Poetry, Jingles, Doggerel and Song Lyrics

[pete9012S]

Houses reads to me like it could have been written by Enid Blyton - great pome - sorry poem!

[Anita Bensoussane]

It does sound a bit Blytonian!

Sorry you're losing some of your beautiful view, Boodi.

[Boatbuilder]

That really is a lovely poem, Anita.

I'm also sorry to learn of the building that is going to be happening near to you Boodi. How long have you lived there?

It reminded me of something that happened to us when we moved from Liverpool to Cheltenham in the mid 1970's. When we moved we were able to buy our first house on the north-west outskirts of the town, but which actually came under Tewkesbury (a nearby town) council and not Cheltenham. The house we bought, which was a new-build which hadn't been started when we paid our deposit, backed onto the River Chelt and the garden went all the way down to the river which, although only a few metres wide, was quite a novelty for us - our own built-in water feature.

On the other side of the river was a huge field and in the distance was the main GCHQ to the south-west of the town. However, within a year of moving into the house there was suddenly a lot of activity on the field and before we knew it, a large council estate sprung up - part of Cheltenham council.

Whilst it was a pleasant enough estate, we lost that country view we had come to enjoy. What we can't understand is why we were never informed that there were plans to build on that field when we bought the house as there must have been plans for it in existence at that time.

Were you consulted before the planning permission was given? Obviously, I don't know how things work along those lines in Germany.

[pete9012S]

• The Frost
  by Tzuh Yeh

• Young man,
  Seize every minute
  Of your time.
  The days fly by;
  Ere long you too
  Will grow old.

• If you believe me not,
  See there, in the courtyard,
  How the frost
  Glitters white and cold and cruel
  On the grass
  That once was green.

How true this poem posted by our old friend is...

[Boodi 2]

Thanks Boatbuilder!
I have lived here since our permanent move from Ireland to Germany in 2002, but it is my husband's family home, built by his parents in the early 1950s.

Nobody ever imagined that the site in question would be built on as it is very prone to flooding. A group of residents (including ourselves) made several objections to the proposed development, mainly on the basis of the increase in traffic in these narrow roads, but to no avail . If I could master how to upload photos I could send one of the previous view on the day a deer paid us a visit!!!

[Courtenay]

• The Frost
  by Tzuh Yeh

• Young man,
  Seize every minute
  Of your time.
  The days fly by;
  Ere long you too
  Will grow old.

• If you believe me not,
  See there, in the courtyard,
  How the frost
  Glitters white and cold and cruel
  On the grass
  That once was green.

How true this poem posted by our old friend is...

But as frost always melts and grass grows back, I'd argue that it's not a very accurate metaphor.

[pete9012S]

From The Beatles to Shakespeare in one easy leap!!

One of my favourite poems is by Willie:

When icicles hang by the wall
And Dick the shepherd blows his nail
And Tom bears logs into the hall,
And milk comes frozen home in pail;
When blood is nipt and ways be foul,
Then nightly sings the staring owl
Tuwhit! Tuwhoo! A merry note!
While greasy Joan doth keel the pot.

When all around the wind doth blow,
And coughing drowns the parson's saw,
And birds sit brooding in the snow,
And Marian's nose looks red and raw;
When roasted crabs hiss in the bowl,
Then nightly sings the staring owl
Tuwhit! Tuwhoo! A merry note!
While greasy Joan doth keel the pot.

(Love's Labour's Lost - Act V, Scene 2)

Great previous poem from Rob.

[pete9012S]

Staying with Shakey:

Sonnet 138

When my love swears that she is made of truth
I do believe her, though I know she lies,
That she might think me some untutor’d youth,
Unlearned in the world’s false subtleties.
Thus vainly thinking that she thinks me young,
Although she knows my days are past the best,
Simply I credit her false speaking tongue:
On both sides thus is simple truth suppress’d.
But wherefore says she not she is unjust?
And wherefore say not I that I am old?
O, love’s best habit is in seeming trust,
And age in love loves not to have years told:
Therefore I lie with her and she with me,
And in our faults by lies we flatter’d be.

