Time for a Rhyme (or Two or Seven)


Tell me, O Octopus, I begs
Is those things arms, or is they legs?
I marvel at thee, Octopus;
If I were thou, I'd call me Us. 

--Ogden Nash

Peculiar Treasure #1: Fascinating 19th century German book given to my brother by my sister for Christmas.

Peculiar Treasure #2: The poet Ogden Nash (my favorite, and clearly a big 
influence on me), who wrote many other classics such as:

Fleas
Adam
Had 'em 

and

Celery
Celery, raw
Develops the jaw,
But celery, stewed,
Is more quietly chewed.

and let's not forget

The Firefly
The firefly's flame
Is something for which science has no name
I can think of nothing eerier
Than flying around with an unidentified glow on a
person's posteerier.

or his foray into limeracy

Requiem
There was a young belle of Natchez
Whose garments were always in patchez.
When comment arose
On the state of her clothes,
She drawled, When Ah itchez, Ah scratchez!

and last but certainly not least

Further Reflections on Parsley
Parsley
Is gharsley

(to which I heartily disagree and have been known to eat handfuls at a time and then forget to check my teeth before waltzing into public)

Therefore, I say:

Parsley is stupendous
It's thyme that's horrendous.

2 comments:

Brenda Christmas said...

Ogden Nash was my first favorite poet! I especially liked these two poems:

The Ostrich roams the Great Sahara
Its mouth is wide, its neck is narra.
It has such long and lofty legs,
I'm glad it sits to lay its eggs.

And:

Toward a better world
I contribute my modest smidgen.
I eat the squab,
Lest it become a pigeon.

Timber said...

Love 'em! Soooo many to choose from, and some of the longer ones are hysterical. And there was one short one that I love that I didn't use; the younger squeeze-bottle generation wouldn't get it:

The Catsup Bottle (title)

First a little
Then a lottle