A Bit About Me
Originally from Belgium, I have been an expat (or, more elegantly said, a world citizen) for a large part of my life now. Being an expat means adapting to a new culture, a new language and, well, to a new life! Beginnings may be challenging and full of misunderstandings, which sometimes lead to amusing/embarrassing situations…
This is precisely what I enjoy about my life as an expat: dissecting people, habits and languages, while trying to blend in (at least with my words and actions, as my Belgian/French accent will always betray me I’m afraid!). And my interest in languages led me HERE, with you.
Belgium is a tiny country. For example, and very randomly, you should know that Great Bear Lake in the Northwest Territories of Canada is about the size of Belgium (2% larger to be precise). Nevertheless we have 3 official languages: French, Dutch and German. One of the direct consequences is what I call “road confusion”: do not attempt to locate a road sign for, let’s say, Liège if you are driving in the North of the country, as it will read “Luik” and you may circle around the highway exit for a long time. Another interesting fact about my country is that the level of international presence in Brussels is second only to New York! That makes Belgium a pretty multicultural place and I suppose these characteristics set the stage for my love of languages!
But why limit myself to the second most international location when I could go to the first one? I moved to the East Coast of the USA where I completed my Ph.D. in Biological Sciences in the small town of New Haven, CT at Yale University. As it goes with academia, a Ph.D. leads to a postdoc and, in my case, the postdoc led to New York City. There I go. I had gladly made it to the “number 1 international site”!
After almost 9 years in the New World I moved back to the old one, to Italy to be precise, where I have now been for the last 6 years. I might have moved to the pizza paradise but my office, at the European Commission Joint Research Center, was actually on “EU soil”. And there again, there was no lack of cultural diversity, though I focused on learning Italian. I currently hail from a tiny region of the Italian Alps, just across from the French and Swiss borders.
During my career as a scientist I have written, edited and proofread countless documents, from laboratory protocols to peer-reviewed articles and book chapters. A dear former colleague of mine gave me the friendly nickname of “segugio”- bloodhound in English – of which I am very proud. Indeed it seemed I spotted any mistake as soon as I laid eyes on any kind of written documents that had landed on my desk. For your information, a bloodhound can track a 12 day-old smell! I can therefore assure you that I can be trusted with your proofreading projects!
Due to my background in Biological Sciences, my work has primarily focused on scientific and technical documents; however I also enjoy taking a break from science and learn about new topics. When I translate or edit a document I do not simply translate it but I immerse myself in it, transforming the work into an opportunity for personal growth. Doing so I ensure that my work is accurate and do not only translate the words but also “the soul” of the original text. This is the type of commitment you can expect from me.