I was listening to a radio programme today that said that less than 28% of
people (in the UK) under 30 knew any nursery rhymes and even fewer knew what
they meant.

For instance:
Mary Mary Quite Contrary or Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall.

-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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Mary had a little lamb,
And the midwife fainted.
*rimshot*

-- 
http://blog.orphi.me.uk/
http://www.zazzle.com/MathematicalOrchid*

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On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 19:20:43 +0100, Orchid XP v8 wrote:

> Mary had a little lamb,
> And the midwife fainted.
> *rimshot*

LOL

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On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 19:20:43 +0100, Orchid XP v8 <voi### [at] devnull> wrote:

>And the midwife fainted.

"The doctor nearly fainted"
Scans better to me :)
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 20:27:15 +0100, Stephen wrote:

> On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 19:20:43 +0100, Orchid XP v8 <voi### [at] devnull> wrote:
> 
>>And the midwife fainted.
> 
> "The doctor nearly fainted"
> Scans better to me :)

s/doctor/midwife also works with your modification.

Jim

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Stephen wrote:
> I was listening to a radio programme today that said that less than 28% of
> people (in the UK) under 30 knew any nursery rhymes and even fewer knew what
> they meant.

I can see why most kids would know what they meant, seeing as how many 
of the actual meanings are pretty far removed from the modern notions of 
"things for kids".  Same with Grimm's Fairy Tales come to think of it

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On 8 Oct 2009 15:52:06 -0400, Jim Henderson <nos### [at] nospamcom> wrote:

>On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 20:27:15 +0100, Stephen wrote:
>
>> On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 19:20:43 +0100, Orchid XP v8 <voi### [at] devnull> wrote:
>> 
>>>And the midwife fainted.
>> 
>> "The doctor nearly fainted"
>> Scans better to me :)
>
>s/doctor/midwife also works with your modification.
>

I'm older than Andrew so his is the modification :P

-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 12:55:35 -0700, Kevin Wampler <wam### [at] uwashingtonedu>
wrote:

>Stephen wrote:
>> I was listening to a radio programme today that said that less than 28% of
>> people (in the UK) under 30 knew any nursery rhymes and even fewer knew what
>> they meant.
>
>I can see why most kids would know what they meant, seeing as how many 
>of the actual meanings are pretty far removed from the modern notions of 
>"things for kids".  Same with Grimm's Fairy Tales come to think of it

Very remote as they were written(?)/spoken when most people could not read ;)
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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Stephen schrieb:

>> And the midwife fainted.
 >
> "The doctor nearly fainted"
> Scans better to me :)

No, as for rhythm the midwife version is much better.

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On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 21:16:30 +0100, Stephen wrote:

> On 8 Oct 2009 15:52:06 -0400, Jim Henderson <nos### [at] nospamcom> wrote:
> 
>>On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 20:27:15 +0100, Stephen wrote:
>>
>>> On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 19:20:43 +0100, Orchid XP v8 <voi### [at] devnull>
>>> wrote:
>>> 
>>>>And the midwife fainted.
>>> 
>>> "The doctor nearly fainted"
>>> Scans better to me :)
>>
>>s/doctor/midwife also works with your modification.
>>
>>
> I'm older than Andrew so his is the modification :P

You modified his text, age has no importance there. :P

Jim

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On 8 Oct 2009 16:38:06 -0400, Jim Henderson <nos### [at] nospamcom> wrote:

>On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 21:16:30 +0100, Stephen wrote:
>
>> On 8 Oct 2009 15:52:06 -0400, Jim Henderson <nos### [at] nospamcom> wrote:
>> 
>>>On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 20:27:15 +0100, Stephen wrote:
>>>
>>>> On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 19:20:43 +0100, Orchid XP v8 <voi### [at] devnull>
>>>> wrote:
>>>> 
>>>>>And the midwife fainted.
>>>> 
>>>> "The doctor nearly fainted"
>>>> Scans better to me :)
>>>
>>>s/doctor/midwife also works with your modification.
>>>
>>>
>> I'm older than Andrew so his is the modification :P
>
>You modified his text, age has no importance there. :P
>
I heard it before he was born!!!!

