Sunday, December 25, 2011

Blogger Christmas Book (Apologies to Dr. Seuss)

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(HAIKU at the bottom of this post)
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THE GRINCH'S LAST RIDE



Now the Grinch sighs, an' closes y'all's book
he winks at dog Max, whips his hat from the hook.

"I can be like that! All merry with a chuckle,
if I had more adipose under my buckle.

"It's settled then, I've seen the Light

Despite what Wall Street says of my might,
I won't steal Christmas, I can't anyway-
It's not mine to give, or take away.

I can't stop sneezes or Foam's gouty toes,

her watery eyes and sniff'ly nose,
Sir Karl ordered her a stout cup 'o cheer
To brighten her mood. Ain't he a dear?

Then Karl pinched his nose and cried
'foul!
Why, he defended my right to holler and howl--
'To our land,' cried he, 'It's not too hard,
Don't despair or throw in the tow'l,
Look for riches in our own backyard.'"

Max glanced at the Grinch, his face all a puzzle

"Master, now that you've removed my muzzle,
may I ask, why do you look so vexed?
All frowny and perplexed?"

The Grinch bent down to scratch Max's ears

he wiped away three green Grinchy tears;
"Listen pooch, that Troll under his bridge
has no Christmas spirit,not even a smidge.

Oh,
maybe a speck or glint now and then,
Seems he, too, had no Christmas book as a boy:
No Rudolph or Frosty, not even the Grinch to enjoy,
only jobs, jobs JOBS ---since he was ten!

Said Max, "That can't be, it won't do at all!

You and I are famous after all.
Didn't Pam tell him of Cindy Lou Who--
How, Grinchy, how can that be true?
Troll must know Who-ville? The tall and the small?"

"Speaking of small, Max, I'm not too sure
that smallness itself lacks some allure
Serendipity's ballad of Sweet Grace,
meek-nature'd with her kind face?
You remember?
The woman real pure,
who cared for her child
with patience so tender and mild?

"These people, like Who-ville too,
have a secret, maybe two:
'Don't hanker for power and fame
we let love drive our bus,
and skip all the fuss
of scheming
and screaming
and useless day-dreaming.
It's not for us.' "

Then Max grew sly,a tricky test he devised
You'll see a glint if you look in his eyes--
He threw that smug Old Grinch
an idea that was sure to pinch:

"Have you thought to use your royalties
to set up some much needed charities?"

The Grinch huffed, he puffed
he was astounded and stunned:
"My conversion's just now begun,
it not yet complete,
can you give me a week?"

"Master," woofed Max,
"Everyone would know
the wonder of Who-ville,
the high and the low,
if the story were told
in tropics or snow,
atop yonder ridge
or under Troll's bridge!

"Max, my faithful, here's a new Grinchy plan
Now that we've gathered the whole bloggy clan,
We'll dedicate this book to three, not two
Then Troll can't claim he knows not the Who!"

Next, the Grinch grabbed a red shiny bow
stuck it on his head and bellowed, "Let's GO!"

"Hurry dog, get out of that chair

Of time, we've none to spare!
On Dasher, on Dancer, Prancer and, Oooops!
Those coursers belong to Santa Claus' troops.

To Seattle We'll go, Max, to Island Bainbridge

to a house where there's nothing good in the fridge.
Just tofu and vitamin D-- not so good wif' vodka.
I ask you Max, isn't that rather oddka?

The folks there be merry, the house is aglow,

a tree decked with lights is guarded by Coco
( you'll meet her, Max, of that I am sure
that long face of yours she's certain to cure.)

Max wagged his tail, "Bark! Bark! Bark!"

The Grinch nodded his head
"Max, you're right on the mark-
I do recall some Candy Cane Bread
not made of twigs or tofus
but sugared and spiced to chase 'way the blues.

We'll give Boxer this book, with no fancy binding

It's not for show, after all, just for reminding;
folks need to know that Christmas is love.
Its story is written in the stars above.

"Max, hurry along, pack some treats for Coco,

Why, I' ll even play toy to that diva, Ho! Ho!
Fishy fingered me, my ego takes flight
oh what a burden, what a horrible plight--

To scheme all my days,
in various ways
to be center stage,
to crave more praise..

Oh it's sick, sick SICK!
and I'm tired
It makes me frantic, frenzied and wired.
My eye has a tic,
my cups won't' hic
I'm sunk low, Max, I'm mired
in a Slough of Despond
as deep as Fishy's Pond.

Max? It's true--My ego's a drag,
Ask Aunty, that old wag,
she's always the first
your bubble to burst
with preachy dogmatics
she finds in church attics.

I far prefer Chickory
we climbed hills of hickory
(Nothing like our Mount Crumpit
which looks like Whoville City Dumpit)
The Chicken -Lady, her twinkly eyes so merry
gave me some wine with cobbler of berry
then lowered her voice
she gave me no choice:

" 'Go Grinch' she ordered, 'your time here is spent'
That path you're on is crooked and bent.
Now seek the good, let go of the crass
off then to Boxer and Moi, hurry fast.' "

"Moi?" grrr'd Max with a grin,
"Where Ivan and Maddie are kin?
That fashion maven who's friend is Czar,
A fella that fancies brides from afar?"

The Grinch growled, his tone forbidding-
"Drop it, Max, I'm not kidding.
Don't you lust for some slick new master,
A Russian with a sleigh that glides faster.
Look dog, Fido is for fidelity, got it?
Any hint of dalliance? You know I'll spot it!"

"Besides, Czar only meant to open the door
to a clever, editor-ish metaphor,
and not to suggest
any carnal unrest."

