After spending almost two straight weeks on Beowulf, picking apart every aspect of it and chewing on it almost constantly, I have begun to think in Epic Old English poetics. Today as I began writing my response paper on it I started it like this: "In an age where the pagan traditions of men were the norm, where savagery and decadence were praised, from out of the mire a manuscript came, and a poet who praised Another." Not only was I writing it with stresses in the right places, but alliterations [characteristic of Old English poetry] were coming out accidentally [there I go again. . .]. So, I decided to be brave and write the whole paper like that. I don't know if I'll get a good grade, but it's only worth five percent. I'm on page three. Four more to go. Cross my fingers and crack a smile.

These classes are so tiringly easy sometimes.