DEC 16, patients and their maladies: Graves' disease

 

Authors' Note:  Graves' disease (often shortened by medical types to the ominous-sounding Graves' ), described by Robert Graves in 1835, is a common auto-immune disease that attacks the internal controls in the thyroid gland, and results in the overproduction of thyroid hormones. Significant symptoms result from hyperthyroidism, the hypermetabolic state that is produced.

Among several effective treatments, antithyroid drugs, taken over months or years, block production of these hormones, and often result in resumption of the euthyroid (normal) state.       

You can view collections of verses on this topic by proceeding to "Nurse-Verse: PATIENTS and their MALADIES" on our full-service blog "Edifying Nonsense". Click HERE!

DEC 15, reptiles: herpetophobes

Authors' Note: 

ophidiophobia: an extrem or incapacitating fear of snakes

herpetophobia: a similar anxiety disorder extending to all reptiles

The reptilian suborder Serpentes was previously known as Ophidia, a term derived from ophis, Greek for 'snake'. 

You can review photos and illustrated herpetologic verses in a wider context by proceeding to 'Verses about Reptiles (don't worry! no snake-photos!)' on the full-service blog "Edifying Nonsense".

DEC 14, classic palindrome: 'go hang a salami ... '

Authors' Note: Hanging a salami is an easily accomplished, but important step in the process of dry curing this meat product.

'Go hang a salami; I'm a lasagna hog' is a frequently cited palindrome of relatively recent origin. It has been variously attributed to Jon Agee, a cartoonist and children's writer, and Baby Gramps, a musician and wordplay guru. A lesser known variant of this phrase, possibly primally inspirational, is 'Yo, bang a salami. I'm a lasagna boy.'

The second palindrome cited in this verse is of limited longevity and suboptimal quality, as admitted by our protagonist, little Bobby; it is a brief variant of a classic phrase of unknown origin, usually cited as 'God, a red nugget: a fat egg under a dog.'

Web-resources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baby_Gramps

https://jonagee.com/ 

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

DEC 13: (re)duplication: harum-scarum

Readers willing to go down an internet rabbit-hole HERE can easily get to a collection of more than a dozen other short verses in which we have dealt with specific reduplications, as well as three fairly lengthy patter-songs about this fascinating linguistic phenomenon. 

DEC 12, planet-saving verse: drought

Author's Note: Pretty much a true story. 

You can help save the planet by viewing all our verses in this series at "Edifying Nonsense". Click HERE!

incidental photo (2023)

barrel cactuses

DEC 11, dental feelings (sentimental verse): gnashing, bruxism

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

DEC 10 (2022), singable cynic's satire: "GLOBAL ROASTING CAN BE SET ASIDE"

 PARODY-LYRICS

ORIGINAL SONG: "The Christmas Song", a.k.a. "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire..." written by Wells and Tormé, 1944; recorded by the Nat King Cole Trio in 1946.

PARODY COMPOSED: Giorgio Coniglio, November 2014.
PARODY-SONGLINK: To access ukulele chord-charts to help you accompany "GLOBAL ROASTING CAN BE SET ASIDE" on your favorite instrument, click HERE.

THE CLIMATE-CYNIC'S SONG
("Global Roasting Can Be Set Aside")

(to the tune of "The Christmas Song")  
 

Al Gore
former U.S. Vice-President

Planet’s roasting can be set aside.

Al Gore’s nightmare can’t unfold -

Records tumbling, roads closed, bursting pipes

And six-foot drifts in Buffalo ...  

   ...Armchair  experts doubt, outliers like some melting floes
Help predict our global fate.
Tiny dots graphing century lows-
 Warm some years, but it’s not too late.

We know that Sa-anta’s on his way;    

If he brings shorter winters here - more time to play!

I’ll ditch my snowboots, yet retire in my town,

‘Cause rising seas may make South Florida drown.