[Boodi 2]

It does sound a bit Blytonian!

Sorry you're losing some of your beautiful view, Boodi.

Thanks Anita! Here come some photos of the previous view (including a deer that used to visit) and the "devastation" of the site since then. Credit and thanks to Boatbuilder for helping me to upload the photos, as I would not have managed on my own.

[Boatbuilder]

That's a lovely spot you live in, Boodi. It's such a shame that your view is going to be spoilt this year. Hopefully it won't be too much of an eye-sore.

It was no problem helping you with the pictures. You are most welcome.

[Boodi 2]

Thanks again Boatbuilder! The view to the right of the present photos is even more spectacular as it encompasses fields, after which there are orchards and then the forest. However, when I took the photos with my Smartphone I was concentrating on depicting the development opposite. I fear that our view will be ruined as the proposed apartment blocks will be four stories high. We initially thought that the development would consist of terraced houses, similar to those built on a neighbouring road, but no such luck! We have actually considered moving, as apart from the new development our present house is really too large and is also in need of renovation. A move closer to Stuttgart would mean a shorter commute for my husband and we would also be closer to our son. However, the house prices in the Stuttgart area are crazy at the moment and show no sign of going down, so I expect we will just have to make the best of it !!!

[Katharine]

Boodi, what a shame about the new development that is taking place, especially as it involves the loss of allotments.

Near where I live is a large area of farmland, now it has been sold for a development of over 3,000 dwellings, so that will mean housing at least 6,000 people.

Our local paper today carried a story that the development will include 'a country park'. I frustrated to the point of tears. All that land that should be used to grow crops to feed us is going to be buried under concrete, with just a token bit of green area.

Our local hospital is already bursting at the seams, and all the local schools are oversubscribed. Last I heard, Ipswich had one of the higher rates of unemployment - they made a TV documentary about it. The road that will lead out of the housing area is already close to gridlock in the mornings, so I don't know how it will cope with all those extra cars every day.

I watched a couple of documentaries recently about how this country struggled during the two wars because we rely so heavily on imported food, and yet we are still building on agricultural land. At this rate we won't be able to grow anything ourselves as it will all be houses.

[Boatbuilder]

I don't want to keep this thread 'off-topic' but I hope it all works out well for you Boodi, whatever you do as far as moving is concerned. Do property prices ever go down in Germany? Occasionally there might be a fall here (like there was once in the mid-late 1990's) but then that is soon wiped out by greater increases. Since then prices have probably increased by over 400% where I live.

Katharine, it never ceases to amaze me how they continue to build these large estates but never seem to create jobs for the number of people they are likely to house. An estimated 6,000 extra people in Ipswich is almost a 4.5% increase on its current population. Similarly in Lowestoft they are planning a new development north of the town for 1,300 new homes but there are no jobs for maybe up to 3,000 extra people. That is about the same percentage increase as the Ipswich one, based on our population size. When that was announced in early January, there was a similar development announced for Mildenhall at the same time.

[Boodi 2]

The road that will lead out of the housing area is already close to gridlock in the mornings, so I don't know how it will cope with all those extra cars every day.

Although I am guilty of moving very far off topic, I just had to say that the point Katherine made about the extra cars is identical to the situation here, which is already chaotic. Every household seems to have two (if not three) cars and most of them are parked at the side of the road or on the footpath, which makes things very difficult and was our main objection to the development. The land in question was also classified as "prime agricultural land", so it really is a shame and some of the people who had allotments are absolutely heartbroken .

[pete9012S]

Don't worry Boodi - I'm sure we can get this thread back on topic.

Traffic Jam

Cars of silver, red, and blue
Motorbikes and buses too
Put them in your biggest pan
Stir them with a caravan

Measure sugar – half a cup
Next a lorry, broken up
Petrol, or perhaps some oil
Carefully begin to boil

Simmer for an hour at most –
Traffic jam to spread on toast!