Alaskans, take note!

WDTPRS is quite interested in translations.

Here is something from the usually amusing Engrish worthy of the old incarnation of ICEL:

Special delivery for Sarah Palin…

Um, you’re gonna need a lot more cheese…

About Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Fr. Z is the guy who runs this blog. o{]:¬)
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15 Comments

  1. Andrew says:

    The current syntax could actually suggest:
    “Traps for disposable mice”.

    Checking the trusty Oxford French Dictinary, we actually find trappes (fem.pl.) to be “trapdoors.” Though, I suppose trapdoors would be better for moose. From the bilingual labelling and, perhaps, the animals involved, I would suggest they’re destined for Canada.

    Maybe it is ICEL. Trappes versus the more correct traquenards (masc.pl.) might compare to ineffabilis as “divine.” Wouldn’t want to use something complex when there’s a seemingly more obvious, but incorrect, looking word.

    More correctly, perhaps:
    Traquenards jetables de souris

  2. opey124 says:

    Ha ha!
    There was a men’s store that advertised “Mens dresses half off” on the side of their building when we lived in Saudi. Too bad I didn’t get a picture. Of course we weren’t allowed inside because no women were allowed!
    How funny.

  3. Charivari Rob says:

    “Hey, Rocky! Watch me pull a liturgist out of my hat!”

    Opey124, that men’s store sign was pretty good. Reminds me of the pharmacy/medical supply store I used to work for. The medical supply side of the store did all sorts of home needs – oxygen tank service, dressings, tub rails, walkers, hospital beds, etc… and a small supply of fashions, clothing, and accessories suited to particular needs. One day I was walking through the store, emptying the trash cans, when I passed a display rack with the following sign:

    “Masectomy bathing suits, 50% off!”

  4. ramil says:

    We all have good ones, I’d say. I went to a Chinese buffet and had to show a friend of mine one of the entrees, which read (no joke):

    CLAW FISH (for Craw Fish).

    It was corrected, last time I checked.

  5. JL says:

    I once stayed at a hotel in China that boasted a “fully-equipped hair saloon.” Another hotel proudly proclaimed that it was the “best hotel for foreign affairs.”

    And in my own neighborhood, I can go to the grocery store and buy “fussy squash.”

    Maybe the trappes de sooris are made by the Peres Trappistes?

  6. jarhead462 says:

    My favorite was a cheap toy that my little brother had: It was basically a four foot long inflatable plastic tube (kind of like a long, narrow trash bag) painted like a space ship, and was called…..Fu Suka Space Ship. I still have no idea what it was supposed to mean, but my family and I still say that to each other whenever someone says something that we do not understand.
    I’m giggling now…:)

    Semper Fi!

  7. Jane says:

    I can’t point the finger at the Chinese manufacturer. English is my mother tongue (Aussie English), but I admit that I typed Chili Mouse on this blog the other day, instead of Chili Moose. My excuse is that it was early morning and I had not yet had a cup of coffee to help my brain function.

  8. scott says:

    A møøse bit my sister once.

  9. pelerin says:

    A moose is a Scottish mouse and usually lives in a hoose!

  10. Mark G. says:

    If each of those suckers is, like, 8′ long, how do you set the spring? [Very carefully.]

    Good work, Scott.

  11. David Andrew says:

    Hmmm. . . the moose always has the right-of-way. . .

    One should face south when trying to catch a northbound moose . . .

    And, finally, a send-up to Robert Burns . . .

    Wee, sleeket, cowran, tim’rous beastie,
    O, what panic’s in thy breastie!
    Thou need na start awa sae hasty,
    Wi’ bickering brattle!
    I wad be laith to rin an’ chase thee,
    Wi’ murd’ring pattle!

  12. David Andrew says:

    Scott said:

    A møøse bit my sister once.

    Grrrrrrrreat!

  13. Canadian (but not a moose) says:

    Seeing as the product comes from China, and that the French “souris” (mouse) was mis-spelt “sooris”, could it be possible that the Chinese simply do not dispose of the letter “u” on their keyboards?

    Just a thought.

    (Oops, I stand corrected. I just noticed the word “Fabriqué” (Made) on the left side of the package. Oh well, so much for that theory).

  14. John says:

    “What have we become if we simply throw anyone who has ever sinned under the bus?
    Excellent point. Father Coughlin is innocent of any wrong doing and should be treated as such

    “Fr. Coughlin had petitioned the release from prison of a priest who had molested children, though that petition was refused.”
    A very questionable petition. The priest had been found guilty of crimes and these must be a penalty associated with those crime. The sentence in New York was probably very fair and lenient by standards in other states

  15. Doug says:

    We vacationed in Mexico a couple of years ago. At one restaurant each item on the buffet, except for one, had a placard with the Mexican name for the dish and an English translation. The exception was in French with an English translation. Apparently the translator was grammatically challenged in French as he had translated “Beef Au Jus” as “Beef in Your Own Juice”.

    The whole family still giggles when we see “Au Jus” at a restaurant.

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