Linguistics and wordsmiths in general were always a source of delightful mystery to me, knowing how each word came into being and its subsequent use in daily existence. Who was first who said that particular word and what were the circumstances for it?

Language documentaries are few and far between for me, so I scour the internet for my favorite topic and download all that deals with the English language. The most reliable source is the good old PBS, who came in with few wonderful programs ("The Mother Tongue" springs to mind) and the Discovery Channel with its "Adventures of English" program by the BBC. These are fantastic experience for those of us who appreciate the expressive range of the language from florid form of Shakespeare to the linguistic gaffes of one George W. Bush, so ably presented by David Letterman...

Although my mother tongue is Czech (being born in the former Czechoslovakia), I do not dare translate anything to Czech, as language is a living thing and this must be respected. And since I haven't spoken the language actively and on daily basis for the past forty years, I cannot possibly translate anything to Czech. One such "attempt" in the past, had elicited loud guffaws from my brother in law. When he read it, he asked me who authored this linguistic Mulligan stew? Well, that was pretty much the signal to translate only to English only and not the other way around.

I presently work with an agency in the Czech Republic and have been with them since 1997. We have an excellent rapport as my Czech-English translations mercifully attract additional business for them and I am only too happy to do it. It gives me the opportunity to "cruise" the language world, select the most appropriate and fitting verbiage of this beautiful English language. It's a gem.