http://languagehat.com/famous-...ritten-as-limericks/

I sense a new game coming on...

Let's not restrict it to poetry though, let's have any literature.

An ending in fire or in ice?
Or maybe the world can end twice.
I've tasted desire
And I'd suggest fire
Which is good but the ice is as nice

(Apologies to Robert Frost)

Absolutely fab idea, Bob!

It will take me a while to come up w/one, but meanwhile, here's one from the bunch at one of your link's links - made me laugh!

I WANDERED LONELY AS A CLOUD
There once was a poet named Will
Who tramped his way over a hill
And was speechless for hours
Over some stupid flowers
This was years before TV, but still.

Well, at times I must ask myself how
Do I love thee? (I did take that vow).
If I really delve,
I come up with twelve
For a sonnet-- can't think of them now!

(Apologies to EBBrowning)

This message has been edited. Last edited by: bethree5,

There once was a man named Joyce
Who finally found his voice
Giving earth not a chest
But a succulent breast--
And bosoms for trees-- good choice!

(Apologies to J Kilmer)

This message has been edited. Last edited by: bethree5,

The Fickle Finger of Fate
Bird-flips you. It does not wait:
Your gaffe has been outed,
Your retreats are routed.
Don't cry, brother: it is too late.

(Apologies to OKhayyám)

Keep your head, tell the truth, if you can
For Triumph and Disaster - just plan
Then gamble and lose
Everything but your shoes
And then, Rudyard said, you're a man.

(Apologies to Mister Kipling who does make exceedingly good cakes)

One hundred and twenty eight lines?
I'll work within stricter confines.
The ploughman is dead.
Nothing more need be said.
(Though there's more in his headstone's designs.)

(Apologies to Thomas Gray)

It was winter and snowed with some force,
When a fellow came by on a horse
He paused in the trees
(Dark and deep and mid-freeze)
Said nothing and rode on in due course.

(Further apologies to Robert Frost)

In England? In April? Verse one.
In verse two we see May follow on.
That's the end, here's the thing
He's in love with the Spring
And cares not for the months when it's gone.

(Apologies to Browning)

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

And one from a book...

The ship sank. Now I'm stuck on this isle,
So I'll build a new home with a smile.
And I'll do it my way,
And (at least until Friday)
Do it all by myself for a while.

(Apologies to Defoe)

quote:

And then, Rudyard said, you're a man.

And it's then, Rudyard said, you're a man.
It is then....

Better meter

quote:

Said nothing and rode on in due course.

Said nothing; rode on in due course.[/quote]

quote:

And (at least until Friday)

i-
FriDAY? Really, Bob??

I think you have mistaken us for the OEDILF, Proof.

Feel free to join in.

quote:

Originally posted by Proofreader:

quote:

And (at least until Friday)

i-
FriDAY? Really, Bob??

No not really.

At LEAST until FRIday

quote:

Originally posted by BobHale:
I think you have mistaken us for the OEDILF, Proof.

LoCILF, maybe?

quote:

Originally posted by BobHale:
One hundred and twenty eight lines?...
(Apologies to Thomas Gray)

Haha, the Elegy was hi on my list, but you say here why I didn't even try.

Or, should I say...

Gray's Elegy was high on my list
Of lim'ricky lit for my grist.
Line 1: I'm absorbed
Line 40: I'm bored
Line 128? Now I'm pissed.

quote:

Originally posted by bethree5:

Line 128? Now I'm pissed.

In the British sense?

These are excellent!

quote:

Originally posted by Geoff:

quote:

Originally posted by bethree5:

Line 128? Now I'm pissed.

In the British sense?

heh, heh-- works either way.

quote:

Originally posted by Kalleh:
These are excellent!

They are fun, try one!

I especially love Bob Frost's [er, Hale's] laconic horseman. Droll!

Shu and I talked about these, and it seems that they would be very hard to write. How long did it take you to write one?

a couple of minutes each... once I had an idea. getting the idea in the first place? That's a different matter

Ditto Bob. No longer than a regular limerick. I chased the poems down searching favorite/ most famous/ hackneyed/ cliché poetry. I do love poking fun at pompous poetry!

Hey where is everybody? Try it, you will like it (can you tell I'm doing Huevos Verdes con Jamón w/ the PreK set?)


Forensic Files

The Queen's got a case that is terminal:
Repeated hand-washings subliminal
Done while she's asleep--
But oh will she weep
When CSI comes with their Luminol.

It isn't easy summarizing a poem in a limerick. I have enough trouble writing a limerick for a venue.

In the future it's easy to see
A world where no one will be free.
So for now let us smother
All thoughts of Big Brother
And celebrate this '83.