Tuesday, May 11, 2010

Is...


a PUZZLEMENT!!!

If you click on the words “a PUZZLEMENT!” you may soon be as confused as the people in Manchester, England’s airport were recently, but perhaps you will not be as confused as Yul Brynner was in The King And I (lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II):

When I was a boy
World was better spot.
What was so was so,
What was not was not.
Now I am a man;
World have changed a lot.
Some things nearly so,
Others nearly not.

There are times I almost think
I am not sure of what I absolutely know.
Very often find confusion
In conclusion I concluded long ago
In my head are many facts
That, as a student, I have studied to procure,
In my head are many facts
Of which I wish I was more certain I was sure!

[Spoken:] Is a puzzlement!!!

What to tell growing son?
What, for instance, shall I say to him of women?
Shall I educate him on the ancient lines?
Shall I tell the boy as far as he is able,
To respect his wives and love his concubines?
Shall I tell him everyone is like the other,
And the better of the two is really neither?
If I tell him this I think he won’t believe it --
And I nearly think that I don’t believe it either!

When my father was a king
He was a king who knew exactly what he knew,
And his brain was not a thing
Forever swinging to and fro and fro and to.
Shall I, then be like my father
And be willfully unmovable and strong?
Or is it better to be right?...
Or am I right when I believe I may be wrong?

Shall I join with other nations in alliance?
If allies are weak, am I not best alone?
If allies are strong with power to protect me,
Might they not protect me out of all I own?
Is a danger to be trusting one another,
One will seldom want to do what other wishes;
But unless someday somebody trust somebody
There’ll be nothing left on earth excepting fishes!

There are times I almost think
Nobody sure of what he absolutely know.
Everybody find confusion
In conclusion he concluded long ago
And it puzzle me to learn
That tho’ a man may be in doubt of what he know,
Very quickly he will fight...
He’ll fight to prove that what he does not know is so!

Oh-h-h-h-h-h!
Sometimes I think that people going mad!
Ah-h-h-h-h-h!
Sometimes I think that people not so bad!
But not matter what I think, I must go on living life.
As leader of my kingdom I must go forth,
Be father to my children and husband to each wife
Etcetera, etcetera, and so forth.

If my Lord in Heaven Buddha show the way,
Everyday I try to live another day.
If my Lord in Heaven Buddha show the way,
Everyday I do my best for one more day!

[Spoken] But...Is a puzzlement!


7 comments:

  1. I'm pretty sure Arkansas Pat will be a happy lady if she sees this photo. I seem to remember that she's quite taken by Mr. Brynner. But I might be wrong. Or confused as always.

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  2. He was a great actor and played this role well. He also played Brothers Karamazov well. I watched that movie so many times. Wish I could get it in DVD.
    Before he died he made a TV commercial about smoking. He said. Don't smoke. lol Too bad.

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  3. His hairline resembles mine....

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  4. I think all of us grow cuter as we grow older because we're no longer trying and we can't rely on our outward appearance to help us so we do more with our voices and our pens (read keyboards!)

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  5. Carolina, you are correct. I am quite taken with Mr. Brynner's appearance. Bald is beautiful or, in this case, extremely handsome/sexy!

    Methinks the young man in the KLM display must get quite tired of sitting with his leg outstretched like that. The supporting mechanism, I suspect, runs from the display base up the bottom of the shoe, the back side of the outstretched leg, and under his trousers to his behind. Quite a cantilever system! If I am incorrect, it is indeed a puzzlement!

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  6. Sorry to be so late in acknowledging your comments, everyone.

    Only Pat (an Arkansas Stamper) mentioned the KLM display in the link. Odd! I agree with her take on the cantilever thingy...unless the whole leg is the cantilever and the young man is sitting cross-legged inside his clothing....

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  7. I first heard these words when I was three or so, and they had a profound effect. I've been interested in the Hows and Whys and Whats ever since.

    So I found that relaxing man on the KLM display very intriguing indeed!

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<b>Always true to you, darlin’, in my fashion</b>

We are bombarded daily by abbreviations in everyday life, abbreviations that are never explained, only assumed to be understood by everyone...