Rallentanda

Rallentanda

Monday, September 20, 2010

Have You Met Ms Joan



Appearing wise,formal,expensively slipper'd
wearing round spectacles on the tip of her
nose,eyes peering out from arched eyebrows
and a cigarette holder in her mouth,it seemed
strange she should honour a questionable justice system
after all the instances of quarrels,oaths,side swipes
allegiance shifts, and treble damaged reputations
Standing at a call to arms like a soldier she would play
her part making numerous entrances and exits never shrinking
from world players,men or women, hosing her disdain for
belly bitching, childish mewling,whining, verbal puking or
woeful sighing

'Double, double toil and trouble;
Fire burn and cauldron bubble'

Unwillingly, she got up very early in the morning
moving at a snail's pace she tripped over a satchel
lying on the floor, cursed her lover, entered the kitchen
cursed her lover again for not putting away the lean shank
and capon torn to shreds, eaten by the dog.
" Are you an infant? This is not fair.It will take ages to
clean this mess."

'Out damned spot! out I say.'

18 comments:

  1. part two is a giggle "cursed her lover again". part one is about as economical as it can get, shy of quoting the word list, and still sane and sharply pointed. your Joan would do quite nicely as one of my honored women. (I can not bring myself to put that "u" in.)

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  2. Joan Rosanove was the first woman barrister in Victoria. The misogynist legal profession at that time said that women should not be barristers because they would be incapable of standing on their feet all day long.I don't know what they thought
    shop girls or female factory workers did.Anyway she was pretty formidable and good luck to her!

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  3. P.S.
    About that" u ". It's time you Americans relented .
    Return to the fold,do the right thing, and adopt the rightful spelling of your forefathers.All is forgiven:)

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  4. Ms Rosanove's photograph could be a still from one of the old Ealing comedies! Must be the name "Joan" that gives your Aussie girls such fire?!

    Love the caption you've put on the pic of Rowan and Joe! R could do with a tidy up.

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  5. The Archbishop needs a fiery Aussie personal assistant. Next time you're at the Palace tell him to give me a call but,I'm not changing my name to Joan.

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  6. Wow, what a story. What some women went through to clear the way for the next generation of girls! The pictures and the captions are terrific. I'd take the scissors to both of those prelates!

    The start of a new chapter of the war memoir is up at http://vivinfrance.wordpress.com/2010/09/21/sleeping-under-the-high-notes/

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  7. You get out of the haiku requirement by being Australian? damn. wonder if there is a hillbilly easement.

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  8. Haiku is not my bag...Like simple lettuce leaves with out loads of rich garlic French dressing.Hai -cooeee is a bush call signalling distress here!Hillbillies don't need easments.Just smash your way through with Jack (Jack Daniels that is.)

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  9. There is a touch of rebellion here, does this come from being upside down? :D

    I love the flow of this place.

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  10. Yep! A constant rush of blood to the head.

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  11. i can feel her frustration in the prose -- you've done a great job of pacing it so it reflects that!

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  12. Thank you Carolee. It is all just chance. I constructed it from a 50 word wordle.These poems write themselves.

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  13. Rall, I enjoyed meeting Joan. Seems she would make mincemeat of many men. There are a few in our government I would like to sic her on. LOL. Oh, and I did enjoy seeing Derrick in the back of the car. I couldn't quite make out who was in the front though. Enjoyable work all around.

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  14. Mary, that is not Kate Moss ( of French Lesson fame ) chaufferring Derrick..that is some ole Aussie sheila chick!

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  15. I like Ms. Joan. Also loved your artwork for Read Write Poem Anthology

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