The Augusta

[quote name='Julia C

Talking of which, did anyone see the gorgeous three-way conjunction the other night of the new moon, Jupiter and Venus low in the SSW? Absolutely stunning - I've been watching the two planets getting closer every dusk, but I really wish I hadn't dumped my old four and a half inch reflector now - the conjunction would have been magnificent through the telescope.

[quote name='Julia C

Having had a quick round of my fave literary fiction in recent weeks, I have now returned to the historical with Saylor's Roma. I thought I might review this when I've finished, as a gentle reintroduction to reviews for the Forum. So far I am tempted to use a word picked up from my teenagers - 'Meh' - but I will reserve judgement until the end and post my findings for you all, guys and gals. I am quite a fan of his Gordianus series, but this one... well, watch this space. ETA: To Artimi - I am trying to get hold of The Silver Pigs myself, but will probably have to resort to Amazon, as none of our local Waterstones seem to stock the Falco series.

Ah, thanks, Neph - I was thinking of every 'wall' imaginable - except one lacking bricks

I am at a total loss as to what this post means...

You got it, Asc!

I must have been on one of my walkabouts when you had your birthday, Neph. I shall make it up to you tenfold next year. Hope you had a great day.

The speaker, whose rosy fingers can be found tracing out the hour of daybreak, would be Aurora/Eos? And then, of all her loves, who is most dear? Three possible ones: Astraeus, lord of the dusk, with whom Aurora had the most children (for what that's worth!); tragic Tithonus, kidnapped by Aurora and granted an unnatural longevity from which he begged to be released (again: be careful what you wish for!); and Cephalus, with whom Aurora had a brief infatuation with terrible consequences for poor Cephalus. Of these, the one most likely to muse beneath Aurora's bower seems to be Tithonus. Tough one, Augusta. Beautiful but tough -- like Livia I guess. Am I close? After such a wonderful expositon, I only wish you were right, MPC! Let me give you a hint. He is scouring the sky to learn the hour but not during the day.

Nope If no one else has a guess within a few more posts, I'll give a subtle clue.

OK - here I am - two people to identify: My love lies musing beneath the bower He scours the skies and learns the hour He looks above and sees me near Of all my loves he is most dear So, who is speaking and who is 'He'?

Not sure about the X Box, Longshot, but certainly with other console games, American games may not play in Europe. Its the old PAL format question. However, as I say, don't take this as gospel - I might be wrong with X Box, as it is a Microsoft franchise anyway. But to Viggen - I'd be willing to help out if you've not already taken Neil up on his offer.

Of course they did, Neil. And I'll bet they all had the one about teeth falling out too!

Neph - now I'm really confused. I thought Kato was in The Pink Panther - not the Green Hornet?????? Help - liberal dose of American popular culture needed to interpret election jibes.

Hehe - good point there, Sonic. However, as I respect your views as a member of this forum - and you are a recent teacher to boot - I wondered about your post last night and thought I'd put it to the test, just in case I was talking through my.... So, I called up to my son (he's doing his A levels) and asked him what 'e.g.' meant and what 'etc.' meant. He answered me with such a look of contempt - of course he knew what they meant. But I do take your point, Sonic. Our education system was very different and I would concede that I am perhaps out of touch with the more modern methods from the teaching side - I have only experienced these as a parent. I know which I prefer, but that's a whole different matter...

You are telling us that the use of abbreviations such as 'e.g.' and 'etc.' are not standard abbreviations understood by the majority of the population? I'm sorry, Sonic, but I heartily disagree. I come from an average working class background and I cannot think of one person in my immediate circle who would not understand either of these abbreviations. I learned them in primary school! This is to do with basic education, and has nothing to do with any sort of 'elitist' mentality among members of this Forum, as you implied in your post above.

When I read things like this, I really do despair of my fellow man. (Sorry, Urs) I daren't even go there..... There are certain method actors who should never be allowed near a Shakespearean text. Brando was one of them. However, this: Receives no argument from me whatsoever, as I'm not a Blessed fan. But the buck really stops with Graves. Gus the Buffoon leaps off his pages.

No problem with the late good wishes, Decimus - you've given me an excuse for another drink.

Following on from Maty's excellent post above, Sonic, I would agree with you here, but I think you have chosen an extreme example. If one were reading a book in which footnotes cited 'op. cit.' we might reasonably expect that book to have an academic flavour, as 'op.cit' is a scholarly abbreviation and convention in footnotes. What Maty points out, however, is the banning of such widely-used and easily understood phrases as 'status quo' or 'ad hoc'. No, we cannot all have the benefit of a university education, but surely we should be aiming to enhance the layman's knowledge? I cannot see how this ruling would be in any way helpful.

He is certainly a brave boy, DD. But, pardon my ignorance - what on earth is NSFW?

I've not been following the campaign avidly, I must admit, but I was rooting for Obama. So - congrats to the USA for choosing the best man for the job. We in England have heaved a huge sigh of relief!

And I am hanging my head in shame, that I have omitted to send birthday felicitations to a Triumvir. Hope you had a great day, Moonlapse.

Alas, Nephele, I think that the quote you've plucked out is really at the crux of this ruling. Unfortunately, this is indicative of a general malaise that lies at the heart of our British society at the moment. Our nanny state and our PC-mad bureaucrats are slowly chipping away our identity as a nation in the interests of multi-culturalism. Now, don't misunderstand me - I'm all for welcoming multi-culturalism, but not at the expense of every tradition we have. And from what I gather of the many people who have come to England from different cultures, they love being part of Great Britain and its traditions - so who these idiots think they are representing is beyond me! As you rightly say, it is the government officials who are at fault here. They have the arrogance to believe they know what's best for everyone. We had a similar pile of nonsense when they withdrew Latin from schools - citing the fact that it was 'far too difficult' for most children to learn. It really is an insult!

Thank you, Nephele - I hope I've done that. The first three shortish chapters are very explosive, and there's a lot of blood about - lol. I wanted to paint the vilest picture I could of Rome in December 43BC, and how terrifying it must have been to a 15 year old girl of the nobility. In answer to Mal's comment regarding the demolishing of the Rostra Vetera - there is still scholarly/archaeological debate about whether the old platform was actually demolished before Caesar began his own (later finished by Gus). Sources seem to hint at the head being fixed to the Rostra Vetera. If indeed it was fixed to rams - as all sources concur - would the rostra of Caesar have had its rams in place at this early stage? Perhaps - I don't know. I have plunged in and had two rostra in my story. The Caesarian one is the focus of certain events I've described in 41BC, by which time the old rostra has fallen into disuse. But even if the Rostra Vetera was half demolished, perhaps just with its rams and facade intact at this stage, I still want Cicero's head there, because the platform is from where he made his greatest speeches and it was close to the old Comitium, and I'm sure that's what motivated Antony to 'display' him there. I suppose it's not so important in the long run - the main point is the atrocity and violation carried out by the Triumvirs. But thanks for all your help guys and gals - the horrible scene is written now.