Sunday, December 5, 2010

On the Bus to Old Uncle Woody's

That Guinness-loving Poetikat is driving TFE's Poetry Bus this week!  Along with being one of our favorite poets, she is a wicked good driver, and she wants tales of pubs, where a fabulous time is had by all.  Now you know I seldom frequent such places, but I thought, since she asked, I would give it a whirl. Here's my ticket, Kato!




Uncle Woody’s

I remember an old pub
That served beer, and some grub,
Where we gathered at the end of exams,

Where Babette and young Bill
And ol' Clint, Ted, and Chill
Transformed from staid scholars to hams.

We talked much of Marx--
There sometimes were sparks--
While the smoke swirled thick from Barb's Camels.

Kev and Steve hung about,
One with Coke, one with stout,
As we fretted over grad conference panels.

We drank, by accounts,
Ale in copious amounts,
Sometimes walking out with pub glasses.

Too oft some drank more
Than their wits could endure,
Until loudly they showed off their asses!

I confess, more than once,
Having imbibed too much,
I left there in great disarray,

But The Bug was forgiving,
I'm still among the living,
Though I had hell to pay the next day!

And did I mention the Loo,
Where the moldy stuff grew,
And the tiles sometimes got mighty squishy!?!

From that place oft arose
An offense to the nose,
Akin to a dead, rotting fishy!

Though in that Necessary
One did pee in a hurry,
Lest the smell make one lose all one's goodies,

Still it was such good sport,
To carouse and cavort
In the pub known as old Uncle Woody’s!


Photograph temporarily purloined from the Interwebz (I'll put it back, I promise).

20 comments:

Kat Mortensen said...

LOVE this, CL! The squishy tiles made me cringe and the rotting fishy was great!
Loved the Marx and the Camels and your compatriots. WELL done!

You did me proud!

Kat

Rachel Fox said...

Ah, the collective showing of asses...
x

Helen said...

Uncle Woody's! I would have loved spending time here ~ in my crazy youth. Don't know if I could survive it today. Lovely Bus offering ........

SouthLakesMom said...

I'm not sure whether those are the college days I want to be reliving . . . funny how the 'ick' factor didn't seem as obvious back then!

Well done though, evoking an era gone by (we hope!)

Peter Goulding said...

Lovely rhyme and rhythm to this and should really be sung. I was wondering if you could end up with the Uncle Woody's line, but that would put the peeing in the wrong place (Freudian slip) and anyway the hell to pay line is a good one to end on. Great fun

Gerry Snape said...

Brilliant fun and frolics it seems!
Squishy tiles...ugh! the mind boggles!

Carolina Linthead said...

I struggled with out-of-place peeing, Peter. Heh. I couldn't quickly resolve it, so I ended the way I did even though my goal was to end with Uncle Woody's. No energy this weekend, head cold, and a mountain of work, so it is what it is. I actually rewrote the last line after Kat read it...it just wasn't strong enough in my mind.

Louise said...

Fab poem, all madness and mayhem with the requisite dodgy loo! We could all sing Amem to the survival bit!

Carolina Linthead said...

Thanks, all. I moved the Loo to the end, as befitting. We'll let it play this way for awhile.

Niamh B said...

great rhythm and rhyme throughout this and a feeling of many raucous nights.
Sounds like a nice spot

(apart from the loos)

Totalfeckineejit said...

A fun poem that tells a warm tale of too much ale and good times in days gone by. I think I'd like to drink in Uncle Woody's! Fantastico!

altar ego said...

Brilliant! You have quite the way with making me feel like I'm right there in the loo with you. Well, not, you know...

Enchanted Oak said...

I've often drunk more than my wits could endure. What a wonderful way to put it!
You took me back in time to a riotous but hungover place.

Tess Kincaid said...

Copious ale. Sounds like a fine time to me!

Dave King said...

I am full of admiration. You have endeared the place to me. I could grow up there, given the chance. Lovely.

NanU said...

Nifty one, CL. Too bad all my grad committees were too fusty to go out drinking at all! Would have done us some good.

Anonymous said...

vivid capture of life's segments.
well done.

Anonymous said...

Please consider link in 1 to 3 poems to Jingle Poetry Potluck week 14.
We are open and will remain open 24 hours from now and appreciate your submission today...

any poems are welcome.

your talent rocks.
share your poetry today,
stay blessed.

The Daft Laird said...

Those times seem like yesterday
but so far away.

...wait, isn't that a hair metal song?

Carolina Linthead said...

Shave me, wax me, and use me for a surfboard (or something like that)! The Daft Laird has commented! As you say, so far away, and yet so vivid. I dropped by the place a time or two when I was still teaching down there, but it just wasn't the same. Pretty sure the last beer I had in Clifton was at Christy's, instead. *sigh* Here's to good friends, Dafty...that's an old beer commercial, right?