Haiku-off

My father and brother, the Claytons Sweeney, are here with us for a few days. We have had a great time taking them around Rome and sharing with them things that we have learned. Sophie gave a terrific tour of the Baths of Caracalla, and Denis did a great explanation of the interesting things we've learned about the Pantheon (like despite the fact that it says on the front of it "Agrippa made this," Agrippa didn't make it -- Hadrian did; and other even more interesting facts).

Clayt (Jr.) is staying with us, and this morning, inspired by the haikus on our homeschool wall, he composed this haiku about the scene off our terrace:

Rooftop oven racks
Romans watch cooking shows?
Or cook with TV?
CAS, Jr.

When he came back in, he was further inspired to write a couple more haikus about Denis' morning, and Denis then replied. The result was the following exchange. Maybe you can figure out who wrote which parts.

Denis Morning
by Clayton Sweeney, Jr. and Denis Bauerschmidt Sweeney

Chimp child does not eat
Differently directed
Energy won't last.

Chocolate chimp breakfast
Sandwiched apple rosetta
Half eaten, half worn.

Chimp be greatest one.
He pwns at all, everything.
Go super-chimp-guy.

Uncle not inspired
He won't write anymore nonsense
Mom make me eat now.

Uninspired Uncle
Who generates entropy
Cannot focus chimp.

Writer stinks at all
Except the one who writes this,
Stanza 3 and 4.

Bu-a-ha-ha-ha
Chimp child plots uncle's demise.
Uncle lays in wait.

I win cause of arms.
I will bash out your stanzas.
Mwa-ha-ha-ha-ha.

Mwa-ha-ha-ha-ha.
Mwa-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha.
Mwa-ha-ha-ha-ha.

Uncle-allied parents
Give uncle an advantage.
Chimp child must find sock.

No sock? I don't care.
I battle socks or no socks.
I am without fear.

Now we fight again
Fight again at the Forum.
Again I shall win.

Slightly focused chimp
Energy without limit
Venit, me vincit.

Sissy-ful uncle
He runs at the sight of me
Victorious chimp.

The haiku-athon continued through the morning and through the city as we visited the Pantheon, the Roman Forum, and the Colosseum. A selection:

Walking past a ruin
Pantheon, not Parthenon
Squashed bird in the road.
CAS, Jr.

Pigeons peck at bread.
They can never finish it
For they only peck.
DJBS

Italiano
Io mangio, mangio, mangio.
Mi faccio grasso.
CAS, Jr.

The warmth of the stone
Feels good to the hand and touch
On a windy day.
DJBS

Throbbing feet and back
Pizza salves the savage beast.
Chimp not beast, not salved.
CAS, Jr.

Doric, Ionic
Corinthian columnae
Don't fall on my head.
CAS, Jr.

Salivating chimp
A dead enemy smells good.
Chimp boy uncle breath.
CAS, Jr.

Uncle stinks haiku
Chimp is the god of haiku
Who is the winner?
DJBS

You get the idea. In the end, Clayt Sr., also known as Papa/Dad, even joined in:
Now it is my turn
To laugh and cry and speak now.
Two can play this game.
CAS, Sr.

We hope you have enjoyed this literary moment, brought to you by the American Association of English Majors, who remind you how much fun literature can be.

Maureen

Pompeii

When we went to see Pompeii with my dad's students and Dr. Flusche the ancient art and architecture teacher. We first went to the large theatre which was used for plays. Most theatres used for plays had a fake palace facade so it would set the scene for many of the plays. Then we went to the small theatre which was used for musical performances. After that we went to an ancient bar. The wine sure had fermented. Then we went to the door of a big house of a senator. Then Dr. Flusche told us about how being an ancient Roman senator was like being an ancient Tony Soprano. When you do somone a favor they owe you a favor. Then we went to the forum. It was alot like the forum in Rome but much smaller (and if Vesuvius erupts and you want to watch, go there). Finally we went to the house of the fawn. It was really big.

