This entire journal is actually more of a chronicle of all of the papers I've had to write this semester...interesting...sort of...

So here's the next little obstacle that school has set up for me in its quest to extract from students some sort of verbiage that proves we are thinking machines...Russian Music Paper, Part Deux. Return of the expected "Very Sophisticated Paper." :::dun dun duuuunnnn...."

After questioning the afore-mentioned Professor Taruskin about some needed source material, I have found that all of his Bibliographical reccomendations have, in fact, been his own writings. So, due to my recent bombardment with all that is Taruskin, my current paper-writing strategy has taken a little turn. Know the term sesquipedalian? It means something to the effect of "one who uses big words (often unneccessarily)" And yes, I do realize the inherent irony in using a large word no one knows to describe users of large words no one knows. Eh, what can you do? Anyway, this professor is one of these culprits. He also likes to insert metaphors into his critical writing, often with a comedic effect that may be unintentional. But I'm not really sure. At any rate, I've been continually astounded by his word choice. Case in point: excerpt from one of his essays, "only to have his waffling efforts derided..." WAFFLING?!? Does that mean "to make as a waffle" to anyone else?! Sure as hell screamed "Ego!" to me. Later on my curiosity got the better of me and I looked it up, "to waffle" actually means "to evade," as in evade a question. I'm trying to get up a committee to admit this into everyday colloquial speech. So learn it, use it. But yes, in the face of this sort of thing, my paper has taken on the guise of Taruskinian diction. I have turns of phrases like:

"finds its nascense in..."

and vocabulary like:

"inundated," "incendiary," and "transmuted"

and I found myself writting this sentence:
"Thus began the muddying of ideological waters."

What in God's name is happening to me?!?! I'm pretty sure that as soon as summer comes I'll revert to using "like" 3 times in every sentence...but right now I'm a literary Ninja. Sort of.

Positively waffling...