And so I send November sympathies,

Where Christmas came too soon this year -

Although it’s been said many times many ways,

Glad it didn’t,  glad it didn’t,

Glad it didn’t hap - pen here.

DEC 9, inspired by Ogden Nash: ultimate tribute

 

DEC 8, doctors and their practices: Doctors Without Borders

This verse is dedicated to Dr. M. G., an Irish-Canadian emergency physician, now serving as a hospital administrator in Yemen.

Authors' Note:    (mayd-SEHN sahn frohn-TYAYR)

 A small group of French doctors and journalists, in the wake of the horrific Biafran famine in 1971, founded Médecins Sans Frontières (occasionally for English speakers translated as Doctors Without Borders). Designed to deal with humanitarian crises in the developing world in regions beseiged by overt war, armed internal conflicts, epidemics and natural disasters, the charity has repeatedly distinguished itself, winning the Nobel Peace Prize in 1999. It currently (2022) operates in over seventy countries worldwide.

You can view these informative verses in a wider context by proceeding to the collection 'DOCTORS and their PRACTICES' on our full-service blog "Edifying Nonsense". Click HERE!

DEC 7, urban concerns: break of day

 

building east of downtown,

sunset briefly captured

(8:30 p.m., May)

Authors' Note: For more peculiar views of the city, check out this later poetic offering.

Our collection of illustrated poems about "Urban Concerns" on our parent blog "Edifying Nonsense", contains a number of intriguing verses that you can access by clicking HERE.

DEC 6, Ontario nostalgia: Paris (Ontario)

US college basketball update: Congratulations to Virginia Tech for becoming the the 2022 ACC conference champions, and consolations to Duke fans. We will stay tuned as the national NCAA tournament ('March Madness') gets underway.

Duke's long-reigning 'Coach K' (Mike Krzyzewski) is completing his brilliant career, and basketball fans from all over give him a major tip of the hat!

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

VIEWS from "Southern Hospitality" at the North Charleston Convention Center, the Cobblestone Quilt Guild Show, March 11/12, 2022. 

to continue daily titillations: BE SURE TO BOOKMARK THIS SITE!

DEC 5, insects: entomologists

Authors' Note: Fact-sheets dealing with related key information have been posted here by etymologists. These include short poems pertaining to insects that eat woollens, scavenge for food, destroy wood structures, prey on human blood and torment domestic pets.

Readers are advised to exercise care in distinguishing entomologists from etymologists.

DEC 4, pluralia tantum: 'moronics' -- unusual fields of study

Grandpa Greg asked us to pass on this message: "You can view the entire collection of verses about 'pluralia tantum' by clicking HERE."

DEC 3, binomial phrases: "publish or perish"

Authors' Note: The above treatise was assisted by a grant from the Foundation for Classic Binomial Expressions, under which permission was obtained for the use of song and dance, ants in one's pants, and publish or perish. (Other paired expressions, cheer and cherish, and funding and grants, are under development).

To review our poetic effusion about binomial phrases proceed to our blog 'Edifying Nonsense', click HERE ! 

There is also an entire collection of lyrics to patter songs, somewhat older material, dedicated to various kinds of binomials, that provides more didactic material and an extensive series of examples, and allows you to sing these expressions for your own enjoyment, or for that of others around you. Click HERE !

DEC 2, organic brain poetry: chronic subdural hematoma

                                                             

Authors' Note: A chronic subdural hematoma is a space-occupying intracranial lesion resulting from the body's failure to resorb blood that collected between the dural membrane and the brain parenchyma, usually caused by . Whereas an initial expanding clot presents as a neurosurgical emergency, smaller clots, with a tendency to absorb fluid and expand gradually, may be later suggested only by chronic neuropsychiatric symptoms. In jargon used in actual medical settings and in televised fictional series, the term for the lesion responsible may be shortened to subdural.

In elderly patients, such as Hazel, and in those on blood-thinning drugs, the trauma required to incite events such as those in this tale may be minor or even subliminal.

