Wednesday, October 31, 2012

ABC Wednesday—P is for "pelican"

O, a wondrous bird is the pelican!
His bill holds more than his belican.
He can take in his beak
Enough food for a week.
But I'm damned if I see how the helican.
—Dixon Lanier Merritt, The Pelican [1910]

I've seen this clever limerick attributed to Ogden Nash
and also to Edward Lear. But credit where it's due:
Merritt was a newspaperman, poet, and humorist
(and if Bartlett's says he wrote it . . . case closed).

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

12 comments:

  1. I agree it is indeed a wondrous bird..

    PhenoMenon, ABCW Team

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  2. an optimistic creature - yes, he can!
    ROG, ABC Wednesday team

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  3. A great billionaire American
    From the famous Valley Silicon
    Built a yacht for the sea
    But for beauty give me
    Alexa’s pic of the pelican

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  4. I look at pelicans and see cartoons. They are such comical souls. And very cute.

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  5. What a wonderful photo! (And I'm glad you seem to have weathered the terrible storm in good shape, hope the pelicans and other birds did as well!)

    When I was 14, my grandmother typed up a collection of her favorite quotes and poems in a little notebook for me (which I added to till I had two notebooks full, and then my computer took over the job of storing more!) "The Pelican" was always a favorite of hers, and she typed it into my notebook. I just looked it up, and am pleased to say that she credited it correctly! :-)

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  6. Whoa, a stunner! And if I'm not mistaken, Lily has a pelican today, too!

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  7. Pretty pelican! and a great shot for the theme.

    P is for...

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  8. Beautiful photo. I enjoyed the limerick.

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  9. Your photo fits the poem perfectly!

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  10. I don’t know which I like watching best: pelicans skimming over the surface of the sea or dive bombing.

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  11. TG -- I'm casting my vote for dive-bombing!

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Thanks, merci, grazie, danke, hvala, gracias, spasibo, shukran, dhanyavaad, salamat, arigato, and muito obrigado for your much-appreciated comments.