My introduction (well, part of it) to Pindar is now commented: Olympian 14.
My thanks to Chad who noticed some spelling errors and suggested a few places where I could give a little more metrical detail.
I keep a list of poems to read. Most things get onto that list because someone suggested it might be interesting. This one made it onto my list because someone (I forget who) on the classics-l mailing list recommended it during a discussion about Greek poems to memorize.
Thank you for once again posting a clear and helpful text of Greek poetry. It goes a long way to keeping Greek literature accessible to us unwashed masses, which is a very noble thing. I am wondering if there is anything else that you have heard recommended for memorizing, or that you yourself would recommend.
I’m glad you find them useful.
I am wondering if there is anything else that you have heard recommended for memorizing, or that you yourself would recommend.
I dug through my old email and found this:
As I have mentioned elsewhere, the first piece of Greek I ever memorized was Sappho’s The moon has set fragment. I used to have Mimnermus’ What life, what pleasure without golden Aphrodite but find I can now only manage the first two and last two lines reliably. I’ll have to revive that.
It probably says something about my personality that two or three of Palladas’ gloomier epigrams recommend themselves to me for memorizing. I hope to produce an Indilectus of his work for Aoidoi some day. Meleager’s Lament to Heliodora (Anth.Pal., VII, 476) is currently on the list of works to memorize and work up for Aoidoi.
Thanks Will 
I just started using your texts about a month ago, and the commentaries are wonderful. I’ve been meaning to have a try at Pindar; perhaps this will be a good introduction. Thanks so much for all the hard work.
I stumbled upon Palladas only a few weeks ago while browsing through the Greek Anthology. I copied a few epigrams into my notebook to read later, and Palladas seemed to make up the bulk of them. Just for fun, here are some that I jotted down:
πολλὰ λαλεῖς, ἄνθρωπε, χαμαὶ δὲ τίθῃ μετὰ μικρόν
σίγα, καὶ μελέτα ζῶν ἔτι τὸν θάνατον
Loeb translation:
Thou speakest much, O man, but in a little thou shalt be laid on the ground.
Silence! and while thou yet livest get into practice for death.
ἥλιος ἀνθρώποις αὐγῆς θεός, εἰ δὲ καὶ αὐτὸς
ὕβριζεν φαίνων, οὐδὲ τὸ φῶς ἐπόθουν
Loeb translation:
The Sun to men is the god of light, but if he too were insolent to them in his shining, they would not desire even light.
υἱὸν ἔχεις τὸν ἔρωτα, γυναῖκα δὲ τὴν ἀφροδίτην,
οὐκ ἀδίκως, χαλκεῦ, τὸν πόδα χωλὸν ἔχεις
Loeb translation:
Your son is called Eros and your wife Aphrodite, and so, blacksmith, it is quite fair you should have a lame leg.
πάντα μὲν οἶδα, λέγεις, ἀτελὴς δ’ ἐν πᾶσιν ὑπάρχεις,
γευόμενος πάντων, οὐδὲν ἔχεις ἴδιον
Loeb translation:
You say “I know all things”, but you are imperfect in all things.
Tasting of everything, you have nothing that is your own.
υἱὸς καὶ γενετὴρ δῆριν φιλόνεικον ἔθεντο,
τίς πλέον ἐκδαπανῶν κλῆρον ἄπαντα φάγῃ.
καὶ μετὰ τὴν βρῶσιν τὴν χρηματικὴν μάλα πᾶσαν,
ὕστατον ἀλλήλους λοιπὸν ἔχουσι φαγεῖν.
Loeb translation:
A son and father started a competitive contest as to which could eat up all the property by spending most, and after devouring absolutely all the money they have at last each other to eat up.
γραμματικοῦ θυγάτηρ ἔτεκεν φιλότητι μιγεῖσα
παιδίον ἀρσενικόν, θηλυκόν, οὐδέτερον.
Loeb translation:
A grammarian’s daughter, having known a man, gave birth to a child which was masculine, feminine, and neuter.
Some of the passages about grammarians are hilarious. Here are two others (not by Palladas) about grammarians that I found amusing:
γραμματικός ποτ’ ὄνω ἐποχούμενος ἐξεκυλίσθη,
καὶ τῆς γραμματικῆς, ὡς λόγος, ἐξέπεσεν,
εἶθ’ ἑξῆς ἐβίου κοινὸν βίον, ὡς ἰδιώτης,
ὧν ἐδίδασκεν ἀεὶ μηδὲν ἐπιστάμενος.
ἀλλὰ γλύκων ἔπαθεν τοὐναντίον, ὢν γὰρ ἄπειρος
καὶ κοινῆς γλώττης, οὐχ ὅτι γραμματικῆς,
νῦν λιβυκοὺς κάνθωνας ὀχούμενος, εἶτ’ ἀποπίπτων
πολλάκις, ἐξαίφνης γραμματικὸς γέγονεν.
(Apollinarius) Loeb translation:
A grammarian riding on a donkey fell off it, and, they say, lost his memory of grammar; then afterwards he led an ordinary life without any profession, not knowing a word of what he had always been teaching. But just the opposite happened to Glycon; for, having been ignorant of the vulgar tongue, not to speak of grammar, now, by riding on Libyan donkeys and often falling off them, he has suddenly become a grammarian.
ἰητήρ τις ἐμοὶ τὸν ἑὸν φίλον υἱὸν ἔπεμψεν,
ὥστε μαθεῖν παρ’ ἐμοὶ ταῦτα τὰ γραμματικιά.
ὠς δὲ τὸ μῆνιν ἄειδε καὶ ἄλγεα μυρί’ ἔθηκεν
ἔγνω, καὶ τὸ τρίτον τοῖσδ’ ἀκόλουθον ἔπος
πολλὰς δ’ ἰφθίμους ψυχὰς ἄιδι προίαψεν,
οὐκέτι μιν πέμπει πρός με μαθησόμενον.
ἀλλά μ’ ἰδὼν ὁ πατήρ, σοὶ μὲν χάρις, εἶπεν, ἑταῖρε,
αὐτὰρ ὁ παῖς παρ’ ἐμοὶ ταῦτα μαθεῖν δύναται,
καὶ γὰρ ἐγὼ πολλὰς ψυχὰς ἄιδι προιάπτω,
καὶ πρὸς τοῦτ’ οὐδὲν γραμματικοῦ δέομαι
(Lucian) Loeb translation:
A physician sent me his dear son to be taught by me those elementary lessons. And when he had read “Sing the wrath” and “imposed a thousand woes”, and the third verse that follows these, “Many strong souls he sped to Hades”, his father no longer sends him to learn from me, but on seeing me said: “All thanks to you, my friend, but the boy can learn that at home, for I speed down many souls to Hades, and for that I have no need of a grammarian.”
Perhaps somebody else will find these amusing. 
More Pindar will be coming shortly.
I stumbled upon Palladas only a few weeks ago while browsing through the Greek Anthology.
The Anthology is built for browsing. I sometimes just start thumbing through looking at things. Anything in the Loeb that has the translation in Latin always gets my special attention, though just yesterday that meant I read a poem I would have probably been just as happy not to read. I suppose it improves my Greek vocabulary.