Michael, your 26 Sep 09 - 05:46 AM post about the folk process is quite interesting, and reaffirms for me my belief that synchronicity is in play more often in people's lifes than they realize.

But it seems to me that your listing of the folk process as it relates to the "Black Cat Piddled In The White Cat's Eye" doesn't go back far enough.

Couldn't the East London version of that children's rhyme have come from someone's memory of Dan Emmett's (or some other minstrel troupe's) performance in London in the 19th century? (I'm inclinded to believe that Emmett got the words to that song from African American folksongs and not the other way around, but the origin of that verse can never really be known. And in the larger scheme of things it really doesn't matter all that much, since using the folk process Black people could have heard an Anglo folk song or Anglo songs and changed up the words to suit our (Black people's) purposes).

Furthermore, couldn't the Australian versions of this song or children's rhyme (if indeed there are words to the Australian tune) have come from people carrying the English song (that they got from American minstrels that minstrels got from African American people-enslaved or freed or freeborn?).

And the fact that people from Australia, Great Britain, and the United States (and perhaps elsewhere) and also Anglo people and at least one African American person (me) are having a folkloric discussion in almost real time over the Internet about this 10th century song, is truly remarkable.

Now if someone would just create one of those transportation devices found on the television show & movie "Star Trek" where we could instantly be transported to the same location so that we could continue this discussion together, that would really be wonderful.

:o)

Azizi Powell