May 31, 2020

MAY 31, curtained verse: gull and buoy

 EDITORS' WARNING: You must be at least 12 years of age to read this post!




You can review other mildly scurrilous illustrated verses in a wider context by proceeding to 'Curtained verse: Faintly Obscene (Selected) Limericks' on the full-service blog 'Edifying Nonsense'.




May 30, 2020

MAY 30, 2020: exotic destination: Cappadocia (troglodytes)







Other verses about 'Exotic Travel Destinations' can be found on our blog 'Edifying Nonsense'. Click HERE.
 

May 29, 2020

MAY 29, etymology: 'havoc'/'haven'











For fans of etymology, we have three blogposts with collections of verses about word-origins such as the one above on our more encyclopedic blog "Edifying Nonsense". You can start to review some of this intriguing material by clicking HERE, and then following the links!




May 28, 2020

MAY 28, a brief saga: fluoridation










Authors' Note:    A controversy over fluoridation of public water systems peaked in the 1940s through 1960s in North America. Municipal water-suppliers with low ambient levels of the natural mineral were motivated to adjust that in order to reduce childhood tooth decay. Despite initial vocal opposition, fluoridation was adopted by many municipalities in North American and elsewhere. In Europe, in contrast, fluoridation of municipal water-systems has never achieved wide support as a public health measure.
 “Do you realize that fluoridation is the most monstrously conceived and dangerous Communist plot we have ever had to face?” Brig. Gen. Jack Ripper, a character in the 1964 film classic Dr. Strangelove”.

  You can review the collection of illustrated verses on other dental topics by proceeding to the post 'Dental Feelings' on our full-service blog 'Edifying Nonsense'.


For the purpose of this blog, a 'brief saga' is defined as a poem, usually narrative, but occasionally expository, that tell its story in at least 15 lines. Most commonly, the format involves three stanzas in limerick form. Your blogging team has been presenting these concoctions at the rate of one per month, mixed in with the usual shorter poems, wordplay and  other general offerings. 
   
To access the next 'brief saga' on this blog, proceed to 'Life as a Loon'.
To access the most recent previous 'brief saga', back up to 'Claire's celerity'.  
 







May 27, 2020

MAY 27, classic palindrome: Mr. Owl

Keep more to yourself for a while, wash your hands frequently, wear a mask in public, remember to laugh on occasion, and stay well!



Authors' Note: The original classic palindrome stated,

"Mr. Owl ate MY metal worm."

 Ms. Nan is an eight-year-old proto-recycler. Readers are asked to sign her 'Recyclers' Pledge', and thereby help protect creatures in our common environment.

You can review these illustrated verses in a wider context by proceeding to 'Reversing Verse: Limericks About Classic Palindromes' on the full-service blog 'Edifying Nonsense'. 

May 26, 2020

MAY 26, Ontario nostalgia: Trent-Severn canal

Keep more to yourself for a while, wash your hands frequently, wear a mask in public, remember to laugh on occasion, and stay well!



Authors' Note:       


docktailsslang for drinks, and/or a cocktail-      snack social hour at dockside, as used by North American motorboating cliques

mocktails: abbreviation for mock (non-alcoholic) cocktails


  The Trent-Severn Waterway is a system operated by Parks Canada and enjoyed by recreational motorboaters. It meanders for 400 km (250 miles) across southern Ontario, joining L. Ontario's Bay of Quinte and L. Huron's Georgian Bay via intervening smaller lakes, rivers and manmade canals. With over 40 locks en route, the altitude near the system's midpoint reaches a level of 180 m (590 feet) above the starting point. The world's highest lift-lock, located at Peterborough, is an impressive piece of engineering and a tourist attraction.

  The Trent-Severn Waterway is a system operated by Parks Canada and enjoyed by recreational motorboaters. It meanders for 400 km (250 miles) across southern Ontario, joining L. Ontario's Bay of Quinte and L. Huron's Georgian Bay via intervening smaller lakes, rivers and manmade canals. With over 40 locks en route, the altitude near the system's midpoint reaches a level of 180 m (590 feet) above the starting point. The world's highest liftlock, located at Peterborough, is an impressive piece of engineering and a tourist attraction.


