BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew

Subject: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 11 Apr 09 - 01:09 PM

Poem 2 of 230: WALKABOUT WITH MY PEN

Once drove an old sedan, up north,
    From a place in Sydney to Cairns;
Then to Kuranda I went forth,
    By train, to look without set plans.

I browsed through the trendy market,
    With fresh fruits of tropical kind;
Walked to the creek through lush thicket -
    Nature's hand giving peace of mind.

I dined in a scenic cafe;
    Then, outside, as I wrote for yen,
Some passing Kooris called-out: "Hey,
    You go walkabout with your pen."

Request or question, I don't know -
    Assured voices, elderly men.
That's now several years ago,
    And I've seen the world - with my pen.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book - & follow links to hear it sung)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Don Firth
Date: 11 Apr 09 - 03:15 PM

Algie saw the bear.
The bear saw Algie.
The bear was bulgie
The bulge was Algie.
         --Burmashave

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Bonnie Shaljean
Date: 11 Apr 09 - 04:10 PM

One-One was a racehorse
Two-Two was one too
One-One won one race
And Two-Two won one too

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Joe Offer
Date: 11 Apr 09 - 04:13 PM

You know, it has been made clear over and over again, that a number of Mudcatters do not like the rhymes posted by Walkaboutsverse. Frankly, these expressions of disaffection are far more tedious than the rhymes themselves could ever be.

How 'bout if you people don't like something and you've already said it, that you refrain from making yourself look stupid by not saying it again? I'm going to delete all the negative posts from this thread and give it a chance to start anew. We don't allow personal attacks at Mudcat. Somehow, people got the idea that it was OK to attack WAV. It started in fun, but it invariably got nasty - so I'm not going to allow it any more.

If you would like to discuss this, please contact me privately by e-mail or personal message - not in this thread. This thread is reserved for poetry, or doggerel, or whatever you want to call it.

Thank you.

-Joe-
[e-mail]

I'm a poet,
And nobody knows it;
That's my profession.
I know - I chose it.

Burma-Shave

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Don Firth
Date: 11 Apr 09 - 04:14 PM

Oh! What a world
Of woe and sin!
My head grows bald,
But not my chin!
      --Burmashave

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Don Firth
Date: 11 Apr 09 - 04:54 PM

I make no qualitative judgements, I am merely contributing to what appears to be a poetry thread.

"Once drove an old sedan, up north. . . ."

* * *

He lit a match
To check his tank,
And now they call him
"Skinless Frank."
            --Burmashave

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 11 Apr 09 - 05:22 PM

Do your posters
Rant and rave
Grunt and grumble,
Misbehave?
Just shoot the brutes
With Burmashave!!

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: olddude
Date: 11 Apr 09 - 05:29 PM

Well
I liked it walkabout ... just a nice little verse
dan

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: The Sandman
Date: 11 Apr 09 - 05:39 PM

since,my giddy aunt has gone.
I am so lonesome on my own.
I shall write of trouble and strife.
Take my pen and start to scribe.
up the Khyber I went forth
with no Hampsteads in the North.
burma shave,burmashave,on special offer now,hurry while stocks last

on saturday 11th day of April 2009

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Don Firth
Date: 11 Apr 09 - 05:43 PM

She went to the office
Of a New York theatrical agent
She told him she wanted
To make a big splash
On Broadway.
He said, "I can guarantee it!"
And pushed her out
Of a nineteenth story window.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Campin
Date: 11 Apr 09 - 06:05 PM

see the happy moron
he doesn't give a damn
i wish i was a moron
my god perhaps i am

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Tootler
Date: 11 Apr 09 - 07:30 PM

The other day upon the stair
I met a man who wasn't there
He wasn't there again today
I wish that man would go away.

Learnt from my English Teacher at the age of 11

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Don Firth
Date: 11 Apr 09 - 09:01 PM

When you feel like a frog
In the middle
Of the highway of Life,
And everything that happens to you
Feels like a steel-belted radial,
It may be a comfort to remember
As you lay there,
Squashed
In a puddle
Of your own assorted bodily fluids,
That
At least
You made
Your mark!

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Bee-dubya-ell
Date: 11 Apr 09 - 09:35 PM

A tutor who tooted the flute
tried to tutor two tooters to toot.
Said the two to the tutor
"Is it easier to toot or
to tutor two tooters to toot?"

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Don Firth
Date: 11 Apr 09 - 09:56 PM

A young schizophrenic named Struther,
When he learned of the death of his brother,
   Said, "That's really too bad,
   But I don't feel too sad.
After all, I still have each other."

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Peace
Date: 12 Apr 09 - 12:18 AM

Good to see you back, WAV.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Acorn4
Date: 12 Apr 09 - 04:36 AM

Why do moths come out at night
And always fly towards the light?

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Will Fly
Date: 12 Apr 09 - 05:10 AM

The Mudcat is a curious fish
Who slowly swims along.
He blows large bubbles filled with verse
And turns them into song.

The words and tunes flow through the years,
Meander down life's stream
And end by ringing in our hearts.
This is the Mudcat's dream.

W. Fly
12 Apr 2009

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 12 Apr 09 - 05:33 AM

Happy Easter, all, and...

Poem 96 of 230: PARADIGMS

"Thirty-all" is, in effect, "deuce";
    Nobody has seen an "atom":
An atom remains a model;
    "Thirty-all" an umpire's call.
"They we just simply had to bomb";
    And there are other given "truths"...

If we humans evolved from apes,
Why on earth are there living apes?

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: The Sandman
Date: 12 Apr 09 - 05:43 AM

thirty all is not deuce,
I find your meaning obtuse,
kind sir,take your pen,and with it,
write your poem again.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Lizzie Cornish 1
Date: 12 Apr 09 - 06:14 AM

Happy Easter, David.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Crow Sister (off with the fairies)
Date: 12 Apr 09 - 06:32 AM

Fuzzy Wuzzy was a bear
Fuzzy Wuzzy had no hair
So he wazn't fuzzy waz 'e

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Snuffy
Date: 12 Apr 09 - 06:52 AM

There was an old man who said "Damn.
I have just realised that I am
A being that moves
In predestinate grooves.
I'm not even a bus: I'm a streetcar."

Perhaps the English version was better.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Dave Hanson
Date: 12 Apr 09 - 07:12 AM

Poem Number 11 of 300.00000000 an a bit

Ooey Gooey was a worm,
A silly worm was he,
He went upon the railway line,
The train he went to see,
Ooey Gooey.

Dave H

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: van lingle
Date: 12 Apr 09 - 07:41 AM

I eat my peas with honey,
I've done it all my life,
It makes the peas taste funny,
But it keeps them on my knife.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Acorn4
Date: 12 Apr 09 - 09:58 AM

Minimalism ' NO!

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 12 Apr 09 - 12:26 PM

I'll keep in mind your plan, Van.
And CB: say, e.g., I'm serving at 30-all and you hit a backhand winner off my serve - thus, you have a break point; now say you do the same at deuce - thus, you again have a break-point; and, thus, "'Thirty-all' is, in effect, 'deuce'" (above).

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: VirginiaTam
Date: 12 Apr 09 - 12:26 PM

from my Mom when I was a kid.

Of all the fishies in the seas
My favourite is the bass
He climbs upon the seaweed trees
and slides down on






















his hands and knees

Jeesh I didn't think I remembered that.

Welcome back WaV

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Don Firth
Date: 12 Apr 09 - 02:59 PM

A gay young fellow named Bloom
Took a lesbian up to his room.
   They argued all night
   Over who had the right
To do what, and with which, and to whom.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: oldhippie
Date: 12 Apr 09 - 08:16 PM

There was one that went something like this:

O sibili, si ergo
for tibusses in ero
Nobili, demis trux
Si watts enim, kowes en dux

Hint: read it out loud.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Surreysinger
Date: 12 Apr 09 - 08:29 PM

I did - several times, but .....

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Bee-dubya-ell
Date: 12 Apr 09 - 09:54 PM

There is a young named Walkabouts Verse
His poems aren't great, but a Vogon's are worse

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Ross Campbell
Date: 12 Apr 09 - 10:53 PM

As I was walkin' doon the road
I met a coo -
















a bull, by Goad!

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Don Firth
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 01:15 AM

The following is a bit of blank verse:

There was an old lady from Clyde,
Ate a bushel of apples and died.
   The apples fermented
   Inside the lamented,
And made cider inside her inside!

Don Firth

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Ralphie
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 02:05 AM

2 Ys U R
2 Ys U B
I C U R
2 Ys 4 ME

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Guest from Sanity
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 02:39 AM

I RIDE MY HARLEY

                               by

                               ME


I ride my Harley Davidson, I ride it in the rain.
I ride it all day long, till I don't even know my name.

I rode it through the chicken's coop, up on Mabel's farm
then I chased some cows...I wasn't doin' no harm.

I rode it in formation, 'long with forty other dudes.
I ride it when I'm snortin' coke, or when I'm doin' 'ludes

I ride it to the corner store, and then I ride it back,
my kidneys died, and I can't feel my sacroiliac.

I ride it up two flights of stairs, when going to my house,
my main squeeze left me the other day, called me a dirty louse.

I ride my Harley every day, I ain't got off to shit,
and now, I can't get off at all, because I'm stuck to it.




Copyright 1985

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Dave Hanson
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 03:12 AM

Poem number 21.7 of 15

For the fourth time dull Daphnis said Chloe,
You've told me my bosom is snowy,
You've made such remark on,
Each part of my person,

NOW DO SOMETHING,
There's a good boyhi.

Dave H

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 05:21 AM

Here's another kind of "blank verse," Don...

Poem 14 of 230: NIGHT OR DAY?!

In the far north of Sweden,
    A "Land of the Midnight Sun,"
A strange thing chanced upon me -
    And I'll tell you, just for fun.

Got off a train late-morning
    (Had to catch same one next day)
And trudged far to the Youth Hostel -
    Paying for a one-night stay.

I spent the afternoon sightseeing,
    Then, after a latish dinner,
Returned to my own small bedroom -
    The comfy bed proving a winner.

For I soon dozed into dreamy sleep -
    Waking what was just two hours hence;
But my watch was an analogue,
    And night or day I couldn't sense!

I quickly packed all my things
    (My train an hour or thirteen on)
And hurried out the bedroom -
    The bright sky a sneaky con.

I wandered down the track a bit
    (The Hostel office empty),
Before a smiling helpful local
    Did kindly enlighten me.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,JJ
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 09:10 AM

Admins delete my posts if you must but this is still BS and surely it belongs in that section.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: caitlin rua
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 09:27 AM

__________
__________
__________
__________


Four lines from a lazy poet -

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Les from Hull
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 09:41 AM

See, see the loving sky
Marvel at its big beige depths.
Tell me, Maggie do you
Wonder why the warthog ignores you?
Why its foobly stare
makes you feel tired.
I can tell you, it is
Worried by your fribulance facial growth
That looks like
A cheese.
What's more, it knows
Your bledge potting shed
Smells of sprout.
Everything under the big loving sky
Asks why, why do you even bother?
You only charm vinegars.

from the Vogon Poetry Generator

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 12:32 PM

For what it's worth, I've retired from versification, but...

Caitlin Rua
Is no-but-a
Straight-line ruler!

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Surreysinger
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 12:37 PM

Les - that's a wondrous piece of confectionery! I didn't know that the Vogon Poetry generator existed... I can see oodles of fun filled moments looming on the horizon!

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Don Firth
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 01:00 PM

By the way, in my bit of "blank verse" above, there's more there than meets the eye—provided you know how to read it.

Eruptile Dysfunction:

The volcano was near unto tears,
And time only increased his fears.
   He felt very sad
   That he hadn't had
A decent eruption in years.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Snuffy
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 03:30 PM

Only an in-sider would get it, Don.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 03:46 PM

In the march of human minds
Down the weaving span of time,
Men have found a higher voice:
Word and image, meter, rhyme,
Weaving with a subtle beauty
Deepest thought, and highest hope;
Does our poet meet this duty?
One and all have answered, "Nope".
Do not let this witless folly
Make a mediocre slave.
Put this silly rhymester's folly
Back to work for Burma Shave.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Don Firth
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 03:59 PM

Very good, Snuffy!

(Does the CIA know about this?)

Don Firth

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 04:11 PM

That's the kind of verse that pales in comparison, Don.

The room was humming harder
as the ceiling flew away
When we called out for another drink
the waiter brought a tray,

And so it was that later
as another sonnet failed,
that my post, at first just ghostly,
turned a whiter shade of pale

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: The Sandman
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 04:24 PM

by John Cage:













by John Cage.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Bonnie Shaljean
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 04:41 PM

An Easter greeting, courtesy of Ogden Nash:

I asked a rabbit that I knew
To lay an Easter egg for you
The air was filled with chilly frost
The rabbit said to me GET LOST!

That egg routine is for the funnies
Us rabbits just have little bunnies
This information spoiled my day -
But Happy Easter anyway

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Don Firth
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 04:50 PM

Speaking of modern composers,

Knock knock.
Who's there?
Knock knock.
Who's there?
Knock knock.
Who's there?
Knock knock.
Who's there?
Knock knock.
Who's there?
Knock knock.
Who's there?
Knock knock.
Who's there?
Philip Glass

Don Firth

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Nick
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 05:31 PM

>>For what it's worth, I've retired from versification, but... OH NO!!!! Surely some mistake

UNCOMPRESSED (for WAV)

The last swan flies from Coole unaware of the waiting hunter
And the walking man leaves the foul rag and bone shop
Of his heart on the final sojourn
And the, abuse, of the, humble, comma ends.

Let me number the days that my heart bleeds for your return
Let me yearn for my turn to burn the infernal internal churn
Lay metre aside and chase zeugmatic symbiosis
On the top deck of a number 27 bus
Reflecting on the mund and inane.

Not one.

"Walk a mile in my shoes" he said
But I only managed to walk obit.
Errata will follow but
Erato can sleep again
With conscience unbound

E J Thribb (13)

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Surreysinger
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 06:56 PM

Capn ... that's the first time I've seen Mr Cage's glorious piece of music written down ... thanks...

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 07:09 PM

The diazeugma is a zeugma where a noun governs two or more verbs. Latin rhetoricians further divide the diazeugma according to the placement of the subject and verbs.

Diazeugma Disjunction

The subject appears at the beginning of the sentence and each verb follows in its respective clause.

Populus Romanus Numantiam delevit, Kartaginem sustulit, Corinthum disiecit, Fregellas evertit.—Rhetorica ad Herennium
The Roman people destroyed Numantia, razed Carthage, demolished Corinth, and overthrew Fregella.

Formae dignitas aut morbo deflorescit aut vetustate extinguitur—Rhetorica ad Herennium''
Physical beauty: with disease it fades; with age it dies.

Diazeugma Conjunction

The subject appears in the middle of a sentence and may take the place of a conjunction.

Stands accused, threatens our homes, revels in his crime, this man guilty of burglary asks our forgiveness.

Despairing in the heat and in the sun, we marched, cursing in the rain and in the cold.

Hypozeuxis

The Hypozeuxis is the opposite of a zeugma, where each subject has its own verb.
The parents scowled, the girls cried, and the boys jeered while the clown stood confused.
"We shall fight on the beaches. We shall fight on the landing grounds. We shall fight in the fields, and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills. We shall never surrender!"—Winston Churchill

(Wikipedia)

In case anyone wondered about that zeugmatiic epilepsy hitherto and yon.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Nick
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 07:38 PM

The example of zeugma I always remember from schooldays was - "He swallowed his pride and a cough lozenge".

Hypozeuxis is new to me. It was tmesis the other week which up until then I'd always thought was what Mr Jinx chased after.

Aren't parts of speech fun?

Were it not for WAV, we might not be exploring them. Or talking in subjunctives.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Joe_F
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 08:30 PM

"Far fucking out" is a whole nother tmesis. Whether "It's eight o'fucking clock" is a tmesis is a nice question.

*

VirginiaTam: And frolics in the grass.

*

The place to pass
On curves, you know,
Is only at
The beauty show.
Burma Shave.

Her man's whiskers
Never faze her --
He shaves by
Electric razor.
Why bother with
Burma Shave?

*

Said a sage in Westminster Abbey,
"Most critics are cruel and crabby,
But Auden and Clerihew Bentley
Have treated us justly and gently."

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 13 Apr 09 - 09:04 PM

Absofuckinglutely it is. The academic nabobs might assert there is some disbloodyfuckingscrepancy in such as assertion but I don't see it.


A

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 14 Apr 09 - 04:27 AM

I'll make vegans of vogons!..

Poem 206 of 230: MY DIET

Chasing breads, nuts, bananas,
    Red sauce, apples, sultanas,
Crackers, conserves, cucumbers,
    Pickles, porridge, pottages -

Lemon barley,
    Cocoa, coffee,
Or cups of tea.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Snuffy
Date: 14 Apr 09 - 09:25 AM

Christian Morgenstern said it all a century ago in Fisches Nachtgesang.

Further comment is superfluous

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Bonnie Shaljean
Date: 14 Apr 09 - 09:34 AM

Cage's four minutes of silence prompted Stravinsky to remark that he looked forward to a full-length work -

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: The Sandman
Date: 14 Apr 09 - 09:40 AM

here it is,the sound of silence.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 14 Apr 09 - 10:16 AM

What is it with Folkies and John Cage? To give piece it's proper title, 4'33" has precious little to do with silence, on the contrary.

4'33", pronounced "four minutes, thirty-three seconds", (Cage himself referred to it as "four, thirty-three") is often mistakenly referred to as Cage's "silent piece". He made it clear that he believed there is no such thing as silence, defined as a total absence of sound. In 1951, he visited an anechoic chamber at Harvard University in order to hear silence. "I literally expected to hear nothing," he said. Instead, he heard two sounds, one high and one low. He was told that the first was his nervous system and the other his blood circulating. This was a major revelation that was to affect his compositional philosophy from that time on. It was from this experience that he decided that silence defined as a total absence of sound did not exist. "Try as we may to make a silence, we cannot," he wrote. "One need not fear for the future of music."

For more, please read: http://solomonsmusic.net/4min33se.htm.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Stu
Date: 14 Apr 09 - 10:34 AM

"Instead, he heard two sounds, one high and one low. He was told that the first was his nervous system and the other his blood circulating. "

That's basically what tinnitus is.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Bonnie Shaljean
Date: 14 Apr 09 - 10:38 AM

It was a joke, SS. Ever hear of those? Yes, we all know the "proper" title, but thanks all the same.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 14 Apr 09 - 10:39 AM

Darkness, more and more, or less and less.

Silence approached asymptotically.

Only by degrees do you lure a soul into residence

In a blood-bound sea of bone and meat,

Make an identity that really sticks,

Or boil a frog.

Increments rule.



A

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 14 Apr 09 - 12:10 PM

No frogs, Amos, in my "pottages", above - rather, there's usually powdered vegetable soup, baked beans, lettuce, cucumber, carrot, or whatever other vegies are fresh at the store; plus toast and crisps and red sauce.

We can, on the other hand, plant a simple bucket-pond in our gardens to help stop the world-wide decline of frogs.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 14 Apr 09 - 12:53 PM

Dear bloody jumping Jaysus, WAV... it is hard to imagine how roundly the link between my last post and its antecedent (Cage's remark on the impossibility of silence) was so wholly and completely missed. Your remark, in the context of my post, is one a boiling frog would make about the pleasantly warm water he was succumbing to. I do not meran to be rude, but I feel badly misunderstood.
A

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: The Sandman
Date: 14 Apr 09 - 01:04 PM

why powdered vegetable soup,cant you cook?Ihope you dont eat Pot Noodles
if you get apressure cooker youcan boil your vegetables speedily.
one day for a spree.
I was feeling in need
of boiling a carrot or three.
so without much a do.
caution to the wind I threw,and bought myself a pressure cooker.
while I was there
I do declare,by chance I met my future wife.
she was areal good looker.
by Billy Bunter,Owl of the remove 4 may 1927

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Surreysinger
Date: 14 Apr 09 - 03:01 PM

Sinister Supporter ... surprisingly enough quite a few of us on here know perfectly well what Cage's work is about and, as Bonnie said, what it's title is. Believe it or not, some of us also perform classical works as well... I've actually been present at a performance of the piece in question ... and found it somewhat pretentious and pointless!!! Good job we don't all like the same things, isn't it?

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: The Sandman
Date: 14 Apr 09 - 03:43 PM

Sinister S,I too understand what the work of Cage is about.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Captain Swing
Date: 14 Apr 09 - 05:03 PM

Old Hippie - I know it as:

Si Senor der dey go
Fortilorris ian ro
Dement lorris, demis trux
Fullagees anensan dux

Hope it makes more sense

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 14 Apr 09 - 05:43 PM

Sorry if I leapfrogged you, Amos - no animosity, or Amosity, intended.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Don Firth
Date: 14 Apr 09 - 06:49 PM

Speaking of soup, I once knew a fellow whose vision was so poor that when he bought alphabet soup, he had to get the large print edition.

Don Firth

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Janie
Date: 14 Apr 09 - 07:42 PM

An oyster met an oyster
and they were oysters two.
Two oysters met two oysters
and they were oysters too.
Four oysters met a pint of milk...

and they were oyster stew.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Bill D
Date: 14 Apr 09 - 08:02 PM

An oyster met a rock band....and discovered

A noisy noise annoys an oyster.

--------------------------------------------------

There goes the Wapiti
Hippiti hoppiti

Ogden Nash

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 15 Apr 09 - 04:47 AM

Further on frogs; and food...

Poem 112 of 230: FROM AN ECCLES FLAT - SPRING 2000

The bedroom window's southerly views
    Contained allotters paying their dues -
All kinds of veg. brought to fruition,
    And youngsters receiving tuition;
Starlings and sparrows I'd often see -
    On a roof or a nearby tree;
And, in a distant poplar perched high,
    The large twiggy nest of a magpie;
In spring, daisies would yellow the floor -
    Matched by Forsythias, grown next door;
Behind terraces, a moony crest -
    The Dome of the new Trafford complex;
And the moon itself, in the right spot,
    Would light the night's clouds up quite a lot.

The kitchen window's northerly views
    Included an agent selling news;
A butcher struggling with position -
    Much sunlight aimed at his nutrition;
And a popular English chippie -
    Mashed peas and red sauce on top, for me;
White gulls dotting a sombre grey sky,
    Plus light- and large-aircraft flying by;
Walkers and traffic would make a roar -
    At peak travel hours all the more;
Handsomely-set skies toward the west
    As the day's sun took its nightly rest;
And a bucket-pond and ivy plot,
    That, on a shoestring, I loved a lot.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,The baker's dozen
Date: 15 Apr 09 - 10:43 AM

Poem 112,330 of 234,860: FROM AN ECCLES CAKE - SPRING 2008

The bedroom window's southerly views
    Framing bakers paying their dues -
All kinds of cakes filled with fruition,
    And youngsters avoiding nutrition;
Hot cross buns I'd often see -
    And Ecclefechan roaming free;
And, in a distant tin perched high,
    The floury nest of a warm mince pie;
In spring, lemon drizzle would yellow the floor -
    Matched by simnels, marzipanned by the score;
Behind Pudding Lane, a moony crest -
    A glimpse of creamy Paris Brest.
A half-moon cake, I kid you not,
    I really liked it quite a lot.

The kitchen window's cakey view
    Would me with love and pride imbue;
A patissiere there on a mission -
    To end my struggle with nutrition;
While an English cook of tarts -
    Fattened the chambers of my heart;
White merengues soon did me wrong,
    And treacle tarts my arteries thronged;
Blood in my veins made a roar -
    I feared I would soon be no more;
As the sun set in the west
    I sped towards eternal rest;
A cholesterol-filled graveyard plot,
    I died by cakes, but loved the lot.

I am going to allow this post to stand with the admonition that you are NOT permitted to use multiple identities. This will be allowed as it is poetry, but be advised it will not be allowed again.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 15 Apr 09 - 11:26 AM

Scansion he knew not, nor understood
The current of the higher good
That poets turn to for their light;
Rhythm had he none, and few
Notions you'd call deep, or new;
And writing on, in couplets long,
We could not say that he was wrong,
But knew him not quite right.

His was a hungry turning, blind,
To fill an anorexic mind,
By spilling nouns about like blocks,
Upon a sleepy kitchen floor,
Never enough, yet nevermore.
The cause of hunger never known,
Truth never asked, light left alone,
Painting the souls as broken clocks,
Hoping to fend away the night.

Llewellyn Sapon Gentile
Confessions of a Brussels Sprout
Pon, Deris Publishing
Lily-on-Grime, 1986

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 15 Apr 09 - 12:31 PM

I'm glad that Eccles parody was allowed to stand - it tickled my fancy, frankly, in more ways than one...very nice with a soya-coffee.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 16 Apr 09 - 03:44 AM

Poem 113 of 230: FOLLOWING THE SUN - SPRING 2000

Having moved, by buses, up the hill from Salford to Bury
    (To be within walk of new work, again),
These stimuli surround between my abode and the factory
    As I follow the sun - its wax, its wane:
Walking toward work and the rising sun, a morning chorus
    Rides the crisp breezy air of hill-farmland,
While gravel, of road and path, beneath my plonked feet crunches,
    And P.V.C. flaps loose of its hay-stand.

Bumble bees, tree sparrows and robins bob along the hedgerows,
    Squirrels and hares hop ahead on my route;
And on a weather-wrapped reservoir - glassy, or dulled by blows -
    Glide mute- and whooper-swans, ducks, geese and coot;
Horses, goats, sheep and cattle laze and graze on fields of green -
    Fields they, in turn, feed, helping make hay;
And, above, swifts and herons sometimes grace the aerial scene -
    A scene framed by a moorland chain of grey.

Slugs - some rusty, others pitch-black - slither on a clayey path,
    That slopes sharply beside the reservoir;
And a whitegood on green-grass - a horse trough, once a human bath -
    Amuses me as I view from afar;
As does Peel Monument, atop a distant Holecombe mount -
    By which an uncle and I once took lunch;
Disturbed nettles - brushed in such distraction - make their bulwarks count,
    And a shed-side arbour demands a hunch.

One time, three sheep-dogs determined me lost, and rounded me up;
    Oftentimes, the Metro. tram rattles by;
And, sometimes, a horse will urge me make handy a grassy cup,
    Or nudge for a scratch down its back and thigh;
On cooler mornings, the dew on grasses soaks my joggers through,
    But beautifies clumps of whimsy grass-heads;
And, already proceeding on his routine of chores to do,
    A farmer strong-hoses out the cowsheds.

Caravan-people leave their grouping to walk the well-worn track,
    And milk- and mail-vans squeeze tightly by;
Antique farm-machines rust away in a grassed ramshackle-stack,
    And pigeons startle from their grassy lie;                                                
In sun, fishing-people and bathers dot the reservoir's shore,
    And, in shade, ferns the sides of path and stream;
Near gates, manure fills the air and makes stepping a chore,
    But elsewhere the views are a poet's dream.

Magpies, near horses, bop around - perhaps for aroused worms;
    Laburnums sprung yellow, and hawthorns white,
Pleasingly, in nature, border the fields of farming-firms,
    And help enclose this Radcliffe rural site;
Plus, as I meander home from a day's factory toil,
    The sun, when it sets in a clear sky,
Forms a large amber ball, behind a converted cotton-mill -
    Signalling another day almost by.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Rifleman (inactive)
Date: 16 Apr 09 - 01:36 PM

From the Oxford Book of Vogon Poetry.

See, see the dead sky
Marvel at its big puce depths.
Tell me, Frances do you
Wonder why the wart hog ignores you?
Why its foobly stare
makes you feel ugly.
I can tell you, it is
Worried by your possett facial growth
That looks like
after many years.
What's more, it knows
Your nadgers potting shed
Smells of splod wurdler.
Everything under the big dead sky
Asks why, why do you even bother?
You only charm politicians.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Bee-dubya-ell
Date: 16 Apr 09 - 05:10 PM

Once I had a blue kazoo
One day I dropped it in the loo
And soon my kazoo wasn't blue
It turned a most ungodly hue
The color of an old work shoe
Encrusted with vile viscous goo

It wasn't red nor was it green
Nor puce nor even tangerine
But something somewhere in between
A color that was quite obscene
Like oozings from a ruptured spleen
I'm sure you know just what I mean

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Chongo Chimp
Date: 16 Apr 09 - 05:16 PM

Poetry is the leaven of life,
And it's way damn cheaper than havin' a wife!
When life gets you down and you ain't got a home,
You can always feel better by writin' a poem...
Burmashave!

- Chongo

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Stu
Date: 17 Apr 09 - 06:40 AM

Whelks do roam
on hillsides green
and sing a plaintive song
to molluscs unseen.

Under aragonite housing
they go a-roaming,
across blue rainbows
into the gloaming.

From where, they call
plaintive gastropod airs,
and crawl very slowly
over the limpet stairs.

Whelkishness come now
and praise be!
for you taste fine
when eaten by me.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Poésie de Promenade
Date: 17 Apr 09 - 06:50 AM

There was a young woman from Ealing
Overcome by a peculiar feeling
She rolled on her back
And opened her crack
And pissed right up to the ceiling

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: The Sandman
Date: 17 Apr 09 - 07:19 AM

The Eccles parody tickled my fancy
for all my thoughts did dwell upon nancy.
hark tally ho,in pursuit of some feed.
and is there crumpet still for tea.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 17 Apr 09 - 07:47 AM

It's the 42nd this very weekend, so if you fancy...

Poem 193 of 230: THE 35TH MORPETH NORTHUMBRIAN GATHERING – SPRING 2002

Toward Morpeth's Gathering,
    Either side of Great North Road,
Daffodils gleefully showed
    Their stalk-dressing flowering.

And then, at the Gathering,
    Another great flowering
Of English heritage, showed
    Through competitions that glowed
With competent folk-singing,
    Storytelling, bag-piping
(The small-pipes rapidly rode
    By hands, in staccato mode),
Clogdancing and stick-dressing:
    Things that are worth addressing.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 17 Apr 09 - 10:01 AM

WAV certainly brings out a sort of compulsive creativity in folks, huh?
I never would have guessed such flaming mediocrity could go all the way up to eleven.


A

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 17 Apr 09 - 12:02 PM

It is Friday today Tomorrow Sat.
The evening sol reflects on the windows opp.
The youth meander up the St. I live at
Watched suspiciously by a cop.
The crumpled paper jetted in my garden
Was once news but now plain thanks EEC
Litter regulationism needs a warden
Since rubbish lines the local sea


Stu

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Bee-dubya-ell
Date: 17 Apr 09 - 12:18 PM

I thought that I would never see
So much dull mediocrity
Assembled in a single place
Excuse me while I hide my face

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Rifleman (inactive)
Date: 17 Apr 09 - 12:20 PM

Two local translations of the same poem, in keeping the the tradition.

flamin mediocrity sky marvel at its muckle
dull depths. tell wor, frances d'ya wondor
why the hairless cat ignores yee? why its
foobly gaak makes yee feel flamingly mediocre.
i gan tell yee, it is worreed by yor scroon-like
facial growth that looks leek a unidentifeed.
what's mare, it knows yoor scroon pottin shed
smells iv that. everythin undor the muckle flamin
mediocrity sky asks why, why d'ya evon botha?
Only the cat knows

and

Flamin mediocrity sky marvel at its muckle dull depths.
tell wor, frances d'ya wondor why the hairless moggy
ignores yee? why its foobly gaak makes yee feel flamingly
mediocre. i gan tell yee, it is worreed by yor scroon-like
facial growth that looks lick a unidentifeed. what's mare,
it knows yoor scroon pottin shed smells iv that. everythin
undor the muckle flamin mediocrity sky asks why,
why d'ya evon botha?
Only the moggy knows.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 17 Apr 09 - 01:48 PM

No ruts, no wheels, no wagonloads;
Cleaving to the dry middle hump of the road,
Safe in the center of neglect.
A quiet middle, free of intersection
For meetings are always done at the edges.
Minds that live here fear the ditch and hedge
And define their paths by staying away
From all directions. Heaven
is not desired, and the dull middle voice
Goes to eleven.


AHJ

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Bee-dubya-ell
Date: 17 Apr 09 - 07:30 PM

A poet, though he be mediocre,
Is better than a mortgage broker.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 18 Apr 09 - 05:39 AM

and cleaner than an engine stoker
and cooler than a red hot poker
more colourful that yellow ochre

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 18 Apr 09 - 05:19 PM

Near Morpeth...

Poem 183 of 230: CRAMLINGTON - AUTUMN 2001

Cramlington:
    Before an
Interview
    At a new
Factory,
    I did see,
By a steam
    In-between
Farm and home,
    On a roam,
Stopping there,
    A brown hare.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 19 Apr 09 - 04:49 AM

For what it's worth, folks, I've just decided to change the name of the last piece to "A Brow Hare."

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 19 Apr 09 - 04:50 AM

Or "A Bown Hare", sorry.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 19 Apr 09 - 01:40 PM

Poem 184 of 230: THE QUICK CLUBBERS' TROT IN NEWCASTLE - AUTUMN 2001

Fridays, Saturdays,
    Latish in the night,
Bringing a smile,
    Making quite a sight
Down the steep-sloped Side,
    High on their heels -
Bonny, blithe ladies,
    Done with their meals
Or earlier clubs,
    Seeking the next spot,
And risking it with
    Their quick clubbers' trot.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: The Sandman
Date: 19 Apr 09 - 01:52 PM

mondays ,tuesdays,every day the same
late in the day.

but not being noticed
up the gentle incline
flat footed
worn out old men
who have had nothing to eat,
seeking somewhere to sleep,bed down in shop doorways
in cardboard boxes.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Don Firth
Date: 19 Apr 09 - 11:09 PM

Oh, Hell!! Why not?

100

Don Firth (stikes again!)

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Don Firth
Date: 19 Apr 09 - 11:11 PM

Pardon me, here's the missing r. . . .

Don Firth

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 20 Apr 09 - 04:16 AM

Poem 33 of 230: TO CARE AND SHARE

Within sunny California
    (Just a wisp of smog arriba),
Not far from L.A's Chinatown,
    A rich driver looks, with a frown,
At a beggar sat on a crate -
    Gaunt, it seems long since she last ate.
As the driver stops at the light,
    The beggar moves her hand upright.
But, though the cap clasped holds small cash,
    The rich man shares not his large stash.

Yet, to all it is plain to see,
This beggar lives in poverty.
But, like a fifth of humankind,
Little help this woman will find.
For too selfish the wealthy fare
To help the poor - to care and share.

And, in Tijuana, Mexico,
    Another has no place to go -
It's an hour before midnight,
    And he's curled outside a shopping site:
"He is sick," I'm told, passing by;
    "Him and the system," I reply.
Then my hand to my pocket goes
    For all my coins - sixteen pesos.
Enough for three meals - beans, rice -
    But, for a home, it won't suffice.

Yet, to all it is plain to see,
This pauper dwells in poverty.
But, like one fifth of humankind,
Small help this sick hombre will find.
'Cause too competitive most fare
To change the scheme - to care and share.

In Bangkok and Barcelona,
    Bombay, Melbourne and Manila -
Such woes exist all round the globe:
    Poor food, poor clothes and no abode.
These are Maslow's essential needs,
    And they can be met - with good deeds.
The beggars all could leave the street -
    With some kit for body and feet.
But voted leaders cut the aid
    From which much housing could be made.

Yet, to all it is plain to see,
Too many live in poverty.
But, from the rest of humankind,
A lack of help they tend to find.
For too greedy most snug-ones fare
To fix the need - to care and share.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Bee-dubya-ell
Date: 20 Apr 09 - 01:29 PM

If WAV were to post his entire collection of 230 poems in descending numerical order, it would be "Walkabouts ReVerse"!


No! It's just a joke! Don't do it!

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 20 Apr 09 - 02:12 PM

Joking apart, Bee, that's what I recently finished doing on myspace - then I gave each poem it's own date to create, via their Blog-Archive box, a kind of "e-book", as linked above.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: High Hopes (inactive)
Date: 20 Apr 09 - 02:53 PM

Well, to each their own, I suppose.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 21 Apr 09 - 04:14 AM

For High Hopes, and all...

Poem 23 of 230: ABOVE EVEREST

When flying from Nepal to Thailand,
    I was given a "good-side" seat;
And, as I looked out the plane window,
    The view I saw was really neat.

For breaking through a thick sheet of cloud
    Were the high Himalayan peaks;
And, rising the highest of them all,
    Mount Everest - heaven bespeaks!

From walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com
Or blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Stu
Date: 21 Apr 09 - 06:32 AM

From within the Great Whelk's clear mind
at play in the fields of the mollusc
there forms a vision of
the mighty floating crust
that is the plaything of the
tectonic Whelk lord of the earth.

The orographic process is conjured
at times of idle thought
and the eons pass
in the light of the Whelkish mind;
deep blue pools
in the rocks of feldspar
and quartz,
coughed in age-long convulsions
from the depth of the gastropod
subconscious where life is tasted
by the radulla of the soul.

For here the whelk is in repose,
and vinegar, yes.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: High Hopes (inactive)
Date: 21 Apr 09 - 12:58 PM

Like I said, to each their own

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 22 Apr 09 - 04:29 AM

Poem 187 of 230: A SOUTH SHIELDS WALKABOUT - AUTUMN 2001

Out of the museum-and-gallery
    (Wiser on Cookson and the local way),
Down Ocean Road with, to the right of me,
    Its eateries and, left, neat places to stay;
Before, on either side, Marine Parks -
    The southern-one a most beautiful place,
Teeming with moorhens, swans, grebes and mallards
    In a small lake at a scenic-hill's base.

Then (holding chips from the parade's cafe
    And, thus, a flock of gulls squawking above)
Onto the South Pier I made my way:
    Seeing seaweed over rocks - like a glove -
And high-and-dry sands held from transgression
    By growth of grass and the weaving of wood,
Plus, in the dim light of a sleepy sun,
    Fishing boats returning to Tynemouth's hood.

From walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com
Or blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse
(P.S: you may also hear me read this one one on myspace.)

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Nick
Date: 22 Apr 09 - 12:23 PM

If someone were to expire reading the entire collection of 230 poems in any order (and I think it could happen), would it be "Walkabouts Diverse"?

If someone were to divide all his poems into the number 1 would it be "Walkabouts Inverse"?

If someone were to read them and then throw themselves underwater (again I could understand why) would they be "Walkabouts Divers"?

If someone were to print all his poems onto the front of a coin would it be "Walkabouts Obverse"?

Time to go home

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 22 Apr 09 - 12:45 PM

'If someone were to divide all his poems into the number 1 would it be "Walkabouts Inverse"?'...great minds think alike, homeward-bound-Nick!...that's why I took the first and last words only from the full title "Walkabouts: travels and conclusions in verse" as my web-nickname.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 22 Apr 09 - 12:59 PM

Also, just notice my last links are broken, so I'll try again:
http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 22 Apr 09 - 01:34 PM

I have to ask--has anyone ever accused you of obdurate insensitivity, by any chance?



a

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 22 Apr 09 - 01:49 PM

Bizarre tangential zig-zags
They pop up wherever I go
I see them in the skies above
I find them etched in the snow
I hear them in the peeping of frogs
As lo! The sunlight dims
I hear them in the sawing of logs
And then in cathedral hymns
Bizarre tangential zig-zags!
They come...and then they go
And where it all will end
Only God alone can know!

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 22 Apr 09 - 02:06 PM

A day of sleepy indolence
Of doleful drowsy lag
My whole existence had become
A bizarre tangential zag.
I'd not acheived a single thing
Nor made impressions big.
And if my life were not a zag,
PErhaps it was a zig!
No crowning love, nor telling deed,
No insight consequential;
Whether a zig or whether a zag,
For sure, it was tangential.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 22 Apr 09 - 02:36 PM

"I have to ask--has anyone ever accused you of obdurate insensitivity, by any chance?" (Amos)...I doubt it, my dear friend...to be honest, I had to check my dictionary to find it meant "stubborn"...and I do hope, with all my heart, that this is a reasonable response to your query...?...For "Only God alone can know!" (Little Hawk).
walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com in not working *#?!

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 22 Apr 09 - 02:41 PM

Wha&%$???

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Rifleman (inactive)
Date: 22 Apr 09 - 02:55 PM

That's my reaction too, Is "our" resident "poet" a wee bit sensitive, or am I imagining things? And I do believe Nick was joking wasn't he?

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Spleen Cringe
Date: 22 Apr 09 - 05:14 PM

I stumble and lurch
And I zig and I zag
Past shops and the church
Then I'm sick in bag
That I keep in my pocket
For just such a time
When I want to say "fock it"
And puke out a rhyme.
I'm off one a a tangent
One more crooked mile
And I get much more plangent
But not versatile.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 22 Apr 09 - 05:43 PM

Pretty good! ;-) But watch the typos.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Nick
Date: 22 Apr 09 - 08:00 PM

I never joke being an intensely serious human being. Talking of zig and zag, though, reminds me of the two dyslexic skiers.

"I'm going to zag zig down the hill" says the first.
"I think you'll find it's zig zig" says the second.
"No it isn't" says the first (vehemently)
Unable to agree they ask another person on the hill.
"I've no idea" says the third "I'm a tobogganist"
"No problem, can I have 20 Marlboro and a box of matches then?"

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 22 Apr 09 - 08:48 PM

Awright! A whole new genre of jokes.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 23 Apr 09 - 04:26 AM

Poem 11 of 230: OTHER SIDE

On the road from Inverness to Glasgow
    (A very scenic road it is),
I hitched with a pair - Italiano;
    The left-hand drive Fiat was his.

I think they had taken turns at driving -
    I'm not sure from where or how far;
But, when they picked me up from my hiking,
    The lady was driving the car.

I recall how warm their greet did feel,
    And what a thrilling trip it was;
For, as their hands fought over the wheel,
    Our lives came near to loss:

I was sitting tight on the back-right side -
    My ears off their argument;
But my eyes surely knew how close beside
    The oncoming vehicles went!

We arrived without a scratch at Glasgow,
    But it begs this point, I feel -
Why did our forebears decide to go
    Either side for the new wheel?

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 23 Apr 09 - 08:27 AM

This feels like the right sort of place to collect the Brian O'Linn* verses from the old Gallows Humour thread, many of which I composed specifically.

Brian O' Linn met the devil one day,
Who showed him a girl lying dead in the hay;
with her he did sport 'til the night it crept in -
There's no chance of child, said Brian O'Linn!

Brian O'Linn he did fuck an old horse
But he got himself stuck and to make matters worse
the horse it ran into the market square then -
Still, they can't see me dick, says Brian O'Linn!

And Brian O'Linn he shot an old dog
And inside it's belly he found an frog
And inside the frog he found a gold ring -
That's the third time this week, said Brian O'Linn!

And Brian O'Linn found a lump in his balls,
So he picks up the phone and the doctor he calls;
That was three months ago, now he's bald and he's thin -
Sure I fit me old clothes, said Brian O'Linn!

And Brian O'Linn in his coffin did lie;
Dressed up in his best with clean boots and a tie;
Six foot underground and the grave all filled in -
Ah, they can't hear me knocking, says Brian O'Linn!

Brian O'Linn up to heaven did go,
And the light shone so bright, and as white as the snow,
And the angels were singing with no thought of a sin -
I could do with a fag, says Brian O'Linn

So Brian O'Linn he went straight down to hell
Where he filled his owld lungs with the sulphurous smell
And he warmed his cold hands by the fires with a grin;
I'll fetch in the coal, says Brian O'Linn!

* Brian O'Lynn is, of course, a Traditional Irish Song with many verses collected over the years both bawdy and otherwise (see Here for the Digi Trad version) and many more verses composed on the spot by way of that Tradition. I've been spontaneously composing (and forgetting) BOL verses most of my life, these are just a few. Perhaps you might add a few more?

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 23 Apr 09 - 08:30 AM

Verse 2 in Digi Trad:

Bryan O'Lynn had no breeches to wear
He got him a sheepskin to make him a pair,
With the fleshy side out and the woolly side in,
"Whoo, they're pleasant and cool." says Bryan O'Lynn.

From the singing of Jim Eldon:

Bryan O'Lynn had no breeches to wear
He got him a sheepskin to make him a pair,
With the woolly side out and the fleshy side in,
"Oh they stick to my arse." says Bryan O'Lynn.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: KEVINOAF
Date: 23 Apr 09 - 12:50 PM

at last mac gonigal outdone

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 23 Apr 09 - 01:30 PM

Horrifying! I wonder if Brian O'Linn was an ancestor of Shane and Don McBride. It kind of sounds that way.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 23 Apr 09 - 01:50 PM

Bye the way, happy Shakespeare's birth/death day, folks.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 23 Apr 09 - 01:55 PM

He was born and died on the same day??? (Not trying to be funny here, I am seriously asking...did he die on his birthday?)

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Rifleman (inactive)
Date: 23 Apr 09 - 02:27 PM

William Shakespeare (baptised 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616)

Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon, and baptised on 26 April 1564. His unknown birthday is traditionally observed on 23 April, St George's Day.

Born on St. George's Day? hmmmm...?

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 23 Apr 09 - 02:31 PM

Apart from the "e", LH, my last post is quite correct. Historians are certain of the day he died, and that he was born on or near the same day, which was already St. George's day, also.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Rifleman (inactive)
Date: 23 Apr 09 - 02:44 PM

Sorry, but to me it sounds like wishful thinking on the part of some English patriots, a wee bit of a coincidence.

There was for sometime the same myth about the American author, Mark Twain, being born and dying on the same day, that one was laid to rest along ime ago

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 23 Apr 09 - 02:48 PM

I wonder what the average time from birth to baptism was in those days?

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 24 Apr 09 - 04:32 AM

Poem 219 of 230: FURTHER ANTI-IMPERIALISM

Let each Christian nation have its own Church -
Equal, before God, with the others' Search.

From walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com
Or blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse
(C) David Franks 2003

(P.S: The imperialistic Anglican and Roman Catholic movements, e.g., should be dissolved, and replaced by the Church of Italy, the Church of England, the Church of Wales, etc; and, for what it's worth, I have tried to let the Archbishop of Canterbury know this - I received a thankyou letter, from his secretary, for a copy of my, above, book.)

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Rifleman (inactive)
Date: 24 Apr 09 - 12:13 PM

I personally have no problem with the Anglican Church or the Roman Catholic Church as they presently stand. To each their own beliefs as far as I'm concerned.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 24 Apr 09 - 01:32 PM

Here we go again. I wondered how long it would be before WAV reverted to type. I make the fourth, or possibly fifth time that this particular couplet has been recycled on various threads. The P.S. is interesting though, in a grisly sort of way. I think 11 commas may be some sort of record for a sentence of less than three lines.
Here are some more commas, WAV, in case you are running out.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,!
Tim

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Rifleman (inactive)
Date: 24 Apr 09 - 01:45 PM

"Here are some more commas, WAV, in case you are running out"

M. R. James, the writer of ghost stories and scholarly articles, thought (tongue in cheek that is) that dots made for great writing, let us have a few of those as well...........................

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 24 Apr 09 - 01:57 PM

Thanks, you two, for your latest commants. ;-)>

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Don Firth
Date: 24 Apr 09 - 02:04 PM

Instructions for use:

1. Load commas in shotgun.
2. Aim at page.
3. Let fly with both barrels!

(Oh! Looks like that's what you've done! Okay, never mind.)

Don Firth

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Rifleman (inactive)
Date: 24 Apr 09 - 02:06 PM

unlike Monty James, my tongue was not planted firmly in my cheek as I typed what I felt was the only fitting reply.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 25 Apr 09 - 04:35 AM

M. R. James, the writer of ghost stories and scholarly articles, thought (tongue in cheek that is) that dots made for great writing, let us have a few of those as well...........................

On a minor point of pedantry, MRJ wasn't referring to dots as such, rather to ellipses, as you illustrate, and which WAV evidently doesn't. For anyone who's interested, you may read the relevant piece on-line at Stories I Have Tried to Write. Otherwise, I think there are far more offensive things about WAV's statement than his bizarre use of punctuation - and yet it is this that draws your ire.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 25 Apr 09 - 09:10 AM

(Opposing imperialism shouldn't offend anyone, S.S.)

Poem 114 of 230: CLITHEROE CASTLE'S VIEWS - SUMMER 2000

From outside metres-thick wall
    (Down on leafy grounds grown tall,
Then across stony households
    To lush-green sheep-grazing folds,
And up further to the moor),
    Clitheroe Castle's views soar.

From walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com
Or blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 25 Apr 09 - 10:14 AM

Sinister Supporter; I completely agree that there are many more worrying aspects to WAV than his eccentric approach to grammar and punctuation. Many of us have tried to engage in serious debate with this rather odd individual, but discussion of any substantive issues raised by his attempts at verse merely produces references to further platitudinous attempts on his various websites. Pointing out punctuation errors generally produces a response, as WAV is genuinely (if mistakenly) proud of his Australian-learned English.
Tim

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 25 Apr 09 - 10:54 AM

I'm afraid that this thread will now revert to the expected WAV thread. The Catholic and Anglican Churches are not imperialism except in your mind WAV,

Please stay within Joe's remit for this thread i.e. verse and doggerel

regards

Stu

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Rifleman (inactive)
Date: 25 Apr 09 - 12:01 PM

The actual quote from said piece by M. R. James reads:

(Dots are believed by many writers of our day to be a good substitute for effective writing. They are certainly an easy one. Let us have a few more......)

Note James uses the word DOTS, not the word ellipses. If you MUST point out articles, please quote them properly. I thank you, and I'm sure Monty James would thank you, if he were able.

This, of course is a minor point of pedantry. *LOL*

Anyway back to the doggerel and other verses, which, after all, is what this ummmmmm thread is all about; is it not?

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 26 Apr 09 - 04:35 AM

"Anyway back to the doggerel and other verses, which, after all, is what this ummmmmm thread is all about; is it not?" (Rifleman)...and, what the heck, the tune as well this time...

(Just watching the London Marathon on T.V.)

Poem 42 of 230: IMPRESSIONS OF LONDON IN 1997

(TUNE:

E Fsharp G G A G Fs Fs
E Fs Fs Fs-G Fs E E
E G G G A A G G
E Fs Fs Fs-G Fs E E)

Cabs all uniform in their shape.
    Good galleries make one gape.
Hard-going people on the move -
    Things matter much in this groove.

About the weather lots of moans.
    Solicits stuck on pay-phones.
Summer weather - not bad, I've felt.
    Lads giving a ball a belt.

Real estate is worth so much -
    Tenants' rent sky-high, as such;
Nice stocky buildings all around -
    Will some have to hit the ground?

Cheek to jowl: council flats needed -
    Stock by demand exceeded;
Building higher seems only way -
    Unless less arrive to stay...

Beaut. looking girls from many lands -
    Grace gone for capital plans;
Polite folks from many cultures
    Do become money vultures.

Veiled women in platform shoes.
    High-street beggars in the blues.
Privacy here costs so much -
    Partnerships suffer, as such.

See movies and shows from way back;
    Of good music there's no lack;
All-day breakfasts at the good pubs;
    An abundance of nightclubs.

Green groomed parklands: the best I've seen -
    Their gardens kept neat and clean;
Geraniums in flowerpots
    On facades make pleasing spots.

Floating pubs on the River Thames,
    And its bridges - real gems;
Both ways, here, the water goes -
    Still in range of tidal-flows.

Children, at park lakes, feed the ducks,
    Or watch squirrels take some nuts.
Into ponds, weeping willows sag.
    Sharp attacks on those who lag.

From walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 26 Apr 09 - 06:57 AM

(Opposing imperialism shouldn't offend anyone, S.S.)

As you've proved in both your published work and your various past threads on Mudcat, your so-called opposition of imperialism is a smokescreen to your nauseating beliefs concerning immigration & cultural / racial segregation and purity.

WAV threads worthy of note:

Weekly Walkabout cum Talkabout

Walkaboutsverse

5000 Morris Dancers

England's National Musical Instrument

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 26 Apr 09 - 11:30 AM

No, S.S., I genuinely don't like imperialism - be it Nazi, Victorian, or any other.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 26 Apr 09 - 12:57 PM

If you poke him, any slogger'll
React by spouting whacky doggerel,
Full of nouns, and weak on timing,
Blindly glued to senseless rhyming
Free of nuance, craft or vision,
Nor imbued with erudition.
For entertainment, any blogger'll
Do as well as suchlike doggerel.

Winston Meerschaum von und zu Lichteinconte
"Ponderings from a Noble Mind"
Austria, 1959

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 26 Apr 09 - 03:02 PM

If you MUST point out articles, please quote them properly.

I wasn't quoting the article, just pointing out that by dots Monty was referring to what we would call ellipses, rather than any liberal sprinkling of punctuation per-se. I think the confusion here arises from the fact that when read out loud the ellipses is invariably rendered as dot dot dot dot; Monty wrote a lot of this stuff to read out loud, so referring to ellipses as dots makes perfect sense. Did Monty write SIHTTW to be read out? I'm not altogether sure actually, but I do have tapes of Michael Hordern reading most of the stories (including SIHTTW) which is the next best thing.

Anyway, Rifleman, you're obviously a fan of the great man. I've just this minute won a copy of Monty's The Sculptured Bosses in the roof of the Bauchun Chapel of Our Lady of Pity in Norwich Cathedral off ebay - original 1908 copy (are there any others???) - a snip at £5! Needless to say I'm one happy bunny....

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Don Firth
Date: 26 Apr 09 - 03:40 PM

Elipsis marks:

Elipsis (singular), elipses (plural).

According to the style manuals, an elipsis indicates that something has been left out, and in narrative writing often indicates that the reader may fill in what he or she believes the missing word or phrase might be.

The standard elipsis within a sentence is three periods (dots), preferably with a space between each period, thus:

"If . . . then. . . ."

If the elipsis falls at the end of the sentence, one should then use four periods, indicating the existence of an elipsis (three dots) followed by a fourth dot (a period), indicating the end of the sentence.

[Thank you, Mrs. Beasley.]

Don Firth

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Rifleman (inactive)
Date: 26 Apr 09 - 03:48 PM

SS Type Montague Rhodes James into Youtube you'll find several great readings by Robert Powell in the role of Monty James (this much more interesting that WAV isn't it? *LOL*)

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 26 Apr 09 - 03:48 PM

OR and there's more...
OR let me think...

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Rifleman (inactive)
Date: 26 Apr 09 - 03:59 PM

Ummm...Mr. Firth, I believe I've already explained that M.R. James had his tongue planted firmly in his cheek when writing about the "dots" Monty James didn't take himself TOO seriously at times and had a ridiculous sense of humour. Anyway DOGGEREL please!! (let us have a few more !!!!!!!!!!!! *LOL*)

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 26 Apr 09 - 04:01 PM

Thanks for reminding me, Rifleman - I'd forgot about the Powell readings so it'll be nice to revisit them. 1986!? How time flies... Never thought about searching YouTube for M R James - lots to explore, including the Christopher Lee programmes too, which recreate Monty's readings to delightful effect.

I once met Christopher Lee in Durham Cathedral (during the filming of Ivanhoe), and had a casual ten minute conversation with him without once twigging who he was, even though my friend stood by open mouthed the whole time.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Keith A of Hertford
Date: 26 Apr 09 - 04:03 PM

UKers should look in next few minutes.
Not spectacular but not easy to find normally.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Rifleman (inactive)
Date: 26 Apr 09 - 04:26 PM

"1986!?"

Robert Powell readings:
Christmas in 1986, under the title of Classic Ghost Stories.The series ran from 25-30 December 1986

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Don Firth
Date: 26 Apr 09 - 05:10 PM

< pedant >

Lest someone point it out before I do myself, all of the "elipses" in my above post should be spelled with a double L, as in "ellipsis."



Don Firth

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Keith A of Hertford
Date: 27 Apr 09 - 03:12 AM

woops, wrong thread.

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 27 Apr 09 - 04:45 AM

Poem 25 of 230: UBUD

At Bali's Ubud,
    I wound myself down:
Having done Asia,
    It was just the town -
Before Australia
    And work to be found.

Staying in a hut
    (Traditional 'twas),
Beside rice paddies,
    And just eight dollars,
My mind was at ease -
    Calm like a scholar's.

I read and I mused
    Over where I'd been;
Saw Monkey Jungle,
    Which is cool and green;
And, from a bundle,
    Chose an artist's seen.

At night, a gecko -
    Friendly, on the wall;
By day, a farmer -
    At his rice-toil;
And, always, culture -
    Ubud's worth a call.

From walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com
Or blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 27 Apr 09 - 05:27 AM

The series ran from 25-30 December 1986

I don't doubt it, Rifleman; my alarm was that it was so long ago! Still, each Christmas without fail Monty is high on the agenda, be it in print, or on TV, or record. Last year I was reading Phil Rickman's The Fabric of Sin, set around the enigmatic Templar church at Garway where he alludes to a spooky incident that befell Monty during his visit there in 1917, after which he wrote to Gwendolen McBryde, "We must have offended something or somebody at Garway... Next time we shall know better". Having been to Garway, I can well believe it...

Lest someone point it out before I do myself, all of the "elipses" in my above post should be spelled with a double L, as in "ellipsis."

It was tempting, Don, but saving the odd bad egg, are we not gentlemen after all?

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 27 Apr 09 - 07:37 AM

PS:

(let us have a few more !!!!!!!!!!!! *LOL*)

The exclamation point is shorthand for the Latin Io, which means, of course Joy, as in And "Io, io, io!"
By priest and people sungen - so you can't have enough ! in my opinion. In knowing this, however, how do we then interpret This I wonder? Well, that first post is obvious enough - the joy of breasts leading to the car becoming embedded in a soft verge... A likely enough scenario I would have thought! (!!).

And Brian O'Linn he dug up his mother
and covered her skull with a hundred white feathers
and he hoisted it high on the church steeple then -
"That's a westerly wind," said Brian O'Linn!

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 27 Apr 09 - 08:19 AM

...I bet that hedge has seen a few "Parus majors," SS!!

Subject: RE: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Donuel
Date: 27 Apr 09 - 01:33 PM

This song always eases
whatever troubles you
You only need some mirrors
and sturdy wordy glue
Yet it all can come apart
with six quick sneezes
and a loud resounding fart
the sixth sheik's
sixth sheep
got sex sick
with a pathogen quite brand new
So never trouble trouble
cuz if trouble troubles you
You could stumble in trouble's rubble
and the flu could stick to you

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 28 Apr 09 - 04:26 AM

Poem 6 of 230: THE PICKER

While picking onions at Echuca,
    Betimes I came across a
Man who was, he said, by trade a picker.

A compact and stocky physique had he;
    Kind he was to first-time me -
Advising, "You should pick 'em on your knee."

Then he told me of his long-kept plan
    Of travel by caravan
To pick seasoned crops, over a wide span.

But workers' rates, I knew, were non too fair -
    Twenty dollars a tonne, there,
Was all the onion-crop owner could spare.

Though (with tally taken by some louse,
    And told to see owner or spouse),                                 
Believe me, they lived in some kind of house.

From walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 28 Apr 09 - 12:48 PM

As at this toxic thread I stare,
I meet a man who is not there.
Not yesterday, nor yet today.
And yet, he never goes away.
He seeth not, nor understands,
But somehow seems to have his hands
Or some device, obscure and hexed
For flooding cyberspace with text.


Diane von und zu Schlumdogger
Ein leerer Tag ist für Uberhaupt
Berlin, 1925

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 28 Apr 09 - 01:22 PM

It could be worse
He could fill cyberspace with verse

stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: High Hopes (inactive)
Date: 28 Apr 09 - 01:57 PM

"It could be worse
He could fill cyberspace with verse"

The attempt is being made
I am afraid.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: robomatic
Date: 28 Apr 09 - 02:15 PM

walkabouts verse
for better or worse
is attractin'
some interactin'
and many thoughts deep
are making their creep
from the enlightened skull
like barnicle to hull-

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 29 Apr 09 - 04:55 AM

Poem 86 of 230: ROBOTS

In factories,
    I've spent sometime
Working machines
    Whose goods should rhyme -
Moulding machines,
    Whose plastic shots
Are sorted by
    Auto. robots...

Well, now robots -
    Before 'twas folks:
Process workers.
    Employment hoax?

From walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Donuel
Date: 29 Apr 09 - 03:18 PM

The other side of night

Before I fall asleep
I feel my heart beating
I feel it in my fingers,
Sometimes I feel it skip a beat
As if surprised by a lover

They say the other side of night
There is a tunnel with a great blast of light
Maybe mine will be a splash of color
where sounds and smells replace the light
as I fade into all the others.

I don't fear the very last beat
By then my old age retreats
And looks back with the joy of youth
While my youth looks forward in sadness
meeting halfway with acceptance and gladness

Good people share kind thoughts in the end
they take care how they share it with others.
They know their heart
beats just like yours
as yours beat within your mother.

So in the end thank you Amos for all the verse
Rapaire thank you for all the wit
Thanks Spaw, for the funny and perverse
and to Severn whose puns never quit

To Rob omatic who thinks himself
a foil or foe enigmatic
I say you're an autobot
stuck in an endless loop
Always yelling Up yours
I'm better than the group.

So when you cross over
to the other side
and you wander the tunnel blindly
To you I say go to hell
but to you I say it kindly.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 30 Apr 09 - 05:24 AM

Poem 200 of 230: THE PLASTICS OF POETRY

As melt to shot
    (Right on the spot,
Or flashed or short),
    Poets mould thought.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 01 May 09 - 04:39 AM

...Hello, hello..?

