THE WOLF'S DEN - Tana dei Lupi I

[arthurfonzarelli]

[maro]

I'm probably being a bit hard on him, Avvocato. I guess I'd just like a little bit more sweetness through it. I love the way he does Dante's response halfway through ("Quand' io intesi [...]") and the end of it is beautiful ("il disiato riso," "questi, che mai da me non fia diviso," bascio'") but I just want it it be slightly more lyrical, slightly more enchanting throughout. Perhaps it's impossible to do and certainly Dante's terza rima has a kind of inexorable movement to it which binds Francesca's words to the rest of the canto. It's just for me that when he catches the right note it takes my breath away, but he doesn't constantly seem quite to catch that note.

My kids couldn't handle the Italian, so we work in translation but I'll give them a parallel-text version for the canto and invite them to have a look if they want to get a sense of the extraordinary power of the verse. I hate teaching the Virgil and the Dante in translation - it's hard to think of two more careful soundsmiths and poetic craftsmen to expose to the violences of translation. Still, if they can catch a little of the power then that's got to be something.

Fonz, I had no particular quibbles with your formation; I was just trying to gloss Ferrari's absence. I should imagine Spags is likely to play the same basic tactical shape and so the two obvious options are to go with Cassetti alongside Panucci, which seems to be the received wisdom, or to play DDR in there, a little as you've sketched it, leaving room for Brighi and Aquilani, perhaps, together in the midfield.

[g.smiley]

How great. GOLTV has Roma-Samp listed for tomorrow at 3pm.

[arthurfonzarelli]

[Bagg10]

[Italiamia]

[Bagg10]

[Italiamia]

[Bagg10]

[marco]

[maro]

All right, guys, I hate to flex my admin mussels [sic], but I think this has gone far enough. Avvocato, as the chief instigator I think you should be the one to take the first step here. I'd like you to apologise to Bagg and promise never again to call Rubentus anything less offensive than a pack of rim-tonguing, felch-sharing, crotch-sniffing, gumless snowstorm-sniffing cheating cunts. So long as you're prepared to stay on the right side of that line then I think Bagg will be happy enough to accept all that comes his way. Bagg, in return, as a gesture of good will, may I politely ask that you'll agree to let your mum check your nuts for lice this evening. If you're really good she may even let you eat one or two.

Thanks in advance to you both. I wouldn't normally step in, but with Shield away I feel the responsibility falls to me.

Oh, and I just don't see it, Tuna. It seems to me about as clear-cut as Bagg's boyfriend's lunch.

[Italiamia]

[maro]

[Bagg10]

[marco]

[g.smiley]

[vtec]

[maro]

[morra10]

[Italiamia]