hezwat

thanks! what do you mean "if they address us directly", could you give an example?

Also: have speakers learned not to make puns or jokes? If not, what do you do in these cases.

You aren't allowed to substitute "the speaker's" for "my"? e.g. temporarily start kind-of talking in the third person? then just say,"she says:" to open a quotation, and switch back to the first person?

For exampe, (I googled a different text)

“This is kind of an embarrassing question, but I wonder if you can help. My problem is that I think my vagina is too loose – or too wide. Is that possible? If so what can I do? What is a normal size?”

Which you could say as:

This is kind of an embarrassing question, but I wonder if you can help. (The speaker says she believes her vagina may be too loose - or too wide) Is that possible? If so what can I do? What is a normal size?"

that's what i get for asking two questions - one answer. :) But what is the second answer, "Also: have speakers learned not to make puns or jokes? If not, what do you do in these cases." I did look at a video but it suggested several strategies, including:

1. Making sure that you listen to the END of the joke, and make sure you can translate it, because if you can't it's like saying "the three species of fish are... three in number" (mumble mumble), i.e. that you've promised something and let your audience down because you can't deliver.

2. Not laugh into the mike but not translate! As this really leaves them feeling left out.

3. If you can't translate, say something like, "the speaker says a pun on (maybe some detail)... which is funny in the original Lithuanian..."

to let them know what the goal is...

And bonus (not appropriate to eurocrats:) "He made a joke, please laugh."

irrelevantPseudonym sees to mean "if you the interpreter don't speak the passive language, then how does that party in the conversation know what is being said by the party you're translating for".