Poem 148 of 230: AUDIENCE LOST

I returned, again,
    To what they pen -
The free-verse poets:
    Deep prose in sets...
I could read, again,
    Of Mice and Men.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 01 May 09 - 05:16 PM

I just heard a "poem" from the new "Poet Laureate" (on The Verb, BBC 3), which, to me, sounded more like the setting of a scene in a novella, or suchlike - again.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 01 May 09 - 07:04 PM

The issue is not free verse versus structured verse, really, WAV. Doggerel--humorous rhyming--is ubiquitous, and so is cheap sentiment jammed into rhymes. But neither doggerel nor Hallmark sentiments make a poet.

A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Bee-dubya-ell
Date: 01 May 09 - 09:25 PM

If I ever have a dog, I'll name it "Doggerel"
And I'll paper train it using Hallmark greeting cards
Perhaps that's why the Hallmark shop and the pet store
Are next door to one another at the mall

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 02 May 09 - 05:16 AM

For centuries, Amos, the challenge (and joy) of poetry was to say things WITHIN the limits of metre and/or rhyme - to hell with those who said to hell with that!

Poem 118 of 230: WHALLEY ABBEY...WHAT TALES? - AUTUMN 2000

Cistercian monks have clearly been -
    Their Abbey's ruins can still be seen;
And, sounding for centuries before,
    Calder flows have passed - seeking the shore.
Lords of the grounds have, more lately, stayed -
    Their manor houses reused and unscathed.
Through beautiful gardens insects fly -
    The ruins of folk just a pass-by;
And, by viaduct, trains pass above -
    Folk thereby viewing a town I love.
Anglers and C. of E. delegates,
    Hikers and tourists, have crossed the gates...
Opportunistic masons, kings-men,
    Model makers, Turner, and men who pen...
Perhaps the witches came down from the hill,
    And do ghosts haunt - still questing their fill..?

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 02 May 09 - 04:07 PM

the challenge (and joy) of poetry

Well there's wix words I never expected to see in a WAV thread.

Otherwise...

Did you make it to Whalley church, WAV? The bulk of the abbey choir stalls & misericords reside here (as carved by one Mr Eatough circa 1430) complete with moral proverbs in English verse(who so melles hym of yat al men dos let hym cum heir and shoe the ghos) and French prose (Penses molt et parles pou. Be sure to check it out next time you're passing.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 02 May 09 - 04:08 PM

Wix Words? Cursed alliteration! Six words, of course...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 03 May 09 - 05:13 AM

Okay, S.S. - it's certainly one place I'd like to revisit; and, by the way, that first chap appears to be in a text-book hammer-position of the tennis-serve...

Poem 223 of 230: SERIOUS SERVING

We were taught "stand in-plane, like a golfer" -
Who started this "aim at the umpire"?!

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 03 May 09 - 03:21 PM

that first chap appears to be in a text-book hammer-position

A natural position for a blacksmith I would have thought.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: High Hopes (inactive)
Date: 03 May 09 - 04:05 PM

"that first chap appears to be in a text-book hammer-position"

and here's me thinking it had something to do with that ancient Scottish art of throwing heavy objects around.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 03 May 09 - 04:56 PM

...never seen a Scot toss a caber with that technique...does look a bit like Andy Murray, mind.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 04 May 09 - 05:01 AM

Poem 66 of 230: TO SCOTLAND, AGAIN

By coach from central Manchester -
    In-between stops at Bolton,
Carlisle and Hamilton -
    To Glasgow, these I did vista...

Some sheep, blotched vividly with blue,
    Filing down a well-worn path,
Did form a long woolly lath,
    Aimed at a lusher greener hue.

A farmer on a four-wheeler:
    His canine friend close beside.
A horse not on call to ride:
    On leave - a no-shoe non-heeler!

Convex pastures with heath-moorland;
    And flatter grain-planes below:
Cropped, awaiting till-and-sow -
    Perhaps with grazing beforehand.

Passed Edwin Waugh territory,
    Cumbria's sharp forms and tones
Compelled sense off seat-cramped bones
    To their well-honed long-read story.

Further north, farms of slighter falls:
    One a black-sheep specialist,
With some Friesians on the list -
    All held between old dry-stone-walls.

The Lakes behind, a strong Scotch mist
    Changed the sun to a full-moon
And hid scenery, till soon -
    Light, and the wide scenes on Burns' list.

New farms harnessing the wind's blow,
    Old white-and-grey-cottage views;
Plus pines, espousing the hues -
    In distinct leaf-tones - of Glasgow.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,EricTheOrange
Date: 04 May 09 - 07:04 AM

these I did vista...

Ouch!

Hark! Do I hear the sound of the English language sobbing?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 04 May 09 - 11:18 AM

These I did Vista?
Not on my Mackintosh Mista

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Donuel
Date: 04 May 09 - 11:24 AM

If you google the worst poet ever
You will find an Englishman quite unclever
I posted his works on a poetry forum
and got incredible praise for 'em.

To me the praise was very funny
for the worst poet for your money
When I told 'em what they really were
I was banished for 'Ever more'.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Doug Chadwick
Date: 04 May 09 - 11:33 AM

If you google the worst poet ever
You will find an Englishman ……?


When I Google "the worst poet ever", the first four hits are for McGonagall.

DC

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: High Hopes (inactive)
Date: 04 May 09 - 12:15 PM

Hark! Do I hear the sound of the English language sobbing?

yes and gnashing of teeth, unearthly wailings, and the rendering of clothing

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jeri
Date: 04 May 09 - 12:17 PM

I suppose you'd have to eat a lot of drippy greasy food to render your cloth, eh?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 04 May 09 - 12:19 PM

I think you mean the rending of clothing, High Hopes; it's really difficult to spread clothing on walls, and even harder to boil it down to make soap.
Tim in pedant mode...

(Is a pedant just a peasant with a really bad cold?)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 04 May 09 - 12:19 PM

"Vista" - poetic licence, Mister.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: High Hopes (inactive)
Date: 04 May 09 - 12:37 PM

Vista:
a dead end platform from Microsoft

"it's really difficult to spread clothing on walls"
not if you frame it and then hang it on the wall, it's been done.

High Hopes - art critic for the Much-Binding-in-the-Marsh Post

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 04 May 09 - 01:36 PM

WAV; even poetic licence should make sense. 'Vista' is a noun, not a verb. Have you got a poetic license, or did you fail on reversing couplets and three-point stanzas?
Tim

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 04 May 09 - 02:12 PM

It's abba, so you come up with a better rhyme than "vista" with "Manchester", Mister.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 04 May 09 - 02:28 PM

By all means use 'vista', just don't use it as a verb! I see this particular effort dates from your 'superfluous hyphens' period. I think I prefer the 'excessive commas' period myself. What do others think?
Tim

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 04 May 09 - 04:38 PM

'These things I saw' would be English and nearly rhyme with Manchester, particularly in local pronunciation

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 04 May 09 - 04:54 PM

Thanks, Stu - I think I'll change it to:

By coach from central Manchester -
    In-between stops at Bolton,
Carlisle and Hamilton -
    To Glasgow, these are sights I saw...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Stu
Date: 05 May 09 - 04:54 AM

By coach from central Manchester -
    In-between stops at Bolton,
Carlisle and Hamilton -
    To Glasgow, my grollies are polyester.

. . . or . . .


By coach from central Manchester -
    In-between stops at Bolton,
Carlisle and Hamilton -
    To Glasgow home of Rab, the string-vester.

. . . or . . .

By coach from central Manchester -
    In-between stops at Bolton,
Carlisle and Hamilton -
    To Glasgow, where liveth many a Buckfast investor.


. . . or . . .

By coach from central Manchester -
    In-between stops at Bolton,
Carlisle and Hamilton -
    To Glasgow, where Whelks never fester.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Stu
Date: 05 May 09 - 04:54 AM

200!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 05 May 09 - 05:53 AM

Poem 163 of 230: ON A CLEAR DAY - SUMMER 2001

Far - the Lakelands behind Blackpool Tower;
    Well-ebbed - the ocean and estuary;
Odd - a sand-digger and wagons that cross;
    Tonal - the flats left by tidal power;
Patched - the grasses surviving the big tides;
    Plonked - the driftwood sprouted in other lands;
Clinging - the coastal flora to the dunes;
    Busy - the bees and folks on Southport rides.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com
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(e-book)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 06 May 09 - 04:37 AM

Poem of 160 of 230: MACCLESFIELD - SUMMER 2001

After hearing the ways
    Of the old silk-weaving trade,
While being served some tea,
    Within the Mulberry Tree,
Memories came back to me
    Of - during my infant days -
Feeding 'worms till sheaths were made.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com
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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 07 May 09 - 04:32 AM

Poem 16 of 230: A BEAUTIFUL STAGE

If a couple, with plans to wed,
    Asked me, off the top of my head,
For somewhere I thought well in-tune
    As a place for a honeymoon,
It would have - flashing back - to be
    Beautifully-honed Italy.

From
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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 07 May 09 - 09:25 AM

Nothing at all against the starter of the, atop, "Really Really Important Poem" thread - just baffled as to why this poetry thread was booted down?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 08 May 09 - 05:22 AM

Poem 41 of 230: EVEN AFTER LINCOLN, STEINBECK, AND KING

Written at a public toilet by the
    Statue of Liberty:
"What of Equality, Fraternity;
    And Democracy!?"

The U.S.A. has aided dictators -
    Right-Wing leaders, of course;
So some's bestowal of democracy
    Is hypocrisy.

http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com/walkaboutsverse (e-scroll)
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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 May 09 - 04:44 AM

...maybe this post will move the thread back up, again..?

Poem/Song 111 of 230: THE MERSEY AT DIDSBURY

(TUNE:

Eb F G Ab G
D F G Ab G
D F G Ab G
D G Ab Bb Ab
D G Ab Bb Ab
D F G Ab G)

Took bus one-four-three,                        
    From Piccadilly,
Along Oxford Road;
    Passed the old uni's,
Those shops with saris,
    And my first abode.

At Didsbury Village,
    The Old Parsonage
Looked neat, and gave sound,
    As I walked the way,
At about midday,
    To a Mersey mound.

From atop this bank,
    No longer a blank
Was the strong river,
    Nor the wide fairways -
Where I'd filled two days,
    Twelve years earlier.

I then headed back,
    On Stenner Woods' track
(Hearing more birdsong,
    And seeing mossed stumps
Plus well-layered clumps),
    To a human throng.

This throng was viewing -
    Justly pursuing -
The smart Rock Gardens,
    Sloped on Fletcher Moss,
Which I, too, did cross,
    Before homeward wends.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 10 May 09 - 06:08 AM

Poem 227 of 230: ROTATING SHIFTS

There will always be places
    That need to be staffed
Twenty-four hours a day,
    But I think it's daft
To rotate bodies and minds
    Around any craft...

The better way seems to be
    Penalty-rates paid
For three fixed eight-hour shifts -
    With adjustments laid,
By those choosing to work nights,
    For sleep to be made.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Spleen Cringe
Date: 10 May 09 - 11:16 AM

"a Mersey mound"

Eek! What's one of those? Is it something I should avoiding stepping in next time I'm in Didsbury?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Spleen Cringe
Date: 10 May 09 - 11:19 AM

A mersey mound
Weighs but a pound
Stepped on, it makes a squelching sound
It's small and round
And on the ground
Where it was squeezed out by a hound

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 10 May 09 - 12:30 PM

No - it's grassed over, SC, and, as I say, allows a nice view of the, also verdant, golf course there. Now all you need is either some kind of navigation system or, better still, you could hold with you, as you walkabout, the very poem "The Mersey at Didsbury" in your heart.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Smokey
Date: 10 May 09 - 10:11 PM

'Tis foolish whim,
    Nay - almost folly
To watch folk drive,
    From a grassy knolly.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 11 May 09 - 04:41 AM

Poem 144 of 230: LINGOLF

(TUNE:

Eb G G G A A
A Bb C' C' C' Bb
Eb F G A A A
F A Bb G G G)

Your honour, Your Honour.
    Watch out - he's a burglar.
I'm to school on your put.
    That's one heck of a cut!

It's my bread and butter -
    A left-to-right cutter.
That's where elephants die.
    That's a grave - not a lie.

I'm in the old plumb-duff;
    Tough - I'm on the cut-stuff.
The hooks with my driver,
    And fades with my putter.

There's a goalie in there.
    Trees are some nine-tenths air.
I have a soldier's plight -
    Always left, right, left, right.

Everything was fine -
    Apart from weight and line.
It took a member's bounce.
    A rare bird to announce.

An unlucky horseshoe.
    Had a look - liked the view.
Poetry in motion.
    Read with blind devotion.

He's just hit a cracker.
    I'm only a hacker.
I wish I'd missed the well.
    A fried-egg where it fell.

A crop of a divot.
    It was speed that killed it.
Your wedges land so neat -
    Butterflies with sore feet.

Like pitching in pudding.
    Never up, never in.
Drive for show, put for dough.
    Can't beat bad luck, you know.

He's just missed a gimme.
    That, then, would be dormy.
It went in the side-door.
    A Bradman of a score.

Just spoiled a good walk.
    Can't play, but can he talk!
'Twas daylight robbery.   
    Not "how" but "how many."

The nineteenth's not too far -
Have a jar at the bar..?

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 11 May 09 - 04:51 AM

Fried-egg????? Since when did this need a hyphen?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 11 May 09 - 05:24 AM

True - there's no possible confusion in that line MT, but fried and egg do appear together a lot..?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 11 May 09 - 05:27 AM

and plum duff doesn't have a 'b'

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 11 May 09 - 09:15 AM

Again, true Stu - but, whilst my dictionary gives "choicest part" for "plum", it also gives "exactly" for "plumb"..?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 11 May 09 - 09:25 AM

And in this sense, 'Putt' has two t's. Otherwise, the line makes no sense. The poem is not bad, for a hammered together collection of ancient golfing cliches.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 11 May 09 - 09:59 AM

Thanks MT - that definitely is a mistake (of six years standing, frankly), which I shall fix shortly...owe you a "jar at the bar"!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 11 May 09 - 10:39 AM

...and you do know that plum duff is slang for homosexual?

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 11 May 09 - 10:56 AM

For golfers in the rough, then, Stu, we better leave it as "plumb duff".

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 12 May 09 - 04:51 AM

Haven't played golf for about a decade, but before that...

Poem 97 of 230: COLLECTING THE CARDS

Some folks are plant diehards,
    Others keep foreign coins;
Twitchers collect sightings,
    And golfers their scorecards.

My hobby's the latter,
    And, in many places,
I've managed just one round -
    Scores? Another matter!

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Bill D
Date: 12 May 09 - 02:15 PM

Been trying to decide what I am reminded of. Couldn't place it, so I let my imagination wander.


If Emily Dickenson and Ogden Nash had an affair and produced an offspring, and taught it poetry, and it took LSD and drank Budweiser while it strived to emulate Mom & Dad..

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 12 May 09 - 02:32 PM

Not Nash, surely McGonagle and an autistic teenage druggie, or some such marriage from hell...



A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 13 May 09 - 04:39 AM

...Poem 207 of 230: REGARDING DRUG ABUSE

Whenever I'm feeling bad,
    I try to change my thinking -
Another poem, a fad...
    Or let time do its passing.
For it's weak to abuse drugs,
And drug abuse weakens mugs...

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Smokey
Date: 13 May 09 - 06:19 PM

Through diligent research it has been found out,
That mugs break just as easily with or without.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 14 May 09 - 04:42 AM

...Poem 94 of 230: MOROCCAN TEA

Here's a hint
    Concerning mint.
It's very brief:
    Just pick a leaf
From the backyard,
    And wash if marred;

Leaf, bag, in mug,
    Boil the jug,
Pour in and stir,
    Oust the former.
It's easy, see -
    Moroccan tea...

Well, 'tis roughly.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Smokey
Date: 14 May 09 - 02:59 PM

Blended Indian's my tipple, but just to be droll,
   Its finest companion - Moroccan roll.
The kettle is sacred; forget it you not,
   But the secret of good tea is always the pot.
To brew in the mug is ne'er quite satisfact'ry,
   It offendeth the delicate senses olfact'ry.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 14 May 09 - 04:01 PM

"Blended Indian's my tipple" (Smokey)...I knew very little of Darjeeling and it's nice walks, plus some agitation in 1988 - I went the long way from Calcutta to Nepal, including a ride on top of a bus, simply to try the tea there.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Smokey
Date: 14 May 09 - 06:14 PM

Although you're retired from versification,
   No longer do travel or multiplication,
I'm forced to admire such courageous devotion
   As ventures, I'll wager, 'cross mountain and ocean
To sample the simple delights of a potion
   I whinge about fetching from Morrison's.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 15 May 09 - 06:29 AM

...Poem 101 of 230: JUST SUBSIST

(TUNE:

D F# G G A A G G
D A B B A A G G
D B B B A A G G
D A A A B A G G,
D A A A B A G G)

At times when I've had time to take,
    I've thought of a plot by a lake:
The plot would be of fertile ground;
    The lake would have some trout around.

The plot's house would be made of brick -
    Well insulated, in good nick.
And, round this abode, there'd be built -
    Solar panels, kept at best tilt.

Inside large coops would run the legs
    Of chooks and quails - for fresh eggs.
A vine for grapes plus summer shade;
    And, in thin beds, vegetables laid.

Up at dawn, to use all sunlight -
    Fish and farm by day, read at night.
A spouse with me I'd not resist -
    In retirement, we'd just subsist.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 16 May 09 - 04:46 AM

Poem 32 of 230: THE POLYNESIAN CULTURAL CENTRE

North, on the warm island of Oahu
    There's a really good place to see:
The Polynesian Cultural Centre -
    A centre linked by Christianity;
It's run by a broad-minded Christian group,
    Championing cultures while they preach.
I talked to a few of the kind members,
    And here's an abstract of their speech:

The employees are all uni. students,
    Labouring for their study and board;
They come from many Pacific islands,
    And are all believers in their Lord;
They are studying for varied degrees,
    And working at a number of jobs;
Some work as cultural entertainers,
    While others serve the tourist mobs.

I walked around for more than half a day,
    Then went to a skilled stage-show at night.
By day, the different island nations
    Do shows at their own cultural site;
There's good Tahitian cooking to be tried,
    Tamure dancing and hula, too.
Plus, at night, dramatic fire-walking,
    Drums and song, to name you but a few.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 17 May 09 - 05:23 AM

Poem 95 of 230 A GOOD LIFE

To fauna,
    Home-flora.
Sheep for wool -
    Fed till full.
Chooks for eggs -
    Free-range legs.
Milk from cows -
    Should well house:
Better grade
    Can be made.
Fish for game -
    Cut the pain.
Dogs for pets -
    No regrets.
And question
    Castration.

This does say
    Buddha's way,
And Blake's way:
    A good life -
For all life.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
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And further on "To fauna, home-flora", I shall try and post the following piece of prose here, as yesterday I was prevented from re/staring a thread on native gardening - which the BBC, on Gardeners' World e.g., seem to be moving more-and-more away from, sadly...

Green gardening is native gardening, and vegetables, plus other consumables, should be the only exotic-flora we plant - as doing so can help limit food-miles, etc. By filling our other garden spaces with natives, we use less water and other resources, whilst aiding the native-fauna that, over the centuries, have evolved with them.
(Even high-nectar exotics, such as Buddleia, that are very attractive to SOME native-fauna, should be avoided, because they upset nature's/God's balance – God created evolution, too, that is.)
Our green gardens, with their vegies and natives, can be made still greener by the addition of compost heaps/bins; a wildlife pond – for native frogs, newts, etc, rather than exotic goldfish; bee- and bird-boxes, plus carefully selected feeders; rain- and grey-water vats; by growing everything organically, including thrifty home-propagation/species-swapping; and by leaving some lush untidy patches, decaying branches, etc.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 18 May 09 - 04:23 AM

Poem 141 of 230: IN A SMALL POT

(TUNE:

D F# F# F#
G F# E E
D E E E
F# E D D)

I like Acers
    But rent a flat,
So mimic one
    In a small pot:

As for starters,
    I made a plat
Of ivy run
    Out from one spot;

To this basis,
    All round the mat,
In a trunk-bun,
    Dirt - soaked a lot;

Without traces
    (Not got down pat),
A moss-lawn spun
    And short-ferns shot;

And, like Acers,
    Branches have sat -
Wirework done -
    Toward the pot;

Trimmed with scissors,
    This foliage-hat
Thrives in the sun
    Of my sill-plot.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 19 May 09 - 04:46 AM

(As no-one else is posting nowadays, I've noticed it takes about 24 hours to go from top to bottom here, as a matter of interest.)

Poem 24 of 230: THROUGH SOUTH-EAST ASIA

A highlight of South-East Asia -
    As with other tropical lands -
Is the abundance of fresh fruits:
    At cutting which some have deft hands.
And, from these fruits, I'd often choose -
    To cool down from tropical heat -
A freshly prepared coconut:
    Chopped to drink; lining scooped to eat.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 20 May 09 - 04:34 AM

Poem 130 of 230: ENTRÉE/AT BOLTON'S ALBERT HALL: OPERA SONG - WINTER 2000/1

(TUNE:

G A B C' B
C' D' C' B
B C' B D' D'
G E D C
C' E' F' E' E'
E' E' D' C'
C' E' F' G' G'
G E D C)

From novel, and play,
To opera,
La Traviata
Was my entrée
To a media
I find is a
Fine way to relay
Human drama.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Smokey
Date: 20 May 09 - 08:10 PM

Medium..

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 21 May 09 - 03:12 AM

Doris Stokes! (Sorry, thought it was a crossword clue...)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 21 May 09 - 04:50 AM

Poem 161 of 230: AT THE CAPTAIN COOK BIRTHPLACE MUSEUM - SUMMER 2001

I listened and looked and read, then wrote,
    Within the remarks book, this brief note:
"Aborigines - first there/worst off"...
    And received a Rule Britannia cough.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Stu
Date: 21 May 09 - 05:54 AM

"God created evolution"

LOL!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Smokey
Date: 21 May 09 - 01:05 PM

If you had a room full of clairvoyants, would they be called media?
Would they need to be told in advance?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 21 May 09 - 01:25 PM

What I do know, Smokey, is that the rhyme scheme of "ENTRÉE" (above) is abbaabba.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Smokey
Date: 21 May 09 - 01:30 PM

So good they named them twice :-)

I see what you mean about the rhyming, I'm just pedantic about misused plurae.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 21 May 09 - 04:37 PM

I'd rather listen to Swedish folk, Smokey - whatever the rhyme structure! ;-)>

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Smokey
Date: 21 May 09 - 05:20 PM

Ah, but folk music is only yesterday's pop..

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 22 May 09 - 05:17 AM

Poem 162 of 230: TEES TO TYNE: FIRST IMPRESSIONS - SUMMER 2001

(TUNE:

E F# F# E D E F# F#
F# G G A B A G G
D G A A B B A A
F# G A B B A A-G G

D D F# F# F#-G F# E E
E E E E F# E D D)

Where traditions are not so rare;
    Sea, country and works scent the air;
A multitude of monuments,
    Planted tubs and patterned pavements.

The longish pedestrian malls;
    The remnants of defensive walls;
"Broken-roofed buildings" are a gauge
    Of the respect for heritage.

Wheat, rape and pines in the fields;
    Estuaries guarded by shields;
Long sandy beaches and wide scenes;
    Romantic-ruin go-betweens.

Rivers in parts licked by trees,
    Or fringed by boat clubs, wharfs, gantries,
And crossed by practical delights -
    Varied spans, forming pleasing sights.

Fine churches headed at Durham;
    Football kits ad infinitum;
Kept castles - one for study;
    Masonry behind masonry.

And, with moulding-works out that way,
It's somewhere for a longer stay..?

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 23 May 09 - 04:00 AM

Poem 21 of 230: BOMBAY PORTER

Awaiting a train in Bombay,
    I was shocked into dismay;
For a well-dressed man, built strongly,
    Was walking, his hands set free,
Ahead of a bony porter -
    Heavy case on head, no quarter.

Shortly later, I watched again
    As out from the rich-man's train
Came the scrawny struggling porter -
    His thin back now much tauter;
For he writhed as he stretched his loins -
    After a quick count of few coins.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 24 May 09 - 06:05 AM

Poem 65 of 230: NORTH WALES

"Hills meeting sea"
    Proclaims to me
"Good scenery."

And it's views of North Wales,
    Both sides of the train-rails,
Whereupon this thought hails.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 25 May 09 - 05:24 AM

Poem 98 of 230: REREGULATE

One Premier world-eleven v.
    Another such company,
Or wage-caps and say half each-club's squad
    From the local-junior pod?
And, perhaps, heed the cricket-fan's call
    To convert to county-football..?

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 25 May 09 - 07:19 AM

A few points here, Wav. Once again, your Australian knowledge of England is a little hazy.
Wage caps have been tried several times in the football leagues; they were always, without exception, a complete disaster.
A question; what's a 'local-junior pod' (apart from a clumsy and tortuous attempt at rhyme?) Why the hyphen?
County cricket has been dying on its feet for years, but your analogy is false in any case; all counties except Yorkshire have had overseas and out of county born players since the end of the 19th century. Have you ever been to a County Championship game WAV? Ever seen a full ground?
I don't expect you as an Australian to understand an English institution like the Lancashire Leagues (or the Yorkshire equivalent for that matter), but they are contested by town and village sides, which I am sure you would approve of. Where do you think most of the retained professionals in these sides come from? Not England, WAV, not England. Ever heard of Basil D'Oliveira WAV? Played for Middleton in the 1960s. Viv Richards? Played for Rishton in the 1970s. People in Lancashire still talk fondly of Sir Learie Constantine playing for Nelson in the leagues. That was in 1928. I've asked you before; how far back does a cultural artefact have to go before it becomes part of the culture?
Once again your concepts of 'English' are shown to be utterly bogus, and based almost entirely on your mistaken ideology. Prove me wrong, WAV; do some proper research, absorb some actual learning instead of parroting your excruciating verse, and come back with a logical and thought-through argument about why we should ban players from other nations competing in sports in this country. Who knows, you might even convince me!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 26 May 09 - 05:03 AM

Poem 215 of 230: MOODS MORE NICE

As barter
Tends to cause
Some anger,
Seeing price
Tends to cause
Moods more nice.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 26 May 09 - 12:42 PM

Not usually being inclined to pedantry, but do you really mean barter there, WAV? Or are you thinking of haggling? There is a difference, and with all your anti-Capitalist protesting one would thing bartering would something you'd be in favour of.

http://www.wsu.edu/~brians/errors/barter.html

Otherwise haggling is the stuff of life; it's how we in the Family Sedayne buy everything from Victorian terraced houses to brand-new banjos. It never causes anger because it establishes a beneficial mutuality of contract - and always works both ways. Some years ago I gave a stall-holder £20 for a copy of the 1958 Oor Wullie Book he had marked up for 75p. I then marked it up at £60, though accepted £50 on it. God knows how much it's worth now.

If God created evolution, then he also created haggling. Never works in supermarkets and shops though, chiz, though occasionally I might flatter an Asda checkout girl into giving me a free shopping bag.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 26 May 09 - 03:11 PM

Thanks S. for the correction over what I meant - even though we disagree on it...

Poem 215 of 230: MOODS MORE NICE

As haggling
Tends to cause
Some wrangling,
Seeing price
Tends to cause
Moods more nice.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 26 May 09 - 03:44 PM

Do you get to the Tynemouth Metro Station Flee-market at weekends, WAV? If not - do so; it's a great place to sharpen your haggling skills, or else acquire a taste for it...

A couple of years back a stall-holder had an antique Clarkes-type German Calura tin-whistle (in E) marked up for £5. Knowing it was maybe worth three or four times that amount at least, quite naturally I offered him £3, being prepared to pay £4. The vendor refused to budge on his asking price so I told him to go fuck himself and passed on to the next stall where the holder was more amenable to this most ancient forms of human communication. A few months later, I noticed the first stall-holder had the Calura tin-whistle in his Everything for 50p tin; naturally I bought it without haggling, but pointed out that had he been prepared to play the game he'd have made £3.50 on it.
"Doesn't even work anyway," he said, pocketing his 50p.
"Oh no?" says I, busy with my trusty Opinel pen-knife, a quick lift of the lip and lo! the sweetest Irish air (Samhradh, Samhradh) thrills into the air. My parting shot: "And by the way - it's actually worth £35."

Actually, maybe you're right about niceness, but I do enjoy small moral victories in the cause of humanity. A refusal to haggle is a refusal to engage with life, and I've never been too convinced that niceness is that desirable a quality in a person. Certainly I don't have any nice people in my little gang...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 27 May 09 - 10:29 AM

Poem 179 of 230: A GLASSY TYNE - AUTUMN 2001

Near glassy-classical new Law Courts,
    From the snazzy Millennium Footbridge,
Reflecting fine bridges of other sorts -
    A glassy Tyne's snazzy sunset image.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Stu
Date: 27 May 09 - 11:18 AM

"I've never been too convinced that niceness is that desirable a quality in a person"

woof woof woof!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 28 May 09 - 04:06 AM

Poem of 160 of 230: MACCLESFIELD - SUMMER 2001

After hearing the ways
    Of the old silk-weaving trade,
While being served some tea,
    Within the Mulberry Tree,
Memories came back to me
    Of - during my infant days -
Feeding 'worms till sheaths were made.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 29 May 09 - 04:58 AM

Poem 127 of 230: TO SPACIOUS SOUTHPORT - AUTUMN 2000

Most of the leaves
    Of poplar trees
Had fallen free
    When to the sea,
By bus then train,
    In stop/start rain,
I headed-down
    From Radcliffe Town.

After Wigan,
    The train began
To pass across
    What to me was
A coastal plain
    To see again -
With varied crops,
    And grazing op's.

From the station,
    Reconstruction
Soon came to eye
    As I walked, by
The gallery,
    Toward the sea,
And thereby thought:
    "Spacious Southport."

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 29 May 09 - 07:29 AM

Grazing op's'????????? Please explain WAV, I desperately need to understand what an op is, and what it grazes on. Are they dangerous? How many legs do they have?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 29 May 09 - 08:40 AM

Grazing operations, Tim - sheep (4), cattle (4), etc.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 29 May 09 - 08:50 AM

Oh, you mean 'grazing ops', as in 'operations', plural, no apostrophe, forced rhyme? Sorry to have troubled you.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 29 May 09 - 10:17 AM

Oops - surely it has to be either "op's" or "op.s", T. "Ops" is not an option as it is not a word.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 29 May 09 - 03:32 PM

Then, again, whilst "ops" is not in any of my dictionaries, it is in my spelling guide, so I think I'll go with your way, thanks, Tim.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 30 May 09 - 03:46 AM

Poem 85 of 230: LANDMINES

I'm thinking of Sting's song "Russians,"
    Which notes the ways wars can be fought;
He highlights nuclear weapons,
    And there's another crazy sort:

Landmines kill and maim innocents,
    Long after their targets have fled;
To them should go layers' repents,
    And mine production should be dead.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 31 May 09 - 04:29 AM

Poem 167 of 230: WITHIN CHESTER CATHEDRAL'S CLOISTERS - SUMMER 2001

After a wall-view
    Of the neat city;
Off a square in squares,
    From a bronze statue,
Falling on a pool,
    Rippling out towards
Lilies, ferns and reeds:
    Water - sounding cool.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Sedayne (Astray)
Date: 31 May 09 - 11:10 AM

Next time you're there, WAV, look up!

WITHIN CHESTER CATHEDRAL'S CLOISTERS - SUMMER 2006:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NqZ24yVM4g4

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 31 May 09 - 11:42 AM

I'll try and remember that, S. - certainly a nice place to visit/revisit.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: olddude
Date: 31 May 09 - 12:26 PM

Nice images come to mind in the latest verses. I never been to those places but would certainly like to someday ... they sound wonderful actually

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: olddude
Date: 31 May 09 - 12:32 PM

David
where is South port located, in what part of Great Britain is it a fishing port with farms and shops ... are their a lot of tourists in the area. Sounds like a beautiful place

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 31 May 09 - 01:10 PM

Southport is on the coast of Lancashire, North West England, Olddude - there are tourists but not to the extent of nearby Blackpool.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 31 May 09 - 02:10 PM

Merseyside; part of the borough of Sefton. It is in the north west of England though,

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 31 May 09 - 05:09 PM

Okay, Stu, but..."Southport...historically a part of Lancashire" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southport)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 31 May 09 - 06:36 PM

In which case 'Southport was on the coast of Lancashire'. Grammar or fact, take your pick.

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 01 Jun 09 - 04:20 AM

Poem 136 of 230: LANCASHIRE SUNG SIMPLY

(TUNE:

D A Bb A
D A Bb A G F F
D A Bb A
D A Bb A G F F)

Lancashire:
Cut by rivers, met by sea;
Patched by farmland,
Mills and other industry.

Lancashire:
With your links-lands by the sea;
Rough left wild,
Greens and fairways clipped neatly.

Lancashire:
With your Pennine boundary;
Steeped in history,
Through your buildings, there to see.

Lancashire:
Where, through Graces, moorlands be;
Wooded parklands,
Flowered gardens - kept neatly.

Lancashire:
Red Rose County, God's blessed thee.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 02 Jun 09 - 04:47 AM

Poem 43 of 230: A BAYSWATER BED-SIT

Arrived in London,
    At Heathrow Airport,
With sixty kilos
    Of luggage I'd brought.

Found a paper, Loot,
    And called an agent;
Stored two heavy bags,
    Then to him I went.

For one week of rent,
    He'd ensure a bed
Within Bayswater -
    A bed-sit, he said.

It was eighty pounds
    Per week, nothing more,
With a lift arranged
    To the building's door.

Knackered and sleepless,
    I took the deal;
Checked-in quickly,
    Had a rushed meal.

Collected my bags
    (Tube there, shared-van back),
Then carried them up
    To my top-floor shack.

A penthouse - no need,
    It did me just fine;
A cook-top and fridge,         
    A table to dine.

Seated, I could watch
    The clouds roll by -
Often from the west -
    Or jets cut the sky.

There were large plane-trees,
    A squirrel or two;
And pigeons dropped by -
    Foregrounding the view.

Plus, at dawn, the sun
    Shined in from the east -
Filling the small room
    As on egg I'd feast.

And, contemplating,
    It occurs to me -
If all lived that well,
    How great it would be.

But a lot do sleep
    Outdoors many nights -
On sheets of cardboard,
    Without basic rights.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 03 Jun 09 - 04:26 AM

Poem 11 of 230: OTHER SIDE

On the road from Inverness to Glasgow
    (A very scenic road it is),
I hitched with a pair - Italiano;
    The left-hand-drive Fiat was his.

I think they had taken turns at driving -
    I'm not sure from where or how far;
But, when they picked me up from my hiking,
    The lady was driving the car.

I recall how warm their greet did feel,
    And what a thrilling trip it was;
For, as their hands fought over the wheel,
    Our lives came near to loss:

I was sitting tight on the back-right side -
    My ears off their argument;
But my eyes surely knew how close beside
    The oncoming vehicles went!

We arrived without a scratch at Glasgow,
    But it begs this point, I feel -
Why did our forebears decide to go
    Either side for the new wheel?

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 04 Jun 09 - 05:00 AM

I was there 21 years ago...

Poem 20 of 230: CHINA AND INDIA

China and India:
    Dense populations both;
But China is, by far,
    Much more humane - my oath;
For through both I took trains,
    And saw the gap in pains.

China and India:
    Great cuisines they have both;
But China is, by far,
    Much more humane - my oath;
For not once in packed China
    Was I begged by a minor.

China and India:
    Lasting cultures in both;
But china is, by far,
    Much more humane - my oath;
For India does need
    Left-policies - indeed!

(China and India:
    Many creatures in both;
But, in this case, China
    Is less kindly - my oath;
For, on pain, they fret less
    In keeping their food fresh.)

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 05 Jun 09 - 04:27 AM

Poem 21 of 230: BOMBAY PORTER

Awaiting a train in Bombay,
    I was shocked into dismay;
For a well-dressed man, built strongly,
    Was walking, his hands set free,
Ahead of a bony porter -
    Heavy case on head, no quarter.

Shortly later, I watched again
    As out from the rich-man's train
Came the scrawny struggling porter -
    His thin back now much tauter;
For he writhed as he stretched his loins -
    After a quick count of few coins.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 06 Jun 09 - 05:09 AM

Poem 212 of 230: REMEMBER THEM?

Back when we became defenders
    (We have plainly been attackers),
Defenders' blood, sweat and years
    Were paid to keep a good home-way -
A way yet to be part stealth-blown,
    As mass immigration gained-sway
And as we slipped as maintainers.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 07 Jun 09 - 04:38 AM

Poem 159 of 230: WINDERMERE - SUMMER 2001

Some thirteen years from my first visit
    (Then, dropped from hitching, just near;
This time, by train and a downhill walk),
    I arrived at Windermere:

On the ferry Miss Cumbria Three,
    A chill-out trip to Ambleside -
Viewing the trees, the farms, the fells,
    And the more sporty ways to ride.

Once there, an uphill walk through the shops
    Led to a leaf, rock and root track,
With a stalactite-like mossy falls,
    And a bridge - starting the way back.

Track-side, gripping the ghyll, ancient woods
    Shaded what was a sunny day,
And the falling stream gave sound strongly -
    Calming the soul a further way.

Then home - again charmed by the thin-stone
    Minimum-mortar kept buildings,
The surrounds of England's largest lake,
    And movie train-window viewings.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 08 Jun 09 - 04:16 AM

(I wouldn't mind being volleyed back atop, Mods - it's a bit lonely down here.)

Poem 105 of 230: GLOBAL REGULATIONISM

No income-scale would be unjust -
    It's a matter of degree;
And, to have less inequality,
    Regulations are a must.

For, in Millennium's status quo,
    The pay-gaps for human work,
And what's gotten simply as a perk,
    Are wrong - inhumanely so.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Jun 09 - 04:43 AM

Poem 64 of 230: LIVERPOOL

Caught a train, along a long-used line,
    From Manchester to Liverpool.
On that day the weather was fine:
    Sunny - just a little bit cool.
There, I purchased a Walkabout Guide,
    Marked some sights, and headed outside.

As usual when first at such a place,
    I walked to the main art-gallery,
The central mall, and the garden space;
    Then headed down to the wide Mersey.
There, from ferry, I viewed the skyline -
    A good sturdy cityscape, for mine.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 10 Jun 09 - 04:38 AM

WALKABOUTSVERSE 7 OF 230
Category: Writing and Poetry
Poem 7 of 230: RECENT HISTORY

There's a place called Sovereign Hill,
    Nigh the city of Ballarat,
With dated representations -
    And they're authentic ones at that.

You can pan for gold at the creek,
    Write some lines with inkwell and quill,
See bread baked the colonial way
    Or a blacksmith at his anvil.

There's a, pre-plastics, bowling lane -
    With everything made in wood;
A painted-photo studio,
    And a saloon built as they stood.

Ride in a draft-horse drawn carriage,
    See the front gardens of the day,
Read-up on mining history,
    Or watch costumed-revellers play.

And, just beside the "old" village,
    Should you decide to see some more,
There's homely accommodation;
    But heed - Kooris came long before.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 11 Jun 09 - 04:38 AM

Poem/Song/Chant 111 of 230: THE MERSEY AT DIDSBURY - SPRING 2000

(TUNE:

Eb F G Ab G
D F G Ab G
D F G Ab G
D G Ab Bb Ab
D G Ab Bb Ab
D F G Ab G)

Took bus one-four-three,                        
    From Piccadilly,
Along Oxford Road;
    Passed the old uni's,
Those shops with saris,
    And my first abode.

At Didsbury Village,
    The Old Parsonage
Looked neat, and gave sound,
    As I walked the way,
At about midday,
    To a Mersey mound.

From atop this bank,
    No longer a blank
Was the strong river,
    Nor the wide fairways -
Where I'd filled two days,
    Twelve years earlier.

I then headed back,
    On Stenner Woods' track
(Hearing more birdsong,
    And seeing mossed stumps
Plus well-layered clumps),
    To a human throng.

This throng was viewing -
    Justly pursuing -
The smart Rock Gardens,
    Sloped on Fletcher Moss,
Which I, too, did cross,
    Before homeward wends.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 12 Jun 09 - 04:34 AM

Poem 180 of 230: WHITLEY BAY FISHERMEN - AUTUMN 2001

But for the ghostly lighthouse on Saint Mary's,
    The, matching, moonlit-wash of broken waves,
The distant bulbs of liners sailing the seas,
    The Down Under's lights, from human-made caves,
And the inland blooms of Friday's zeal,
    Their night's beach fishing was all by feel.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 13 Jun 09 - 05:40 AM

Poem 54 of 230: HOBSON'S CHOICE

During a day trip to Cambridge,
    My uncle showed the confined space
That left punters no choice to face -
    Using Hobson's trade of carriage.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 14 Jun 09 - 05:03 AM

Poem 16 of 230: A BEAUTIFUL STAGE

If a couple, with plans to wed,
    Asked me, off the top of my head,
For somewhere I thought well in-tune
    As a place for a honeymoon,
It would have - flashing back - to be
    Beautifully-honed Italy.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 15 Jun 09 - 04:39 AM

Poem 156 of 230: EASTBOURNE - SUMMER 2001

On the day before the solstice,
    I first sighted Eastbourne:
A beautiful elegant place -
    English culture untorn.

Two long days allowed two long lanes
    To be walked before dark -
One after travel on four trains,
    One post-Devonshire Park.

The first was between sea and heath,
    And gardens signed by post,
Then up the Downs to view, beneath,
    The brutal handsome coast.

The next, contrasting that before,
    Showed all kinds of vessels -
Parked up along the pebbly shore
    And in marina cells.

(But, as for the women's tennis,
    It soon became a qualm -
As I was put-off by what is
    A great strain on their arm.)

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 16 Jun 09 - 04:37 AM

Poem 113 of 230: FOLLOWING THE SUN - SPRING 2000

Having moved, by buses, up the hill from Salford to Bury
    (To be within walk of new work, again),
These stimuli surround between my abode and the factory
    As I follow the sun - its wax, its wane:
Walking toward work and the rising sun, a morning chorus
    Rides the crisp breezy air of hill-farmland,
While gravel, of road and path, beneath my plonked feet crunches,
    And P.V.C. flaps loose of its hay-stand.

Bumble bees, tree sparrows and robins bob along the hedgerows,
    Squirrels and hares hop ahead on my route;
And on a weather-wrapped reservoir - glassy, or dulled by blows -
    Glide mute- and whooper-swans, ducks, geese and coot;
Horses, goats, sheep and cattle laze and graze on fields of green -
    Fields they, in turn, feed, helping make hay;
And, above, swifts and herons sometimes grace the aerial scene -
    A scene framed by a moorland chain of grey.

Slugs - some rusty, others pitch-black - slither on a clayey path,
    That slopes sharply beside the reservoir;
And a whitegood on green-grass - a horse trough, once a human bath -
    Amuses me as I view from afar;
As does Peel Monument, atop a distant Holecombe mount -
    By which an uncle and I once took lunch;
Disturbed nettles - brushed in such distraction - make their bulwarks count,
    And a shed-side arbour demands a hunch.

One time, three sheep-dogs determined me lost, and rounded me up;
    Oftentimes, the Metro. tram rattles by;
And, sometimes, a horse will urge me make handy a grassy cup,
    Or nudge for a scratch down its back and thigh;
On cooler mornings, the dew on grasses soaks my joggers through,
    But beautifies clumps of whimsy grass-heads;
And, already proceeding on his routine of chores to do,
    A farmer strong-hoses out the cowsheds.

Caravan-people leave their grouping to walk the well-worn track,
    And milk- and mail-vans squeeze tightly by;
Antique farm-machines rust away in a grassed ramshackle-stack,
    And pigeons startle from their grassy lie;                                                
In sun, fishing-people and bathers dot the reservoir's shore,
    And, in shade, ferns the sides of path and stream;
Near gates, manure fills the air and makes stepping a chore,
    But elsewhere the views are a poet's dream.

Magpies, near horses, bop around - perhaps for aroused worms;
    Laburnums sprung yellow, and hawthorns white,
Pleasingly, in nature, border the fields of farming-firms,
    And help enclose this Radcliffe rural site;
Plus, as I meander home from a day's factory toil,
    The sun, when it sets in a clear sky,
Forms a large amber ball, behind a converted cotton-mill -
    Signalling another day almost by.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 17 Jun 09 - 05:33 AM

(Yesterday, the national media in England were celebrating the fact that, via gambling on a lottery, one individual now has 100s of times more wealth than his neighbours - REVOLTING!)

Poem 138 of 230: AN OPIUM

National Lottery passes -
    Slight chances to be richer,
    With lots more than thy neighbour,
    Gained without any labour -
    Keep the system in favour:
An opium of the masses.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 18 Jun 09 - 04:22 AM

Poem 105 of 230: GLOBAL REGULATIONISM

No income-scale would be unjust -
    It's a matter of degree;
And, to have less inequality,
    Regulations are a must.

For, in Millennium's status quo,
    The pay-gaps for human work,
And what's gotten simply as a perk,
    Are wrong - inhumanely so.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 19 Jun 09 - 06:09 AM

Poem 159 of 230: WINDERMERE - SUMMER 2001

Some thirteen years from my first visit
    (Then, dropped from hitching, just near;
This time, by train and a downhill walk),
    I arrived at Windermere:

On the ferry Miss Cumbria Three,
    A chill-out trip to Ambleside -
Viewing the trees, the farms, the fells,
    And the more sporty ways to ride.

Once there, an uphill walk through the shops
    Led to a leaf, rock and root track,
With a stalactite-like mossy falls,
    And a bridge - starting the way back.

Track-side, gripping the ghyll, ancient woods
    Shaded what was a sunny day,
And the falling stream gave sound strongly -
    Calming the soul a further way.

Then home - again charmed by the thin-stone
    Minimum-mortar kept buildings,
The surrounds of England's largest lake,
    And movie train-window viewings.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 20 Jun 09 - 09:04 AM

Poem 228 of 230: REPATRIATING

I only sunbathe in winter -
    Behind closed glass;
I may need extra quilts at night -
    Warm or sleepless;
But most of my other ways spell -
    Anglicises.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 21 Jun 09 - 04:50 AM

Poem 57 of 230: MANCHESTER - A GIST

Sports, large warehouses and merchants are the gist -
    A centre for distribution and trade,
Plus making goods and services for this list;
    Well placed, in these, it seems, the future's laid.

Oh - I should note the entertainment trade,
And that, from fruit and grain, fine foods are made.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 22 Jun 09 - 04:53 AM

Poem 229 of 230: JOYS OF LIFE

Leightons, and other great art;
    Plumes of fireworks at night;
The vivid reds of sunrise -
    Repeated at day's last light.

The beats through us of a drum;
    Winter's sun felt through closed glass;
Handing in the last exam;
    Awakenings – alarmless!

The ball, off thee, whacks their net;
    When, to palms, leather has stuck;
Orange juice during half-time;
    A warm bath to wash the muck.

Viewing set-over cricket;
    A golf ball, for once, well struck;
Viewing velodrome cycling;
    From net-chord, levelling luck!

Sticks, chants, didgeridoo,
    Haunting harps, and all bagpipes;
Clog, flamenco, tamure,
    Hula, and other dance types.

Out, by a cast, being told;
    In - taking tea and T.V.;
Highland views that command rest;
    The buildings of Italy.

Thrifty plant-propagation;
    By a wave one's body hit;
Upstream of camp - with paddle;
    By a fire - strongly lit.

Forest spent-leaves under foot;
    Tasting a host-nation's fare;
Alcedo atthis at work;
    Just-bills being brought to bear.

Allegros when feeling low;
    An andante to wind down;
Spoken French and chorused song;
    The quiet when out of town.

A stroll through a kept garden,
    Before Sunday's roast dinner;
A pub game, drink and meal;
    One's team a comeback winner.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 22 Jun 09 - 05:31 AM

Sticks, chants, didgeridoo,
    Haunting harps, and all bagpipes;
Clog, flamenco, tamure,
    Hula, and other dance types.

I've known nights like that too; in fact at one of the old Scoraig Festivals back in the 80s I'm sure we had that very line-up - didg, clarsach and bagpipes (plus crwth) playing up a Feral Folk storm as the dancers were dancing every dance ever danced...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 22 Jun 09 - 09:50 AM

That's not quite what I meant, S., but nice to have a visitor down here under! I was just thinking about Durham as it happens...are we 2 going to leave our instruments in the bag for the evening singaround this year - so that it's 100% unaccompanied singing..?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 22 Jun 09 - 11:12 AM

Better than that, WAV - Rachel will be fielding her banjo for the first time at the DFP, thus honouring the Big Man's memory, inspiration & example with a few transatlantic ditties; so chances are you'll be getting the banjo & Black Sea Fiddle in one accord and vocal harmonies to match as I get my head around such alt-country stylings. Check the first two Here...

That said, I've half a mind to sing Child #51 unaccompanied in the afternoon ballad session for auld lang syne...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 22 Jun 09 - 11:40 AM

Checked on Child No 51 for curiosity Sean. Bearing the content in mind, the adjacent Google entry for Child 51 is:

"CHILD 51 takes students through the basic roles of parenting, including practical knowledge for discipline; teaching values; communicating with children; and creating a nurturing, stress-free home environment."

Says it all.

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 22 Jun 09 - 11:53 AM

Love it!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 22 Jun 09 - 03:13 PM

300!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Donuel
Date: 22 Jun 09 - 06:07 PM

Slow down you eat too fast
gotta make the lunch hour last
just kickin down
restaurant row

lookin for lunch
and feelin Queezy.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 23 Jun 09 - 09:52 AM

...and, however we are feelin', Donuel, it's probably better to eat at least an hour before we sing.

Poem 162 of 230: TEES TO TYNE: FIRST IMPRESSIONS - SUMMER 2001

(TUNE:

E F# F# E D E F# F#
F# G G A B A G G
D G A A B B A A
F# G A B B A A-G G

D D F# F# F#-G F# E E
E E E E F# E D D)

Where traditions are not so rare;
    Sea, country and works scent the air;
A multitude of monuments,
    Planted tubs and patterned pavements.

The longish pedestrian malls;
    The remnants of defensive walls;
"Broken-roofed buildings" are a gauge
    Of the respect for heritage.

Wheat, rape and pines in the fields;
    Estuaries guarded by shields;
Long sandy beaches and wide scenes;
    Romantic-ruin go-betweens.

Rivers in parts licked by trees,
    Or fringed by boat clubs, wharfs, gantries,
And crossed by practical delights -
    Varied spans, forming pleasing sights.

Fine churches headed at Durham;
    Football kits ad infinitum;
Kept castles - one for study;
    Masonry behind masonry.

And, with moulding-works out that way,
It's somewhere for a longer stay..?

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 24 Jun 09 - 04:16 AM

Poem 114 of 230: CLITHEROE CASTLE'S VIEWS - SUMMER 2000

From outside metres-thick wall
    (Down on leafy grounds grown tall,
Then across stony households
    To lush-green sheep-grazing folds,
And up further to the moor),
    Clitheroe Castle's views soar.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Nick
Date: 24 Jun 09 - 07:40 PM

Poem 114 of 230: INSIDE CLITHEROE - SUMMER OF 69

From inside WalkaboutsVerse-proof wall-oo
    (Opposite the entrance to the Portaloo
Leftwise across from the tearooms charms
    Where, from the Chapel, you can hear the psalms,
I hit the four pronged signpost and watch it swivel
    And wonder why I write this drivel.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 25 Jun 09 - 05:26 AM

Wheat, rape and pines in the fields;

Actually, WAV - I think you'll find that most of the casual al-fresco coitus in the North Country is quite mutual - traditionally, historically or otherwise. Wheat helps of course, but pines in the fields? Generally when you're looking at pines, you're looking at a non-native plantation, and not the ideal place for al-fresco coitus on account of the needles. The other sort of rape, of course, is oil-seed rape - another odious and malodorous non-native cash-crop unknown in the UK before the 1970s, though common, I believe, in Europe from the 13th century.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 25 Jun 09 - 05:30 AM

(Ah yes, Nick, English "tearooms" - scarcer than hens teeth these days, but enough to make anyone dribble, or "drivel".)

Poem 9 of 230: THE CAMELLIA GARDENS

In Sydney's Sutherland Shire,
    There's a relaxing place to see:
It's called the Camellia Gardens,
    And one can wander round for free.

Down and along an escarpment
    Meanders a thin stony path;
Beside which grow the camellias -
    Beaut. autumn-blooms the aftermath.

With the evergreen-camellias
    Are a range of native species;
And, atop the leafy hillside,
    A shop sells snacks, coffees and teas.

Plus, down below, there is parkland,
    Where couples rest as children play;
And they walkabout the fish ponds,
    Or the shoreline of Yowie Bay.

(But, regarding plant selection,
    With more knowledge, over the years,
On flora, fauna and their links,
    I'd say - natives not camellias.)

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 25 Jun 09 - 11:21 AM

Please keep your garden poetry over here, WV. I don't come in here complaining about bad poetry, so please keep your wacko gardening ideas and slight poetry contributions off of the gardening thread. It's there to talk about gardening.

Thanks.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 25 Jun 09 - 12:12 PM

SRS - on Mudcat people are free to post what they want, where they want, and on whatever pretext they so choose. Such censuring is not only potentially hurtful, but runs contrary to the spirit of the threads themselves. In any case, WAV's THE CAMELLIA GARDENS is very pertinent to the thread in question, garnering at least one response, no matter how good, bad or otherwise it might be as a poem, and whatever motives he might otherwise have for posting it.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Rifleman (inactive)
Date: 25 Jun 09 - 12:14 PM

I agree with SRS, I REALLY wish WAV would keep his 'poetry' where it belongs, in this case on this particular thread.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 25 Jun 09 - 12:26 PM

I'm WALKABOUTSverse! SRS and Rifleman (and, as S.O. says, it's not done willie nillie; and, if we care about native flora and fauna, wherever we live in the world, we should help compensate for loss of native habitat, due to changed farming demands and techniques etc, by choosing to plant natives in our gardens. (With the exception of veggies and other consumables, which can help reduce food miles, etc.) More here.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Chongo Chimp
Date: 25 Jun 09 - 12:31 PM

I like yer poetry, WAV. It has the common touch. When I read it I can picture all them quaint English scenes in my head clear as day and it takes me back to the times I have spent in the UK assertin' the freedoms and rights of primates to drink in English pubs right alongside Englishmen if they damn well want to! Had to bust a few heads to get that point across...

What I am wonderin' is...have you done any poems about the Royals yet? I would like to get yer take on the lives of the Queen and the rest of 'em there in Buckingham Palace.

- Chongo

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 25 Jun 09 - 12:42 PM

If I may break my "daily ditty" rule, I hope this peels your banana, Chongo...

Poem 225 of 230: AFTER PSALM 118:9 AND MATTHEW 4:8-10

The monarchies
    Now are blasphemies -
The only born-ruler
    Is a God-chosen Schooler.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 25 Jun 09 - 01:30 PM

The only born-ruler
    Is a God-chosen Schooler.

That would be The Pope then, right?

Seriously, WAV - you really have to work harder on your assimilation / repatriation. Ditch the homespun idealism and embrace the multi-ethnic multi-cultural monarchist reality that is our beloved United Kingdom.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Chongo Chimp
Date: 25 Jun 09 - 02:23 PM

That's an unusual viewpoint, WAV. I gotta think about it some. But thanks. ;-)

- Chongo

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 25 Jun 09 - 03:14 PM

The Pope, S.O., who, in my opinion, should be leader of the Church of Italy only, is elected in a democracy of sorts by his fellows - remember, waiting and looking up for the colour of the smoke and all that?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Nick
Date: 25 Jun 09 - 03:27 PM

FREEVERSE 27 - on Elysian Fields

I pine in the fields
Not because of cones
But because of a deep sense of sadness
And a problem sometimes of scansion and rhyme not quite working
It's the pain of creation
and lack of puncteation
(And spelling)
Where is Harmony?
Where is Destiny?
Where are the other Angels?

Suggested chords - but only play the roots
(D F#m Bm Bm/A# Bm/A Em Gm)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Rifleman (inactive)
Date: 25 Jun 09 - 03:56 PM

"by choosing to plant natives in our gardens"
WAV I'll plant what I wish to plant, in my garden, regardless of the origin of plant, so PLEASE spare me you nationalistic ravings

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Nick
Date: 25 Jun 09 - 05:33 PM

PLANTING NATIVES IN MY GARDEN

I planted natives in my garden
But unfortunately none of them grew.
Perhaps I shouldn't have planted them in boxes
Perhaps they should have been alive too.
White fingers rather than green.


Good fun this poetry lark isn't it?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Chongo Chimp
Date: 25 Jun 09 - 10:37 PM

Poetry is okay, specially on a slow day, but it will never equal the effectiveness of carryin' a loaded gat in yer vest and a tommy gun with a full ammo drum mounted below the dashboard of yer car...always take care that the barrel is pointin' away from the driver's side. You don't wanta hit a bad bump if it's pointin' the wrong way.

- Chongo

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 26 Jun 09 - 04:19 AM

Nick and Rifleman: creating an attractive native garden in some parts of our world can be quite a challenge - but a challenge worth taking for the love of native fauna and, LINKED, flora.

Chongo...

Poem 100 of 230: MONOPOLY

It seems to me,
    Ideally and practically,
In an equitable society,
    A well-audited police-force and army
Should have a monopoly
    On weaponry.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 27 Jun 09 - 04:08 AM

Poem 10 of 230: LAND'S END TO JOHN O' GROATS

(TUNE:

D G A A B B A A
D A B B A A G G
D B B B A A G G
D A B A B A G G)

At the bold age of twenty-one
    (Via Hong Kong, China, Macau),
I flew from Sydney to London -
    Land's End to John o' Groats my vow.

I took a train out of London,
    Found a highway and thumbed a ride;
I headed down toward Brighton,
    Then hitch-hiked roads the coast beside.

On the face of my shoulder bag,
A sketched map of Aus. was my tag;
For said a Scot who'd hitched Europe:
"Some emblem may well boost your hope."

And drivers throughout the island,
Over a two month riding span,
Were the kindest folks I have met -
I swear not once did I get wet!

I stopped overnight in Portsmouth,
    And one or two nights in Torquay;
Then headed along to Plymouth -
    Still travelling beside the sea.

After viewing rugged Land's End,
    I began the long journey north -
North-east, rather, before a bend,
    Somewhere in a bit from Bournemouth.

On the way, I saw relatives,
Whom after leaving I did miss -
Their homes' cosy atmosphere,
And their local pubs' good cheer.

And the hitched-lifts came from many:
An off-work Bobbie, a truckie,
As well as on-duty soldiers -
Thanks, and I've not said where each was!

I headed west through South Wales,
    And viewed Cardiff Arms from afar -
I was hitching with local males,
    And they showed me from in the car.

I stayed a while at Swansea -
    Saw the local footballers play;
Then hitched north through Llandovery -
    Beautiful farmland, I must say.

I slept mostly in B. & B's,
Where the full breakfasts sure did please;
But also stopped in Youth Hostels,
Where it's the comradeship that tells.

My favourite sites were Torquay,
Old St. Andrews (noted shortly),
The road Glasgow-to-Inverness,
The Lakes, plus London's spots, no less.

From Colwyn Bay, I headed east
    To Manchester, my place of birth;
Then on the Lakes my eyes did feast,
    Before I passed by Solway Firth.

Onto Edinburgh, Glasgow,
    St. Andrews, before Inverness;
Then waves from locals were the go -
    Warm folks round John o' Groats, I'd guess.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 28 Jun 09 - 04:53 AM

Poem of 160 of 230: MACCLESFIELD - SUMMER 2001

After hearing the ways
    Of the old silk-weaving trade,
While being served some tea,
    Within the Mulberry Tree,
Memories came back to me
    Of - during my infant days -
Feeding 'worms till sheaths were made.

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PS: but is it cruel..?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Chongo Chimp
Date: 28 Jun 09 - 12:43 PM

Whoa! We are WAY apart on the gun issue, WAV. I prefer a society where just about EVERYBODY is packin' some heat and then people can defend 'emselves if they need to. THAT's what I call "equitable".   That way you can separate the men from the boys, to use a human expression...or the apes from the monkeys, as I would rather put it. Puttin' guns only in the hands of the police and army is like lockin' yerself inside a cage and givin' THEM the key! It's the slippery slope to a friggin' dictatorship.

- Chongo

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 28 Jun 09 - 01:09 PM

I stress "a WELL AUDITED police-force and army" (me, above), Chongo.
Say, e.g., you and someone you normally get on not too bad with have a very stong one-off disagreement - so much more damage can be done if guns &/or knives, e.g., are involved, yes?...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Chongo Chimp
Date: 29 Jun 09 - 12:31 AM

You ain't kiddin' about that! However, there are times when you really want to do that much damage...not to a friend, but to an enemy. I hafta say that despite packin' heavy firepower all these years on the streets of Chicago, I have never blown away a friend. Never. And I've had some severe disagreements with friends too...but we know where to draw the line when it comes to that...no gunplay among friends! And no knives either.

As to how many enemies I've blown away...well, considerably more than a few. Each and every one of 'em had it comin' too. Look, when ya got a snarlin' gorilla starin' at you down the barrel of a tommy gun, there is only one sensible thing to do: shoot him first.