You can review the entire series of illustrated poems about  the good old days in Ontario by checking the post 'Ontario Nostalgia' on our full-service blog "Edifying Nonsense". Click HERE


May 25, 2020

MAY 25, birdlore: cedar waxwings











 You can view an encyclopedic collection of illustrated poems on this topic by proceeding to the post 'Poems about BIRDLIFE' on our full-service blog "Edifying Nonsense". Click HERE


May 24, 2020

MAY 24, anagram swarm: A-VERY-STABLE-GENIUS, #7






Bonus wordplay concoction:



You can review an amazing number of anagrams based on this book title on our full-service blog 'Edifying Nonsense'. There are two posts to view:  ’A Very Stable Genius': Theme and Variations (97 anagrams), and 
'A Very Stable Genius': additional funky anagrams



May 23, 2020

MAY 23, wordplay maps: new world palindrome (#21,#22)


Keep more to yourself for a while, wash your hands frequently, wear a mask in public, remember to laugh on occasion, and stay well!

TO ENLARGE any slide or stand-alone photo on this blog, just click on it. To reverse the process, and return to this standard view, find the little 'x' in the upper right corner of the black field and click there.









You can view the entire collection of these 50 wordplay maps, by accessing the collection 'Tourists Palindromic Guides: The Americas'. Start by clicking HERE

May 21, 2020

MAY 21, geysers: geyser guru



Authors' Note:  The geyser (GHIE-zer or GHEE-ser) is an unusual hydrogeologic phenomenon which occurs in volcanic zones where magma (molten lava) is close to the surface, and there is fissuring of rocks due to earthquake faults. Minerals dissolved from adjacent rocks precipitate out, forming a lining for a type of 'plumbing system' in which steam builds up, resulting in regular eruptions of boiling water. Changes in the colour of the swirling hot water in the pool help predict the arrival of the next photogenic discharge. 

 Yellowstone Park, in the American Rockies, is a site of these natural wonders, including the famous geyser ‘Old Faithful’.


 You can review these illustrated verses in a wider context by proceeding to 'Poetry that Spurts: Verses about Geysers' on the full-service blog "Edifying Nonsense".


May 20, 2020

MAY 20 (2020), singable satire: show-tune written by George Gershwin, "ICELAND"

 PARODY SONG-LYRICS


ORIGINAL SONG: The melody for the spiritual ballad "Summertime" from the George Gershwin opera "Porgy and Bess".

PARODY COMPOSED: Giorgio Coniglio (registered pseudonym) and Dr. GH, August 2018. 

EVOLUTION of the LYRICS: The song-lyrics originated as limerick verses composed by Giorgio Coniglio 2017, and compiled in January 2018. The details of the lyrics were based on GC's family trip to Iceland in June 2015. Most of the verses also appear, mildly modified, in the online limerick dictionary OEDILF.com. They were subsequently adopted as a parody-song collage, and posted on GC's blog, at that time known as "Ukable Parodies"

SONGLINK:  
Our whole series of songs can be found in a friendly format for ukulele (and guitar)-players on our blog  "SILLY SONGS and SATIRE". Click here to proceed to this site: it also has a calypso-style song derived from the same visit to Iceland in June 2015 under the title "Nordic Journal: Island in the Sun"                                  

CONTENTS: titles (OEDILF listing)

1. Iceland / Ísland  
2. Geysir: OEDILF 
3. Eyjafjallajökull / E15 
4. Second-Hand Geyser
5. Stopover in Reykjavik 

ICELANDIC SAGA

(to the tune of "Summertime") 

1. In the far North Atlantic there’s dry land:
Friendly Iceland – it’s my kind of island.
You’ll be welcomed in Ísland *; cool and damp but at-peace land
Summer-sun-all-day-but-you-won’t-fry land.

2. Tourists learn the Norse thermal god plays here;
The Icelandic locale known as ‘Geysir’.
From hot pools steam erupts - belching after he sups.
Then they head for the sign (that says),“Tour Bus Stays Here.”

3. E15, Iceland stratovolcano,
Spews out fog that can clog up your plane, Oh
If explain it I must - it’s just ashes and dust;  
Can’t they flush it away with some Drano?

4. A cheap gift: though Björn thought he’d surprise her,
Björg rejected his second-hand geyser,                                              
“What I’d prize is a freezer. Your poor wife, why displease her?
It just proves you’re a nasty old miser.”

5. If you’re planning an Iceland stopover:
Avoid months with an 'R', like October;  
And a Reykjavik warning! Bars open til morning  
With patrons not prone to stay sober.

* pronounced as EES-lahndt.









May 19, 2020

MAY 19, wordplay maps: new world palindromes (#19,#20)

Keep more to yourself for a while, wash your hands frequently, remember to laugh on occasion, and stay well!










