Finish what my dido started.

Below is a post from my old blog.  Written October 12, 2009.  I've re-posted this one, because shortly after I originally wrote it, I gave up on the project.  Two years later, I've picked it back up and won't stop working on it until it's done or I die.


In 1996, my grandpa wrote a book about his troubles and hardships as a Ukrainian and as a soldier in the Second World War.  His name is Stephen Fedenko, and the book is written in Ukrainian.

My Ukie has never been good enough to actually read the book, but since I've recently found a passion for writing, I gave it another try.  After reading a few pages, I gave up.  It would take me weeks to read it, and unfortunately I don't have a firm enough grasp on the traditional Ukrainian language to absorb everything the book could offer.

I brought this up to my dad, and within seconds we found my solution:

I should translate the book.

On Saturday, my dad and I are driving to Detroit to pick up my grandpa's computer.  Now you may be thinking, "Hey idiot, get gramps to email the book or put it on a disk.  Duh.  Idiot."  Well, this leads me into obstacle number one:

It's stored on one of these...

Talk about old school.  Should be fun trying to move the file over to a computer that didn't experience the Bush, Sr. administration.

After we transfer it over to a working machine, my dad and I are going to write a computer program that will give us a rough English translation.

Then, obstacle number two:

I write.


Update:  The computer program worked.  I'm now sorting through the jibberish.  Here's a sample sentence:


"Local people told each other that were taken because they were made mosyazhi or bronze which the Germans lacked in production for strilen artylyeryi."


Not exactly the King's English.  The whole translation is like this, so fun definitely lies ahead. Now if you'll excuse me, I must go back to the laboratory.  Good day.