And I know it's you knocking around in there

[sovay]

In no particular order—

1. I have been Spontaneously Spotted! I feel like some sort of rare species.

2. Today is my father's birthday non-observed. Last night I made a hazelnut cake; today it gets whipped cream, strawberries, and that very dark chocolate icing that is basically cacao with a little butter to make it pliable. I believe we are taking him to Za for dinner. Mostly I got him books.

3. This is the best poem about the Odyssey I've seen in a long time.

4. heliopsis has coined an excellent word.

5. The trees are budding. It's not snowing yet.

Comments

[sovay]

I remember my singing "I gave my love a cherry" to my siblings when we were all little. We all marveled at it together--it was our first introductions to true riddles.

Nice. There's a chance that my first riddle song was "Tumbalalaika," but since I mostly knew it phonetically for years, I'm not sure it counts.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

I don't know that one (I don't think--not by name, anyway)--tell me about it?

[sovay]

I don't know that one (I don't think--not by name, anyway)--tell me about it?

It's a Yiddish riddle song with a quasi-nonsense chorus. I think we had it sung by Theodore Bikel.

Shteyt a bokher, shteyt un trakht
Trakht un trakht a gantse nakht
Vemen tzu nemen un nisht farshemen
Vemen tzu nemen un nisht farshemen

A boy stands, stands and thinks
Thinks and thinks the whole night through
Whom to take and bring no shame to
Whom to take and bring no shame to

Tumbala, tumbala, tumbalalaika
Tumbala, tumbala, tumbalalaika
Tumbalalaika, shpil balalaika
Tumbalalaika, freylekh zol zayn

Tumbala, tumbala, tumbalalaika
Tumbala, tumbala, tumbalalaika
Tumbalalaika, play balalaika
Tumbalalaika, let's be happy

Meydl, meydl, kh'vil bay dir fregn
Vos ken vaksn, vaksn on regn?
Vos ken brenen un nit oyfhern?
Vos ken benken, veynen on trern?

Maiden, maiden, I want to ask of you
What can grow, grow without rain?
What can burn and never stop?
What can yearn, cry without tears?

Tumbala, tumbala . . .

Narisher bokher, was darfst du fregn?
A shteyn ken vaksn, waksn on regn
Libe ken brenen un nit oyfhern
A harts ken benken, veynen on trern

Silly boy, why do you have to ask?
A stone can grow, grow without rain
Love can burn and never stop
A heart can yearn, cry without tears

Tumbala, tumbala . . .

I think there's another set of questions and answers, but I don't know them.

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

That's great! The chorus is fun to sing (I'm guessing--it's fun to say); it fits nicely in your mouth.

[sovay]

The chorus is fun to sing (I'm guessing--it's fun to say)

(It is. I'll sing it for you sometime; it has a very simple tune.)

[asakiyume.livejournal.com]

Yay!

I was thinking about you and singing just today. (Let me see if I can remember why... I think it had to to with hazily daydreaming about learning to sing a song together, but what song? I can't remember. I do remember that it led me to remember singing with a friend when I was in high school: she had a beautiful voice, and we'd sit around trading songs--I got the better end of that deal, for sure.)

If it has a simple tune, then I can learn to sing it!