MAY 21, geysers: geyser guru

a) reprise from May 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’.

b)

  

MAY 20, submitted palindromes, targeted: "LISA BONET ATE NO BASIL"

 For word nerds like us, who adore palindromes, hours of delight await  on our blog "Edifying Nonsense".

First of all, there  is a series of posts, on the 25th of each month (2020 through 2024) featuring collections of "submitted palindromes", attributable to the contributing authors shown above, constituting a loosely organized compendium of intriguing back and forth phrases; frequently, these are inspired by the "classic" palindrome repertoire, as is the case in today's offering as shown in the above slide.

Then, on the 20th of each month, original topic-based collections of wordplay items are displayed, often as "wordplay maps". These include anagrams and other forms of wordplay in addition to palindromes. However, the latter lexical device is honored in major outpourings including "New World Palindromes", "Old World Palindromes", "Magical Palindromes" and even a post on "The Meaning of Life as Revealed in Palindromes". 

The first three posts of each month on "Edifying Nonsense", (on the 5th, 10th and 15th), are the repository of short poetic verses, mostly limericks and "limerrhoids",  the majority of which have gone through rigorous collaborative editing on an online site. But even there, wordplay, particularly limericks are honored and discussed. So you can, by following the links, find some five collections (with eight verses each),  dealing  with the "Classic Palindrome Repertoire", not to mention  extensions displaying terse verses about the fabled "Palindrome Valley" and parodies about the "Panama Canal". 

And, even further, there is under construction a group of parody-songs honoring the classic palindromes. The song lyrics will be posted here, on this blog ("Daily Illustrated Nonsense") and also, with more musical direction on "Silly Songs and Satire."  We will update you when that project has been completed, but if you insist, you could sneak an advance peak at the song "Sin and Redemption".  

MAY 19, poetic non-sequitur: almost kosher fare

 

Authors' Note: 

fress: a Yiddish loanword for eating with vigor, whole-heartedly, as explained HERE

treif (TRAYF): Yiddish for foods expressly prohibited under the laws of Kahshrut, including pork and shellfish

kasher: synonym used in Israel and Sephardic venues elsewhere for the Ashkenazi word kosher; the regulations involving foodstuff are quite complex, and in addition to the prohibitions mandate separation of particular allowed sources, e.g. meat and dairy; kashery (noun and adjective) is the author's personal neologism.

It is suggested that those concerned about a particular eatery should consult  their spiritual advisor. 

Our collection of 'Non-Sequiturs' on our parent blog "Edifying Nonsense", contains an unusual assortment of 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 18, postal places, USA: Fargo, ND

Authors' Note: ND is the official abbreviation for the American state of North Dakota, whose largest city is Fargo with a population of 126,000. Located on the floodplain of the Red River, the city was named after William Fargo, director of the Northern Pacific Railway and honcho of Wells Fargo Express.

 At one swell foop, you can review all our postal poems about intriguing places in the USA and Canada, by proceeding to the encyclopedic blog "Edifying Nonsense". Click HERE !

MAY 17, mammalian wildlife: marine mammals

Authors' Note: Despite the suggestive name, sea-lions are members neither of the family of felines (domestic cats, lions, tigers, etc.), nor of the cetaceans (dolphins, porpoises and whales), but are carnivorous, blubbery, finned marine mammals (pinnipeds) in the family of eared seals. Therefore they are not covered by the iconic classic palindrome Senile felines; wannabe-phrases such as A ride? Pinniped, Ira! are barely worthy of serious proposal.

Inspired by the verse at cross purposes, by OEDILF colleague MikeAq, the above verse was perpetrated with no purpose other than the promulgation of nonsense. 

 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 16, poetic non-sequitur: horticultural

Author's Note: 

arrangement of florists: proposed collective noun for this occupational grouping

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 15, Carolina lowcountry: quiet day

 a) reprise from May 2020

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

 b)

MAY 14, portraits of couples (introduction)

a) reprise from May 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 Nonsense" HERE. 

 

May 13, wordplay maps: new world palindromes (#19,#20)

reprise from May 2020 

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

MAY 12, patients and their maladies: flu-like illness

  

a) reprise from 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 !

b) 

MAY 11: American satire (prolongation): hokum

Author's Note:

oakum: naval term for a caulking material prepared by impregnating old unravelled ropes with tar

locum (tenens): Latin loanword for a replacement or substitute for a vacationing professional (doctor, dentist or lawyer)

hokum: a term of disparagement for misguided proposals or ideas, akin to gobbledegook and its lexicographic collaborators

Almost three years after the event, in August 2023, it was promised that there would be released "irrefutable" and "overwhelming" evidence of widespread fraud in the 2020 American presidential election. The promise, made amidst a welter of criminal indictments, was quickly withdrawn.

We hope that you enjoyed this verse. You can find 40 more on this topic in 6 collections on our full-service blog 'Edifying Nonsense'. Click HERE to start! 

MAY 10 (2024), singable satire: more from Julie Andrews -- "JEUX-DE-MOTS, ENCORE"

 PARODY-LYRICS, continuing from our prior blog-post of December 10, 2023.  

ORIGINAL SONG: "Do-Re-Mi" , as performed by Julie Andrews and the entourage of von Trapp family children in the hit musical "The Sound of Music".

