cornelius_sulla

Yay! I'm not crazy! Or at least, I'm not the only crazy one. My mother reckons playing music to them helps, too. But I'm not sure if my plants would appreciate Slayer or Sabbath turned up to 11!

I've not heard of this one, sis. When was it released?

I started to read them but didn't get far, because like most people here, I'm picky when it comes to accuracy. Mr Iggulden seemed like a good enough writer, it was just his approach to content that bothered me.

I would venture that the American administration has learnt from history - they've learnt which bits of it work best for them. They are also arrogant and stupid all at once. There are lessons in their recent history that could be learnt, but instead are ignored. I'm into history, but I agree that there are many people out there who are just bores. They like the sound of their own voices and the sense of superiority knowing a bit about history affords them. I steer clear of those types at parties!

I only found Cato admirable in the last book, The October Horse. This is the closest that Ms. McCullough comes to portraying him in the same light as he is seen in as a historical figure. But even so, she has him mess up his suicide horribly like a bungler.

Your boss sounds like a pretentious twat. Keep your distance in case it's infectious!

Yep, I've got a hoody with an SPQR design much like the one in your sig. I'm not that keen on lables but I love wearing stuff that says something about my interests and are unique (I've got this one of a kind Black Sabbath t-shirt that I absolutely love). I get a lot of stares with the SPQR hoody; I've even been asked if I am some kind of Neo Nazi! Ignoramii!

The people re-making the mistakes probably didn't read enough history! Or, they were arrogant enough to think that the lessons history taught did not apply to them. I think we all must learn from our mistakes; if you don't, then you are doomed to repeat them.

The people re-making the mistakes probably didn't read enough history! Or, they were arrogant enough to think that the lessons history taught did not apply to them. I think we all must learn from our mistakes; if you don't, then you are doomed to repeat them.

Caligula has to be the worst I've seen, but then again, I haven't seen that many films about Rome that I've considered all that good. Even the series was a bit of a dog's dinner. And Gladiator? Puh-leez! But Caligula has to take the cake. It sucked, big time. It years after that I was informed that the movie was made by Penthouse's film division. Then it all seemed to make more sense. Of course it was shite! It was never about Rome; it was about titties!

Please don't think that I'm taking the mickey with this post. Do you talk to your plants? The reason that I ask is because I do talk to mine. I felt a bit nutty doing it at first but it does seem to help. Since doing this, my plants seem, I don't know, healthier?

I read Thomas Harris' book and liked it. I don't have much faith in Hollywood (or Bollywood for that matter) doing it justice. I'd like to see Robert De Niro do something togate, but I fear that he has lost currency and we'll see some vacuous pretty boy like Orlando Bloom in the lead to get bums on seats. Not holding my breath, guys.

That crane accident sounds like a Friday job, alright. It happens too often in the building industry - some guy/woman is in a hurry to get to the bar and doesn't complete their job properly. I check up on my boys regularly and haul them back to the site if they've not done their job properly. It's a pet hate of mine, especially on a Friday. Just do your freakin' job properly! But it must be so much worse when there is loss of life that could have been prevented by simply being thorough in your work.

Yesterday I took part in a 'friendly' game of Rugby League (an offshoot of Rugby, more brutal) against a visiting club team from Australia. They needed a warm up match before taking part in a tournament. One of my cousins was in the visiting team, so I thought 'what the hell'. Maybe I'd get a chance to smash him. Well, the friendly soon went out the window and before you know it, the game has gone gladiatorial. We were out for each other's blood. One of their guys went to hospital with a severe concussion. One of our guys wont be playing again for the rest of the season, on account of his being responsible for sending his opposite to hospital with severe concussion. He copped a three match ban. Then, my cousin starts a fight with our halfback, who is half my cousins size. There was an all in brawl after that and I got sent off along with my relative! I was nowhere near the fight and I wasn't even supposed to be playing! I was a ring in. My cousin and I retired to the bar early and had a laugh about the whole thing. Their coach was livid, even moreso after he realised that my cousin and I thought it was all a big joke. Afterwards we all made friends and had a beer (except for their coach - he was a lemon the whole night) in observance of a peculiar rugby/rugby league tradition - what happens on the field stays on the field. I love sports.

Perhaps he's trawling the classifieds for an experienced granny... You're right, Cadrail. People like that are sad.

Happy Birthday, Marcu Porcius Cato.

I really enjoyed all of the 'Masters of Rome' series, in particular the books that focused on Marius and Sulla. Like my friend dianamt54, I enjoyed the way that C. McCullough evoked Rome in her writing. I too felt as if I were walking through the streets of Rome, could smell the miasma of the Tiber, sense the danger of the Subura, the opulence of the Palatine. I think that C. McCullough was overly biased in favour of G.J.Caesar - she comes across almost like a cheerleader for him, and his enemies are cast as bumbling idiots (Metellus Scipio) or drunken obsessives (Marcus Porcius Cato). But overall I really enjoyed the whole series.

Guinness, the nectar of the gods, who themselves must have been pretty pissed when they came up with nectar like this! I got together with my two Irish mates and as we always do on St. Patricks day, we went to the local Irish Bar (The Dog's Bollux) and got s***faced. Before each glass we heartily toasted the Saint and thanked him for providing us with religious grounds for turning up to work late the next day. Night soon turned into day and any thought of going to work was summarily drowned in Guinness with (I am assured by my mates) typical Irish abandon. Luckily the bar has a 24 hour licence. My head is throbbing with (I am assured by my mates) typical Irish abandon, but it was worth it.

Did any of you guys ever play/still play ice hockey?

Hehe! I was taking the piss somewhat. Have you noticed that most everyone else is something upper class? You have to have someone to downtrod!

There's the answer! I was a dumb punk nimwit at the time and readily identified with them, especially Viv.

Are there Canadian teams in the NHL? Forgive me my ignorance. I love Ice Hockey; it's brutal, but I don't know much about it.