Tuesday, September 4, 2007

Do I have to?

I cannot go to school today,"
Said little Peggy Ann McKay,

"I have the measles and the mumps,
A gash, a rash, and purple bumps.
My mouth is wet, my throat is dry,
I'm going blind in my right eye.

My tonsils are as big as rocks,
I've counted sixteen chicken pox
And there's one more--that's seventeen,
And don't you think my face looks green?

My leg is cut, my eyes are blue--
It might be instamatic flu.
I cough and sneeze and gasp and choke,
I'm sure that my left leg is broke--
My hip hurts when I move my chin,
My belly button's caving in,
My back is wrenched, my ankle's sprained,
My 'pendix pains each time it rains.

My nose is cold, my toes are numb,
I have a sliver in my thumb.

My neck is stiff, my voice is weak,
I hardly whisper when I speak.

My tongue is filling up my mouth,
I think my hair is falling out.

My elbow's bent, my spine ain't straight,
My temperature is one-o-eight.

My brain is shrunk, I cannot hear,
There is a hole inside my ear.

I have a hangnail, and my heart is--what?

What's that? What's that you say?

You say today is---Saturday?

G'bye, I'm going out to play!"

-Shel Silverstein

It's not Saturday, it's a real deal school/work/wake up early day and I wish you the very best dealing with it.

I sure need all the encouragement I can muster about now, apparently so does little Lola :)

10 comments:

Gary said...

Meanwhile, if you look closely at the larger version of the photo, Lola is sticking her tongue out, just a little bit. Very sneaky...

Amanda Jean said...

happy first day of school! what grade do you teach?

we have orientation today and then first full day of school (with the first bus ride ever!) tomorrow. it's good to be able to ease into things. :)

Lola looks remarkably similar to a dog that I had growing up.

Lindsay Blau Portnoy said...

Gary-
She is the cutest pup ever, huh? We are the luckiest.

AmandaJean-
I'm finishing up a phd and teaching a masters course this fall. I used to teach 2nd grade but this will be a whole new ballgame. One word: OY!
p.s. how's your little guys tongue?

Colleen said...

Shel is one of my favorite's too!

indicaspecies said...

A beautiful and entertaining poem by Shel! I wish you happy days at school.

david mcmahon said...

Wonderful. My sort of humour.

Anonymous said...

Hello Professor and almost Doctor Portnoy,

Have a great first day of school...I hope you have a new trapper keeper:)Love you!!!!!!
Dad

Lindsay Blau Portnoy said...

Colleen-
Lola or Shel? Either way, I'm a big fan of both :) Thank you for stopping by!

David-
I'm glad you got a kick out of the poem! I loved the photos you posted of the purple flowers the other day and hope your blog continues to feature the spring as our country heads into winter.

Indicaspecies-
Thank you for the well wishes and thank you for stopping by! It's fun to see a new face!

Joey111-
Thank you for the well wishes, dad! It was a lovely first day, I hope the kiddies enjoy my lecture as much as I enjoyed learning about psychometric theory...

Helene said...

What a cute pup! Good luck back at school!

Anonymous said...

Ok, so Lola is a beauty...so, equal time for her brother...where is Smokey?

Hope teaching is a fun experience. How many apples have piled onto your desk by now???

I am so proud of you!!!

xox

mama b