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: Ontario's 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:

docktails: slang 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 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, pandemic poetry: 'two contagiously funny verses'







Authors' Note: Thanks to M.A. of Bloomington IN for the idea for the second verse. 


 You can review these illustrated verses in a wider context by proceeding to 'Pandemic Poetry' on the full-service blog "Edifying Nonsense".


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, garden intruders: stinkhorn fungus





  

Authors' NoteClathrus ruber is a startlingly shaped species of saprophytic fungus that resembles an orange plastic toy ball. Its interior surfaces are coated with a foul-smelling slime that attracts flies, which then disperse the fungal spores. The characteristic fetid odor of the fungus resembles that of rotting meat. Other common names include latticed stinkhorn, red cage (fungus), and basket stinkhorn. 
       

Readers, you are fortunate to have all our poetic comments on creatures (animal and vegetable), devoted to subverting your gardening plans. To view this collection our full-service blog "Edifying Nonsense", click HEREYou can also review illustrated verses about orderly garden inhabitants by proceeding to 'Poetry Praising the Charleston Garden' on the full-service blog 'Edifying Nonsense'. Click HERE!



May 15, 2020

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









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May 14, 2020

MAY 14, anagram swarm: A-VERY-STABLE-GENIUS, #6











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 13, 2020

MAY 13, reptiles: introduction


   

and some slides related to an earlier presentation ...




 

 You can review photos and illustrated verses in a wider context by proceeding to 'Verses about Reptiles' (don't worry! no snakes)' 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, pandemic poetry: preventive cocktails

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


  

You can review these illustrated verses in a wider context by proceeding to 'Pandemic Poetry' on the full-service blog "Edifying Nonsense".



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 #4
Let's skip all this stuff and get on to the Canadian version, eh? (stay tuned!)




May 8, 2020

MAY 8, 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 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!











May 6, 2020

MAY 6, magical canal palindromes: 'A man, a plan, ... Suez'








You can become an expert fan of our wordplay concoction 'magical palindromes' by reviewing the explanatory material found in ancient days on our full-service blog "Edifying NonsenseHERE; then, you could check how we applied this technique to 'canal palindromes' by viewing this more recent post.

May 5, 2020

MAY 5, American satire(3): pardoning 'Sheriff Joe'




Authors' Note:   “Sheriff Joe" Arpaio, a former official of Maricopa County, Arizona, had a long flamboyant career characterized by legal actions against colleagues, heavy-handed treatment of suspects and prisoners, and allegations of massive misuse of funds. The ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) eventually brought suit against him for civil rights violations, and after refusing to comply, he was finally convicted of contempt of court.
 
   As an octogenarian, Arpaio had become a political friend and outspoken advocate of Donald Trump, who pardoned his criminal offence in August 2017, prior to the imposition of a sentence.



We hope that you enjoyed this verse. You can find 30 more on this topic in 5 collections on our full-service blog 'Edifying Nonsense'. Click HERE to start! 

May 4, 2020

MAY 4, limerick variations: the multi-verse universe



Authors' Note  The authors can box themselves into writing single defining limericks in the standard format used at OEDILF, the online humor dictionary, and have done so several hundred times. However, they delight in multi-verse limericks which provide a richer space for development of plot lines, contrasts and examples. Currently (April 2023), Giorgio’s ‘Author's Showcase' at the OEDILF website displays 80+ multi-verse entries.  

You can review our entire collection of poems on the topic of "Limerick Variations" as compiled on our more encyclopedic blog "Edifying Nonsense"; click HERE.