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A "woman of letters" my mother like to do crossword puzzle (like the New York Times), shout out the questions at Jeopardy on tv, play Scrabble, and quote humorous poetry.
Gelett Burgess, humorist, inventor of words, & sometimes illustrator,
wrote this for the San Francisco
literary magazine, The Lark in 1896.
It was my Mom's favorite, most often quoted ditty.
"The Purple Cow"
I never saw a purple cow
I never hope to see one
But I can tell you anyhow
I'd rather see than be one!
After hearing that quatraine all through my childhood...
and my son's as well. I finally found this bit.
Later, after being quoted on it incessantly
and thoroughly harrassed for years, he penned a sequel.
This is for my Mom, Sybyl.....
Ah yes, I wrote "The Purple Cow"
I'm sorry now I wrote it
But I can tell you anyhow
I'll KILL you if you quote it!
Here another one of her favorites:
The Ketchup Bottle
I bang and bang the ketchup bottle
First nothing comes
And then a lot'l
- also cited as -
You shake and shake
And shake the bottle,
None will come,
And then alottle.
And then there was Eleanor Farjeon's poem about:
Three Little Puffins
Three little puffins
Were partial to muffins,
As partial as partial can be.
They wouldn't eat nuffin
But hot buttered muffin
For breakfast and dinner and tea.
Pantin' and puffin'
And chewin' and chuffin'
They just went on stuffin', dear me!
Till the three little puffins
Were chockful of muffins
And puffy as puffy can be,
All three
Were puffy as puffy can be.
And....Edward Lear's
The Owl and the Pussycat
The Owl and the Pussy-cat went to sea
In a beautiful pea green boat,
They took some honey, and plenty of money,
Wrapped up in a five pound note.
The Owl looked up to the stars above,
And sang to a small guitar,
'O lovely Pussy! O Pussy my love,
What a beautiful Pussy you are,
You are,
You are!
What a beautiful Pussy you are!'
II
Pussy said to the Owl, 'You elegant fowl!
How charmingly sweet you sing!
O let us be married! too long we have tarried:
But what shall we do for a ring?'
They sailed away, for a year and a day,
To the land where the Bong-tree grows
And there in a wood a Piggy-wig stood
With a ring at the end of his nose,
His nose,
His nose,
With a ring at the end of his nose.
III
'Dear pig, are you willing to sell for one shilling
Your ring?' Said the Piggy, 'I will.'
So they took it away, and were married next day
By the Turkey who lives on the hill.
They dined on mince, and slices of quince,
Which they ate with a runcible spoon;
And hand in hand, on the edge of the sand,
They danced by the light of the moon,
The moon,
The moon,
They danced by the light of the moon.
And then there's,
Winkin', Blinkin', and Nod
Winkin', Blinkin', and Nod, one night sailed off in a wooden shoe;
Sailed off on a river of crystal light into a sea of dew.
"Where are you going and what do you wish?" the old moon asked the three.
"We've come to fish for the herring fish that live in this beautiful sea.
Nets of silver and gold have we," said Winkin', Blinkin', and Nod.
The old moon laughed and sang a song as they rocked in the wooden shoe.
And the wind that sped them all night long ruffled the waves of dew.
Now the little stars are the herring fish that live in that beautiful sea;
"Cast your nets wherever you wish never afraid are we!"
So cried the stars to the fishermen three - Winkin', and Blinkin', and Nod.
So all night long their nets they threw to the stars in the twinkling foam.
'Til down from the skies came the wooden shoe bringing the fisherman home.
'Twas all so pretty a sail it seemed as if it could not be.
Some folks say 'twas a dream they dreamed of sailing that misty sea.
But I shall name you the fisherman three - Winkin', Blinkin', and Nod.
Now Winkin' and Blinkin' are two little eyes and Nod is a little head.
And the wooden shoe that sailed the skies is a wee one's trundle bed.
So close your eyes while mother sings of the wonderful sights that be.
And you shall see those beautiful things as you sail on the misty sea,
Where the old shoe rocked the fishermen three - Winkin', Blinkin', and Nod.
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