A Collection of Unmitigated Pedantry
A look at history and popular culture
Hey, folks! Fireside this week! Percy looking for some nap time. Me too, buddy, me too.And yes, he is on a blanket that is on a cat bed. What you can't see is that cat bed is on another, different cat bed. My man sleeps in style. I don't have a burning topic this week, … Continue reading Fireside Friday, October 24, 2025
Hey folks! The conclusion of our look at the Siege of Eregion in Rings of Power will have to wait a week because I am off to a conference this week, the annual meeting of the Society for Military History, this year in Mobile, Alabama! I'm set to talk about how Roman military commanders were … Continue reading Gap Week: March 28, 2025
Last time, we started our retrospective on the Gracchi looking at the elder brother Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus and his term as tribune of the plebs in 133 BCE; this week, we'll wrap up this look by discussing Tiberius' younger brother Gaius Sempronius Gracchus and his terms as tribune of the plebs in 123 and 122 … Continue reading Collections: On the Gracchi, Part II: Gaius Gracchus
Hey folks! Year is coming to a close, so once again I'm going to offer a bit of an end-of-year reflection on the state of the project, along with a brief 'what's on the stove' coverage of what may be coming up. Also, here's a cat picture: Ollie would like you to know these are … Continue reading Gap Week: December 27, 2024 (Year in Review)
Hey folks, this week is a bit of a gap week as I am heading out to the annual meeting of the Society for Military History (and, indeed, by the time you read this, I will be there). Normally, I post the abstract of my conference talk for these sorts of things, but since I … Continue reading Gap Week: April 19, 2024 (Manor Lords First Impression)
Season's Greetings! I'm taking this week off for the holidays, but here are some pictures of the AcademiCats getting into the Christmas Spirit: Oliver, with a festive trebuchet (my wife's) and the Christmas Sherman, ready to bring holiday cheer to the whole world, but North Africa, Western Europe and the Pacific in particular. Percy also … Continue reading Gap Week: December 24, 2021
Hey all! This week is going to be a gap week; I have quite a bit of teaching related work along with several projects all coming together at once and something had to give. With luck, next week we'll start a series on the principles of fortifications. In the meantime, of course, I wouldn't leave … Continue reading Gap Week: October 22
It's the first week of classes, so fireside this week. Next week, we'll dive into a short series looking at the question of the 'universal warrior,' the idea - too often repeated - that there is either a single consistent experience or personality true to all combatants to the present day. Also, for those who … Continue reading Fireside Friday, January 22, 2021