A Mackerel Day


It was a mackerel sky and the dumbledore had more rumgumption than to indulge in clishmaclaver with the tattie-bogle, who was little more than a doddypoll, not knowing a B from a bull’s foot. There was a collieshangie at the bottom of the dell as the carnaptious moudiewort ran ramgunshoch over the nipperty-tipperty forky-tail, but it was the pinguitude of the roscid, suaveolent quaking-grass that stood rutilent against the refulgent weather gleam above the grufted vug, that drew her eye. A glimmer-gowk flew along the crinkum-crankum dell, its ferntickles sparkling in the celestial flouresence. The moudiewort, wamble-cropped, desisted to snuzzle and wapper-eyed reflected on the wanchancy of the occasion as he was obumbrated on the floor below. But this was no Tom Tiddler’s ground for the glimmer-gowk, whose beak was as capable of squabash as the pilliwinks so beloved by the humgruffin, whose lack of batology caused him to bring a hog to a fine market and allowed the moudiewort to scunge away. In this way he was flimped of his meal, and the moudiewort pleased not to have the black ox tread on his foot.


Meanwhile the hand of the wag-at the wa’ coming into syzygy initiated a period of fantoosh tintinnabulation, which left the people of the village mirligoes and of humdudgeon. A blatherskite appeared with his whigmaleerie talking all manner of clamjamphrie. He was as ready to cry stinking fish as roast meat. Soon after him on his dandy-horse followed the gerund-grinder, who was incompossible with the grammaticaster, who thought him nothing more than a slip-string and often accused him of being unguligrade. He was always ready, He was always ready to whip the cat, He was always ready to whip the cat, whilst the other always had a rod in the pickle to give him his kale through the reek. It was no kilfud-yoking when they were around, as they both thought they had the sockdologer and would prove to be the better deipnosophist, but in the end they both ultracrepidated. It was only a tosticated gawpus who would ride bodkin with them, who always had a crow to pluck with, it was far better to give leg bail, but not so as to outrun the constable, as to dree one’s weird with these two, as you would when you heard ‘Gardyloo!’ ring out above your head. To leave the management of the village to them would be kakistocracy and would require a great deal of nepenthe.


The village being located in the dell, relied on the fishyback for supplies, with the inevitable mallemaroking seamen that it introduced from time to time. The sculduddry of these bed-swervers so discombobulated our kakistocrats that they quite took the mulligrubs. They would pad the hoof together, one exclaiming that the only thing to do with them was omoplatoscopy to see how their bones crack in the fire, whilst the other muttered ‘taghairm’, meaning to wrap them up and drown them there. In the end, in a remarkable display of leiotrichy they agreed the only thing to do was to exact the buttock-mail from them.


The baker though was a two pot screamer who was known to frequently broach the admiral to get his snootful. Mops and brooms were never enough for him with the result that often when he was sotious the bishop put his foot in it. And though his work glooped well at the first it failed to reach paneity. His oven’s were like the mutton-thumper’s inkroom after Ralph had visited him. He was ruled by the bitch goddess, and though his wife were a horse-godmother, the grey mare was the better horse. The only good you could say of him was he was no hen-hussy.


Now it was said of the fizgig that after the thunder-plump, when the merry dancers were visible, she had seen urchin shows. The bull-beggar so it seemed wore a rather spoffish scroddled coat, and often a wigs on the green could be seen between him and the shellycoat. Lob-lie-by-the fire was however more often to be found aestivating than about his business: aestivating well mark you!


Now the burn the wind was a different, a different kettle of fish. He was no nipcheese, even though you would not even find an angel’s share in his house. He was the only one the village trusted not to lose the presentment of Englishry should they ever have needed it. The presentment of Englishry! His ability to burn the water ensured that no genethliac day passed without a goluptious feast, without a goluptious feast. Now his wife was no mean thumper. His wife was no mean thumper. Her callipygous pulchritude caused others to become beblubbered in the contemplation thereof, and, as it were, to deliquesce and yump away.