Then he turned his head and whispered, "Oh"
In the east dawn rose in a golden glow
"It is Day, Max, Christmas has come.
Grab our book I want to add some
from the old book,
the one from before,
the one to which we've added
so much more.

"Type this Max:

It came without ribbons! It came without tags!
"It came without packages, boxes or bags!"

"Maybe Christmas," he thought, "doesn't come from a store.
"Maybe Christmas...perhaps...means a little bit more!"


And so it is, sweet chillens, y'all know it's true.
Thanky so kindly, thanky to the whole blogger crew,
An' a blessed Christmas from me to each of YOU!

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And now it is Monday, ya know what that means? HAIKU 's are due.

Last week's winner was that red furry Curmudgeon, who done give us the theme fer this week--SWEET . Click on over to his blog to see what all other folks think is sweet.

Here be Aunty's two entries fer Sweet:


Out frosted windows
he stares:white-haired, blind, hearing
sweet memories fade.






June's long, languid days,
orchards yield their plump peaches,
sweet as a child's kiss.







14 comments:

Anonymous said...

AMAZING! Miz Belle, amazing!

Serendipity

moi said...

This is just terrific, Aunty. Chock-a-block full of fun and a good reminder of the spirit of the holiday. I'm honored that you took the time to put these words together for me, Boxer, and Troll (who perhaps isn't all THAT grinchy, he just blogs that way), especially on a holiday. What a talent you have, not just with words, but with conveying a sweet and gracious nature. An absolutely perfect gift. Thank you!

chickory said...

So thats where Dr. Seuss got it all! I loved it - the funny made up words and the way you integrated everybodys contribution. So glad the Grinch found his way..and all of us. Hope you had a blessed Christmas and you know I wish us all a very happy new year!

Jenny said...

well, this just made me tear up in a good way. Christmas IS a just little bit more than packages and ribbons. THANK YOU Aunty for putting this together and to everyone who participated. I loved it. Will love it longer because I'm printing it out. What a lovely project and maybe this should be a regular gig for you?

Happy Boxing Day!!

(p.s. there's sometimes salad in my frig.)

xoxoxo to everyone.

Anonymous said...

I'm not a grinch. I just never read the story or watched the cartoon. I enjoy the Christmas Worship Service, the Family Dinner, giving Presents and other stuff.

Aunty Belle said...

Serendipity,
thanky! --t'were fun.

Moi,
is ya thawed yet? Youse welcome!

Chickory,
Heh...did'ja know that Seuss' Green Eggs and Ham sold 60,000 copies--in LATIN??

Boxer-babe,

Youse a good sport to let me poke a little fun at yore fridge--but what of Coco? Din't she whirl like a dervish when Ole Max came callin'?

Oh Troll, gracious, Sugar Pie, Aunty ain't namin' ya' a Grinch a'tall!

-- jes' teasin' ya some that y'aint never *read* the Grinch.

fishy said...

Bravo Aunty!
Wonderful present to all the blog family.
Godspeed.

darkfoam said...

wow! terrific job tying all of the contributions together, auntie!!

your haiku are superb! so sentimental, so sweet .. they sure do pull on those heart strings.

Karl said...

Good morning Dear Aunty and friends far and near,

Just a small footnote, you might want to hear.
Dr. Seuss wrote this epic, 57 the year.
Both Boxer and Moi were still twinkles in the eye.
You see, commercialism bothered him so he decided to try.
To send out a message in a humorous way
Of what is important, back then and today.
When he sat down and wrote, took 96 pages to complete.
Sending his message in 2400 words, was quite a feat.
Advance 54 years to our holiday fun.
Over 2700 words went into this one.
The 108 pages it took us to say.
After all of this time, we still feel the same way.
It's not what it's in your pocket, that happiness brings.
Friends and compassion are best of all things.
Reading your works has been quite the time.
Just one thing to say to finish this rhyme.
An honor it is to converse with all here.
Happiness and peace in the coming year.

darkfoam said...

hear, hear!

Anonymous said...

LOL, Auntie"

"Then Max grew sly,a tricky test he devised
You'll see a glint if you look in his eyes--
He threw that smug Old Grinch
an idea that was sure to pinch:

"Have you thought to use your royalties
to set up some much needed charities?"

Hee Haw

Sharon Rudd said...

Dear Aunty, your tales are always a wonder.
This tome of yours “gits” all contributions without blunder.

Sir Karl once again has outdone himself,
Capping things off as our James Bond turned elf.

So sorry not to have been ‘round to play.
Home again now, here’s what I say:

On Boxer, on Chicky, on Moi, and the rest.
On Fishy and Foamy (has Buzz flown the nest?)

To Curmudgeon and Troll and ALL the talented folks
Who go ‘bout their business without any yokes,

At least in the blogosphere,
Which is why I’m glad I am here.

Merry New Year, y’all!
xoxo, eggy

fishy said...

Sweet victory Aunty!
Looking forward to the first haiku challenge of
2012

Aunty Belle said...

Awwww...y'all is dear folk, truly ya' is.

Thanky Fishy and Foamy fer the kind kudos.

Karl!

Ya outdoes us all wif' yore insight--an we's so charmed that ya does it in rhyme. It's an honore to converse bloggily wif' the Good Sir Fair!

Anon,
yes, well, ya know--some folks profess others DO IT.

Eggy!!

We MISSED Ya'! How dear and sweet to add yore verses so clever --it puts a bow on our whole endeavor--

Fishy,
yes, a sweet victory indeed--why, youse right, it will be the first Haiku of the New Year--oh, ya give me a theme idea--heh.

Buzz?

Oh Buzzzzzz? youse missed. Hope all be well, jes busy, not troubled. Send up a flag heah and theah to let us know how ya be.