Denis, The Buried in Ash Majority of Doom

A Bit Of Work

This is a report I, I repeat, I did on Marco Polo, I repeat, Marco Polo, a major Italian trader.

The Adventures of Marco Polo

“Marco!” shouts one child. “Polo!” shout the rest. Is this what we have Marco Polo to thank for? The flat answer is no. Marco Polo was an explorer who went from Venice overland to China and surrounding areas including Mongolia.

Marco Polo was born in 1254 and died in 1324, both in Venice. In Marco Polo’s time the Mongols were very powerful, so Marco Polo’s father and uncle went to trade with Kublai Kahn, the Mongols’ ruler. The Kahn grew so fond of the Polo brothers that as they were leaving, he made them promise to return with a letter from the pope and 100 experts on Christianity. (The Kahn was interested in Christianity though he wasn’t Christian.)

At the age of seventeen Marco Polo set out with his father uncle and two friars, to trade again with and return to Kublai Kahn. Part way through the journey the frightened friars ran away. Marco Polo stayed in the Kahn’s court seventeen years. At the age of 34 he had spent half his life in the Kahn’s court. He served as the Mongolian ambassador. The Kahn grew sick and Polo knew that if the Kahn died he would be in danger, so he convinced the Kahn to let him visit his family and to escort a new princess to Persia. Then they got the news that the Kahn had died so they went to Venice permanently.

When Marco Polo returned to Venice, he got caught up in a war against Genoa. He was captured and in prison he told his prison mate, Rustichello, a writer, about his tales. Rustichello and he wrote a book.

Most of the information about Marco Polo came from the book he wrote. There have been proven to be many false things in the book, like a unicorn with huge spikes on its tongue. Some doubt he even went to China. However, most information from the journal is true.
Is Marco Polo still irrelevant-seeming? Well, if Marco Polo hadn’t made his trip to Mongolia, then explorers and traders wouldn’t have gone to Asia nearly as much. Christopher Columbus wouldn’t have tried to sail around the world to India and would have never discovered the Americas. So what about now?

Denis

Nothing to Blog

I have been told to blog but I can't think of anything.

This is my case that there is nothing to blog:

• All I've done in the past three days is read three books. They were good books called The Roman Mysteries but still -- Sophie is the only one that normally reads like that. I would suggest them. They are about four kids in 1st century Rome who solve mysteries.
  
• I also did some schoolwork.
  
• The only other fun thing I did was watch the completely not over the top movie "Live Free or Die Hard." The only crazy thing that happened was that one guy first kills three people with big guns with one pistol and gets shot once then takes out a helicopter with a car and gets shot again. Takes out another helicopter with a fire hydrant. Then gets shot twice and then jumps onto a moving jet plane. Then shoots the bad guy through himself.

So life isn't so great in Rome.

Denis, the Majority

P.S.

It is actually great, just got to appreciate it.

Poetry

Yesterday, I gave Denis and his visiting friend, Nathan Miller, the language arts/social studies assignment of writing a poem in 6 couplets about a feat of ancient Roman engineering. Here is the result, along with a photograph from our recent trip to the ruins of the ancient Roman port city of Ostia Antica.

Roman Toilets

by Denis Bauerschmidt Sweeney

and Nathan Miller

When you need to wee wee

You see a bathroom -- whoopee!

You have no modesty,

Less than in the Odyssey.

The pipes are made of lead

So you'll find yourself dead.

In there it was so cold

There may have been mold.

Where would be all the poo

If there were no sewer below you?

The world is full of so many gross things,

We Romans will never be kings.

We hope you have enjoyed this literary moment. -- Maureen

Two Days At The Market

I can't put in any images because I am on the pictureless computer. We went to the market at the Campo de' Fiori. Anyway, we had fun and the only thing that went wrong today was that when my mom touched some random vegetable and a scary lady yelled at us. We then got some eggplant. Yesterday we went to the market and the only bad thing that happened that day was that we walked by some fish and it really stunk. I tried to pay with only coins but I couldn't do it even though coins have much more value here in the E.U.