Three entries only so far (excluding my own). I reckon there must be close on 500 rhymes for "green" - so there must be many more limericks lurking lasciviously, if not lewdly, in Wordcrafters minds.

You now have at least four. I've sent mine. Sorry, it's not even faintly blue!

Wordmatic

Mine has been sent as well. It's not lewd either, though it is festive!

When rhyming with old Partridge Green
There are plenty of words that are clean.
But there's other kinds too;
I'm surprised that you two
Have found nothing at all that's obscene!

You can post both of the ones I sent if that will help the numbers.

I give it another day or two before I judge the entries. Still time for the rest of you, then!

I have a suggestion. Some here write very good lewd limericks. Others here aren't quite as good at that. I am wondering if we could have 2 winners. One for a more off-color limerick and the other for a clean limerick. The 2 winners could decide between themselves who would do the next game. It's just a suggestion, and I won't jump off the nearest bridge if we don't embrace it.

I suppose I suggest this out of selfishness because I am just not as good at writing off-color limericks. Shu had requested one, and I felt that my submission was subpar because of that.

according to this definition, a Limerick may be bawdy ..... or not ...

I prefer limericks that use their obscenity cleverly, often by simply hinting at it or maybe by needing a particular interpretation of the words to bring out the obscenity.

I prefer limericks that are funny, and I especially like it when that last line has a zinger. For that reason, some of the OEDILF limericks (those that only define a word, but are completely humorless) I find to be quite boring.

I agree that some limericks with obscenity are delightful, but others I find are obscene just to be obscene. I guess that's how I felt about the one I had sent Shu on the word Jamaica.

However, a discussion on preferences for obscene limericks is irrelevant for the question at hand. Can winning limericks in this game be clean? There's no point in sending in a clean limerick if that's not the case. On the other hand, perhaps it depends on the judge? If so, the judge might want to give some criteria as to what he or she prefers.

In this instance I shall judge on the basis of cleverness and adherence to the limerick form. Obscenity, if present, will be judged on the basis of its cleverness, not its degree of vulgarity.

I will let the competition run for one more day and then I shall post the submissions and my decision.

I think you'll find mine to be exceptionally clean.

Mine was in yesterday, and I'm adding a second.

Here, alphabetically by nom-de-computer, are the limericks I’ve received, with my comments beneath each.

From bethree:

An old man in old Partridge Green
Doth swear by his daily Peak Frean.
‘Coz he’s careful to frisk it
With a digestive biscuit,
His colon is right lean and mean.

As my late father used to say to me, “Not so much of the ‘old’”. But as I learnt, just this week, that I am to be a grandfather for the first time I suppose I have to accept that I have joined the ranks of the old men, no matter how much I would have preferred not to. And you’re right, bethree, it is a singularly clean limerick!

From Bob Hale:

A fellow who knew Partridge Green
Said, "It's pretty and perfect and clean,
But this leafy suburbia
Conceals things that disturb ya -
It's all nudge, wink and know what I mean?"

Say no more, Bob! The still waters of our village run deep, mysterious and dubious. But suburbia? Hardly!

From jerry Thomas

Asking Richard. (He's from Partridge Green),
What's a Limerick? and What does it mean?
Is obscenity needed?
Is the rule always heeded?
Is Sussexuality "dirty," or clean?

I thought I’d heard all the SusSEX jokes but this is a new one! I shall have to try asking a local if she’s a sussexual person (providing her husband’s not too near!

From Kalleh

In England the town Partridge Green
Has beautiful gardens...it's keen!
And yet one must ask
(After drinking a cask),
"Are there pear trees where partridges preen?"

In fact the village was named after an early landowner, not the bird – although people have obviously capitalised on the obvious avian connection. Our local boozer, The Partridge, was originally called The Station Hotel, back in the good old days when we still had a railway line and a station!

And two from shufitz (are multiple submissions allowed under the rules, Bob?

A virginal maiden of Worchestershire
To diffident laddies was Yorchestershire,
Til a lewd Partridger Greener
Who was somewhat obscener
Sedorchestershire, Aborchestershire, and Gorchestershire.

As I have often said, I do love limericks that use the eccentricities of English spellings – although I have to take issue with the rhymes here. The rhymes of wooster (short oo); used ter and goosed her (long oo) are a bit of a stretch, even for me!

An attribute of Partridge Greenery
Is ignoble addiction to venery.
When lacking a lass
They’ll use dog, sheep or ass,
Or in desperate cases, machinery.

This is very good although I believe it needs an extra syllable in L1.

And finally one from wordmatic:

There's nothing, I think, that's obscene
About dear little, quaint Partridge Green.
It's demure, prim and quiet;
Whole town's on a diet
Of sprouts, bubble, squeak,and beef, lean!

Apart from a slight confusion about bubble and squeak (one cannot be separated from the other) this is a very fair representation of our quiet little village (or so we’d have others believe!)

It’s surprising how such a constrained verse form can be capable of so much variation and, furthermore, be capable too of letting the author’s style shine through. I wonder how many of us would have recognised each author’s work had we not known.

I would surely have recognised Kalleh’s – her limerick style is unmistakeable – even to her liking for the ellipsis.

And it’s Kalleh’s limerick to which I award the prize. It manages to scan and rhyme perfectly without the use of verbal devices or tricks. And the alliteration in L5 is masterly.

So, Kalleh, your turn next (and I’ll rise to the challenge of Winnetka!)

Well, I feel a little like the squeaky wheel gets the oil...I hope my complaints didn't enter into the decision.

Thanks very much, and I will start a new game with a great city, Paris!

quote:

And two from shufitz (are multiple submissions allowed under the rules, Bob?

I shal issue an edict.

And here it is.

The rules are whatever the person running the game decides them to be.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: BobHale,

Kalleh, congratulations, and thankyouthankyouthankyou for not going with Winnetka!

WM