I can't depend on the police or the army when it comes to this. They are usually not around when you need 'em is what I find.

I do admit you got a bit different situation in the UK. This is the USA, remember. This is the home of Wild Bill Hickock, Dillinger, Pretty Boy Floyd, Big Daddy Malone, and Baby Face Nelson. You gotta watch yer own back if you live in the USA, that's my take on it.

- Chongo

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 29 Jun 09 - 04:18 AM

Poem 152 of 230: HISTORY IS A FOREIGN COUNTRY?

History is a foreign country?
    Reading Chaucer's 'Tales one can see -
In brilliant witty prosody -
    A definite continuity
In the matters of humanity.
    So how, then, could one fail to be
Without respect for one's history?

As we can learn from other cultures,
So, too, from our own through its years.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 30 Jun 09 - 05:18 AM

Poem 133 of 230: OXFORD BLUE - SPRING 2001

A contract ended/a new one begun,
    And a move from Bolton back to Bury -
A top-floor council-flat, within Radcliffe,
    Where streets are named from names in poetry,
And homes are framed by scenes I'm happy with.

My thirteenth home needed some touching-up,
    And I chose, in the main, to D.I.Y.;
So a nailed off-cut-and-rug make-do
    Covers the small floor where shelved books now lie -
My first study, painted in Oxford Blue.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 01 Jul 09 - 05:13 AM

Poem 206 of 230: MY DIET

Chasing breads, nuts, bananas,
    Red sauce, apples, sultanas,
Crackers, conserves, cucumbers,
    Pickles, porridge, pottages -

Lemon barley,
    Cocoa, coffee,
Or cups of tea.

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Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 01 Jul 09 - 07:43 AM

Basically Kellog's Fruit & Fibre then?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 01 Jul 09 - 04:10 PM

I was offered a rotten banana
By a fellow who wore a bandana
He was selling them from a cabana
In the heat of the westering sun

"I prefer them," I said, "somewhat greener
Or perhaps even half in-betweener.
I have seldom seen something obscener!"
In the heat of the westering sun

Leaping up in a fury, he shouted
"My bananas have never been doubted!
I will not let my honor be flouted!"
In the heat of the westering sun

He attacked me without further warning
And all rules of fair combat was scorning
And I feared for my future that morning
In the heat of the westering sun

He was strangling me with the bandana
When our struggles brought down the cabana
And engulfed us in rotten bananas
In the heat of the westering sun

Thus my life might have miserably ended
But by fate I was kindly befriended
When he slipped on a peel and up-ended
In the heat of the westering sun

And today I still keep the bandana
But I never go near the cabana
Where he's still sellling rotten bananas
In the heat of the westerning sun

(sing to the tune of the Mexican Hat Dance)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 01 Jul 09 - 04:26 PM

Once I lived in a sorry slum,
Sitting on my useless bum
Life was hum and also drum
Back in my younger years.

But then I set out for to walk
And found that though I could not talk,
Because my voice would always squawk,
I could conquer all my fears.

I took to scribbling things in rhyme,
And pasting up such tedious lines
As helped me pass my tedious time,
Back in my younger years.

I walked from hither o'er to Yon,
ANd many a road I traveled on,
If anyone asked, I'd be long gone
With a knowing, rhymish leer.

I went by foot and train and tug,
Slept among strangers, fields and bugs,
And gradually, I grew most smug,
Rhyming away my years.

I kept them all, each couplet lame,
I knew no meter, felt no shame,
I knew someday they'd bring me fame,
Those rhymes from my younger years.

But now I sense the gathering ghost,
And online spend my days in boast,
Where I post and post and post and post
The rhymes from my younger years.

And so a poet's wreath I claim!
I put McGonagle to shame!
With scansion weak and image lame,
I fill my later years.

And if my lines offend your head,
And make you squirm and toss in bed,
Go off and read some other thread!
For mine will run for years.

Ratius Secundus Vorsiphae
A Panoply Of Uncharted Shallows
Meagre, Pickens, "Immodern Poetics"
Glasgow, 2002

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 01 Jul 09 - 04:38 PM

...and send to the EU, thanks LH! - re: bent bananas.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 01 Jul 09 - 05:01 PM

Oh, Bravo, Amos! Cunningly writ, as always.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 01 Jul 09 - 05:30 PM

LMFAO AMOS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So WavyFWBR......Do you have enough bandages and antiseptic to stop the bleeding? I think though upon a reread you need stitches cause you're like bleeding to death here............

Amos, your manner of cruelty is impressive and boundless......I am humbled at your mastery!


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 02 Jul 09 - 04:28 AM

(Well, Spaw, I certainly enjoyed Amos's pics of Belize more.)

Poem 93 of 230: ONE-POT COOKING

While living as a bachelor,
    I've cooked in just one pot -
Cast iron with a wooden handle,
    It can hold quite a lot:

Slices of potato and carrot
    Are boiled a while,
Before a thinly-chopped onion
    Is mixed with the pile;

Then I drain off most of the water,
    Add canned lentils and beans,
Stir with spice and tomato sauce -
    To an end, it's a means.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 02 Jul 09 - 02:46 PM

Although I did not think you would enjoy my ditty, WAV, it was intended more as a didactic doggerel than any cruelty. I do apologize if I hurt your feelings, although I might add it is quite reciprocal.


A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: The Sandman
Date: 02 Jul 09 - 05:29 PM

when living in sin
I baked in a tin
a tart for my sweetheart.
slices of plum
soaked in sugar and rum
made my lover succumb
then we took of our clothes
and to nature exposed
the dong with the luminous nose

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 03 Jul 09 - 08:06 AM

Poem 96 of 230: PARADIGMS

"Thirty-all" is, in effect, "deuce";
    Nobody has seen an "atom":
An atom remains a model;
    "Thirty-all" an umpire's call.
"They we just simply had to bomb";
    And there are other given "truths"...

If we humans evolved from apes,
Why on earth are there living apes?

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 03 Jul 09 - 09:48 AM

You are 't keeping up, waver. Try looking up pictures of atoms taken with electron micrographs.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 03 Jul 09 - 10:00 AM

And you are obviously a few bricks shy on how evolution regarding the ascent of man works as well. Yes, ascent.......Matter of fact, go read a book or watch a series called just that, "Ascent of Man".............I doubt you learn anything but there is always hope I suppose............


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 04 Jul 09 - 05:37 AM

Spaw and Amos: for what it's worth, I agree with much of the evolutionist argument presented by Darwin, Attenborough, etc., but it DOES have it's faults/there IS a God. And are such "micrographs" (Amos) seeing an "atom"..?

Poem 25 of 230: UBUD

At Bali's Ubud,
    I wound myself down:
Having done Asia,
    It was just the town -
Before Australia
    And work to be found.

Staying in a hut
    (Traditional 'twas),
Beside rice paddies,
    And just eight dollars,
My mind was at ease -
    Calm like a scholar's.

I read and I mused
    Over where I'd been;
Saw Monkey Jungle,
    Which is cool and green;
And, from a bundle,
    Chose an artist's seen.

At night, a gecko -
    Friendly, on the wall;
By day, a farmer -
    At his rice-toil;
And, always, culture -
    Ubud's worth a call.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 04 Jul 09 - 05:53 AM

Well, I'm glad that's settled.

Where in England does he live?

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 05 Jul 09 - 04:14 AM

Poem 14 of 230: NIGHT OR DAY?!

In the far north of Sweden,
    A "Land of the Midnight Sun,"
A strange thing chanced upon me -
    And I'll tell you, just for fun.

Got off a train late-morning
    (Had to catch same one next day)
And trudged far to the Youth Hostel -
    Paying for a one-night stay.

I spent the afternoon sightseeing,
    Then, after a latish dinner,
Returned to my own small bedroom -
    The comfy bed proving a winner.

For I soon dozed into dreamy sleep -
    Waking what was just two hours hence;
But my watch was an analogue,
    And night or day I couldn't sense!

I quickly packed all my things
    (My train an hour or thirteen on)
And hurried out the bedroom -
    The bright sky a sneaky con.

I wandered down the track a bit
    (The Hostel office empty),
Before a smiling helpful local
    Did kindly enlighten me.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 05 Jul 09 - 09:00 PM

Your assertion, given your qualifications, is unpersuasive.

As for "seeing"--if you limit seeing to the capability of an eyeball of human specfication, you probably don't believe in germs, galaxies or dinosaurs, either--but somehow, your assertion about God still makes sense to you?

Gyamme wan break....



A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 06 Jul 09 - 06:20 AM

Poem 7 of 230: RECENT HISTORY

There's a place called Sovereign Hill,
    Nigh the city of Ballarat,
With dated representations -
    And they're authentic ones at that.

You can pan for gold at the creek,
    Write some lines with inkwell and quill,
See bread baked the colonial way
    Or a blacksmith at his anvil.

There's a, pre-plastics, bowling lane -
    With everything made in wood;
A painted-photo studio,
    And a saloon built as they stood.

Ride in a draft-horse drawn carriage,
    See the front gardens of the day,
Read-up on mining history,
    Or watch costumed-revellers play.

And, just beside the "old" village,
    Should you decide to see some more,
There's homely accommodation;
    But heed - Kooris came long before.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 07 Jul 09 - 05:39 AM

Poem 6 of 230: THE PICKER

While picking onions at Echuca,
    Betimes I came across a
Man who was, he said, by trade a picker.

A compact and stocky physique had he;
    Kind he was to first-time me -
Advising, "You should pick 'em on your knee."

Then he told me of his long-kept plan
    Of travel, by caravan,
To pick seasoned crops, over a wide span.

But workers' rates, I knew, were non too fair -
    Twenty dollars a tonne, there,
Was all the onion-crop owner could spare.

Though (with tally taken by some louse,
    And told to see owner or spouse),                                 
Believe me, they lived in some kind of house.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 08 Jul 09 - 04:01 AM

Poem 146 of 230: HORSES FOR COURSES?

To some, in income-anticipation,
    Horse-baulking at gates is a small debase;
To me, it seems a memory/fear case
    Over the coming whip-castigation.
To some, the winning jockey's elation
    Is the highlight of an ended horserace;
To me, the horse's bulged veins and scared face
    Undermine the winners' celebration.
I can't condone a punter's desire
    To gamble rather than earn a living,
    But can acknowledge a jockey's courage;
I can't see and think as a raced sire,
    Nor feel the scrapes hedges are giving,
    But find horses choiceless in their bondage.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 08 Jul 09 - 07:27 AM

I agree with much of the evolutionist argument presented by Darwin, Attenborough, etc., but it DOES have it's faults/there IS a God.

The Theory of Evolution is one of the great breakthroughs of Secular Humanism; it stands as a cornerstone of the Scientific Enlightenment which flies in the face of religion & such-like mumbo-jumbo by opening up a whole new set of possibilities that lie beyond such anachronistic constructs as Spirituality and God. The Theory of Evolution evolves as our understanding of the mechanisms grow; the evidence is steadily mounting, and our whole picture of The Natural & Entirely God-less Universe becoming each day clearer as a result. To hike religion to to The Theory of Evolution, is, I fear to miss the point of both Religion and Science. Religion is our make-believe fantasy of the unknown; Science is our means of getting to know that unknown. As the unknown recedes, so does our need for religion.

God is a character in a story we used to tell in the dark days; to the Abrahamics he created the material universe; to the Gnostics, the creator God was, in effect, The Devil. That such essential dualism filters through as we emerge blinking into the clear light of The Enlightenment (Marxist Dialectic, Nature vs. Nurture etc.) is fascinating in itself, but, at the end of a very long night indeed, to say that God created evolution is rather like saying God created Secular Humanism; or that God created Atheism; or that God created the illusion that he does not exist to test our faith.

I wonder, WAV, are you suggesting that God created the process of the universe from The Big Bang onwards, or is this inbuilt into the universe he created in 6 days back in 4004 BC, along with the Illusion of the Theory of Evolution that stands in stark contradiction to the very notion of God? If God created evolution, who doesn't it say so in The Bible?

Perhaps we find the answers here:

The Creation Museum - Prepare to believe

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 08 Jul 09 - 08:32 AM

Parts of The Bible and parts of Darwin's On the Origin of Species are - perhaps deliberately sometimes - unclear, S., but I remain sure that there is a God.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 09 Jul 09 - 04:35 AM

Parts of The Bible and parts of Darwin's On the Origin of Species are - perhaps deliberately sometimes - unclear,

The Origin of Species is the beginning of a process which is getting steadily clearer as time marches on; unfortunately, the Bible still reads like the ravings of a mad horse, getting progressively less clear as we move away from that sort of thinking.

Ultimately I am an atheist because I can't conceive of a greater divinity than Duke Ellington, who was only too human.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Jul 09 - 04:42 AM

Poem 154 of 230: GETTING TO KNOW GOD

God lets us go
    Our own way -
Until the Day;
    Now and then, though,
He has a Say
    In His own Way -
Prophets to Sow,
    Deserts to Pay.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 10 Jul 09 - 05:11 AM

Poem 22 of 230: HIGH HOUSEBOAT

When in India,
    I headed north
For the Himalaya.

Up, by train then bus,
    To Kashmir -
It was much cooler, thus.

Stayed there on Dahl Lake,
    By Srinagar -
For my tight-budget's sake.

'Twas a houseboat room:
    Run down, low cost -
But there I felt no gloom.

A solo mother -
    She had four kids -
Was the floor-manager.

At dawn, her daughter -
    The eldest one -
Brought me food and water.

I washed with bucket,
    Ate scrambled eggs -
As good as one could get.

From Dahl Lake's shoreline
    To the houseboats,
Canoe trips run just fine.

Day-tripped to Gulmarg,
    And played a round -
As always, kept the card.

It is the highest
    Green-kept golf-course,
And sure is quite a test!

Played another course,
    At Srinagar -
And it, too, I endorse.

For "with-dependants,"
    I should, though, add -
War, sadly, still rants.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll) (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 11 Jul 09 - 03:58 AM

Poem 94 of 230: MOROCCAN TEA

Here's a hint
    Concerning mint.
It's very brief:
    Just pick a leaf
From the backyard,
    And wash if marred;

Leaf, bag, in mug,
    Boil the jug,
Pour in and stir,
    Oust the former.
It's easy, see -
    Moroccan tea...

Well, 'tis roughly.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll) (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 12 Jul 09 - 04:42 AM

Poem 24 of 230: THROUGH SOUTH-EAST ASIA

A highlight of South-East Asia -
    As with other tropical lands -
Is the abundance of fresh fruits:
    At cutting which some have deft hands.
And, from these fruits, I'd often choose -
    To cool down from tropical heat -
A freshly prepared coconut:
    Chopped to drink; lining scooped to eat.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 13 Jul 09 - 05:36 AM

Poem 36 of 230: WALKABOUT MEXICO

In late December,
    1996,
I can remember
    Being in a fix -
For time and pesos -
    And, thus, unable
To see Mexico's
    Sights commendable.

So, in Tijuana,
    I enjoyed the show
At a miniature
    Rep. of Mexico.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 14 Jul 09 - 07:14 AM

Poem 227 of 230: ROTATING SHIFTS

There will always be places
    That need to be staffed
Twenty-four hours a day,
    But I think it's daft
To rotate bodies and minds
    Around any craft...

The better way seems to be
    Penalty-rates paid
For three fixed eight-hour shifts -
    With adjustments laid,
By those choosing to work nights,
    For sleep to be made.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 15 Jul 09 - 04:42 AM

Poem 21 of 230: BOMBAY PORTER

Awaiting a train in Bombay,
    I was shocked into dismay;
For a well-dressed man, built strongly,
    Was walking, his hands set free,
Ahead of a bony porter -
    Heavy case on head, no quarter.

Shortly later, I watched again
    As out from the rich-man's train
Came the scrawny struggling porter -
    His thin back now much tauter;
For he writhed as he stretched his loins -
    After a quick count of few coins.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 16 Jul 09 - 05:19 AM

Poem 86 of 230: ROBOTS

In factories,
    I've spent sometime
Working machines
    Whose goods should rhyme -
Moulding machines,
    Whose plastic shots
Are sorted by
    Auto. robots...

Well, now robots -
    Before 'twas folks:
Process workers.
    Employment hoax?

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 17 Jul 09 - 04:33 AM

Poem 31 of 230: NEW ZEALAND

Separated, I again perceived New Zealand:
    The strong Maori culture -
    Rangi and Papa,
    Plus the haka -
And the reflecting lakes of highland and farmland.

FrFrom http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 17 Jul 09 - 07:05 AM

Hi WAV - I just took your name in vain over on the Folklore: Green Ginger Morris Team thread.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 18 Jul 09 - 05:29 AM

(Interesting discussion on Morris via the above link.)

Poem 2 of 230: WALKABOUT WITH MY PEN

(TUNE:

C F G G A A G G
C G A A G G F F
C A A A G G F F
C G A G A G F F

C F G G A A G G
C F G G A G F F)

Once drove an old sedan, up north,
    From a place in Sydney to Cairns;
Then to Kuranda I went forth,
    By train, to look without set plans.

I browsed through the trendy market,
    With fresh fruits of tropical kind;
Walked to the creek through lush thicket -
    Nature's hand giving peace of mind.

I dined in a scenic cafe;
    Then, outside, as I wrote for yen,
Some passing Kooris called-out: "Hey,
    You go walkabout with your pen."

Request or question, I don't know -
    Assured voices, elderly men.
That's now several years ago,
    And I've seen the world - with my pen.

If you wish, hear this on http://myspace.com/walkaboutsverse
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 18 Jul 09 - 02:19 PM

That's what you started with wasn't it?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 18 Jul 09 - 03:15 PM

Google shows:

Results 1 - 10 of about 42,400 for

"Once drove an old sedan, up north,".

Forty-two thousand items of copy-pasted drivel on this one item alone.

What is your carbon footprint WAV?

Get a life

Regards

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 18 Jul 09 - 03:34 PM

Yes: sorry for that mistake - I should have checked; there are 230 altogether in my collection, so I shouldn't presently be doubling them.

My carbon footprint would be relatively low, Stu - I still walkabout or use public transport; tend to use clothes/quilts/beanbags rather than heating to keep warm; have hot water off rather than on standby; turn hot-plates off early and finish cooking with latent heat; etc.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 18 Jul 09 - 06:49 PM

beanbags???!!!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 19 Jul 09 - 03:59 AM

Yes S.: in our winter, by day, I'll often have one over my legs and, by night, over my quilts.

And I wouldn't have posted this one, as the season has just started...

Poem 48 of 230: THE PROMS

We walked through Kensington Gardens,
    Then made a left for Albert Hall.
Promenaders were in their tens,
    While others had found their stall,
As we took our pre-booked seats,
    In a row of restricted view -
Three-quarters of the orchestra.
    But the music sure bettered par:
The beautiful sounds of Mozart;
    The daring drama of Ravel.
And we liked it - me and a belle.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 20 Jul 09 - 04:29 AM

Poem 199 of 230: BEDE'S WORLD - WINTER 2002/3

During Advent, I returned to Bede's World,
    Where I, already read, was further schooled -
Via walks through the museum, the farm,
    The ruins, and the church with its old arm.
With gifts, I left, after some four hours,
    To round off, at home, my thoughts on ours.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 21 Jul 09 - 04:08 AM

Poem 137 of 230: SEEN

A change of pace -
    Walks through a place;
Crime-streets more clean -
    Through being seen.

Walking in twos,
    The wear on shoes
Worth the kept-peace
    Of foot-police.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: Walkaboutsverse - Where Can I Hear Him?
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 21 Jul 09 - 03:56 PM

Well, why the hell not? I got into folk to appreciate something that can be sung by the most lowly singers with a passion for songs old & new. That's where you'll find me, in singarounds, digging the sound of the human voice in all its diverse sonic wonderment, warts and all, much as I do when I'm listening to field recordings of the so-called Source Singers.

You can hear WAV on his myspace page by the way - www.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse - and most affecting it is too, as I've pointed out on various occasions. Weather permitting I'll be digging his homely antipodean timbres at the Durham Folk Party this weekend.

I like Virginia Tam and Crow Sister too of course, but to be honest I find these sorts of threads a little dispiriting in the context of Mudcat and Folk Singing in general. But that's just me - mutter mutter - descending into something nasty & flu-like, so do forgive me...

---

Messages transferred to existing Walkaboutsverse thread.
-Joe Offer-

Subject: RE: Walkaboutsverse - Where Can I Hear Him?
From: Tootler
Date: 21 Jul 09 - 05:16 PM

He's based in Co. Durham somewhere, I believe. Why not PM him?

Subject: RE: Walkaboutsverse - Where Can I Hear Him?
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 21 Jul 09 - 05:22 PM

Did you read the OP, Tootler?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 22 Jul 09 - 05:14 AM

Got your PM, and looking forward to seeing you, S., and the others at The Durham Folk Party, on Saturday, when I take the train from Newcastle to Durham...

Poem 162 of 230: TEES TO TYNE: FIRST IMPRESSIONS - SUMMER 2001

(TUNE:

E F# F# E D E F# F#
F# G G A B A G G
D G A A B B A A
F# G A B B A A-G G

D D F# F# F#-G F# E E
E E E E F# E D D)

Where traditions are not so rare;
    Sea, country and works scent the air;
A multitude of monuments,
    Planted tubs and patterned pavements.

The longish pedestrian malls;
    The remnants of defensive walls;
"Broken-roofed buildings" are a gauge
    Of the respect for heritage.

Wheat, rape and pines in the fields;
    Estuaries guarded by shields;
Long sandy beaches and wide scenes;
    Romantic-ruin go-betweens.

Rivers in parts licked by trees,
    Or fringed by boat clubs, wharfs, gantries,
And crossed by practical delights -
    Varied spans, forming pleasing sights.

Fine churches headed at Durham;
    Football kits ad infinitum;
Kept castles - one for study;
    Masonry behind masonry.

And, with moulding-works out that way,
It's somewhere for a longer stay..?

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 23 Jul 09 - 05:53 AM

Poem 12 of 230: GOLF AT KILLARNEY

At Killarney Golf and Fishing Club,
    There's two great courses to be found;
Built on Ireland's fine Ring of Kerry,
    Both are really worth a round.

From the local social Youth Hostel,
    I hitched (doing as Irish do);
Then paid to play both the courses,
    But missed five holes - Hostel curfew.

The fairways were lush and nicely groomed,
    And the course views the best I've seen;                        
With walks beside the lakes and mountains,
    I'm proud to say to there I've been.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 24 Jul 09 - 05:30 AM

Poem 190 of 230: BIRDWATCHERS' BUDE - WINTER 2001/2

Behind the Tourist Centre,
    Between canal and river,
On the marshy drained floodplain
    (Not now visited by train),
In among willow and reed,
    Eking out some winter feed:
Treecreepers, bobbing robins,
    Chirpy blue-tits, grey-herons,
The screams of water-rail,
    And snipe sharp on their trail.
Plus, out along limestone down,
    Soaring seabirds can be found.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 26 Jul 09 - 09:38 AM

Further to "Tees to Tyne: first impressions" (just above), had a good day at the Durham Folk Party yesterday, including a singaround, Evensong, Morris and clog dancing, and another walkabout.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 26 Jul 09 - 01:43 PM

He sings in Spanish betimes, as well; very uplifting. (Links to a .MOV file).

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 26 Jul 09 - 02:01 PM

Good lord.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 26 Jul 09 - 04:26 PM

I'm not sure what that link is about, but I should perhaps explain that I was a spectator only of both the folk dancing and the Evensong - which, if anyone is interested, starts at around 5pm every day at Durham Cathedral, I think.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 27 Jul 09 - 06:16 AM

Please note: I used the English name, Everest, as Nepalese and Tibetans have their own different name for it; also, in the news at the moment, if ex-Gurkas are indeed good citizens - "the bravest of the brave" - then surely they should stay in the new REPUBLIC of Nepal and NOT the United Kingdom (which should be dissolved into republics).

Poem 23 of 230: ABOVE EVEREST

When flying from Nepal to Thailand,
    I was given a "good-side" seat;
And, as I looked out the plane window,
    The view I saw was really neat.

For breaking through a thick sheet of cloud
    Were the high Himalayan peaks;
And, rising the highest of them all,
    Mount Everest - heaven bespeaks!

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
Or http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 28 Jul 09 - 04:19 AM

Poem 169 of 230: PERFIDA GENS - SUMMER 2001

On the estate:
    Abuse by day,
Banging at night -
    Sleep wars, I'd say.

Attempts on a car:
    Repaired by day,
Inflamed at night -
    Revenge, I'd say.

A gran's garden:
    Well-clipped by day,
Flame-scorched at night -
    Disgrace, I'd say.

Summing this up:
    As in Bede's day,
Manners are free -
    Faithless, I'd say.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
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(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: BS: Swimsuits - what's the fuss?
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 28 Jul 09 - 12:29 PM

Just caught a bit of the World Championships, and (as well as Phelps being beaten in the 200m) noticed the fuss over swimsuits: surely, apart from covering their reproductive bits, they can wear whatever they want - wherever they are swimming...

Poem 5 of 230: STATE TO STATE

(TUNE:

C F G F
C F G F
C F G F
C F G F
F G F C
F G F C
F G F C
C F F F)

From Sydney Town,
    In uni. break,
I drove out west
    To earnings make
Onion picking,
    On the fields
Of Echuca,
    That year's yields.

                                  After day's work,
                                     From Y.H.A.,
                                  A group of us
                                     Would not delay
                                  To walk on down
                                     To the dirt rim
                                  Of the Murray,
                                     For a cool swim.

On one such day,
    I do declare,
Some three of us
    Had a big dare
To swim across,
    From state to state,
The wide Murray -
    I took the bait.

                                  Yes, foolishly,
                                     I took the bait -
                                  A choice that I
                                     Would come to hate,
                                  For I almost
                                     Did drown that date,
                                  Making the swim
                                     From state to state.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
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(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Smokey.
Date: 28 Jul 09 - 07:45 PM

if ex-Gurkas (sic) are indeed good citizens - "the bravest of the brave" - then surely they should stay in the new REPUBLIC of Nepal and NOT the United Kingdom

With all due respect WaV, they've earned the right to live here - many times over in some cases. How many of us can honestly say that?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 29 Jul 09 - 05:46 AM

Smokey: Now having the right does not, of course, mean that all Gurkas and ex-Gurkas would rather live in the United Kingdom than the new Republic of Nepal; but those who would should, in my opinion, have more amor patriae for their HOMELAND, and question imperialism plus glamorous actresses more.

Poem 213 of 230: MORE AMOR PATRIAE

There is Tai Chi AND there is tennis,
    Line is fine BUT so is Morris,
There is curry AND there is the roast,
    And, when England is playing host,
It is the rest-of-the-world's good wish
    To sense culture that is English.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 29 Jul 09 - 07:22 AM

WAV your xenophobia is rearing its ugly head again I'm afraid.

The normal spelling is gurkha.

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 29 Jul 09 - 09:07 AM

Thanks for the spelling, Stu - but the rest is ridiculous: I greatly enjoyed being in among Nepalese people and culture when I VISITED their country.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 30 Jul 09 - 03:44 AM

We have Gurkha restaurants here on The Fylde and damn fine they are too; my next-door neighbours are from Sri-Lanka and they're the best neighbours I've ever had; our local shop is run by a Moslem and I rejoice that I live in hailing distance of one the finest Chinese restaurants in the country. I love the reality of my multi-cultural, multi-ethnic and still United Kingdom and find your comments in this respect offensive to a greater Humanity that defines us in terms of our individuality, rather than our ethnicity.

On this planet I can and will live anywhere I like; just as you have chosen to do, so leave your fantasies of racial & cultural purity out of this because not only are such fantasies racist, they are offensive to each and every person who has chosen, for whatever reason, to make their home in a country other than the one in which they were born.

You say you are not racist; but in maintaining and promoting such myths as English culture is taking a hammering and when people lose their culture society suffers and England was a more English place 50 years ago you are promoting and encouraging racism. You talk about assimilation, yet you steadfastly refuse to assimilate. Once again - I urge you - assimilate yourself into the wondrous diversity of cultural actuality of the country that gave you birth.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 30 Jul 09 - 04:34 AM

You've gone further than what I've actually said, S. - briefly, the strengthening of immigration controls, from now on; but, yes, this is one area where we disagree fundamentally - I like the world being multicultural but question the multicultural state/you like the world AND your country being multicultural.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 30 Jul 09 - 05:09 AM

Poem 22 of 230: HIGH HOUSEBOAT

When in India,
    I headed north
For the Himalaya.

Up, by train then bus,
    To Kashmir -
It was much cooler, thus.

Stayed there on Dahl Lake,
    By Srinagar -
For my tight-budget's sake.

'Twas a houseboat room:
    Run down, low cost -
But there I felt no gloom.

A solo mother -
    She had four kids -
Was the floor-manager.

At dawn, her daughter -
    The eldest one -
Brought me food and water.

I washed with bucket,
    Ate scrambled eggs -
As good as one could get.

From Dahl Lake's shoreline
    To the houseboats,
Canoe trips run just fine.

Day-tripped to Gulmarg,
    And played a round -
As always, kept the card.

It is the highest
    Green-kept golf-course,
And sure is quite a test!

Played another course,
    At Srinagar -
And it, too, I endorse.

For "with-dependants,"
    I should, though, add -
War, sadly, still rants.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
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(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 30 Jul 09 - 05:32 AM

you like the world AND your country being multicultural.

The world and my country is multicultural, WAV - that's the point; to even suggest it should be otherwise is inhumane.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Smokey.
Date: 30 Jul 09 - 05:47 PM

Too right, P O'B, and to suggest it when you're a foreign guest in this country is just plain batty, or at least highly illogical. Sorry WaV, but it just doesn't make sense..

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 31 Jul 09 - 05:47 AM

Poem 76 of 230: LAND RIGHTS

If there is a good thing,
    From the Second World War,
It's that most peoples learnt
    To conquer lands no more.

In Africa, Asia,
    And the Pacific, too:
Post-war independence -
    Steps only bigots rue.

But for some indigenes,
    Outnumbered much-too-much,
It has all come too late
    For liberty, as such.

So 'tis in Australia,
    And America's sites,
Where the best now, I think,
    Is to respect land rights.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 01 Aug 09 - 06:13 AM

Poem 19 of 230: JET

With time-based rail passes,
    As many youths still do,
I caught the trains through Europe -
    A good time it was, too.

But, late one night that summer,
    I ran full-on in vain,
Through quiet streets in Paris,
    To catch the London train.

And, at that Paris station,
    They closed the doors throughout,
For cleaning through the morning,
    Insisting - stragglers out.

So it was that a few of us
    Spent the night on the street,
And, I do declare to you,
    It left young me dead beat.

Yet there are many stragglers,
    Within the human domain,
Spending all their nights as such -
    While others own a plane!

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 02 Aug 09 - 04:29 AM

Poem 115 of 230: SUNDAY CRICKET AND BERRIES - SUMMER 2000

From a bus (ninety-eight -
    Bury to Manchester),
I got off at the gate
    Of Hamilton Road Park,
Where in situ I ate
    Several blackberries
(The taste too good to wait),
    Before making my way
To a further park-gate,
    From where briefly I watched
How Stand's cricketers rate.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
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(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 03 Aug 09 - 05:58 AM

Poem 58 of 230: THE OLD BULL

Walked along Fog Lane,
    Looked at the park,
Stopped in the Old Bull
    And had a hark,
While eating lunch,
    On how at dark,
Many years before,
    My father's lark,
There, was games of darts -
    I'd filled an arc.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
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(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 04 Aug 09 - 05:20 AM

Poem 197 of 230: HISTORIC HEXHAM – AUTUMN 2002

All hay was made,
    And the sun stayed,
The autumn day
    I made my way,
Via Heddon,
    To old Hexham,
Where I did see:
    The fine abbey,
The ex-gaol
    By the moot-hall,
Plus, holding sports
    Of varied sorts,
The Tynedale
    And the Seal.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
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(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 05 Aug 09 - 04:17 AM

This was in 1988, having just hitched from Land's End to John O' Groats...

Poem 11 of 230: OTHER SIDE

On the road from Inverness to Glasgow
    (A very scenic road it is),
I hitched with a pair - Italiano;
    The left-hand-drive Fiat was his.

I think they had taken turns at driving -
    I'm not sure from where or how far;
But, when they picked me up from my hiking,
    The lady was driving the car.

I recall how warm their greet did feel,
    And what a thrilling trip it was;
For, as their hands fought over the wheel,
    Our lives came near to loss:

I was sitting tight on the back-right side -
    My ears off their argument;
But my eyes surely knew how close beside
    The oncoming vehicles went!

We arrived without a scratch at Glasgow,
    But it begs this point, I feel -
Why did our forebears decide to go
    Either side for the new wheel?

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
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(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 06 Aug 09 - 04:40 AM

Poem 15 of 230: TOREO

I'm a fan of the Spanish way -
    I like their houses and their food;
But there is one thing I must say -
    Their bullfights do upset my mood.

The matadors may be brave folk,
    And the tradition an old one;
But what must also be spoke
    Is - the bulls' pain before they're done.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
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(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 07 Aug 09 - 04:53 AM

Poem 152 of 230: HISTORY IS A FOREIGN COUNTRY?

History is a foreign country?
    Reading Chaucer's 'Tales one can see -
In brilliant witty prosody -
    A definite continuity
In the matters of humanity.
    So how, then, could one fail to be
Without respect for one's history?

As we can learn from other cultures,
So, too, from our own through its years.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
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(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 08 Aug 09 - 04:37 PM

Poem 229 of 230: JOYS OF LIFE

Leightons, and other great art;
    Plumes of fireworks at night;
The vivid reds of sunrise -
    Repeated at day's last light.

The beats through us of a drum;
    Winter's sun felt through closed glass;
Handing in the last exam;
    Awakenings – alarmless!

The ball, off thee, whacks their net;
    When, to palms, leather has stuck;
Orange juice during half-time;
    A warm bath to wash the muck.

Viewing set-over cricket;
    A golf ball, for once, well struck;
Viewing velodrome cycling;
    From net-chord, levelling luck!

Sticks, chants, didgeridoo,
    Haunting harps, and all bagpipes;
Clog, flamenco, tamure,
    Hula, and other dance types.

Out, by a cast, being told;
    In - taking tea and T.V.;
Highland views that command rest;
    The buildings of Italy.

Thrifty plant-propagation;
    By a wave one's body hit;
Upstream of camp - with paddle;
    By a fire - strongly lit.

Forest spent-leaves under foot;
    Tasting a host-nation's fare;
Alcedo atthis at work;
    Just-bills being brought to bear.

Allegros when feeling low;
    An andante to wind down;
Spoken French and chorused song;
    The quiet when out of town.

A stroll through a kept garden,
    Before Sunday's roast dinner;
A pub game, drink and meal;
    One's team a comeback winner.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Aug 09 - 05:33 AM

Poem 16 of 230: A BEAUTIFUL STAGE

If a couple, with plans to wed,
    Asked me, off the top of my head,
For somewhere I thought well in-tune
    As a place for a honeymoon,
It would have - flashing back - to be
    Beautifully-honed Italy.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
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(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 11 Aug 09 - 06:09 AM

Poem 74 of 230: ANTHROPOLOGICAL SOCIALISM

Anthropology -
    Wonts, in close study -
Provides students with
    A good insight on
Many ways to live.

And students well-read
    Are oftentimes led,
Economically,
    To Left of Centre -
That happened to me.

With "immigration,"
    However, I'm on
The side of all those
    Who, questioning "aims,"
Make misled-Left foes.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 12 Aug 09 - 06:42 AM

Poem 27 of 230: ADELAIDE

In work and study,
    I spent four years -
Good years really -
    At Adelaide.

A flat by the sea -
    Work nearby;
Then full-time uni. -
    At Adelaide.

A planned C.B.D.,
    With parks all round,
And much more to see -
    At Adelaide.

Glenelg; Rundle Mall;
    And the markets,
With many a stall -
    At Adelaide.

From http://walkaboutsverse.741.com (e-scroll)
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(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 13 Aug 09 - 05:42 AM

Poem 26 of 230: UP ULURU?

Came in a coach from Alice -
    Slept nearby overnight;
An early call awoke us -
    Just before the morning light.

We were bussed to Uluru
    As the dawn began to break:         
Stopping to take in the view -
    A proud sight that rock does make.

Began the steep early-climb,
    Which, as marked, has claimed some life;
For youths it was just good time,
    But heavy aged-breaths were rife.

An hour or two later,
    After gazing from the top,
We returned to the charter -
    Kata Tjuta one last stop.

(P.S: in hindsight, I'm sure
    That from a distance to view
Is more kind, and more pleasure,
    Than climbing up Uluru.)

From http://walkaboutsverse.741.com (e-scroll)
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(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 14 Aug 09 - 06:36 AM

Poem 166 of 230: COLOURFUL LLANDUDNO - SUMMER 2001

Seated within the Greenery,
    Looking up, from a plate of toast
(Reddened with beans and tomatoes),
    Along Chapel Street's three-storey
Flats in white with red or yellow,
    Or white with a brown or a blue
(White with almost every hue),
    I thought: "Colourful Llandudno."

From http://walkaboutsverse.741.com (e-scroll)
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(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 15 Aug 09 - 05:07 AM

Poem 43 of 230: A BAYSWATER BED-SIT

Arrived in London,
    At Heathrow Airport,
With sixty kilos
    Of luggage I'd brought.

Found a paper, Loot,
    And called an agent;
Stored two heavy bags,
    Then to him I went.

For one week of rent,
    He'd ensure a bed
Within Bayswater -
    A bed-sit, he said.

It was eighty pounds
    Per week, nothing more,
With a lift arranged
    To the building's door.

Knackered and sleepless,
    I took the deal;
Checked-in quickly,
    Had a rushed meal.

Collected my bags
    (Tube there, shared-van back),
Then carried them up
    To my top-floor shack.

A penthouse - no need,
    It did me just fine;
A cook-top and fridge,         
    A table to dine.

Seated, I could watch
    The clouds roll by -
Often from the west -
    Or jets cut the sky.

There were large plane-trees,
    A squirrel or two;
And pigeons dropped by -
    Foregrounding the view.

Plus, at dawn, the sun
    Shined in from the east -
Filling the small room
    As on egg I'd feast.

And, contemplating,
    It occurs to me -
If all lived that well,
    How great it would be.

But a lot do sleep
    Outdoors many nights -
On sheets of cardboard,
    Without basic rights.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
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(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 15 Aug 09 - 10:50 PM

That one might just be the best yet.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 16 Aug 09 - 04:50 AM

Thanks, LH - and, accordingly, there was more than the usual number on my myspace blog overnight.

Poem 65 of 230: NORTH WALES

"Hills meeting sea"
    Proclaims to me
"Good scenery."

And it's views of North Wales,
    Both sides of the train-rails,
Whereupon this thought hails.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
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(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 17 Aug 09 - 05:11 AM

Poem 64 of 230: LIVERPOOL

Caught a train, along a long-used line,
    From Manchester to Liverpool.
On that day the weather was fine:
    Sunny - just a little bit cool.
There, I purchased a Walkabout Guide,
    Marked some sights, and headed outside.

As usual when first at such a place,
    I walked to the main art-gallery,
The central mall, and the garden space;
    Then headed down to the wide Mersey.
There, from ferry, I viewed the skyline -
    A good sturdy cityscape, for mine.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
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(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 18 Aug 09 - 05:53 AM

Poem 44 of 230: JOB SEARCHING

Once housed in London,
    I began searching
For new employment -
    The task was trying.

Asked newsagents:
    "Manufacturing -
Which paper's the best?"
    They disliked browsing.

About five of them
    Said they did not know,
Then eventually:
    Jobsearch is the go.

Employment agents -
    Public and private;
Letters; door knocking;
    Then work - just pre-debt.

From http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
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(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 18 Aug 09 - 09:45 AM

I have to completely agree with Hawk.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 18 Aug 09 - 10:01 AM

I must take that an additional step.........I hereby give Hawk my proxy to speak on all matters poetic and otherwise that are included on this thread.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 18 Aug 09 - 02:02 PM

Whoever said they don't understand irony in the USA was wrong...

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 19 Aug 09 - 05:33 AM

That wasn't Chongo Chimp (God knows what it would type about WAV), folks - it was Little Hawk, frankly!

Poem 45 of 230: PORTOBELLO ROAD

After questing forever,
    I bought an old blade-putter
On Portobello Road -
    By my London abode.

'Twas the Saturday market,
    And I was pleased with my get
From Portobello Road -
    W10's the code.

Also saw the festival,
    And many another stall,
At Portobello Road -
    A good arts and crafts node.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
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(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 19 Aug 09 - 03:14 PM

Very interesting. Is your abode actually located near a street called Portobello Road? Do they grow large mushrooms thereabouts or was it named after an Italian or Spanish merchant trader? It sounds like a charming place to me.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 19 Aug 09 - 04:56 PM

I left London around the Millennium, LH, for Manchester, where I was born, then Newcastle upon Tyne, where I am now.
And re. the name - although it's one of the most famous markets in England, you're google is as good as mine, sorry..?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 19 Aug 09 - 05:01 PM

...here's what Wiki says.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 19 Aug 09 - 07:05 PM

My goodness! I had no idea it was such a famous place. I should have asked Penelope. Thanks for the info, WAV.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 20 Aug 09 - 05:21 AM

...and, as Penelope would probably proclaim too, the Mersey is more than Liverpool, LH...

Poem 111 of 230: THE MERSEY AT DIDSBURY - SPRING 2000

(TUNE:

Eb F G Ab G
D F G Ab G
D F G Ab G
D G Ab Bb Ab
D G Ab Bb Ab
D F G Ab G)

Took bus one-four-three,                        
    From Piccadilly,
Along Oxford Road;
    Passed the old uni's,
Those shops with saris,
    And my first abode.

At Didsbury Village,
    The Old Parsonage
Looked neat, and gave sound,
    As I walked the way,
At about midday,
    To a Mersey mound.

From atop this bank,
    No longer a blank
Was the strong river,
    Nor the wide fairways -
Where I'd filled two days,
    Twelve years earlier.

I then headed back,
    On Stenner Woods' track
(Hearing more birdsong,
    And seeing mossed stumps
Plus well-layered clumps),
    To a human throng.

This throng was viewing -
    Justly pursuing -
The smart Rock Gardens,
    Sloped on Fletcher Moss,
Which I, too, did cross,
    Before homeward wends.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 21 Aug 09 - 04:52 AM

Poem 183 of 230: A BROWN HARE - AUTUMN 2001

Cramlington:
    Before an
Interview
    At a new
Factory,
    I did see,
By a steam
    In-between
Farm and home,
    On a roam,
Stopping there,
    A brown hare.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 21 Aug 09 - 05:38 AM

I hope you gave it its marching orders. Brown hares aren't native, you know. It should be compelled to go back to Rome, or failing that, its nearest safe country of asylum.

Bloody brown hares, coming over here, taking all our jugging and coursing...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 21 Aug 09 - 12:25 PM

...no I didn't, and I didn't get the gig either, Ruth. :-(>

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 22 Aug 09 - 05:48 AM

Poem 76 of 230: LAND RIGHTS

If there is a good thing,
    From the Second World War,
It's that most peoples learnt
    To conquer lands no more.

In Africa, Asia,
    And the Pacific, too:
Post-war independence -
    Steps only bigots rue.

But for some indigenes,
    Outnumbered much-too-much,
It has all come too late
    For liberty, as such.

So 'tis in Australia,
    And America's sites,
Where the best now, I think,
    Is to respect land rights.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 23 Aug 09 - 05:19 AM

Poem 138 of 230: AN OPIUM

National Lottery passes -
    Slight chances to be richer,
    With lots more than thy neighbour,
    Gained without any labour -
    Keep the system in favour:
An opium of the masses.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 24 Aug 09 - 05:04 AM

Poem 115 of 230: SUNDAY CRICKET AND BERRIES - SUMMER 2000

From a bus (ninety-eight -
    Bury to Manchester),
I got off at the gate
    Of Hamilton Road Park,
Where in situ I ate
    Several blackberries
(The taste too good to wait),
    Before making my way
To a further park-gate,
    From where briefly I watched
How Stand's cricketers rate.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: olddude
Date: 24 Aug 09 - 09:14 PM

David
what is a Stand's cricketers

is that the name of the cricket team?

Dan

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 25 Aug 09 - 04:35 AM

Yes Dan, it was/probably still is Stand Cricket Club.

Poem 196 of 230: BLYTH - AUTUMN 2002

After a day
    Of moulding work,
I made my way
    To Blyth's centre,
Where windmills play
    Near the staithes,
And where one may
    Dine or choose at
The Art Cafe.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: olddude
Date: 25 Aug 09 - 07:28 AM

David
very cool
thanks

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 30 Oct 09 - 06:32 AM

For Halloween, I'll post this one again; the "witches" mentioned here are the Pendle Witches - quite important to the Halloween tradition, apparently. (Also, as it's nearly England's Bonfire Night, you may like to hear "Cob-a-Coaling" on my myspace player - unaccompanied, with English flute intro.)

Poem 118 of 230: WHALLEY ABBEY...WHAT TALES? - AUTUMN 2000

Cistercian monks have clearly been -
    Their Abbey's ruins can still be seen;
And, sounding for centuries before,
    Calder flows have passed - seeking the shore.
Lords of the grounds have, more lately, stayed -
    Their manor houses reused and unscathed.
Through beautiful gardens insects fly -
    The ruins of folk just a pass-by;
And, by viaduct, trains pass above -
    Folk thereby viewing a town I love.
Anglers and C. of E. delegates,
    Hikers and tourists, have crossed the gates...
Opportunistic masons, kings-men,
    Model makers, Turner, and men who pen...
Perhaps the witches came down from the hill,
    And do ghosts haunt - still questing their fill..?

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Suibhne (Astray)
Date: 30 Oct 09 - 07:02 AM

The bulk of the splendid misericords carved by one Mr Eatough for Whalley Abbey in 1430 can be seen in Whalley Parish Church, with others in Blackburn Cathedral and Cliviger. Here's some pics including extant carvings from Whalley Abbey & other singularities, such as the Victorian Green Men we spotted on the cemetery gates in Preston on our way there:

Whalley, September 2008

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 30 Oct 09 - 02:47 PM

I think, S., only the first page of myspace pics are available to all, so maybe you could temporarily transfer them for us.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Suibhne (Astray)
Date: 30 Oct 09 - 02:55 PM

I see what you mean. Here's one to be going on with:

Whalley Parish Church; Misericord circa 1430

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 31 Oct 09 - 06:39 AM

It's a clever all-seeing figure, but what's the rest of the symbolism..?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 31 Oct 09 - 07:50 AM

And therein lies the big question, David! I might refer you two threads for extensive discussion on the subject:

Folklore: The Green Man

Any info about the green man?

Basically, over the last forty years The Green Man has become an Icon of Pagan Fakelore to the extent where he has become detached from the theology of Re-Reformation Roman Catholicism which was his original context. A bizarre state of affairs to be sure! Even to the extent where the Anglican custodians of the great Medieval Cathedrals (Durham included) promote their precious Green Men as being pre-Christian / Pagan rather than Catholic.   

Another of Mr Eatough's fine carvings at Whalley: Foliate Head, Whalley Abbey, 1430

And another from Whalley Abbey that presently resides in Blackburn Cathedral: The Fall, Whalley Abbey, 1430

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 31 Oct 09 - 01:29 PM

The closest I got to my homeland whilst studying anthropology in Australia was crofting on the Scottish islands; but what I did learn was that, in many lands, Christianity was fused with the local belief system - usually referred to as "pagan". Is that figure being "fed" by nature - as worshipped pre- and post-Christianity here..?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 01 Nov 09 - 08:56 AM

More such grist for the mill...

Poem 53 of 230: WHY THE YEW?

To paraphrase one of my uncles,
    Showing a church in Hertfordshire:
When you see an old English parish,
    There'll be yews in its yard, for sure.

"Why the yew?" I obviously asked.
    They were planted, he said, to stop
A resting-shepherd's sheep chewing-up
    The parish-graveyard's gardened top:

Odour tells them - choose another crop.
    (But another thought, I've since heard,
Is that churches were built near yews -
    Sacred-sites the pagans preferred.)

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

P.S: with England's Bonfire Night near, please remember to check for hibernating hedgehogs before burning; and you may like to hear "Cob-a-Coaling" on my myspace player (via above link).

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Stu
Date: 01 Nov 09 - 12:45 PM

Or play Cob-a-Coaling to any hibernating hedgehogs before burning and that'll flush the buggers out!

Only joking ;-)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 01 Nov 09 - 03:13 PM

Staying in Kenmore a few years we ago we visited the Fortingal Yew which certainly put things into perspective.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 01 Nov 09 - 05:15 PM

Yes, S., definitely a village church built next to a very ancient yew - I think I saw that one on the Beeb, when chaps from Kew Gardens were travelling to look at important trees.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 02 Nov 09 - 06:51 AM

Ironic to note that whilst many aspects of Christian theology, culture and folklore do derive from pagan elements, the Green Man (so-called) is an entirely Christian invention. He has only been the Green Man since Lady Raglan first called him thus in 1939 and his adoption & reinvention by neo-pagans & folkies was very much part of the sixties / seventies Zeitgeist which still prevails along with its various shibboleths, orthodoxies & mythconceptions - up to (and including) the Folk Process, The 1954 Definition, The Tradition, and the actual existence of Folk Music... ;-]

Choir Stall, King's Lynn, June 2008

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 02 Nov 09 - 07:20 AM

He, I think, doesn't seem to happy with his pew; I, on the other hand, was with this pew/view...

Poem 65 of 230: NORTH WALES

"Hills meeting sea"
    Proclaims to me
"Good scenery."

And it's views of North Wales,
    Both sides of the train-rails,
Whereupon this thought hails.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 03 Nov 09 - 04:16 AM

This was just after repatriating form Australia to England (with a stop in New York) in 1997 - before I moved north...

Poem 45 of 230: PORTOBELLO ROAD

After questing forever,
    I bought an old blade-putter
On Portobello Road -
    By my London abode.

'Twas the Saturday market,
    And I was pleased with my get
From Portobello Road -
    W10's the code.

Also saw the festival,
    And many another stall,
At Portobello Road -
    A good arts and crafts node.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

P.S: with England's Bonfire Night near, please remember to check for hibernating hedgehogs before burning; and you may like to hear "Cob-a-Coaling" on my myspace player (via above link).

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST
Date: 03 Nov 09 - 06:35 AM

'It is primarily marked in the United Kingdom where it was compulsory, by fiat, until 1859, to celebrate the deliverance of the King of Great Britain; but, it is also celebrated in former British colonies including New Zealand,[1] Newfoundland, and parts of the British Caribbean. Bonfire Night was celebrated in Australia until the mid- to late 1970s, when sale and public use of fireworks was made illegal and the celebration was effectively abolished. It is also celebrated in the British Overseas Territory of Bermuda.[2] Festivities are centred on the use of fireworks and the lighting of bonfires.'

So not just England's bonfire night

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 03 Nov 09 - 09:04 AM

I don't like imperialism, Guest, and I'm glad independence movements are growing in (hedgehog-less) New Zealand, Australia, etc.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 04 Nov 09 - 05:14 AM

Er...last time I looked, New Zealand and Australia were both sovereign nations WAV. What 'independence movements' are you referring to?
Tim

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 04 Nov 09 - 05:37 AM

Full independence/republicanism, M. Apart from some local government, all any citizen of our world needs is their own nation and the United Nations - NO Commonwealth, no E.U., G20, etc.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 04 Nov 09 - 09:37 AM

In what way are they not 'fully independent'? Who makes their laws and public policy other than their own democratically elected governments?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 04 Nov 09 - 12:01 PM

They are part of the remnant of imperialism called The Commonwealth, M.; and you may like check this on Gough Whitlam and the Governor-General.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 04 Nov 09 - 12:48 PM

That doesn't answer my question (why am I not surprised???); sovereign nations often choose to act in concert with other sovereign nations. Australia and New Zealand are free to leave the Commonwealth if they so wish, just as France was free to leave NATO. Again; in what way are they not 'fully independent'? Oh, and by the way, things have changed considerably since Gough Whitlam's day. Please try to stay up to date with the affairs of your own country.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 04 Nov 09 - 05:08 PM

It's true, M., that, since repatriating to my homeland, England, I'm not as "up to date with the affairs" of Austalia - but I have heard of, and support, the ever-growing republicanism/independence movements there and in New Zealand.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 04 Nov 09 - 05:31 PM

Not even up to date with how to spell it WAV

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 05 Nov 09 - 03:21 AM

One last try; what Australian/New Zealand 'independence' movements do you in fact support WAV? Names would be good, manifestos would be better. It seems a trifle odd to have an independence movement in a sovereign, independent state, recognised as such by your beloved United Nations, does it not? It's rather like having an organisation campaigning for independence for France. I concede that there are fringe organisations such as UKIP in this country, but all of these start from the false premise that a sovereign state cannot self-determine. If the UK chose to leave the EU, it could do so. There would be dire geopolitical and economic consequences, but the other states would not be able to prevent this. The same applies to Australia and New Zealand and their Commonwealth membership. So, WAV, are you going to break the habit of a lifetime and give a straight answer to a straight question? To remind you;
In what way are Australia and New Zealand not 'fully independent'? Who makes their laws and public policy other than their own democratically elected governments?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 05 Nov 09 - 04:23 AM

I have tried to answer your question, M, so I'll post this from Wiki...

"Towards an Australian republic?

As already seen, the only remaining constitutional connection with the United Kingdom is through the monarch, who is the monarch not only of the UK, but also of Australia and of each of its States. The main function of the monarch is to appoint and dismiss the Governor-General and the State Governors, and this function is exercised on the advice of the Prime Minister or the relevant State Premier. (The monarch is also sometimes asked to perform some function, such as giving the Royal Assent to an Act of Parliament, for ceremonial purposes during a Royal visit.)
On recent moves to replace the current constitution with a republic, and the defeat of the referendum for this purpose in 1999, see Australian republicanism."

Although there's been less fireworks around here the last couple of years, it should still be quite a sight this Bonfire Night...

Poem 173 of 230: VALLEY VIEWS - AUTUMN 2001

The winds can whistle and the walls can creak,
    But from my beloved old rocking-chair,
Through a rhombus-patterned lounge-room window,
    The Tyne-valley views induce one to stare:

Over a canopy of estate trees -
    Tall birch, locust, rowan and sycamore -
To the housing, parks, stores and works below,
    Which fringe the river of the valley floor...

Then up the other side to more parkland,
    More clusters of trees and residencies,
Streets that yield at night sparkles of light,
    Plus the Angel of the North, topping these.

(C) David Franks 2003
From WalkaboutsVerse - next blog has details...

(P.S: before burning bonfires, please make a final check for hibernating hedgehogs; and, if you like, hear the traditional seasonal English song "Cob-a-Coaling" on my myspace profile.)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 05 Nov 09 - 12:24 PM

Referencing Wikipedia as a primary source...and you an alleged graduate. Sigh...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 07 Nov 09 - 05:10 AM

Tomorrow, as well as being Remembrance Sunday in England, etc., it's 20 years since the Berlin Wall came down - and, about 21 years ago, I went...

Poem 17 of 230: THROUGH WHAT WAS

During Europe's summer, '88,
    At a wall my bag was checked:
A brief smile at what gave it weight;
    Sun-cream lid back - mood unwrecked.
I walked past plain buildings and cars,
    And entered a small food-store.
Its goods were plain, also: no sweet bars;
    The essentials - not much more.
As I bought crispbread, with money changed,
    A row began, at counter,
Between two, it seemed, Germans estranged -
    Clothes, to me, the sole pointer.
I headed back through the wall that was,
    Then signed a reunion book.
Reflecting, I'm happy/sad because
    The Left-cause, too, has been shook.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 07 Nov 09 - 04:52 PM

Just watched a powerful documentary called "The Secret Life of the Berlin Wall" (BBC 2), which, for those who missed it, will probably be on their iPlayer.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 08 Nov 09 - 04:25 AM

Poem 212 of 230: REMEMBER THEM?

Back when we became defenders
    (We have plainly been attackers),
Defenders' blood, sweat and years
    Were paid to keep a good home-way -
A way yet to be part stealth-blown,
    As mass immigration gained-sway
And as we slipped as maintainers.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Nov 09 - 04:32 AM

With both national rugby-league and rugby-union teams currently on tour in England...

Poem 99 of 230: ONE RUGBY?

With sixth-tackle, knock-on and touch-line hand-over -
    No scrums, line-outs, rucks or mauls;
The rest (the best of both codes) would hardly alter -
    And no splits, due to two calls.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Nov 09 - 04:46 PM

The poem cum song atop this thread, "Walkabout with my Pen," can now be heard, with an English-flute into, and keyboard accompaniment, via my myspace player.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 10 Nov 09 - 04:39 AM

On the news here in England, last night, a record lottery win was announced and celebrated: I agree with Oliver Cromwell and modern-day Taiwan - gambling should be ILLEGAL...

Poem 138 of 230: AN OPIUM

National Lottery passes -
    Slight chances to be richer,
    With lots more than thy neighbour,
    Gained without any labour -
    Keep the system in favour:
An opium of the masses.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 11 Nov 09 - 04:28 AM

Poem 84 of 230: NATIONALISM WITHOUT CONQUEST

Everything in moderation..?
    Well, with "nationalism" it's true:
It can carry unique cultures on
    But, overdosed, cause their conquest, too.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Mr Happy
Date: 11 Nov 09 - 10:51 AM

I wandered like a little star
Up above the clouds so high
How I wondered what they are
Two dozen blackbirds
Baked in a pie


[No shaving, as I've a large hairy arsebeard]

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 12 Nov 09 - 05:29 AM

...Little birdie flying high
Dropped a message out of the sky;
"Ooh!" said the farmer, wiping his eye,
"It's a jolly good thing my cows don't fly." (trad., I think)...

Poem 114 of 230: CLITHEROE CASTLE'S VIEWS - SUMMER 2000

From outside metres-thick wall
    (Down on leafy grounds grown tall,
Then across stony households
    To lush-green sheep-grazing folds,
And up further to the moor),
    Clitheroe Castle's views soar.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,EricTheOrange
Date: 12 Nov 09 - 08:01 AM

As already seen, the only remaining constitutional connection with the United Kingdom is through the monarch, who is the monarch not only of the UK, but also of Australia and of each of its States.

Ermmm???? By your own reference the Queen occupies a role in Australia because she is Queen of Australia as well as being Queen of the United Kingdom. It's up to the democratic choice of Australian citizens how long she remains in that role, nobody else. I doubt if many non-Australians care. As a self avowed "Englishman" it doesn't seem to be any of your business either way.

ETO

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Mr Happy
Date: 12 Nov 09 - 09:44 AM

Queen of Australia, queen of the May
Rode in a train o쳌fer the silver Tay
She said 쳌eDon쳌ft you know I쳌fm the head of state?
Make it go faster, I쳌fm going to be late!쳌f

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 12 Nov 09 - 01:01 PM

And I say: frankly, Eric, I do give a damn about world affairs.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,EricTheOrange
Date: 12 Nov 09 - 01:52 PM

Telling people in other nations how they should run their government sounds like just another form of imperialism to me.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 12 Nov 09 - 02:38 PM

As I've said, in my opinion, apart from some local government, all any citizen of our world needs is their own nation and the United Nations - which could be more democratic and effective, of course, and dissolving the likes of The Commonwealth, the G 20/8, etc, would help with that.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,EricTheOrange
Date: 12 Nov 09 - 05:02 PM

all any citizen of our world needs is their own nation and the United Nations

Why keep the UN?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 13 Nov 09 - 02:35 AM

Why do we need nations?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 13 Nov 09 - 04:43 AM

WAVism for Beginniners

WAVism is a philosophy of a Totalitarian World Order founded on the idea that the world has to be somehow Nice and Multicultural and that the only way to achieve this is to segregate all nations and ethnicities in a programme of mass repatriation and ethnic cleansing overseen by a New World Order WAVists refer to as The United Nations With Greater Powers. Though to the rational mind WAVism is the stuff of dystopian sci-fi, the WAVist genuinely feels WAVism represents the best way forward for Humanity, complete with an emphasis on National Folk Music and Music as a National Phenomenon Within Fixed Boundaries.

In a WAVist World, only Americans will be allowed to play rock music, and the only music English people will allowed to play is Our Own Good Folk Music and, possibly, Classical Music by English Composers, though how WAVists square this with the essentially non-English nature of Classical Music from the 10th Century onwards hasn't as yet been made clear. If WAVists accept English classical composers, then why not English rock composers? And what of such distinctly non-American popular musical phenomena as Krautrock? And what of the many English rock musicians who have been more influenced by Krautrock than American rock, yet have still managed to create a uniquely English rock music which then becomes a major influence back in America where it supposedly all began? Indeed, the unravelling of millennia of ethnic and cultural migrations, diaspora, invasion and cross-fertilisation is but one of the problems the WAVist faces when deciding upon their New World Order - let alone the inevitability of Near Total Dissidence, but people have been forced to comply at gunpoint before, so why not again? It's never been achieved on a global scale before, but there is a first time for everything!