You can view the entire collection of these 50 wordplay maps, by accessing the collection 'Tourists Palindromic Guides: The Americas'. Start by clicking HERE


May 18, 2020

MAY 18, mammalian wildlife: raccoons in the swamp






Authors' NoteWe are indebted to Bill Wingfield for contributing the idea for the previous poem. 


 You can review the whole collection of illustrated verses about mammals (both domestic and exotic) by checking out the more extensive post on our full-service blog "Edifying Nonsense". Click HERE !


May 17, 2020

MAY 17, political palindromes, A




 

 These palindromes were selected to display the simplest type of palindrome construction. A word such as 'debut', that creates an alternate English word when the letters are read in reverse order, is sometimes waggishly referred to as a 'SEMORDNILAP'. In any case, full speed ahead (ignore the punctuation)!

  For more complex types of palindromes, further head-scratching may be needed to understand the basis of construction. Please see the selected examples that will be displayed on the post of June 14; click HERE.


May 16, 2020

MAY 16, trees: silver maples

Keep more to yourself for a while, wash your hands frequently, remember to laugh on occasion, and stay well!







silver maple in Toronto park;
large broken-off limb



You can review these illustrated verses in a wider context by proceeding to 'Uprooted Verse: 'Poems about Trees' on the full-service blog "Edifying Nonsense". 


May 15, 2020

MAY 15, Carolina lowcountry: a quiet day's photocollage.









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May 14, 2020

MAY 14, portraits of couples: Introduction (domestic turkeys)

Giorgio and I have decided, despite the limitations of the new COVID-19 lockdown regulations, to undertake a novel business venture -- family photographic portraiture.
Please call or email to make an appointment with our staff for a photo-shoot, which can be conducted in your front yard, sidewalk or parking area. Owing to the inclement weather, clothing (other than pyjamas or gym-shorts) is recommended.
With the approval of our earliest clients, I will post some samples here over the next few days for your perusal.
Best wishes,
Giorgio / Dr.G.H.






Enjoy an illustrated poem about domestic turkeys by clicking HERE.


You can view this photo from our portfolio of 'Couples' portraits in a
wider context on our full-service blog "Edifying NonsenseHERE

May 13, 2020

MAY 13, waterfowl: mute swans




Authors' Note: lim: abbreviation for 'limerick', used by poetry-nerds.



You can review these illustrated verses in a wider context by proceeding to 'Immersible Verse: Limericks about Waterfowl' on the full-service blog 'Edifying Nonsense'.


May 12, 2020

MAY 12, patients and maladies: flu-like illness





 Be sure to check out the whole collection of verses on 'Patients and their Maladies" by proceeding to our full-service blog ,"Edifying Nonsense." CLICK HERE !

May 11, 2020

MAY 11, non-sequitur: gifted children


Authors' Note: For educators, giftedness, e.g. in intellectual abilities, implies an ability significantly above average that motivates differences in school programming. For gifted children, social isolation from the majority of their age-peers is a major problem in their development and maturation. Various educational theories and practices abound in attempting to deal with this problem.   

Our collection of 'Non-Sequiturs' on our parent blog "Edifying Nonsense", contains an admittedly bizarre assortment of nonsensical odds-and-ends, that don't quite fit into other topic-based offerings. But should you want to review the entire collection, click HERE.
 


May 10, 2020

MAY 10, Toronto oases: Toronto Islands (photocollage#1)




 More view of summer outings to "the Island" can be found HERE

May 9, 2020

MAY 9, wordplay maps: American Scramble-towns 5,6


Same old message ...
Who would ever have guessed? It turns out that an unparalleled word in generating anagrams (letter scrambles) is P-A-L-I-N-D-R-O-M-E-S. We have taken advantage of that property to create this unique series of wordplay maps of imaginary American (and Canadian) locales, each one completed by its official two-letter state (or provincial) abbreviation. 






LINKS: 
Forward to U.S.A. map #7
Back to U.S.A. map #3
Let's skip all this stuff and get on to the Canadian version, eh? (stay tuned!)




May 8, 2020

MAY 8, classic palindrome: 'Emil's lime'

Keep more to yourself for a while, wash your hands frequently, wear a mask in public, remember to laugh on occasion, and stay well!



Authors' Note: 



You can review these illustrated verses in a wider context by proceeding to 'Reversing Verse: Limericks About Classic Palindromes' on the full-service blog 'Edifying Nonsense'. 


May 7, 2020

MAY 7, wordplay maps: sister-cities anagrams (13-15)

Keep more to yourself for a while, wash your hands frequently, remember to laugh on occasion, and stay well!