everyone around you. At my age how could this be a bad thing?

I hope I inspire you. I think I’ve inspired myself. Feel free to borrow some of my resolutions and make them your own, just stay away from the henchman idea, if everyone gets one, it could get a little confusing. Happy new year! Nota Benne, that was said with kindness, I’m not being nice."

BUMP! . . . and thanx.

Edited January 12, 2011 by A. Clay

[Sarina]

I think you're spot on. The English word has a much more negative connotation than the Italian, it doesn't convey the full sense of the word that was originally used. When I translated 'valletto' back into English I got footman, or servant, which isn't the same.

 

I'd never noticed such big differences between the original article and translation before - maybe the usual translator was on holiday?

 

LOL! Maybe!!

[misscece]

This is my fav column!

I loved it

[Siu]

Thanks for the link!

 

The very first impression, something that I have felt and said times before - only MIKA can express the most obscure ideas in the simplest and clearest of ways.

 

I truly respect the work the translators of the Italian version of the article did - the style of this month's column is a hard nut for a translator to crack. And if the same nut has been cracked twice (from Eng to It and back to Eng) it's obvious that a lot of the kernel gets lost.

 

*goes back to read the original again and again and again*

[adda]

loved reading the original, and now i also don't have the feeling anymore that he was drunk while writing this... but just his adorable self. btw, i noticed that there were some of his usual spelling mistakes in that article, didn't notice those in the other original texts - maybe his proofreader was on holiday?

 

so, that kind vs. nice thing, what exactly does it mean? kind isn't the same as polite, which was translated before, is it? does it mean, being kind as a part of your personality, vs. being nice as a mask you put on? it's hard for me to understand the difference between those two words, since the german translation doesn't really make a difference.

 

I had almost the same feeling like you about this article.

 

... and the same dilemma.

SO I searched *googled* the dictionary

 

nice

1. pleasing; agreeable; delightful: a nice visit.

2. amiably pleasant; kind: They are always nice to strangers.

3. characterized by, showing, or requiring great accuracy, precision, skill, tact, care, or delicacy: nice workmanship; a nice shot; a nice handling of a crisis.

4. showing or indicating very small differences; minutely accurate, as instruments: a job that requires nice measurements.

5. minute, fine, or subtle: a nice distinction.

6. having or showing delicate, accurate perception: a nice sense of color.

7. refined in manners, language, etc.: Nice people wouldn't do such things.

8. virtuous; respectable; decorous: a nice girl.

9. suitable or proper: That was not a nice remark.

10. carefully neat in dress, habits, etc.

11. (esp. of food) dainty or delicate.

12. having fastidious, finicky, or fussy tastes: They're much too nice in their dining habits to enjoy an outdoor barbecue.

13. Obsolete . coy, shy, or reluctant.

14. Obsolete . unimportant; trivial.

15. Obsolete . wanton.

 

kind

1. of a good or benevolent nature or disposition, as a person: a kind and loving person.

2. having, showing, or proceeding from benevolence: kind words.

3. indulgent, considerate, or helpful; humane (often fol. by to ): to be kind to animals.

4. mild; gentle; clement: kind weather.

5. British Dialect . loving; affectionate.

 

IN MY OPINION, The difference between Nice and Kind is that being nice is more obvious, but it doesn't necessarily make you a good person, it is only about the appearance and how you know to behave with other people, whereas being kind means having and sharing positive feelings, and it is more about how you are, not how you act.

 

(did that make any sense? , sorry about my swamp English:biggrin2:)

Edited January 12, 2011 by adda

[Nezza]

or another version of Dobby?

 

 

 

Butler's the only other word that comes to mind, but I'm sure there's another word I can't think of!

 

Thanks for the link!

 

The very first impression, something that I have felt and said times before - only MIKA can express the most obscure ideas in the simplest and clearest of ways.

 

I truly respect the work the translators of the Italian version of the article did - the style of this month's column is a hard nut for a translator to crack. And if the same nut has been cracked twice (from Eng to It and back to Eng) it's obvious that a lot of the kernel gets lost.

 

*goes back to read the original again and again and again*

 

I really like that phrase, sums it up well

[robertina]

 

I had almost the same feeling like you about this article.

 

... and the same dilemma.

SO I searched *googled* the dictionary

 

nice

1. pleasing; agreeable; delightful: a nice visit.

2. amiably pleasant; kind: They are always nice to strangers.

3. characterized by, showing, or requiring great accuracy, precision, skill, tact, care, or delicacy: nice workmanship; a nice shot; a nice handling of a crisis.

4. showing or indicating very small differences; minutely accurate, as instruments: a job that requires nice measurements.

5. minute, fine, or subtle: a nice distinction.

6. having or showing delicate, accurate perception: a nice sense of color.

7. refined in manners, language, etc.: Nice people wouldn't do such things.

8. virtuous; respectable; decorous: a nice girl.

9. suitable or proper: That was not a nice remark.

10. carefully neat in dress, habits, etc.

11. (esp. of food) dainty or delicate.

12. having fastidious, finicky, or fussy tastes: They're much too nice in their dining habits to enjoy an outdoor barbecue.