So this is the absolute vision of WAVism's Nice Multicultural World, though what is particularly Nice about is another thing that hasn't, as yet, been made clear, especially given the pragmatics of making such a Global Totalitarianism a reality. Look at the human cost of Partition in India, which would be multiplied a million-fold at least in the ensuing migrations as populations are torn apart and people are forced to repatriate to the country of their ethnic (if not individual) origin. Still, such a holocaust would significantly reduce the Global Population - something else the WAVist has concerns about, as evident in their various Eugenic Asides which crop up every now and then. Still, when all is sorted out we will have that Nice Multicultural Wav-World with each ethnically cleansed Nation State devoted to its Indigenous Folk Culture, and policed by a Stronger UN to make sure it stays that way - there will be no Ethnic Contaminations or Cultural Recalcitrance, there will be no creativity or individualism, and, no doubt, the Human Genome will be modified to make sure that there will be no further developments; and that it will remain this way forever and ever and ever and ever...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 13 Nov 09 - 05:08 AM

(A lot of words in my/"WAVists" mouth(s) there S. This is the sort of thing I like - http://www.llangollen2009.com/)

It's called Mumbai now, of course, but not when I was there...

Poem 21 of 230: BOMBAY PORTER

Awaiting a train in Bombay,
    I was shocked into dismay;
For a well-dressed man, built strongly,
    Was walking, his hands set free,
Ahead of a bony porter -
    Heavy case on head, no quarter.

Shortly later, I watched again
    As out from the rich-man's train
Came the scrawny struggling porter -
    His thin back now much tauter;
For he writhed as he stretched his loins -
    After a quick count of few coins.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 13 Nov 09 - 06:06 AM

Not at all, WAV - I think that's a fair enough appraisal of your general philosophy as you've promoted it here over the years, although maybe I've been a bit soft there on the humanitarian implications! Your general tone is one of Cultural Policing along Iron Curtains erected on national boundaries to keep things nice and multi-cultural.

Worse still, you persist in the belief that Folk Music is somehow part of Our Own Good Culture!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Mr Happy
Date: 13 Nov 09 - 09:05 AM

Our world is filled with folks profuse
We쳌fre not all white, that쳌fs not much use
Geographical adaptations
Guard against nature쳌fs fluctuations
Under the skin we쳌fre pink and red
We all become equal when we쳌fre dead

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 13 Nov 09 - 05:38 PM

I was waiting for a tram in Fleetwood
When I saw a man whose clothing wasn't very good
He said can I help you with your case Boss
I said No because I'm as strong as a hoss

Oh dear said he Well will you buy a Big Issue
I said No because you're not an Englishman true
Go back to where you belong
Living in my country can only be wrong

I like to see you in your native lands
Scooping up rice in your scrawny hands
I love multiculturalism it's full of such charm
And the benefit culture will keep me from harm

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 14 Nov 09 - 07:06 AM

Hardly seaside weather today in England, but, speaking of Fleetwood, here's an a-political postcard-poem, for a change...

Poem 120 of 230: A GOOD SEASIDE DAY - AUTUMN 2000

Via the art gallery,
    Blackpool how it used to be;
Via a famous tower,
    The Blackpool of the hour.
Via a maritime Mount,
    Fleetwood with its channel out.
And, via a coastline tram,
    The autumn-night lit-art jam.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 14 Nov 09 - 07:48 AM

Nothing like a rainy day by the sea, not that we sea-side dwellers have much of a choice of course. All weather is sea-side weather, and the beauty remains un-dampened come whatever.

grey the rain
by Fleetwood's shore;
vistas, and horizon
blurred as
tides flow and gulls cry.
Today there is no sun,
no mountains,
only wet leaves
now fallen
floating out to sea.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Suibhne (Astray)
Date: 14 Nov 09 - 08:22 AM

Although I wrote the above poem before we set off today I'm delighted to report that it is in every sense accurate.

I now sit
at my father-in-law's
PC, watching starlings
squabble over seed-cake
as a solitary bee buzzes
around an equally
solitary
yellow poppy.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 14 Nov 09 - 12:46 PM

Okay - and not long after I posted my above "daily ditty," I noticed on the news some surfers, in Cornwall, enjoying their relatively large swells.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 14 Nov 09 - 01:52 PM

Before me sits my computer
Smugly gazing in my general direction
Knowing it has me under its spell
And helpless to face my growing addiction
It demands more power every day
Power that I must pay for
When the mail brings me the hydro bill
Wrapped up in a bland white letter
Hey, wait...that last couplet didn't rhyme!
Oh well, let's call this free verse
More freedom to exprapolate
As I pen another wee verse

- Nov. 14th, 2009

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 14 Nov 09 - 04:54 PM

Okay - but could a certain Chimp do better, LH?!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 15 Nov 09 - 05:05 AM

It's raining today,
but once there was summer and you
and dark little rooms
and sleeping late afterno...

Hold on, someone's already written that one.

Sunday morning
washed and cold
as glazed
greyness chills.
Outside -
a gazing-gull warms on
a smoking chimney pot.
Inside -
Cuban coffee cools
in a Hornsea mug
that says
November.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 15 Nov 09 - 05:14 AM

After a stormy Saturday here in England, it's much calmer (if still "raining," S.) in Newcastle upon Tyne today...

Poem 179 of 230: A GLASSY TYNE - AUTUMN 2001

Near glassy-classical new Law Courts,
    From the snazzy Millennium Footbridge,
Reflecting fine bridges of other sorts -
    A glassy Tyne's snazzy sunset image.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 15 Nov 09 - 06:30 AM

Snazzy, eh? I suppose that sums it up. We pass along by that way on our visits to Newcastle, parking as we do in the Holy Jesus multi-story, part of T. Dan Smith's once snazzy make-over that featured in the opening titles of Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads? as being emblematic of the change underlying the initial comedic premise. It also features in the wee video we did for Scott Walker's We Came Through which you can watch both in its edited version and the production footage that proves the song lasted the exact duration of the ascent from bottom to top.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_ktTtAZfV4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bqf3TRP7XYs

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 15 Nov 09 - 06:47 AM

Here's the picture I tried to describe..."snazzy"?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 15 Nov 09 - 06:03 PM

Nice pic WAV. Needs the horizon straightening though - about three degrees clockwise

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 16 Nov 09 - 05:05 AM

This was in 1988...

Poem cum song 10 of 230: LAND'S END TO JOHN O' GROATS

(TUNE:

D G A A B B A A
D A B B A A G G
D B B B A A G G
D A B A B A G G)

At the bold age of twenty-one
    (Via Hong Kong, China, Macau),
I flew from Sydney to London -
    Land's End to John o' Groats my vow.

I took a train out of London,
    Found a highway and thumbed a ride;
I headed down toward Brighton,
    Then hitch-hiked roads the coast beside.

On the face of my shoulder bag,
A sketched map of Aus. was my tag;
For said a Scot who'd hitched Europe:
"Some emblem may well boost your hope."

And drivers throughout the island,
Over a two month riding span,
Were the kindest folks I have met -
I swear not once did I get wet!

I stopped overnight in Portsmouth,
    And one or two nights in Torquay;
Then headed along to Plymouth -
    Still travelling beside the sea.

After viewing rugged Land's End,
    I began the long journey north -
North-east, rather, before a bend,
    Somewhere in a bit from Bournemouth.

On the way, I saw relatives,
Whom after leaving I did miss -
Their homes' cosy atmosphere,
And their local pubs' good cheer.

And the hitched-lifts came from many:
An off-work Bobbie, a truckie,
As well as on-duty soldiers -
Thanks, and I've not said where each was!

I headed west through South Wales,
    And viewed Cardiff Arms from afar -
I was hitching with local males,
    And they showed me from in the car.

I stayed a while at Swansea -
    Saw the local footballers play;
Then hitched north through Llandovery -
    Beautiful farmland, I must say.

I slept mostly in B. & B's,
Where the full breakfasts sure did please;
But also stopped in Youth Hostels,
Where it's the comradeship that tells.

My favourite sites were Torquay,
Old St. Andrews (noted shortly),
The road Glasgow-to-Inverness,
The Lakes, plus London's spots, no less.

From Colwyn Bay, I headed east
    To Manchester, my place of birth;
Then on the Lakes my eyes did feast,
    Before I passed by Solway Firth.

Onto Edinburgh, Glasgow,
    St. Andrews, before Inverness;
Then waves from locals were the go -
    Warm folks round John o' Groats, I'd guess.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 16 Nov 09 - 08:48 AM

Twenty-one years ago in other words. Very old news indeed, WAV - although in 1988 we recorded the Masstishaddhu / Shekinhah LP for United Dairies which is still worthy of its alt. folk / feral / wyrd / ritual / pagan / classic status...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 16 Nov 09 - 04:51 PM

"Old news" to some extent, S. - Macau and Hong Kong have been handed back to China; the Chinese Communist Party is much more like the "Chinese Capitalist Party" (the first Kentucky Fried Chicken had just opened in Beijing when I was there); on a personal note, I've returned to stay, this time; etc.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 17 Nov 09 - 04:27 AM

In North East England...

Poem 197 of 230: HISTORIC HEXHAM – AUTUMN 2002

All hay was made,
    And the sun stayed,
The autumn day
    I made my way,
Via Heddon,
    To old Hexham,
Where I did see:
    The fine abbey,
The ex-gaol
    By the moot-hall,
Plus, holding sports
    Of varied sorts,
The Tynedale
    And the Seal.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 18 Nov 09 - 05:25 AM

Despite such beautiful scenery, if I was to visit Ireland these days, I'd be more keen on a folk-club than a golf-club...

Poem 12 of 230: GOLF AT KILLARNEY

At Killarney Golf and Fishing Club,
    There's two great courses to be found;
Built on Ireland's fine Ring of Kerry,
    Both are really worth a round.

From the local social Youth Hostel,
    I hitched (doing as Irish do);
Then paid to play both the courses,
    But missed five holes - Hostel curfew.

The fairways were lush and nicely groomed,
    And the course views the best I've seen;                        
With walks beside the lakes and mountains,
    I'm proud to say to there I've been.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 19 Nov 09 - 05:49 AM

Poem 36 of 230: WALKABOUT MEXICO

In late December,
    1996,
I can remember
    Being in a fix -
For time and pesos -
    And, thus, unable
To see Mexico's
    Sights commendable.

So, in Tijuana,
    I enjoyed the show
At a miniature
    Rep. of Mexico.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Don Firth
Date: 19 Nov 09 - 04:28 PM

Tijuana?

The Republic of Mexico in miniature?

Uhh. . . .

Don Firth

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,EricTheOrange
Date: 20 Nov 09 - 03:14 AM

From: Don Firth

Tijuana?

The Republic of Mexico in miniature?

Uhh. . . .

Don Firth

Yes. WAV once again demonstrates his special brand of ignorance.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 20 Nov 09 - 05:17 AM

Is that what WAV's saying here? I rather get the impression he's looking at some sort of relief map or diorama. No doubt he'll be along shortly to clarify the ambiguity...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 20 Nov 09 - 06:13 AM

Yes, S., with the various sites of Mexico represented in miniatures - I just checked my Lonely Planet book and tijuana.com but could not find the name/if it's still there, sorry. I paid a weekly rent in a Tijuana hotel, and also made day trips back over the border to San Diego, the Baja Peninsula (seeing Mexican jumping beans for the first and only time), the golf course, the Cultural Centre (bought an excellent print by Diego Rivera), etc. Before that, via the same return plane ticket from Sydney, I was here...

Poem 37 of 230: RODEO DRIVE

On visiting Los Angeles,
    I thought I'd walk Rodeo Drive.
I'd passed a few up-market shops
    When an hombre said, "Take one please."

'Twas info. on exploitation,
    Which I read that night in my room.
It mentioned of the unfair gap -
    Sweatshop-wages to profit-on.

I left him to visit the john,
    Which was all clad in marble stone.
Then I walked past more fortune gowns
    To lunch: four bucks - fair profit-on.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 20 Nov 09 - 08:16 AM

seeing Mexican jumping beans for the first and only time

When I was a kid you could buy these at the pet shop in the Grainger Market in Newcastle; maybe you still can?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 21 Nov 09 - 06:11 AM

Have to check, next time...and just a bit of a jump/trot, toward the tawny Tyne, from Grainger Market...

Poem 184 of 230: THE QUICK CLUBBERS' TROT IN NEWCASTLE - AUTUMN 2001

Fridays, Saturdays,
    Latish in the night,
Bringing a smile,
    Making quite a sight
Down the steep-sloped Side,
    High on their heels -
Bonny, blithe ladies,
    Done with their meals
Or earlier clubs,
    Seeking the next spot,
And risking it with
    Their quick clubbers' trot.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 21 Nov 09 - 10:18 AM

There is a CUltural Center in Tijuana which provides a display covering the many wonders of Mexican culture in all its variety.

It is possible WAV was talking about that or some similar display.

Tijuana itself is part of the narrow corridor of border culture that runs along the southern border of the US and discolors the first hundred miles or so into Mexico, making it very much not representative of Mexico's interior.


A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 21 Nov 09 - 12:43 PM

I agree that, in some ways, it's very much a frontier town, Amos, and think you could be right about the...

"Tijuana Cultural Center
A culture and arts center where famous art pieces go on exhibit, including paintings, photographs, sculptures, along with a wide variety of plays, symphonies, recitals, operas and ballets. It also includes an Omnimax theatre, art gallery and a bookstore" (tijuana.com).

But it was definitely a kind of park that had Aztec monuments, etc., in miniature, beside pathways..?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,stu away from home
Date: 21 Nov 09 - 12:54 PM

500?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Don Firth
Date: 21 Nov 09 - 02:51 PM

In 1984, my wife and I were visiting friends in Long Beach, CA. One day, the four of us went to Tijuana. Sight-seeing, visiting a lot of shops, ate lunch in a sidewalk café (boy, do they use a lot of Velveeta there! Melt it, pour it over everything!!), wading through hordes of kids begging money off tourists (they've got the plaintive eyes down to an exact science). We watched with amusement as a couple of smart-ass Aussie tourists dickering with a sidewalk photographer who would take your picture while standing next to a mangy burro.

By the way, the begging kids were reasonably well-dressed, quite chubby, and obviously well-fed. Some of them probably should have been put on a diet! Begging from tourists was just a thing they did.

Barbara bought a nice looking embroidered dress. For kicks, I looked at a few guitars. Covered with mother-of-pearl inlay, sap still oozing out of the wood, tone like an apple crate, and they'd case it up for you in a big plastic bag with a twist-tie – all of this for $25.00. I decided to stick with my Arcangel Fernandez flamenco, made in Madrid, thank you.

In North America, I've been over lots of the United States, all across Canada, including up in the Caribou country.

But I can't really say that I've ever been to Mexico. . . .

Don Firth

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 21 Nov 09 - 03:30 PM

"By the way, the begging kids were reasonably well-dressed, quite chubby, and obviously well-fed. Some of them probably should have been put on a diet! Begging from tourists was just a thing they did." (Don)...and, at the end of the day, I noticed them leave, in groups, on small trucks, as just as many prostitutes took their places on the streets.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Don Firth
Date: 21 Nov 09 - 04:51 PM

Right, David.

I don't think you would have found that Mexico City is quite like that, though.

Don Firth

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 21 Nov 09 - 05:03 PM

Yes, Don - although on the BBC's World News Today, recently, there was an article on how bad, and widespread (if worse in such frontier towns), drug-related killings have become in Mexico, sadly.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 22 Nov 09 - 05:49 AM

Poem 166 of 230: COLOURFUL LLANDUDNO - SUMMER 2001

Seated within the Greenery,
    Looking up, from a plate of toast
(Reddened with beans and tomatoes),
    Along Chapel Street's three-storey
Flats in white with red or yellow,
    Or white with a brown or a blue
(White with almost every hue),
    I thought: "Colourful Llandudno."

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

(P.S: I think I'll change "Rep. of Mexico," above, to "Model Mexico.")

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 23 Nov 09 - 06:22 AM

I noticed on the news a meeting between the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Pope: both the imperialistic Anglican and Roman Catholic movements should be dissolved, and replaced by a Church of Italy only, a Church of England only, a Church of Germany, a Church of Wales, etc.

Poem 219 of 230: FURTHER ANTI-IMPERIALISM

Let each Christian nation have its own Church -
Equal, before God, with the others' Search.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 23 Nov 09 - 06:39 AM

Should, WAV? On your say-so alone? And you wonder why I question your attitude at times! The RC theological tradition is very distinct from Anglicanism and answers very different spiritual & cultural needs. Take them away and we've lost 2,000 years of a continuity that mere Christianity can't replace.

If you followed your argument to its logical extreme then we shouldn't have Christianity in England at all - it is a foreign import rail-roaded in on the back of an occupying imperialist empire. Furthermore, Christianity has been the ruin to your much cherished multi-cultural world, reducing many the once proud indigenous tribal culture to alcohol swilling, Bird-Dancing idiots - as I once saw on an documentary on the Inuits some years ago; images that stay with me yet! And all in the name of - Jesus! Bullshit, WAV - Christianity is Imperialistic by default - and if you were any lover of England and a Multi-Cultural world you'd throw it away and get back to the Old Religions of England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales. Hell, if you accept Folk Music as Our Own Good Culture, then why not Druidism????

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 23 Nov 09 - 08:35 AM

"The RC theological tradition is very distinct from Anglicanism" (S.)...of course - but what they have in common is their centralisation/imperialism; and , given all that has obviously happened, we should focus on what's best FROM NOW ON. And surely one thing you have in common with me is a dislike of imperialism.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 23 Nov 09 - 08:52 AM

I thought this thread was reserved for poetry doggerel and such?

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 23 Nov 09 - 09:25 AM

Instead, Stu., we decided to fill it with verse and prose of high literary merit!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 23 Nov 09 - 09:33 AM

Or with bizarre and unjustifiable belief structures that rankle with those who have any understanding of religion, anthropology, English, football, tennis, poetry, women and the other mix of subjects on which you pontificate with a limited education and little comprehension

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Ed
Date: 23 Nov 09 - 09:48 AM

Come, come, Stu!

You well know that WAV has a degree in humanities, along with 4 technical certificates in manufacturing

I am not worthy ;-)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 23 Nov 09 - 09:49 AM

Joking apart, then, Stu, as well as 4 technical certificates in manufacturing, I have a degree in humanities, with a major in anthroplogy, during which my "comprehension" was sound enough to earn me distinctions for most of my essays, and the offer of an honours place.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 23 Nov 09 - 09:51 AM

...and, thinking alike, another great mind has just joined us!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Ed
Date: 23 Nov 09 - 09:55 AM

...and, thinking alike, another great mind has just joined us!

Mind you, fools seldom differ....

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 23 Nov 09 - 10:45 AM

Looking back over the miles this thread has traveled, the classic notion of pathos rises to mind with irresistible force.

A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 23 Nov 09 - 01:24 PM

I am reminded more of bathos, on balance.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Ed
Date: 23 Nov 09 - 01:36 PM

Asperger's is the first thing that comes to my mind.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 23 Nov 09 - 01:59 PM

Madio, you are quite correct. Apologies for the misplaced consonant.

Swear not by the rune,
The inconsonant rune...

(Romanoff and Jellico, 1786)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 23 Nov 09 - 02:03 PM

Somehow I think this has something in common with this thread.........

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 23 Nov 09 - 02:17 PM

Spaw:

I thought you apologized for all that? Bend over and I'll show you a new use for those drumsticks...



A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 23 Nov 09 - 02:29 PM

Admit it Amos.....You're jealous of those drumsticks!

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Don Firth
Date: 23 Nov 09 - 03:18 PM

Don't forget, along with that degree in anthropology and all those certificates, he can also drive a forklift—

DAMN!!

Don Firth

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 23 Nov 09 - 03:31 PM

FROM NOW ON

So zero hour is 23 Nov 09 - 08:35 AM Mudcat Time?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 23 Nov 09 - 04:27 PM

"Asperger's is the first thing that comes to my mind" (Ed)...delicious, though - even just with toast and ketchup.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 24 Nov 09 - 05:18 AM

150 years ago today, Charles Darwin released - On the Origin of Species...

Poem 96 of 230: PARADIGMS

"Thirty-all" is, in effect, "deuce";
    Nobody has seen an "atom":
An atom remains a model;
    "Thirty-all" an umpire's call.
"They we just simply had to bomb";
    And there are other given "truths"...

If we humans evolved from apes,
Why on earth are there living apes?

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST
Date: 24 Nov 09 - 05:52 AM

Just for you

"Comparisons of DNA show that our closest living relatives are the ape species of Africa, and most studies by geneticists show that chimpanzees and humans are more closely related to each other than either is to gorillas. However, it must be stressed that humans did not evolve from living chimpanzees. Rather, our species and chimpanzees are both the descendants of a common ancestor that was distinct from other African apes. This common ancestor is thought to have existed in the Pliocene between 5 and 8 million years ago, based on the estimated rates of genetic change. Both of our species have since undergone 5 to 8 million years of evolution after this split of the two lineages. Using the fossil record, scientists attempt to reconstruct the evolution from this common ancestor through the series of early human species to today's modern human species."

stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 24 Nov 09 - 07:06 AM

And while we are doing WAV's corrections for him; electron microscopy and micrography has now advanced to the point where people certainly have seen an atom. This breakthrough was made in the late 1970s, rendering WAV's 2003 poem a little archaic.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 24 Nov 09 - 09:37 AM

Having read the quote posted by Stu, and this on "seeing" atoms, I still question these "paradigms".

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 24 Nov 09 - 11:08 AM

Dear Gawd, David, are you being thick on purpose?

Do you think someone made up the electron-microscopic images that clearly show the wee bundles we call atoms?

Granted, they are probability distributions acting like particles, and not actual solid particles. But that's true of all matter. What "paradigm" do you prefer looking at the evidence, then? Intercessory divinity?


A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 24 Nov 09 - 11:21 AM

No Amos, he prefers the pair of dimes in his pocket that jingle when he plays pool in their location..............

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 24 Nov 09 - 12:39 PM

Spaw: you've avoided such below-the-belt language for months, as I've largely avoided sarcasm...

Amos: eureka!...that device conveniently (but definitely!) allows us to see the very "atom" we've known of for years - and they even look just like Rutherford's planetary model!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 24 Nov 09 - 12:45 PM

I don't suppose a simple expository sentence is too much to ask? "Conveniently" implies you think the physics is somehow being manipulated? Or that the Rutherford model (which is not what shows up, nor what was expected, BTW) is a powerful reality-morphiong belief? Or what?

In 25 words or less, complete the following sentence:

"My preferred paradigm to explain atomic phenomena is...".



A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 24 Nov 09 - 01:28 PM

If we humans evolved from apes,
Why on earth are there living apes?

Simple - because it was only selected higher primates that were used by the Martians to be developed into Humans. Suggest you watch Quatermass and the Pit for both evolutionary enlightenment and to further your appreciation of English Culture.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 24 Nov 09 - 01:43 PM

I'll look out for that one, S., plus The Wicker Man, and get back to you Amos...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Don Firth
Date: 24 Nov 09 - 01:59 PM

"If we humans evolved from apes,
Why on earth are there living apes?"

This is a bit like asking
"If I am a descendant of my great-great-great-grandfather,
Why on earth do I have living cousins?"

????

Same deal. . . .

Don Firth

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 24 Nov 09 - 02:07 PM

The logical stement "All P are descended from some Q" does not imply that "All Q have become P". There is no contradiction there.


A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 24 Nov 09 - 02:29 PM

At least we're minding our Ps and Qs now.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 24 Nov 09 - 04:14 PM

LMAO.....Uh, first, I fail to see what my comment had that was so terrible or anymore below the belt than Amos asking if you were "being thick on purpose."

And to be truthful, you know diddly-squat about sarcasm but I'd be happy to teach you if you like........

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: richd
Date: 24 Nov 09 - 04:18 PM

Intersesting where the 'occult' or magic comes from in these British Horrors. Although the horror in Quatermas and the Pit comes from Mars, its manifestation is distinctly urban. Compare with the Wicker man, where the 'horror' comes from the rural. In the Wicker Man the ocult seems also to be a form of expertese, again a common theme in British Horror, especially where the source of the occult is male. Suimmerisle is also a libertine. Where the source is female, then these tend to be less intellectual. Interesting also that both are horrors by the skin of their teeth if at all- the Sci-fi element in QATP is dominant, and I'm not sure about TWM. I think it's more of a detective yarn that goes adrift. Now, for real fear- how about The Stone Tape- also a Nigel Kneale. Anyway praise be that it's not all documentary realism.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 24 Nov 09 - 04:21 PM

I think I see your point, richd, but I have no idea what the source of the occult is in this particular British Horror...



A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: richd
Date: 24 Nov 09 - 04:29 PM

Sorry, strayed into the wrong thread......it was the beer guv'nor. There's strange things. Dark things down here.
I'll move along quietly.......Sorry...don't tell anyone I was here.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 24 Nov 09 - 04:45 PM

In both QATP & The Stone Tape, Kneale is bluffing up the supernatural with a deeper scientific rational - but it's the science that ultimately proves more terrifying, feeding as it does into the primal terror of The Stone Tape, or the revelations of Martian genetic experiment and colonisation in QATP. Despite the bogus pagan trappings, there is no such supernatural element in The Wicker Man, just the bleakness of totalitarian society and how easy human being will participate in institutionalised murder. This the horror of what human beings are capable of. Whatever the horror quotient of QATP, it still the only film capable of scaring me shitless!

You taking notes, WAV? Watch out on BBC4 over Christmas for the usual round of classic ghost stories, not like that Mark Gatis shite they served up last year!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 25 Nov 09 - 04:14 AM

Poem 14 of 230: NIGHT OR DAY?!

In the far north of Sweden,
    A "Land of the Midnight Sun,"
A strange thing chanced upon me -
    And I'll tell you, just for fun.

Got off a train late-morning
    (Had to catch same one next day)
And trudged far to the Youth Hostel -
    Paying for a one-night stay.

I spent the afternoon sightseeing,
    Then, after a latish dinner,
Returned to my own small bedroom -
    The comfy bed proving a winner.

For I soon dozed into dreamy sleep -
    Waking what was just two hours hence;
But my watch was an analogue,
    And night or day I couldn't sense!

I quickly packed all my things
    (My train an hour or thirteen on)
And hurried out the bedroom -
    The bright sky a sneaky con.

I wandered down the track a bit
    (The Hostel office empty),
Before a smiling helpful local
    Did kindly enlighten me.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Richd in work
Date: 25 Nov 09 - 04:55 AM

I think one of the (many) interesting things about both The Stone Tape and Quatermass and the Pit is that in the end both science and religion are both inadequate to contain the supernatural. Perhaps this is less so in Quatermass and the Pit. But in The Stone Tape both clearly fail (e.g. the final shot of Brock listening to Jills' screams). The second point, that the The Wicker Man contains no supernatural element is interesting, although a silmilar argument can be made that Quatermass and the Pit and The Stone Tape contain no supernatural elements either- only misunderstood science. This is also interesting because there seem to be thematic similarities between the three male characters- Summerisle, Quatermass, and Brock. They are all misunderstood scientists! The final point about totalitarianism and the dark human mind- yes, I'm sure that's there. But that describes many films from many times and many genres: what's specific to The Wicker Man? Again the 'bogus pagan' element is there, as there is a 'bogus science' element to QTP and TST but that's not all that's there. It might not even be the most important thing that's there. An interesting question is what these 'bogus' elements do in these particular examples. Films, even horror films, are capable of complexity, and the interplay of the different themes and ideas within The Wicker Man is one of the most interesting things about a film I think is flawed and quite weak.

Mark Gatiss. Hmm- I wish they'd show The Signalman this year. Interesting how in Britain it's Christmas for ghosts, not Halloween.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Crow Sister (off with the fairies)
Date: 25 Nov 09 - 05:11 AM

"Interesting how in Britain it's Christmas for ghosts, not Halloween."

Didn't the Victorians start that tradition?
I'd like to know more about it actually, as reading/watching ghost stories are one of the remaining things about Xmas tradition, I rather enjoy - it feels so old fashioned and 'grounding' in the midst of all the excess.

Saw Tim Burtons 'Sweeney Tod' t'other day, thought it would make an ideal kitch musical horror for Xmas.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 25 Nov 09 - 06:06 AM

Both TST & QATP are seminal influences on my general philosophy of Life, The Universe & Everything - as an atheist I don't believe in the supernatural, but I do believe that there is a whole lot more to material reality that accounts for what we humans in our sensory deprivation think of as being supernatural. This, for me, is where the horror kicks in.

By bogus paganism in TWM I mean the Frazerian folkoric foundations of Summerisle which underlie much neo-paganism today. What's specific in TWM is that those ideas have been used to repress humanity into placid compliance much as they were in Nazi Germany - see my post HERE for more on this. The bogus science of Kneale is the sci-fi language; in the worlds of TST & QATP the science is real, but in the world of The Wicker Man we are left in no doubt that the paganism is indeed a sham - the opiate by which the islanders have been coerced into lumpen passivity.

Christmas Ghost Stories? M R James, and The Signalman - and maybe a little Rolt I think! Be nice to see a season of old dark British cinema - stuff like Dead of Night and The Rocking Horse Winner. Hell, I'd even be happy with Dr Terror's House of Horrors in which we Lee & Cushing alongside Allan 'Fluff' Freeman and Roy Castle, who explores similar themes to The Mighty Boosh regarding the true The Spirit of Jazz.

Staying into Re-Imagined Village territory here I think.

Encounter anything spooky on your travels, WAV?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Crow Sister (off with the fairies)
Date: 25 Nov 09 - 06:18 AM

SO'P What's that one with the painting of the house with the light in the window, where someone's spirit becomes trapped? I aught to get some of these old films on DVD, because though I always used to stay up late as a kid to watch them (well past my bedtime, round Nanna's house on a Friday night) they never seem to put the buggers on anymore, so my memory is a pretty hazy.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 25 Nov 09 - 06:59 AM

Dr Terror's House of Horrors is one of the best films I have EVER seen.

MR James - brilliant.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Will Fly
Date: 25 Nov 09 - 07:02 AM

Charles Dickens used to put ghost stories into Christmas editions of his magazine "Household words" and as separate stories-within-stories in his Christmas books. I'm unsure as to whether he started that tradition or whether he continued an existing tradition. However, I think it's true that the "traditional" Victorian Christmas as we see it on cards, for example - the snow, holly, coaches, robins, fir trees, lamplit windows, ladies & gents strolling through snowscapes - is very much a product of Dickens' influence.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 25 Nov 09 - 07:23 AM

Crowsister, is that The Mezzotint ? That story used to scare the bejaysus out of my daughter when she was little.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Will Fly
Date: 25 Nov 09 - 08:47 AM

Nearly all of James's ghost stories, when read in the original, are pretty scary. "The Mezzotint" is wonderful, as is "Number 13" and, for a sheer getting-under-the-bedclothes-'cos-it's-great-to-be-scared experience, "An Episode of Cathedral History" takes some beating.

I've not yet found a perfect film version of any of James's stories, though many think the "Casting The Runes" and "Oh Whistle And I'll Come To You" films are very good. They don't quite to my expectations, though they haven't been bettered yet by any other versions.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 25 Nov 09 - 09:08 AM

CS - Did you mean The Mezzotint? Or was it a film? Monty said The Mezzotint was the same idea as The Haunted Dolls House - an oxymoron if ever there was one; aren't all dolls houses haunted? There's a beauty in the museum in Preston which gives me the shivers even on a sunny day.

Then there's this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1oSJs7vSthk

Of the recent TV adaptations I felt A View from a Hill faired rather better than Number 13 - what I wouldn't give for a pair of binoculars like those for wandering the ruined abbeys of our green & unpleasant countryside.

You digitised those Michael Hordern tapes yet, Will? Still something I've yet to get round to!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 26 Nov 09 - 05:24 AM

Poem 104 of 230: ALONG WITH THE INGENUITY

Let us not forget,
    If we should visit
The world's grand buildings,
    Such as those for kings,
The underlying
    Human suffering,
And inequity,
    Of facades we see.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Will Fly
Date: 26 Nov 09 - 06:22 AM

Hi SO'P - I've just bought myself a cheap-ish Sony Walkman cassette player as the one in my very expensive, but now quite old, Teac system is buggered and only plays at double speed.

The player arrived a few days ago so, as it happens, I'm now in the process of transferring some audio books to my laptop and thence to CD.

If you'd like a CD copy of the James stories, just let me know and PM me an address - my pleasure.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 26 Nov 09 - 06:26 AM

Wow! Yes please!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 27 Nov 09 - 04:36 AM

Following sadly devastating floods in Cumbria, on the news yesterday, I heard locals urging tourists to keep visiting what is a beautiful part of England...

Poem 159 of 230: WINDERMERE - SUMMER 2001

Some thirteen years from my first visit
    (Then, dropped from hitching, just near;
This time, by train and a downhill walk),
    I arrived at Windermere:

On the ferry Miss Cumbria Three,
    A chill-out trip to Ambleside -
Viewing the trees, the farms, the fells,
    And the more sporty ways to ride.

Once there, an uphill walk through the shops
    Led to a leaf, rock and root track,
With a stalactite-like mossy falls,
    And a bridge - starting the way back.

Track-side, gripping the ghyll, ancient woods
    Shaded what was a sunny day,
And the falling stream gave sound strongly -
    Calming the soul a further way.

Then home - again charmed by the thin-stone
    Minimum-mortar kept buildings,
The surrounds of England's largest lake,
    And movie train-window viewings.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 28 Nov 09 - 04:11 AM

Poem 164 of 230: BARROW-IN-FURNESS, SEEN WITH A PAL - SUMMER 2001

Forest, wind-farm, fell-views and sands behind,
    The train, crossing Barrow's waters, startled
Some of the swans and ducks bridge-side aligned.

Soon seen as we walked from the train station:
    Two huge jibs, each over its new warship;
And works - largest we'd viewed in the nation.

Neat roundabouts link busy dockside streets;
    In the docks, a foreign-flag submarine,
And, in the museum, miniature fleets.

A tasteful town-hall of pitted red stone;
    And, snap-viewed from a left-side train-window,
Furness Abbey ruins - on the way home.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 28 Nov 09 - 04:56 AM

Did some storytelling in Barrow once about 15 years ago; never been back but I see it most every day, and night, the distant light glistening across the bay...

By the old Fleetwood Pavilion, lookin' northward to the sea,
There's a Barrow girl a-settin', and I know she thinks o' me;
For the wind is in the chimneys, and the mobile ring-tones they say:
"Come you back, you storyteller; come you back Barrow way!"
Come you back Barrow way,
Where the old car ferries lay:
Can't you 'ear their propellors chunkin' from Larne to Morecambe Bay?
On the road out Barrow way,
Where the flat-fishes they play,
An' the dawn comes up like thunder outer Fleetwood 'crost the Bay!

Just a thought...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 29 Nov 09 - 05:33 AM

It's Advent again, and again I've purchased gifts (calendars by the Northumbrian Scribes) from, in North East England...

Poem 199 of 230: BEDE'S WORLD - WINTER 2002/3

During Advent, I returned to Bede's World,
    Where I, already read, was further schooled,
Via walks through the museum, the farm,
    The ruins, and the church with its old arm,
Plus the herb garden - raised beds, kept with care:
    Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme all there.
With gifts, I left, after some four hours,
    To round off, at home, my thoughts on ours.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,mandotim at work
Date: 30 Nov 09 - 03:35 AM

An Advent poem? Didn't stop you posting it in July on this very thread, did it? It's bad enough that you shamelessly use the thread for promoting your nauseous poetry and ideologies, but there are now many repeats of your doggerel on the thread; come up with something original and new, or stop posting.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 30 Nov 09 - 05:03 AM

Happy St. Andrew's Day, and good luck to those pushing for an independent Scotland...

Poem 66 of 230: TO SCOTLAND, AGAIN

By coach from central Manchester -
    In-between stops at Bolton,
Carlisle and Hamilton -
    To Glasgow, these are sights I saw...

Some sheep, blotched vividly with blue,
    Filing down a well-worn path,
Did form a long woolly lath,
    Aimed at a lusher greener hue.

A farmer on a four-wheeler:
    His canine friend close beside.
A horse not on call to ride:
    On leave - a no-shoe non-heeler!

Convex pastures with heath-moorland;
    And flatter grain-planes below:
Cropped, awaiting till-and-sow -
    Perhaps with grazing beforehand.

Passed Edwin Waugh territory,
    Cumbria's sharp forms and tones
Compelled sense off seat-cramped bones
    To their well-honed long-read story.

Further north, farms of slighter falls:
    One a black-sheep specialist,
With some Friesians on the list -
    All held between old dry-stone-walls.

The Lakes behind, a strong Scotch mist
    Changed the sun to a full-moon
And hid scenery, till soon -
    Light, and the wide scenes on Burns' list.

New farms harnessing the wind's blow,
    Old white-and-grey-cottage views;
Plus pines, espousing the hues -
    In distinct leaf-tones - of Glasgow.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Monsieur McGonagall
Date: 30 Nov 09 - 05:33 AM

That's a lovely Scottish one. Here's what it reminded me of - in fact all your poems remind me of the great McGonagall

BEAUTIFUL Railway Bridge of the Silvery Tay !
With your numerous arches and pillars in so grand array
And your central girders, which seem to the eye
To be almost towering to the sky.
The greatest wonder of the day,
And a great beautification to the River Tay,
Most beautiful to be seen,
Near by Dundee and the Magdalen Green.

Beautiful Railway Bridge of the Silvery Tay !
That has caused the Emperor of Brazil to leave
His home far away, incognito in his dress,
And view thee ere he passed along en route to Inverness.

Beautiful Railway Bridge of the Silvery Tay !
The longest of the present day
That has ever crossed o'er a tidal river stream,
Most gigantic to be seen,
Near by Dundee and the Magdalen Green.

Beautiful Railway Bridge of the Silvery Tay !
Which will cause great rejoicing on the opening day
And hundreds of people will come from far away,
Also the Queen, most gorgeous to be seen,
Near by Dundee and the Magdalen Green.

Beautiful Railway Bridge of the Silvery Tay !
And prosperity to Provost Cox, who has given
Thirty thousand pounds and upwards away
In helping to erect the Bridge of the Tay,
Most handsome to be seen,
Near by Dundee and the Magdalen Green.

Beautiful Railway Bridge of the Silvery Tay !
I hope that God will protect all passengers
By night and by day,
And that no accident will befall them while crossing
The Bridge of the Silvery Tay,
For that would be most awful to be seen
Near by Dundee and the Magdalen Green.

Beautiful Railway Bridge of the Silvery Tay !
And prosperity to Messrs Bouche and Grothe,
The famous engineers of the present day,
Who have succeeded in erecting the Railway
Bridge of the Silvery Tay,
Which stands unequalled to be seen
Near by Dundee and the Magdalen Green.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 30 Nov 09 - 05:53 AM

I've heard of the auld alliance and the "great" McGonagall, but "Monsieur"!?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 01 Dec 09 - 05:23 AM

So much for flower-power, English females now get cauliflower ears from wrestling and playing rugby, and, in Afghanistan, they are...

Poem 211 of 230: AT FRONT LINES

I can't suckle a baby -
    God planned on some divisions;
Women are with war-weapons -
    We have fallen morally.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 01 Dec 09 - 06:19 AM

For fuck's sake, WAV - you don't do yourself any favours do you?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 01 Dec 09 - 06:25 AM

I'm sure if this 'poem' made sense it would be offensive...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 01 Dec 09 - 08:50 AM

People tend to support their own generation, but I think morals, on average, were better, in my country of birth, BEFORE I was born - whether said with or without jest.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 01 Dec 09 - 03:11 PM

TONIGHT!!!! BBC4!!!!!

WHISTLE & I'LL COME TO YOU - Jonathan Miller's masterful 1968 adaptation of M.R.James classic ghost story. Is the best TV ever?

Preceded by a documentary on TV ghosts.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 01 Dec 09 - 04:18 PM

Thanks, S. - I shall record that and have a look later...still looking out for The Wicker Man, too.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Will Fly
Date: 01 Dec 09 - 04:25 PM

Brilliant! Thanks SO'P - it's not quite how I envisaged it when I first saw it, but still a great interpretation. I shall be watching...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 01 Dec 09 - 05:39 PM

Statistically speaking, how do you produce an average for morals? What is your evidence for the statement that morals in England were better before you were born? Are you claiming a causal relationship here; WAV gets born, morals decline as a result?
I'm not sure the comments above were about morals as such; as usual, you missed the point. The offensive bit is the attempt at gender stereotyping that is such a recurrent theme in your work. The culture you are trying so hard to be a part of generally frowns upon such things. Why are you suggesting it should be changed? Doesn't that constitute pollution of our Own Good Culture, that dreadful act that you condemn so roundly? In fact, why do you keep proposing change From Now On, since the entire point of your arguments seems to be the preservation and stasis of culture, preferably as it was pre-1950.
There are a number of points here WAV, hopefully some of them will provoke you to think about what you are promoting on these threads. Go and have a lie down in a nice dark room, take your medication, and come back when you have some sensible answers. Or don't come back. Either would be fine with me.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 02 Dec 09 - 04:29 AM

In some fields, Tim, attitudes are better now - e.g., overall, there is less cruelty to animals; but, in other ways, such as mentioned just above, they were better before; whilst still others, amongst some people, definitely need changing...

Poem 161 of 230: AT THE CAPTAIN COOK BIRTHPLACE MUSEUM - SUMMER 2001

I listened and looked and read, then wrote,
    Within the remarks book, this brief note:
"Aborigines - first there/worst off"...
    And received a "Rule, Britannia" cough.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 03 Dec 09 - 04:08 AM

Thanks so much for the reply, WAV. Perhaps you could answer the questions I asked, rather than the one you wanted to talk about? Specifically;
- How do assess an average, statistically speaking, for morals? (bearing in mind, of course, that morals are usually understood to be an individual psycho-social construct)
- What is your evidence for this moral shift? (Not opinion, evidence)
- Our Own Good Culture frowns on gender stereotyping. Why do you want to introduce it? Surely this would be an unwelcome change to the culture?
- Why do you keep proposing change to our culture From Now On, when (judging by your outpourings in 'verse') your 'ideal' culture is unchanging and rooted in values and mores the predate your birth?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 03 Dec 09 - 05:06 AM

I can't post it here as it's one of my shaped poems, but you may like to check #70, Tim - and please note "SOME old values".

Poem 61 of 230: WORSLEY VILLAGE

Where earliest of coal-canals meet,
    And have their waters ochred
By the seepage of old-deep-mine earth;
    Where mock-Tudor is a treat,
And classic boats are newly coated
    At dry-docks before rebirth;

Where miners made tough risky efforts,
    Working seams for hours non-stop -
Cramped, often without the room to stand;
    Where security experts
Now fill the Nailmakers Workshop -
    On a canal-made island;

Where offices come from granaries,
    And granaries from a forge -
Wheel-powered through a brook's tillage;
    Where coal moved down arteries,
And sandstone was quarried to a gorge:
    Lies antique Worsley Village.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 03 Dec 09 - 07:04 AM

I can't post it here as it's one of my shaped poems, but you may like to check #70

Okay...

The Filthy Street posters (Youth are viewers): Girls drugged or posed so; How low business can go.

Here you seem to be suggesting here that the advertising models have been somehow drugged into appearing in imagery that you regard as too pornographic for general viewing. Otherwise, too subjectively prudish a statement however much I might baulk at the objectification of beauty, I might at least acknowledge that no one is forcing anyone to do anything, and the real shame here is not nudity per se, but the idealisation of body types. Nothing new though I can assure you.   

Gays - yes; but a surrogate Kid for gays - that we tolerate?

Why not tolerate it? The sex of the parents is immaterial; what matters is love and all the other wonderful things of parenting that are in no way guaranteed by heterosexual parenting. Again, this is too subjective to be of any use and reveals nothing of society, rather of your own reactionary prudishness & homophobia. Does it directly effect you? Have you any evidence that it effects anyone? In which case - mind your own business. I could quote you chapter and verse on the evils of monogamous heterosexual parenting.

A Prime Minister now forced to preach - What tolerance-rung do some aim to reach?

I don't even know what that means, WAV - explanation please???

Long returned, I think it's gone too far, And youth are beginning to scar.

Are they really? The only thing wrong with kids is that adults have forgot what it's like to be young as some of the threads here make abundantly clear.

Less individualism; Regulationism; And some old values We all could use.

The way I see it there's way too much compliance and normalcy; too much by way fitting in and not enough by way of free-floating individualism. Who does the regulating? No thanks, WAV. And old values are the veneer of the hypocrisy that gave rise to them, as I pointed out in my post HERE - these are the foundations of your precious Old Values, the same things you oppose elsewhere.   

From my heart, Restart, 'Dart.

Again you've lost me.

*

I think in future when asked for your opinion on things, best just explain it without resorting to your poetry which is too subjective and ill-considered by way of balance - fine for polemics, but not much use for sensible debate. We all know England is a crumbling shit-hole; just as we all know it's never been any different - not 50, not 100, not 1000, not 2000, not 4000 years ago.

Hope you enjoyed Oh Whistle anyway; a taste of the glory days of English Television when maybe ratings weren't such an issue and true art could triumph.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 03 Dec 09 - 08:40 AM

In the late 90s, when I wrote that poem, S., I was living in London and there WAS a trend of advertising posters using models who appeared as if they were drugged. Also, remember the media began to use the term "nanny state" re. New Labour's response to the social problems, that I believe were partly caused by the New attitudes, in the first place. And "restart" "SOME" of our old values, i.e.

On a lighter note, I did watch, and quite enjoyed, thanks, that movie - is the moral of the story: never refuse a game of golf whilst on holiday!?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 03 Dec 09 - 09:25 AM

I think you'll find people are fundamentally decent, WAV - OLD values (?) or not.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 03 Dec 09 - 11:04 AM

Still waiting for an answer, not a piss-poor poem...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 04 Dec 09 - 04:18 AM

(I feel I've answered you, Tim; and, again, Ps and Qs - there may be ladies reading this thread.)

Didsbury is in Manchester - NOT Liverpool, which is usually associated with the River Mersey...

Poem 111 of 230: THE MERSEY AT DIDSBURY - SPRING 2000

(TUNE:

Eb F G Ab G
D F G Ab G
D F G Ab G
D G Ab Bb Ab
D G Ab Bb Ab
D F G Ab G)

Took bus one-four-three,                        
    From Piccadilly,
Along Oxford Road;
    Passed the old uni's,
Those shops with saris,
    And my first abode.

At Didsbury Village,
    The Old Parsonage
Looked neat, and gave sound,
    As I walked the way,
At about midday,
    To a Mersey mound.

From atop this bank,
    No longer a blank
Was the strong river,
    Nor the wide fairways -
Where I'd filled two days,
    Twelve years earlier.

I then headed back,
    On Stenner Woods' track
(Hearing more birdsong,
    And seeing mossed stumps
Plus well-layered clumps),
    To a human throng.

This throng was viewing -
    Justly pursuing -
The smart Rock Gardens,
    Sloped on Fletcher Moss,
Which I, too, did cross,
    Before homeward wends.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 04 Dec 09 - 12:47 PM

You haven't answered me, WAV, you've posted more piss-poor poetry. What does women reading the thread have to do with anything? Piss-poor is an expression in common use, and dates back to Norman England. It was thought vulgar (though not obscene) in Victorian times, but not during other eras. The word 'piss' appears frequently in Shakespeare's work, for example. Please answer the questions I asked you; you claimed that morals were, on average, better in previous times. That is a statistical assertion, and I asked you to justify it in statistical terms. Please do so.
I also asked you to justify your propensity towards gender stereotyping, when the culture you claim to be a part of generally condemns such stereotyping. I would assert that women reading the thread would find your insulting and patronising attitude to their gender far more offensive than the use of an accurate descriptor of your literary efforts. Again, please answer without more piss-poor poetry.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 04 Dec 09 - 01:47 PM

SIgh. The poetry is seriously flawed, David.



A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: ToeRag
Date: 04 Dec 09 - 02:00 PM

I think we shall have a storm before long; do you
see those heavy clouds coming up against' the wind?
Its a sure sign of thunder; it will be very refreshing.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 04 Dec 09 - 02:03 PM

Other than hearing, a year or two ago, that 1/3 children here now have to grow-up in broken families, I don't have statistics re. morals, Tim - but I do watch the news, current affairs, etc. And I don't have statistics on all my websites, Amos, but numbers seem to be growing and some folks take the time to say the opposite of you.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 04 Dec 09 - 02:40 PM

LMAO......Can you spell "morons"?

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: CLETUS HARDDINGER
Date: 04 Dec 09 - 02:49 PM

You doant pay no tenshun to AMos an Catspaw   I think yur poatree iz rite gud. Ta tell ya tha truth Wallsabut Vase, I like it a lot exceptin for that godhed thing what wuz roat sum wayz back. That wun wuz sorta messt up. But the utherz is nice.    CLETUS

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 04 Dec 09 - 03:08 PM

If you don't have statistics, stop using statistical assertions to give bogus scientific verity to your nauseous views. Statistics without backup are generally referred to as 'lies'.
Now; answer the question about gender stereotyping please, without posting any more of your piss-poor 'poetry'.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: ToeRag
Date: 04 Dec 09 - 03:17 PM

I hope,at any rate,it will taste better than the last;

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 04 Dec 09 - 05:14 PM

David

Most people are kind and will say kind things about your writing. This is particularly true of 'friends' on myspace and similar sites which indulge in some sort of mutual self gratification.

The best thing about your poetry is that you have stopped writing it. The worst is that there are thirty zillion copy pastes of examples of it spamming (sic) the WWW.

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 04 Dec 09 - 05:53 PM

David:

I am sorry if I offended you; I can only bite my tongue so long. There are many principles and secrets to really good poetry. I would like to offer you one able reference toward a better understanding these truths hidden in the art. I am no master of them, mind you, just struggling along with them as you are. But I think you need the road map.

Understanding Poetry by Robert Penn Warren and Cleanth Brooks.

Warren was the first Poet Laureate of the United States and one of the strongest poetic voices in American literature.

You could do far worse than emulate his sparse but insightful style. Your own concatenation of observations could stand some serious rework by these standards. I hope this is helpful, as it meant to be.

Regards,

Amos

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Bill D
Date: 04 Dec 09 - 06:27 PM

One either needs to study some poetic styles, or to get so bad it's classic...like

(even Edgar A. Guest had a few redeeming poems... let me think.......)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 04 Dec 09 - 07:03 PM

Thanks, Amos, but whether it's for the best, as Stu says, or not, I've retired from versification - save the occasional SLIGHT change, sometimes via feedback from here and other forums, etc.

Just back from a folk singaround/playaround, and off to bed.

God bless.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 04 Dec 09 - 07:05 PM

"It takes a heap of living
To make a house a home...."

N'est-ce pas?



A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: CLETUS HARDDINGER
Date: 04 Dec 09 - 08:21 PM

But Amos, doan summa yu think it oanly takes a few of Wallabut pomes to make a dungpile? They seem ta be okay sept fur the parts whair he doan want nobody but reel inglish er sumpin and sept that most of hiz pomes are hard to reed and harder ta figger an thet they doan make much sense or even rime nun tu gud. Septen fer thet stuff he duz purty okay.
CLETUS

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Bill D
Date: 04 Dec 09 - 09:07 PM

didn't my link done right after the 'like'

like William Mcgonagall

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 05 Dec 09 - 12:47 AM

On the Spittal of Glenshee,
Which is most dismal for to see,
With its bleak and rugged mountains,
And clear, crystal, spouting fountains
With their misty foam;
And thousands of sheep there together doth roam,
Browsing on the barren pasture most gloomy to see.
Stunted in heather, and scarcely a tree,
Which is enough to make the traveller weep,
The loneliness thereof and the bleating of the sheep.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 05 Dec 09 - 06:12 AM

At least that's got some rhythm and rhyme, Amos!...

Poem 148 of 230: AUDIENCE LOST

I returned, again,
    To what they pen -
The free-verse poets:
    Deep prose in sets...
I could read, again,
    Of Mice and Men.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 05 Dec 09 - 12:07 PM

Dear WavyFWBR..........

That is the NINTH (9th) time you have posted that ignoble piece of warthog shit. NINE fucking times, including one time ALREADY ON THIS SAME DAMN THREAD!!! Consider that at this point, enough is enough.

You have YOUR OWN WEBSITES with all this crap on them. You have posted ALL OF THE PILE OF DRIVEL which you call your life's work here on Mudcat. Then you posted it all again.....and again....and in other threads as well it popped up.....again ...... and again.

POINT OF FACT......ALL OF YOUR DRANO-STYLE DRIVEL HAS BEEN POSTED NO FEWER THAN A HALF DOZEN TIMES

ENOUGH TRASH GAWDAMMIT

You've said it all here for one and all to see REPEATEDLY AND REPEATEDLY OVER AND OVER---- now take it all back to your own websites and feel free to plug the livin' shit out of them all over the net including Mudcat. Just leave the verbage there....DO NOT REPOST THE SAME THING HERE AGAIN!!!!

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH IS ENOUGH IS ENOUGH IS ENOUGH IS ENOUGH IS ENOUGH IS ENOUGH IS ENOUGH

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 05 Dec 09 - 01:22 PM

Oh, so it's good poetry you want, is it, Spaw? Well, ALL RIGHTY THEN!!! Try this on for size:

The Battle of the Alamo - 1836

85,000 were challenged by Travis to die
By a line that he drew with his sword when the battle was nigh
And him that would fight to the death cross over
But the others had better vamoose!
And over that line came three men, a pig, and a goose!

Hey—up! Santa Ana, we're killing your soldiers below
So the rest of Texas will know, and remember the Alamo!

'Twas Travis and Bowie and Crockett who dared to remain
And the pig and the goose crossed over the line unashamed
But 84,998 Texans were lacking in grit
The sight of the Mexican Army had caused them to shit

Hey—up! Santa Ana, we're fleeing your soldiers below
So the rest of Texas will know, when we're far from the Alamo!

So 84,000 came pouring out over the walls
While another 600 tried to hide in the urinal stalls
Fifty men ran for the pigpen, twenty-eight jumped in the well
320 were trampled to death when they fell

And the 84,000 came pouring out over the walls
When the Mexicans saw that mob coming, they were plainly appalled
They threw down their rifles, abandoned their cannons
In panic and fled from the field
As the goose honked in joy and the pig triumphantly squealed:

Hey—up! Santa Ana, we're killing your soldiers below
So the rest of Texas will know, and remember the Alamo!

88,000 men scattered like shot from a gun
The Texans and Mexicans showed the world how they could run
They ran for the rivers, they ran for the hills, they dug holes and hid in the dirt
Santa Ana lost both of his boots, his hat, and his shirt

Hey—up! Santa Ana, we're killing your soldiers below
So the rest of Texas will know, and remember the Alamo!

"We've won," cried out Travis, in wonder, "and the glory's all mine!"
"Like hell!" growled Jim Bowie, "I outrank you, and you ain't worth a dime!"Then up stepped bold Davie Crockett, his rifle held firm in his hand
Said, "If there's to be one lone survivor here, I am that man!"

Hey—up! Santa Ana, we're killing your soldiers below
So the rest of Texas will know, and remember the Alamo!

Jim Bowie was found with a bayonet stuck in his chest
While Travis lay dead with a bullet hole right through his breast
And poor Davie Crockett lay cold as a sprocket, the Bowie knife deep in his heart
While the goose and the pig danced a jig on the bloody ramparts!

Hey—up! Santa Ana, we're killing your soldiers below
So the rest of Texas will know, and remember the Alamo!

Santa Ana was ruined, he had to go back in disgrace
He'd lost half of his army, but worse than that, he'd lost face
The pig and the goose caught a train to Ohio where they got a good job at the zoo
And the Alamo stands as the proof that this story is true!

Hey—up! Santa Ana, we're killing your soldiers below
So the rest of Texas will know, and remember the Alamo!

Yes, the Alamo stands as proof of all that I've said
It will stand there forever to honor the glorious dead
But no one remembers the brave little pig and no one remembers the goose
Where's the honor in that? Where's the justice? And what's the excuse?

Hey--up! Santa Ana, they drove off your soldiers below
And the rest of Texas should know
How they fought for the Alamo!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 05 Dec 09 - 02:35 PM

Ya' know Hawk.....That atrocity is actually better than any of WavyFWBR's crapper delights PLUS it has the added advantage of not being posted repeatedly over the past year and a half or so. Another thing, I'm feeling a bit peckish at the moment and I'm glad that pig came back here to Ohio. Pork is mighty fine eatin' but goose is too damn greasy.

Say, didja' know the Poland China hog was developed right here in Ohio. The Shakers actually did it in the early part of the 19th century. They aren't really aren't from Poland or China, but bred first right here in the Buckeye state! I mean the hogs....the Shakers didn't go in for breeding on a personal level.   Yeah......No shit....Well actually they shit a lot but they are some huge fuckers! The hogs that is, not the Shakers. Poland China hogs are the largest suppliers of pork in the US.....probably up there in that gawdforsaken place you live too.

WavyFWBR.......Do ya' know about the Shakers?   Or Poland China hogs? I mean like you're sooooo well educated what with all those wacky degrees and certificates and permits to drive fork lifts and the like...........


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 05 Dec 09 - 03:24 PM

Hawkster conveniently left out the last verse in a fit of misplaced pride:

The answers are simple though some find them hard to confront!
The myths and imagined events -- if you'll let me be blunt --
Are simply phantasms of someone's wild dreaming
Psychosis let run on the loose.
One wild-eyed fanatic was the singer. the pig and the goose!!

Way, up! Santa Ana we squabble and squawk,
Though the rest of Texas may talk.
You can blame it on Little Hawk!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 05 Dec 09 - 03:54 PM

Ho! Ho! ;-)

I've never heard of Poland China hogs before, Spaw, but I've probably eaten back bacon from more than a few of them by now. I feel inestimably richer for having been informed by you of their existence. Can I get one sent up here on an exchange program? I have an ass which I can trade for it.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 05 Dec 09 - 04:25 PM

Did Catspeare say something about shakers..?!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Crow Sister (off with the fairies)
Date: 05 Dec 09 - 04:41 PM

"goose is too damn greasy."

No way, Goose is the best! You're just not cooking it right Spaw. You need to prick the skin properly to let the excess fat out (then drain the lot off, once or twice while cooking), and when cooked it tastes like a sublime mix of duck and lamb. Too damn good for you common old Turkey loving colonials anyway! No hot stuffed greased birds? You'll be telling us next you can't handle hard-core blue, or hot-spiced red! Pass the nut crackers someone...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Crow Sister (off with the fairies)
Date: 05 Dec 09 - 04:53 PM

I should add that me & Mr.C have creamy mature Stilton with spiced mulled wine every Christmas eve (while I roll the Christmas Tart & baste the Pork.)

Apologies, had a random spasm..

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 05 Dec 09 - 05:04 PM

Mulled wine with carols - yum!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 05 Dec 09 - 11:27 PM

Yes indeed! And hot apple cider is good this time of year too. I'm just about to have some.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 06 Dec 09 - 04:30 AM

(Never tried that, L.H. - I'll have to ask at a local.)

Sorry to put a dampner on things but, with the U.N. Climate Change Conference starting in Copenhagen tomorrow, I just have to post this poem again, because what the world needs most, I'm afraid, is birth- and immigration-control; over 50 million IS too many for the area of land called England e.g., and over 6 billion IS too many for the area of land called Earth...

Poem 102 of 230: CONGESTION

The waxing view;
And the taboo:

Increasingly now, for congestion,
Leaders make this sort of suggestion -

Nationalisation,
    Remuneration,
Standardisation,
    Cooperation,
Integration;

Fine...but (through dread of accusation -
    "They don't care about our children" -
And of losing the next election)
    Most politicians never mention -
Promote a lower population.

I do care for the lives of children,
And think birth-control mends congestion -

Curb the birth queue
And influx, too.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 06 Dec 09 - 07:30 AM

But WAV...if the birth rate falls, who will pay for your unemployment benefit? Where will your unearned old-age pension come from?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 06 Dec 09 - 10:18 AM

And basically the world needs you to shut the fuck up WavyFWBR. Then I have to also agree with Tim. As Dean Wormer says, "Fat, drunk, and stupid, is no way to go through life son," but I can see you're trying to make it work.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 06 Dec 09 - 11:11 AM

Spaw, be genteel, sir. John Wayne says, "Life is tough; it's tougher if you're stupid".


I think WAV has a point; we need to control the immigration to Earth from other planets. It is getting out of hand, and most of them are here illegally.


A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 06 Dec 09 - 11:35 AM

Good point Amos.......Are you suggesting WavyFWBR himelf perhaps?

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 06 Dec 09 - 01:29 PM

what the world needs most, I'm afraid, is birth- and immigration-control; over 50 million IS too many for the area of land called England

I wonder how many are folkies though? And by what peculiar alchemy you conclude that Folk Music is somehow Our Own Good Culture when the vast majority of said 50 Million English Citizens couldn't give a shit about it - and rightly so in my opinion. Otherwise, even round here I can quite happily wander for three hours or more without encountering a single soul. Maybe you might provide some seriously Hard Evidence why you harbour such a drearily misanthropic overview which has given rise your noxious opinions in which you hint rather alarmingly at ethnic cleansing & eugenics - other than you are at heart a dreary misanthropist, of course, which I don't believe for one minute as every time we've met you've been so genuinely jovial and radiantly positive even about my resolutely non-folky take on your beloved E. trads. So what gives, WAV?

