By hook or by crook...

My granddad always used to turn to the last page of an autograph book and write "By hook or by crook I'll be last in this book"!

My other granddad wrote "The man who never made a mistake never made aught."

I have no idea what I'd write myself - it would depend on the owner of the book!

I found one which I had at junior school, I've no idea who half the writers were now!

Is this what 'Writers Room' is for? I thought it was for putting up pieces of writing/poems etc that you have written yourself.

My third year junior teacher wrote........'Spare the rod and spoil the child'.
Very appropriate, she was the most vindictive, abusive woman I had ever had the misfortune to meet in all of my ten years.
Every night after my usual prayers, I always ended with ....and please make Mrs.S. die before morning. She never did though.
Sorry janerowena I know it's a light hearted thread. I'm quite shocked at that memory and the clarity of her cruelty to us all, even after almost sixty years.

Ouch Juliette. How mean.

No jings, it's a writing thread, what would you write? In an autograph album?

Everyone has to start somewhere. So in this case 'Mighty oaks from little acorns grow'. Those little quotes and bits of advice were one of the things that started my fascination with how words can be used.

If someone asked for my autograph I would probably write:

I am not the Queen or Mrs T
But you're a flippin' nelly.
Cos you've obviously mistook me for
Someone off the telly.

(I know Mrs T is dead)

2 YYs U R
2YYs U B
I C U R
2YYs 4 ME

Are you a mindreader gaga? I was going to do that one!

They stood on the bridge at midnight
Her heart was all aquiver
She gave a cough
Her leg fell off
And floated down the river.

I suppose that really belongs on a poetry thread!

The last entry in my last autograph book read:
If JB lived across the sea
What a good swimmer Hilda would be!
I wonder what JB is doing now. He was my last boyfriend before we left school and went our different ways.

When I left Hospital age 11 after recovering from Meningitis the sister on the ward wrote,

"Be good sweet maid and let who will be clever."

It annoyed me then and still annoys me now. If she had been sweet and let others be clever she would never have got to be a ward sister, especially in the 1950s.

But that goes on "...and let who will be clever, do noble deeds not dream them all day long".

It's encouraging. Not a put down of the female sex.

Well, that's how I've always read the poem.

...and so make life, death, and vast forever, one long sweet dream.

It was in Arthur Gee's Book of One Hundred Beautiful Things. I borrowed and borrowed it from the library when I was a kid.

One grand sweet song

A Farewell Poem
Charles Kingsley

MY fairest child, I have no song to give you;
No lark could pipe to skies so dull and gray;
Yet, ere we part, one lesson I can leave you
For every day.

Be good, sweet maid, and let who will be clever; 5
Do noble things, not dream them, all day long:
And so make life, death, and that vast forever
One grand, sweet song.

I agree, jingl, it's not a put-down (unless of those with their heads in the clouds who do nothing but pontificate!).

That's the one! I've remembered that since I was about fourteen.

It's very beautiful. "No lark could pipe to skies so dull and grey"

Sigh!

The first verse is quite sad, I think.

ABCD goldfish
MNO goldfish
SDR goldfish
RDL goldfish!

Thanks Gran,

I didn't know the poem continued in this way. It might have helped if she had explained it a bit more.

That's what's so great about Grans Net. I feel better about it now and it's niggled me from time to time for over 50 years!

Also felt quite sad when I realised that the title was "A Farewell Peom." She had been with me for 5 weeks and during that time I had nearly popped my clogs - so thanks Sister Heaney.

Ana yes. It is sad. I wonder what the circumstances were.

Falconbird and

On a slightly different note, who remembers this -

Csenora Derdego
4t lorries in a row.
Demaint lorries dey r trucks
full of cows and hens and ducks.

You have to say it a Spanish accent. It used to make us laugh so much when we were kids. We thought it was very clever and witty

We had a similar one, but Latin(ish)

Sebile, sebile, sedem go
Fortibus is in ero
Nobile nobile, themis trux
Si vatis inem, pixan dux.

Then there was

A for orses
B for mutton
C for yourself
D for blind
E for brick
F for vescent
G for screepers
H for adventure
I for one
J for wonder?
K for tearoom
L for goblin
M for sis
N for mation
O for a Guinness
P for relief
Q for a bus
R for mo
S for Rantzen (updated from Williams)
T for chewing
U for example
V for La France
W for tune
X for breakfast
Y for sweetheart
Z for (I can't remember what Z was for)