  

PARODY COMPOSED: Giorgio Coniglio, September 2014; the medley, in fact, started with two spoofs based on English language homonyms, set to the same original song, developed for a never-performed spectacle entitled "The Sound of Homonyms". The French counterpart, reposted in April 2024, evolved shortly thereafter. And now we have another French-oriented spoof, never before published, to show you. 

PARODY-SONGLINK: To find ukulele and guitar chord-charts to help you accompany "Jeux-de-Mots, Encore)" on your favorite instrument, click HERE.

JEUX-de-MOTS, ENCORE

(to the tune of "Do-Re-Mi") 

Fardeau (far-DO) -- a burden, pain unearned
Doré (do-RAY) -- means clothed in golden rays

Remis (ruh-MEE) -- remailed, it was returned

Sofa (so-FA) -- where they eat canapés

Lasso (la-SO) -- a noose to catch taureaux (to-RO)

Zola (zoh-LA) -- a writer like Hugo

Sortie (sor-TEE) -- an outing or tirade

Pram for infant's jaunts -- Landau (lahn-DO).

FarDEAU, doRE, reMIS, soFA, lasSO, zoLA, sorTIE, lanDAU !  

 

MAY 9, submitted palindromes, targeted: "MA IS AS SELFLESS AS I AM."

 

For word nerds like us, who adore palindromes, hours of delight await  on our blog "Edifying Nonsense".

First of all, there  is a series of posts, on the 25th of each month (2020 through 2024) featuring collections of "submitted palindromes", attributable to the contributing authors shown above, constituting a loosely organized compendium of intriguing back and forth phrases; frequently, these are inspired by the "classic" palindrome repertoire, as is the case in today's offering as shown in the above slide.

Then, on the 20th of each month, original topic-based collections of wordplay items are displayed, often as "wordplay maps". These include anagrams and other forms of wordplay in addition to palindromes. However, the latter lexical device is honored in major outpourings including "New World Palindromes", "Old World Palindromes", "Magical Palindromes" and even a post on "The Meaning of Life as Revealed in Palindromes". 

The first three posts of each month on "Edifying Nonsense", (on the 5th, 10th and 15th), are the repository of short poetic verses, mostly limericks and "limerrhoids",  the majority of which have gone through rigorous collaborative editing on an online site. But even there, wordplay, particularly limericks are honored and discussed. So you can, by following the links, find some five collections (with eight verses each),  dealing  with the "Classic Palindrome Repertoire", not to mention  extensions displaying terse verses about the fabled "Palindrome Valley" and parodies about the "Panama Canal". 

And, even further, there is under construction a group of parody-songs honoring the classic palindromes. The song lyrics will be posted here, on this blog ("Daily Illustrated Nonsense") and also, with more musical direction on "Silly Songs and Satire."  We will update you when that project has been completed, but if you insist, you could sneak an advance peak at the song "Sin and Redemption".  

  

MAY 8, chemical states (and provinces): imaginary, U.S.

  You can view the collection of posts on this topic with this link to our full-service blog "Edifying Nonsense" -- click HERE.

MAY 7, magical palindromes: examples #21 - #25

 

MAY 6, defining opinion: hooey

Our blogpost "Defining Opinion" on the topic-based blog "Edifying Nonsense" shows a selection of similar verses submitted to OEDILF (the online Omnificent English Dictionary in Limerick Form). You can see all of these on one visit by clicking HERE.

MAY 5, American satire: pardoning 'Sheriff Joe'

a) reprise from May 2020 

MAY 5, American satire: 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 the 45th US president, 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 40 more on this topic in 5 collections on our full-service blog 'Edifying Nonsense'. Click HERE to start! 

b)

MAY 4, limerick variations: the multi-verse universe

 a) reprise from 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 collaborative 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 2024), Giorgio’s ‘Author's Showcase' at the OEDILF website displays almost 100 multi-verse entries. 

This blogsite has more than thirty poems each with three or more verses in limerick format. We have dubbed these lengthy poetic undertakings "brief sagas", and that is the name under which you can search for them on these pages. To do that, use the widget in the right-hand column, clearly labelled "Search This Blog". 

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

b)

 

MAY 3, wordplay maps: new world palindromes (#17,#18)

a) reprise from May 2020  

MAY 3, wordplay maps: new world palindromes (#17,#18)

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

b)

MAY 2, savoir-faire: French loanwords

a) reprise from 2020

MAY 2, savoir-faire: French loanwords

Authors' Note:

 à propos: in regard

outré: inappropriately eccentric in behaviour or appearance, or exceeding the limits of propriety

sans doute (sahn DOOT): certainly, without doubt

paraph (PA-ruhf): confirmatory mark after a signature, derived more remotely from the French term paraphe

nonpareil: a paragon, one who has no equal

Although the word nonpareil has been used in English, often pronounced as non-pah-REHL, since the 16th century, one must adopt the snobbier French pronunciation (non-pah-RAY) for the verse to rhyme.

Despite its status as a longstanding valuable English descriptor, unique retains a Gallic sound, which is frankly ... unique.

 You can review verses on this topic in a wider context on our full-service blog 'Edifying Nonsense'. Check the post 'Vers Francais: Savoir-Faire' by clicking HERE. 

b)

MAY 1, classic palindrome: 'Emil's lime'

 

a) reprise from May 2020

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'. 

b) incidental photo

"Boy and Bird"