That said, I am rather a fan of The Groundhogs' Earth is not Room Enough. Listen to that keening mellotron - now that's what I call Our Own Good English Culture!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 06 Dec 09 - 02:08 PM

What the hell does FWBR stand for? I know I sound like a dumbass asking that...but one shouldn't let fear of looking like a dumbass stand in the way of gaining further knowledge, should one?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 06 Dec 09 - 04:35 PM

Here, here, LH...or is it hear, hear?!

And, S., believe it or not, I did say "I do care about the lives of children" in that poem; and the Optimum Populatin Trust are saying similar things.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 06 Dec 09 - 04:57 PM

How to implement such Draconian measures, WAV?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 06 Dec 09 - 06:16 PM

1984 rears its head

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 06 Dec 09 - 07:10 PM

While others just give it................

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 07 Dec 09 - 04:14 AM

Not "Draconian measures," S., but one fork, of course, is EDUCATION: e.g., travelling through India in the late 80s I noticed sign-posts saying "Have one or two, And that will do"; or, in the early 80s, at high school, we heard about "Getting off before Central" - Central Station in Sydney, i.e. And lets hope this issue is not "taboo" (above) in the climate summit which has just started in wonderful Copenhagen.

Poem 229 of 230: JOYS OF LIFE

Leightons, and other great art;
    Plumes of fireworks at night;
The vivid reds of sunrise -
    Repeated at day's last light.

The beats through us of a drum;
    Winter's sun felt through closed glass;
Handing in the last exam;
    Awakenings – alarmless!

The ball, off thee, whacks their net;
    When, to palms, leather has stuck;
Orange juice during half-time;
    A warm bath to wash the muck.

Viewing set-over cricket;
    A golf ball, for once, well struck;
Viewing velodrome cycling;
    From net-chord, levelling luck!

Sticks, chants, didgeridoo,
    Haunting harps, and all bagpipes;
Clog, flamenco, tamure,
    Hula, and other dance types.

Out, by a cast, being told;
    In - taking tea and T.V.;
Highland views that command rest;
    The buildings of Italy.

Thrifty plant-propagation;
    By a wave one's body hit;
Upstream of camp - with paddle;
    By a fire - strongly lit.

Forest spent-leaves under foot;
    Tasting a host-nation's fare;
Alcedo atthis at work;
    Just-bills being brought to bear.

Allegros when feeling low;
    An andante to wind down;
Spoken French and chorused song;
    The quiet when out of town.

A stroll through a kept garden,
    Before Sunday's roast dinner;
A pub game, drink and meal;
    One's team a comeback winner.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 07 Dec 09 - 08:19 AM

Poets, grammar teachers, anyone with any knowledge of the English language, complete and total fucking morons, are all left in shock after reading that dismal and demented disaster which you have posted many times before on the 'Cat. Ya' know WavyFWBR, no one I know can destroy the written word with greater skill than you. This crap must be a fuckin' joke, right? I mean nobody would write something as gawdawful as that and try to seriously pass it off as something other than a joke.

The beats through us of a drum;
    Winter's sun felt through closed glass;
Handing in the last exam;
    Awakenings – alarmless!

Let me tell you that if the exam was in Language Arts, your fuckin' ass flunked. The thing is senseless to boot. What the hell are you talking about?

The ball, off thee, whacks their net;
    When, to palms, leather has stuck;
Orange juice during half-time;
    A warm bath to wash the muck.

Gawdamn! That one just defies analysis on any level. It is this verse that leads me to believe all of your crap is simply a bad joke.

Viewing set-over cricket;
    A golf ball, for once, well struck;
Viewing velodrome cycling;
    From net-chord, levelling luck!

WHAT THE FUCK????????

Christ, I can't go on.....laughing too hard to type!


SPaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 07 Dec 09 - 09:07 AM

Google shows 292 copy pastes of this poem taking 30 pages of Google search.

WAV you must paste as much spam as do the Nigerian money scammers

Love your turn of phrase Spaw: you say it better than I ever could

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 07 Dec 09 - 11:37 AM

The quality is such that it cannot be sold profitably; but never mind. He'll make it up on volume.


A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 07 Dec 09 - 01:21 PM

Come on, guys! It actually sounds quite a bit like some of the poetic stuff Sarah Palin has come up with in moments of great inspiration, and she's a celebrity. You may be missing the point entirely. If so, think of the embarrassment you will suffer (during the upcoming Palin 8-year presidency) when this new style of free ranging poetry gains wide acceptance and becomes the norm.

Now...umm...FWBR?

Fucked with brown rats?
Flying while bouncing radically?
Feline weight balancing ratios?

What does it mean???

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 07 Dec 09 - 01:29 PM

Speaking of acronyms, LH, did you hear about your TGORF award?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 07 Dec 09 - 02:12 PM

Ha! HA! HA! ha! ha! ha!

Thanks! I didn't know about it. Man, I was rolling on the floor here for awhile before I could type a response.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Will Fly
Date: 07 Dec 09 - 02:25 PM

Good try, Spaw, I once spent a whole thread giving a line-by-line critique of WAV's shite verse. To no avail. He will keep reproducing this crap - this unpoetic, dumpy, ungrammatical crap and dubious philosophy until the cows come home. He will never answer a reasoned criticism directly. He will never give a cogent, reasoned response to any serious question. He merely repeats the stuff he drew a line under many years ago.

And you know what? If y'all criticise him, other dear sweet 'Catters will accuse you of being horrid to David, of ganging up on him, of ignoring the good parts of his poesy.

But good try, Spaw. You may have more success in poking your head up your ass - just make sure you get the stubble in... So - HAIL WAV! Spaw and I will now sing your signature tune: "I'm The King Of The Spammers..."

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 07 Dec 09 - 02:26 PM

They laughed at Harry Lee Wigley too, Will...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Will Fly
Date: 07 Dec 09 - 02:42 PM

Geez, LH - if'n I'da known that WAV was like Harry Lee Wigley, then I'da washed ma mouth out wit' soap'n water

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 07 Dec 09 - 02:49 PM

You are forgiven, Will... ;-)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 07 Dec 09 - 02:53 PM

" If y'all criticise him, other dear sweet 'Catters will accuse you of being horrid to David, of ganging up on him, of ignoring the good parts of his poesy."

Yeah Will.......Been there, done that, AND got the t-shirt! The stuff has some meaning I guess to others or they just think I'm bullying and assulting his character. I remember your attempts Will and you had far more patience than I and were actually quite diligent and helpful had your advice been taken. I am now simply commenting on his "life's work." Its trash.

No matter how bad though, once or even twice here was fine. This is now at the level of "Ludicrous" having past "Ridiculous" some ways back.

WavyFWBR.........Give it a break...............



Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 07 Dec 09 - 03:21 PM

Fly while braiding ringlets?

Four wingnuts blocking (the) road?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 07 Dec 09 - 04:50 PM

Not "Fair Well BRethren," I'm afraid!...another day, another ditty..?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 07 Dec 09 - 04:52 PM

Or "Fare Well", even.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 08 Dec 09 - 04:55 AM

Staying with abbreviations...

Poem 224 of 230: THE NATIVITY

Vis-à-vis S.C.,
    I prefer to see
Christian children's glee
    When they play-out the
Coming of J.C. -
    The Nativity.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 08 Dec 09 - 06:36 AM

Hey, I've got a reply for this one! Here it is cut & pasted in true WAV style from the original Walkaboutsverse thread from December 2007 where I posted it under the name Walker-Boots-Vorse (which only makes sense in a Tyneside accent). Anyway...

A NORTHUMBRIAN MIDDLE-SCHOOL EPIPHANY (To be Sung to a Gelinaeu Psalm-Tone)

When I was nine in 1970,
I played Melchior in the school nativity;
I banged a big frame-drum from Bethlehem,
brought back from a Holy Land holiday by Miss Morrison,
who showed me some choice cyclic Arabic rhythms,
that have been with me ever since.

Miss Morrison played upon a shawm,
because she played the English Horn;
though that is only what the Yanks, in their funny way,
call the instrument we Brits know as the Cor Anglais.

From: Walkaboutsverse (Mudcat Thread)
(C) Brian Sedane 2007

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 08 Dec 09 - 08:10 AM

I'd forgotten, frankly, and I thought it was Sean: but, surely, someone can't be blamed for that - God (and perhaps S.) knows how many nicknames there have been! I do recall, on another thread, a certain "TalkAboutWorse."

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Suibhne Astray (and Cookieless)
Date: 09 Dec 09 - 03:01 AM

I see D. Attenborough's doing a Horizon on BBC2 tonight entitled How Many People Can Live on Planet Earth? - right up your street I would imagine, WAV! I think I'll go with Anthony Graham-Dixon's Art of Russia on BBC4 - we have the option of recording, but I've noticed recorded documentaries never get watched. Sit-coms are a different matter of course & if you really want some choice English Classic TV, go with Rising Damp on ITV (Freeview #10) at 7.25, one of my all time favourites. For another slant on the England of the 1970s try On the Buses at 6.50, but only by way of contrast and comparison...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Dec 09 - 05:41 AM

Yes, S., D.A. is one of those prepared to speak out on that touchy, but very important, issue. I used to watch "On the Buses" as a kid, in Sydney; now, close to your place of upbringing:

This is on my myspace player (link below) if anyone would like to hear me recite it...

Poem 187 of 230: A SOUTH SHIELDS WALKABOUT - AUTUMN 2001

Out of the museum-and-gallery
    (Wiser on Cookson and the local way),
Down Ocean Road with, to the right of me,
    Its eateries and, left, neat places to stay;
Before, on either side, Marine Parks -
    The southern-one a most beautiful place,
Teeming with moorhens, swans, grebes and mallards,
    In a small lake at a scenic-hill's base.

Then (holding chips from the parade's cafe
    And, thus, a flock of gulls squawking above)
Onto the South Pier I made my way:
    Seeing seaweed over rocks - like a glove -
And high-and-dry sands held from transgression
    By growth of grass and the weaving of wood,
Plus, in the dim light of a sleepy sun,
    Fishing boats returning to Tynemouth's hood.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 09 Dec 09 - 07:24 AM

I reckon those fishing boats would have been returning to the fish quay at North Shields, WAV - though you used to get the odd coble in Prior's Haven. I was born in North Shields, Preston Hospital, long demolished, and raised between Shiremoor & Blyth. Never a big fan of South Shields myself, a lot of my childhood friends hailed from the Yemeni community - established in the 1890s. Nice walks down to Soutar lighthouse & still-picturesque Whitburn - and Marsden Rock & Grotto is always worth a visit...

Hope you're still getting out & about anyway.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Dec 09 - 04:17 PM

Watching that Horizon programme, "How Many People Can Live On Planet Earth?" (BBC 2), David Attenborough is a supporter of the abovementioned Optimum Population Trust.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 10 Dec 09 - 04:34 AM

The Pre-Budget Report yesterday, from London, reminded me of this...

Poem 82 of 230: ON ACTS 4:32-35

Believers were all one in heart and mind -
    They shared their excesses, giving in kind.
No-one claimed any possessions one's own -
    Yes, it was socialism on the throne.

So not long were there desperate folk -
    Fair distribution was the tongue they spoke.
And wealthy owners would sell part their deed -
    Funds, via apostles, to those in need.

Yet today, all round our troubled earth,
    Some Christians, safe at their own snug hearth,
Vote for their electorate's Right-Wing party -
    That's hypocritical, it seems to me.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 10 Dec 09 - 02:27 PM

Fermenting wallabies bring rain?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 10 Dec 09 - 03:03 PM

Ah yes, LH - back to Spaws cryptic cross words: "FWBR"..?

Fair Weather Before Rain..?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 10 Dec 09 - 03:28 PM

Fling Wildly Before Retiring?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 10 Dec 09 - 05:16 PM

Fasten Well Before Riding?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 11 Dec 09 - 06:04 AM

Poem 144 of 230: LINGOLF

(TUNE:

Eb G G G A A
A Bb C' C' C' Bb
Eb F G A A A
F A Bb G G G)

Your honour, Your Honour.
    Watch out - he's a burglar.
I'm to school on your putt.
    That's one heck of a cut!

It's my bread and butter -
    A left-to-right cutter.
That's where elephants die.
    That's a grave - not a lie.

I'm in the old plumb-duff;
    Tough - I'm on the cut-stuff.
The hooks with my driver,
    And fades with my putter.

There's a goalie in there.
    Trees are some nine-tenths air.
I have a soldier's plight -
    Always left, right, left, right.

Everything was fine -
    Apart from weight and line.
It took a member's bounce.
    A rare bird to announce.

An unlucky horseshoe.
    Had a look - liked the view.
Poetry in motion.
    Read with blind devotion.

He's just hit a cracker.
    I'm only a hacker.
I wish I'd missed the well.
    A fried-egg where it fell.

A crop of a divot.
    It was speed that killed it.
Your wedges land so neat -
    Butterflies with sore feet.

Like pitching in pudding.
    Never up, never in.
Drive for show, put for dough.
    Can't beat bad luck, you know.

He's just missed a gimme.
    That, then, would be dormy.
It went in the side-door.
    A Bradman of a score.

Just spoiled a good walk.
    Can't play, but can he talk!
'Twas daylight robbery.   
    Not "how" but "how many."

The nineteenth's not too far -
Have a jar at the bar..?

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 11 Dec 09 - 10:55 AM

Can I just say that I despise golf & regard golf courses as a worse blight on the countryside than wind-farms? Not that it matters one mashie niblick what I think of course. If ever you get a chance to watch Dead of Night (1945) pay special attention to the Golfing Story, which is by one H.G.Wells. Or you might watch it on YouTube:

DoN Golfing Story Part One: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNcrpKBlOUQ

DoN Golfing Story Part Two: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UAdrJ59ufDI

Crichton's cinematography is particular stunning on a big screen as I found out some years ago when there was a showing at The Tyneside. In fact, it's rather reminiscent of that 1929 Morris Dancing footage - chance or design? Judge for yourself:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CuqhEix8lGY

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 11 Dec 09 - 10:58 AM

Oops.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 11 Dec 09 - 12:38 PM

There has been quite a lot of controversy over course construction - especially in areas of low rainfall where a lot of this scarce resource is needed. But, when they do go ahead, I think it's definitely good to grow as many natives as possible in the rough - for the benefit of native fauna, i.e.

And, for similar "green" reasons, I support wind-farm construction - in most cases.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 11 Dec 09 - 12:51 PM

Forthrightness Will Bring Results?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 11 Dec 09 - 03:12 PM

My attempts at Folk With Baroque Recorder?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Paco O'Barmy
Date: 11 Dec 09 - 03:33 PM

Excellent! Keep it coming Walksabout!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 12 Dec 09 - 05:54 AM

Thanks, Paco.

The Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust in the NE of England...

Poem 186 of 230: W.W.T. WASHINGTON - AUTUMN 2001

Arriving, took tea
    With beans on dry toast -
Sitting down to see
    What large ponds can host.

From this collection,
    I walked out to the
Wildlife section -
    More the place for me.

There are many hides;
    Plus feed through the cold -
On one of the sides,
    Woodpeckers took hold.

And, as I moved on,
    Beside the Wear,
A calm grey-heron -
    Willing fish near.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 13 Dec 09 - 04:50 AM

In Cornwall, England...

Poem 190 of 230: BIRDWATCHERS' BUDE - WINTER 2001/2

Behind the Tourist Centre,
    Between canal and river,
On the marshy drained floodplain
    (Not now visited by train),
In among willow and reed,
    Eking out some winter feed:
Treecreepers, bobbing robins,
    Chirpy blue-tits, grey-herons,
The screams of water-rail,
    And snipe sharp on their trail.
Plus, out along limestone down,
    Soaring seabirds can be found.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Ruth sans cookie
Date: 13 Dec 09 - 07:35 AM

It's Christmas

Wavey, have you got a secret child? I see he's even from Neecastle...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 13 Dec 09 - 09:06 AM

No, Ruth - that's not chipped off my block: for starters, the fade-out at the end is far too sophisticated for my tastes!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 13 Dec 09 - 05:15 PM

Thus tomorrow's daily ditty will have to be Christmas Sung Simply...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 14 Dec 09 - 04:31 AM

Don't do it, WAV - come up with something new instead.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 14 Dec 09 - 04:55 AM

I've retired from versification, S., and haven't yet, this season, posted it as a daily ditty...

Poem 230 of 230: AS GOSPELLERS HAVE SAID/CHRISTMAS SUNG SIMPLY

(TUNE:

D A B A G E
E E D G F# G
D A B A G E
D A B A G E
E E D G F# G
D A B A G E
E E D G F# G

D A B A G E
E D G F# G
D A B A G E
E D G F# G)

As gospellers have said,
Beneath signalling skies,
On land dusty to tread,
A trough in a stable
Was the strawy first-bed
Of a divine baby -
The forgiving Godhead.

A season for new hope -
There then, and here now;
The yuletide of goodwill -
There then, and here now.

In respect of this chance,
Beneath bright or dark skies,
Faith's the star that we glance
Attending Christ's churches
And trying to enhance,
With singing and ritual,
Our God-loving stance.

A...

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 14 Dec 09 - 04:57 AM

...and, if anyone wishes, you can hear it, with English flute/tenor-recorder intro. and "organ" accompaniment, here .

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 14 Dec 09 - 05:04 AM

You can have this one WAV it only takes minutes

Christmas sung simply – a nice enough thought
Let's sing of the things that the wise men have brought
And sing of Rudolf (the shiny red nose)
And sing of the frost on your fingers and toes
Sing of the star in Bethlehem's skies
Sing of plum duff and sing of mince pies
Sing too of Santa and fairies and elves
But sing of the beggars who live by themselves
Sing of the joy that all men should feel
And sing of the boy before whom we should kneel
Sing of the misery sing of the pain
Sing of the sorrows inflicted again
Sing of the evil that many are taught
Christmas sung simply – a nice enough thought


Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST
Date: 14 Dec 09 - 05:22 AM

Lyrics from the glorious video of GottabeAndrew, which I posted earlier singing his shoe-in for Chrimbo Number 1:


It's Christmas


Wake up everyone, It's Christmas!

Christmas is the greatest time of year,
But to enjoy it most we need to get out of bed.

It only comes 'round once a year,
There's snow outside with some reindeer,
Go to the window and then you will see,

Santa's coming down the chimney,
Putting some presents underneath the tree,

And everybody knows,
It's christmas,
It's christmas.

Your advent calendar has a chocolate for you,
Though you might have school or work to travel to,

Talk about it in the present tense,
'Cause soon you will open your presents,
Get out of bed now, it's gonna be a good day,

Santa's coming down your chimney,
Putting some presents underneath the tree,

And everybody knows,
It's christmas,
It's christmas.


If ever Wavey does a volume of guest work, or features videos of guest artists on his Myspace, I think GottabeAndrew would be a worthy contender.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 14 Dec 09 - 08:22 AM

I didn't mean a new poem, WAV - just something different by way of the reason; a wee piece of renewal, something fresh, rather than the endless repetitions of the same-old same-old, and getting older all the time, however timeless you feel the message might be...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 14 Dec 09 - 08:59 AM

Lately, I've tried to be more topical, S., but, even so, accept that for the likes of you they are mostly old hat, by now.

For what it's worth, Ruth, Stu's quick effort is more my cup of tea...any more Christmas ditties..?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 14 Dec 09 - 12:23 PM

"If ever Wavey does a volume of guest work, or features videos of guest artists on his Myspace, I think GottabeAndrew would be a worthy contender." (Ruth, almost certainly)...if you make it to the Chillingham Arms singaround at 8.30 PM, this Friday, you may hear my above Christmas ditty live!; and, following that, you may even be able to track down your YouTube pop-friend, elsewhere in Newcastle...?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 14 Dec 09 - 12:52 PM

That is truly saccharine, WAVster. Reminds me of polyester leisure suits in pastel hues.


A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 14 Dec 09 - 01:04 PM

You better hurry and book your flight then, Amos - maybe not with BA, though, their cabin crew are about to go on skrike, I think.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 14 Dec 09 - 01:33 PM

Are you telling me you don't have any polyester leisure suits in pastel hues, Amos?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 14 Dec 09 - 01:44 PM

Not since 1978, LH. I try to keep somewhere in reasonable proximity to the times when I can.


A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 15 Dec 09 - 04:25 AM

My late uncle lived near Bude, Cornwall...

Poem 189 of 230: TO SEE AN UNCLE, AGAIN - WINTER 2001/2

Leaving the broad scenes of England's North East,
    From corner to corner by linked buses,
To the beautiful tight-hedge boundaries,
    And mazy lanes, that herald the South West.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 15 Dec 09 - 08:23 AM

Hey, WAV? Did you watch the BBC drama Small Island? You can catch it on iPlayer. I highly recommend it.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 15 Dec 09 - 08:39 AM

Sorry Ruth.....He has no time for that as he's busy choking the net with repetitious piles of absolutes shit. By the way WavyFWBR........You can link buses by coupling their bumpers or chaining them together but it would take a load of buses to stretch across England. If you mean linked bus routes, that's different. Why not say "linked bus routes?" Its not like your crap has rhyme, meter, or any redeeming social value except as an emetic........


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 15 Dec 09 - 09:26 AM

I attempted a variety of forms in my 230 poems, and that one, Spaw, was meant to be near-rhyme; however, on the above-linked myspace blog, I've just changed it to "bus journeys," thanks. Now, if I'd thought it was "absolutely ...." (Ps and Qs, again, Spaw), I would not have left it in; but, on the other hand, I wouldn't say it's one of my better pieces.

Ruth - I rarely watch television plays.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 15 Dec 09 - 10:09 AM

Linked buses is better, WAV - it fits with the English vernacular and makes perfect sense in the context of the poem; it makes for less fussy poetry too.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 15 Dec 09 - 10:42 AM

I think he means "connecting buses", but maybe its local vernacular for the same concept. Try inserting the phrase "condoms tied together with square knots" in its place.


A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 15 Dec 09 - 12:08 PM

Pity, WAV - you might have learned something. And it wasn't a play - it was a 2-part drama.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 15 Dec 09 - 12:28 PM

Casting my mind back 8 years, it was "linked buses" in that I didn't have to wait too long for the next bus at...Birmingham, Exeter, and one other changeover, I think.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 15 Dec 09 - 01:00 PM

Exeter! Had my first visit back in June - now there is a place which is worth hanging around in, the cathedral anyway, where one can see things like THIS at head height. We made it to Bude as well actually, the pasties were pretty amazing; but more amazing was the field recording I made on my Black Sea Fiddle in St. Swithin's at Launcells just up the road - which is currently track three on my Myspace site: http://www.myspace.com/sedayne.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 16 Dec 09 - 05:48 AM

Speaking of pasties, I also heard that, traditionally, they would have jam, or some kind of sweet, on one side to complete the meal...

Poem 55 of 230: TIN-MINERS' LUNCH

Visiting relatives in Cornwall,
    I saw the mines that miners mined,
The type of lunch they liked to eat,
    And heard this tale about it all:

The real Cornish pasty's thick crust
    Keeps the cooked food inside it warm,
And, when it is properly done,
    A fall down the mine won't make it bust.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 16 Dec 09 - 06:13 AM

Being a Geordie I was born with a fondness for Gregg's cheese and onion pasties - hot or cold, they are hard to beat. Right now, no doubt, you might buy a festive variant of same...

A George Welsh Joke; best read out loud in a Geordie accent.

Man goes into Gregg's near closing.
'I'm half-starvin heor, pet - whit can I hev?'
'Ye can hev a cheese pastie or a meringue - '
'Nah, yer reet - I'll hev a cheese pastie.'

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 16 Dec 09 - 06:23 AM

Did you see the "Worms (Eat Some Worms)" thread, above the line, S. - any Geordie variants on that..?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 16 Dec 09 - 07:53 AM

One Sunday mornin as aa went a fishin' in the Weor;
Aa cowt a fyish upon me heuk an it tyested awful queeor!
I ran for hyem becoz aa had a bad case of diarrhoea;
An all thet neet wez kept awake with an itchin up me reor!
Wheest lads - had yer gobs - an aal tell yes aal an aaful story
Wheest lads - had yer gobs - an aal yell yer 'boot me WORMS!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST
Date: 17 Dec 09 - 06:03 AM

In the north of Wales...

Poem 165 of 230: HOLYHEAD AND SURROUNDS - SUMMER 2001

The vivid heaths backed by Snowdon,
    The water-filled "Giant's Divots,"
And the keeps of kept construction.

The fast flows under Menai Bridge,
    The flat farmland of Anglesea,
And then Holyhead's ground-round ridge.

Off the train, all Holyhead's homes -
    Although varied in their structure -
Seemed matched to the ridge in their tones.

After the fortified church-grounds
    (Including Old Harbour vistas),
The museum ended my rounds.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 17 Dec 09 - 07:51 AM

That was me - on a local-library computer, whilst listening to school kids sing some carols: and very good they were, too.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 18 Dec 09 - 06:01 AM

Poem 65 of 230: NORTH WALES

"Hills meeting sea"
    Proclaims to me
"Good scenery."

And it's views of North Wales,
    Both sides of the train-rails,
Whereupon this thought hails.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 19 Dec 09 - 05:56 AM

For no-one in particular...

Poem 109 of 230: WE GO TOGETHER

(TUNE:

C E G E C E G E
E G E E E
C E G E C E G E
E G E E E
C E G E C E G E
E G E E E
G A B B A G A G
B A G A G

C A B B C A B B
C A B B C A B B
B A G A G
B B A G A G)

Does a mortar need a pestle?
    A curry a grind?
Does a monsieur need a madame?
    An ooh need two la's?
Does a work-bee need some pollen?
    And flowers a bee?
Yes, Honey, we go together.
We go together...

Like scones and tea just after three,
Or cheese and wine at dinnertime,
We go together.
Yeah, we go together.

Does a mortise need a tenon?
    A cue need a glaze?
Does an hombre need a muher?
    A tango take two?
Does a taproot need some wet earth?
    And flowers a buzz?
Yes, Honey, we go together.
We go together...

Like...

Does a fortune mean a soul-mate?
    And love extreme care?
Does a body need a shelter?
    A finger a ring?
Does a sloth-bear need a hide-out?
    And bees a beehive?
Yes, Honey, we go together.
We go together...

Like...

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 20 Dec 09 - 06:12 AM

Poem 154 of 230: GETTING TO KNOW GOD

God lets us go
    Our own way -
Until the Day;
    Now and then, though,
He has a Say
    In His own Way -
Prophets to Sow,
    Deserts to Pay.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 20 Dec 09 - 12:20 PM

Deserts to Pay.

What do you mean by that?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 20 Dec 09 - 03:36 PM

Similar to what's in The Bible, S. - the idea that God may let many things go/leave them to chance, but occasionally intervene.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 20 Dec 09 - 03:48 PM

Do you think he's intervened of late???

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 21 Dec 09 - 05:31 AM

God knows, I'm not going there; and when you posted re. your online album, "Jesus At The Zoo", I wasn't going there, either, S.

This and more "cloud poems", from me plus others, may be found on the Cloud Appreciation Society website...

Poem 23 of 230: ABOVE EVEREST

When flying from Nepal to Thailand,
    I was given a "good-side" seat;
And, as I looked out the plane window,
    The view I saw was really neat.

For breaking through a thick sheet of cloud
    Were the high Himalayan peaks;
And, rising the highest of them all,
    Mount Everest - heaven bespeaks!

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 21 Dec 09 - 06:24 AM

Bespeaks what? You do know bespeak is transitive?

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 21 Dec 09 - 07:21 AM

and when you posted re. your online album, "Jesus At The Zoo", I wasn't going there, either, S.

From my notes to Jesus at the Zoo:

The images come from the 13th century Ashmole Bestiary, which actually depict God creating the animals, birds & fishes. That God should look so much like Jesus creates certain problems for a Gnostic such as myself, so the images immediately become something else, especially as it looks like God did his creating in a menagerie, which raises all sorts of notions, Theological & otherwise.

Whilst many of the pieces slated for inclusion on JATZ are animal related, the others explore themes of Animal Nature from a Gnostic perspective: Mad Maudlin is the human mind astray in the animal body encompassing the entire cosmos even unto the raiding of Hell; Tempus Est Iocundum is the animal body aroused to the exclusion of the human mind - so very much astray with respect of instinct and / or dysfunction.

Thus do madness & sexuality entwine; feared by the Church, yet celebrated by Shamans, Pagans and Feral types alike! So - good Christians beware, though of course such duality is the essence of the Gnostic Tradition embedded, I feel, in spiritual traditions of the West these past 2,000 years and more*. A while ago Christians were wearing little bracelets with the letters WWJD on them - What Would Jesus Do? - and one answer has to be - He would go to the Zoo. Why? Because Zoos are arks, more pragmatic means of conservation emerging out of our ongoing curiosity for a world now in crisis which we still perceive in symbolic and ideological terms, though not to the extent proscribed by the Bestiaries.

* The Buddha attains enlightenment sitting peaceably beneath a tree; Jesus Christ through the tortured agonies of being nailed to one. This is the very essence of East / West Dichotomy!

I might add that I'm not religious in the slightest, but religion, and the persistence of religion, I find fascinating in terms of its wider folklore.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 22 Dec 09 - 05:01 AM

Poem 101 of 230: JUST SUBSIST

(TUNE:

D F# G G A A G G
D A B B A A G G
D B B B A A G G
D A A A B A G G
D A A A B A G G)

At times when I've had time to take,
    I've thought of a plot by a lake:
The plot would be of fertile ground;
    The lake would have some trout around.

The plot's house would be made of brick -
    Well insulated, in good nick.
And, round this abode, there'd be built -
    Solar panels, kept at best tilt.

Inside large coops would run the legs
    Of chooks and quails - for fresh eggs.
A vine for grapes plus summer shade;
    And, in thin beds, vegetables laid.

Up at dawn, to use all sunlight -
    Fish and farm by day, read at night.
A spouse with me I'd not resist -
    In retirement, we'd just subsist.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 22 Dec 09 - 05:39 AM

Taciturn as ever, WAV? It's Xmas for X's sake! Open up those doors!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 23 Dec 09 - 04:29 AM

By way of contrast with Newcastle, on the east coast of England, now covered in snow: on the east coast of Australia there will be Christmas barbeques at beaches such as...

Poem 8 of 230: CRONULLA

South of Sydney,
    Sand and sea -
That's Cronulla.

Surfies and girls,
    Sunbleached curls -
At Cronulla.

The promenades,
    The lifeguards -
That's Cronulla.

A modern mall,
    Flats stand tall -
At Cronulla.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 23 Dec 09 - 10:37 AM

Sounds like paradise, WAV - we hope to be moving out there in the next few years to soak it all in!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 23 Dec 09 - 12:10 PM

It's a good place for us to VISIT, S., and, as well as such above sites, appreciate some Aboriginal culture.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 23 Dec 09 - 04:21 PM

Oh Sean

If you emigrate what a poor swap!

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 23 Dec 09 - 04:22 PM

700?

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 23 Dec 09 - 05:01 PM

...On average, citizens of Australia may have their air conditioning on more than citizens of England have their central heating on.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 23 Dec 09 - 06:04 PM

I'd steer well clear of the Aboriginal stuff myself, WAV - what I want is sand, sea, surf, sun, lagoons & fun - the sort of scene that gets going here in Fleetwood once the summer kicks in. The wind-kids gather by the kite shop & there's a real scene with kites, jugglers, wind-surfers, poi swingers (Maori??), DJs, smiles, BBQ & related cool. Out there at this time of year you'd die of hypothermia in ten minutes. Also in Australia is a very fine trad. scene with a fine tradition Australian-English folk songs to draw upon - you know, things like The Derby Ram...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 24 Dec 09 - 04:20 AM

Parts of what you just said, S., remind me of Cecil Rhodes, sadly.

Poem 173 of 230: VALLEY VIEWS - AUTUMN 2001

The winds can whistle and the walls can creak,
    But from my beloved old rocking-chair,
Through a rhombus-patterned lounge-room window,
    The Tyne-valley views induce one to stare:

Over a canopy of estate trees -
    Tall birch, locust, rowan and sycamore -
To the housing, parks, stores and works below,
    Which fringe the river of the valley floor...

Then up the other side to more parkland,
    More clusters of trees and residencies,
Streets that yield at night sparkles of light,
    Plus the Angel of the North, topping these.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 24 Dec 09 - 02:30 PM

Who he??

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 24 Dec 09 - 02:51 PM

PS - Merry Christmas, WAV!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 24 Dec 09 - 04:46 PM

And to you and yours, too, S.

P.S: Rhodes, who gave his name to Rhodesia, was probably as pro imperialism and empire as anyone. Also, if you looked into Aboriginal culture, you may find it as interesting as the others you've delved into, and may well want to experience it upon a visit to Aus...?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 25 Dec 09 - 05:25 AM

Apparently, a rural-England Christian tradition is to give livestock (and wildlife) extra amounts of feed on Christmas morning; although it's probably partly pragmatic as farm workers expect to be less fit for work after their Christmas dinner, etc.!

Poem 95 of 230 A GOOD LIFE

To fauna,
    Home-flora.
Sheep for wool -
    Fed till full.
Chooks for eggs -
    Free-range legs.
Milk from cows -
    Should well house:
Better grade
    Can be made.
Fish for game -
    Cut the pain.
Dogs for pets -
    No regrets.
And question
    Castration.

This does say
    Buddha's way,
And Blake's way:
    A good life -
For all life.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks

(P.S: my folk-carol "Christmas Sung Simply" is playing on my myspace profile, above link, for a few more days.)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 25 Dec 09 - 06:04 AM

you may find it as interesting as the others you've delved into,

Basically, my culture is Indo-European, WAV - I see it in terms of a continuity which flows through ancient migrations as indicated by that of the Green Man & the Three Hares - see what Mercia MacDermott has to say on this HERE. So it's not a matter of delving as exploring, and celebrating, and, ultimately, respecting. Cultures flow as rivers, into seas, and evaporate into clouds which fall as rain which finds its way back into rivers; all is flow, transformation and change.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 26 Dec 09 - 08:20 AM

Traditionally, on Boxing Day in England, sports would be played between LOCAL rivals, to limit travel just after Christmas Day; but, nowadays, with football in particular, at the "highest level", most of the players are from other lands - sadly, I think...

Poem 98 of 230: REREGULATE

One Premier world-eleven v.
    Another such company,
Or wage-caps and say half each-club's squad
    From the local-junior pod?
And, perhaps, heed the cricket-fan's call
    To convert to county-football..?

(C) David Franks 2003
From WalkaboutsVerse
P.S: on my myspace player, you may hear my carol "Christmas Sung Simply"...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,S O'P (Ghost of Xmas Past)
Date: 26 Dec 09 - 02:16 PM

Think local, WAV! Whilst today's fixture between Shildon & West Aukland AFC was concelled owing to snow on the pitch, WAAFC are away to West Allotment Celtic on January 2nd. So - put your money where your mouth is; go support your local team as you do your local folk club if this has greater meaning to you than what the big-boys are up to.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 26 Dec 09 - 04:33 PM

Yes, S., that's where the meaning lies these days but, as I say, the "Premier League" could and should move back, at least part way, to suchlike - via REGULATIONS. (On my walk to the Rowing Club singaround the other year, I did stop for a few minutes to watch some of Durham's local cricketers.)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 27 Dec 09 - 04:47 AM

Boxing Day being a key day for hunting, the contentious issue of fox hunting was in the news, again, yesterday here in England...

Poem 205 of 230: SUFFERING

Badger baiting,
             Bull fighting,
                   Fox hunting,
                           Hare coursing:
                                    Cruel sporting/
                                              Suffering.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 28 Dec 09 - 03:47 AM

Do people go in for bull fighting much in England, WAV?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 28 Dec 09 - 04:58 AM

I definitely do like our world being multicultural, but I certainly don't like every tradition...

Poem 15 of 230: TOREO

I'm a fan of the Spanish way -
    I like their houses and their food;
But there is one thing I must say -
    Their bullfights do upset my mood.

The matadors may be brave folk,
    And the tradition an old one;
But what must also be spoke
    Is - the bulls' pain before they're done.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 28 Dec 09 - 06:29 AM

What about wren hunting?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 28 Dec 09 - 08:34 AM

We may keep singing the carol attached to it without practising the custom - although it's not in my repertoire, which, for what it's worth, may change slightly by replacing "Once in Royal David's City" with "The Wassail Song."

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Donuel
Date: 28 Dec 09 - 12:04 PM

old tobacco, that old tobacco
it just keeps killin
cuz folks are willin
to keep on smokin
they keep on smokin away.

phlegm they're coughin, could fill a coffin
They'll burn your house down
from ash they're droppin
that old tobacco
just keeps killin away.


Buy those smokes! You will choke!
You'll get a cancer that ain't no hoax
smoke or chew,
they'll both kill you
Get a little drunk and the heart fails too-ooo.


old tobacco, that old tobacco
it just keeps killin
cuz folks are willin
to keep on smokin
they keep on smokin away.




( a few words I threw together to the tune of Old Man River.)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 28 Dec 09 - 12:24 PM

I like your ditty, Donuel, and many a true word said in jest...I wonder if it would fit on a cigarette packet?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 28 Dec 09 - 03:29 PM

I find it perverse that you would replace a song in your repertoire instead of adding a new song, which would make more sense. Otherwise - there are any amount of Wassail songs, which one did you have in mind?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 28 Dec 09 - 04:52 PM

The one that is called "The Wassail Song", S., or "Here We Come a Wassailing"; and, in case you haven't noticed, a strong tradition in England, not just at "Carols from Kings", is for NINE carols (and lessons). Furthermore, as I've admitted before, about 60 songs, and their tunes on keys and recorder, is enough for my memory; and I think you'll agree that it's good to have at least one Wassail song in an English repertoire.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 28 Dec 09 - 05:58 PM

I've had any amount of Wassail songs over the years, WAV - but my favourite has always been The Gower Wassail from Wales. Here's Phil Tanner singing it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zlXnNGiS5U.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 29 Dec 09 - 03:48 AM

Check out The Wicker Man thread, WAV

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 29 Dec 09 - 06:07 AM

Thanks, S. - I got that from Ross, but have not found it on Sky, yet..?

On top of the 60 songs that, at least in theory, I've committed to memory, I have quite a few copies, from DigiTrad etc., and do know of the Gower Wassail. According to "Victorian Farm Christmas" (BBC), they are sung not just in connection with orchards but to will good produce of any kind - wheat, livestock, etc.

In the North West of England, where I was living at the start of this decade...

Poem 133 of 230: OXFORD BLUE - SPRING 2001

A contract ended/a new one begun,
    And a move from Bolton back to Bury -
A top-floor council-flat, within Radcliffe,
    Where streets are named from names in poetry,
And homes are framed by scenes I'm happy with.

My thirteenth home needed some touching-up,
    And I chose, in the main, to D.I.Y.;
So a nailed off-cut-and-rug make-do
    Covers the small floor where shelved books now lie -
My first study, painted in Oxford Blue.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 30 Dec 09 - 05:21 AM

I watched that episode too; nice to see Ronald Hutton being all festive. If you want a wider for context for such things check out Hutton's Stations of the Sun which isn't going to break the bank and will contextualise British Folk Custom & Seasonal Ceremony in a more realistic way than the Neo-Pagan Wicker Man approach favoured by many folkies....

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 30 Dec 09 - 05:45 AM

Ten years later, I live in Newcastle upon Tyne, North East England...

Poem 72 of 230: MILLENNIUM DREAMS

We can control our day's thought,
    But not our sleepy night's dream.
My dreams these nights are of this sort:
    Red earth; tanned grass; gums by a stream.

I'll do my bit from Manchester,
    But, if again in Australia,
I'm sure like this I'd fondly dream:
    Snow on swans; willows by a stream.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 31 Dec 09 - 04:22 AM

As some of you may recall, ten years ago, there was hours of coverage on new year/new millenium in many nations...

Poem 73 of 230: MILLENNIUM THOUGHTS

Watching live scenes from auld lands, on the B.B.C.,
Was my longest time stationed in front of T.V.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 01 Jan 10 - 07:58 AM

A bit late today, sorry, due to televised Hogmany, form Edinburgh, early this morning; and brunch with The New Year's Day Concert, from Vienna. On a sadder note, due to events in Finland yesterday, gun-laws are again in the headlines - hence, my New Year's message...

Poem 100 of 230: MONOPOLY

It seems to me,
    Ideally AND practically,
In an equitable society,
    A well-audited police-force and army
Should have a monopoly
    On weaponry.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
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(C) David Franks

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 02 Jan 10 - 04:11 AM

Seeing the New Year fireworks, via T.V., over the Harbour Bridge reminded me of this...

Poem 4 of 230: PICTURING SYDNEY

A good place to start is Sydney Tower,
    With its enthralling panoramic feast:
Olympic grounds - west; to north - the harbour;
    And beautiful beaches - north- and south-east.

From what is quite a jumbled C.B.D.,
    A good walk is through Botanic Gardens
To the harbour, Opera House, then the Quay -
    But other options number in the tens.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
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(C) David Franks

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 03 Jan 10 - 10:00 AM

Zoos are in the news at the moment, because the Chinese government has decided to repatriate a panda from the U.S.A.'s National Zoo...

Poem 203 of 230: IN SITU

When faced with a critical view,
    A zoo's main raison d'être is -
The conservation of species;
    But this can be done in situ.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
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(C) David Franks

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 03 Jan 10 - 03:38 PM

Coincidentally, this issue was looked at during tonight's Country File, which should be on the BBC's iPlayer.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 04 Jan 10 - 06:13 AM

With the World Darts Championship, from London, currently on the BBC, I thought I'd post this poem, from when I, and my family, lived in Manchester...

Poem 58 of 230: THE OLD BULL

Walked along Fog Lane,
    Looked at the park,
Stopped in the Old Bull
    And had a hark,
While eating lunch,
    On how at dark,
Many years before,
    My father's lark,
There, was games of darts -
    I'd filled an arc.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 05 Jan 10 - 04:43 AM

Last year, an English lady received a medal for bravery at war in Afghanistan, and the media here showed her with blood on her face; I accept that there is a need for an armed forces with some women in it, BUT I don't like females being...

Poem 211 of 230: AT FRONT LINES

I can't suckle a baby -
    God planned on SOME divisions;
Women are with war-weapons -
    We have fallen morally.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 05 Jan 10 - 05:36 AM

Oh Dear WAV

How can you write such patronising bloody posts?

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 06 Jan 10 - 04:32 AM

Remember when we were young, Stu, and an adult male would tell another adult male not to "swear in front of the ladies"?..were they "patronising" as well?

This is the kind of positive nationalism (with a stronger more-democratic United Nations) the world needs...

Poem 216 of 230: FOR PEACE

Reading of warred Afghanistan
    And its people's book, the Koran,
This bombarded generation
    Should, for peace, rebuild a nation
Involving one state/one culture -
    Living by the one native-law.
And, for peace in the Holy Lands,
    Three states bordered, for three faiths' hands.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 06 Jan 10 - 08:11 AM

I don't think you understand the world WAV - particularly the female half.

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 07 Jan 10 - 06:20 AM

If Gordon Brown knew better, he would be a member of the SNP; and, next time I visit, I hope and pray it's the "Republic of Scotland"...

Poem 66 of 230: TO SCOTLAND, AGAIN

By coach from central Manchester -
    In-between stops at Bolton,
Carlisle and Hamilton -
    To Glasgow, these are sights I saw...

Some sheep, blotched vividly with blue,
    Filing down a well-worn path,
Did form a long woolly lath,
    Aimed at a lusher greener hue.

A farmer on a four-wheeler:
    His canine friend close beside.
A horse not on call to ride:
    On leave - a no-shoe non-heeler!

Convex pastures with heath-moorland;
    And flatter grain-planes below:
Cropped, awaiting till-and-sow -
    Perhaps with grazing beforehand.

Passed Edwin Waugh territory,
    Cumbria's sharp forms and tones
Compelled sense off seat-cramped bones
    To their well-honed long-read story.

Further north, farms of slighter falls:
    One a black-sheep specialist,
With some Friesians on the list -
    All held between old dry-stone-walls.

The Lakes behind, a strong Scotch mist
    Changed the sun to a full-moon
And hid scenery, till soon -
    Light, and the wide scenes on Burns' list.

New farms harnessing the wind's blow,
    Old white-and-grey-cottage views;
Plus pines, espousing the hues -
    In distinct leaf-tones - of Glasgow.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 08 Jan 10 - 05:34 AM

The weather now, all over England, is a much bigger story than the one below: since repatriating in 1997, I haven't seen anything like it - snow has covered the ground here in Newcastle upon Tyne for more than 3 weeks.

Poem 129 of 230: TO A DRIVER - AUTUMN 2000

As Lancashire fields
    Became flood plains,
And still-worse storm yields
    Caused Southern pains,
I walked up Bolton roads
    (A new contract,
I'd again changed abodes),
    Feeling quite whacked.

For, while mini-cabs
    Passed-by quickly,
I received the sharp jabs
    Of cold, gusty,
Snow-filled air in my face;
    Till a driver,
At just outside his place,
    Asked, "Going far?"

Driving through the snowstorm
    To my new work
(Diverting from your norm,
    Ending my murk),
You were a kind fellow;
    So, from my flat
(The walk home was mellow),
    More thanks for that.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Ed
Date: 08 Jan 10 - 08:40 AM

Snow has covered the ground here in Newcastle upon Tyne for more than 3 weeks

Why not write a poem about it then, instead of endlessly regurgitating the old ones?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 08 Jan 10 - 12:00 PM

I'm no bride, Ed, but - "something old (verse), something new (a bit of topical prose)..." (E. trad. saying).

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 08 Jan 10 - 12:09 PM

The world is changing constantly WAV, and I fail to see how anyone with an ounce of poetry in their soul could 'retire from versification'.....no, wait, I get it now!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 08 Jan 10 - 12:16 PM

See what I mean - I didn't even say "retired from versification" this time!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Jan 10 - 05:30 AM

I think, overall, the New Labour Noughties, with the loss of many traditional values, were very bad for England...

Poem 168 of 230: ONCE CHURCHES - SUMMER 2001

Via modernist transformation:
    Another shopping site for Bolton,
A trendy new nightclub for Barrow -
    Sad symbols of our status quo.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 09 Jan 10 - 06:05 AM

This man's ego, knows no bounds

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 09 Jan 10 - 06:21 AM

I think the very best of your stupid fuckin' bullshit with no relation to even shitty poetry comes when you show your bigoted and totally screwed up attitude that embraces the disgusting, morally bankrupt, and thankfully discredited by all except outright racist pigs practice of separate but equal.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 09 Jan 10 - 06:28 AM

Aw gee.....I mistakenly posted my draft copy.......the post should read:
***************************************************************

Dear WavyFWBR,

I think the very best of your poetry comes when you show your attitude that embraces the practice of separate but equal.

Thanks so much, With Love and Respect, I remain........

Spaw
****************************************************************

There we go..................

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Jan 10 - 06:55 AM

Cheers, Born-Again-Spaw!   ;-)>

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 10 Jan 10 - 05:12 AM

(My post of 09.01.2010 has, coincidentally, just been taken-up on "The Big Questions" (BBC): "Is immigration destroying British values?"...although, not liking imperialism/monarchism, I would say "English values", of course.)

I wrote this 10 years ago...

Poem 105 of 230: GLOBAL REGULATIONISM

No income-scale would be unjust -
    It's a matter of degree;
And, to have less inequality,
    Regulations are a must.

For, in Millennium's status quo,
    The pay-gaps for human work,
And what's gotten simply as a perk,
    Are wrong - inhumanely so.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 10 Jan 10 - 05:54 AM

What; the BBC has read your post, and based a programme around it? I had no idea you were so influential, WAV.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 10 Jan 10 - 06:55 AM

Why did you immigrate to Britain WAV?

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 10 Jan 10 - 07:09 AM

Is immigration destroying British values?

No. Immigration is actually shaping British values, just as it has since after the last ice-age when people first immigrating here. Our Island Culture is, therefore, defined by Immigration and long may it remain so. The process is ongoing, evolving, and British Values evolving with it too. The only people who argue against this are WAV and the BNP, both of whom also believe there is such a thing as British / English Culture and both of whom thing it has something to do with the bourgeois re-inventions of the Folk / Folklore Revival of the past 100+ years. No surprise here, Volks!

We are all of us Individual Human Beings. British Culture is the consequence of what British Individual Human Beings do - whatever our point of personal, geographic or ethnic origin, which is, after all, completely irrelevant to both what we are and where we are. The fact that we're here is the only important one. WAV, on the other hand, argues for an integrated, Christian, assimilated, all-inclusive proscriptive Englishness that not only doesn't exist, but never has existed, simply because the Glad Laws of Human Reality state that it cannot exist - not without military force anyway. His notions of Corporate Cultural Improvement (no doubt to be administered intravenously by good people The Ministry of English Folk at the Cecil Sharp House) are yet more offensive to fundamental individual cultural freedoms than anything done in the name of the imperialism he claims to oppose.

Religion only exists to fuck up individual freedoms & repress instinctive reality' Like Folk, it is a hobby with no objective currency whatsoever; like Folk it is not Our Own Good Culture, but only an dwindling aspect of same for those with nostalgic inclinations. Like Folk, it is nice at Xmas, but come January it's back to reality, like the Go-Penguins we enjoyed on the streets of Liverpool yesterday. Real culture for all - just a shame it's finished with so soon really...

I just keep wondering when WAV will realise just how offensive his insane ideas & pronouncements are to the Glories of Human Reality & how potentially dangerous it is to continue to publish & promote his highly subjective racist & fascist polemic in the name of Truth? A self-serving idiotic truth maybe, but one can only humour such stupidity for so long. Give it up, WAV - come join us in the real world before it really is too late.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 10 Jan 10 - 08:02 AM

Welcome to Mudcat, the web's answer to vanity publishing!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 10 Jan 10 - 08:22 AM

Tim - you seemed to have missed "coincidentally" in my last comment.
Stu - born here (actually the day Alf Ramsey's English team won the world cup), I am a repatriate.
S. - some of these issues were brought up on the above-mentioned programme (as they have been here before, of course), but it was stressed that they were talking about post-WW2 mass immigration.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 10 Jan 10 - 10:18 AM

Did you have an Australian passport?

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 10 Jan 10 - 10:19 AM

Sean = your last paragraph sums up my view exactly

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 10 Jan 10 - 11:49 AM

Yes, Stu - on my travels I used 2 passports depending on the visa requirements, but I have lived in England for going on 17 years now and, whilst I wouldn't mind some VISITS to other nations, intend to abide here.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 10 Jan 10 - 01:57 PM

Sean = your last paragraph sums up my view exactly

I think a lot of people feel the same way, Stu - for all WAVs protestations to not being racist, he nevertheless perseveres in the publication of potentially inflammatory racist polemic in all (seeming) innocence. My worry is that sooner or later someone even more idiotic than WAV is going to take him at his mistaken word when he says English culture is taking a hammering (etc. ad nauseum) and then go out and act (violently) upon it. Fact is English Culture most certainly isn't taken a hammering because English Culture most certainly isn't what WAV thinks it is. English Culture is, in fact, the sum total of the multi-cultural activity of the English People, which is to say EVERYONE currently residing in England at any given moment in time regardless of ethnicity. In this sense alone I am proud to be English and feel that WAV should address himself to FACTS rather than his fanatical fantasies which are as tiresome as they just plain wrong.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 10 Jan 10 - 03:39 PM

You are confused there, S.: the "facts" are that there is still English culture (if weakened) among a multiple number of cultures now in England - a multiple that has increased greatly due to post-WW2 mass-immigration, especially under New Labour. Whether we like or dislike those facts about our democracy is another matter, which was being debated today on the above-mentioned BBC programme.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 10 Jan 10 - 03:56 PM

WAV - the only one confused around here is you, as you make abundantly clear with your pronouncements on things you clearly know nothing about. English Culture is now, and always has been, the sum total of the HUMAN INDIVIDUALS currently resident in England, regardless of any multi-cultural consideration. What do think of as English Culture doesn't exist outside of your fevered fantasy world.

I know it's cold right now, but maybe if you gave Life a try rather than the BBC things might become clearer.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 10 Jan 10 - 04:09 PM

He's getting mixed up between culture and tradition Sean.
Then again, he's also mixed up between poetry, polemics, and doggerel

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 10 Jan 10 - 05:10 PM

"I know it's cold right now, but maybe if you gave Life a try rather than the BBC things might become clearer."...it's me, not you S., who has travelled on a shoestring through about 40 countries, achieved distinctions during a humanities degree, etc. (and the same for you, John).

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Smedley
Date: 10 Jan 10 - 05:14 PM

"Then again, he's also mixed up between poetry, polemics, and doggerel"



The latter two, undoubtedly, but I see no evidence of the first.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 10 Jan 10 - 05:49 PM

Oh come on WAV - Sean is well read and has a high level of understanding on many matters. Your degrees and fork lift truck certs don't qualify you for anything useful or interesting on this forum. When did you stop learning?

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 10 Jan 10 - 06:28 PM

They say travel broadens the mind, David - so where, one wonders, did we go wrong with you?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 11 Jan 10 - 05:30 AM

On this day, in 1569, the first official lottery in England was drawn; and, in my opinion, they remain...

Poem 138 of 230: AN OPIUM

National Lottery passes -
    Slight chances to be richer,
    With lots more than thy neighbour,
    Gained without any labour -
    Keep the system in favour:
An opium of the masses.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 11 Jan 10 - 10:26 AM

in my opinion, they remain... Poem 138 of 230: AN OPIUM

The correct quote is: "Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people." (Marx, Karl. 1844. A Contribution to the Critique of Hegel's Philosophy of Right).

Whilst I can't disagree with you with respect of the National Lottery, I do think your stance in this respect this is a bit hypocritical - not only coming from a Christian (see above) but also from one whose entire Life's Work amounts to an opiate on just about every level imaginable.

Time to go Cold Turkey maybe?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 11 Jan 10 - 01:25 PM

Whilst aware that Marx was referring to religion, and that most people would also be aware of it, in that poem I never said I agree with him on that in particular; rather, I merely gave lotteries as an example of an "opium of the masses" - and I'm glad that you "can't disagree with...respect of the National Lottery," at least, S.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 11 Jan 10 - 02:34 PM

We all of us have our opiates, David - to some it is religion, to others it is the lottery. Both offer the same sort of wan hope with the difference that the lottery does pay out, and generates revenue for some worthwhile projects without the attendant worthiness.

Interesting to note that the first instance of opiate of the people seems to be the Marquis de Sade - an interesting association, me thinks...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Little Hawk
Date: 11 Jan 10 - 06:29 PM

The most common opiates of the North American public nowadays are:

1. consumerism
2. television and other video devices
3. alcohol
4. sex/pornography/and related aspects of sexuality
5. gambling/lotteries/casinos
6. overeating/eating junk food
7. caffeine drinks
8. sugar-laden food and drink
9. yakking and texting on cellphones and similar devices

And finally...a long time after all of the above....religion.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 12 Jan 10 - 06:46 AM

Socialism predates Marx by 100s of years - here's one example of socialism in the Bible...

Poem 82 of 230: ON ACTS 4:32-35

Believers were all one in heart and mind -
    They shared their excesses, giving in kind.
No-one claimed any possessions one's own -
    Yes, it was socialism on the throne.

So not long were there desperate folk -
    Fair distribution was the tongue they spoke.
And wealthy owners would sell part their deed -
    Funds, via apostles, to those in need.

Yet today, all round our troubled earth,
    Some Christians, safe at their own snug hearth,
Vote for their electorate's Right-Wing party -
    That's hypocritical, it seems to me.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 12 Jan 10 - 07:06 AM

Fair point, David. I was raised by essentially secular socialists with the notion that Christ was the first Communist; which is to say, concentrating on his teaching & example, rather than the entirely mythical context in which these are set, however so persuasive they might be. There remains a dichotomy here which, as you point out in your final stanza, underlines the hypocrisy of much so-called Christian thinking today. The alternative I once called Jesuism (although it seemed others got there first - see HERE) - which is an essentially secular & humanistic appreciation of the life & teachings of Christ as revealed in Canonical & Gnostic scripture.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 12 Jan 10 - 09:45 AM

I had in mind, also, some of the American evangelists (whom LH, above, may also have had in mind) that made personal fortunes out of their evangelism.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 12 Jan 10 - 03:53 PM

Ask any Christian about what Christ meant by The Eye of the Needle and the chances are they'll tell you about a narrow passage in Jerusalem which was difficult to get a camel along. That no such passage ever existed seems besides the point - see HERE.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 12 Jan 10 - 04:50 PM

"It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God." (Matthew 19:24)...I'd only thought of it this way - there were, in those days, needles and humpy camels, plus Jesus with his sense of humour.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 13 Jan 10 - 05:22 AM

In both France and the U.S.A., the "Statue of Liberty" should be renamed the "Statue of Regulationism," for "Liberty, as surfeit, is the father of much fast" (Shakespeare, Measure for Measure)...

Poem 83 of 230: ACTS

How policy gets into place
Is an issue that all states face:
    It happens democratically
    (All of-opinion - voting free/
    Part of-opinion - compulsory);
    It happens autocratically
    (Sometimes involving prophecy).
What's most important, in my case,
Is that humane acts win the race.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 13 Jan 10 - 05:43 AM

there were, in those days, needles and humpy camels,

It even featured on an episode of QI - one of the more evident theological convolutions that wealthy Christians have come up with over the centuries to get around the central human simplicity of Christ's teachings. One wonders what he would make of the funny hats & hoo-hah of the established church, much less the suit & tie gobshite evangelists who seem ever more obsessed with The Rapture and other things that just aren't going to happen. That said, for all their faults I have greater sympathy for the traditional churches, largely account of their antiquity & cultural manifestations which at least offer some sort of substance. Is this what Jesus was getting at in Matthew 7:16 I wonder?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 14 Jan 10 - 05:24 AM

From a visit to the state of Victoria, in Australia...

Poem 7 of 230: RECENT HISTORY

There's a place called Sovereign Hill,
    Nigh the city of Ballarat,
With dated representations -
    And they're authentic ones at that.

You can pan for gold at the creek,
    Write some lines with inkwell and quill,
See bread baked the colonial way
    Or a blacksmith at his anvil.

There's a, pre-plastics, bowling lane -
    With everything made in wood;
A painted-photo studio,
    And a saloon built as they stood.

Ride in a draft-horse drawn carriage,
    See the front gardens of the day,
Read-up on mining history,
    Or watch costumed-revellers play.

And, just beside the "old" village,
    Should you decide to see some more,
There's homely accommodation;
    But heed - Kooris came long before.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 15 Jan 10 - 07:54 AM

From my days in North-West England...

Poem 130 of 230: ENTRÉE/AT BOLTON'S ALBERT HALL: OPERA SONG - WINTER 2000/1

(TUNE:

G A B C' B
C' D' C' B
B C' B D' D'
G E D C
C' E' F' E' E'
E' E' D' C'
C' E' F' G' G'
G E D C)

From novel, and play,
To opera,
La Traviata
Was my entrée
To a media
I find is a
Fine way to relay
Human drama.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 15 Jan 10 - 06:45 PM

"Media" is plural.

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 16 Jan 10 - 07:07 AM

Yes, Stu, but the rhyme scheme is abbabaab..?

In North Wales...

Poem 165 of 230: HOLYHEAD AND SURROUNDS - SUMMER 2001

The vivid heaths backed by Snowdon,
    The water-filled "Giant's Divots,"
And the keeps of kept construction.

The fast flows under Menai Bridge,
    The flat farmland of Anglesea,
And then Holyhead's ground-round ridge.

Off the train, all Holyhead's homes -
    Although varied in their structure -
Seemed matched to the ridge in their tones.

After the fortified church-grounds
    (Including Old Harbour vistas),
The museum ended my rounds.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 16 Jan 10 - 11:25 AM

So find an alternative?

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 16 Jan 10 - 11:41 AM

...I may replace "media" (above) with "conveyor"..?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 16 Jan 10 - 12:09 PM

to an art 'forma' ? (Italian)

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 16 Jan 10 - 03:52 PM

Yes, I think I'll go with that, thanks Stu.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 17 Jan 10 - 05:35 AM

Poem 16 of 230: A BEAUTIFUL STAGE

If a couple, with plans to wed,
    Asked me, off the top of my head,
For somewhere I thought well in-tune
    As a place for a honeymoon,
It would have - flashing back - to be
    Beautifully-honed Italy.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 18 Jan 10 - 06:34 AM

I don't have a poem about the Australian Open tennis, which has just started, but this one mentions the only other professional tournamnent I've attended, at Devonshire Park, where the men's Oxford versus Cambridge Varsity matches were also held; I enjoyed them but questioned the women's tennis, and concluded it's better for females, rather, to play TABLE tennis, which puts far less stress on the racket/bat arm...

Poem 156 of 230: EASTBOURNE - SUMMER 2001

On the day before the solstice,
    I first sighted Eastbourne:
A beautiful elegant place -
    English culture untorn.

Two long days allowed two long lanes
    To be walked before dark -
One after travel on four trains,
    One post-Devonshire Park.

The first was between sea and heath,
    And gardens signed by post,
Then up the Downs to view, beneath,
    The brutal handsome coast.

The next, contrasting that before,
    Showed all kinds of vessels -
Parked up along the pebbly shore
    And in marina cells.

(But, as for the women's tennis,
    It soon became a qualm -
As I was put-off by what is
    A great strain on their arm.)

