In Umbleania by the Sea
They use the strangest currency,
Instead of coins they use the seed
Of hippo-eating, purple, weeds.
These seeds, called oops, are five feet tall
And hardly ever seen at all.
Since oops are rare the country's poor,
The King set out to find some more.
The Army searched along the beach,
Where nothing grew within their reach.
The airforce scanned the mountaintops,
Which aren't renowned for heavy crops.
The navy used a submarine
But only found a dolphin bean
(They're long and red and very strange
But only used as pocket change).
So poverty just grew and grew
They needed to do something new.
The King, so wise (his name is Bob),
Decided he could do the job.
He set out in a new decree
A change to local currency;
The oop is out, it's been replaced
By something much less hippo based.
In Umbleania by the Sea
They use the strangest currency;
Instead of oops they use the toes
Of fire breathing bongaloes,
But bongaloes all live elsewhere
And don't have toes they want to share!
Author notes
Um, yes well, you think the economy in other countries is any more sane?
BTW if any of you has a photo of a "hippo-eating, purple weed", an oop or a bongalo I would be very happy to add it as an illustration ...
For those who have never visited this beautiful country, on the borders of Tasmania, Angola and Spain, its name is pronounced Umble-ania the first half rhyming with humble, the second with the ania of Romania. It is a low-lying, landlocked, mountainous country, with an extensive coastline. It is ruled by King Bob XXXXIV.
The bongalo is now rather rare, it is a gangly creature resembling a cross between a two legged bungalow and a banjo, but slightly taller; it has fifteen toes.
The Umbleanian hippo tastes rather like chicken.
For more news from Umbleania try here
In a list
A contest entry
- [almost] anything. by owlish.
900 points, ended May 30, 51 entries
Gold trophy winner
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest - Humor Me by AndrianTimeswift.
800 points, ended July 19, 23 entries
Gold trophy winner
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest - ANYTHING GOES BUT YOU MUST MAKE ME LAUGH by Juno101.
460 points, ended November 29, 94 entries
• next poem in this contest, • Add to finalists list, or remove from contest
Please tell me honestly what you think, good or bad.
Comments
1 - 39 of 39
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This is great and I loved reading it! I love your background here as well. Good luck to you and thanks for sharing it with all of us here!
Jeremy0826 -
My favorite part is the background. It has a weirdness that matches my first impression of the title. Its oddness is the thing that makes this memorable. Also, I appreciate the Author Notes.
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Hahahaha!
This is fantastic! Makes me want to live there, but I'd be concerned for the safety of my seeing-eye hippo.
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I love the hardware! Do they know about your trophies in Umbleania? You could always send them by barn swallow, they love the swim!
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The last line of stanza 4:
"But something much less hippo based."
should the But be changed to "by"?
This is delightfully fluffy and funny! I love the background with it.
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whops, thanks
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lol this made me laugh so much, not only are you super talented with romantic poetry but humourous poetry too! congratulations on the golds they are very well deserved x
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Very nice! This one made me laugh Well done!
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great write
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I enjoyed this! sometimes we need to stop being so serious about the serious stuff and loosen up. You have a great sense of humor, and I find it similar to Seuse. The illustrated background works nicely too!
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What Great Fun
Very like Lewis Carroll. Jaberwakky, snick and snack, things like that. I'll bet your a lot of fun at a party.
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Deserving of the gold... a big oops for us...brilliant write. Blessings.
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Hehehe. Now this was fun. lol.
What a great sense of humor and wit you have.
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FANTASTIC!
This was just simply fantastic, it made me laugh so much!!
And you are probably right, somewhere out there are some wierd little islands not many people know of... who knows how they're coping with the economic crisis!
Thanks so much for brightening my day with your amazing poem.
Keep it up. Jess xxx
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Well done Jeff! Good piece...you deserve the gold!
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Thanks for the entry! It's humorous, and the rhyme and flow is flawless. Thanks for that, too; without the meter, poems can be scary.
For some reason, this reminds me of The Jumblies by Edward Lear. That's a good thing, since I love that poem.
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They went to sea in a sieve they did ...
I can't think of any higher praise for a nonsense verse! Edward Lear is the daddy of all nonsense poets Thanks for the pretty shiny thing
Jeff -
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Lewis Carroll isn't bad himself, although I do prefer Edward Lear. "Beware the Cricketjeff, my son!" Wise words, indeed.
By the way, that 'pretty shiny thing' cost me 400 points. Points that are useless, except for reading contest and laughing at Umbleania's woes. But - correct me if I'm wrong - it's the thought that counts.
- owlish
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Well done.
The ability to bend words to any shape through poetry is frustrating, difficult and mind numbing, but to get it right and to have others see their magic is a feeling of completion, contentment and accomplishment that seeps into the heart and fills it with rejuvenation, good write. -
Very nice
I really enjoyed this, great work
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wow, i really liked this! well-written and fun to read.
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good
well done this is great
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I think I finally understand. This is cryptic secret communication of the illuminati!
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Should have read this first,No worries both pieces stand on their own Extremely enjoyable I love nonsense
Excellent
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indeed..so you.
well done love
Love you
Tory
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BREAKING NEWS: The Popular Front for the Liberation of Umbleania has just staged a coup. The Radio and TV station in the capital have been seized. There are rumours that a vast store of oops has been found below ex-King Bob's palace...
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On a roll here I see-madly funny-love this side of you.
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try this link of a hippo
http://s688.photobucket.com/albums/vv244/xphoenixrisingx/?action=view¤t=pph.jpg -
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Thanks, I've gone for my own rather bad drawing
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LOL -- you quite possibly have re-ignited my muse with this wonderful piece of light verse. You have created an imaginative alternate universe here that anyone can use as a model to create their own fantastic land of peoples and creatures.
LOLer at the author's notes. Your pronunciation reminds me of an old Uriah Heep album - Very 'eavy, Very 'umble - if memory serves. King Bob is a funny name, yet their have been a few aristocratic Roberts that could have wound up as royalty under different circumstances. That brings to mind one of my favorite movies, King Ralph, which, although over-the-top in places, is a fun romp start-to-finish.
Hmmm. Well thanks for the fun late-morning interlude here. This is the sort of poem that is ripe for many more sequels.
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you know, you really have some of the best nonsense verse - I think Edward Lear and Ogden Nash may be a little jealous. . . Those poor people - it must be very difficult having to use oops and the toes of fire-breathing bongaloes for money. . .ah well. Such is life. Good work and good luck, Jeff.
♠ Lady Elinor
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really good, the beginning reminds me of spongebob
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The very best in nonsense poetry I've read since perusing my Ogden Nash stash this early morning.
Write On!
jIM
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This is top class! Though the 4th line could do without the extra commas
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What was in fact missing was the hyphen in hippo-eating, the weeds eat hippos and are purple, hence the commas.
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Oh this is one that will make the audiance listen! Thank you for sharing this with me and I will be sure to give you the feedback in August! I can surely relate to the poor folks who had to go out looking for the Bongaloes' toes. Feels like an endless struggle don't it?
Clappies
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This is just so ... I'm at a loss for words, but I guess, crazy, beautiful, and it really made me smile ... oh, it's very Jeffish!!!!
Loved it
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