You can view and review all our verses on the topic of 'Organic Brain Poetry' by following this link to the encyclopedic collection on "Edifying Nonsense."

DEC 1, American satire (prolongation): archival

Authors' Note: In the United States, all documents and materials related to the conduct of business in the executive branch are deemed by law to remain the property of the federal government, particularly after a president and his staff leave office. The federal agency responsible for storing and archiving these documents is NARA (the National Archives and Records Administration).

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! 

NOV 30, reprehensible modern history (1800+): Emperor of Elba

Further enlightenment on this topic can be obtained by viewing a post entitled "Able Ere Elba". Click HERE. 

 

NOV 29, planet-saving verse: fur-farming

You can help save the planet by viewing all our verses in this series at "Edifying Nonsense". Click HERE!

NOV 28, savoir-faire: the avant-garde savant

Authors' Note: The present participle (participe présent) is used much less commonly in French than in English; the good news is that this form is regular for all but three verbs (to know, to have, to be). In contrast, infinitives are used more often, so 'knowing and doing' is described by savoir-faire.

Savant, an archaic form derived from savoir, is still in use as a noun for 'someone who knows' (a prodigy).

Avant looks as though it should be the present participle for avoir, but in fact it derives from the Latin preposition abante; but, as a loanword, e.g. avant-garde, it has become associated with the 'forefront'.   

NOV 27, organic brain poetry: high-dose steroids

Authors' Note: A course of high-dose synthetic corticosteroids, e.g. dexamethasone, may be used to help bring under control a severe exacerbation of a chronic illness, e.g. asthma, inflammatory diseases, or an initial presentation, e.g. anaphylaxis, septic shock or brain swelling. Owing to the common side-effect of drug-induced euphoria/mania and other psychiatric issues, doctors attempt to taper the high doses as soon as possible.

 

You can view and review all our verses on the topic of 'Organic Brain Poetry' by following this link to the encyclopedic collection on "Edifying Nonsense."

NOV 26, poetic non-sequitur: changes in latitude

Authors' Note: The 1977 album Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes by American singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett contained a song of the same title, as well as his most popular hit "Margaritaville".

With holiday season travel plans, and snowbirds' escapes to more appealing climes disrupted by the severe December weather in the winter of 2022, J.B.'s advice has more relevance. And the authors express gratitude to their female partner who has made arrangements for the appropriate seasonal migration.

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.

NOV 25, pluralia tantum: 'high hopes'

 

Grandpa Greg asked us to pass on this message: "You can view the entire collection of verses about "Pluralia Tantum" by clicking HERE."

NOV 24, reptiles: skink-busting

Authors' Note; WHO YA GONNA CALL? 

You can review photos and illustrated herpetologic verses in a wider context by proceeding to 'Verses about Reptiles (don't worry! no snake-photos)' on the full-service blog "Edifying Nonsense".

NOV 23, doctors and their practices: diabetologist

Authors' Note:

diabetologist: a super-specialized endocrinologist who deals with diabetes mellitus and its control

Glycated hemoglobin (hemoglobin A1C), reflects a chemical influence of ambient glucose levels in blood. This simple but subtle alteration of hemoglobin carried by the blood's red cells was discovered in 1958. As the average lifespan of red cells in the blood is three to four months, the biochemical test of blood levels yields a number that reflects blood sugar control over the previous few months. Generally, as your diabetologist will explain, a value less than 7% has been found to reflect good control.

You can view these informative verses in a wider context by proceeding to the collection 'DOCTORS and their PRACTICES' on our full-service blog "Edifying Nonsense". Click HERE!

NOV 22, (re)duplication: higgledy-piggledy

Authors' Note: 

Higgledy-piggledy is yet another (re)duplication relating to disorder and impetuousness whose meaning overlaps with helter-skelter, and harum-scarum.

Readers willing to go down an internet rabbit-hole HERE can easily get to a collection of more than a dozen other short verses in which we have dealt with specific reduplications, as well as three fairly lengthy patter-songs about this fascinating linguistic phenomenon. 