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 18 Jan 10 - 06:59 AM

And your underlying philosophy about women's place in society is...? How do you propose to stop women playing Lawn Tennis WAV? UN regulations?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 18 Jan 10 - 08:32 AM

Yes, Tim, but don't forget, unlike many males, I've no problem with, e.g., the next Archbishop of Canterbury being a female, or a president, for that matter - because archbishops and presidents don't have to belt tennis balls or lift heavy weights.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 18 Jan 10 - 09:56 AM

How about female bricklayers? Engineers? Farm workers? However you slice it, you intend to limit the number and type of jobs that are open to women. That's against the law in this country; it's called sex discrimination, either direct or indirect. How do you propose to change the law WAV? I'll ask you again; how do you propose to prevent women playing lawn tennis? As a secondary question; where is your medical evidence that women's arms are under greater strain than men's arms. Chapter and verse please; we'll need figures for the number and type of arm injuries involving strain to the arm in professional tennis, let's say over the last ten years. Then we'll need a rigorous statistical analysis, plus a statememnt of causality in each case. This should then be peer reviewed, preferably by an Orthopaedic specialist and a sports physiotherapist. Otherwise, we'll have to assume that you've just made all this up.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 18 Jan 10 - 01:39 PM

When I was at university in Australia, Tim, I was receiving a benefit called "Austudy", whilst Aboriginal students were getting "Abstudy" - a better deal, which, as part of reconciliation, I agree with.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 18 Jan 10 - 03:12 PM

And the answers to my questions are...? Please read my post again, engage whatever you use instead of a brain, and try to answer my clearly stated questions. If you can't do this, it might be time to review your medication. For the record; I didn't ask you about Australia, aborigines, study funding, reconciliation or anything else in your post. What you just posted may possibly be the greatest non sequitur of all time.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 18 Jan 10 - 04:40 PM

"There are general guidelines - or maximum weights - for men and women. If applying these, no man should attempt to lift anything heavier than 25kg and a woman's maximum limit is 16kg" (here)...and here here/hear hear - if I saw a lady attempting to lift a 25kg bag of raw material on the shop floor, I'd certainly stop her and insist on doing so myself.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 18 Jan 10 - 07:04 PM

Come on WAV do you really think that a normal woman should be prevented from lifting a typical four=year old?


Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 18 Jan 10 - 07:39 PM

What does weight lifting have to do with tennis? Come on WAV, I challenged you to back up your nonesensical assertions, and you have failed to do so. Answer the questions asked, not the ones you want to answer. How will you prevent women playing tennis? What is your medical evidence that tennis is damaging to women?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 19 Jan 10 - 05:01 AM

According to WikeAnswers, Stu, it's 16 - 20kg, so, according to the above guidelines, some care and common sense would be needed.

Tim - the sport I follow most closely is tennis and, thus, I'm aware of many stress injuries in women's tennis: e.g., Sue Barker said herself on the BBC that she played many matches with pain killers injected into her wrist. As I say, parents should encourage daughters into, rather, TABLE tennis, in my opinion.

In Lancashire, England...

Poem 125 of 230: BLACKBURN CATHEDRAL - AUTUMN 2000

Just out of the station,
    And past a new statue
On human relation
    (Mum, kid, and teddy, too),
Lies Blackburn Cathedral,
    Which, from my passage through,
Seems very musical
    In its newly-formed view.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 19 Jan 10 - 07:04 AM

BLACKBURN CATHEDRAL

An amazing place, not least as here resides some of Mr Eatough's misericord carvings originally done for Whalley Abbey, circa 1430 - the others now residing at Whalley Parish Church & Cliviger. My favourite of the Blackburn carvings is The Fall (and in Detail, wherein lurks the devil) - photos by me.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 19 Jan 10 - 07:39 AM

And Sue Barker's medical qualifications are? I asked you for evidence WAV, not gossip. I would have thought that someone with your array of qualifications would know the difference. Are you aware of any stress injuries in men's tennis?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 19 Jan 10 - 10:29 AM

I'm afraid my medical qualifications are limited to basic first aid, Tim, so can only add examples, such as Sharapova recently being out of the game with a shoulder injury for several months.

Thanks for those pics, Sean: seems you've been to quite a few of the places in my Walkabouts (especially in Lancs and NE)...good for me, as I had "my pen" but not a camera!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 19 Jan 10 - 11:02 AM

Can you actually read, WAV? I didn't ask what your medical qualifications were. I asked if you were aware of any stress injuries in men's tennis. Answer the question please, and then kindly address my other questions.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 19 Jan 10 - 01:07 PM

Yes, Tim, but more in women's tennis, I gather.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 19 Jan 10 - 06:08 PM

800

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 19 Jan 10 - 06:19 PM

Your vision of the world is so bizarre WAV as to make it worthy of medical/psychological study. You patronize and insult so many people (without perhaps ever realising it) individually and in groups, races and nations.

Your lack of understanding in so many areas of human life beggars belief.

But Sean says you're a nice guy. Strange....

The other possibility is that you're one of the cleverest wind-up merchants ever, and don't really believe any of the tosh about which you pontificate.

I wish I knew

In bafflement

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 19 Jan 10 - 07:28 PM

Gather from where? I asked you to substantiate these rather weird notions. What exactly is your evidence for your assertion?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 19 Jan 10 - 11:40 PM

A dick by any other name is still a dick. Dick, thy name is WavyFWBR.........

I am more than willing to let a dumbfuck be a dumbfuck but once again we are plagued with the same gawdawful "poetry" and the completely inane and non-responsive illogical arguments that have been hashed over 4 or 5 times before along with the reposting of each tripe ridden piece of shit this clown has written.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 20 Jan 10 - 04:07 AM

Succinct as ever, Spaw.
:)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 20 Jan 10 - 04:33 AM

Apparently, folks, the Enigma code was cracked 70 years ago today!...what you are really saying is that I'm heavily against the status quo; but what you should, at least, accept is that, if living in England about 50 years ago, I would have been far less radical: some attitudes and values definitely have changed for the worse, in my opinion.

During a university break in Australia...

Poem 6 of 230: THE PICKER

While picking onions at Echuca,
    Betimes I came across a
Man who was, he said, by trade a picker.

A compact and stocky physique had he;
    Kind he was to first-time me -
Advising, "You should pick 'em on your knee."

Then he told me of his long-kept plan
    Of travel, by caravan,
To pick seasoned crops, over a wide span.

But workers' rates, I knew, were non too fair -
    Twenty dollars a tonne, there,
Was all the onion-crop owner could spare.

Though (with tally taken by some louse,
    And told to see owner or spouse),                                 
Believe me, they lived in some kind of house.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 20 Jan 10 - 04:48 AM

How dare you tell me 'what I am really saying'! I have said nothing of the kind, this is another case of your fevered brain assuming that everyone else is saying the same things as you. You are (judged by your own ceaseless blathering) a nasty, controlling,racist and sexist bigot, with no understanding of either your own culture or that of anywhere else. (I can show evidence of all of those terms from your actual posts, WAV, so don't bother denying them). Why would I want to agree with someone like that?
If you aren't doing it already, WAV, get some therapy. You are seriously disconnected and alienated from the real world around you. Get some friends. Get a job. Learn a musical instrument properly. Get some singing lessons. Read some proper history. Fall in love with someone other than yourself. Get a life.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 20 Jan 10 - 05:02 AM

accept is that, if living in England about 50 years ago, I would have been far less radical

I think the word you're looking for here is reactionary, WAV - and in the England of 1960, who can say? I wasn't born until 1961, and my England was a multi-cultural, multi-ethnic working-class truly radical paradise in which your philosophy would have been derided for the misanthropic, racist, sexist, & fascistic bullshit it most surely is.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 20 Jan 10 - 05:53 AM

No - if you go through all my posts, you'll only find that I've questioned the act of immigration itself, without ever knocking any particular race/ethnicity; and you'll soon find that, unlike many males, I really do have no problem with a female being a president or an archbishop. The attitude that "women can do ANYTHING" is very new - not that long ago, females could not compete in a marathon, e.g.

If, however, you go through the posts of one of my accusers here, Sean, you'll find language such as "Engrish frute" for a recorder made in Japan, or "I have friends at the pub who make racist jokes".

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 20 Jan 10 - 11:11 AM

I've had Hindu friends who make jokes about Moslems, and Moslem friends who made jokes about Hindus - very often to each other's faces. Both made jokes about whites - very often to my face. I have been the butt of racist jokes for being both Jewish and Irish. So, a lot of awkward on-going history there, WAV, born of a political & human reality the nature of which you're neither experienced enough nor yet qualified to understand or yet pass comment on. This is English culture I'm on about - complex, interwoven, a little tense at times (thanks to the myth-making of idiots like you who continue to publish your racist lies) but hardly ripe for the interracial civil-war you seem to be anticipating. But better this reality than the ethnically cleansed whiter-than white folky fascist Christian hell that you would have us living under.

Otherwise - and once again - it was saintly Don Firth who coined the non-racist term Engrish Frute to celebrate the total absurdity of you calling your mass-produced black plastic Made in Japan cheapo recorder an English Flute. Engrish is a genuinely fascinating cultural & linguistic phenomenon with many books & websites devoted to it, such as THIS ONE.

Racism is publishing inflammatory lies like English culture is taking a hammering and, when people lose their own culture, society suffers.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 20 Jan 10 - 03:04 PM

Perfect example of ENGRISH which works on every level imaginable - it's funny, surreal & quite impossibly beautiful into the bargain. It is, in fact, unwitting poetry of the highest inspirational & natural order. And it is not racist.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 20 Jan 10 - 07:06 PM

WAV doth protest too much methinks...

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 20 Jan 10 - 08:45 PM

What a shame that WavyFWBR doesn't live here in the States..........He'd be so at home with the Klan. With any luck he might even get to be an Exalted Cyclops..........gawd knows he spends a lot of time showing his "one-eye" around here.

WavyFWBR.....can you truly not see just how bigoted, racist, and chauvinistic, your words and thoughts are?

Quick Answer from WavyFWBR will be "No."


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 21 Jan 10 - 04:57 AM

Stu and Spaw - your silence re. what Suibhne just posted speaks volumes.

Poem 37 of 230: RODEO DRIVE

On visiting Los Angeles,
    I thought I'd walk Rodeo Drive.
I'd passed a few up-market shops
    When an hombre said, "Take one please."

'Twas info. on exploitation,
    Which I read that night in my room.
It mentioned of the unfair gap -
    Sweatshop-wages to profit-on.

I left him to visit the john,
    Which was all clad in marble stone.
Then I walked past more fortune gowns
    To lunch: four bucks - fair profit-on.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 21 Jan 10 - 05:21 AM

Not as much as your own silence on such matters, WAV.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 21 Jan 10 - 07:11 AM

Say what WavyFWBR?   Are you reading for comprehension or speed? Exactly what do you think Sublime was saying? I read that S-O has a fine insight into the way things are. Great stuff from one who is experienced and in touch.

What did you read?


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Donuel
Date: 21 Jan 10 - 07:11 AM

We as Americans grind our hero's' bones for tea.
We drink it down and say "it's such a pity".
We lighten up in mysterious ways.
We embrace our heroes and turn them into strays.

Oh sure we love our athletes.
We love our amorous heroes.
We love our wealthy streets.
We love more reducing heroes
to sacrificial zeros.

When we are bored by excellence
When we tire of our benevolence
We cut the exalted down to size
We even tingle with enjoyment if our victim cries.
Ohhh it feels so good you can't imagine.
From rags to riches to rage is our fashion.

For example today's newspaper page
shows Tiger Woods in a hood
sporting a beard with the grimace of a cynic.
He is roaming the grounds,
of a sexual addiction clinic.

sip GULP mmmm

AAhh what could be better than Tiger Woods tea.
You see...
Now we can gloat,
vicariously
We Are Now Better Than He.

Tiger Woods Tea – a little dark
a little light with a dash of exotic spice
It packs a punch as strong as Ale
Such a pity, how soon it grows stale
See, now it's not fit for men or mice.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 21 Jan 10 - 05:11 PM

Siubhne - I thought I'd made it clear I disagree with you re. the use of such, above, terms.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 21 Jan 10 - 07:44 PM

WavyFWBR - I thought we'd made it clear we disagree with you re: your despicable beliefs.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 22 Jan 10 - 06:08 AM

Poem 220 of 230: AMERICANS

Before becoming a guest-lecturer,
    "Ethnic Americans," said a leader
From an equally-ethnic U.S. kind -
    Sparking Amerindian chant to mind...

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 22 Jan 10 - 11:19 AM

Gee, that's so responsive.......also complete gibberish.........

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 22 Jan 10 - 11:34 AM

WAV to Dutch

Followed by Dutch to WAV.

There seems to be no Babelfish for Strine (WAV's home tongue)

At visiting loose Angeles,
I thought I' D the traction of the pace rodeo.
I' D concerned a couple up-market shops
when aforesaid hombre, " Take one please."
' Information of Twas. for exploitation,
which I that night in my space read.
It mentioned of the dishonest gap -
Slavenhok-lonen to profits.
I left him to visit john,
which hold all in marble stone were.
Then I ran beyond more fortuintoga' s
to lunch: four sulk - market profits.

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Donuel
Date: 22 Jan 10 - 11:54 AM

One man's gibberish is another man's gobbledeegook.

To be honest, you are not important enough for it to be about you.
Not that it is not about you because you don't matter, but rather
its not about you because you are not important enough for it to be about you.

Now if you were a corporation you could make sure of who you don't
want it to be about. But as it stands, you don't matter, because to be important you must wield huge capital, not law or constitutions.
Since you don't have meaningful capital that could enrich or diminish other super capitalists, its not about you.

For people who it is about, they look upon you and know that they can buy or sell your life and family for less than lunch money.
That is a feeling of pride and levity for those whom it is about.
They may feel and know that you don't matter, yet you still matter in the sense that it is not about you.

Thank you thank you very much...not you.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 22 Jan 10 - 12:36 PM

Donuel: I've only studied very basic law ("Manufacturing and the Law", as part of a technical certificate), but, I must confess, I quite like a bit of gobbledygook.

Stu and Spaw: as (in even older days) my industrial arts teacher used to say - "Are you with us!?"

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 22 Jan 10 - 05:45 PM

"my industrial arts teacher used to say - "Are you with us!?""

Was this then a regular question WAV? Did you ever realise that it was not rhetorical, but a baffled bewilderment at your unawareness of the world, subject , classroom, classmates etc?

As to your professed predilection for gobbledegook I think we'd spotted that. Could you not have found a synonym from our own good English instead of repeating such an Americanism?

Almost as non-English as the Australian Chook.

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 22 Jan 10 - 05:55 PM

Industrial Arts????

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 22 Jan 10 - 06:03 PM

I never said that that industrial arts (woodwork, metalwork and technical drawing, Tim) teacher's question was directed at me, Stu - who seems to fancy "chook" as much as I "gobbledygook".

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 22 Jan 10 - 06:43 PM

WAV you are a computer program, aren't you. I've read the story somewhere - you are programmed to respon in a way that is supposedly a human response, and we have to spot it

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mousethief
Date: 22 Jan 10 - 06:57 PM

Could you not have found a synonym from our own good English instead of repeating such an Americanism?

Hey.

O..O
=o=

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 23 Jan 10 - 06:14 AM

Interesting


Stu (or Apple Mac?)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 23 Jan 10 - 06:40 AM

Speaking of testing, Stu, here's a gobbledygook-ish poem...

Poem 106 of 230: TESTING 4,3,2,1

I've tried to learn to sing a song
Well enough to let a singer
Know the way I found to sing
My lyric-only songs.

That is, just in case a singer
Was in want of a way to sing
These lyric-only songs.

But I'm sorry there's no notes with the songs,
And hope they're okay said, if not sung -

As love songs.

(P.S: writing, via mimicking, my tunes came late,
But they were all in shorthand by 2008.)

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 24 Jan 10 - 05:25 AM

In my case, these days, vegan "cheese"...

Poem 109 of 230: WE GO TOGETHER

(TUNE:

C E G E C E G E
E G E E E
C E G E C E G E
E G E E E
C E G E C E G E
E G E E E
G A B B A G A G
B A G A G

C A B B C A B B
C A B B C A B B
B A G A G
B B A G A G)

Does a mortar need a pestle?
    A curry a grind?
Does a monsieur need a madame?
    An ooh need two la's?
Does a work-bee need some pollen?
    And flowers a bee?
Yes, Honey, we go together.
We go together...

Like scones and tea just after three,
Or cheese and wine at dinnertime,
We go together.
Yeah, we go together.

Does a mortise need a tenon?
    A cue need a glaze?
Does an hombre need a muher?
    A tango take two?
Does a taproot need some wet earth?
    And flowers a buzz?
Yes, Honey, we go together.
We go together...

Like...

Does a fortune mean a soul-mate?
    And love extreme care?
Does a body need a shelter?
    A finger a ring?
Does a sloth-bear need a hide-out?
    And bees a beehive?
Yes, Honey, we go together.
We go together...

Like...

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Smedley
Date: 24 Jan 10 - 05:36 AM

I think Cole Porter's reputation remains unchallenged.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 24 Jan 10 - 05:04 PM

Wouldn't want to challenge Cole!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 25 Jan 10 - 09:54 AM

In Scotland tonight, they celebrate Burns Night...

Poem 66 of 230: TO SCOTLAND, AGAIN

By coach from central Manchester -
    In-between stops at Bolton,
Carlisle and Hamilton -
    To Glasgow, these are sights I saw...

Some sheep, blotched vividly with blue,
    Filing down a well-worn path,
Did form a long woolly lath,
    Aimed at a lusher greener hue.

A farmer on a four-wheeler:
    His canine friend close beside.
A horse not on call to ride:
    On leave - a no-shoe non-heeler!

Convex pastures with heath-moorland;
    And flatter grain-planes below:
Cropped, awaiting till-and-sow -
    Perhaps with grazing beforehand.

Passed Edwin Waugh territory,
    Cumbria's sharp forms and tones
Compelled sense off seat-cramped bones
    To their well-honed long-read story.

Further north, farms of slighter falls:
    One a black-sheep specialist,
With some Friesians on the list -
    All held between old dry-stone-walls.

The Lakes behind, a strong Scotch mist
    Changed the sun to a full-moon
And hid scenery, till soon -
    Light, and the wide scenes on Burns' list.

New farms harnessing the wind's blow,
    Old white-and-grey-cottage views;
Plus pines, espousing the hues -
    In distinct leaf-tones - of Glasgow.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 25 Jan 10 - 10:09 AM

Geeziz......Your poetry really does suck. And you think the friggin' world needs to hear the important messages you are sending?

.........Okay, everybody who gives a flying fuck about your seeing a duckie and a horsie on your way to Glasgow, please raise your hands. No one? Fine....

WavyFWBR, you are a racist lil dude who can't write for shit......Now go to the mirror and repeat that to yourself and then run a copy of the above poem and use it to wipe your ass.


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 25 Jan 10 - 12:33 PM

Get back to your kitty litter for such deposits, Catspaw...and anyone else care to deposit, rather, a wee ditty for Burns Night?..

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 25 Jan 10 - 01:35 PM

No,no....You go to your mirror and read the line until it sinks in. When you finally can see your own bigoted ways and how it comes through in your gawdawful, pathetic, juvenile, "poetry".....then I'll retire to my own digs but the ceaseless posting of the same crappyass and racist crud has got to go. You have a right to post your bigoted tripe but I too have a right to state my displeasure in terms that are easily understood. So WavyFWBR, let me restate:

Your "poetry" sucks.
It has been posted repeatedly before.
It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 26 Jan 10 - 09:40 AM

Today being Australia Day, we should keep this in mind...

Poem 76 of 230: LAND RIGHTS

If there is a good thing,
    From the Second World War,
It's that most peoples learnt
    To conquer lands no more.

In Africa, Asia,
    And the Pacific, too:
Post-war independence -
    Steps only bigots rue.

But for some indigenes,
    Outnumbered much-too-much,
It has all come too late
    For liberty, as such.

So 'tis in Australia,
    And America's sites,
Where the best now, I think,
    Is to respect land rights.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 26 Jan 10 - 10:36 AM

Er, why should I keep your drivel in mind, WAV? Given that I don't give a stuff about Australia Day in the first place? What's the connection between pompous tripe about countries and indigenous people and a national holiday in Australia that seems to be just a good excuse for a booze up and a barbie? Please stop telling me what I should and shouldn't do.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 26 Jan 10 - 12:01 PM

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 26 Jan 10 - 04:59 PM

Suggesting racism and bigotry after a poem about "Land Rights", and wondering why it was posted, are examples of ignorance, you two.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 26 Jan 10 - 05:17 PM

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 26 Jan 10 - 05:25 PM

WAV, old fruit,

I have to concur with Spaw's assessment of your poetic skills and virtues, which I find to be inverted. On a scale of 1 to 100 they hover in the region of minus 75. I have seen worse, you will be glad to hear, but never so persistently promoted as though they were worth sharing. I am sure, however, there are other things you do quite well, so I suppose it would not hurt to give up on the rhyes now that you have been through the whole inventory multiple times with rather little acceptance.


A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 27 Jan 10 - 05:46 AM

"Minus 75" in your opinion, Amos - others have subscibed to my myspace blog and praised, at least, some of my verses. And, whilst many of my poems (but probably not the following one) may be old-hat to the likes of you, God knows how many new people are arriving at Mudcat and this thread.

Watching the Australian Open on T.V., the following distractions have been happening far too often, sadly; and, indeed, security have just ejected a "fan"...

Poem 222 of 230: FROM THE MINORITY

More-and-more at tennis tournaments,
    Cheap-shots drop from somewhere in the crowd:
A whistle during a service-toss,
    Or, in rallies, calls of "out" out loud.

All these events have security,
    So, if goons try such to dupe a win,
Perhaps umpires should ask a guard
    To watch the area of the sin.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 27 Jan 10 - 06:03 AM

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 27 Jan 10 - 06:49 AM

The way to get favourable Blog comments:

1. Post some tripe
2. Find a poetry Blog elsewhere, and say how good the poetry there is is - then link to the tripe in 1.
3. Wait for the pleased responses and praise from the person you've just brown nosed
4. Repeat 1. ad nauseam.


Now if someone publishes a collection of your works...

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 27 Jan 10 - 06:51 AM

Why is it important that new people should be exposed to your jingoistic xenophobic chauvinist homophobic illiterate posts?

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 27 Jan 10 - 09:15 AM

Idiotic "responses" - for starters, I've enjoyed travelling, on a shoe-string, through about 40 countries.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 27 Jan 10 - 11:44 AM

Never heard of cars, buses, trains, or planes, then huh? And.........

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 28 Jan 10 - 04:50 AM

You are copy/pasting blatant hypocrisy there, Spaw.

Yesterday, BBC News announced that the inequality here has increased under New "Labour", and that, despite the Democrats recent efforts, in the U.S.A. it is even worse...

Poem 105 of 230: GLOBAL REGULATIONISM

No income-scale would be unjust -
    It's a matter of degree;
And, to have less inequality,
    Regulations are a must.

For, in Millennium's status quo,
    The pay-gaps for human work,
And what's gotten simply as a perk,
    Are wrong - inhumanely so.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 28 Jan 10 - 07:33 AM

'--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.'

I'm not copy/pasting, I'm quoting.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 28 Jan 10 - 10:33 AM

You are copy/pasting repetitious, gawdawful, crappola, WavyFWBR.
So I will quote from Mandotim above............

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 28 Jan 10 - 12:22 PM

I may copy/paste any given poem once or twice a year (with some varied topical prose added) NOT once or twice a day, silly Spaw/Tim.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 28 Jan 10 - 02:06 PM

WAV, you clearly need to examine this and other threads in detail to establish the true frequency of your repetitions. It's a great deal more than once a year. While you are doing this, here's something which is often seen on such threads as this;
'Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.'
Regards,
Tim

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 28 Jan 10 - 05:45 PM

I said "once or twice a year" and, lately, I am trying to be more topical/seasonal; and you, again, are being hypocritical.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 28 Jan 10 - 07:30 PM

In all seriousness WAV the people who respond to you want to help you. They also want to stop the flood of immature and ill thought out posts which you send. Check the responses to your early posts to Mudcat, and you will find many offers of friendship and advice from sincere and knowledgeable people with mature views and cogent ideas.

I have learned so much on Mudcat (with qualifications and experience far in excess of yours) - why not continue the learning that at some time must have been important to you.

Your posts and the views expressed therein are anethema to so many people that I find your intransigence and truculent responses bewildering from one who claims to have some expertise in the humanities.


Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 29 Jan 10 - 01:24 AM

If you are trying to be topical, WAV, WRITE SOMETHING NEW! Your writings to date do not constitute the wisdom of the ages, and are therefore bound to lose their relevance over time. Repeating them ad nauseam doesn't make them true, or better poetry. As an example of something that IS true, and bears repetition, see below;
'Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.'
Regards
Tim

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 29 Jan 10 - 05:08 AM

Delusion and hypocrisy - you few could do with a VISIT/wind down here...

Poem 25 of 230: UBUD

At Bali's Ubud,
    I wound myself down:
Having done Asia,
    It was just the town -
Before Australia
    And work to be found.

Staying in a hut
    (Traditional 'twas),
Beside rice paddies,
    And just eight dollars,
My mind was at ease -
    Calm like a scholar's.

I read and I mused
    Over where I'd been;
Saw Monkey Jungle,
    Which is cool and green;
And, from a bundle,
    Chose an artist's seen.

At night, a gecko -
    Friendly, on the wall;
By day, a farmer -
    At his rice-toil;
And, always, culture -
    Ubud's worth a call.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 29 Jan 10 - 05:36 AM

You don't like repeated postings any more than the rest of us, do you WAV? So why keep doing it yourself? All you are doing is showing the following to be pertinent yet again;
'Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.'

Incidentally, the statement 'Having done Asia' is very revealing; as with all your outpourings, you assume that a limited visit to a tiny fragment of the continent in question enables you to generalise about the rest. That tends to suggest that the last comment from the learned Spaw is indeed true. In case you've forgotten what he said, I quote;

'Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.'
Have you got the message yet David?
Tim

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 29 Jan 10 - 07:14 AM

Wow..........Tim of course nailed it but let me say, as I have before, THAT ONE is a fucking train wreck! I don't want to parse it down becasue it will be meaningless to you but statements 1, 2, and 4 below come shining through on this turkey.

Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Have you got the message yet David?

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 29 Jan 10 - 01:35 PM

I get messages/comments most days, Spaw - some negative some genuinely positive, whether you want to believe it or not.

Tim - I spent a total of 7 months visiting different nations of Asia.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 29 Jan 10 - 02:32 PM

Sadly WAV your travels mean as much to you, it seems to me, as a walk round the zoo.
"All these foreigners are cute/pathetic/interesting/badly treated/disenfranchised but no way do I want any of them in my country."

Does that sum it up?

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 29 Jan 10 - 02:55 PM

geeziz...................okay................I'll skip the first verse which says nothing including the ridiculous premise that you had "done" Asia (what part[s]) in seven months. Let's go to verse, and I use that word loosely, two.

Staying in a hut
    (Traditional 'twas),
Beside rice paddies,
    And just eight dollars,
My mind was at ease -
    Calm like a scholar's.

The first two lines are awkward at the very least. Line three gives us a minimal location while line four tells me the currency of choice was dollars.   You've been in "Asia" seven months and this joint uses dollars as their preferred exchange and you had the bucks on you.....is that it?

The last two lines are evidence that you know nothing of "scholars."   Obviously we MUST have a difference of opinion on scholars as I have known some very scholarly folks, many in educational or research positions and I cannot think of one who had a calm mind or was "at ease." Most have minds that are constantly engaged and working. They can be light and humorous or stern and serious by turns but they never really shut down. Its the one element that rings true across the board. While they can be relaxed, I would have chosen a different comparison than scholar. In your case, I'd pick "Calm like a deceased aardvark" because I think that's the closest to your mental agility.

And, from a bundle,
    Chose an artist's seen.

I have no fuckin' idea what that means.

By day, a farmer -
    At his rice-toil;

I'm submitting this one as a serious contender for the Worst Grammar, Worst Punctuation, and Worst Phrasing Award.   It takes a brokedick jadrool to make over eight errors in only eight words. You're a shoe-in for this one...............rice toil my ass.................

Let me conclude with this:

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 29 Jan 10 - 02:59 PM

Stu once again hits the nail on the head.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 29 Jan 10 - 05:13 PM

No it doesn't, Stu - e.g., I'm for eco-tourism and fair-trade between nations, as well as genuine asylum seekers being helped to their nearest safe nation. And, Spaw, from a bundle of paintings shown to me, I chose one of a local scene - unlike your other criticisms, that one was not green, and I've corrected the spelling, thanks.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 29 Jan 10 - 05:39 PM

Nearest safe nation means presumably no asylum seekers from anywhere except Scotland, Ireland, Wales, the Isle of Man, and France.

Well, there won't be anyone in that little lot that will spoil our good English culture too much (except perhaps the French).

It also means no-one from Africa, Asia, Australia, and all the other places where there are people of different ethnicities.

Sounds just a bit racist to me...


Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 29 Jan 10 - 05:44 PM

It's with a heavy heart that I write this, WAV; Spaw seems to have identified the worst poem ever written. When he said
'Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.'
it appears he was being kind. It's much worse than that.
As for your political views; how do you define 'genuine' when applied to asylum seekers? How do you define 'safe' when applied to countries? What will you do if the country you send them to won't accept asylum seekers, genuine or not? How will you fund the 'help' you propose? You haven't thought any of this through, have you, despite having lots of time on your hands? What if England is the nearest country, and they move in next to you? What if they get a job when you can't/won't? How do you define fair trade? (Note; no hyphen). What is eco-tourism? ( I think you just made that up). Do you ever listen to anything other than the voices in your head?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 29 Jan 10 - 05:49 PM

"Nearest" particularly in terms of culture, Stu, and it's something I think a stronger more-democratic U.N. should take control of, for a better, safer world.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 30 Jan 10 - 03:10 AM

How would the UN take control WAV? With military force? How would this be funded? How would you structure the voting at the new democratic UN to avoid utter stasis based upon defended national interests?
Stu has it right; from an English point of view, your proposal would exclude anyone non-Caucasian from seeking asylum here. That's BNP policy, WAV, and it's racist to the core. Clearly, Spaw's fourth point is relevant here. I'll post it in case you've forgotten;

'Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.'

Are you getting the message yet David?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 30 Jan 10 - 05:53 AM

Hypothetically, employing macro- not micro-management, Tim, I'd leave it to experts in the fields to flesh-out the details; and I'm not a British nationalist or Nationalist but an English republican...

Certainly no need for what happened to Charles 1 on this day in 1649, but...


Poem 225 of 230: AFTER PSALM 118:9 AND MATTHEW 4:8-10

The monarchies
    Now are blasphemies -
The only born-ruler
    Is a God-chosen Schooler.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 30 Jan 10 - 06:04 AM

Or a latterday immigrant with delusions of...


stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 30 Jan 10 - 06:19 AM

ruling the world (via a stronger UN (yada yada...)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 30 Jan 10 - 07:31 AM

WAV, you haven't commented on the blatant racism of your proposal; I assume that's because it is completely indefensible? In case you've forgotten, Spaw's wise words may help to jog your memory;

'Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.'

Still not got the message?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Smedley
Date: 30 Jan 10 - 07:38 AM

I don't know you're expecting sense from someone capable of putting "twas" in a poem.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 30 Jan 10 - 08:53 AM

'Twas merely to save a syllable, Smed.!
And you get this message, Tim - I do love our world being multicultural.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 30 Jan 10 - 09:19 AM

Multicultural like the zoo you travel round - each group of animals in its own quaint culture-cage (use that hyphen pair if you like WAV I don't mind) for the superior English to marvel at.

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 30 Jan 10 - 09:51 AM

Fair point, Smedley. I'm not expecting sense though. I've tried many times before, and WAV can't actually sustain any of his assertions. The one point that WAV has grasped is how search engines work. The more occurrences of a set of words there are, the more likely it is that those results will come to the top of the search list; hence he keeps posting his drivel everywhere he can, including on this forum. He may begin to find that his search results are associated with another set of words though; for example;
'Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.'

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 30 Jan 10 - 10:07 AM

Not just search engines Tim I'm amazed by how many sites/blogs have fawning comment from our friend, followed by gratified mutual masturbatory comments. I quote from above to save you looking for the post:

1. Post some tripe
2. Find a poetry Blog elsewhere, and say how good the poetry there is is - then link to the tripe in 1.
3. Wait for the pleased responses and praise from the person you've just brown nosed
4. Repeat 1. ad nauseam.

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 30 Jan 10 - 10:09 AM

98100 google results for Walkaboutsverse

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 30 Jan 10 - 12:37 PM

Yep......He's going to get hits alright but I don't mind. I don't mind helping so long as I'm notgiving him compliments or credibility. Some of those will lead folks to see exactly what he is and then even the program below will do no good:

1. Post some tripe
2. Find a poetry Blog elsewhere, and say how good the poetry there is is - then link to the tripe in 1.
3. Wait for the pleased responses and praise from the person you've just brown nosed
4. Repeat 1. ad nauseam.

Remember WavyFWBR.......

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 30 Jan 10 - 04:42 PM

On another forum a few years ago, someone coined the term "WAVoholics" - it's you few who are posting rubbish. I'll pick out just one example from Stu - "for the superior English"...I've at least tried to support the "Land Rights" (a poem, not far above) of indigenous people, and have said how I detest the idea of white supremacy, as part of my genuine "love our world being multicultural" (again, just above).

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 30 Jan 10 - 06:47 PM

Saying you detest white supremacy means nothing when your recommendation for the treatment of asylum seekers actually helps to promote England becoming a place where only white people are welcome.
Spaw's view is therefore further confirmed. In case you've forgotten, I'll quote it in full;
'Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.'

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 03:47 AM

I've at least tried to support the "Land Rights" (a poem, not far above) of indigenous people, and have said how I detest the idea of white supremacy, as part of my genuine "love our world being multicultural" (again, just above).

And yet when asked how you might justify publishing such lies as English culture is taking a hammering and when people lose their culture, society suffers you reply (as you have done) that England was a more English place 50 years ago (i.e. before mass immigration). The conclusion being that your above humanitarian concerns are little more than a specious smokescreen to obscure your true feelings in which your celebrated love of a multicultural world is WAVspeak for a segregated ethnically cleansed human zoo policed by a totalitarian fascist world order (sorry, a stronger UN).

The only born rule is a God-chosen Schooler

Given your evident messianic convictions one can only presume this line is self-referential.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 05:22 AM

I said, Tim, that asylum seekers should be helped to their nearest (especially in terms of culture) safe country.

S. - it is you, not I, who likes zoos and started a thread about an online album called "Jesus at the Zoo"; and it is I, not you, who has a degree in humanities...

West of Melbourne (where the Australian Open tennis final is now being played), is...

Poem 27 of 230: ADELAIDE

In work and study,
    I spent four years -
Good years really -
    At Adelaide.

A flat by the sea -
    Work nearby;
Then full-time uni. -
    At Adelaide.

A planned C.B.D.,
    With parks all round,
And much more to see -
    At Adelaide.

Glenelg; Rundle Mall;
    And the markets,
With many a stall -
    At Adelaide.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Smedley
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 05:42 AM

Judging by the rhyme scheme, WAV, you want us to pronounce 'uni' as 'youNEE'. Hmmmmmm......

Have you considered adopting a less rumpty-pumpty scansion ? A more expansive phrasing and metre might allow more room for your ideas to breathe, which should be useful as clearly you want your verse to be (at least some of the time) a vehicle for social messages.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 05:52 AM

S. - it is you, not I, who likes zoos and started a thread about an online album called "Jesus at the Zoo";

Yup; I love zoos, and I'm a member of several (including Edinburgh & Blackpool) but animals aren't people & human culture isn't ecological in the same sense. That said, Jesus at the Zoo isn't about zoos as such, rather it's by way of a Gnostic Bestiary in Music & Song inspired by certain illuminations from the Ashmole Bestiary (such as THIS) which though actually depicting God creating the animals, nevertheless give the impression of Jesus enjoying a day out at the zoo. Again, please note the menagerie doesn't include human beings, unlike your World Vision as pointed out earlier by Stu.

and it is I, not you, who has a degree in humanities...

Are you sure that isn't Inhumanities, WAV? Because everything you've written, published & promoted since (your Life's Work indeed) is the most inhumane pile of misanthropic self-obsessed ego-wallowing bullshit since Mein Kampf. Personally, I've more respect for your fork-lift qualification, at least there you might demonstrate some practical understanding - unlike your pronouncements on anthropology which would suggest a less than casual acquaintance with the discipline. And this from someone who did study the subject as a subsidiary of my degree in English Language and Linguistics at Durham University before serious ill-health forced my withdrawal.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 06:25 AM

although you refuse to see it S-O hammers it home. And Smedley does a beautiful job in describing your putrid poetic palaver. Once again I can see you need to be told:

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 06:29 AM

You would try and mock formal qualifications, S., because you don't have them and are ultra-competitive.

Yes, Smedley, that's how I'd pronounce "uni". And, in my 230 poems, I tried to use a variety of structures (some, as you suggest, easier to express with than others), many of which I came across whilst reading widely from the canon of English verse.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 06:58 AM

'I said, Tim, that asylum seekers should be helped to their nearest (especially in terms of culture) safe country.'
I know what you said, dumbass. It's racist, and the fact that you don't understand the racist implications of your comment proves once again that Spaw has summed things up well;
Walkaboutsverse;
--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.
We've been through the whole attacking S O'P bit before WAV; he is different to you in a number of ways, one of which is that he is able to demonstrate a far higher degree of learning than you ever will. I'm a senior academic these days, and I find his knowledge and ability to express that knowledge quite breathtaking at times. I really wish he was one of my Masters students, but I suspect I'd end up being one of his. Compare that to someone who deliberately stopped learning a long time ago, and can't use the English language properly. And for the record; 'Uni' is pronounced with a short 'i', not 'unee'. Forcing something into rhyme to fit pointless doggerel doesn't make it correct.
Got the message yet, David?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 07:03 AM

You would try and mock formal qualifications, S., because you don't have them and are ultra-competitive.

Au contraire on both counts, David.

Firstly - I have the highest regard for academia; I met my wife when she was an undergrad at Durham University, reading for Theology. She since trained to be a nurse and is now a Community Matron reading for her masters in her down-time, musical distractions (and distinctions) notwithstanding of course.

Secondly - I'm not competitive in the slightest, just inclined to accord respect and disrespect where it's due. In your case it's mostly the latter, purely for the fact that you persist in the promotion a Life's Work that hangs like dead weight around your neck heavy with conclusions that were erroneous when you reached them years ago. Your general Misanthropy aside, you have shown no willingness to learn (unless it is to alter the odd word in your execrable rhythm-less verse) or else attempt any understanding of your adopted culture but cling on to your willow-licked streams vision of an Ethnically-Cleansed Christian England that has no contemporary or historic relevance whatsoever.

As Jesus said: By their works ye shall know them - not by their fork-lift qualifications or Degrees in Inhumanity. In your case, he might have said by their Life's Work ye shall know them, the shortcomings of which have been adequately demonstrated here. In short, it goes something like:

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 08:11 AM

"We've been through the whole attacking S O'P bit before WAV; he is different to you in a number of ways, one of which is that he is able to demonstrate a far higher degree of learning than you ever will."

I concur with this quote - Sean is as well lettered an individual as I have encountered anywhere, and shows a clarity of thought that I often envy. Read and marvel WAV.

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 08:13 AM

Realist NOT racist, Tim.

S. - my "supposed travels" (you now copy/pasting band-wagon rubbish) can be proven via passports (including one from the Youth Hostel Association...any one else stop in YHAs..?), as can the distinctiions I received during my Humanities Degrees, which you did attempt to mock, above.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 08:31 AM

Oh come on WAV - a bog standard degree is OK as a starting point, but it's hardly an education. Trade certificated are in evidence on the wall of our local fish and chip shop.

I know a lot of people - more have degrees than not. No-one I know attempt to use their degree to bludgeon others. Instead they rely on force of argument, consistent logic, evidence, the concurrence of experts and a structured reasoned approach to a discussion. This seems normal and proper to me.

Most people I know will listen and consider any counter argument offering different opinions, and will often modify their own views accordingly.

I'm with Tim as an academic and educator. I've said before how much I value the knowledge base of Mudcat. I find it hard to tolerate your use of this precious forum as a pulpit for your bigotry

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 08:41 AM

That from Stu, who repeatedly calls me "Australian," even though I've repeatedly mentioned that I was born here, have lived here some 17 years, and keep practising E. trads and hymns, plus other aspects of England's good cultural heritage. And I only mention my C.V. IN DEFENCE.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 08:56 AM

Racist, not realist WAV. By any reasonable definition, including your precious UN, and by any sort of calm, logical argument that an educated person might use. As Spaw puts it;
--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

You mention your CV repeatedly; is it helping to find you a job so you don't have to sponge off the rest of us?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 09:13 AM

Culturally, WAV, you ARE Australian. Your language repeatedly shows this to be true (anyone use the words 'chooks' or 'Kooris' in England?) Why are you so ashamed of that?
Your travels merely show that it is possible to cover great distances, see lots of things and learn absolutely nothing at all. Difficult for most people, but a breeze for someone as self-absorbed as you.
You don't understand English culture in the slightest; I don't blame you for that, you weren't brought up here after all, but what really irks me (and most people on this board) is your constant ill-informed blethering about what English culture ought to be. You are talking (mostly) to people who understand their own culture as part of their life and soul, not some superficial pastiche as seen by some immigrant with delusions of omnipotence. Can't you see the monumental and misplaced arrogance of your position? Would you (for example) seek to explain to Roger Federer how to play tennis? Seek to educate Pele in the finer points of football? Point out to Einstein the inconsistencies in his theories? I hope not; and yet you seem to think it's ok to tell English people how to experience their own culture. It's not, and the sooner you leave this board and go and irritate some other poor souls the better. Spaw has it right;
--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 09:16 AM

That will be easier when people stop questioning my repatriation (e.g., "Why ON EARTH did you come back?" or "You must be mad!" at interviews) and start questioning New Labour's extreme pro-immigrationism. And given that people on this very thread still refuse to accept that I'm English, it shouldn't be hard to believe.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 09:38 AM

"If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, looks like a duck, it must be a duck"

You sound Australian. That is the country that educated (sic) you and nurtured you through your impressionable years. You know nothing of English culture. You have an Australian passport and citizenship still?
you have learned little from England in your time here.

I can't see what your problem is with being Australian. It's a fine and proud country.

But wishing won't make you English to me I'm afraid.

"If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, looks like a duck, it must be a duck"

Can I say again WAV: I don't dislike you; I don't know you . You're probably an alright guy (Sean says so and I value his opinion). I have tried repeatedly to help in your education. I would like to like you. So I suspect would many others on the forum who you malign and impugn.

It's your posts I detest. They smack of all the isms that I would not wish to be associated with.

From what you say 'On another forum a few years ago, someone coined the term "WAVoholics"' this is not the only place which opposes ypur postings. I have seen worse descriptors than WAVoholics on various forums.

Sincerely

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 09:49 AM

Having gone along with the false band-wagon labelling, Stu, you say "I don't know you"...who's a "quack", then?!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 09:49 AM

The Famous Tay Whale
'TWAS in the month of December, and in the year 1883,
That a monster whale came to Dundee,
Resolved for a few days to sport and play,
And devour the small fishes in the silvery Tay.

So the monster whale did sport and play
Among the innocent little fishes in the beautiful Tay,
Until he was seen by some men one day,
And they resolved to catch him without delay.

When it came to be known a whale was seen in the Tay,
Some men began to talk and to say,
We must try and catch this monster of a whale,
So come on, brave boys, and never say fail.

Then the people together in crowds did run,
Resolved to capture the whale and to have some fun!
So small boats were launched on the silvery Tay,
While the monster of the deep did sport and play.

Oh! it was a most fearful and beautiful sight,
To see it lashing the water with its tail all its might,
And making the water ascend like a shower of hail,
With one lash of its ugly and mighty tail.

Then the water did descend on the men in the boats,
Which wet their trousers and also their coats;
But it only made them the more determined to catch the whale,
But the whale shook at them his tail.

Then the whale began to puff and to blow,
While the men and the boats after him did go,
Armed well with harpoons for the fray,
Which they fired at him without dismay.

And they laughed and grinned just like wild baboons,
While they fired at him their sharp harpoons:
But when struck with,the harpoons he dived below,
Which filled his pursuers' hearts with woe.

Because they guessed they had lost a prize,
Which caused the tears to well up in their eyes;
And in that their anticipations were only right,
Because he sped on to Stonehaven with all his might:

And was first seen by the crew of a Gourdon fishing boat
Which they thought was a big coble upturned afloat;
But when they drew near they saw it was a whale,
So they resolved to tow it ashore without fail.

So they got a rope from each boat tied round his tail,
And landed their burden at Stonehaven without fail;
And when the people saw it their voices they did raise,
Declaring that the brave fishermen deserved great praise.

And my opinion is that God sent the whale in time of need,
No matter what other people may think or what is their creed;
I know fishermen in general are often very poor,
And God in His goodness sent it drive poverty from their door.

So Mr John Wood has bought it for two hundred and twenty-six pound,
And has brought it to Dundee all safe and all sound;
Which measures 40 feet in length from the snout to the tail,
So I advise the people far and near to see it without fail.

Then hurrah! for the mighty monster whale,
Which has got 17 feet 4 inches from tip to tip of a tail!
Which can be seen for a sixpence or a shilling,
That is to say, if the people all are willing.


Maybe one day, you'll be as good a poet as William Topaz McGonagall WAV, but somehow I doubt it.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 09:57 AM

Wake up WavyFWBR...........The only person who believes in your structure of the UN or this eco-tourism/cultural immigration crap is you.........and other assorted crackpots and skinhead types the world around. If you can't see the racism inherent in your statements and your "life's work," then you are beyond the pathetic, broke-dick, jagov that I assume you are. You are the most heinous of bigots. You actually believe your own bullshit and are so sure in your (lack of) knowledge that what you say is right that you glory and revel in the trashy doctrines you support. You cannot escape the facts:

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 09:59 AM

"
Can I say again WAV: I don't dislike you; I don't know you . You're probably an alright guy (Sean says so and I value his opinion). I have tried repeatedly to help in your education. I would like to like you. So I suspect would many others on the forum who you malign and impugn.

It's your posts I detest. They smack of all the isms that I would not wish to be associated with. "

I still don't know you. You are possibly a computer program but I'm not sure of that

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 10:29 AM

my "supposed travels" (you now copy/pasting band-wagon rubbish) can be proven via passports (including one from the Youth Hostel Association...any one else stop in YHAs..?), as can the distinctiions I received during my Humanities Degrees, which you did attempt to mock, above.

When was the last time you travelled anywhere? When was the last time you wrote anything new? As for your qualifications, I'm not mocking them, just amongst my friends & relations I might number people who have doctorates and all manner of letters after their name but they're pretty cool about it - unlike you, who feels having a degree qualifies you to pass comment of stuff you clearly have no understanding nor yet appreciation of - i.e. The Rich Complexities of British / English Culture over the last 10,000 years.

Stu's right there by the way - people are just trying to help you - that's what The re-Imagined Village thread was about essentially, to enrich you repatriation - but you resoltely refuse to learn and run back to the sucky-blanket Life's Work which at least could do with freshening up, or, better still, ditching altogether.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 11:47 AM

Thanks for the "poetic gem," John!
Do you like the U.N. being overridden by the U.S. and the U.K., crude Catspaw?
To the two S.s - it seems to me you don't like immigration being questioned at all.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 12:10 PM

Not by an immigrant.

It's a number of things about which you have unresearched and unwarranted opinions:

Chauvinism/anti feminist (eg women tennis players)
Recorder (English Flute)
Poetry (Worth severe editing at least)
Immigration (NIMBY)
Folk Music (You differ from so many experts on this forum)
Gardening (You differ from so many experts on this forum)
Nationalism (You differ from so many experts in this world)
Education (you think it stops after your life's work)
English grammar and punctuation (You differ from so many experts on this forum)

There may be others.

From time to time I try to ignore your posts and regard them as trolling; then it seems you get a burst of confidence when no-one challenges your postings and revert to type. I and others then find it difficult not to respond.

You are really your own worst enemy

Sadly

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 12:41 PM

"Not by an immigrant"...you shoot yourself in the foot/"are your own worse enemy" with this, Stu., because, born here (along with all my known forebears), I AM a repatriate, as I've told you so many times.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Ralphie
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 12:45 PM

He's not still here is he??? Must have missed him in the past few months.
Must try harder in the avoiding department.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 01:14 PM

–noun
1.         a person who migrates to another country, usually for permanent residence.
2.         an organism found in a new habitat.

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Suibhne (Astray)
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 01:19 PM

it seems to me you don't like immigration being questioned at all.

Not on the racist grounds that you persist with, WAV. And as long as your idea of being English is keep practising E. trads and hymns, plus other aspects of England's good cultural heritage it looks like that entrenched xenophobic idiocy looks set to endure. England's Good Cultural Heritage is about everyone living in England today - whatever their point of origin, or indeed destination. In one way or another we're all just passing through, and culture flows accordingly.

Be sure to tune into BBC4 at 10pm tonight (after first watching Being Human on BBC3 of course) & prepare yourself for great music & stunning cross-cultural pollinations that will continue to impact throughout the globe - England included. Get with the groove, WAV.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 04:16 PM

I fear you really are losing your humour, not to mention your marbles, now, S. - suggesting there that genuinely enjoying practising E. trads and hymns is "xenophobic idiocy"...but, then, you once also posted you'd be happy if and when Durham Cathedral becomes a mosque, yes?

Ralphie's back, AGAIN - eat your heart out Nellie Melba!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 04:26 PM

Did you come back because you aren't very big down under?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Suibhne (Astray)
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 05:38 PM

suggesting there that genuinely enjoying practising E. trads and hymns is "xenophobic idiocy"...

Do you really enjoy it? You've had the same repertoire of 17 E. trads for as long as I've known you and have no intention of learning any more. Talk about tip of the iceberg - you're not even touching the surface let alone scratching it. In your case, you do this as some sort of cultural penance - a minimal half-assed gesture to what you think ought to constitute English Culture - but doesn't, and never did, and certainly not in the way you think it did. So yes, WAV - it's xenophobic idiocy - certainly in the light of your next comment:

but, then, you once also posted you'd be happy if and when Durham Cathedral becomes a mosque, yes?

More a matter of when than if, WAV - and why the feck should it bother me? The Galilee Chapel of Durham Cathedral is the work of medieval Islamic masons & builders anyway; the rest of it was made by Frenchmen, built to glory of the Holy Roman Church and a 14-year-old Jewish virgin from Nazareth who lived 2000 years ago. Islam, Judaism, Christianity have been using the same places of worship forever - cathedral, mosque - as a humanist it's all the same to me, kidda.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 07:03 PM

Tell us about the theory slams WAV and how you defend your strange hypotheses in the presence of live human beings. Is tis in the way of practice? Are you a computer program trying to pass the Turing test?

Would you rather a church became a mosque or a dance school or a custom conversion into luxury apartments (flats)?

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 31 Jan 10 - 07:14 PM

Folks, I think we are in danger of forgetting the real purpose of this thread; just to remind everyone.
Walkaboutsverse;
'--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels. '

As an explanatory addendum;
'It's a number of things about which you have unresearched and unwarranted opinions:

Chauvinism/anti feminist (eg women tennis players)
Recorder (English Flute)
Poetry (Worth severe editing at least)
Immigration (NIMBY)
Folk Music (You differ from so many experts on this forum)
Gardening (You differ from so many experts on this forum)
Nationalism (You differ from so many experts in this world)
Education (you think it stops after your life's work)
English grammar and punctuation (You differ from so many experts on this forum)

There may be others.'

Thanks to Spaw and Stu for these wholly accurate and enlightening comments.
Getting the message yet, David?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 01 Feb 10 - 05:33 AM

Sean - I've really enjoyed Evensong at Durham Cathedral, and I'd like that long long Christian tradition to continue, thanks; and, Stu., I've criticised the other conversions you mentioned in poem # 168: "Once Churches". Sean, as I've said before (without ever using "kidda", son, sonshine, or such like.), one thing I soon learnt from festival comps, etc., is that it's definitely preferable to know our folk repertoire by heart - hence my limit of about 60 songs/tunes, although, as with other folkies, I do know the chorus of others, of course.

Theory Slam (as on my twitter) topics, so far - reregulate football; native gardening; if you're not American, don't Americanise; females should, rather, play TABLE tennis.

John, no - it's a combination of things mentioned in my collection, including a visit about a decade before...

In 1988...

Poem 10 of 230: LAND'S END TO JOHN O' GROATS

(TUNE:

D G A A B B A A
D A B B A A G G
D B B B A A G G
D A B A B A G G)

At the bold age of twenty-one
    (Via Hong Kong, China, Macau),
I flew from Sydney to London -
    Land's End to John o' Groats my vow.

I took a train out of London,
    Found a highway and thumbed a ride;
I headed down toward Brighton,
    Then hitch-hiked roads the coast beside.

On the face of my shoulder bag,
A sketched map of Aus. was my tag;
For said a Scot who'd hitched Europe:
"Some emblem may well boost your hope."

And drivers throughout the island,
Over a two month riding span,
Were the kindest folks I have met -
I swear not once did I get wet!

I stopped overnight in Portsmouth,
    And one or two nights in Torquay;
Then headed along to Plymouth -
    Still travelling beside the sea.

After viewing rugged Land's End,
    I began the long journey north -
North-east, rather, before a bend,
    Somewhere in a bit from Bournemouth.

On the way, I saw relatives,
Whom after leaving I did miss -
Their homes' cosy atmosphere,
And their local pubs' good cheer.

And the hitched-lifts came from many:
An off-work Bobbie, a truckie,
As well as on-duty soldiers -
Thanks, and I've not said where each was!

I headed west through South Wales,
    And viewed Cardiff Arms from afar -
I was hitching with local males,
    And they showed me from in the car.

I stayed a while at Swansea -
    Saw the local footballers play;
Then hitched north through Llandovery -
    Beautiful farmland, I must say.

I slept mostly in B. & B.s,
Where the full breakfasts sure did please;
But also stopped in Youth Hostels,
Where it's the comradeship that tells.

My favourite sites were Torquay,
Old St. Andrews (noted shortly),
The road Glasgow-to-Inverness,
The Lakes, plus London's spots, no less.

From Colwyn Bay, I headed east
    To Manchester, my place of birth;
Then on the Lakes my eyes did feast,
    Before I passed by Solway Firth.

Onto Edinburgh, Glasgow,
    St. Andrews, before Inverness;
Then waves from locals were the go -
    Warm folks round John o' Groats, I'd guess.

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
Or http://walkaboutsverse.sitegoz.com (e-scroll)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 01 Feb 10 - 06:04 AM

Nope, that one doesn't do it for me either. Point four of the legendary Spaw Analysis refers...
Walkaboutsverse;
'--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels. '

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 01 Feb 10 - 06:04 AM

Sean - I've really enjoyed Evensong at Durham Cathedral, and I'd like that long long Christian tradition to continue, thanks

Not that long long anyway, David - Evensong is an Anglican Tradition that only comes about with the Reformation which removed the living Eucharist from places like Durham Cathedral - so, most certainly not what it was built for. I dig it myself as a tradition of song broken only by the Cromwellian Republic when Evensong was effectively silenced - so, when, in time, it does become a mosque, then it's Abrahamic Tradition will remain just as intact as it does now, according to the needs of the people, much as the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul has changed hands over the millennia.

So... on these grounds do you question immigration, David - grounds which are essentially racist, and justified in terms of culture and tradition which are nothing if they're not mutable.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 01 Feb 10 - 06:04 AM

But how do you defend your strange hypotheses in the presence of live human beings?
Do they not bay with hysterical laughter 'til the tears run down their legs?
Are you a computer program trying to pass the Turing test?
What would you do with an empty church?
Do you not realise that Table-tennis and Tennis are totally different games?
Do you not realise that many women are stronger, fitter and more agile than many men?
Do you have trouble explaining yourself?
Do people avoid you at parties?
Are you a troll?
Why have you retained your Australian citizenship?
Ize is English. Ise is French.

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 01 Feb 10 - 06:08 AM

I'm not sure that wanting to be a folkie is any more successful than wanting to be English..

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Smedley
Date: 01 Feb 10 - 06:14 AM

My theory is that WAV is an actor rehearsing for a Mike Leigh film; Leigh requires his actors to 'live' as their characters, often for several months, to fully immerse themselves in the role.

Apropos of not very much at all, years ago I used to eat quite regularly in a cheap but pretentious restaurant that encouraged its diners to write a small verse reflecting their enjoyment of the (not very good) food. The best ones were pinned on the wall, but sadly my own effort never joined those ranks. I submit it here on the grounds that even though it was a drunken five-minute joke it has more poetic merit than WAV's entire oeuvre:

I hate your f***cking pancakes
Your pizzas make me vom
I'd rather eat the armpits
Of the actor Herbert Lom

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 01 Feb 10 - 06:26 AM

You forgot the title, Smedley...how about this from John McEnroe "The Pits"?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 01 Feb 10 - 06:43 AM

WavyFWBR......You never attempted to answer S.O. or Stu.....not even asingle word. Getting to the point that the mountain is too high to climb?   Consider the following and respond to S-O and Stu:

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels. '

As an explanatory addendum;
'It's a number of things about which you have unresearched and unwarranted opinions:

Chauvinism/anti feminist (eg women tennis players)
Recorder (English Flute)
Poetry (Worth severe editing at least)
Immigration (NIMBY)
Folk Music (You differ from so many experts on this forum)
Gardening (You differ from so many experts on this forum)
Nationalism (You differ from so many experts in this world)
Education (you think it stops after your life's work)
English grammar and punctuation (You differ from so many experts on this forum)

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 01 Feb 10 - 07:03 AM

To Cat (Copy/Paste) Spaw - Sean didn't ask a questioin this time - he merely repeated the same false accusation.

And from Stu, then...

But how do you defend your strange hypotheses in the presence of live human beings?...from memory.
Do they not bay with hysterical laughter 'til the tears run down their legs?...one Theory Slam was recorded by the Beeb - I'll let you know if it is to be broadcast, so you can hear for yourself.
Are you a computer program trying to pass the Turing test?...I've already tured through about 40 countries, thanks.
What would you do with an empty church?...sing in my counter-tenor-ish Church voice.
Do you not realise that Table-tennis and Tennis are totally different games?...yes.
Do you not realise that many women are stronger, fitter and more agile than many men?...relatively few.
Do you have trouble explaining yourself?...I could do with more experience on stage but, overall, am not bad.
Do people avoid you at parties?...quite a few folk-singarounds the last few years, but few parties.
Are you a troll?...no - everything I've done so far on the folk and poetry scenes was as an amateur.
Why have you retained your Australian citizenship?...needs must.
Ize is English. Ise is French...jeez!

Stu/WAV

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 01 Feb 10 - 08:51 AM

Sean didn't ask a questioin this time - he merely repeated the same false accusation.

Oblivious to cultural process, you resort to the mantra repetition of your own misconceptions, which would be fair enough if you didn't publish them. The accusations are not false, David; you mire yourself in a world view that is entirely racist, and reactionary to the point of inert.

What would you do with an empty church?...sing in my counter-tenor-ish Church voice.

Please, David - anything but that. Whilst I applaud your Cob a Coaling, you've ruined for me entirely When I Survey the Wondrous Cross. So please, just walk around - savour the peace & the silent ambience. That said, when faced with an empty church myself I switch on my Zoom H4 and whip out a Jew's Harp to capture the essence of said peace. See HERE, particularly track #1, recorded on the morning of 20th August last year when I had the Chapter House of York Minster all to myself. As well as the Jew's Harp, you can hear my camera as I explore the Devil in the Details such as THIS, which is a close-up THIS.

Do people avoid you at parties?...quite a few folk-singarounds the last few years, but few parties.

That's sad. I never avoid David - as he'll testify. Whatever spats we have here, I'll always be happy to extend the open hand of friendship should ever our paths cross, as they occasionally do in a North East of England folky context. Talking of which - isn't there a Friday Sing at The Chillingham Arms you go to? Might well see you there on the 5th March.

Why have you retained your Australian citizenship?...needs must.

I'll say it again, David - you have the voice, the cultural background, & the curious dual-nationality that uniquely qualifies you to explore the rich tradition of English-Australian folk song. Your true personal cultural heritage?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 01 Feb 10 - 09:31 AM

False accusation, Sean - I never say/post anything racist; I just keep questioning immigration and imperialism, themselves.

Otherwise, nothing new there - except you much prefer your own music to mine...and there's one question: no, joking apart, I see myself as an English repat, and am happy with my English repertoire, which I keep working at.

Yes, the 5th would be good - then give your email to Michael, for the mailing list, as there have been some cancellations - basically, rock/pop gigs overriding us, even though it's meant to be every Friday now.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Ralphie
Date: 01 Feb 10 - 09:39 AM

A brief precis WAV old chap.

"Are you a computer program trying to pass the Turing test?...(I've already tured through about 40 countries, thanks.)"

"The Turing test is a proposal for a test of a machine's ability to demonstrate intelligence. It proceeds as follows: a human judge engages in a natural language conversation with one human and one machine, each of which tries to appear human. All participants are placed in isolated locations. If the judge cannot reliably tell the machine from the human, the machine is said to have passed the test. In order to test the machine's intelligence rather than its ability to render words into audio, the conversation is limited to a text-only channel such as a computer keyboard and screen."

