I suffered with Perl until I stopped assuming I could learn it by reading code, and read the Camel book. At about page 85 it says something approximating: "Ever

I suffered with Perl until I stopped assuming I could learn it by reading code, and read the Camel book. At about page 85 it says something approximating: "Everything in Perl happens in a context (scalar or Array) and until you realize that, you will be miserable." It still didn't come easy: I've realized we all have different minds. My mind doesn't find Perl natural, but loves Ruby. YMMV.