-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 22:35:43 +0200, clipka <ano### [at] anonymousorg> wrote:

>Stephen schrieb:
>
>>> And the midwife fainted.
> >
>> "The doctor nearly fainted"
>> Scans better to me :)
>
>No, as for rhythm the midwife version is much better.

You must be translating it. There is no rhyme (at the end of the lines). "And
the midwife fainted." Sounds "clunky" and a conversation stopper to me. A bit
like;

BEAUTIFUL Railway Bridge of the Silvery Tay !
With your numerous arches and pillars in so grand array
And your central girders, which seem to the eye
To be almost towering to the sky.
The greatest wonder of the day,
And a great beautification to the River Tay,
Most beautiful to be seen,
Near by Dundee and the Magdalen Green.

Now that rhymes but as for scanning…

-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 21:51:59 +0100, Stephen wrote:

>>> I'm older than Andrew so his is the modification :P
>>
>>You modified his text, age has no importance there. :P
>>
> I heard it before he was born!!!!

What, it wasn't something he made up? ;-)

Jim

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On 8 Oct 2009 17:01:24 -0400, Jim Henderson <nos### [at] nospamcom> wrote:

>On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 21:51:59 +0100, Stephen wrote:
>
>>>> I'm older than Andrew so his is the modification :P
>>>
>>>You modified his text, age has no importance there. :P
>>>
>> I heard it before he was born!!!!
>
>What, it wasn't something he made up? ;-)
>
Great minds think alike ...
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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Jim Henderson wrote:

> What, it wasn't something he made up? ;-)

Don't be stupid.

Justin Wells discovered it on the Internet somewhere - back in the ways 
of IE 1.0 with black text on grey backgrounds, and 256-colour dithered 
GIF files. (My God, I feel ill...)

Along with such other delights as the Amish Porn Site (featuring 
pictures of bare ankles and the like), and also the Slug Sex Site 
(featuring... well, what do you expect?)

-- 
http://blog.orphi.me.uk/
http://www.zazzle.com/MathematicalOrchid*

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On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 22:17:39 +0100, Orchid XP v8 <voi### [at] devnull> wrote:

>Jim Henderson wrote:
>
>> What, it wasn't something he made up? ;-)
>
>Don't be stupid.
>
>Justin Wells discovered it on the Internet somewhere - back in the ways 
>of IE 1.0 with black text on grey backgrounds, and 256-colour dithered 
>GIF files. (My God, I feel ill...)
>
>Along with such other delights as the Amish Porn Site (featuring 
>pictures of bare ankles and the like), and also the Slug Sex Site 
>(featuring... well, what do you expect?)

Again LMFAO 
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 22:17:39 +0100, Orchid XP v8 wrote:

> Jim Henderson wrote:
> 
>> What, it wasn't something he made up? ;-)
> 
> Don't be stupid.
> 
> Justin Wells discovered it on the Internet somewhere - back in the ways
> of IE 1.0 with black text on grey backgrounds, and 256-colour dithered
> GIF files. (My God, I feel ill...)
> 
> Along with such other delights as the Amish Porn Site (featuring
> pictures of bare ankles and the like), and also the Slug Sex Site
> (featuring... well, what do you expect?)

What, you mean you used Google? ;-)

Jim

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Stephen wrote:
> I was listening to a radio programme today that said that less than 28% of
> people (in the UK) under 30 knew any nursery rhymes and even fewer knew what
> they meant.
> 
> For instance:
> Mary Mary Quite Contrary or Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall.
> 

I think I still have the books of nursery rhymes that I was read as a
child. From memory, Humpty Dumpty was an easy one, but some others would
be more of a challenge.

As for meanings, probably not so much.

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Stephen schrieb:

>>>> And the midwife fainted.
>>> "The doctor nearly fainted"
>>> Scans better to me :)
>> No, as for rhythm the midwife version is much better.
> 
> You must be translating it. There is no rhyme (at the end of the lines). "And
> the midwife fainted." Sounds "clunky" and a conversation stopper to me.

I guess you're referring to that "missig" syllable that should be there 
between the two lines if the basic verse metric was applied slavishly, 
as is the case for the "doctor" version.

