John Ralston
My blogs
| Occupation | Translator |
|---|---|
| Location | Amarillo, Texas |
| Introduction | I am a former military linguist and currently a full-time translator with a passion for languages and writing. I have formal training from the U.S. military’s Defense Language Institute and Munich’s Fremspracheninstitut. I was raised in Amarillo, Texas. I joined U.S. Army out of high school. They sent me to the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, California, to learn Czech and Slovak. In December 1990, I was stationed in Augsburg, Germany. I completed my enlistment in 1993 and took on a three-year brick layer’s apprenticeship with a German construction company. After passing my journeyman’s tests, I went back to school to become a translator. Upon graduating, I worked for various companies in and around Munich. All in all, I lived and worked in Germany for 18 years. I returned to the States in 2009. I am married and have two dogs (pit bulls) and two cats. |
| Interests | My passions include languages and writing. I love animals and like to travel. I used to practice martial arts (karate, tai chi, iaido), but a bad back put an end to that. I hope to get back into it someday. I used to play the trumpet. I am fascinated with business and economics and have an interest in history. On the geeky side, I am a fan of pretty much any TV show or movie with “star” in it: Star Trek, Stargate, and Star Wars. I am also partial to “The Big Bang Theory” as well as “The Simpsons” and even “South Park” (when I actually have time to watch TV). |