Thursday, January 20, 2022

Cumulative story number 2

After such a great groundswell of comments on my previous post -- there were exactly none, friends, zero (0), zilch -- I am not deterred. In this post you will be treated to a second cumulative story.

I first heard folk singer Burl Ives perform this song back in the 1950s or 1960s (decades run together when you're my age) and liked it immediately. It has been stuck in my brain ever since. If you haven't run across it before, I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

"I Know An Old Lady Who Swallowed A Fly"

I know an old lady who swallowed a fly,
I don't know why she swallowed the fly,
Perhaps she'll die.

I know an old lady who swallowed a spider,
That wriggled and jiggled and tickled inside her.
She swallowed the spider to catch the fly,
I don't know why she swallowed the fly,
Perhaps she'll die.

I know an old lady who swallowed a bird,
How absurd to swallow a bird!
She swallowed the bird to catch the spider,
That wriggled and jiggled and tickled inside her,
She swallowed the spider to catch the fly,
I don't know why she swallowed the fly,
Perhaps she'll die.

I know an old lady who swallowed a cat,
Imagine that, to swallow a cat!
She swallowed the cat to catch the bird,
She swallowed the bird to catch the spider,
That wriggled and jiggled and tickled inside her,
She swallowed the spider to catch the fly,
I don't know why she swallowed the fly,
Perhaps she'll die.

I know an old lady who swallowed a dog,
My, what a hog, to swallow a dog!
She swallowed the dog to catch the cat,
She swallowed the cat to catch the bird,
She swallowed the bird to catch the spider,
That wriggled and jiggled and tickled inside her,
She swallowed the spider to catch the fly,
I don't know why she swallowed the fly,
Perhaps she'll die.

I know an old lady who swallowed a goat,
< Just opened her throat and swallowed a goat!
She swallowed the goat to catch the dog,
She swallowed the dog to catch the cat,
She swallowed the cat to catch the bird,
She swallowed the bird to catch the spider,
That wriggled and jiggled and tickled inside her,
She swallowed the spider to catch the fly,
I don't know why she swallowed the fly,
Perhaps she'll die.

I know an old lady who swallowed a cow,
I don't know how she swallowed a cow?!
She swallowed the cow to catch the goat,
She swallowed the goat to catch the dog,
She swallowed the dog to catch the cat,
She swallowed the cat to catch the bird,
She swallowed the bird to catch the spider,
That wriggled and jiggled and tickled inside her,
She swallowed the spider to catch the fly,
I don't know why she swallowed the fly,
Perhaps she'll die.

I know an old lady who swallowed a horse,
She's dead, of course!!


I know the mind can play tricks, but I remember the song as "I Know An Old Woman Who...", not "I Know An Old Lady Who..." but Burl Ives definitely sang Lady in the video I saw when researching this post.

Which is a good segue into our...

Thought For The Day: In the olden days a fellow could get away with saying that all ladies are women but not all women are ladies. In today's world, however, where LGBTQIAA+ folk seem to be everywhere, that statement might have additional meanings.

15 comments:

  1. I remember that word for word. I think I have it on an old 78rpm. Well it would be old because all 78s are old. If, however, the song isn't that old I won't have it because all my 45s were disposed of.

    I suspect with all the variations today whatever is decided it will be out of date tomorrow.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Graham, I think 45s came out in the 1950s so it could have been either.

      Delete
  2. I liked Burl Ives and I remember this song.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Red (Keith), glad you liked him and it. We aim to please.

      Delete
  3. I got used to the dearth of comments years ago. I now post consecutive posts on eclectic stuff just to see how many I can go without a comment.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Adrian, I need to adopt your attitude and not be concened about number of comments. Still, I need to know that I am not just speaking to myself.

      I think I feel a poem being birthed:

      ..."Speak to the passing wind, then,
      Speak to the open air,
      For only the wind will listen
      And only the wind will care"....

      I will let this simmer awhile and see if anything comes of it.

      Delete
    2. I'm very taken with your poem, Bob. I shall possibly use it as a basis for a post (I'm assuming your consent).

      On the subject of comments I find that when a post takes a lot of reading and understanding I just do not always have the time either to read and inwardly digest but also to spend time forming a meaningful response.

      Delete
    3. Graham, of course you have my consent, but I'm not sure what's going to become of those four lines. There need something ahead of them and something after after them to become part of a coherent poem. They are definitely not an 'stand alone' entity. I'm looking forward to your post!

      Delete
  4. Replies
    1. Emma, and kids nowadays still love it too. You might say that it is timeless (like us).

      Delete
  5. Hi Bob, please know I haven't forgotten you but I've simply not been online as much recently. My poor blog has been floating out there alone without much assistance from me lately.

    I've always liked Burl Ives, and in fact I have an old hardcover Burl Ives Songbook published in 1953. I don't remember this particular song but my book has many similar songs that would always bring smiles from old and young alike. I hope you and your dear wife are doing well!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Bonnie, it's good to hear from you. Burl Ives was very popular back in the day, as I recall, though he wasn't exactly Elvis or the Beatles.

      If it's a choice between blogworld and real life, real life should prevail every time, I think. True friends in blogworld will understand.

      Delete

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

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