Which is exactly the problem I have with that version: It keeps the 
rhythm, but it also strictly separates the sentences (without any 
conjoining "and", "but" or whatever in between), without allowing to 
take a breath, as would be warranted by such a construction. Such a 
"semi-dramatic" pause also helps to create a moment of suspense before 
breaking the story with the punchline.

In other words: I find the degree of "clunkyness" of the "midwife" 
version perfectly fitting.

(Granted, if you'd actually intend to make a full poem out of it and 
continue after that sentence, the "doctor" version would be more fitting.)


 > A bit
> like;
> 
> BEAUTIFUL Railway Bridge of the Silvery Tay !
> With your numerous arches and pillars in so grand array
> And your central girders, which seem to the eye
> To be almost towering to the sky.
> The greatest wonder of the day,
> And a great beautification to the River Tay,
> Most beautiful to be seen,
> Near by Dundee and the Magdalen Green.
> 
> Now that rhymes but as for scanning…

Maybe that's why it collapsed in 1879 ;-)

Maybe it's a song though; in that case you can get away with much 
weirder flaws of rhythm.

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Orchid XP v8 schrieb:
> 
> Along with such other delights as the Amish Porn Site (featuring 
> pictures of bare ankles and the like), and also the Slug Sex Site 
> (featuring... well, what do you expect?)

Reminds me of a German internet site called something like 
"pussybilder.de" (IIRC - it seems to have made way for something else by 
now) - literally "pussy pictures" - that had specialized on images of 
the /really hairy/ type of pussies.

They really had everything: White pussies, black pussies, asian pussies, 
wet pussies, dirty pussies... I think they even had baby pussies hidden 
somewhere...

... and yes, pun was *definitely* intended :-P

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On 10/08/09 13:20, Orchid XP v8 wrote:
> Mary had a little lamb,
> And the midwife fainted.
> *rimshot*

	Mary had a little lamb, a little beef, and a little ham!

-- 
(((((((HYPNOTIC)))))))(((((((TAGLINE)))))))

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On 10/08/09 12:54, Stephen wrote:
> I was listening to a radio programme today that said that less than 28% of
> people (in the UK) under 30 knew any nursery rhymes and even fewer knew what
> they meant.

	Not sure that's a bad thing ;-)


-- 
(((((((HYPNOTIC)))))))(((((((TAGLINE)))))))

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Sabrina Kilian schrieb:

> I think I still have the books of nursery rhymes that I was read as a
> child. From memory, Humpty Dumpty was an easy one, but some others would
> be more of a challenge.

Hum...

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall
Humpty Dumpty had a great fall
None of the king's horses and none of his men
Were able to put him together again

Something along these lines, right?

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On Fri, 09 Oct 2009 00:28:05 +0200, clipka wrote:

> None of the king's horses and none of his men Were able to put him
> together again
> 
> Something along these lines, right?

Close, but:

"All of the king's horses and all of the king's men
Couldn't put Humpty together again."

as the ending.

Jim

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I'm over thirty now, but there's always Jack Sprat:

Jack Sprat can swing his bat
his wife can spray her mace
He'll slap her hard when she's off-guard
she'll spritz him in the face

Jack sprat is knocked out flat
his wife the worst of sights
though bitter foes, at least it shows
they're into equal rights!

And Omar:

Omar had a little bomb,
he found it filled a need
For getting rid of all those folks
with whom he disagreed

Omar let his bomb go off
without the proper care
Now we're finding little bits
of Omar everywhere

And Jack again:

Jack be nimble, Jack be slick
Jack meet mugger, Jack give kick
Jack show quickness, Jack show skill
Jack learn bullet
quick or still

All very important topics for today's world, thanks to a 1984 Mad 
Magazine :)

Sam

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Neeum Zawan wrote:
> On 10/08/09 13:20, Orchid XP v8 wrote:
>> Mary had a little lamb,
>> And the midwife fainted.
>> *rimshot*
> 
>     Mary had a little lamb, a little beef, and a little ham!
> 


Mary had a little lamb, his fleece was black as soot,
and everywhere that Mary went, his sooty foot he put.

Mary had a rattlesnake, with music in its tail.
It followed Mary everywhere and made her friends quite pale.

Mary had a small racoon, who was so very cute,
but everywhere that Mary et, it tried to wash her fruit.

Mary had a squirrel then, which et thru wires and cables.
When Mary turned her TV on, she found she wasn't able.