Does that make sense? It's certainly not about going for a walk.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 01 Feb 10 - 09:42 AM

...yes, joking apart, Ralphie.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 01 Feb 10 - 10:13 AM

Mr Innes (Australia's race relations commissioner) says what Australia needs is a strong multicultural policy to address these issues.

"Multiculturalism has fallen off the agenda in the last 10 or 12 years and we need the government to come forward with a strong multicultural policy and with strong moral leadership that challenges racism."

Sounds fair to me.

Sean's suggestion of researching Anglo Australian folk music and song seems a good idea to me. It could be that you can contribute something of value to this forum. As far as I know there is no-one here who claims particular expertise in that area.

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 01 Feb 10 - 10:19 AM

There's an "Aussie Glossary" if you click on the arrowhead, atop, Stu.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Ralphie
Date: 01 Feb 10 - 10:34 AM

Stu

"As far as I know there is no-one here who claims particular expertise in that area."

Not on here perhaps. But, check out Martyn Whyndam Read's Songlink projects.
One is Anglo/American, and the other is Anglo/Australian, both of which explore how songs have migrated around the world.
I think WAV would be hard pressed to rival such projects.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 01 Feb 10 - 11:02 AM

Apologies to Martin W R

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 01 Feb 10 - 12:17 PM

There's the Fagan family, and Bert Lloyd, too; and, if you'd like to hear some excellent Aboriginal music, see the 2nd line of my myspace Top Friends.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Ralphie
Date: 01 Feb 10 - 03:18 PM

WAV
No thanks.
I know all about Bert and the Fagans. I very much doubt if you could add anything of interest. (Indeed, about them, or anybody else).
In fact, I doubt if you could find anything of interest to me at all.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 01 Feb 10 - 05:08 PM

Okay, RalphIe.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 01 Feb 10 - 06:29 PM

Wikipedia doth pronounce:

Doggerel might have any or all of the following failings:
trite, cliché, or overly sentimental content
forced or imprecise rhymes
faulty metre
misordering of words to force correct meter
trivial subject
inept handling of subject

Ahmmmmm.....

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 02 Feb 10 - 05:05 AM

forced or imprecise rhymes
faulty metre
misordering of words to force correct meter

That does seem to some up the WAV approach to poetry - and this from from a man who has the temerity to berate the likes of Ezra Pound for their free verse abominations. I tried to access the WAV site for the relevant info but SiteGoz.com isn't letting me through. What's up, WAV?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 02 Feb 10 - 05:25 AM

Perhaps the internet has suddenly passed the Turing test, and developed good taste?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 02 Feb 10 - 05:50 AM

Amos - me, "Mr. Realism", overly sentimental?!

Thanks for telling me, S., as I don't check it that often - seems this free-host has become a pay-only host...back to the drawing board for another e-scroll host!..I used to use 741.com..?

(IF A MODERATOR READS THIS, PLEASE DELETE JUST THE SITEGOZ LINK ON THE FIRST POST OF THIS THREAD...AND, IF YOU REMEMBER MY E-SCROLL, COULD YOU HOST IT HERE FOR ME?)

Pleased to hear, yesterday, that Obama's Democrats have decided to scrap another mission to the Moon...

Poem 79 of 230: PIE IN THE SKY?

From our early childhood,
    We're taught to glorify
Conquering the Earth's neighbourhood -
    Shouldn't we question why?

Satellites can aid sibling-hood,
    But some missions could buy
A start for millions to make good -
    Is Mars "pie in the sky"?

From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse (e-book)
(C) David Franks 2003

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 02 Feb 10 - 09:12 AM

me, "Mr. Realism",

At least you do a fine line in irony, WAV - at least I hope & pray that it's irony...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 02 Feb 10 - 09:19 AM

My gawd Amos......A perfect summation from Wiki! WavyFWBR is the world's greatest purveyor of doggerel...

trite, cliché, or overly sentimental content
forced or imprecise rhymes
faulty meter
misordering of words to force correct meter
trivial subject
inept handling of subject

Fits him perfectly and he proves it as he posts even more today! Sorrowfully it also fits what we've been saying as well:

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 02 Feb 10 - 09:26 AM

Complete with adverts, sorry, the e-scroll version is, for now, back on -
http://walkaboutsverse.741.com

Sean - realistically, I'm heavily against the status quo...can we agree on that?

CatSpaw - get back to your kitty litter.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 02 Feb 10 - 10:26 AM

Sean - realistically, I'm heavily against the status quo...can we agree on that?

You are one individual who thinks the rest of the world is out of step.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 02 Feb 10 - 12:58 PM

No, no, no, WavyFWBR...........I am here for the duration.   As long as you continue to repeatedly post your gawdawful bullshit posing as poetry, I will be along to comment on your efforts. Note that what you post certainly comes under the heading of "doggerel"................

trite, cliché, or overly sentimental content
forced or imprecise rhymes
faulty meter
misordering of words to force correct meter
trivial subject
inept handling of subject

You need to also know that you have said nothing except to reenforce the statements below:

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

AND PLEASE.....Don't tell me you want Mudcat to host your crap. Unfortunately we already do.................


Spaw


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 02 Feb 10 - 12:59 PM

Oh goody, the e-scroll version of WAV's Life's Work is available again! I can't wait, I'm so excited...I think I'll surf over there right now! No wait.... perhaps I should listen to the voice of reason...

'My gawd Amos......A perfect summation from Wiki! WavyFWBR is the world's greatest purveyor of doggerel...

trite, cliché, or overly sentimental content
forced or imprecise rhymes
faulty meter
misordering of words to force correct meter
trivial subject
inept handling of subject

Fits him perfectly and he proves it as he posts even more today! Sorrowfully it also fits what we've been saying as well:

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.'

Thanks, Spaw and Amos; I almost made a terrible mistake.
Tim

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 02 Feb 10 - 01:12 PM

Always happy to help Tim. I haven't been to any of his sites for a long time. I DID get a lot of hits for him on one......MySpace I think.......because I sent the link to a lot of friends and showed it to almost everyone who came by here.

Its the one where he plays the recorder.....no sound, just a silent demonstration of some sort. Weird enough in and of itself, but what I challenged my friends with was to tell me if WavyFWBR was playing the recorder or working on a great blow-job technique....EVERYONE believes the latter. The only other possibility I could think of is that WavyFWBR is trying to eat the recorder but its a cheap plastic thing and I doubted it would have much flavor.......so I ruled that out.


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 02 Feb 10 - 01:13 PM

It was actually your idea for Mudcat to host a WalkaboutsVerse e-scroll, Spaw, and you were very keen on it - remember?...those posts will be somewhere on one of the WAV threads...

Just a slight change of mind, I suppose!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 02 Feb 10 - 01:19 PM

LMAO.......I was jerkin' your chain just for the hell of it. If you recall, that "grace period" lasted a very short time............Rest assured I AM NOT jerking your chain but being perfectly honest when I say.............

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 02 Feb 10 - 01:42 PM

To Cat the-chain-jerkin' Spaw - go copy/paste some of your kitty litter.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 02 Feb 10 - 02:04 PM

Oh.....You mean that I should do the same thing you do? I get it now and indeed I am trying to follow your example. The difference is that I am posting the truth and the horrendous "poetry" you post, well....................

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 02 Feb 10 - 05:16 PM

To Sean and anyone else who read the post above: I just received an email saying the Chillingham Folk Club is no more - the pub booking a further 2 other functions for February, on Friday nights, was the final straw.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 02 Feb 10 - 06:17 PM

Only following your example WAV; here's some more copying and pasting.
--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.
Getting the message yet, David? Can you see what's happening to this thread?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 02 Feb 10 - 06:24 PM

thanks Wiki - almost doggerel in its own right

The subject's trite, the content cloys
The cliche ridden crap annoys
The rhyme is forced and imprecise
the metre is not very nice
The trivial topics really bore
Ineptitude right to its core
The words are in order the wrong
sometimes the line is a tad too long

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 03 Feb 10 - 11:59 AM

...so, too, the following line of planes, Stu!...

When I repatriated, from Australia to England, in July 1997...

Poem 40 of 230: EFFICIENCY

On a flight from 'Cisco to New York,
    One hour our plane did balk,
As on the full-runways we taxied
    While competing-planes were freed.

Yet, as I looked around the cabin,
    Sometime during all this stalling,
It was sadly evident to me
    That far too many seats were free.

Then, after a late takeaway tea,
    I turned on the New York T.V.,
And saw some adults acting like stars,
    About landing a toy on Mars.

Yet, walking Manhattan the next day,
    I saw tens with nowhere to stay,
And I wondered just how much housing,
    For the poor, that space-wealth could bring.

(C) David Franks 2003
From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 03 Feb 10 - 01:12 PM

A considered critique of your latest offering (well, as considered as anything you post, anyway);
--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 03 Feb 10 - 01:23 PM

Jaysus, David, every time you post one of those you get closer to the Nobel Prize for Tin Eared Doggerel.

Planes do not balk OR compete. Nor do they taxi on full runways. As for the number of seats occupied, most travelers rejoice in getting a half-full plane. What's your beef there? Compassion for the airline bottom line?

Furthermore the equipment landed on Mars was anything BUT toy-like. But I suppose you have little concept of how rugged and utilitarian they had to be.

Your tacit suggestion that the space program be diverted into feeding the poor is Terribly Virtuous but Highly Improbable, not to say Divinely Unrealistic.

A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 03 Feb 10 - 02:05 PM

It's part of my eco-tourism/travel argument, Amos: that is to say, if you'll pardon my gobbledygook, if the planes, owned by various competing private-airlines, were indeed, say, only half-filled with passengers (as with the one I boarded), then, all nationalised, much fuel and carbon-pollution could be saved getting the same number of folks from A to B/ S.F. to N.Y., in this case.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 03 Feb 10 - 02:24 PM

I see your point. At the same time, considering the general nature of production, incentive, capital, profit, and the experience of Aeroflot's track record, I think I have to say you are not thinking clearly.

A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 03 Feb 10 - 02:49 PM

I'm with Amos....The shit gets worse and worse. The blatant mistakes in your crud speak loudly to your almost complete lack of knowledge. Are you really this stupid or is it the naivete that is in control? WavyFWBR, I find it impossible to believe you have any serious education or that you actually travelled anywhere.

And this "eco-tourism" trash.............Reading your jackass explanation is laughable unless the total passenger load of all those planes happened to be going from S.F. to N.Y.

And what the fuck is "Cisco?" I assume you were looking for a shortened version of San Francisco which even the most monstrous dipshit of an asswipe on the face of the planet should know is "Frisco." The second most monstrous dipshit of an asswipe on the face of the planet does know that. Cisco is in Texas.

Yes WavyFWBR, you bring the beauty to Doggerel as I cannot imagine laughing any harder than I do at your crap. And it is crap. Please know that:

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 03 Feb 10 - 04:07 PM

I put both abbreviations (Cisco and Frisco) into google and, frankly, neither produced San Francisco on the first page; but, even though there is a Frisco in Texas and I myself prefer 'Cisco, if other American citizens can second that it is/would be the one to use, then I shall change it.

Otherwise, language, Spaw, language!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 03 Feb 10 - 05:29 PM

Intriguing how selective your googling is WAV.

Frisco is a common name for San Francisco, but raises the ire of some inhabitants. SF or the City are common among residents.

Cisco seems not to be an accepted name for San Francisco: it was your misuse of the vernacular, pretending a familiarity which you do not have.

Or are you American as well?

Did you study simple economics on your degree course, or was it a module on the FLT course?

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 03 Feb 10 - 05:52 PM

David,

Give up on the SF thing. No-one has ever called it Cisco. Some truckers call it 'Frisco, but the usage, as mentioned just upthread, is frowned on by the natives. They call it San Francisco. Or SF. Or the City, although most New Yorkers call Manhattan the City likewise.

A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Dave Hanson
Date: 04 Feb 10 - 03:40 AM

63 years on this earth and I've never come accross someone who so completely and utterly has no understanding, whose head is so completely up his own arse he cannot or will not see or understand what intelligent and rational people are explaining to him, and is so arrogant that he really believes the whole world should hear his so called poems weather they want to or not,

Your poetry sucks
It has been posted repeatedly before
It is full of bigoted and racist statements
That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering you supposed travels.

Dave H

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 04 Feb 10 - 05:50 AM

Dear Dave, if my head was set so, I would not have made minor changes, such as the following...

Thanks to the other 3, this time I put "Frisco San Francisco" into google, and Frisco is the best I can do with 2 syllables.

Also, for what it's worth, via another google, that day was actually the 4th of July; and, via my calendar, it was the 15th that I landed in London (having checked a couple of art galleries, Central Park, the Empire State Building, The U.N., etc...

Poem 43 of 230: A BAYSWATER BED-SIT

Arrived in London,
    At Heathrow Airport,
With sixty kilos
    Of luggage I'd brought.

Found a paper, Loot,
    And called an agent;
Stored two heavy bags,
    Then to him I went.

For one week of rent,
    He'd ensure a bed
Within Bayswater -
    A bed-sit, he said.

It was eighty pounds
    Per week, nothing more,
With a lift arranged
    To the building's door.

Knackered and sleepless,
    I took the deal;
Checked-in quickly,
    Had a rushed meal.

Collected my bags
    (Tube there, shared-van back),
Then carried them up
    To my top-floor shack.

A penthouse - no need,
    It did me just fine;
A cook-top and fridge,         
    A table to dine.

Seated, I could watch
    The clouds roll by -
Often from the west -
    Or jets cut the sky.

There were large plane-trees,
    A squirrel or two;
And pigeons dropped by -
    Foregrounding the view.

Plus, at dawn, the sun
    Shined in from the east -
Filling the small room
    As on egg I'd feast.

And, contemplating,
    It occurs to me -
If all lived that well,
    How great it would be.

But a lot do sleep
    Outdoors many nights -
On sheets of cardboard,
    Without basic rights.

(C) David Franks 2003
From WalkaboutsVerse - blog link above, as I can't create a link today.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 04 Feb 10 - 05:54 AM

Another quick review (I didn't actually need to read it this time, I've seen it so often I can remember most of it by heart)
--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 04 Feb 10 - 09:28 AM

Pretty grim, for all the reasons mentioned upthread which remain ungrasped...


A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 04 Feb 10 - 10:42 AM

Foregrounded? Are you shitting me? Let me repeat.........

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 04 Feb 10 - 11:03 AM

For those new to the thread, I thought I'd remind everyone of the superb analysis of WAVworld submitted by the estimable Suibhne some time ago; it seems nothing has been learned from this erudite piece;
'WAVism for Beginniners

WAVism is a philosophy of a Totalitarian World Order founded on the idea that the world has to be somehow Nice and Multicultural and that the only way to achieve this is to segregate all nations and ethnicities in a programme of mass repatriation and ethnic cleansing overseen by a New World Order WAVists refer to as The United Nations With Greater Powers. Though to the rational mind WAVism is the stuff of dystopian sci-fi, the WAVist genuinely feels WAVism represents the best way forward for Humanity, complete with an emphasis on National Folk Music and Music as a National Phenomenon Within Fixed Boundaries.

In a WAVist World, only Americans will be allowed to play rock music, and the only music English people will allowed to play is Our Own Good Folk Music and, possibly, Classical Music by English Composers, though how WAVists square this with the essentially non-English nature of Classical Music from the 10th Century onwards hasn't as yet been made clear. If WAVists accept English classical composers, then why not English rock composers? And what of such distinctly non-American popular musical phenomena as Krautrock? And what of the many English rock musicians who have been more influenced by Krautrock than American rock, yet have still managed to create a uniquely English rock music which then becomes a major influence back in America where it supposedly all began? Indeed, the unravelling of millennia of ethnic and cultural migrations, diaspora, invasion and cross-fertilisation is but one of the problems the WAVist faces when deciding upon their New World Order - let alone the inevitability of Near Total Dissidence, but people have been forced to comply at gunpoint before, so why not again? It's never been achieved on a global scale before, but there is a first time for everything!

So this is the absolute vision of WAVism's Nice Multicultural World, though what is particularly Nice about is another thing that hasn't, as yet, been made clear, especially given the pragmatics of making such a Global Totalitarianism a reality. Look at the human cost of Partition in India, which would be multiplied a million-fold at least in the ensuing migrations as populations are torn apart and people are forced to repatriate to the country of their ethnic (if not individual) origin. Still, such a holocaust would significantly reduce the Global Population - something else the WAVist has concerns about, as evident in their various Eugenic Asides which crop up every now and then. Still, when all is sorted out we will have that Nice Multicultural Wav-World with each ethnically cleansed Nation State devoted to its Indigenous Folk Culture, and policed by a Stronger UN to make sure it stays that way - there will be no Ethnic Contaminations or Cultural Recalcitrance, there will be no creativity or individualism, and, no doubt, the Human Genome will be modified to make sure that there will be no further developments; and that it will remain this way forever and ever and ever and ever... '
And while we're at it;
'--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels. '
Prof. Spaw of this Parish, 2010.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 04 Feb 10 - 11:34 AM

198 postings of this one

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 04 Feb 10 - 12:03 PM

But you didn't have the decency to post my response to that, Mando Copy/Paste Tim.
And Cat Copy/Paste Spaw - you made me check my spelling guide, but I soon found "foregrounding", thanks.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 04 Feb 10 - 12:26 PM

WAV is quite right. Foregrounding is a perfectly valid word, although somewhat of a technical one.

"Noun        1.        foregrounding - the execution of a program that preempts the use of the processing system".

In this context, of course, WAV's use of the word makes no sense, since he attributes this technical process to squirrels and pigeons. ALso he leaves out any mention of the bats.



A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 04 Feb 10 - 01:16 PM

WAV; you didn't answer the questions or justify your position in any way, so, as with so much of your output, it wasn't worth repeating. I notice your reply still doesn't attempt to answer any questions.

Given your attitude to genders and races other than your own, I'm mildly surprised that 'decency' is a word you are familiar with. Perhaps you could check with some of your racist fellow travellers if they have heard of it? I'm sure you know how to contact the BNP and their like. In the meantime, a literary review;

'--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels. '

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 04 Feb 10 - 01:35 PM

It's difficult when English is not your native tongue.

"When shine is intransitive (has no direct object), the past tense is shone. When shine is transitive (takes a direct object), the past tense is shined.

Another way of looking at it is that when the subject of the verb is shiny, the past tense is shone. When the object of the verb is shiny, the past tense is shined.

"The table shone after I shined it." "

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 04 Feb 10 - 04:04 PM

Well Amos, it is as you say and WavyFWBR has it wrong as usual since as you note, a squirrel is not a computer although there are a number of them who are users.............The only thing WavyFWBR wants to foreground is his piss stream as his tiny dick keeps making him pee down his legs. This may be why his poetry stinks..........which it does.

I want to thank Tim for bringing any new followers up to date and for WavyFWBR I suggest a trip to the mirror where you look at yourself and read the following:

--My "poetry" sucks.
--I have posted it repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious that I have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering my supposed travels.

Because it really is as we tell you:

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Tom - Swords & Songs
Date: 05 Feb 10 - 12:14 PM

This is my favourite thread on Mudcat.
I read it all the time (it's taken me several weeks to read all the way from the start AND the previous thread which was shut down), I've never heard such brilliance come from anyone ever. I am practically crying with laughter every day.

It makes me feel better as a human being that there are people out there like Spaw, Stu, Amos and Suibhne who will try again and again, often in vain, to explain to this odd little man how misguided he is.

Well done David for encouraging others to bring happiness to my days.

1)Your poetry sucks
2)It has been posted repeatedly before
3)It is full of bigoted and racist statements
4)That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
5)It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering you supposed travels.

I'm sure I'm not alone in being a regular reader who doesn't join the argument! I am only chipping in now because I'm someone who has had to sit through singaround after singaround in the North East with this awful blight on our society droning on about the same old crap. Awkward looks across the room, drink your beer and try not to laugh type of thing.

Tom

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 05 Feb 10 - 12:58 PM

Actually, Tom (and I think I know who it is..?), I'm tempted to give in to the persistent posse, which you have decieded to join, and call it a day: this thread is full of e-scroll links that seem to be permanently lost - sitegoz, i.e.; it's also full of false accusations and, even though such rubbish brings it atop, it seems, from my stats, that few bother to check my life's work for themselves, these days; also, there are more problems with Mudcat itself than there used to be..?

Robert Peel, who helped create the modern police force, leading to the term "Bobbies," was born this day in 1788...

Poem 137 of 230: SEEN

A change of pace -
    Walks through a place;
Crime-streets more clean -
    Through being seen.

Walking in twos,
    The wear on shoes
Worth the kept-peace
    Of foot-police.

(C) David Franks 2003
From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 05 Feb 10 - 02:15 PM

David:

Don't get me wrong. The RAW material of having seen so many slices of the world from time to time is not the problem here. The problem is not what you have seen.

The problem is that in translating what you have seen into what you hope will be poetry, you emasculate the event by jamming it through a poor, muggy filter of sentiment and judgemental additives. You then take the product of that filter and pressurize it through another filter of poorly understood aesthetic and linguistic principles on which successful poetry is based. The result of this double pasteurization is contrived, debased, artistically watery and wan, and grammatically jarring.

Good poetry tries to communicate life, and poor poetry tries to transmit a bunch of half-baked sentiments and judgements.

A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: olddude
Date: 05 Feb 10 - 02:28 PM

I write songs. some of my songs are nothing short of awful, some others tell me are quite good. As with poetry. I do not like many of David's poems, others I think they are good because of his imagery . One thing I am sure about is David is no bigot. Some of the writings tread the line I think only by frustration in political systems more so than people but if you look at his myspace page and the groups he belongs to and the people listed as friends you won't find hate there. If he writes he writes, it hurts nothing I think just my observations. One thing I am sure, David can take criticism cause he sure get it.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 05 Feb 10 - 04:01 PM

Dan, I can agree that perhaps David has no hatred but bigotry and racism do not require hatred.   The basic definition of a bigot: One who is strongly partial to one's own group, religion, race, or politics and is intolerant of those who differ.

Hello WavyFWBR

And Dan...........If you have written something "bad" then I haven't seen it. As a matter of fact, you are almost manic in your desire to craft things in the most pleasing way. Not only do you take criticism well, you demand it and are probably your own worst critic. David has been given great and very detailed criticism by some really fine sources (not me) and yet remains inflexible in his seeming quest for great "doggerel."


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 05 Feb 10 - 04:31 PM

"The basic definition of a bigot: One who is strongly partial to one's own group, religion, race, or politics and is intolerant of those who differ," from Spaw - and that is certainly NOT me: I love the world being multicultural/hate the idea of white supremacy; have at least tried to defend the land rights of those who are clearly not of my own culture, etc.

Thankfully for me, others, such as Dan, can see that, Spaw.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: olddude
Date: 05 Feb 10 - 06:03 PM

You know I love you Spaw, and David, write some things with your images, you conger up some images of places I never been to .. that I like when you do that

:-) Dan

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Dave Hanson
Date: 05 Feb 10 - 06:57 PM

Conger up ? a conger is a large saltwater eel in the uk.

Dave H

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 05 Feb 10 - 07:27 PM

"Congering up" is a sort of swivel-hipped line dance they do in the Maritimes...at the end of every 12 bars they bite each other on the neck and change partners. It's a gas...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 05 Feb 10 - 08:59 PM

WavyFWBR.......You love the world being multi-cultural as long as each culture has their own separate place. We can all get together every now and again but at the end of th day we all return to our single cultural homeland. If I decide to leave my "homeland" I should go to the place where things are most like they are in my homeland.

Is that about it?

And take it in the most friendly manner available when I say:

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 06 Feb 10 - 09:38 AM

Did you actually read my last post, Spaw? For what it's worth, I disagree with, e.g., the One Australia Party, because they are not allowing for Aboriginal culture.

On a lighter note, it's not the season here for congers anyway, but it is, rather, for the Six Nations...

Poem 99 of 230: ONE RUGBY?

With sixth-tackle, knock-on and touch-line hand-over -
    No scrums, line-outs, rucks or mauls;
The rest (the best of both codes) would hardly alter -
    And no splits, due to two calls.

(C) David Franks 2003
From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 06 Feb 10 - 10:36 AM

Yeah, I read your post........and I've read your crap for a long time. Now once again, tell me that THIS is NOT what you believe. No stories or bullshit, just do you believe this:

You love the world being multi-cultural as long as each culture has their own separate place. We can all get together every now and again but at the end of th day we all return to our single cultural homeland. If I decide to leave my "homeland" I should go to the place where things are most like they are in my homeland.

And no, your Rugby shit in no way compares to Andy Griffith's finely crafted monologue. See, it goes like this:

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 06 Feb 10 - 12:23 PM

One of the best things about the Six Nations is that it's NOT the "Four Nations" - even Auntie allows us to be English, for a change.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 06 Feb 10 - 12:29 PM

Once again, tell me that THIS is NOT what you believe. No stories or bullshit, just do you believe this:

You love the world being multi-cultural as long as each culture has their own separate place. We can all get together every now and again but at the end of th day we all return to our single cultural homeland. If I decide to leave my "homeland" I should go to the place where things are most like they are in my homeland.

And no, your Rugby shit in no way compares to Andy Griffith's finely crafted monologue. See, it goes like this:

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 06 Feb 10 - 01:58 PM

Quote; 'One of the best things about the Six Nations is that it's NOT the "Four Nations" - even Auntie allows us to be English, for a change.' By 'Auntie'
I assume you mean the BBC? If so, what does the BBC have to do with the naming of this particular Rugby tournament, or decisions about who takes part and under which team names? Sirely that is to do with the International Rugby Board? Once again WAV, you demonstrate the ability to pontificate from a position of monumental ignorance. I think Spaw summed it up;
--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 06 Feb 10 - 02:39 PM

Sirely? Surely you mean 'surely'? Yes, and don't call me Shirley...must learn to use the 'review your post' button, wish WAV would too. The we wouldn't have to keep saying
--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 06 Feb 10 - 02:42 PM

WAV; are you familiar with the history of the game of Rugby? Do you understand why there are two codes? If not, go away and do some research, before you start demanding that the game is changed to suit your dimwitted ideas.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 06 Feb 10 - 05:06 PM

I can't see where I typed "sirely" instead of "surely", Tim, but, even if I did, surely it's "dimwitted" to bother about it.
Otherwise, yes I have a fair idea of the history, think that the changes made to form Rugby League were for the better, and, in the above poem, have proposed further changes, with a return to the "One Rugby"...
Also, perhaps the B.B.C. could learn from the I.R.B., then, and dissolve into the E.B.C., S.B.C., and W.B.C.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 06 Feb 10 - 06:29 PM

Well you certainly are "lettered"...............Now if you could just answer the following. I phrased it as simply as possible. Is this what you believe? Here we go:

You love the world being multi-cultural as long as each culture has their own separate place. We can all get together every now and again but at the end of th day we all return to our single cultural homeland. If I decide to leave my "homeland" I should go to the place where things are most like they are in my homeland.

Also note that:

--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 06 Feb 10 - 07:21 PM

WAV, you really are a dimwit; I was correcting myself, in a lighthearted sort of way.
If you really did have a fair idea of the history of rugby, you wouldn't make proposals that can never, ever take place. Admit it; you know bugger all about rugby, in the same way you know bugger all about pretty much everything else you pronounce upon. A little test...in the history of the two codes, what was the name of the hotel? Any self respecting rugby fan could answer that in an instant. How about you?
I'm still waiting for an answer to my question about what the BBC has to do with the name of the Six Nations, or how they are involved in deciding what names each country plays under. Your answer?
Perhaps you could do the courtesy of responding to Spaw when he asks; 'Once again, tell me that THIS is NOT what you believe. No stories or bullshit, just do you believe this:

You love the world being multi-cultural as long as each culture has their own separate place. We can all get together every now and again but at the end of th day we all return to our single cultural homeland. If I decide to leave my "homeland" I should go to the place where things are most like they are in my homeland.'

I looked at your latest poem again, and came to this conclusion;
--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 07 Feb 10 - 09:20 AM

Tim, or should I say "Sire," by George: it certainly wasn't this place in Victoria, Australia...

Poem 7 of 230: RECENT HISTORY

There's a place called Sovereign Hill,
    Nigh the city of Ballarat,
With dated representations -
    And they're authentic ones at that.

You can pan for gold at the creek,
    Write some lines with inkwell and quill,
See bread baked the colonial way
    Or a blacksmith at his anvil.

There's a, pre-plastics, bowling lane -
    With everything made in wood;
A painted-photo studio,
    And a saloon built as they stood.

Ride in a draft-horse drawn carriage,
    See the front gardens of the day,
Read-up on mining history,
    Or watch costumed-revellers play.

And, just beside the "old" village,
    Should you decide to see some more,
There's homely accommodation;
    But heed - Kooris came long before.

(C) David Franks 2003
From http://blogs.myspace.com/walkaboutsverse

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 07 Feb 10 - 11:52 AM

Still waiting for an answer about the BBC WAV. I make this the thirteenth time you've posted this particular piece of crap, by the way, which tends to prove that Spaw was correct in asserting;
--Your "poetry" sucks.
--It has been posted repeatedly before.
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements.
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile.
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.
As far as the Hotel; well googled, WAV. What does Blackheath have to do with it, then?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 07 Feb 10 - 12:20 PM

If you are so all-knowing, Sire Tim, why do you have to ask? And since I'm not, what do you think of my above proposal "One Rugby?"...a good fast game, that may need to be played over a reduced period, due to the increased pace..?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Dave Hanson
Date: 07 Feb 10 - 12:56 PM

Poem 99 of 340 ONE RUGBY ? what sort of shite is that ?

Your " poetry sucks "
It has been posted repeatedly before
It is full of bigoted and racist statements
That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Dave H

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 07 Feb 10 - 03:35 PM

Your proposal for 'one rugby' as posted above is one of the biggest pieces of mindless crap I've ever seen, spouted by an ignorant fool with no real knowledge of the game or its history. The author has clearly failed to grasp the principle of separate development of the two codes, which is odd given his propensity to take this view when referring to cultures and races. Well, you did ask me what I think... I also think that;

Your " poetry sucks "
It has been posted repeatedly before
It is full of bigoted and racist statements
That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.
This is evidenced by the fact that the same execrable verse was posted in early November, thus demonstrating Spaw's Second Law of WAVcrap; in case you've forgotten it, I detail the Laws below;
Your " poetry sucks "
It has been posted repeatedly before
It is full of bigoted and racist statements
That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

The point about Blackheath, WAV, is that I know and you don't. Another difference is that I don't presume to lecture people who have greater knowledge or expertise than my own. In your case, this includes just about everything apart from fork-truck driving, and even that is questionable; if you were any good at fork-truck driving, you'd have a job by now.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 07 Feb 10 - 04:43 PM

At post 999, I can tell you the fork-lift licence was intended for emergencies - when the regular driver was not available.
And, for the rest of your false accusations, I refer you to my above posts.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: open mike
Date: 07 Feb 10 - 05:12 PM

one thousand

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 07 Feb 10 - 05:53 PM

What accusations? All I see is statements of fact, as evidenced by the following;
Your " poetry sucks "
It has been posted repeatedly before
It is full of bigoted and racist statements
That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

One thousand and one, cleans a big, big carpet
For less than half a crown!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 07 Feb 10 - 06:07 PM

I think we should have mixed rugby teams, with men and women taking part. Both women and men could have tender parts protected


Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 08 Feb 10 - 07:36 AM

Is that your idea of "flower power", Stu - ladies with cauliflower ears?!

I only played a bit of rugby league during high-school P.E., and touch during primary-school lunchtimes - preferring, in particular, tennis and football...

As this poem shows, I really enjoyed my visit to Italy, but still think that the appointment of Fabio Capello, as Manager of the England football team, is a disgrace to two nations; and that FIFA should change the rule such that managers can only manage their OWN nation...

Poem 16 of 230: A BEAUTIFUL STAGE

If a couple, with plans to wed,
    Asked me, off the top of my head,
For somewhere I thought well in-tune
    As a place for a honeymoon,
It would have - flashing back - to be
    Beautifully-honed Italy.

(C) David Franks 2003
From WalkaboutsVerse

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 08 Feb 10 - 08:03 AM

I played in a Rugby Union match against a women's team once, in a charity game. I've never come off a pitch so bruised and battered, before or since. The loose scrums were absolute carnage, and the women seemed to think there was only one part of the male anatomy that could be targeted for foul play. Never again.

Back to WAVworld; how would your change of FIFA rules square with EU laws on free movement of labour, WAV? At present, your proposal would be unlawful. Or would you change those laws too? How will you go about gaining agreement among the member states?

A review of your oft posted crap (above);
Your " poetry sucks "
It has been posted repeatedly before
It is full of bigoted and racist statements
That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Smedley
Date: 08 Feb 10 - 08:38 AM

I would like to nominate this:

"the most monstrous dipshit of an asswipe on the face of the planet"

as the Finest Insult of 2010. I know we still have ten and a bit months to go, but I very much doubt that its lustre will be eclipsed.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 08 Feb 10 - 08:49 AM

Perhaps you're right David - men can display scars as part of their machismo and women should be kept indoors to protect their tender skin. Your approach to the sexes seems either old Prussian or Taleban I'm not sure which.
In my world a woman has the same rights as men: for example I don't particularly like tattoos: I have no wish to prevent either men or women having them.
My personal likes, dislikes, foibles, whims and prejudices don't give me any right to impose them on anyone else. It's to do with freedom, tolerance, equality, inclusion, acceptance, democracy and similar concepts.
It seems that a number of catters value these concepts, and thus relect the idea of a totalitarian nad repressive isolationist regime which you preach with some sort of misplaced missionary zeal.
I wish you were as fair, balaced and even-handed as you would like to be.

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Tom - Swords & Songs
Date: 08 Feb 10 - 09:24 AM

Maybe what we see as misogyny, you think is chivalry?
It is a fine line between getting a girlfriend and essentially locking your genitals away for all time.

Maybe that's what this whole poetry lark is about? Are you on the pull, WAVmastergeneral?

Casanova Tom


PS
(Your poetry sucks
It has been posted repeatedly before
It is full of bigoted and racist statements
That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels. )

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 08 Feb 10 - 12:30 PM

Tim - we agree on something: your "never again".
And "Back to WAVworld; how would your change of FIFA rules square with EU laws on free movement of labour, WAV? At present, your proposal would be unlawful. Or would you change those laws too? How will you go about gaining agreement among the member states?"...I've said many times before, Tim, these days, apart from some local government, all any citizen of our world needs is their own nation and the U.N. - the E.U. should, along with the U.K., be dissolved.

"Perhaps you're right David - men can display scars as part of their machismo and women should be kept indoors to protect their tender skin. Your approach to the sexes seems either old Prussian or Taleban I'm not sure which." (Stu)...when I was playing the above-mentioned junior football, there were NO girls teams, and no parents complaining about it - attitudes have changed very rapidly the last few decades, certainly NOT always for the better. (And the same for you, Tom.)

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 08 Feb 10 - 12:39 PM

When I was a child my mother along with many other women worked in jobs that had traditionally been done by men. This was called the war effort: it dispensed with the idea that women were weak frail things to be protected and nurtured.

I think respect and affection are good replacement for the patronizing attitudes displayed in many of your posts - including the last one.

You don't get it do you?

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 08 Feb 10 - 12:51 PM

I do get that, Stu, and mentioned it in a brief talk at the Sage Gateshead, called "ANYONE for tennis?": in war-time females had to do relatively heavy tasks on farms and shop-floors - it was needs must.

For what it's worth, I think females playing football is probably okay (although chesting the ball is a bit of a worry), but rugby definitely NO, in my opinion.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 08 Feb 10 - 12:59 PM

...and you know what I mean, Rapper-the-Casa-Tom.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Will Fly
Date: 08 Feb 10 - 01:13 PM

For what it's worth, I think females playing football is probably okay (although chesting the ball is a bit of a worry), but rugby definitely NO, in my opinion.

Hee hee! That sentence says it all, doesn't it? It demonstrates your sexism, your paternalism and your stupidity. I wonder what the "females" would say about it? Who on earth are you to say whether "females" should or should not play any particular sport?

I'd love you to meet the women students' rugby team at the university where I used to work - I think they might like to ask you some pertinent questions about chesting the ball.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Melissa
Date: 08 Feb 10 - 01:24 PM

I especially like the way this theory on a Woman's Place comes from a guy who doesn't have a job.

Surely men in this theory have a Place too?
Traditionally, that was the Workplace..

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 08 Feb 10 - 02:46 PM

WAV; we certainly do NOT agree on anything. How dare you presume that I share your bitter, misogynistic, racist views? I said that I would not play in such a violent game again, not that women should not play rugby. If women wish to play rugby (or any other sport) then it is entirely their choice, which should be respected by the rest of us. Who would make these rules about what women can and can't do? Men? Men like you? Just you? I think I understand now, WAV. You can't get women to do what you want, so you want the law and society to help give you power over women. Have you thought about joining the Taliban? Their laws and culture seem much better suited to your views than do those of England. Grow up, WAV, learn to be a proper man and treat women properly.
Your political views about nationhood and the roles of international organisations are juvenile and ridiculous. If you were able to think objectively about things, you might start to see some realities, rather than the BNP and UKIP fuelled fantasies you come up with. Add to this the SPAW doctrine, and the full richness of your delusional state becomes apparent;
Your " poetry sucks "
It has been posted repeatedly before
It is full of bigoted and racist statements
That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 08 Feb 10 - 05:06 PM

Frankly, I've never studied medicine, but when this was discussed before, someone, more calm than the last few, posted that females who play football do wear chest protection...okay, but rugby is a very heavy contact sport, and I stand by what I said above.

And, as I say, it's not me deluding himself about how far backward my stance on this is - not long ago, females could not run a marathon, netball was invented as a NON contact sport for females, and they were competing at it and NOT football, let alone rugby.

I think that there are lots of things fine for both sexes, but the very new idea that women can do ANYTHING is wrong.

Melissa - if people stop questioning my repatriation ("why on EARTH did you come back" or "you must be mad", at interviews - obviously, WITHOUT me mentioning any political views), it will be a lot easier for me to get back to work; and, if and when that happens, and I see a female about to lift a 25kg bag of raw material, I will be as insistent as possible to lift it myself.

Tim, as I've told you before, for starters, I'm a positive English nationalist/republican, who hates imperialism - the BNP and UKIP are both pro-monarchy; and, as I said before, I'm not a member of any political party.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Melissa
Date: 08 Feb 10 - 05:18 PM

I don't care whether you work or not, David. It's none of my business.

I just don't think it's any of your business what women do with their time or their bodies. Surely you've heard the expression "practice what you preach" and in this case, what you preach is a distinct line that separates his/hers.

IF you think women should follow the guidelines you insist on repeating, the least you could do is Practice what you Preach and make sure YOU are filling your role as Man while pointing at women.

---
With all the threads complaining about immigrants getting all the jobs, it does seem like you ought to be able to find something if you're looking.
Maybe you're too choosy?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 08 Feb 10 - 05:28 PM

I'm qualified as a manufacturing production manager, but also go for supervisor posts, as well as admin. jobs, even though I've only ever worked on shop-floors. Furthermore, everything I've done so far on the poetry/folk scene has been as an amateur, but, if offered a full gig I can get to, I'll have a go..."too choosy?" Melissa.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Melissa
Date: 08 Feb 10 - 05:42 PM

At the risk of being too subtle, I think I'll refrain from wondering why the would-be-employers might not view your skills and abilities as highly as you do.

I was only stopping by the WAViary to see what's going on..with no intention of staying around. I do that occasionally to remind myself how much I hated some of the 'workshop' courses at school.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 08 Feb 10 - 05:54 PM

If your manufacturing skills on on a par with your poetics, sir, you should take up Ludditism.



A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Dave Hanson
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 03:40 AM

If offered a FULL GIG ? what !!! a full gig of your juvenile inane drivel, get real or better still get help.

Dave H

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 04:13 AM

My friend is a North West morris dancer. She also sings traditional songs, and plays rugby. She's about 23 years old and gorgeous - no cauliflower ears, but she does have long blonde hair. And whether it was dancing, singing, or sport, she'd kick your arse, WAV.

Just sayin'.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 04:32 AM

Amos: I've done well in examinations - that's a fact.

"kick your arse", Ruth?...where does the rain in Spain tend to fall?

As I say, apart from basic first aid, I've not studied medicine, but I just looked this up - Contact Sports and Breast Cancer.

I'll go get my daily ditty now...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 04:37 AM

If you are an English Nationalist, WAV, the BNP and UKIP would welcome you with open arms, irrespective of your views on the monarchy. Thinking about it, your views are similar to those espoused a long time ago by a National Socialist Party. Try reading William Shirer's book 'The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich', it's a fabulous book, an easy read and you'll recognise a lot of it.
How long have you been unemployed,WAV? I've been unemployed in recessions before, but I've never taken more than a couple of weeks before sorting out some kind of employment as a stop-gap while I looked for a better job. Never claimed benefits either. How about you? Or are these uppity women taking all the 'men's' jobs?
Re; protection. Male athletes in many sports also wear protection. Did you watch the Superbowl? Did you see the Six Nations games? Every player wore some kind of anatomical protection. Why the obsession with women protecting their breasts? Or perhaps it's just an obsession with breasts...
Furthermore;
Your " poetry sucks "
It has been posted repeatedly before
It is full of bigoted and racist statements
That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 04:47 AM

I've told you many times before, Tim, I hate imperialism - be it Nazi, Victorian, or any other. But, frankly, I'd have to check google to see if females are playing American football, or not..?

In Lancashire, England...

Poem 118 of 230: WHALLEY ABBEY...WHAT TALES? - AUTUMN 2000

Cistercian monks have clearly been -
    Their Abbey's ruins can still be seen;
And, sounding for centuries before,
    Calder flows have passed - seeking the shore.
Lords of the grounds have, more lately, stayed -
    Their manor houses reused and unscathed.
Through beautiful gardens insects fly -
    The ruins of folk just a pass-by;
And, by viaduct, trains pass above -
    Folk thereby viewing a town I love.
Anglers and C. of E. delegates,
    Hikers and tourists, have crossed the gates...
Opportunistic masons, kings-men,
    Model makers, Turner, and men who pen...
Perhaps the witches came down from the hill,
    And do ghosts haunt - still questing their fill..?

(C) David Franks 2003
From WalkaboutsVerse

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 04:53 AM

"How long have you been unemployed,WAV? I've been unemployed in recessions before, but I've never taken more than a couple of weeks before sorting out some kind of employment as a stop-gap while I looked for a better job. Never claimed benefits either. How about you? Or are these uppity women taking all the 'men's' jobs?"

Oh, he's confirmed in the past that if it wasn't for people like me (being foreign AND a woman) taking all the jobs, people like him would be much more likely to be in employment. And he resents it like hell. I have to say, as a foreigner who has lived in this country for 20 years, I've not ever taken any kind of benefit either. I have asked in the past which he thinks better benefits Britain: someone like me, who works hard and contributes to the economy and the tax system, or a "re-pat" such as him, who seems to have been out of work and leeching resources from the state for years? But it's a question (like so many others) that he won't answer.

You can't always get a job in the area you're qualified in. Sometimes, if the work prospects are poor, you need to re-train. And in the meantime, take whatever job is going. When I was re-training for my current career, I had two part time jobs - one was in an editorial office, but the other was in my local pub in the evenings. I've also waitressed, done supply teaching...needs must, you know? So are there no pubs near where you live? No restaurants? If you can hump around 25 kilo bags of stuff (as you keep telling us you'd do in place of any woman), couldn't you get a manual job? I can't help thinking that any activity that brought you into contact with more people, and out of your four walls where you sit around all day dreaming up this misogynist and racist garbage and compulsively posting it on-line, would be a good thing.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 04:54 AM

WAV, National Socialism in it's inception was anything but imperialist. That said, their views on culture, national boundaries, race, economics and world order were remarkably similar to what you've posted here. Go on, read the book; it's 1100 pages or so, but you're not doing anything else worthwhile at the moment, are you? You might learn something, especially about why there is such implacable opposition to you here. Then I might not have to post things like;
Your " poetry sucks "
It has been posted repeatedly before
It is full of bigoted and racist statements
That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.
PS; women have been playing full-contact American Football for over 40 years, using the same protective gear as the men.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 04:55 AM

By the way: yes, women do play American football.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 05:06 AM

You either don't believe it or missed it just above, Tim and Ruth:
at interviews, far too often, I get not "Why did you come back?" but "Why ON EARTH did you come back?!" or "You must be mad" - someone who is "mad" should NOT be supervising people and machines. I hope and pray that English soon stop questioning my repatriation and start questioning the extreme pro-immigrationism of New (over the border Scots) Labour.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 05:22 AM

' "Why did you come back?" but "Why ON EARTH did you come back?!" or "You must be mad" - someone who is "mad" should NOT be supervising people and machines.'

So you actually take a flippant "You must be mad!" in an interview to mean that they literally think you are mad, and THIS is the reason why you don't get work? I've had various people over the years tell me I must be mad to have emigrated to Britain from America. I don't think they were actually suggesting I was certifiable - it's just a turn of phrase.

You've been using those exact examples for several years, WAV. When was the last time someone "questioned" your re-patriation in an interview and told you that you must be mad? How many times has it actually happened in an interview context? Just wondering.

You still haven't told us why you can't apply for work in a pub or a shop, which would help to wean you off benefits and might be a good social bridge, too. You also haven't responded to the idea that, when people can't find work in their chosen profession, they often have to re-train and learn to do something else. There are various government schemes to help with this.

You can rail against immigration all you like, WAV, but just remember: it's MY taxes, and the tax of other immigrants like me, that have been paying your way for years. It's okay - you don't have to thank me.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 05:28 AM

Ruth: I get that line of questioning AND someone else gets the opportunity. If all the employed and unemployed production managers in my field were examined, I would be confident. And, to repeat, I hope and pray that English soon stop questioning my repatriation and start questioning the extreme pro-immigrationism of New (over the border Scots) Labour.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 05:32 AM

I've never asked you why you came back, WAV. Are you saying that the only reason (in your view) that people turn you down for supervisory jobs is that they think you are mad for coming back? Don't you think that there might just possibly be other reasons? Perhaps some things you could take responsibility for, and work towards improving, so you become more employable?
Read the book I recommended WAV; it really is a good read, written by a fine journalist who was there at the time. It might help you to understand the outrage that so many of your ideas provoke; your ideas on women, for example, are very akin to the Kinder, Kirche, Kuche ideal for German women in the Nazi years, and your thoughts on
cultural segregation are echoed strongly in the speeches of various Nazi luminaries. I'm not calling you a Nazi, WAV, so please don't reply in those terms; I just think you haven't made the intellectual connection between your views and those that have gone before. Rewad the book.
A quick review of your'poem' as posted above;
Your " poetry sucks "
It has been posted repeatedly before
It is full of bigoted and racist statements
That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 05:35 AM

That should read 'read the book', sorry for the typo.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Davetnova
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 05:35 AM

Mr. Franks, You may not like New Labour, but for your information most Scots don't either, which the Labour Party in Scotland has now discovered. However much more damage, some of it punitive, ie the Poll Tax, was done by the Conservative Party under Englishwoman Margaret Thatcher, I don't know if she played tennis or not.
Both McDonalds and Tescos are quite accepting of those who are not the full shilling, perhaps you could try them. In the meantime spout about the English if you want but leave My country out of it. Inthe meantime perhaps you would like to see some wonderful pictures of Your world - http://www.howtobearetronaut.com/2010/02/stunning-colour-film-of-1920s-london/
- Yours with sincere sympathy for your disabilities - Dave T.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 05:48 AM

Wavey:

I will try again. Have you thought about re-training? There are various government schemes that would help with this.

Have you tried to get a job locally in a shop or a pub? This would help to wean you off benefits.

When was the last time you went for an interview in manufacturing and someone said you were mad for coming back? How often has that actually happened, and do you really believe that this is the reason you have not been a successful candidate?

Do you not find it something of a paradox that it's the taxes of immigrants like me that are paying your way, while you sit on your arse at home moaning about immigration and compulsively spamming the internet with your "life's work"?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Stu
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 06:12 AM

My own experience is not unusual: I was redundant from a senior post at 45; I couldn't get a job at the same level. I set up a business as a technical writer and industrial photographer. This business ran successfully for a number of years.

I retrained as a teacher and now earn a healthy living teaching music. I have been out of work for a total of six days since leaving school. I am not unusual. Many of my friends have shifted careers successfully.

It does mean that you have to evaluate the skill you have that are saleable. Out of date degrees don't cut it.

What's wrong with getting a job as a fork lift truck driver? Or filling shelves at supermarkets? Assistants at B&Q All honourable ways of earning a living. Run your own business, drive a taxi, lecture part time t your local FE college.

The world is not your enemy. You don't get jobs because you are not the most suitable candidate. Your qualifications and experience do not impress the interviewer as muc as the qualifications and experienc of the successful candidate.

Stu sans cookie

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 06:21 AM

I haven't read that book, Tim, but understand that there are/have been very different national socialists - Ghandi versus Hitler, e.g. Nationalism with conquest is bad, but positive nationalim, with eco-tourism and fair-trade, and a stronger U.N., is good for humanity.

I've answered the others but, Davetnova, I should add that if Blair and Brown knew better, they'd be members of the good S.N.P., that I do respect and support the likes of Alex Salmond, and that I've greatly enjoyed my VISITS to Scotland.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 06:30 AM

"I've answered the others"

You haven't answered my questions, or Stu's.

I will try again. Have you thought about re-training? There are various government schemes that would help with this.

Have you tried to get a job locally in a shop or a pub? This would help to wean you off benefits.

When was the last time you went for an interview in manufacturing and someone said you were mad for coming back? How often has that actually happened, and do you really believe that this is the reason you have not been a successful candidate?

Do you not find it something of a paradox that it's the taxes of immigrants like me that are paying your way, while you sit on your arse at home moaning about immigration and compulsively spamming the internet with your "life's work"?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Davetnova
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 06:31 AM

You miss the point, the Labour Party were always the party the Scots tru...... Oh whats the point? I'm not joining the bearbaiting.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 06:39 AM

There was a young man from Australia
His verse was an absolute failure
When asked how he can sir
I have only one answer
Involving follicled male genitalia.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 08:26 AM

"You haven't answered my questions, or Stu's"...wrong, Ruth.

"Have you thought about re-training?" Ruth...with 4 technical certificates in manufacturing and a degree in humanities, I think I'm very employable, and, previously pressed, HAVE already detailed my VARIOUS attempts.

"Do you not find it something of a paradox that it's the taxes of immigrants like me that are paying your way"...no: there has been a lot of pro-immigrationsim, as I HAVE already said, under New (over the border Scots) Labour, and (one thing we can all agree on) I'm the opposite - a repatriate.

And, again, if anyone, including you Ruth, on the folk/poetry scene would like me to do a full paid gig, I'll have a go - I try to get through my repertoire (listed on the left-side) once per week, with keyboards and English flute/tenor recorder.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 08:36 AM

I'm afraid that neither your poetry, your playing nor your singing are of a standard that I would ever book you, David, paid or unpaid. You have pressed me on this before. I'm sorry.

The problem is that all of your certificates and your degree clearly AREN'T making you employable in your chosen field, and haven't done for some time. So why are you so resistant to trying another career path?

'"Do you not find it something of a paradox that it's the taxes of immigrants like me that are paying your way"...no: there has been a lot of pro-immigrationsim, as I HAVE already said, under New (over the border Scots) Labour, and (one thing we can all agree on) I'm the opposite - a repatriate.'

But my point is, David, that the difference between you and me is that, regardless of where either of us was born, I am working. I am paying my taxes - income, council etc. When my daughter was old enough to go to school I went back to university and re-trained for the career I have now, and did crap part-time work in the meantime so that I was still contributing. I have never taken a penny in benefit from this country. Do you not see the fundamental irony of sitting on your arse, on the dole, and railing about immigration, when it's partly our labours that keep a roof over your head and put food in your mouth?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Davetnova
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 08:39 AM

I would prefer it if you stopped ascribing New Labour to the Scots. New Labour is a UK political movement and many of its adherents are english, it was designed to woo the voters of middle England. I am finding your idiotic utterances and continued avoidance of answering questions, both New Labour traits, increasing offensive.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: folkandroots
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 08:45 AM

"And, again, if anyone, including you Ruth, on the folk/poetry scene would like me to do a full paid gig, I'll have a go - I try to get through my repertoire (listed on the left-side) once per week, with keyboards and English flute/tenor recorder."

I don't want to interrupt but the above does seem to represent a general problem in so far as some people think they have a right to a paid gig/to obtain a booking without a) putting the work into build up an audience (as the artists would know - this can often take years) or b) being of the necessary standard.

I have no idea what you're public performances are like Walkabout but what guarantee would you be able to offer to a potential promoter that you could attract an audience and provide a good night for the potential audience?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 09:03 AM

As usual, WAV, when anyone suggests you put some effort into something yourself rather than demand that others do, you bottle out. You clearly don't understand anything about National Socialism (not 'nationalism'). Read the Shirer book, then you might just understand why people on Mudcat (and quite possibly at interview) find you and your views so repellent. Or have you retired from reading as well as 'versification'?
About paid gigs; I've seen your attempts at performance on your website. As a performer, WAV, you're not even as good as Florence Foster Jenkins, with all that implies. You can't sing, and your recorder playing is a joke. There is no venue that I can think of that would pay a penny to stage one of your performances.
You think you're employable; if you actually have been trying to get a job, then clearly potential employers disagree with your opinion. Time to retrain, and perhaps revise your opinion of yourself? But no; that would involve you actually doing something, wouldn't it?
You really should listen to Spaw;

Your " poetry sucks "
It has been posted repeatedly before
It is full of bigoted and racist statements
That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 09:05 AM

"I'm afraid that neither your poetry, your playing nor your singing are of a standard that I would ever book you, David, paid or unpaid. You have pressed me on this before. I'm sorry" (Ruth)...and, when I DO try in other areas (and that's what you keep ignoring), I'm getting the same negative response - with a strong C.V., that DOES include recent retraining here (a country that has been "lead" by pro-immigrationists ever since I did the opposite and repatriated). If you can't understand that, Ruth, you should not be in a position to say yes/no to people - your last few posts ARE confused.

Folkandroots - myspace, which I just linked, placement in a few festival competitions, and, if the BBC do broadcast it, a brief recording at the Sage Gateshead, during the Free Thinking Festival.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 09:10 AM

That should be "led", sorry; and, Tim, others have posted otherwise re. my pieces.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: folkandroots
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 09:15 AM

"Folkandroots - myspace, which I just linked, placement in a few festival competitions, and, if the BBC do broadcast it, a brief recording at the Sage Gateshead, during the Free Thinking Festival."

I'm not personally interested one way or the other in listening to your myspace recordings, as good or not as they may be, however back to my point do you seriously think that 'placement in a few festival competitions' and a brief recording at the Sage Gateshead is a good reason for a promoter to spend their time AND MONEY taking a chance on you and do you really believe you would attract an audience to justify that risk, if not why should someone take a chance on you?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 09:22 AM

Let me make sure I understand: you're saying that, having little success in gaining employment in your chosen field, that your "retraining" consists of learning some songs and playing the recorder, and that your new career path is that of a professional performer?

I say yes/no to people every single day, David - many times. I don't give people a spot because I feel sorry for them or because they have decided that they are now a professional performer and are somehow entitled to it. It is based on talent, professionalism, potential for pulling in an audience...my first obligation is to the festival and our audiences.

If you are saying that I'm confused because I am suggesting that you should go out and earn a living, and you are saying that I should help you to do this by giving you a performance slot, I'm afraid you are labouring under some pretty profound delusions. Many very talented people never make a living from their music or their writing. To suggest that learning to play a few songs on the recorder (quite badly) is the sum total of your attempts to become employable is rather sad.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 09:28 AM

All I can add, Folkandroots, is participation at clubs/singarounds, and that certainly more than a 100 read/hear, on various sites (my myspace blog is usually about 50), some WalkaboutsVerse each day - but turnout for live gigs is, of course, another matter..?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 09:32 AM

So, are you going to read the book or not?
Your " poetry sucks "
It has been posted repeatedly before
It is full of bigoted and racist statements
That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: folkandroots
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 09:34 AM

Fair enough some people read your myspace blog, but as you say yourself (if I understand correctly) the actual attendance of people who would turn up and listen to you is fairly minimal (sorry if thats blunt), so why should a promoter spend their time and money taking a risk on you ?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 09:34 AM

Ruth you ARE confused, because in the one post you both say I don't have the ability ,upon a request, and imply that I'm not trying, whilst assuming that none of my 4 technical certificates involve retraining - which also suggests you are not so good at human resources.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 09:38 AM

I asked you a question; exactly how long have you been out of work, WAV?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 09:39 AM

Fair enough some people read your myspace blog, but as you say yourself (if I understand correctly) the actual attendance of people who would turn up and listen to you is fairly minimal (sorry if thats blunt)"...I didn't make that negative jump, Folkandroots.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 09:39 AM

Well, I assume that your technical certificates are still within the area of manufacturing. Have you thought about pursuing a new career path?

I don't think I ever claimed to be an HR specialist, did I?

But I do think, David, if you're looking for a way to earn a living, you might need to be a bit more realistic about the fact that your music and poetry are likely to remain a hobby.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: folkandroots
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 09:47 AM

Ok Walkabout but the point Im making or at least trying to ask is why you think a promoter should take a chance on you (and in a sense thats a general issue as much as it is personal), most promoters/clubs etc on the folk scene are small scale and those doing the promoting do it in their own free time and often at their own expense, so to ask the question again why should/would they take a chance on a paid booking that simply wouldn't pay, i.e they would lose money on?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 09:53 AM

Largely ignorant of computers and the web in the mid-noughties, Ruth, I've taken both a software and hardware level one certificate - which should be helpful to my prospects in a number of spheres.

"But I do think, David, if you're looking for a way to earn a living, you might need to be a bit more realistic about the fact that your music and poetry are likely to remain a hobby." (Ruth)...again, confused, as I've just mentioned VARIOUS attempts, without ever suggesting I think folk/poetry is my best chance. Rather, I repeat, if asked to do a full paid gig, I'll have a go.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Davetnova
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 10:00 AM

What are software and hardware level one? I'm confused, I work at a lowly level in IT and as far as I understand the entry level computing qualification (now almost mandatory for any computer based job) is the ECDL.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 10:19 AM

Folkandroots: I think it would depend on the organiser, but, generally, I've heard/know of myspace being used, C.D.s being sent, requests following singarounds/competitions, airplay, someone putting in a good word...but, going by your nickname, maybe you could add to this for us...

Davetnova - software/IT Certificate; hardware/iPro Certificate; and I never mentioned a "computer based job" (you) but "which should be helpful to my prospects in a number of spheres" (me).

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Davetnova
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 10:29 AM

You mean this - The OCR Level 1 National Award has been designed to:
• address the needs of candidates at Level 1, who require a:
- smaller sized offering that can be delivered alongside a wider programme of study
- smooth progression route to Level 2 Nationals in ICT, for those candidates who would benefit from a programme providing motivation through step-by-step achievement.
• develop candidates' ICT knowledge, understanding and skills by offering a broad range of user and practitioner units
• provide accreditation of the knowledge, understanding and skills that would be needed by an employee in an office environment either in an administrative role or junior IT support role.

[preparatory certificate to enable entry to level 2]Did you not carry on then?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 10:31 AM

So out of interest, David, what kinds of jobs are you currently applying for? I don't really know anything about IT qualifications, but presumably these would help you to apply for general clerical work and admin jobs?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Davetnova
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 10:32 AM

and again - Progression options available to candidates who have gained this qualification are:

• Enter employment at an operative level (eg Administration Assistant, IT Support) and undertake an Apprenticeship scheme or single NVQ (or other occupational qualification) appropriate to their job role.

• Undertake additional Level 1 or Level 2 qualifications part-time or full-time in further education (eg OCR Level 2 National Award/First Certificate/Certificate in ICT, GCSE, GCE).

Progression into employment, perhaps through an Apprenticeship scheme, is also supported by the relationship of this qualification to National Occupational Standards.

Progression to this qualification could be from the OCR Level 1 National First Award, OCR Entry Level Digital Literacy or Level 1 Certificate for IT Users although no prior learning is required.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Tom - Swords & Songs
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 10:33 AM

Oh your god, David!
Stop bandying around The Sage Gateshead.

The Free Thinking Festival had an open debate where members of the public could engage guest speakers in a discussion. Entry was free to all. David, you were not booked as a speaker, you turned up on the day, put your hand up and opened your mouth. This is the same as me doodling on the wall in the Tate Modern and then telling the world that my works are on display in there!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio3/freethinking/2009/contributors.shtml#f
Here is a list of everyone who officially contributed at this event - please note that there is no David.

Come on, my little man! All of the competitions and publications of your life's work have come through open competitions and free magazines. They are not to be taken as ringing endorsements of your skill as a 'poet'.

