Non solum canes sed etiam feles vivens promisce

This probably doesn't come as a surprise to anyone, but actually doing Latin translation, even the relatively easy stuff, is kind of kicking my butt. On the one hand, I actually seem to be able to do it, more or less, which is a vast improvement over this time last year. I lost a lot of ground over the summer that I'm slowly getting back, but it's a process that for now involves looking up nearly every freaking word and making sure that yes, that's the word I think it is in the form I think it might be, which means it means X.

Luckily, I actually like doing Latin translation, though I'll like it much better as I improve at it. It's code breaking, basically, and it's got the satisfaction of doing puzzles combined with "oh THAT's what that says!" What's funny is that I sort of approach my dissertation the same way, with my focus on objects and meanings and how we code or decode things. Apparently those letter substitution puzzles I loved so much in GAMES Magazine had a larger effect on me than I'd realized.

At the same time, it does feel a bit like the title to this blog post. I am doing my best to tread water, and the language is eating up more of my time than I want it to as I try to keep pace with the class. I know that's really the only way to do it -- to dive in and just take it on -- but right now it wants to eat my lunch. Also, Cicero was kind of an entertaining butt. That is all for now.