So Mary said she'd have a wolf, a loyal savage beast.
It kept her safe like Romulus. Didn't scare her in the least.

Then Mary's choice fell on a moose, which brayed and smelt quite strong.
And everywhere that Mary went her friends declared "So long!"

Mary had a Tyranosaur. She grew it from a cell.
But when she took the beast to school, the teachers left as well.

So Mary is alone right now. No humans venture near her.
But Mary is quite happy, with squirrel, moose, wolf, tyranosaur,
    racoon, rattlesnake, and, oh yes, a little lamb to cheer her.

-- 
   Darren New, San Diego CA, USA (PST)
   I ordered stamps from Zazzle that read "Place Stamp Here".

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Sabrina Kilian wrote:
> As for meanings, probably not so much.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F06mxL31K_E#t=7m16s

This guy is just hilarious.  (Swear words, tho.)

-- 
   Darren New, San Diego CA, USA (PST)
   I ordered stamps from Zazzle that read "Place Stamp Here".

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ROTFL!

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On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 17:27:06 -0500, Neeum Zawan <m.n### [at] ieeeorg> wrote:

>On 10/08/09 12:54, Stephen wrote:
>> I was listening to a radio programme today that said that less than 28% of
>> people (in the UK) under 30 knew any nursery rhymes and even fewer knew what
>> they meant.
>
>	Not sure that's a bad thing ;-)

Yes it is open to debate. I have little opinion on the subject.
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 17:57:03 -0700, stbenge <not### [at] hotmailcom> wrote:

>
>All very important topics for today's world, thanks to a 1984 Mad 
>Magazine :)

"What, me worry?" ;)
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 23:29:34 +0200, clipka <ano### [at] anonymousorg> wrote:

>I guess you're referring to that "missig" syllable that should be there 
>between the two lines if the basic verse metric was applied slavishly, 
>as is the case for the "doctor" version.

No it is the added "And"

But since it is personal preference I won't argue.
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 23:29:34 +0200, clipka <ano### [at] anonymousorg> wrote:

>> Now that rhymes but as for scanning…
>
>Maybe that's why it collapsed in 1879 ;-)
>
>Maybe it's a song though; in that case you can get away with much 
>weirder flaws of rhythm.

No, McGonagall (Scotland's other national poet) was just very bad.

See http://www.mcgonagall-online.org.uk/poems/pgdisaster.htm 
and http://www.mcgonagall-online.org.uk/poems/pgnew.htm

In the style of :)

The Tay, the Tay, the silvery Tay
It passes my window every day

And

As I was walking down the road.
I saw a coo.
A Bull b' God!
-- 

Regards
     Stephen

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> What, you mean you used Google? ;-)

1. No, Justin did.

2. No, actually... Nobody had heard of Google yet. Everybody used Yahoo! 
Well, a few people used AltaVista or something, but the smart people 
used Yahoo! It *was* a good search engine once upon a time...

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"stbenge" <not### [at] hotmailcom> wrote in message 
news:4ace8a60$1@news.povray.org...

> All very important topics for today's world, thanks to a 1984 Mad Magazine 
> :)

Cool ... started the day off with a good laugh thinking about Alfred E 
Newman :-)

Jim

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On Fri, 09 Oct 2009 09:33:04 +0100, Invisible wrote:

>> What, you mean you used Google? ;-)
> 
> 1. No, Justin did.
> 
> 2. No, actually... Nobody had heard of Google yet. Everybody used Yahoo!
> Well, a few people used AltaVista or something, but the smart people
> used Yahoo! It *was* a good search engine once upon a time...

I had preferred AltaVista myself. :)

Jim

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On Thu, 08 Oct 2009 21:02:34 -0700, Darren New wrote:

> Sabrina Kilian wrote:
>> As for meanings, probably not so much.
> 
> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F06mxL31K_E#t=7m16s
> 
> This guy is just hilarious.  (Swear words, tho.)

Gervais is.  My guess before following the link was Andrew Dice Clay - 
who wasn't funny, just crass.

Jim

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Jim Henderson wrote:
> I had preferred AltaVista myself. :)

I used metacrawler.  >:3

--
Tim Cook
http://empyrean.freesitespace.net

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