13. Obsolete . coy, shy, or reluctant.

14. Obsolete . unimportant; trivial.

15. Obsolete . wanton.

 

kind

1. of a good or benevolent nature or disposition, as a person: a kind and loving person.

2. having, showing, or proceeding from benevolence: kind words.

3. indulgent, considerate, or helpful; humane (often fol. by to ): to be kind to animals.

4. mild; gentle; clement: kind weather.

5. British Dialect . loving; affectionate.

 

IN MY OPINION, The difference between Nice and Kind is that being nice is more obvious, but it doesn't necessarily make you a good person, it is only about the appearance and how you know to behave with other people, whereas being kind means having and sharing positive feelings, and it is more about how you are, not how you act.

 

(did that make any sense? , sorry about my swamp English:biggrin2:)

 

WOW!

this is really helpful!

thanks!

[Sarina]

About kind an nice I think that the literal meaning could be the similar but if we think about a person's intent we can see the difference. Kind is an authentic behaviour while nice can be false. I could pretend to be nice with someone but I'm not authentic.

[robertina]

 

Butler's the only other word that comes to mind, but I'm sure there's another word I can't think of!

 

 

 

I really like that phrase, sums it up well

 

discussing about his column is always so interesting, isn't it

[adda]

WOW!

this is really helpful!

thanks!

You're very welcome:blush-anim-cl:

 

Oh and I like this article too! Wish I had his inspiration for my English report...

[mellody]

 

I had almost the same feeling like you about this article.

 

... and the same dilemma.

SO I searched *googled* the dictionary

 

nice

1. pleasing; agreeable; delightful: a nice visit.

2. amiably pleasant; kind: They are always nice to strangers.

3. characterized by, showing, or requiring great accuracy, precision, skill, tact, care, or delicacy: nice workmanship; a nice shot; a nice handling of a crisis.

4. showing or indicating very small differences; minutely accurate, as instruments: a job that requires nice measurements.

5. minute, fine, or subtle: a nice distinction.

6. having or showing delicate, accurate perception: a nice sense of color.

7. refined in manners, language, etc.: Nice people wouldn't do such things.

8. virtuous; respectable; decorous: a nice girl.

9. suitable or proper: That was not a nice remark.

10. carefully neat in dress, habits, etc.

11. (esp. of food) dainty or delicate.

12. having fastidious, finicky, or fussy tastes: They're much too nice in their dining habits to enjoy an outdoor barbecue.

13. Obsolete . coy, shy, or reluctant.

14. Obsolete . unimportant; trivial.

15. Obsolete . wanton.

 

kind

1. of a good or benevolent nature or disposition, as a person: a kind and loving person.

2. having, showing, or proceeding from benevolence: kind words.

3. indulgent, considerate, or helpful; humane (often fol. by to ): to be kind to animals.

4. mild; gentle; clement: kind weather.

5. British Dialect . loving; affectionate.

 

IN MY OPINION, The difference between Nice and Kind is that being nice is more obvious, but it doesn't necessarily make you a good person, it is only about the appearance and how you know to behave with other people, whereas being kind means having and sharing positive feelings, and it is more about how you are, not how you act.

 

(did that make any sense? , sorry about my swamp English:biggrin2:)

 

thanx for that, i should've tried an english-english dictionary instead of english-german, you're right, this explains it a lot better. so i guess it's like i thought from the context, kind as part of your personality, nice as just a superficial behaviour. we don't have different words for that in german, so no surprise that the dictionary couldn't help me.

[basicamenteyo]

 

I had almost the same feeling like you about this article.

 

... and the same dilemma.

SO I searched *googled* the dictionary

 

nice

1. pleasing; agreeable; delightful: a nice visit.

2. amiably pleasant; kind: They are always nice to strangers.

3. characterized by, showing, or requiring great accuracy, precision, skill, tact, care, or delicacy: nice workmanship; a nice shot; a nice handling of a crisis.

4. showing or indicating very small differences; minutely accurate, as instruments: a job that requires nice measurements.

5. minute, fine, or subtle: a nice distinction.

6. having or showing delicate, accurate perception: a nice sense of color.

7. refined in manners, language, etc.: Nice people wouldn't do such things.

8. virtuous; respectable; decorous: a nice girl.

9. suitable or proper: That was not a nice remark.

10. carefully neat in dress, habits, etc.

11. (esp. of food) dainty or delicate.

12. having fastidious, finicky, or fussy tastes: They're much too nice in their dining habits to enjoy an outdoor barbecue.

13. Obsolete . coy, shy, or reluctant.

14. Obsolete . unimportant; trivial.

15. Obsolete . wanton.

 

kind

1. of a good or benevolent nature or disposition, as a person: a kind and loving person.

2. having, showing, or proceeding from benevolence: kind words.

3. indulgent, considerate, or helpful; humane (often fol. by to ): to be kind to animals.

4. mild; gentle; clement: kind weather.

5. British Dialect . loving; affectionate.

 

IN MY OPINION, The difference between Nice and Kind is that being nice is more obvious, but it doesn't necessarily make you a good person, it is only about the appearance and how you know to behave with other people, whereas being kind means having and sharing positive feelings, and it is more about how you are, not how you act.

 

(did that make any sense? , sorry about my swamp English:biggrin2:)

 

 

oh woah!!! thank you very much,now i perfectly understand it!!