NOV 21, American satire (prolongation): legal precedence

Authors' note: The 'Mitt' in the above verse is entirely allegorical, unrelated to any real current person or long-serving Republican US senator. 

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! 

NOV 20 (2022), singable satire: Johnny Cash sings "VLAD PUTIN'S BLOGGER"

 PARODY SONG-LYRICS

ORIGINAL SONG: "The Frozen Logger", an American folksong of the tall-tale variety, was written by James Stevens in 1928 and published in 1949. It has been recorded by The Weavers in 1951, and subsequently by many other artists, including  Oscar Brand. Enjoy the YouTube recording by Johnny Cash here. 

PARODY COMPOSED:  Dr. G.H. and Giorgio Coniglio, February 2019. 

PARODY-SONGLINK: To access ukulele chord-charts to help you accompany "Vlad Putin's Blogger" on your favorite instrument, click HERE.

FURTHER INFORMATION: A presidential quote from January 2019, in reference to the suspected perpetrators indicted by the Mueller probe into foreign interference in the 2016 U.S. federal election...

 "Among the 34 people, many of them were bloggers from Moscow or people who had nothing to do with me, had nothing to do with what they were talking about or there were people who got caught telling stories or lying … I think it's a terrible thing (that has) happened to this country, because this investigation is a witch hunt." 

VLAD PUTIN'S BLOGGER

(to the tune of "The Frozen Logger")

As I logged on in Moscow in an internet café,

An English-speaking pop-up troll did these terse words display,

“We know you are a blogger, and not just a common nerd.

Mother Russia wants your hacking help, of this please be assured.”

“And yes, I am Vlad Putin; please excuse my being crass,

But we’ll count on your assistance, or your relatives we’ll gas.

What we ask’s not too much effort, in fact it’s a walk in the park.

We’ll assign a friendly mentor, KGB-trained oligarch.”

“I want to win real elections, just not keen to call my own;           

We’ll monitor the chats and thoughts on each U.S. cellphone.

You’ll scoop the goods for blackmail in a world as dark as night,

And steal e-mail for WikiLeaks to publish on their site.”

“We’ll post you there in Washington, you’ll help us get the clues;
When time is right to dominate, we’ll start our world-wide coups.

We’ll signal in that courtroom that Putin’s time has come;

That’s where you’ll sit ‘til someone moons Bob Mueller with

his bum.”

NOV 19, Italian loanwords: ghetto

Authors' Note:

libretto: Italian for 'little book'; a summary of the text distributed to the audience of an opera, mass or oratorio.

gondola (plural - gondole): the stereotypic Venetian small boat, poled down the Venetian canals; gondole-ly is a personal, incorrectly-stressed Anglo-Italian neologism

imperfetto: Italian for 'imperfect' or 'flawed'

 The ghetto first appeared as a section of the city in which members of a particular ethnic group were cordoned off, in Venice's working-class Cannaregio quarter in 1516. The word ghetto is of uncertain origin, possibly derived from a term in the local dialect for 'foundry', related to a nearby factory. The region of northeastern Italy that surrounds Venice, stretching from the Alps to the Adriatic Sea, is known as (the) Veneto.

You can review our entire poetic outpouring about Italian loanwords by proceeding to a post on our full-service blog 'Edifying Nonsense'; click HERE.

NOV 18, classic palindromes: 'Ida's denial'

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'.

NOV 17, Canadiana: Canadian weather

Authors' Note: 

hinterland: a geographic term for 'interior', derived from the German adverb hinder = 'behind'.

The author contends that the summary he received overemphasized the adverse climatic conditions faced by Canadians, the majority of whom live in the more temperate southern portions of the country.

mid-November in Toronto

You can review poems, pictures and diverse nonsense related to Canada on the post "Canadiana" on our full-service blog  "Edifying Nonsense".