Gettin' Old

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David Campbell
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Gettin' Old

Post by David Campbell » Sat Jun 24, 2017 10:22 pm

Also in response to Terry, here's one of mine that might strike a chord here and there.

Gettin' Old

© David Campbell

I ain’t a modern sorta bloke, I’m quite set in me ways.
I’m tellin’ yer, an’ it’s no joke, I like the olden days.
I reckon things was easy then, the pace was kinda slow,
with all the wot, the ’ow an’ when, the things we ’ad ter know.

When I was young I knew me place, an’ treated words like gold.
I gave me parents lots of space. an’ did wot I was told.
I fed the chooks an’ chopped the wood, an’ mucked the stables out.
I tried ter ’elp as best I could, so we’d not go without.

I kept me ’ead an’ voice way down, we ’ad ter then because,
with all us kids around the town, that’s just the way it was.
We ’ad our fun an’ messed about, but never ran unchecked,
’cause, come wot may, we ’ad no doubt, we’ ’ad ter show respect.

I worshipped them, me Mum an’ Dad, an’ tried so ’ard ter please,
fer they was gods ter just a lad, an’ did all things with ease.
My parents knew wot made things tick, like ’ow ter get jobs done,
an’ wot ter do when I was sick, an’ ’ow the world was run.

But now it’s kids wot knows the lot, with all them bibs an’ bobs,
like iPads an’ such things they got from workin’ at McJobs.
So when I’m at a flamin’ loss an’ dunno where I’m at,
I turns ter them, ’cause they’re the boss at tellin’ this from that.

Like ’ow ter turn the TV on with that remote control,
an’ why the decent music’s gone, an’ films ’ave lost their soul.
Or ’ow ter use a mobile phone, an’ just wot Twitter is,
or where’s all me testosterone, an’ why is spam a swizz?

I’d like ter use the DVD, but dunno wot ter do;
despite a bloody hour or three I ’aven’t got a clue!
An’ then there’s that darn internet, with cyberspace an’ all,
for Skypin’ people wot we’ve met, an’ Facebook with its Wall.

But though I ’its them flamin’ keys, an’ sits up ’arf the night,
the PC always seems ter freeze…I never gets it right!
Or else me words just disappear, they jump right off the screen,
an’ though I search both far an’ near, they’re gone in that machine!

An’ then there’s passwords, codes an’ PINS, wot we’re supposed ter learn;
I dunno where it all begins…it makes my poor brain burn.
It drives me crazy, all this stuff wot we’re s’posed ter know.
It’s all too quick, I’ve ’ad enough, wot’s wrong with goin’ slow?

I’m gettin’ dumber year by year, an’ though I tries me best,
me brain is fried, an’ soon I fear I won’t pass any test!
So stop the world an’ set me free, while I’ve still got some pride.
You kids go on an’ let me be…I’ve ’ad this crazy ride!

Terry
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Joined: Mon Nov 01, 2010 6:53 pm

Re: Gettin' Old

Post by Terry » Sun Jun 25, 2017 3:32 pm

Just goes to show David that in many cased the the old 14 syllable poem,
is often the best way to tell a good simple bush poetry story - I thought that you nailed that one.

I wonder how many poets realize the importance of the library's on both forums?
Sadly the wonderful old library on Bush verse appears to have been lost much like the earlier one here.
The one on Bush Verse dated back many years and almost every poet who visited the forums over those years,
had poems on it.
It was not unusual to see 35 to 70 visitors on at anyone time; I think the record was in the hundreds.
I notice that since it has become unavailable a few have found their way to this one,
that's why it's important to keep adding to it with as many different poets as possible.
These people are mostly visitors just wanting to read our poetry - at least they were on Bush Verse,
they just came to read, and probably form all over the world.

Terry

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Shelley Hansen
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Re: Gettin' Old

Post by Shelley Hansen » Sun Jun 25, 2017 7:46 pm

Just love it, David! I especially like your mid-line abab rhyme as a parallel to the end rhyme - like a rhyming couplet in stereo! That's a rhyme scheme I haven't used much myself - I must remedy that!

Terry, I agree with you about the importance of our library. It's true that a small percentage of poems disappeared into cyberspace during some maintenance - but fortunately they are preserved in a database version of the forum that had been previously downloaded. So they still exist - and our administrator David Kitchen intends to restore them when he is able. However it is a labour-intensive job and he is very busy with his own work commitments - so we'll just have to be patient.

However, I can assure you that by far the majority of the archived poems are still right here on this forum and can be accessed via the search function. That includes poems by those who are sadly no longer with us.

All sections of the forum are accessible as "read-only" to visitors, without the need to log-in or register.

Cheers
Shelley
Shelley Hansen
Lady of Lines
http://www.shelleyhansen.com

"Look fer yer profits in the 'earts o' friends,
fer 'atin' never paid no dividends."
(CJ Dennis "The Mooch o' Life")

Terry
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Joined: Mon Nov 01, 2010 6:53 pm

Re: Gettin' Old

Post by Terry » Sun Jun 25, 2017 11:33 pm

Hi Shelley

I would be very careful about reintroducing poems from past members without permission.
Some people left this forum quite bitter about the way they felt they were treated.

I've been a member of both forums for about ten years; until recently both forums were happy vibrant places to visit.
Now you can go 3 months here without a single poem being posted in members poetry.

Terry

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Shelley Hansen
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Re: Gettin' Old

Post by Shelley Hansen » Mon Jun 26, 2017 2:00 pm

Hi Terry

Your comments re numbers of poems posted on this site sparked my curiosity, so I took a look at recent stats.

Since 1 January 2017 there have been 17 new poems posted in "ABPA Members Bush Poetry" plus 3 new poems in "Other Users Bush Poetry". So far 25 weeks of this year have gone - to that's 20 new poems in 25 weeks.

Added to that, there have been 24 new poems written and posted in the "Writing Workshop" - almost one per week on average.

In total that adds up to 44 new poems posted on this Forum so far this year - an average of just under 2 per week.

Considering the personal circumstances and absences of several of our regular contributors, that's not too bad, I reckon! You can see by the significant number of views recorded on each post, that people are certainly still dropping by to take a look.

Onward and upward!

Cheers
Shelley :D
Shelley Hansen
Lady of Lines
http://www.shelleyhansen.com

"Look fer yer profits in the 'earts o' friends,
fer 'atin' never paid no dividends."
(CJ Dennis "The Mooch o' Life")

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David Campbell
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Re: Gettin' Old

Post by David Campbell » Tue Jul 18, 2017 3:12 pm

Those stats are interesting, Shelley. And to that list can be added the 10 award-winning poems (including one of Terry's) that have been posted.

Terry: Maureen's homework exercises provide plenty of scope for new poems...why not have a go? The more the merrier!

Cheers
David

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