The meanings of uncertain words may be found here. Please let me know if this link ceases to be available. Thank you.

ChoralWiki and Noteworthy Scriptorium

Death is

Death is nothing at all
I have only slipped away into the next room
I am I and you are you
Whatever we were to each other
That we are still
Call me by my old familiar name
Speak to me in the easy way you always used
Put no difference into your tone
Wear no forced air of solemnity or sorrow
Laugh as we always laughed
At the little jokes we always enjoyed together
Play, smile, think of me, pray for me
Let my name be ever the household word that it always was
Let it be spoken without effect
Without the ghost of a shadow in it

Life means all that it ever meant
It is the same as it ever was
There is absolute unbroken continuity
What is death but a negligible accident?
Why should I be out of mind
Because I am out of sight?
I am waiting for you for an interval
Somewhere very near
Just around the corner
All is well.
Nothing is past; nothing is lost
One brief moment and all will be as it was before
Only better, infinitely happier and forever
We will all be one together with Christ.

Canon Henry Scott-Holland, 1847 1918, Canon of St Paul’s Cathedral

© Stuart Moffatt 2004

Coco does not necessarily endorse or agree with any views or theological statements, which belong solely to the authors thereof, expressed in any of the content of this web page.

ChoralWiki and Noteworthy Scriptorium

Haendel

A stirring set of words from Richard Woodroffe (Handel’s Limerick)

© Stuart Moffatt 2004

Said Handel: Please don’t call me Herr
I’m really British

Said Handel: Please don’t call me Herr
I’m really quite British so there!
And please, ven I croak,
I vould like (for a joke)
A coffin marked: ‘Handel with care’.”

Said Handel: Please don’t call me Herr
I’m really quite British so there!
so there!
I’m really quite British so there!
so there!
And please, ven I croak,
I vould like (for a joke)
A coffin marked: ‘Handel with care’.”
‘Handel with care’.

Said Handel: Please don’t call me Herr
I’m really quite British so there!
And please, ven I croak,
I vould like (for a joke)
A coffin marked: ‘Handel with care’.”

© 2004 Richard Woodroffe

Noteworthy Scriptorium

Froggy

There once was a ‘puter geek whose name was Jack
He lived by himself in a little shack
He worked for A Consulting firm as you shall learn
And the Accenture was always on what he could earn.

Oh Jack, why don’t you marry?
Oh, Jack, why don’t you live?
Oh Jack, why don’t you marry?
There is so much more that you could give.

Now as he wandered down the road late one night
He heard a kind of scuttling noise beneath a log
He started to investigate but had a fright
For he heard the sound of singing from a little frog.

Oh, Jack won’t you marry me I’ll be your bride.
You’ll lack for nothing ever again I promise you.
For I can give you all you want and more beside
If you take me for yourself then you will know that’s true.

Now Jack he listened carefully out of respect
To the poor little froggy as she raised her head.
He told her that he needed much more time to reflect,
For he wanted to write code much more than to be wed.

Oh Jack if you kiss me I shall be your slave,
For underneath this leather skin a princess lies.
I’ll wash and cook and iron for you right to your grave,
And I’ll always do my best for you in every wise.

By now Jack had lost interest in all of this.
He told the poor froggy it was time to go.
His head was full of binary, no time to kiss,
And the coding was important as she ought to know.

So Jack he just set off down the road once more,
But soon he turned around again to pick her up,
And as he stooped to lift her up her hopes did soar,
But he put her in his pocket and he zipped it up.

Now poor little froggy she was sore perplexed.
She did not understand at all so called his name:
Oh Jack will you tell me what will happen next?
You did not want to marry me, so what’s the game?

Now Jack knew for sure a wife was not for him
So he excused himself to her with: I’m no fool.
A man like me likes coding and to keep himself in trim,
But a talking frog is something else, it’s very cool.

With thanks to Andrew North

ChoralWiki and Noteworthy Scriptorium