Let me reiterate:
Your 'poetry' sucks
It has been posted repeatedly before
It is full of bigoted and racist statements
That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Tom

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: folkandroots
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 10:40 AM

As you say Walks it does depend on the organiser and on the nature of the night, it also depends on whether the artist would expect to be paid for their spot or indeed how much. I only asked because you mentioned below that should someone wish to offer you a paid gig you would be happy to take them up on the offer - hence my question as to why someone should take that chance on you etc

But as I suspect everyone else on this board knows you are correct word of mouth, myspace (usually by using myspace as a demo rather a promoter randomly coming across someone on myspace), can all help in getting a gig/support slot etc but this varies from club to club, venue to venue, place to place, audience to audience

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 10:55 AM

Fair play, Tom - I never gave those details, but merely said the truth that it was recorded and may be broadcast, complete with audience response...maybe it has been...I'm not sure..? And, no matter how heated it gets, I never resort to "little man" type remarks.

To D. and R.: again, I never pretended those are anything other than level 1/intro certificates, but doubt that, without them, I'd be applying online for an admin job, as we speak...back to it...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 10:58 AM

The two IT certificates David boasts about are intended to help those with no knowledge of IT gain a level of knowledge that would enable them to enter more formal training, either in IT or other roles. They are not intended to stand alone as qualifications; it's rather like someone saying (at a higher level) 'I have a qualification; the first year of a degree course'. Let's not forget though; he also has a fork-truck certificate, but I don't think he's applying for warehouse jobs. Anyway, it doesn't seem to be convincing employers, does it?
WAV; if you are applying for managerial or supervisory jobs, I'm afraid your ambitions are doomed. In either of these roles you would be responsible for people and their employment. In this context, your views on women and foreign nationals are unlawful, and if enacted in the workplace would result in large fines for the employer and certain dismissal for you. Bear in mind that most employers now do a check on MySpace, Facebook and Google for any prospective employers. If they look for you, they will find that;
Your 'poetry' sucks
It has been posted repeatedly before
It is full of bigoted and racist statements
That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

You still don't get it, do you?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Tom - Swords & Songs
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 11:05 AM

'Little man' is a term of endearment where I come from, Davey!
I never get heated; cool as a proverbial.

One for Folkandroots:
I once heard some Walkabouts Verse
And found the ideas were perverse
At the start of the show
I got up to go
Demanding to be reimbursed.

I'm a poet, I know it.
Tomo

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: folkandroots
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 11:06 AM

Would you like a gig Tomo?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Tom - Swords & Songs
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 11:11 AM

Tar man. - Maybe I'll get my doodles displayed at the Tate Modern soon.
See Mr WAV, it's just that easy.
TDawg

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 11:21 AM

Half your luck, Tom - beats filling in an online admin form...women's work - only joking! :-(>

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 11:45 AM

My keyboard seems to be infected with typoitis today...I meant 'prospective employees' above, not 'prospective employers'. I ran a Google search for you, WAV; 'David Franks' first, then chased down the 'Walkaboutsverse' connection, as any good HR professional would do. Unless you take all the racist and sexist rubbish down, you haven't a hope of finding a job as a manager, unless you want to work for the BNP. This is good advice; if you are serious about finding a job, you should pay heed. By 'racist and sexist rubbish', by the way, I mean most of your 'poetry' apart from the purely descriptive stuff. Anything where you offer any sort of opinion is dodgy in this context.
As you know;
Your 'poetry' sucks
It has been posted repeatedly before
It is full of bigoted and racist statements
That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 12:10 PM

Tim - at the moment, a "David Franks" search is topped by the other "poetdavidfranks", who just passed away; but, yes, persistent H.R. people may now find that questioning economic-immigration is one reason for my repatriation from Australia, and may not get the abovementioned urge to ask me "Why on EARTH did you come back?!". But God knows how many times I've had to tell you, and others have too, that questioning the act of immigration is NOT "racist", and that I am no "bigot".

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 12:19 PM

You never answered Ruth Archer's quetion about that, did you? How many times have you been asked "Why on EARTH did you come back?!" in interviews? To add a question of my own; how do you answer? Bear in mind that
Your 'poetry' sucks
It has been posted repeatedly before
It is full of bigoted and racist statements
That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.
I know the poet David Franks has just died WAV. I was tempted to post an obituary on here, just to see what the reaction was, but that would have been mischievous; I'm actually trying to help you here. Take the offensive stuff down as I suggest; I called a couple who are senior HR recruitment professionals, and they were unanimous in saying they wouldn't touch you with a ten-foot bargepole if that's how you really think. Read the book I suggested, WAV, I urge you. You'll be horrified, but enlightened.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 12:50 PM

I answer you calmly and patiently, Tim, and you repeat the same crazy rubbish.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 01:35 PM

David:

It's not crazy rubbish if you are seeking employment in fact; it is good advice not to let your seamy side hang out when trying to land a position of any magnitude.

A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 01:37 PM

Just curious WAV. What number of hours were needed to complete your 4 technical certificates?

Six? Thirty? More????

And how far out of date are they?


Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 02:11 PM

Amos - as you know, there are pros and cons with giving our real- as well as nick-name on the web; I do want my life's work to be known, and think there's some possibility of earning from it in the future, thus I've chosen to do so; and what you must finally come to terms with is that some DO like my poems - for just one example, The Cloud Appreciation Society have chosen to include some on their site.

That's a big ask, Stu - one is an Advanced Cert in Manufacturing Technology, which, without the exemptions I got from previous study, was/is 2 years full-time, I think; and then there's my beloved (by others here more than me!) fork lift licence that took a couple of weeks, I think.

And not very out-of-date - a couple of years ago, I purchased a production management text-book to allow for this.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Ralphie
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 02:38 PM

Have just realised something.
It's our taxes that pay Mr Franks electricity bill, which powers up his computer.
I'd rather my taxes went towards Health/Education/Anything.
David. Get A Job. Any Job. Why not gravedigging? good manual labour, and you could do the rest of us an enourmous favour by burying your "Lifes Good Work".
And I'm with Ruth, as a one time Club organiser.
You wouldn't even get through the door, let alone a floor spot...As for being paid for a performance???? You have 30 years of rehearsing to do first, even then your very dubious political views would just confirm you as Not wanted on voyage.
You have as much chance of paid employment in the Arts, as I have of being an Astronaut.
Nah...Gravedigging is the best option. And if you dig long enough you'll end up at home again...Australia.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 02:41 PM

IF.....and it is a HUGE IF......you have actually gotten into interviews, I am positive that you are a laugh riot......after you're gone. Try not to kid yourself here, it has zip shit nothing to do with this stupid repatriation crap. If your answers to interview questions are even one tenth on the order of the answers you give here, I assure you that you talked yourself out of any possible chance for employment in the first five minutes......maybe even less.

Although you are free to think your certificates and all are worth jackshit, they are not nearly as important as your actual experience and demonostrated skills and abilities. In this economy there is no shame in taking a lower level job until something else comes along. Any future employer will appreciate someone who is willing to work and has a fine work record at anything. Sitting idly on your ass impresses no one. You can sell the difficult economy and like stories only so long. At this point you look like a lazy fucker riding along on the dole.

So IF you get an interview after all this time, you need to be ten times better in the interview than anyone else. I think it safe to say you are not capable of that based on what I and others have seen of you here. Poetry can be a hobby as can music but don't delude yourself on your ability at either. You are not a pro and you're a long way from being one. Same is true of me and a boatload of other 'Catters and many of them are far better than either one of us.

You are living in Fantasyland and your social attitudes are frankly not just "the old way and days" thing you seem to long for, but to put the absolute best face on them, they come under the heading of "separate but equal," a concept ruled as bigotry and unworkable over 50 years ago.

People around here are willing to help all the time but when you act like a conceited ass with the mindset of a bigot and racist you will get nothing from them. Separate but equal IS a bigots position.

Now stop with the repetitious verses and go get a job. Once again:

--Your 'poetry' sucks
--It has been posted repeatedly before
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 02:44 PM

Dear David:

If by your life's work you mean the doggerel verses you have been so adamantly posting in this thread and the predecessor to it, I can give you high marks for persistence, but will not offer any encouragement. I offered you some advice a few months back on how to go about plumbing the mysteries of what makes poetry work, when it does--I think I referred you to Cleanth Brooks' book on Understanding Poetry. As with much of the other well-meant advice upthread, I suppose it slid off your sturdy, waterproof back. Well and good. Absent that understanding, which I am certain you do not presently possess, I strongly suspect the proceeds from this life-work of yours will measure in the coppers. I do not mean to discourage you, because your adamantine perseverance is admirable if a bit eccentric. Maybe you would profit from memorizing a dozen of Mister Shakespeare's sonnets, or committing some of Yeats' pieces to heart.


A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 04:30 PM

Delusion bordering on the very attitudes you falsely accuse me of - briefly, I have a couple of good work references, as well as having passed the abovementioned practical and theoretical exams, Spaw; Amos, you keep ignoring, or pretending to, the fact that some do like my verses - unless you think they place them, as "doggerel", in their periodicals and websites to put readers off; Ralphie - still insisting I'm Australian when you surely know by now I was born here and have lived here many years.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 04:36 PM

OK, David, God bless, may your avid admirers grow to the tens and may you retire on your earnings as a major poet. Why the hell not. Weirder things have happened--the elections of Bush come to mind.
Your poetry may be indefensibly mediocre but at least you stand up for it. That much is admirable.


A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 09 Feb 10 - 07:31 PM

I've just been called crazy by Walkaboutsverse! Now that bears thinking about. WAV, I'm very tired, having worked all day and spent four hours this evening rehearsing with a new band, so I might be a bit grumpy. Please review my last ten posts, and explain which bits you think are crazy. I'm really trying to help you here. It's not the fact that you are an immigrant that is keeping you from employment, it's the fact that you are a bigoted, racist, sexist and idle idiot who persists in advertising that fact electronically to potential employers. All of those things can be changed if you are prepared to listen and reflect, take stock of your life and start doing things differently. Until then;
--Your 'poetry' sucks
--It has been posted repeatedly before
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 07:13 AM

The cloud appreciation society it seems to me publish poems submitted to them in order of submission - no editorial scrutiny then...


Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 07:36 AM

(Tim - in your last few posts you've told us how you considered posting a misleading obituary here, upon noticing a different poetdavidfranks had just passed away; you bragged about playing a "bruising" game of rugby against females, without any consideration of what damage may be done to their breasts, etc; you repeatedly call someone, who has never knocked any particular race/culture, a "racist" and a "bigot"; you repeatedly call that same person an "immigrant", when you have repeatedly been told of birth here in England, etc. - that IS "crazy".

Stu - if you send off a poem there, you'll see that it takes quite a while to appear (if it does appear), so editing is probably involved.)

With the C. of E. Synod discussing female Bishops at the moment, I'd like to remind that I have no problem with the next Archbishop of Canterbury being a female - because Archbishops DON'T have to lift heavy weights, etc. And there is nothing wrong, either, with a man doing a bit of...

Poem 93 of 230: ONE-POT COOKING

While living as a bachelor,
    I've cooked in just one pot -
Cast iron with a wooden handle,
    It can hold quite a lot:

Slices of potato and carrot
    Are boiled a while,
Before a thinly-chopped onion
    Is mixed with the pile;

Then I drain off most of the water,
    Add canned lentils and beans,
Stir with spice and tomato sauce -
    To an end, it's a means.

(C) David Franks 2003
From WalkaboutsVerse - and there's a pic today.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 07:57 AM

"you bragged about playing a "bruising" game of rugby against females, without any consideration of what damage may be done to their breasts, etc"

The point is, David, that it is the choice of the women themselves whether or not to engage in a game of rugby - or tennis, or American football. Their bodies, their choice about what risks they choose to take. It isn't for you to make the choice for them.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Tom - Swords & Songs
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 08:02 AM

Tim, I am also shocked by your flippant lack of consideration for ladies' breasts. Pay more attention to them next time, or fear the wrath of WAV - secret guardian of a lady's wobbles.

PS - Cloud Appreciation Society quote:
"Any cloud-lovers' poems for inclusion should be sent to: [e-mail].
Remember to include your full name and where you live. If yours hasn't appeared yet, be patient, we are putting them up in order, and will get to you soon."
- I think all of the editorial scrutiny on this site is done by the spam blocker on the afroementioned email account (hence only having one of David's poems on there)

Tomtits

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 08:09 AM

Well you've certainly got the English taste for terrible food there, WAV - and all washed down with mead no doubt... When it comes to one-pot cooking then that pot has to be the WOK, which I was introduced to by my Chinese-Northumbrian friends circa 1967 as an integral aspect of true Tyneside cuisine. Have a poke around Wing Hong's on Stowell Street (aka China Town) for some fine regional flavours & utensils - and if this offends your - er - non-racist sense of ethnic purity, then reflect if you will that Wing Hong has been there as long as I can recall - a very essential part of the rich cultural landscape of my home toon, and certainly more English than that billy-can out-back walkabout slop your serving up at Chez-Wav. Try telling these people they don't belong where they are; try telling them that their input into local culture is anything but an enrichment.

Anyhoo. The basic rule of thumb is the only time vegetables should touch water is when you wash them; boiling a vegetable is a sin against all good taste & offends the very fabric of material creation - peas notwithstanding of course, but they're more in the bean / pulse class.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Will Fly
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 08:38 AM

Archbishops DON'T have to lift heavy weights

Well, ladies and gentlemen, here we are at the 2012 Olympics, and the Weight-lifting For Clerics event is just about to start. I can see the teams limbering up in their corner at the moment, and I have to say that Rowan Williams, the captain of the English squad is looking good in his team colours of white leotard with the three red crucifixes on the pocket. He's just preparing himself for the heavyweight snatch at the moment and seems very confident. Across the floor, the Greek team look to be in good condition - Patriarch Bartholomew in particular - but the main contenders for the prizes will be the Russians, led by
the giant Patriarch Kirill, a huge man in bright red tights. The judges are taking their seats now, Archbishop Williams is stepping on to the podium...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 09:13 AM

WAV, you dimwit, try reading for context. I didn't 'brag' about anything, I merely related a true and pertinent story. Please explain where I claim to be proud of this particular exploit. Your oft-posted views on here, when subjected to scrutiny using academically accepted definitions, show you to be the very worst sort of racist and bigot; one who has no understanding of why this is so, and no wish to learn.
Re; the posting of an obituary for David Franks; why would this have been misleading (had I chosen to post it, which I didn't)? There could have been no possibility of confusion; David Franks was a published, talented and insightful poet, with a large number of fans and admirers, whereas you;
--Your 'poetry' sucks
--It has been posted repeatedly before
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 09:36 AM

"that billy-can out-back walkabout slop your serving up" (Sean)...a bit harsh from one who hasn't tasted my pottages! By the way, there's no "cast iron" pot in my pic as, a few years ago, it became a crack pot...
Mandotim - rather than repeat, I refer you to my above responses.
Will - you weren't named after that particular weight-lifter, were you..?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 10:37 AM

You forgot to respond to me, David. And I think it's quite an important point:

"you bragged about playing a "bruising" game of rugby against females, without any consideration of what damage may be done to their breasts, etc"

The point is, David, that it is the choice of the women themselves whether or not to engage in a game of rugby - or tennis, or American football. Their bodies, their choice about what risks they choose to take. It isn't for you to make the choice for them.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Will Fly
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 11:23 AM

You won't get a response or an explanation or a reason for WAV's pronouncement on women and sport - because he hasn't got one, merely a paternal, sexist prejudice.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Smedley
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 11:26 AM

And an abiding interest in bosoms.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 12:05 PM

Will, joking apart, then, are you aware that, unlike me, many males are against female bishops per se?

Smedley - isn't that the female area, logically, most at risk in a heavy contact sport such as rugby - if, like me, you check google, you'll soon see similar concern from others. And...

"You forgot to respond to me, David. And I think it's quite an important point:

"you bragged about playing a "bruising" game of rugby against females, without any consideration of what damage may be done to their breasts, etc"

The point is, David, that it is the choice of the women themselves whether or not to engage in a game of rugby - or tennis, or American football. Their bodies, their choice about what risks they choose to take. It isn't for you to make the choice for them."...there's no question there, Ruth, and I have addressed this issue just above with some very recent history (e.g., NO girls at all playing football, let alone rugby, when I was a kid - I'm 43); so I'll try some Shakespeare, instead:

"Liberty, as surfeit, is the father of much fast" (from Measure to Measure).

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 12:06 PM

What about homosexual officers of the Church WAV?
Or particularly how would you feel about the next Archbishop of Canterbury being lesbian? Or non-white?.

I'm with Sean on veg. Steam, sweat, stir-fry - don't boil.

Qualifications are of little use without continuous experience and regular updating and development.

Put CPD in Google


Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 12:15 PM

124 copy pastes in Google matching "Liberty, as surfeit, is the father of much fast walkaboutsverse"

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 12:17 PM

WAV:

Work out all the differences between "many" and "good".



A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 12:32 PM

"...there's no question there, Ruth, and I have addressed this issue just above with some very recent history (e.g., NO girls at all playing football, let alone rugby, when I was a kid - I'm 43); so I'll try some Shakespeare, instead:

"Liberty, as surfeit, is the father of much fast" (from Measure to Measure)."


So you are saying, WAV, that you would actively prevent women playing these sports? How?

I wonder if you've ever read The Handmaid's Tale...it strikes me as exactly the sort of theocratic, insular, paternalistic society you aspire to. It is also recognised, by most sane people, as a dystopia in which women are utterly disenfranchised.

Can I ask, seriously, why you think that women who are living happy, fulfilled, independent lives with good careers, fulfilling personal relationships and flourishing families, would ever take any notice of your rules? So keep spouting your wacky opinions, but you have to realise that this is all they will ever be. Meanwhile, women will keep raising their kids going to work and lifting 25kg bags of coal and playing tennis and generally living their lives, without taking a blind bit of notice of you.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 12:35 PM

'Mandotim - rather than repeat, I refer you to my above responses.'
And I, WAV, would refer you to the dozens of questions you have been asked on this thread which you have failed to answer. There is a difference, you pretend poet, between responses and answers. One more time; you asserted that I was bragging about playing in a mixed game of rugby. Please show precisely where I expressed one iota of inappropriate pride in having done so. In the meantime, comfort yourself with knowing that;
--Your 'poetry' sucks
--It has been posted repeatedly before
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 12:49 PM

The last few posts both make it clear that what I've said has NOT been read AND accuse me of repetition.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Will Fly
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 12:54 PM

I think the last few posts make it clear that the consensus appears to be that you haven't actually given clear replies to the questions posed to you. And this is your invariable response to people who question your views - always has been.

So - for example - here's a nice, clear question: Why do you think that women have no right to participate in any sport of their choosing?

Now - how about a nice, clear answer to that? No waffling - no reference back to other posts - no reference to your website stuff - just a straightforward, unambiguous answer?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 01:06 PM

And HOW would you prevent them taking part in any sport of their choosing? When you hearken back to a time when women did not play certain sports, I assume that means you would ban them again, if you could. But how could such legislation be realised now? You cannot simply turn back the clock. So you would have to stop the women currently playing these sports, plus bring an end to the industries that exist around many of them (such as tennis), and prevent them from taking part in future.

So how will that work, exactly?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 01:08 PM

What an ass. You blow off all attempts to actually converse and all attempts to get through to you in seeing that YOU ARE A BIGOT! Because you don't think you're one doesn't mean jackshit. The very things you throw back to show what a fine guy you are simply take us right back to bigoted opinions which you cannot or refuse to see.

Many of your posts are simply laughable and quite enjoyably so because of your pride in your own ignorance. Try not to be so proud of being a complete and total ass.

So when was the last time you worked....and for how long?

I know I won't get a straight answer, just more blatherings about "pottage".....the ultimate crock as it were. That one was funnier than hell but made funnier by your sillyass pride in your pathetic "pottage."

Like so much other shit it fits right in because:

--Your 'poetry' sucks
--It has been posted repeatedly before
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.



Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 01:19 PM

Just one example, then, of my last post: Will just returned to make another post that, without answering my question, accused me of not answering questions...Spaw has no problem with that as he again makes false accusations about me...is that because he's a "bigot"?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 01:21 PM

Nary an answer anywhere is there?

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Will Fly
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 01:29 PM

This was your response to my penultimate post - the question that I apparently haven't answered:

Will, joking apart, then, are you aware that, unlike me, many males are against female bishops per se?

My answer to you is" Yes, I am aware - so what? This has no bearing on my last question, which you haven't answered:

Why do you think that women have no right to participate in any sport of their choosing?

Quite clear, I think.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Melissa
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 01:32 PM

David,

If I had a job stocking produce
and you had a job stocking produce..

which of us should be paid more?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 01:47 PM

Ruth - I've only done very basic "Manufacturing and the Law" and, frankly, don't know exactly what, if any, rulings or laws were in place, such that females were not playing football, rugby, etc. - even though it is very recent history. As I've said, though, I think football is probably okay, but certainly not rugby.

Will - I stand by the idea that there are many things, including sports, fine for both sexes, but disagree with this very new attitude that "women can do ANYTHING"; and, more generally, prefer regulationism to freedom.

The same pay, Melissa, and I've addressed this in one of my poems, which I shall make the next "daily ditty."

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Melissa
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 01:49 PM

don't include it in your next ditty on my behalf..I skip that part of the thread most times.

If you and I both had jobs clearing broken branches--the job would involve moving big chunks of tree and using a chainsaw--which of us should be paid more?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Will Fly
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 01:53 PM

Will - I stand by the idea that there are many things, including sports, fine for both sexes, but disagree with this very new attitude that "women can do ANYTHING"; and, more generally, prefer regulationism to freedom.

So women can play any sport - presumably including rugby. Good - a reasonably straight response there.

Women doing ANYTHING is not a very new attitude, as it happens. Why should women be regulated? No reason given. I would refer you to a building firm in Brighton which advertises itself as So-and-so "and daughters". Speak to them about regulation and freedom and see what those lasses say! Don't give me any crap about women not being able to lift certain weights, by the way. I've known several women who could put a man to shame with their power and strength - and several men who couldn't lift more than a cup of tea.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 02:57 PM

"Ruth - I've only done very basic "Manufacturing and the Law" and, frankly, don't know exactly what, if any, rulings or laws were in place, such that females were not playing football, rugby, etc. - even though it is very recent history. As I've said, though, I think football is probably okay, but certainly not rugby. "


So what I want to know, and what I've asked three times so far, is HOW you would stop women playing whatever sport they choose?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 03:00 PM

Regulated....based on male and female? Yeah, right.......Can't see it can you WavyFWBR?


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Melissa
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 03:02 PM

What about underendowed women?
Is it ok with you for non-busty women to play sports?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 03:57 PM

Didn't get an answer to this one

'Or particularly how would you feel about the next Archbishop of Canterbury being lesbian? Or non-white?.'

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 04:53 PM

This time some of you have, at least apparently, misread me.

Ruth, I've said this a while back: hypothetically, in power, I'd be a macro NOT a micro manager - leaving it to experts in their fields to flesh-out the details.

Stu: when I studied anthropology, we were told not to refer to people by skin colour. Both the imperialistic Catholic and Anglican movements should be dissolved, and replaced with a Church of Germany only, a Church of Italy only, a Church of England only (with an English Archbishop of Canterbury), etc.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 05:09 PM

So where would English Roman Catholics go to worship?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Ruth Archer
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 05:35 PM

"Ruth, I've said this a while back: hypothetically, in power, I'd be a macro NOT a micro manager - leaving it to experts in their fields to flesh-out the details."

I'm not sure that's what macro-management is, WAV: giving out lofty proclamations which are impossible to deliver in the real world, and have no chance of ever coming to pass. I think that's just called fantasy.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 06:05 PM

What about a gay or lesbian Archbishop of Canterbury WAV?

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 06:08 PM

You don't care for the doctrine of "separation of church and state"., i take it. You seem to promote an identification of church with state. Why on earth do you think this would work? What about those in state X (say, England) who happen to be persuaded by religion "Y" (say, Xarathustrianism, or Taoism or Buddhism?

You got some 'splaining to do...



A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 06:20 PM

I've just listened to one of your tracks (once took...)

When you accompany your voice with an electronic keyboard, the pitch of your voice wavers all over the place. It's here for anyone with a sense of pitch

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 06:37 PM

S&R: Surely you jest. That's not "wandering pitch", it's a subtle harmony of roughly three half-notes plus or minus 20%, a musical tradition learned from the Aboriginal denizens of the far bush. It's related to throat singing, and also to double-thumbing indirectly. Some say there is a Chinese influence.



A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 10 Feb 10 - 11:35 PM

Really Amos? Damn.......and there I was thinking the problem was that he was being butt-fucked by a Yak at the same time he was trying to sing.

Sorry.........My mistake....I guess...............I DID see some pictures of the Yak though and it had a really big dick.......Are you sure Amos? WavyFWBR looks pretty wasted and the Yak had a look of comtentment.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Smedley
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 02:34 AM

Thanka for the link.

I am speechless.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Dave Hanson
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 03:25 AM

I've just listened to WAV playing and singing, he's taking the piss, I was going to say don't give up the day job but he hasn't got one.

BTW
- Your poetry sucks
- It has been posted repeatedly before
- It is full of bigoted and racist statements
- That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile

Dave H

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 03:40 AM

Is this thread real?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 03:44 AM

'Will - I stand by the idea that there are many things, including sports, fine for both sexes, but disagree with this very new attitude that "women can do ANYTHING"; and, more generally, prefer regulationism to freedom.'
So there we have it; WAV doesn't like freedom. Where do you stand on Mom and Apple Pie, WAV?
Straight question; I've never seen your definition of 'Regulationism' as a philosophy, WAV. Perhaps you would care to offer one? This is a straight question, asking for clarification of your views. I don't want any of your awful 'poetry' as a reply (I know there is one called 'Global Regulationism', and it doesn't answer the question), just a properly argued and justified definition of what you understand by the term 'regulationism'.
A critique of the above poem;
--Your 'poetry' sucks
--It has been posted repeatedly before
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 05:13 AM

I've kept feedback forms from my festival competition days, and among the criticisms (from well-respected folkies) such as, yes, "intonation" are the words "does have a good voice"; before I left Aus, a frank friend with a degree in music said of the, yes, Beatles songs I'd sing as he played - "about 7/8 out of 10."...it's subjective/who to trust..?
As I've said, I keep playing a line/singing a line as I go through the repertoire listed on the above link - to which I'm about to go for the "daily ditty"...

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 05:27 AM

Poem 126 of 230: WATERSCAPES OF OLDHAM - AUTUMN 2000

On a wet windy autumn-day,
    Within Greater Manchester,
Inside Oldham Art Gallery,
    A wooden-shelved greenhouse lay.

And on the shelves were neatly placed   
    Not pot plants but clear-glass
Clean-water-filled bottles and jars -
    Photographic-transfer faced.

So - as aquatic sounds streamed through,
    From speakers upon the wall -
Unique 3D. effects were seen:
    "Waterscapes," all strangely true.

(C) David Franks 2003
From WalkaboutsVerse

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Tom - Swords & Songs
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 05:42 AM

Dave man, there isn't really any debate at all - you can't sing in tune at all. What makes your recordings worse is playing a keyboard along with your 'singing' as all this shows is how badly your singing is. If you performed entirely a cappella, maybe you could attempt to hide your awful attempts at pitch, but I doubt it.

I'm afraid you are tone deaf. I'm sorry to have to break the news to you.

I wish I could say 'stick to your poetry and let singers do the singing', but unfortunately

--Your 'poetry' sucks
--It has been posted repeatedly before
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Tuneful Tom

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Tom - Swords & Songs
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 05:43 AM

PS - what a mismatch of poor grammar. Should really review before posting...
Tomato Tom

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 06:33 AM

It takes a rare talent to play one tune badly, and at the same time sing a completely different one even worse. Do you have any examples of you singing in tune, WAV? As for your playing, as a sensitive musician I much prefer the silent demonstration of your recorder technique. Perhaps you could apply this approach to all your posted musical offerings?
Still waiting for your definition of regulationism, by the way.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Jack Blandiver
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 08:41 AM

The only time I've been overly offended by WAV's singing is on When I survey the Wondrous Cross, otherwise in his own Chants & E. Trads I think he sounds just fine, be it on his Myspace page (his rendering of Cob-a-Coaling is an especial favourite of mine) & when I've heard him in singarounds. Musician he may not be, but since when was true folk music about musicians? Or NOT about people like Walkaboutsverse?

Now, WAV - tell me where English Roman Catholics are going to worship once you've formed your All-New Church of England? Or will this church reflect & accommodate the complex theological differences in Xtian traditions down the ages???

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 08:57 AM

You did that for me, Tim.
Sean - as you may know, there is some of that within the Church of England now...to paraphrase John Betjeman, some say too much of it/too high, others say not enough/too low...I'm happy with the weekly C. of E. Evensongs on the Beeb - except the bit about the Queen and the Catholic Church (as I say, the imperialistic/centralised Anglican and Catholic movements should both be dissolved, in my opinion).
To the others: fellow Catter, Don Firth, e.g., has put me onto a multitude of drills, but I do like to try and keep my whole repertoire in memory, and there are jobs to search for, daily ditties to do, pottages to prepare, tennis balls to whack, queries to answer, etc. - thus, as I say, I just play a line/sing a line sometimes as I go through my 60 pieces, on recorder and keyboards.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Tom - Swords & Songs
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 09:06 AM

Well, Suibhne, I must be listening to a different myspace site.
Certainly The Holly and the Ivy, When I survey... and Christmas Sung Simply don't appear to hit anywhere near the notes being played on the keyboard.

Maybe it's my old ears misleading me, or maybe it's a very clever system of quarter note harmonies which I have hitherto been unaware of?

Musician he may not be, poet he may not be, a functioning member of society he may not be.

More I would argue that it is right to attack this cretin on his inability to sing, because he is not performing in folk clubs just for fun, he actually intends to get a career out of it. He really believes he is a skilled singer/songwriter/poet/philosopher etc.

It has so far been the mission of many contributors to this thread to disprove him of all of these delusions.

But I suppose, whilst singing in tune is a matter of black and white, personal musical taste most definitely isn't.

Thomas Bleedingears

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 09:20 AM

I did what for you, WAV? You still haven't answered my question; I asked for your definition of 'regulationism' as a philosophy, without resorting to re-hashing one of your godawful 'poems'. Answer please, clearly and unequivocally.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Dave Hanson
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 09:54 AM

Someone ought to recommend WAV for next years folk awards, Lifetime Achievement Award for writing inane drivel.

Dave H

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 09:56 AM

So about this lesbian female Archbishop of Canterbury...Would that be OK or not?

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Smedley
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 10:18 AM

So about this lesbian female Archbishop of Canterbury...Would that be OK or not?


------------------------------------------
I can hear a verse lumbering towards us:

I could cope if some gay woman
Was in charge at Canter-BREE
Although I would revise this
If she had ever played rug-BEE

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: richd
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 11:01 AM

Oh glory be, this is magnificent! Being as what I am at home from work with the flu, although recovering, and having completed minor tasks and am avoiding major ones as too taxing; I thought I might offer to this discussion the main dimensions of Wavism as I understand them. (i.e. I'm bored). These are based on various writings and responses made by a leading Wavist, known as 'Wankerboutsworse'. I cannot be arsed to work out the citations and sources for these, but I'm sure someone will. I'm assuming that Wavists do not support political violence, and that Wavists do not currently have access to weapons beyond the 'English Flute' or 'Japanese Keyboard'. I will also pass no critical judgement on the poetry, since that's Wankerboutsworse's affair, and has been succinctly critiqued elsewhere in this thread.
If we start with what Wavists term the 'macro' level'. The central concept in Wavist politics appears to be a kind of national essentialism, that is that the highest expression of political will is a singular, geographically contiguous state, whose physical boundaries coincide with its cultural boundaries. A second central Wavist postion seems to be that this 'perfect state/nation' existed at some time in the past, but has broken down. In most political thought of this kind, this is normally ascribed to the actions of corrupt politicians. In particular national boundaries have broken down and allowed corrupting cultural influences which have further speeded up the decline of the perfect state. The third element of Wavist thought appears to be religious in nature, and that is that these perfect nation/states are in some way 'natural' or even ordained by god. The political aim of Wavism is therefore to return states, especially England, to their pre-lapse condition. Wavist political action consists of attempting to bring this return about by repeat publication on the internet of verse and other material, which will cause the masses to reject the imposed political system and demand a return to pre-lapse social conditions. This is given added weight by the posting of examples of pre-lapse music performed by 'Wankerboutsworse', a leading Wavist proponent.
To turn briefly to the 'micro' level of Wavist thought. This micro level is primarily concerned with 'culture'- and the desire to bring the cultural boundaries of states into congruence with their geographical and political ones. These cultural and physical boundaries are to be made as impermeable as possible. First, there is an increasing tendency within Wavism to suggest that individual states should have individual churches. What is less clear from Wavist texts is whether membership of all citizens will be compulsory in these churches, and whether there will be only one church in each nation. Second, the interest of Wavists in music adds another dimension to this, music being one of the prime ways that natural boundaries are breached, for example Rock'n'Roll. and the invention of TV. Thus all broadcasting will be national broadcasting- there will be no cross border activity. It is possible to infer from Wankerboutsworse's writings that other forms of media will be restricted in similar ways. It's not clear how far Wavists would restrict cross-border cultural activity, but it should be assumed that this might include restrictions on books, magazines, music and the internet.
Within the single perfect nation there will be a return to natural social relations, especially between the sexes. Wavists have not -as yet- discussed other forms of social relations, but we are fortunate that he will no doubt be along to tell us about it in the next ten minutes. All in all a bit Francoist, don't you think?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 11:38 AM

My gawd rich.......That is a wonderful analysis and extremely well put together for all to understand. You certainly do have way too much time on your hands at the moment but we are all grateful for this clear statement from one who has closely watched this growing, uh well, hmmmmm..............movement? I think that's appropriate. Yeah.............Thank you.

WavyFWBR, aka Wankerboutsworse, also remember:

--Your 'poetry' sucks
--It has been posted repeatedly before
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 12:06 PM

Stu - see Brother Smedley.
Dave - as I've been saying (here, e.g.) for as long as the Scots have had junior and senior folk-awards, isn't it about time we had similar in England?!
Rich - feeling better?
Spaw - wish you had less on yours.
Tim - apart from the poem "Global Regulationism" itself, this idea is manifest throughout much of my manifesto in verse.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 12:25 PM

I was intereste WAV that you describe your life's work as a manifesto. I have taken the liberty of copy pasting the first definition returned by Google

'A public declaration, usually of a prince, sovereign, or other person claiming large powers, showing his intentions, or proclaiming his opinions and motives in reference to some act done or contemplated by him; as, a manifesto declaring the purpose of a prince to begin war, and explaining his motives.'

except for the explaining bit it sort of fits the megalomania of your pronouncements

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 12:29 PM

'Stu - see Brother Smedley'


.Smedley -= thanks for clarifying WAV's POV. (Good poem by the way)

Following your appointment as WAV's spokesperson, could you clarify some other points"

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 12:33 PM

MANIFESTO IN VERSE???????

This may well be the biggest laugh yet. A manifesto? In verse?

First, your ideas and opinions are so muddled, puerile, and poorly thought out that they lack any form of useful logic making your manifesto horseshit with flies.   The fact that they are filled with bigoted statements which you seem to think are perfectly okay adds only to the laugh quotient.

In verse? You have yet to prove that you can actually write verse that isn't simply garbled blatherings assembled by a child.

Grow up. Go to work. Quit wasting your time here. Take Mudcat out of your day. You have already posted your manifesto repeatedly on these threads. Have you no shame? It is evident you have no ambition, no logic, no real world experience, no form of adult thought.................So at long last, have you no shame?

--Your 'poetry' sucks
--It has been posted repeatedly before
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 12:37 PM

'Tim - apart from the poem "Global Regulationism" itself, this idea is manifest throughout much of my manifesto in verse.'
Listen, dimwit; simply saying something should happen is not a definition. Your alleged 'verse' does not define the term; and don't forget, I've read every word of your sad 'life's work'. I asked you for a clear definition of 'regulationism'as a phiosophy; a system of thought, if you like. I have reasons; I think you mean 'fascism', but I'd be happy for you to prove me wrong. Once again; what is your definition of 'regulationism'? Oh, and by the way;
--Your 'poetry' sucks
--It has been posted repeatedly before
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Smedley
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 12:44 PM

Stu, I couldn't aspire to the demanding burden of explicating all of WAV's views. But I might offer a 'ditty' from time to time.


Twas on a Thursday afternoon
I read that post of Stu's
But I can only rhyme when I'm
Fellated by the Muse

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 01:25 PM

Tim: "Global Regulationism", actually one of my profile e.g. poems, is very different from "fascism" which derives from a dictatorial Italian party opposed to communism, and, as you may have noticed, has been used by the media, on both sides of the pond, during the economic downturn - but don't forget where you heard it first!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 04:08 PM

You will find about 350 instances of Global Regulationism on Google. Guess who authored 349 of them...

What did prophets do before spamming the world with repetitive and ill considered rubbish.

WAV I try to be charitable, honestly. I just find it hard to stomach your continuous objectionable tosh.

I'm sure your CV will get you to the odd interview. I can't see how you will ever progress beyond that point. I speak as an interviewer of some experience.

Sadly, I think most people now respond to you in irritated frustration instead of the welcoming help which was offered to you in early times here.

Sadly

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 05:11 PM

WAV; which bit of 'without resorting to re-hashing one of your godawful 'poems'.' don't you understand? I asked you for a definition. At best, your life's work contains half-baked examples drawn from your own fantasy world and a series of nonsensical opinions. Definition please, preferably with fully referenced citations from the political literature. After all, you do have a degree in Humanities, this stuff should be childs play for an educated man like you! Which makes it all the more surprising that;
--Your 'poetry' sucks
--It has been posted repeatedly before
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: olddude
Date: 11 Feb 10 - 05:37 PM

I don't know, but I like this one from David, I don't understand the last part about the "fill" but I like the images. Kinda like modern art, not traditional , unique .. I like breaking the mold and going outside the traditional .. doing something not like everyone else ... thats kinda cool ...actually





Cistercian monks have clearly been -
    Their Abbey's ruins can still be seen;
And, sounding for centuries before,
    Calder flows have passed - seeking the shore.
Lords of the grounds have, more lately, stayed -
    Their manor houses reused and unscathed.
Through beautiful gardens insects fly -
    The ruins of folk just a pass-by;
And, by viaduct, trains pass above -
    Folk thereby viewing a town I love.
Anglers and C. of E. delegates,
    Hikers and tourists, have crossed the gates...
Opportunistic masons, kings-men,
    Model makers, Turner, and men who pen...
Perhaps the witches came down from the hill,
    And do ghosts haunt - still questing their fill..?

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 12 Feb 10 - 05:41 AM

Stu an Tim: sadly, there is an ever-increasing amount of ignorance, assumption, contradiction and general WAVoholism in your posts.

Thanks, Dan - "Whalley Abbey" (above) over-looks Pendle Hill, famous for both the Pendle Witches (perhaps still discontent..?!), and the formation of the Quaker movement.

Also, in North-West England...

Poem 113 of 230: FOLLOWING THE SUN - SPRING 2000

Having moved, by buses, up the hill from Salford to Bury
    (To be within walk of new work, again),
These stimuli surround between my abode and the factory
    As I follow the sun - its wax, its wane:
Walking toward work and the rising sun, a morning chorus
    Rides the crisp breezy air of hill-farmland,
While gravel, of road and path, beneath my plonked feet crunches,
    And P.V.C. flaps loose of its hay-stand.

Bumble bees, tree sparrows and robins bob along the hedgerows,
    Squirrels and hares hop ahead on my route;
And on a weather-wrapped reservoir - glassy, or dulled by blows -
    Glide mute- and whooper-swans, ducks, geese and coot;
Horses, goats, sheep and cattle laze and graze on fields of green -
    Fields they, in turn, feed, helping make hay;
And, above, swifts and herons sometimes grace the aerial scene -
    A scene framed by a moorland chain of grey.

Slugs - some rusty, others pitch-black - slither on a clayey path,
    That slopes sharply beside the reservoir;
And a whitegood on green-grass - a horse trough, once a human bath -
    Amuses me as I view from afar;
As does Peel Monument, atop a distant Holecombe mount -
    By which an uncle and I once took lunch;
Disturbed nettles - brushed in such distraction - make their bulwarks count,
    And a shed-side arbour demands a hunch.

One time, three sheep-dogs determined me lost, and rounded me up;
    Oftentimes, the Metro. tram rattles by;
And, sometimes, a horse will urge me make handy a grassy cup,
    Or nudge for a scratch down its back and thigh;
On cooler mornings, the dew on grasses soaks my joggers through,
    But beautifies clumps of whimsy grass-heads;
And, already proceeding on his routine of chores to do,
    A farmer strong-hoses out the cowsheds.

Caravan-people leave their grouping to walk the well-worn track,
    And milk- and mail-vans squeeze tightly by;
Antique farm-machines rust away in a grassed ramshackle-stack,
    And pigeons startle from their grassy lie;                                                
In sun, fishing-people and bathers dot the reservoir's shore,
    And, in shade, ferns the sides of path and stream;
Near gates, manure fills the air and makes stepping a chore,
    But elsewhere the views are a poet's dream.

Magpies, near horses, bop around - perhaps for aroused worms;
    Laburnums sprung yellow, and hawthorns white,
Pleasingly, in nature, border the fields of farming-firms,
    And help enclose this Radcliffe rural site;
Plus, as I meander home from a day's factory toil,
    The sun, when it sets in a clear sky,
Forms a large amber ball, behind a converted cotton-mill -
    Signalling another day almost by.

(C) David Franks 2003
From WalkaboutsVerse

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 12 Feb 10 - 05:58 AM

WAVophobia is the correct term

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,Guest mandotim out and about
Date: 12 Feb 10 - 06:31 AM

'Stu an Tim: sadly, there is an ever-increasing amount of ignorance, assumption, contradiction and general WAVoholism in your posts.' I can back up every statement I've made about you from your own posts, WAV. I've read all your work, remember. How is that ignorant? Give me an example of contradiction. Show me where I've made an assumption that isn't rooted in something you've posted.
WAVoholism; by this made-up word, I assume you mean I'm addicted to you in some way? Nothing could be further from the truth. The sooner you stop polluting the internet the better as far as I'm concerned.
So, still no answer to my straight question about regulationism, WAV? Surely if you have a manifesto, you should know a little about the policies within it?
Answer please.
By the way;
--Your 'poetry' sucks
--It has been posted repeatedly before
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 12 Feb 10 - 06:53 AM

E.g., Tim, I have defined "Global Regulationism." And, if Stu would care to go back a couple of months through his posts (rather than google for his beloved stats), I'm almost certain he will find mentioning that I do sing like I play.

A minor correction - I just remembered that a recent "Country File" (BBC) programme had P.V.C being used for silage NOT hay; thus, I'll change the last line in the first stanza (above) to: "And P.V.C. flaps on a silage-stand."

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Tom - Swords & Songs
Date: 12 Feb 10 - 07:00 AM

I'm a WAVoholic.
I love this thread.
I love reading David's crappy website with all the horrible, rascist, uninformed, unworkable opinions which exist therein.
I love putting on his painful attempts at music for people who have never heard it and seeing the confused looks on their faces as they try to work out whether it's all a big joke
I love the idea that someone unemployed and with an aussie accent can hold such strong views about English Nationalism and work ethics.
I love how strongly people fight to show him the error of his ways to no avail.
I love WAV's constant refusal to answer straight forward questions.
I love that David gets a little upset by the repeat posting of these simple FACTS:

--Your 'poetry' sucks
--It has been posted repeatedly before
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Frankslover Tom

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 12 Feb 10 - 08:37 AM

You should see the light and become a lover of the frank, Tom.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Tom - Swords & Songs
Date: 12 Feb 10 - 08:51 AM

Hey, Daveybaby - that reminds me of a quetion posed to you that you never answered (shock horror!)

Would you allow a lesbian to become an archbishop?
Didn't you do that poem about not wanting gay couples to adopt? That was pretty sick right there.

Actually, I don't think you've ever really panned out what your general thoughts about homosexuality are. 'An abomination against your God' or 'Totally cool to do, everyone should try it!' I have long had my suspicions that you might be playing your English flute from within a closet (see this video) ...

TomonTom Action

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: olddude
Date: 12 Feb 10 - 09:32 AM

I really like "following the Sun" that is cool, great images of a place I never been to ... very cool

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 12 Feb 10 - 11:03 AM

Oh WAV..
I really do try to avoid ad hominem remarks and address my comments to your posts rather than to you.

So - I am interested/horrified by the repetitive copy pasts with which you flood the internet. Putting 'walkaboutsverse' and a quote from one of your posts into Google will generally produce hundreds (occasionally thousands) of hits.

Your poetry generally - not very good. Occasional items that could be edited into acceptable offerings. Occasional imagery that suggests you had thoughts.

Your music - here I disagree with Sean (I often concur) I find it almost entirely without merit. Your pitch is uncertain (to be kind) your timing and rhyming is not of this world.

Your published beliefs - homophobic, racist, misogynist, bigoted. As I have said before, I believe you think you are a nice guy.

Your posts are offensive

Sorry

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 12 Feb 10 - 12:01 PM

You should be "sorry", Stu - I'm none of those...and a "homophobic" male who hates women?!

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 12 Feb 10 - 12:21 PM

I'll try again in simple words:

Despite what you think about yourself (Nice guy?) Your posts are as I describe. I don't know you or what you are save for Sean's favourable description and your posts. I and some if not many others find a lot of your posts offensive on many grounds. I can only judge your posts: this is what I repeatedly comment upon.

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: richd
Date: 12 Feb 10 - 07:18 PM

Indeed, "Believe the tale, not the teller". Yes I am better, physically. Thank you for asking. You, WAW appear not to be, as far as I can tell, since you are still posting. These things.. this 'poetry' is a symptom, no? Your meaning for living? Your conact? Only guessing mind.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: richd
Date: 12 Feb 10 - 07:20 PM

Sould be 'contact' sorry, a slip..

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 13 Feb 10 - 03:58 AM

One more time; I asked you to define 'regulationism' as a philosophy, without referring to your crap poem on the subject, since this is simplty a bunch of half-baked opinions. I asked you to offer a considered, rational view of why you think it is a good thing to limit the freedom of individuals in such draconian ways. I asked you to support this by reference to the political literature (not unreasonable, since you claim to have an academic background). In other words, WAV, I asked you to think for once about what you are saying rather than regurgitating the tired, nonsensical observations contained in you 'life's work'. A proper answer this time please; I showed you enough respect to plough through all your turgid rubbish, I think you owe me the courtesy of a considered answer in return. I have asked you a number of other questions recently, including a request to justify your comments about Stu and I. No answers to these either, I note. By the way;
--Your 'poetry' sucks
--It has been posted repeatedly before
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 13 Feb 10 - 04:58 AM

Tim, as you may remember, then, I've said this in verse, but shall now try in gobbledygook-ish prose: accepting we humans are competitive, I like fair competition, which, in my opinion, requires good strong regulations, and large facilities are better regulated by nationalisation within each nation of a stronger United Nations.

Now, in the lead-up to Valentine's Day, here's some gobbledygook-ish verse...

Poem 106 of 230: TESTING 4,3,2,1

I've tried to learn to sing a song
Well enough to let a singer
Know the way I found to sing
My lyric-only songs.

That is, just in case a singer
Was in want of a way to sing
These lyric-only songs.

But I'm sorry there's no notes with the songs,
And hope they're okay said, if not sung -

As love songs.

(P.S: writing, via mimicking, my tunes came late,
But they were all in shorthand by 2008.)

(C) David Franks 2003
From WalkaboutsVerse

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Dave Hanson
Date: 13 Feb 10 - 08:01 AM

WAV you have delusions of adequacy.

Dave H

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 13 Feb 10 - 08:28 AM

"I like fair competition, which, in my opinion, requires good strong regulations, and large facilities are better regulated by nationalisation within each nation of a stronger United Nations."

Totally lame.....as a matter of fact, it has no legs. That is your most skewed view that allows you to explain to yourself why you have no job. Nothing is fair is it? Poor and pathetic David.

And so I repeat:

--Your 'poetry' sucks
--It has been posted repeatedly before
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 13 Feb 10 - 10:38 AM

David should not be mocked; he is a man of great breadth, and uncharted shallows.


A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 13 Feb 10 - 11:00 AM

That's a considered response??? What it boils down to is an unresearched, unverifiable and illogical opinion, based upon no factual evidence whatsoever and rooted in a set of unpleasant prejudices known here as WAVism. No definition of terms, no consideration of how these sweeoing changes might be achieved. Face it David; your political attempts are as inadequate as the rest of your life, as evidenced by your writings, your employment record and your social skills. In addition,
--Your 'poetry' sucks
--It has been posted repeatedly before
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.
Still waiting for a reasoned answer to my questions above, WAV. Do try harder this time. Or just feck off and pollute some other list, I don't mind which.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 13 Feb 10 - 11:52 AM

Hot air - huffed and puffed against an argument founded on the solid foundations of much travel and training.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 13 Feb 10 - 01:27 PM

THe problem is you speak so inaccurately. To blithely assert "larger facilities should be nationalized within a stronger United Nations" shows a great sloppiness of thought or speech or both.

General Motors, for example, should not be nationalized, despite being a very large facility. Perhaps you think Heathrow should be nationalized because of its size? Or do you actually mean only those large facilities whihc are part of the common infrastructure of society, likes the roads and the postal system, for example?

We have two companies in the US which are almost as alrge as the postal system--UPS and FEDEx. Neither one of them should be nationalized for any rational reason.

PErhaps when you think through what you mean, and take the trouble to say as much in clear language, you will not be thrown back on the barricades of vague self-defense.


A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 13 Feb 10 - 02:53 PM

Face it David.......or at least admit it for a start. You have no experience and instead of your supposed travels opening your eyes, you take life in as a blinded fool.

I'm willing to bet dollars to donuts that you have never held any real world job for more than a year.   You never speak of any working experience when you talk about job hunting. You only speak of your dubious training and certificates......and that life isn't fair to you.

How long were you employed at your last job?
How long have you been unemployed?
When was your last interview?
How many interviews have you had in the past two years?
Have you had ANY job offers?
Why have you not been hired by someone if you're so damn qualified?
Do you think your search is in any way enhanced by remaining UNEMPLOYED?

Also worth noting here:

--Your 'poetry' sucks
--It has been posted repeatedly before
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 13 Feb 10 - 03:52 PM

You assume a lot as you make your false accusations, Spaw. I've lots of manufacturing experience, with several companies, as I've gone for both permanent- and fixed-term contracts; also, the economy is barely out of recession here and, thus, as you try yet another way to get at me, you insult many others.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 13 Feb 10 - 04:05 PM

Nary an answer there WavyFWBR..........That's a Bullshit cocktail with an umbrella. The situation here is pretty much the same. What's the matter Doodles? Too good for less than perfect job?

We have a saying generally attributed to an African-American leader of the '60's, Eldridge Cleaver:

"........you're either part of the solution or you're part of the problem."


YOU are part of the problem.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 14 Feb 10 - 03:29 AM

Still waiting for a reasoned answer, but in the meantime;
Walkaboutsverse,--Your 'poetry' sucks
--It has been posted repeatedly before
--It is full of bigoted and racist statements
--That which isn't racist is often incredibly juvenile
--It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 14 Feb 10 - 05:29 AM

As I say, Tim and Spaw, "hot air".

No-more risque than "Song of Songs" in The Bible, and for no-one in particular...

Poem 108 of 230: YOUR SALT UPON MY LIPS

(TUNE:

F# G A A B B C#' C#' A
A C#' C#' C#' B A B A
A C#' C#' C#' B A B C#' A
A C#' C#' C#' B A A B C#' A

A B B C#' C#' B A B A
B B C#' C#' B A B A
B C#' C#' C#' C#' B A B C#' A
A C#' C#' C#' B A B A
B B C#' C#' C#' B A B A)      
   
I saw the tears escape your eyelids,
I felt the stinging on your cheeks,
I knew the blur within your vision,
I heard you cry and I smelt the water...

And I want your salt upon my lips -
Ah-huh, your salt upon my lips.
Yeah, I want to be with you in private,
And kiss your salt onto my lips -
Ah-huh, taste your salt upon my lips.

I saw you come out of the ocean,
I felt the sun shine on your skin,
I knew the tingle through your torso,
I heard the surf and I smelt the water...

And...

I saw the sweat break from your body,
I felt the heat build in your cheeks,
I knew the beating of your big heart,
I heard you sigh and I smelt the water...

And...

(C) David Franks 2003
From WalkaboutsVerse

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Dave Hanson
Date: 14 Feb 10 - 05:55 AM

You just don't get it do you Wavy ? or anything for that matter.

to re-iterate
- Your poetry sucks
- It has been posted repeatedly before
- It is full of bigoted and racist statements
- That which isn't racist is often incredidbly juvenile
- It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world,
- especially considering your supposed travels.

Dave H

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Will Fly
Date: 14 Feb 10 - 06:36 AM

David - you missed out the last verse:

"And...

Big bottoms, big bottoms,
Talk about mudflaps, my girl's got 'em.
Big bottoms, big bottoms,
Talk about bumcakes, my girl's got 'em."

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: mandotim
Date: 14 Feb 10 - 06:43 AM

So, David; I've asked a question that you can't (or won't) answer? (Again). You've got plenty of time to do the research, so why not do it? I mean, it's not as if you're doing anything useful, is it?
You really don't get it, do you David? What irritates me (and 99% of the others who seek to engage you on these threads)is your constant carping about what's wrong with the country and the culture that is currently enabling you to be idle all day and spend time polluting the internet with your rubbish. If you were contributing anything meaningful and well-considered, I might just tolerate you. But you don't, do you? Your ideas are all, without exception, unsustainable, unrealistic and rooted in your racist and sexist fantasies. Your poetry has no literary or social merit whatsoever, and your attempts at music are simply laughable. When challenged, you are completely unable to defend any of your assertions, and retreat into either mad rambling or re-quoting your appalling verse. Despite all this, you have a very high opinion of yourself and everything you do, so high that you feel able to lecture people on this board about their own areas of expertise (Eliza Carthy springs to mind), and aspire to be paid for your artistic efforts. This high opinion extends into other areas; you think you should have the power to order women to behave as you wish, and to order the exclusion of other races and cultures from taking a full part in the life of this country. You also believe that the trading systems of the world should be altered to suit your views, and that religions should reorganise themselves along the lines of the Gospel According to WalkaboutsVerse. Employers (in your view) are unfairly denying you jobs, despite manifest evidence that you are not sane enough to work. You should listen very carefully David; you are ill, and you should seek professional help. You are not just 'odd', or 'eccentric', you are way, way beyond that point. Your paranoia and megalomania are out of control, and there is evidence of obsessive/compulsive behaviour in the way you keep posting and re-posting your verses here and elsewhere. Your views on women hint at some rather odd sexual issues as well. I also suspect that Walkaboutsverse is becoming a true alter ego, allowing you to air some of your masturbatory fantasies in public. I'm leaving this thread now, David, as I've realised it's pointless letting you drag me down to your level; when it comes to idiotic conversations, you will always beat me because of your greater experience.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 14 Feb 10 - 06:59 AM

You should call that piece of shit "Dose of Salts."

- Your poetry sucks
- It has been posted repeatedly before
- It is full of bigoted and racist statements
- That which isn't racist is often incredidbly juvenile
- It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world,
- especially considering your supposed travels.


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 14 Feb 10 - 12:00 PM

More bitchy cheap-shots/more delusion - not just talking down but way down to someone who any reasonable person would accept as being highly travelled, trained, and achieved (read my blurb).

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 14 Feb 10 - 02:46 PM

No cheap shot at all but honest comment upon your work when I say:

- Your poetry sucks.....Forced meter and/or rhyme with poor constrution overall; the words themselves make me believe you swallowed a Thesaurus.

- It has been posted repeatedly before.......Why not just link it? Do you see others here doing anything like this? Many will agree that your "Life's Work" is free to be posted but certainly not repeatedly for your own puerile need.

- It is full of bigoted and racist statements........Most have been poinyed out to you repeatedly and yet you seem to think that bigoted renmarks are not so if you don't think they are. A bigot is a bigot, if only by accident and if they "mean well."


- That which isn't racist is often incredidbly juvenile........Virtually every one of your supposed poems is juvenile in both content and construction.

- It is obvious to most that you have limited knowledge of the world, especially considering your supposed travels.........If you have traveled, it is obvious you learned nothing from it.


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 14 Feb 10 - 04:16 PM

Caveat lector: please ignore such foolishness, reader, and check my life's work for yourself.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 14 Feb 10 - 06:41 PM

Frankly David, I would encourage one and all to go to YOUR websites and read YOUR statements and YOUR life's work........at YOUR WEBSITES.

Don't you think that three or more times is enough here at Mudcat? I really don't think that any of us, no matter how we feel about your work, would begrudge you the privilege of posting it all here once, but this sort of thing that you are indulging in is ridiculous. Invite everyone to go to YOUR WEBSITES and READ YOUR POETRY. They all can read your every thought at YOUR WEBSITE. You and I are just members here and a certain amount of consideration is due to both of us and others.   Please be considerate and post YOUR VIEWS, YOUR LIFE'S WORK, and anything your heart desires at YOUR WEBSITE. In Mudcat threads you can link to YOUR WEBSITE for others to go to and read whatever you want them to read.....AT YOUR WEBSITE.

Why not end this thread now and participate in the other threads here like the one on Rugby and many others? When you do you can link them to things on YOUR WEBSITE without reposting them here. Otherwise I really see no end to this........Do you?


Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Amos
Date: 14 Feb 10 - 06:53 PM

"Salt Upon My Lips" is the first piece of yours, David, that I read without wincing at the abuse. And I notice one reason is that you gave up that obsessive, puerile addiction to tawdry rhyme schemes that required you to distort the language so badly. I won't say it's good, that last thing of yours, but it doesn't suck--you could make a rock radio hit out of it. That's no great praise but its better than your usual stuff.

I have to say, David, that Spaw is not being just vicious and nasty--he is trying to crack your unreasoning self-defensive carapace. The black screen of self-righteousness is a terrible thing to hide behind. Your life would be much richer if you let go of it.

A

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: olddude
Date: 15 Feb 10 - 12:36 AM

David
I to would also like to see you join in on other threads also. It was good to see you post in a few others. I thought the thread you started about cricket was interesting and you have shared your views in other threads also. Folks get to know you and understand you when you join in on other discussions. It is fun and I think people would like to see you there also. You have a good sense of humour and some of the threads are just fun, especially when Spaw gets on a roll. He had me laughing for three days calling me names when I sent him my CD and I short changed the postage on him. It was priceless. There really is a lot of fun on mudcat so do join in on other threads and maybe everyone take a break from the verse thread for a little bit. It would good to have you share your thoughts on the music, jokes, pets and all the other nonsense that is here

Dan

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,S O'P (Astray)
Date: 15 Feb 10 - 05:24 AM

There really is a lot of fun on mudcat so do join in on other threads and maybe everyone take a break from the verse thread for a little bit.

One of the best ever Mudcat threads was instigated by David & is certainly the most fun I've ever had here. Contains some genuinely creative WAV prose too:

The re-Imagined Village

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: WalkaboutsVerse
Date: 15 Feb 10 - 05:47 AM

Firstly, it varies, but I do read and participate in other threads (click on my name and you'll soon see rugby, a couple started by Crow Sister, Olympics, etc.).
Secondly, this from Amos suggests more, not less, repetition, is needed - "you could make a rock radio hit out of it."...how many times have I said that we, on this side of the pond, should enjoy listening to your American pop and rock, BUT perform from our OWN good cultural heritage, and let Americans be Americans!

As Tom suggested, above, some may not be happy that I'm now going to stop posting a daily ditty here (they'll have to goto my myspace blog each day).

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: catspaw49
Date: 15 Feb 10 - 05:50 AM

...I'm now going to stop posting a daily ditty here (they'll have to goto my myspace blog each day).

An excellent decision David. Thank you.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: s&r
Date: 15 Feb 10 - 06:09 AM

Welcome to Mudcat

Stu

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: Will Fly
Date: 15 Feb 10 - 07:23 AM

David - I would also applaud your decision to leave the verse to your own websites. I don't doubt some of us will engage in debate and argument with you in other threads, but the repeated posting of the same verses is, in the end, fruitless.

I'm not a great fan of your poetry but - if you wrote some NEW stuff on your website, I'd give it a look. If an art form seriously engages a person, I don't think he or she could just draw a line under it and call it their Life's Work. Life goes on - we change as people - we get older and different. That should surely be reflected in what we say, whether we say it in words and/or music.

So - pick up the pen and paper, exercise the Little Grey Cells and have a go.

Subject: RE: BS: WalkaboutsVerse Anew
From: GUEST,S O'P (Astray)
Date: 15 Feb 10 - 07:36 AM

should enjoy listening to your American pop and rock, BUT perform from our OWN good cultural heritage, and let Americans be Americans!

One of these days, WAV, you might wake up and realise that Pop and Rock are universal traditional idioms that came about through cross-pollinations so wondrous as to ensure a myriad diversity of musical forms that are continually evolving. Could The Animals have come from anywhere but Newcastle? The Beatles anywhere but Liverpool? Joy Division anywhere but Manchester? Soft Machine anywhere but Canterbury? Faust anywhere but Germany? Magma anywhere but France? Sigur Ross anywhere but Iceland? Man anywhere by Wales?

If you accept (and indeed promote) the idea of a multi-national Christianity, then why not Rock & Pop music?