A Random Train(wreck) of Thought

            This social media business is a bit fascinating, and sometimes confusing.  Until Jolly Fish Press more or less forced Berk and I into the blogging/Twitter/Facebook world I had no idea how out of touch I was.  Oh sure, I had heard of blogging, and Twitter and Facebook.  My head was not that deep in the sand.  (Don't ask my kids about that last comment, please!)  I just personally had nothing to do with it.

           Now that I am at least trying to be involved in social media I realize that I was an absolute cyber hermit.  I lived on a virtual island from where I could see the mainland, but did not interact with anyone there.  For me, email is still high tech stuff.  The problem with folks my age, (at my age I can legally be referred to as “folks”) is that when we were younger high tech stuff stayed high tech for more than ninety days. 

            Computers were amazing for years, and car phones for decades.  Now, I will still be astounded with some new technology and it will already be old school crap.  It hardly seems worth trying to keep up.  That last part wasn’t stated well.  It may or may not be worth trying to keep up; it is just beyond me to do so.

            Fortunately, blogging, Twitter and Facebook have all been around long enough that they are all old school, even for an old fart like me.  Wait, I forgot what I started to write about.  Oh yea, this social media stuff; pretty phenomenal. 

            Anyway, as I was social networking along, I came across a blog from someone from my past.  It turns out that Daniel K. Lubben, from my home town in Ridgecrest, California, (not far from Trona) is a blogger.  His blog is at http://www.danielkemperlubben.com.  He has a fun blog that covers just about anything, anything that he happens to be thinking about.  I enjoyed his website because it has a poem on it called “Little Sally Liked to Sass”.  I remember this poem from when he originally wrote it, back in the olden days when he was in high school and I was in junior high.

            I remember the poem a little differently.  I remember it being called “Missy Molly”.  But she still liked to sass.  I’ll let you read it on Dan’s site.  It is listed under “Fun Stuff” on his web page.

            And the reason I bring that up is because “Missy Molly” is the only poem I have ever been able to remember and recite.  I still remember it today.  Funny thing, I never even tried to memorize it.  It just stuck with me.  No other poem, or piece of literature, or even scripture, that I had to memorize for a class, or wanted to memorize for any reason, have I been able to retain for very long.  Once, more for the heck of it than for any other reason, I memorized “The Walrus and the Carpenter” from Alice in Wonderland.  Today I don’t even remember the first line.

            At this point you may be wondering where I’m going with this.  I wish I knew.  But it does remind me of all the poems I wish I could recall from memory and recite.  (Thanks Dan.)  My favorite poet is someone you wouldn’t think of as a poet, and maybe you haven’t even heard of him.  His name is Mason Williams, and frankly, I don’t know if he is still alive or not.  He was a comedy writer for the Smother Brothers, and may be best known for writing an instrumental piece of music entitled Classical Gas.  You can listen to the orginal cut on Youtube here:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhMuCiAe6vA   It’s a good song.

            He also wrote several bizarre and interesting books.  One book unfolds, and unfolds, until it is a life size poster of a Greyhound bus.  No kidding.  He also wrote poetry, of a sort.  He had his own style and the poems were titled with names like “Them Lunch Toters” and “Them Dog Kickers”.  They’re called the Them Poems.  My favorite two are “Them Moose Goosers” and “Them Toad Suckers”.  I can remember a few lines from each, but I have never ever been able to retain them like I could “Missy Molly”.  I don’t know why. 

             So, anyway, for your enjoyment, by poet extraordinaire, Mason Williams, here are two of my favorite poems:

 

Them Moose Goosers
How about them Moose goosers, Ain't they ‘cluse?
Up in them boondocks, goosin' them moose
Goosin' them huge moose, goosin' them tiny,
Goosin them medlin' moose in they hinny!
Look at them Moose goosers, Ain't they dumb?
Some use an umbrella, some use they thumb.
Them obtuse Moose goosers, sneakin' through the woods,
pokin' they snoozey moose in they goods,
How to be a Moose gooser? It'll turn you puce;
Get your gooser loose, and rouse a drowsy moose!

Them Toad Suckers
How about them Toad Suckers, Ain't they clods?
Sittin' there suckin' them green taody frogs.
Suckin' them hopper toads, suckin' them chunckers,
Suckin' them leapy types, suckin' them plunkers.
Look at them Toad Suckers, Ain't they snappy?
Suckin' them bog Frogs, sure makes them happy.
Them hugger mugger Toad Suckers, way down south,
Stickin' they sucky toads, in they mouth.
How to be a Toad Sucker? No way to duck it;
getcha self a toad, rare back and suck it!

           
 You can find more at: http://www.lazyka.com/linernotes/thesongs/ThemPoems.htm.  It will be the funniest thing you have read in a long time.  Find a favorite of your own and then share it on social media!  (Bet you thought I’d never be able to bring it home, huh?)