I had a quiz today. In ancient Greek. Here’s how quizzes work while taking a virtual dead language class.
- They’re all open book. I can use whatever materials I’ve created and the book.
- The quiz is 10 questions: 5 translation, 5 parsing (if you’re unfamiliar, parsing is identifying all the characteristics of a noun or verb, based on its ending and use).
- Quizzes are all timed, so yes it’s open book but now that we’re 12 chapters in you better remember SOME stuff or you’ll never finish in time. (This right here? This is foreshadowing.) The quiz automatically submits and closes 25 minutes after you open it.
- I am behind. Not terribly awfully behind: so far I’ve done really well in general, but these most recent two chapters are for some reason extra difficult for me to remember. Maybe it’s the number of new endings to learn, the new vocabulary, or the new concepts Greek uses that English doesn’t, but I’ve had a hard time and feel like I’m lagging a little. Unacceptable, obviously.
So. Today I opened my quiz (finally) and got down to parsing, which I find easier, before moving on to translation.
2 minutes in, THIS HAPPENED.
fAngus is a dick. And much like any human who deserves that descriptor, he’s PROUD of being one. He hounded that poor furry little disease carrying mouse all over the room, into the linen closet, into the guest bedroom, caught it again and brought it BACK into my office to drop it next to my desk and watch what happens. I am happy he hunts, because my house is old and traps aren’t always as effective as a little panther.
I. Was. Taking. A. Quiz.
I timed out with 2 questions completely unanswered, and the other 8 I’m actually pretty sure are at least partially wrong. Thankfully, the professor for this class has already said the worst quiz grade will be dropped for everyone at grading time, so whatever, this is apparently going to be my freebie.
Θῡω τόυ αἴλουpον τοίς θέοις
Ok that’s not true. I do not actually sacrifice my cat to the gods, but I’m SORELY TEMPTED.
Instead, I caught the poor abused and likely mortally wounded mouse in a bowl, took him outside to the abandoned shed where all the OTHER mice live all winter, and let him go.
Yes, I know I’m a sucker.
fAngus was LIVID with me for about 10 minutes, then he forgot and is now napping. I have admonished him yet again: if you’re going to be a successful predator, eventually you have to actually finish what you’ve started.
Also, my office is not the Thunderdome, furry jerkface.
No Pithy Phrase 