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| _joust, rally, sketch, bemoan, lackluster job.Image(s) from the Internet.
The opening poem contains all the words (or variations of them) from today's Jumble.
Comments are welcomed! And couching them in Poetry is definitely NOT required.
Do not explicitly reveal any of the actual answer words until after closing time, but embedding them surreptitiously in comment sentences is encouraged.
14 comments:
The historical reenactors are having a rally!
A medieval theme, with jousting for glory!
They'll set up pavilions wherein to encamp,
And live there a weekend, thru cold and damp!
Pity the cub reporter sent to cover the scene.
This is worse than the high school golf team!
He bemoaned his fate at the city council hall;
He'd once thought the garden club worst of all!
He was expected to make this report exciting,
And also draw sketches of the sword fighting!
A lackluster story just would not do the job.
If his ed didn't like it, he was out like a dog!
"Attack Buster Job?"
Before cataphract jousting, a rally was in order,
so the young knight could sketch out his plan of attack.
It was enough practice to assure his lance thrusting--
and leave the lad bemoaning the attempt on his back!
~ OMK
"Moving on Up"
Joan for years did often bemoan
her depressing lackluster job
which made her complain and groan,
though with colleagues she did hob-nob.
Then one day she attended a rally
that was held in a nearby alley,
where employees did grouse and joust
and sketched plans that changes aroused.
Then soon Joan with her colleagues voted
and got herself promoted.
She is now the company boss
and the employees are no longer cross.
Owen and Ol' Man Keith, how interesting that you came up with similar themes this morning--public outdoor performances or games that appear not to go very well, what with terrible weather and possible injuries. I'll keep my fingers crossed that everything ended up more or less all right.
Wish we knew what Joan's job actually was, to get a sense of whether she could actually do more successful work than her predecessors. It's possible that this verse too might end up in some sort of disaster.
My guess, Misty, is she had some kind of job where kvetching & griping served for advancement. Usually, such constant complaining doesn't help one's career, but it seems that this crew specialized in it.
Hey, maybe it was some governmental inspector general's office! I always wondered what would happen if an IG agency turned its whistle-blowing on itself.
Joan's stanzas earn her the Jimmy Durante award, LOL!
(One of his famous catch phrases was, "I got a MILLion of 'em, a MILLion!")
~ OMK
BTW, my last line should read:
"... and leave him, bemoaning th' attempt, on his back."
It's neater without the extra syllables of "the lad," and I like the steady 3 anapests at the end.
Brief as it is, that verse went through several permutations. It started out to be a real contest between the "Blue Knight" (instead of "the young knight") and "Sir Red Guy" (in place of just "Sir Guy" and then "the lad"). But somewhere along the way I saw it wasn't fun for the first knight to win a tiny contest, and figured it to be slightly more amusing for the kid to do himself in.
It wasn't until after posting that I realized the pronoun "him" was all I needed with only one person to reference.
~ OMK
OMK, can you remind me of the meaning of the expression "mill" again?
I just looked it up and it appears to be just the usual crushing or grinding of grain, or something like that. So, if Joan complains, she grinding her teeth, maybe?
So is it the young knight who is getting an attempted attack on his back and not the lad he was jousting with, OMK? Forgive my slowness today--just got up from a nap and maybe not fully awake yet.
Oh, my, Misty ~
I followed your lead in coining it. I forget exactly how you inspired me, but please forget about grinding grain and all that stuff. Just think instead of the expression "milling about."
To "mill about" means to wander, usually aimlessly. I use it to remind you of your habit of loosening the grip of grammar. In poetry, it was a common 19th century practice of reversing the normal (conversational) rule that the verb comes before the object.
(Example: "...plans that changes aroused.")
But sometimes it is when the normal tense of the verb is changed.
(Example: "... employees did grouse and joust.")
Old poets did whatever they needed to maneuver a word into the rhyming position.
A lot of these old usages became associated with "highfalutin poetry," a "fancy" way of writing that can ONLY be found in poetry. They have become clichés of the form.
Of course, if you really want something to sound fancy--like an old-fashioned poet--or if you want to make a comic point, by all means "mill" away!
~ OMK
___________
PS. I'm not sure it is all that helpful of me to try citing rules or guidelines. Probably the simplest way of avoiding "mills" is to sound phrases aloud--not just for good sense, because your words always make sense, but to ask yourself,
"Would I actually say that, that way?"
Yes, I settled on the young knight as the only person in my ditty (the "lad" was also him). He used the rally to practice his thrust, but he ended up on his back.
(Nobody attacked his back; he was simply lying on his back in the end, bemoaning his fate. I'm not sure how he got there. He probably over-thrusted, lost his balance, and--Ker-PLOP!)
~ OMK
Lots of helpful, interesting, satisfying responses to everything, OMK.
Thank you so much for your kind help, and have a great weekend coming up.
"cataphract jousting"? Somewhat reminiscent of this verse from a year ago
[Spake the Jewess, Rebecca]
"Sorry to spoil your dreams foul tempter, depart if thou art wise."
Then a knight appeared dashing for the lists and no longer in disguise.
"I , Wilfred of Ivanhoe, defy thee Sir Brian as despoiler and liar.
And will uphold her honor and by aid of Saint George, spare her from the fire".
As the esquires of Sir Brian closed his visor one remarked, "By my ken
The face of our Master is totally flushed and seems lacking oxygen."
And thus, after the clash of lances there lay Sir Brian. An aficionado
Of battle later recounted. It wasn't by the hand of the Knight Desiderato
WC
So glad you checked in with a verse, . We missed you and it's good to know that all is okay with you and you are happily in the poetic spirit!
Look forward to seeing more of your work tomorrow!
I thought of you, Wilbur, naturally, as I dared to type my own tiny tale of the lists. I am sure Wilfred was far more qualified to raise a lance than my young fellow.
For that matter, Sir Brian, and just about anyone else you name, would be more qualified.
I'm sure my guy unhorsed himself.
~ OMK
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